Startup Competition - Crypto Rockstars CRUISE 2023

HOW IT WORKS

Besides countless networking opportunities during the main event, educational workshops and Q&A’s with the who-is-who in crypto, this year’s Crypto Rockstars Cruise also offers an exclusive startup competition helping spotlight the next wave of leading entrepreneurs building on the blockchain. The Startup Competition is one of the highlights of this years’s Crypto Cruise. During the pitch, you get to present your startup to an interesting audience of investors, media, industry, and the general public. Regardless if you’re looking for a lead investor, potential users or customers, your next employee, or spreading awareness – this is your chance to show the world that you make the difference. This is your opportunity to build, pitch and test out your idea in-front of executives at industry leading protocols, organizations and investors. You can participate solo or alongside your team. All winners are granted with opportunities that go beyond the scope of regular investor pitches. Compete in different prize categories to win guaranteed access to the OVHcloud program from Europe’s leading cloud provider OVHcloud.

About OVHcloud

OVHcloud is a leading European provider of cloud and infrastructure services, with over 20 years of experience and 1.6 million customers worldwide. As a founding member of GAIA-X, it is committed to building a secure, autonomous, and open digital infrastructure. The OVHcloud Startup Program, which has been running since 2015, offers tech startups and scale-ups €10,000 and €100,000 in cloud hosting credits respectively, along with solution architecture support, to aid in their exponential and international growth. The program focuses on open standards and personal support to ensure quick resolution of technology problems.

After the final pre-session pitches, our renowned jury selects the 2 winning teams that display the best business use cases and rewards them with up to 10.000€ in grants. Do you have what it takes to come up with the leading blockchain organization of tomorrow?

WHO WE ARE LOOKING FOR

All startups at all stages are welcome to apply – from idea stage to series X. The application for the Startup Competition is only one click away.
Here are just some examples, who could be interesting for us:

Students in computer science, engineering, business or other applicable fields.
Blockchain, Web 3.0 and Digital Start Ups
Developers (prior experience in crypto is not required).
UI/UX and visual designers.
Individuals with an interest in blockchain and tokenomics.

The selection criteria the jury have to consider at the pitch training session are, among others:

Traction (how much product-market-fit proof)
Phase (Which financial stage start up has arrived)
Performance (story + pitch deck)
Sales (How much profit does the start up generate or plans to generate)
Vertical & Horizontal Business Model

WHAT WE ARE LOOKING FOR?

NFT Platforms
Build a platform, plugin or tool that connects buyers and sellers to a type of NFT offering or makes NFTs on the FreeTON blockchain more useful. Example: NFT Marketplace, NFT Tickets, Metaverse game.

DAO Management
Build a tool or platform that allows users to manage their DAO voting. Examples include: Web wallet or mobile wallet with votes built in, platform to track community engagement, etc.

Enterprise
Build an enterprise platform that integrates blockchain technology and can include native assets. Examples include: An online multiplayer game that uses in-game digital currencies, an e-commerce platform, an oracle, and more.

Defi Ecosystem Tools
Build tools that help stakeholders including liquidity providers, issuers, users to navigate and access DeFi opportunities. Examples include: Bridges, on-chain data aggregation platforms, DeFi management, lending & borrowing etc.

Metaverse
Build an application that leverages AR/VR technology onto the blockchain. Examples include using avatars that can be used in the virtual world, virtual land represented as NFTs, etc.

GameFi
Build an immersive, fun-to-play game with an innovative financial mechanism to implement tokenomics along with possibly NFTs and DeFi. Examples include: RPG & roleplaying games, NFT battle games, etc.

WHEN

The Startup Pitches will take place on May, the 6th of 2023 as part of the Crypto Rockstars CRUISE as single pitch sessions during the main agenda on the big Crypto Rockstars Event stage.

WHERE

The Startup Pitches will take place during the main event on the MS Cologne event ship.

