EWC Armenia 2022 | FAQ
EWC is open to creative and innovative startups anywhere on the entrepreneurship spectrum. With categories and prizes for Idea Stage, Early Stage, and Growth Stage ventures, the EWC customizes the accelerator resources available and ensures that competitions are conducted on equal footing and for all industries.
A Startup is a team of entrepreneurial talent developing new innovations, in identifiable and investable form, in progress to validate and capture the value of the created innovation - with ambition to grow fast with scalable business model for maximum impact.
The definitions of the startup stages at EWC are based on the Lean Startup methodology and are articulated as below:
- Idea Stage startups are those startups that are still in their very initial stages of startup creation and building a team and are focused on validation of their ‘Problem-Solution Fit’.
- Early Stage startups are those startups who have already passed their initial validation, have developed an MVP, and are getting some initial traction. Thus, they are focused on validation of their ‘Product-Market Fit’.
- Growth Stage startups are those startups who have finalized their validation processes and are looking for serious investment and a wider network to facilitate their exponential scaling beyond the current market through customer acquisition and revenue growth.
EWC is open to all entrepreneurs – including those focused on starting and scaling social ventures.
Team members must be at least 18 years old except if applying to the Idea Stage category. There is NO age restriction for the Idea Stage category.
EWC is focused on startups in the first seven (7) years of existence. Startups must be less than seven years old at the date of the Global Finals (Nov. 2022).
No. The participation is free of charge.
Certainly! Immediately after your registration on the EWC global platform, you will get access to about $1K worth of free services defined by the organizer. Also, as soon as you finalize and submit your application on the platform, you will get access to a pool of about $25K in-kind benefits. So, please do not forget to get your perks after the EWC registration and submission!
As long as your startup has not been an EWC Armenia 2021 National Winner, you are welcome to submit your application for this year’s National Qualifier.
Founders of multiple companies including ones older than seven years may participate if their applicant startup is less than seven years old.
Yes. Applicant startups must be legally registered OR planning to register in their country of residence. The National Winner(s) should be registered in Armenia to be introduced for participation in the EWC Group Stage. Also, all winners of the EWC Armenia 2022 National Finals should be registered in Armenia to receive their prizes.
All the applications should be submitted through the EWC Global Platform.
The deadline for EWC Armenia 2022 is July 5, by 11:59 PM. Do not miss the opportunity to submit your application on time and register now. Applications are reviewed and screened on an ongoing basis. So we encourage participants to complete and submit their applications as early as possible to avoid disqualification because of missing information.
Those countries who have an EWC National Organizer, organize a chain of national startup competitions to select their representative startup for the global competition. This process is called the National Qualifier. In Armenia, we will have two main competition stages for the participant startups: National Semifinals and National Finals.
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National Qualifier |
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Global Competition |
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Verticals are those specialty fields that a startup is affiliated with. Startups should choose one or more affiliated verticals during the application process. However, it is suggested that you choose no more than two most relevant verticals for your startups. In the initial stage of the evaluation process startups will be judged only based on their submitted applications and in their selected verticals. So, please pay attention to the selection of your startup’s verticals.
The main 14 verticals defined in the platform are the following:
- Big Data/AI
- Saas/Enterprise Software
- Blockchain
- IoT
- Mobile
- VR/AR
- Cleantech
- EdTech/Learning & Talent
- Security
- FinTech
- Media & Entertainment
- Health & Wellness
- FoodTech and AgTech
- Robotics
However, if you will not find your startup’s relevant vertical in the predefined list of the verticals in the platform, please choose ‘Does Not Apply/Other’ and mention your preferred one(s).
Yes, the National Leadership Committee has designed cash and in-kind prizes for the EWC Armenia 2022 National Winner(s) and each of the Idea, Early and Growth stages winners. The exact amount of the overall prize fund will be announced soon.
EWC is more than just a global pitch competition. However, it's still a competition, and yes, there are prizes – life-changing prizes. More than US$1 million total in prizes, in addition to investment opportunities, visibility, network, access to markets, and more than US$10 million in in-kind services for the top EWC 100.
English is the official language of the EWC at the global level. Applications must be completed in English and the EWC Global Finals will be conducted exclusively in English.
