We kicked off the Hackzone Scale Up Accelerator Program for Allianz Turkey on 6 December at Allianz Tower. The unique program will allow growing startups in 6 months to advance and scale up their businesses. Startups will have the chance to:

• Explore and Integrate existing Allianz APIs
• Create Innovative Ideas Focused on the Insurance Industry
• Discover Innovative Business Models
• Create New Customer Experiences

This year, we're channeling our energy into three major areas that are shaking up the insurance landscape: Artificial Intelligence & Machine Learning, Gamification, and Combating Climate Change. 

This year’s program, we evaluated over 100 startup applications and we selected 6 startups out of the 14 in the pipeline. 61 out of the 125 applications in Combating Climate Change vertical, 45 in AI & ML, 8 in Gamification and 11 in other categories. 

Since 2020, We have totally screened 461 startups and 38 were selected for the HackZone Programs. These selected startups totally raised over 4.9 million dollars during/after the program.

The kickoff event blended insightful speeches, startup showcases, and meaningful networking opportunities. Here's a closer look at how the day unfolded:

Kaan Akın, CEO and Founder of Hackquarters opened the event with a welcoming speech. He detailed the HackZone Scale Up Program, emphasizing its significance for the startup ecosystem in Turkey.

Following Kaan, Hümeyra Boztunç – Innovation Manager, Allianz Turkiye contributed to the event by giving details on the program's benefits. She touched upon the opportunities that can emerge from the collaboration of startups and corporations and how valuable mentors' contributions are.

Kaan Toker, COO of Allianz Turkiye, presented operational insights focusing on steering the HackZone journey towards global success. After Kaan, Onur Kırcı, CMO & Head of Digital at Allianz Turkiye, discussed how HackZone transforms challenges into startup opportunities.

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Then, each startup had the opportunity to pitch its ideas and visions. Here are the selected startups:

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Pivony: Assist brands in uncovering their customers' concealed expectations by effortlessly analyzing customer conversations across various channels with just three clicks. This enables business professionals to concentrate on strategic decision-making rather than manual reading.

ForestGuard | Kozalak: Early Forest Fire Detection and Risk Monitoring Solution. 

3pmetrics: develops software that digitizes sustainability. Corporate carbon footprint, water footprint, and ESG gap analysis software, which provide real-time calculation and reporting.

Orbina AI : is an artificial intelligence assistant specially developed for individuals and institutions, automating creative content production while enabling it. By reducing the media and content needs of small and medium-sized companies by 40%, we take company efficiency to a new level.

Novus:  develops and operates an AI platform that optimizes the output of language model machines to make them more practical and effective for enterprises. Their solutions aim to simplify and accelerate AI adoption for businesses across sectors through a comprehensive suite of AI tools and capabilities.

Sarente: developed a platform called Zuzzuu and with dynamic data tracking,you can instantly track all actions of your customers on the web or mobile,score them, make offers and deals. With Zuzzuu,you can shorten your distance with your customers, gather your customers on a single platform and create a 360 degree customer experience.

After the pitch decks, startups conducted deep dive sessions with Sabina Babayeva and Gizem Severoğlu Tigin. These sessions aimed to cover key performance metrics, challenges, and mutual expectations for the duration of the program.

While the deep dive session continued, at the same time, Kaan Akın gave a mentor onboarding session with the program mentors. He discussed the critical points of open innovation, the startup ecosystem, and the benefits of collaborations between corporations and startups.

The kickoff of the Hackzone Scale Up Accelerator Program marked the beginning of an exciting journey in insurtech innovation. This collaborative effort between Allianz Turkey and dynamic startups will promise to redefine Turkey's insurance landscape and set new standards globally.

Explore More: For comprehensive information about the program and the startups, visit the Program website. Join us in this journey of innovation and be a part of shaping the future of insurtech. Let's collaborate to create something truly transformative.