LAHORE: Pakistan’s first ever Internet of Things (IoT) based Hackathon successfully concluded by Telenor Velocity in Lahore on 5th May. The two day event brought together innovators, key industry players, startups and experts to witness and participate in the historic event where Telenor Velocity partnered with Plan9 and DIY Geeks to provide passionate developers the opportunity to innovate and present one click digitized solutions for everyday problems.
The IoT Hackathon took place at Arfa Software Technology Park, the province’s hub of technological innovation. At the event Waqar Nayyar, Head of IoT at Telenor Pakistan, introduced the new IoT Platform and IOT products to the participants along with sharing Telenor Pakistan’s vision of fostering a digital revolution in the country and the company’s extraordinary initiatives in the IOT ecosystem. Hackathon was attended by Ayub Ghauri – CEO Netsol, Ather Osama – Member Science & Technology and ICT at Planning Commission, Kashif Moin – CEO Zigron, Barkan Saeed – Chairman P@SHA, Dr. Umar Saif – Chairman PITB, Burhan Rasool – GM PITB, Atif Mumtaz, Director PITB and officials from Telenor Pakistan and Plan9.
Speaking at the event, Dr. Saad Ghazanfar Kiani, Head of Digital Partnerships, Telenor Pakistan said, “Telenor Pakistan has always been at the forefront of digital innovation and technology in the country and firmly believes in its power to deliver greater empowerment for our societies. The IoT Hackathon is Telenor Pakistan’s investment in the future and we hope to bring great minds together to build it.”
Innovators were invited from across the country for the Hackathon to devise innovative solutions for day to day problems and promote socioeconomic progress and wellbeing. Participating developers pitched their ideas before a panel of judges on the last day while they worked collaboratively to bring the products and solutions to life over the past two days. Their ideas were mentored by top-industry experts, developers, and investors to help them leverage the full potential of Telenor’s IoT platform for potential up scaling.
The judges panel comprised of Sophia Hasnain – CEO linked things, Faizan & Arsalan – co-founders Wattie.io, Ehtisham Rao – CEO and founder ServUp, Usama – CEO DIYGeeks, Waqar Nayyar – Head of IoT, Telenor Pakistan – Dr. Adnan Jabbar, Consultant IoT and Muhammad Azm Saeed Dar, Head of IoT partner solutions. The panel evaluated pitched ideas and reviewed finished products to announce the winners. ‘Smart Mirror’ was declared the winner of the event and secured a slot in Telenor Velocity’s next cohort along with prize money of PKR 125,000. ‘JF Labs’ and ‘Design IT’ were announced as the runner ups who received prize money of PKR 50,000 and PKR 25,000.
Telenor Pakistan will continue to work with the winners of the Hackathon to help them refine and scale their products and solutions. The event also provided developers the opportunity to connect with similar startups, likeminded entrepreneurs and investor for potential future collaborations.
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