After the submission of startup applications, the National Organizer will screen all the submissions to become sure that the startups have completed the applications properly. Those applications which will miss important data will NOT enter the actual competition. In very rare cases, the National Organizer, in coordination with the EWC Global Platform, will be able to open an application for just a few hours to give the applicant the chance to review and complete the missed data. Thus, it is highly recommended to double-check the application before submitting it. Also, please note that submitting the application before the deadline will considerably increase your chances of getting one of these rare review cases.
Both National Semifinals and National Finals will be held in Yerevan, Armenia. The venues will be finalized and communicated at least one week before each event.
Both qualifier competition stages will be live, face-to-face competitions. While the National Semifinals will be a private event for the semifinalists and the assigned jury, the National Finals will be a public event with attendees from the entrepreneurial ecosystem of Armenia and will be live-streamed through the EWC global network.
It is possible that in some countries, based on the number of applicants and other factors, more than one National Winner will be selected to advance. For the time being, Armenia has just one allocated space in the Group Stage of EWC 2022. The final number of the Armenian representatives in the Group Stage will be announced in late July by GEC, the Global Host. Based on our last year’s experience, we hope that this year too we will be able to get at least two slots in the Group Stage for Armenia.
Local and international jury members will judge all the pitches during the EWC Armenia 2022 National Finals and the winners will be announced on the same day of the competition.
Yes. In the two initial stages of EWC - i.e., National Qualifier and Group Stage - startups will be assessed from four main directions, abbreviated as the EWC Evaluation 4Ps:
- Product (30%) | This direction evaluates the customer validation, the articulation of the value proposition of the startup, the uniqueness of the product, the potential existence of any intellectual property, and the organic traction.
- Potential (25%) | This direction evaluates the attractiveness of the targeted market, the competitive advantage of the startup, the alignment with growing market opportunities and trends, and the potential for getting significant market share.
- Predictability (20%) | This direction evaluates the business model of the startup, its scalability, and its potential for sustainable economic growth.
- People (25%) | This direction evaluates the core team members (the founders) of the startup, their knowledge, experience, track record, and ability to attract and retain talent.
The weight of the components of each of these four directions varies based on the stage of the startup. Consequently, the evaluation of an Idea Stage startup will be different from an Early stage startup.
The jury members for the National Qualifier are being selected by the EWC Armenia National Leadership Committee (the National Organizer and the sIx National Co-organizers) from local and international experts.
The EWC Accelerates provides on-demand virtual content from an array of knowledge partners, and it's available on the EWC platform upon registration. It is completely free and contestants have the chance to sharpen their skills and abilities before they compete on-stage – whether in the EWC National Qualifiers, EWC Group Stage, or EWC Global Finals.
While participation in EWC Accelerates is not a mandatory requirement in countries where there is a National Final organizer for judging and assessment, it is highly encouraged for all entrants.
After the EWC Armenia 2022 National Finals, the National Winner(s) will be registered for the Group Stage by EPIC, the National Organizer. They will compete in the EWC Group Stage through a Virtual Bootcamp and direct, one-to-one mentorship. All Group Stage participants will be reviewed and assessed based on due diligence. Out of the large pool of contestants (400+ startups), the top 100 startups from all stages will be announced as the EWC 100 and will pitch at the EWC Global Finals. Thus, being a National Winner does NOT guarantee to pitch at the EWC 2022 Global Finals.
The Global Finalists will be scored and ranked on a variety of variables including:
- Due Diligence
- Pitch Deck and/or Video Pitch
- Quality of the Group Stage and Virtual Bootcamp deliverables
- Feedback from mentors
The global finals will be held in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, in November 2022.
The EWC Global Finals in Riyadh is a culmination of a year-long search to find some of the most promising entrepreneurs all over the world. The Finals is a three-day event that will feature a series of pitches as well as opportunities to meet investors from all over the world.
Glossary
- National Leadership Committee
- Idea Stage
- Early Stage
- Growth Stage
- Vertical
- EWC Accelerates
- Screening
- National Qualifier
- National Semifinals
- National Finals
- National Winner
- In-kind prizes
- Group Stage
- Global Platform
- Global Finals
- Global Finalist
- EWC 100