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IFS partners Hatch for ChallengerX incubator programme

31 Oct 2022 - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}      

IFS, the global cloud enterprise software company, is partnering with Hatch to enable the six-week ChallengerX incubator programme - Sri Lanka’s first AI-machine learning incubator.
IFS has the leading tech stack for Scheduling and Service Management. As experts in the industry, IFS is continuously looking to innovate and improve its platform’s service experience.
The incubation programme aims to drive innovation within Sri Lanka’s growing technology industry by providing a new opportunity for entrepreneurial talent. With a proven commitment to the industry and over 20 years of operating in Sri Lanka, IFS is dedicated to investing in the Sri Lankan technology landscape. Together with Hatch’s record in purpose-driven open innovation in Sri Lanka and IFS’s support, ChallengerX is the perfect environment for collaboration, success and innovation. 


Taking advantage of the exceptional network in Sri Lanka, the ChallengerX programme will look at enhancing IFS’ Field Service Management Tool (WISE) capabilities. The What If Scenario Explorer (WISE) is used for forecasting resource requirements or KPIs for different business scenarios for organisations with a service-oriented mobile workforce. The incubator will focus on improving Predictive Modelling systems capable of minimising supply chain damage in the service industry caused by unforeseen circumstances such as natural disasters.
Speaking about the partnership IFS Sri Lanka Operations Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer Ranil Rajapakse said, “As one of the largest IT companies in Sri Lanka, we wanted to be part of this; we felt that we had a duty as well to invest in this thriving tech ecosystem. So, to do that, we saw some good synergies between IFS and Hatch to work on a common set of problems and build solutions.” 


Sharing his thoughts on the incubator Hatch Co-Founder Jeevan Gnanam shared, “We wanted to do something very new and disruptive and create a new paradigm in open innovation in Sri Lanka. That is why we wanted to create Sri Lanka’s first AI-machine learning accelerator,” said Gnanam.


ChallengerX will be a six-month residency at Hatch, which has made its mark as the world’s best coworking space in 2021 at the Global Start-up Awards. This residency will provide the ChallengerX finalists with access to events and membership benefits at Hatch, where they will also be mentored by international experts from Hatch and the IFS mentor pool. 
The programme is looking for teams consisting of artificial intelligence and machine learning enthusiasts, UX designers and SEs, web front-end developers (front-end heavy), backend developers for the server, individuals experienced in building on spatial databases, large-scale spatial maps and GIS and those with development experience with open-source geospatial software or ESRI is preferred.


The ChallengerX teams with the best solutions will stand to win from a stipend and prize pool of Rs.3,000,000 along with other exciting benefits.
If you or your team are skilled at problem-solving and can provide a real-world problem with an innovative and value-adding solution, visit the website to apply: https://ifs-challengerx.hatch.lk/ or scan the following QR code: 
Deadline for applications: October 24, 2022.