JFDI Asia launches innovation campus, invites entrepreneurs to join as members and residents
Singapore based accelerator JFDI Asia has just launched the Joyful Frog, a 4,800 sq ft innovation campus. Founders, funders, freelancers, and friends of innovative business are invited to join as members and residents.
The campus offers seasoned entrepreneurs a home-from-home to meet, work, and relax alongside first-timers, international mentors and teams selected for JFDI Asia’s prestigious accelerator program.
The Joyful Frog will offer memberships and a limited number of residences.
So here’s what you get as a Joyful Frog member:
Unlimited signature drinks from a full-time barista
Access to meeting rooms for work and discussions
Priority access to a program of seminars and events
Automatically become general members of the TiE, the world’s largest entrepreneurship organization, with instant access to a network of 13,000 other achievers in 61 cities across 17 countries
The Joyful Frog’s first official individual resident is Hian Goh, creator of the Asian Food Channel, also an early investor in Chope.com which raised funding last week. Other than Hian Goh, TiE Singapore is the innovation campus’ first corporate resident.
Read also: 8 startups accepted into JFDI.Asia’s second bootcamp, female entrepreneur participation doubles
The innovation campus is the brainchild of Wong Meng Weng, Co-founder and Social Engineer at JFDI.Asia. Wong believes that bringing the right people together is the key to fostering innovation, wealth and prosperity. He previously co-founded Singapore’s very first co-working community Hackerspace.
“We’re building a new kind of academy. MBA schools teach workers to climb the corporate ladder; at JFDI.Asia, entrepreneurs learn to build much earlier-stage businesses by discovering and engaging with customers. We offer start-up founders an experiential education because, in the era of the Internet, the ‘know-what’ facts traditionally taught in formal education effectively come for free. Success now depends on other, very human factors: ‘know-how’ and ‘know-who.’ The Joyful Frog is a place to share insights, connection and mentoring face to face.” – Wong Meng Weng
The innovation campus starts from a solid foundation. So far 60% of the companies passing through JFDI.Asia’s flagship 100 day ideas-to-investment program have raised funding totalling S$3.9 million (US$3.12 million). Along the way they have created over 40 high-value jobs in Singapore.
Hugh Mason, CEO of JFDI.Asia, said the value here is in helping aspiring startups with their execution. “The Joyful Frog is a place where people don’t just talk about the future – they make it happen. Visitors value the inspirational people they meet here because of the open culture and the fact that some of our residents are willing to back their advice with cash is very unusual. There is nowhere else quite like the Joyful Frog in Southeast Asia. We now have a community of several thousand around the region who ask us to consider expansion to their countries too if the campus concept succeeds.”
Individuals and companies interested to learn more about joining the Joyful Frog are welcome to write to info@jfdi.asia. The Joyful Frog also holds an open house event every Friday at 5:30 P.M. when anyone is welcome to visit.
Read also: Golden Gate Ventures and JFDI.Asia team up to fund and support digital startups
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