Frontier Launchpad

A startup competition in four cities, ending with a Global Final in Dubai. Pitch to investors, exhibit for two days, and leave with a room full of introductions.

Apply to pitch Sponsor the competition

How it works

Apply to your nearest cityApplications are free. One application per startup per year.
Get shortlistedUp to 50 startups per city exhibit in startup alley for both days.
Pitch in the semi-finals, Day 120 startups, three minutes on stage, three minutes of questions.
Pitch in the city final, Day 2Six finalists, live on the Frontier Stage in front of the full audience.
Pitch at the Global FinalThe four city winners meet in Dubai on 7 October 2027.

Who should apply

AI is the product, not a feature added to it.
Pre-seed to Series A, with a working product.
Any country. Apply to the city whose market you're building for.
Founders who can attend both days of the city edition.

What shortlisted startups get

A startup alley pod for both days, at no cost
Two Founder Passes
Investor office hours on Day 2
Profile in the attendee app and the post-show investor report

Prizes, cloud credits and the investor jury for each city are announced when applications open.

How the jury scores

Each city's jury is made up of investors, operators and one previous finalist.

Problem and market. Is the problem real, and is the market large enough?
Product and technical depth. What have you built that's hard to copy?
Traction. Users, revenue, pilots or letters of intent.
Team. Why you are the people to build this.
Use of AI. Is AI central to the value, and used responsibly?

Key dates

Semi-finalists are told four weeks before their city edition.

City	Applications open	Applications close	Competition
Bangalore	1 Feb 2027	15 Jun 2027	26–27 Jul
New York	1 Feb 2027	15 Jul 2027	23–24 Aug
Singapore	1 Mar 2027	15 Aug 2027	15–16 Sep
Dubai	1 Mar 2027	1 Sep 2027	6 Oct, plus Global Final 7 Oct

Apply to pitch

Takes about ten minutes. You can add a deck link now or later.