Grants4Apps Enterprise Acceleration Program, first launched by Bayer in 2014 in Berlin, has accepted applications for the first time in Turkey this year. Grants4Apps Turkey, which received more than 120 applications, has announced 6 winners. Entrepreneurs in Istanbul, Ankara and Izmir as well as other cities of Turkey such as Kayseri, Kilis, Ordu showed great interest in the Grants4Apps Turkey Enterprise Acceleration Program.Grants4Apps Turkey is carried out to support local entrepreneurs and ecosystems in the field of health. Within the scope of the program, Bayer will provide ₺50,000 in grant, a work space for 100 days, training and mentoring support to each selected entrepreneur.The jury consisted of the leading names of the enterprise ecosystem as well as the senior executives of Bayer. The jury evaluated the projects and enterprises which have brought an innovative solution to the Pharmaceutical, Consumer Health, Radiology and Animal Health business units and Business Models and Technology Solutions that Support Corporates. These projects and enterprises needed to have prototypes or a minimum viable product (MVP) as well.

Winners of Grant4Apps Turkey

• Derya Kavarna / Digime3D: Digime3D, which forms a 3D model of the body with a 3D Scanner, ensures that all anthropometric body measurements are taken with a high sensitivity. While calculating data such as body fat ratio, ideal body weight, daily calorie needs, it gives the person the opportunity to follow their change over time.
• Begüm Ünver / PatiBuddy: PatiBuddy is a pet care marketplace that brings together and organizes the services of people who cat/dogsit. PatiBuddy aims to help the owners to live with their pets more consciously and happily while ensuring that pets are cared for under better conditions.
• Soner İlker Hacıhaliloğlu / PONS: PONS technology aims to speed up the early diagnosis and treatment of brain hemorrhages using portable probes and machine learning.
• Berkay Şamiloğlu / TION: TION develops wearable sensors in the form of stickers for diagnosis, treatment and monitoring in the field of health. TION also develops an IoT platform which focuses on neurological disorders and atrial fibrillation, one of the most common rhythm disorders. With this platform, it monitors the effects of drugs as well as improves and optimizes treatment processes.
• Gözde Büyükacaroğlu- Nazlı Acar / Vivoo: A personal wellness assistant offering personalized nutritional advice to improve the quality of life of its users with a home urine test.
• İlyas Osmanoğulları- Alperen Özlü / Yubi: A "conversational interface" platform that enables brands to continue their communication with their target audiences through dialogues in different channels.

Meeting with the Winners

The selected enterprises came together with Bayer and Hackquarters at the kick-off meeting at Impact Hub and explained their projects. Speaking at the opening, Bayer Türk CEO Hubert Braun said, “Innovation is at the heart of Bayer. With Grants4Apps, we aim to promote the culture of innovation both within Bayer and in the industry. In this process, I had the chance to evaluate valuable projects. As Bayer, we are proud to support these six selected projects.”

About Bayer

Bayer is a global company specializing mainly in the life sciences in healthcare and agriculture. Bayer develops products and services to benefit humanity and increase the quality of life. This company also aims to create value with innovation, growth and high earning power. Adhering to the principles of sustainable development, Bayer is aware of its social and moral responsibilities as a corporate citizen. As of 2017, Bayer has 99.800 employees and a sales turnover of 35.0 billion Euros. Its annual capital expenditure is 2.4 billion Euros and R&D expenditure is around 4.5 billion Euros. You can find more information on the company's website.