TIMELINE

Stage 1: Application
Every founder with a startup at any stage from anywhere can apply. For the application, you register by using the application form and providing the requested materials therein. Application Deadline is: April, 15th, 2023.

Stage 2: Pre-Event Session
Selected applicants will be invited to a private pre-event training and investment-readiness session 10 days out before the event. At the moment, the pre-event training sessions are held online via Zoom. The Pre-Event Sessions have the following agenda: Each startup will have 5 minutes to walk the jury through their pitch and the deck and 5-10 minutes of feedback is provided to each startups afterwards. At this pre-event session, timing is not a judging criteria. Traction (amount of product-market-fit proof) and performance quality (story and pitch deck) usually are, though. A day or two later the 2 winning startups selected for the public event are notified.

Stage 3: Live Stage Session
The 2 winning start ups will be informed 1 week before the main event and will be part of the Crypto Rockstars Cruise and will perform their pitch live at the Crypto Rockstars Event on May 6th, 2023 in front of the audience, investors and visitors on the main stage as part of the official Crypto Rockstars Cruise agenda.

REQUIREMENTS

Your submission must be in the English language and consist of:

Project Overview/White Paper:* Describe your project in full details along with links such as website, repositories and other necessary links. Fill your document with a full scope of what has been completed to help the judges better understand your project. Be sure to Include which category your project falls under.
Video: A short video (less than 3 minutes) demonstrating your project.Also, please note:Multiple submissions: You can submit multiple projects to the competition, as a part of the same team or a different team. However, you are eligible to win only a single prize.Re-submission/editing of submissions: You can re-submit or edit your submission until the submission deadline. Your latest version of a submission before the deadline will be considered for judging.Rules
Join the competition solo or create a team of up to 8 members.
A minimal viable product (MVP) or beta version must be submitted in order to be considered for 1st or 2nd place.
A prototype must be submitted in order to be considered for prizes.Note: Some ideas take longer to build then others. A working prototype and/or Proof-of-Concept is usually prefered, but if you cannot build it by the deadline then we encourage you to still submit the detailed white paper as it will often be considered. Just make sure to blow the judges away!*White Paper: An eligible white paper submission must include the following: an introduction, analysis of the market, project description, technical architecture and features, token information (if applicable), business model and user acquisition plan, team information, roadmap and future goals.

WHAT BENEFITS ARE THERE FOR THE WINNING START UPS?

1x voucher for guaranteed access to OVH Cloud Storage (value: €10,000 for cloud services, e.g. for Web 3.0/MetaVerse applications, database, NFT shop, etc.)
1x voucher for scale up at OVH Cloud (value: €100,000 for scale up performance)
1x GOLD package booth at the Crypto Rockstars CRUISE ship exhibition area with 2 bar tables (4x2m²) next to one of our main sponsors OVH Cloud (value: 5.000€) Gain even more visibility thanks to a special promotion at a booth in our Marketplace.
2x free tickets for both Crypto Rockstars CRUISE 2023 ship event days on May, 5th and 6th, 2023 (value: €500)
1x 5 minutes pitch on stage on the big Crypto Rockstars CRUISE 2023 show stage on the event ship (value: priceless 😊) Get visibility and present your pitch on the super stage to +1.000 people, to a high-level panel of judges, with investors and innovation experts.
1x direct networking before/after pitches at the stand next to OVH Cloud (value: priceless 😊) Interaction and scheduling of 1:1 meetings with the main actors of the ecosystem, investors and corporates, through our networking tool. Be part of a global network of companies with numerous business possibilities. Unique opportunity to access great investments!
1x media coverage (value: priceless 😊) Interviews with our media partners that will increase the visibility of the startups before, during, and after the event.

JURY

Alexander Grau

Startup Program Lead DACH, OVHcloud

Hamid Hosseini

Founder, Ecodynamics

Jakob Martschenko

Co-Founder KryptoNauten

Luigi Boris Stella