AppWorks is one of the most important accelerators in Taiwan, making their Demo Days a big deal in the country

AppWorks is the premiere accelerator programme in Taiwan. The company now has a US$50 million investment fund and has put money into companies like EZ Table and Kuo Brothers — two Taiwanese startups that have really taken off.

The Demo Day is the culmination of a 6-month programme and with 14 batches, the AppWorks alumni network consists of 780 Founders and 320 active startups.

In this latest batch, almost all of the companies hailed from outside of Taiwan and include companies from Hong Kong, Malaysia, Singapore and South Korea.

Let’s meet the startups!

Booqed — Hong Kong

This startup turns your company’s office into a co-working space. It wants tenants to utilise their extra space by renting it out to individuals or tiny startups. People who are looking for a more affordable rental option — but don’t want to visit cafes — can use Booqed to find a spare desk in an office.

The company targets business travellers, entrepreneurs, freelancers and event planners. The whole process can be done on a mobile app and it operates in Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur, Hong Kong, Shenzhen and Singapore.

CoverGo — Hong Kong

CoverGo wants to help improve customer service in the insurance sector. It consolidates insurance policies into one centralised location so people can easily understand their portfolio.

The startup then connects people with insurance advisors so they can ask questions. The second feature also helps advisors improve customer engagement and experience. The company does not sell insurance.

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CoverGo also has a whole bunch of articles (mainly in Chinese) for people to educate themselves.

Qourier — Singapore

Qourier’s name fits its service perfectly. The Singaporean startup is a courier company that connects businesses with a network of freelancers for deliveries. So for companies that may not operate in a logistics-heavy industry, but need to deliver something across town, this is an excellent option.

The whole company is app-based and people can check their delivery status and check-in with drivers to make sure packages reach their destination. It is a same-day delivery company meant for short distances like within a city.

Micepad — Singapore

Micepad is an events management SaaS product that offers software solutions as companies host, then analyse, an event. It has tools for pre-event marketing, live audience engagement, online networking analytics and even gamification.

The company is live in cities across the world stretching from North America to Asia and Europe. Micepad customises is products to the client and adjusts its services to fit their needs.

Cytron Technology — Malaysia

A Malaysian marketplace for DIY electronics components. Its the perfect website for kids who want to build their own robots and while they can purchase any of the items individually, the site also has kits so they are guaranteed to build something cool.

It sells items like miniature wheels, circuit boards, sensors and motors. For the hardcore builders, they can choose items based on their favourite brands.

StickerHD — Taiwan

Everyone loves stickers, and across the startup world it is very common to run across laptops covered in colourful decals. StickerHd lets people customise their stickers. A set of 5 costs about US$15.

The company says the stickers are sun-resistant and waterproof and can be delivered across Asia in about 7 days.

FBbuy — Taiwan

In Taiwan, Facebook Live has become a popular channel for infomercials and people often buy goods via the social media giant.

Someone has to fulfil those orders and FBbuy wants to be that company. The help merchants with order collection to help them bridge the gap between social media and e-commerce.

Shouhan — South Korea

Shouhan is a mobile-based language learning app for people who want to learn Korean. It works a bit like Udemy in the sense that it outsources teachers who are incentivised to use the platform because they receive a chunk of the lesson fee.

It has niched the product so the language lessons are tailored specifically towards the typical Korean lifestyle. It mixes lessons like video classes with 1-on-1 native speaking tutors.

Codibook — South Korea

Codibook is an online fashion e-commerce site. The typical price for an item ranges from US$20 to US$100 and it boasts dozens of brands.

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The startup calls itself, an “online customized shopping service that boasts the most members and content in South Korea’s fashion sector”.

Botimize

Botimize is an analytics service that is focussed only on a company’s chatbots. It tracks metrics like total conversations, messages and average time of conversations. It also performs conversational analytics so business owners can see the words that their customers are talking about.

The platform boasts a smooth-looking backend so companies are can quickly navigate and find actionable data.

Mr. Reply — Hong Kong

Want to incorporate a chatbot but don’t know how to code? (Or don’t want to dedicate the resources necessary?). Mr. Reply is here. The company has built a chatbot-building service so marketers and small-business owners can set up a chatbot.

The company is probably not targetting the average tech company, but rather those more traditional companies who think building a chatbot is a waste of energy.

Origami Labs — Hong Kong

This company has built a ring called ORII that lets people take calls using just their fingers. It leverages on the vibrations from the earbone to enhance how people talk. People wear the ring, and when the get a call on their phone, instead of picking up the phone and putting it to their ears, they use a finger, press on their lobe and start talking.

This neat Kickstarter page has a longer video to explain the product in more detail.

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