More Croatian innovation success in Zagreb.
Startup Amodo has won the Zagreb Connect competition with its system Amodo Connected Analytics, which is already used by 17,000 drivers in Europe and the USA which have so far driven more than two million kilometers, reports Poslovni.hr on November 15, 2015.
Gorjan Agačević, director of Amodo, said they have three clients who are already paying for the use of their system, and four additional clients who are testing it. He added that Amodo Connected Analytics is a system which on the one hand analyzes driver’s behavior in traffic, which is valuable information for insurance companies, and on the other hand actively encourages drivers to be safer and more effective. “Amodo Connected Analytics make the insurance business more tangible, more interesting and ultimately more useful. We came up with the idea while working on a project for Volvo, where we were first introduced to the concept of networked cars”, Agačević said. His winning team is comprised of Hrvoje Bandov, Bruno Blažinč, Nikola Horvat, Ivana Mrazović, Ozren Crnogorac, Vladimir Končar, and Damir Plejić.
The second place was awarded to Smart Lumies startup, which is made of Filip Kovačić Popov, Martina Grgić and Fran Stanić. Their Smart Lumies interactive cubes combine Lego, Nintendo and Internet. Martina Grgić, co-founder and chief operating officer of Smart Lumies, explained that children between the ages of two and seven develop up to 90 percent of their knowledge about the world. Parents of children of this age spend an average of 15 dollars a month on toys, which are then very quickly forgotten or thrown away. “Smart Lumies are different, they are like game consoles for which you do not need a display, which means they are modular like Lego cubes”, Grgić explained. Smart Lumies will initially target the US market, which accounts for 40 percent of the 80 billion dollar global market for toys. Their segment is worth between 10 and 20 billion dollars, and has been the fastest growing segment during the last four years.
Third place went to GamingBattleGround startup, a platform which allows players of computer games to organize tournaments and make money. Even before its release, the platform has already attracted more than 400 users. Luka Ciganek, director of GamingBattleGround, expects to have more than 10,000 users in the first month. He explained that the service was launched in collaboration with his five friends who are, like him, fans of computer games. “We are opening a new part of the industry, where players can earn money and organize online tournaments, not just play in them”, Ciganek said. He added that the market for their product is exceptionally large, since there are games which have more than 40 million active users per month.
Mirka Jozić, head of the Office for Economy, Labor and Entrepreneurship, said that 73 teams entered the competition, with 15 of them going through the finals. “For most startups, this has been their first opportunity to link up with business angels and investors and achieve their business goals, and we wish to support them on their journey to become successful businesses”, Jozić said.
The prize fund of 125,000 kuna has been awarded by the City of Zagreb. First prize was 50,000 kuna, the second prize 30,000 and the third prize 25,000 kuna. In addition, the city awarded a special prize worth 20,000 kuna.
