26 October 2019, Doha – Qatar:The Ministry of Transport and Communications (MoTC) has unveiled the Innovation Theatre for the upcoming Qatar IT Conference and Exhibition (QITCOM 2019). The Innovation Theatre will witness the best startup presentations, keynote speakers, and discussions about the latest smart solutions driving global digitization.

Under QITCOM 2019 theme ‘Safe, Smart Cities’, the Innovation Theatre will be located at the heart of the Entrepreneurship Zone within the MoTC Zone, where audiences will listen to and learn from upcoming and established entrepreneurs. The Innovation Theatre will host 30 sessions including 8 keynotes, 9 panels and 6 pitch sessions comprising of 100 pitches overall. Apart from innovation theater , the entrepreneurship zone includes 4 more programs , IdeaCamp, CodeCamp, Make the Deal and Startup Hub, wherein selected start-ups and winners from each of the programs will present their final pitches to a panel of judges at the innovation theater.

The first day will be a combination of keynotes, panels and IdeaCamp and CodeCamp pitch sessions, and winners announcments. The second day will focus on IdeaCamp, the third day will include Make the Deal pitches and the last day will witness a special pitch session, followed by the Startup Hub awards ceremony.

More than 30 keynote and panel speakers will be discussing Safe, Smart Cities, the Future of Service Delivery, Emerging Technologies and Future Landscapes, Breaking Barriers: Lessons from Women Entrepreneurs, Megatrends and the Three Things that Truly Matter for Investors.

Ibrahim Al Mannai, Executive Director of Advisor and Incubation at Qatar Development Bank; Sachin Kumar, Founding Team Member and CTO – TupeloLife and Head of Google Developer Group (GDG), Doha and Dr. Tejinder Singh, Founder of Q-Tickets and 360 Nautica, will be among the forty-five key speakers at QITCOM 2019.

Other speakers include Ahmad Al Mutawa, Founder, Mubaader Services, Eva Kaili, MEP, European Parliament, Dr. Miguel Eiras Antunes, Global Smart Cities & Local Government Leader, Deloitte, Rizwan Hussain, Government, Industry Leader, IBM Middle East, David Suarez, Partner, People & Organisation, Leader, Middle East, PwC.

While the Innovation Theatre will primarily attract, promote and exhibit talented digital entrepreneurs, it also expects families and students to attend the sessions and acts as a platform to share innovative ideas, experiences and success stories. Prior to the final pitch, participants will be mentored by global experts to help them transform ideation pitches into scalable business ideas.

Each team and start-up will be given the opportunity to pitch their business idea or solution to a panel of judges. Some of the awards include incubation offers, projects, awards and funding.

The Innovation Theatre is part of the Entrepreneurship Zone, which is dedicated to encouraging startups, business leaders and entrepreneurs to develop innovative pitches, prototypes and digital solutions for Qatar’s smart future. It supports novice entrepreneurs to work on their business ideas through hackathons, mentorship programs, tailored matchmaking and pitch sessions.

Duha Ali Al-Buhendi, the Digital Incubation Centre Manager, said, “Following the success of the previous Innovation Theatre programs, we are delighted to witness this year’s unique pitches. Innovation Theatre is an incredibly rewarding opportunity for aspiring entrepreneurs to fulfill their ambitions of being a part of the Digital Incubation Centre (DIC) and achieving reputable business offers.”

H.E. Reem Al Mansoori, Assistant Undersecretary for the Digital Society Development Sector at the Ministry of Transport and Communications, commented, “QITCOM has previously offered funding opportunities to startups and has ignited innovative ideas by teams such as Modaris, EXdensity, Game of Brands, Wahm and Media Gate. This year, we expect to see even more innovative ideas from local and global startups as this is an incredible opportunity for them to access global smart city experts, as they create a marketplace for digital innovation.”

QITCOM 2019 is looking to host local and international participants, who will have the opportunity to take part in the Entrepreneurship Zone activities including CodeCamp, IdeaCamp, Make the Deal and Startup Hub. Participants can register on the QITCOM 2019 website to be a part of Qatar’s largest ICT showcase yet.

QITCOM 2019 is dedicated to expediting the development of safe, smart city in Qatar. Through its mission to connect smart technology with entrepreneurs, investors and large audiences to create a knowledge-based economy and to promote the use of smart technology effectively and safely, QITCOM has proven to be a hub for innovation and digital advancements.