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New incubator in Singapore empowers social-minded tech startups

Powered by Singtel, the new program called Enabling Change will enable tech startups to help people with disabilities

New accelerator and incubation programs seem to crop up faster than we can count, with many corporates using the format as a means to discover and absorb innovative ideas. The latest to hit the scene operates a little differently. Enabling Change, a new program run by social impact incubator UNFRAMED, will be a hyper community-focused program for the disabled. Applications close May 24th and the five-week program has only 10 slots available for its first cohort. We had a chat with program founder Larry Tchiou to learn more.

“Our model is different because we focus on one community at a time, so with ‘Enabling Change,’ we’re focusing on people with disabilities. For us, focusing no the needs of someone with disabilities will attract the right people. These startups will not come from the glamour of being a social entrepreneur, but come directly from the community that wants to address those issues,” he said.
Backed by serial entrepreneur and philanthropist Jan Croeni (co-founder of Deals.com.sg), the incubator’s team brings a wealth of expertise as have either been practitioners or have been in supporting roles in the for-profit social enterprise space. Their domain experience, according to Tchiou, is what sets the incubator apart from other social-minded programs as they are typically run by academics or those without relevant backgrounds.

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Believe your tech has a social impact and want to scale your project up? The programme will start on June 26th and applications are due in five days. Apply for ‘Enabling Change’ here! Besides an experienced team, Enabling Change also brings a focus on a specific segment of disabilities, and they aim to reconcile the needs of the community with the skill sets of tech startups. “Most of the tech startups who are trying to address social issues, they have no clue what the needs are in the community. It comes from their belief that technology can address all issues, which is not true, Technology is just a magnifier. If you try to scale processes that are not effective, it won’t work,” he said. “What we’re trying to do is to get tech startups to work with the community, see what their problems are and figure out how to leverage on technology.” If you’re wondering if your startup is a good fit for the program, Tchiou offers an example of the types of startups that should incubate with Enabling Change. One startup ‘ToTheLoo‘ bills itself as the TripAdvisor for public toilets and specifically caters to persons with disabilities. As finding a bathroom that fits their special needs is the number one problem that disabled persons face, the entrepreneurs behind ToTheLoo has created a platform that provides locations, information and availability of always clean and accessible toilets.