The United States recently announced that over 700 entrepreneurs and more than 300 investors have been selected to attend the 2016 Global Entrepreneurship Summit, to be held June 22-24 at Stanford University, in Palo Alto, California.
The GES participants were selected from more than 5,000 entrepreneurs from across the world who submitted applications. These applicants demonstrate that innovation exists in every corner of the globe.
Applications were reviewed by a committee of experts comprised of business and industry leaders including founders of incubators, venture capitalists, finance professionals, and start-up founders. The selected entrepreneurs represent 170 countries and territories. One hundred and fifty of the GES delegates have been specially selected to participate in GES+, a day-long event focused on the most promising youth and women entrepreneurs. GES 2016 is a global event that highlights innovators, pioneers, and problem-solvers across the international community, while inspiring a generation of leaders to use their ideas to change the world.
Applicants include entrepreneurs who are harnessing technology to solve some of the world’s most intractable problems, innovators who are driving solutions for target populations such as adolescent girls and refugee communities, and others who are creating new markets and expanding industries like manufacturing, services, and energy in their countries. GES applicants illustrate the impressive potential to create enterprises that deliver positive solutions to consumers, communities, and countries, regardless of scope or scale.
More than 300 investors and supporters of the entrepreneur ecosystem have also been selected as GES delegates, representing some of the best examples of entrepreneurial spirit and innovation. GES will be an opportunity for these investors and supporters to connect with entrepreneurs and discover new solutions and opportunities for the markets where they invest.
“One of the principal goals of GES is to increase the opportunities available to promising entrepreneurs from around the world through access to capital and mentorship,” said U.S. Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker. “By welcoming an unprecedented number of investors to this year’s GES, we are able to achieve this goal and showcase the talent, solutions, and opportunity that exist around the world directly to investors.”
In welcoming top entrepreneurs and investors from around the world to Silicon Valley, the U.S. government hopes they will be inspired to incubate, invest in, and develop their full potential. This is the core of GES: make lasting connections that help entrepreneurs succeed and transform innovative ideas into reality.
Background on Selected Entrepreneurs: The over 700 entrepreneurs—approximately 100 coming from each of the world’s major geographic regions—represent a broad range of industries. The largest share of those entrepreneurs selected come from the information technology (94 attendees), education (91 attendees), technology (56 attendees), health (54 attendees) and energy (44 attendees) industries. Selected entrepreneurs also represent the artisan sector, innovative agriculture, and the creative industries. From pre-launch concepts to startups that have already secured substantial investment to individuals working on their fourth venture, these entrepreneurs represent all stages of business development. For additional background, visit: http://www.ges2016.org/ges-by-numbers/
Women entrepreneurs not only fuel economic growth, but also drive the innovations needed to address some of the most critical challenges the world faces. The selection process reflects this fact; 50 percent of entrepreneurs selected to attend GES are women.
Representing the most technologically empowered generation the world has ever seen, the average age of registered entrepreneurs is 36. The oldest entrepreneur is 69 years old, while the youngest invited entrepreneur is 11 years old.
Individual GES delegates are sharing their stories on Medium. Hira Rizvi, of Pakistan, started She`Kab, a shared taxi service that provides women with a safe and reliable way to get to work. Dr. Bishal Dhakal, of Nepal, started “Health at Home,” a healthcare service delivery organization. Further delegate profiles can be found here: https://medium.com/global-entrepreneurship-summit/tagged/delegate-profiles.
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