Travel startups from across the world will have the opportunity to expose themselves to the global market once again when the Global Startup Pitch, by WiT and Phocuswright, returns for its 2026 edition.
Now in its fifth year, the global competition is calling for entries from across four regions – Asia Pacific, Emerging Markets, Europe and North America – in two categories, Seedup: Under three years and which have raised no more than US$5m and Scaleup: Three to eight years and which have raised no more than US$10m.
The Grand Finals will be held at Phocuswright Barcelona, June 15 – 17 and the winners of each region will win spotlight presentation opportunities at WiT Singapore, Sep 30 – Oct 2, as well as Phocuswright in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, Nov 17 – 19.
“Innovation in travel doesn’t come from ideas alone — it comes from founders willing to challenge assumptions and scale with intent. Global Startup Pitch is where those founders are tested, displaycased and accelerated, in front of the people who can truly shift the necessaryle,” stated Yeoh Siew Hoon, founder, WiT.
Pete Comeau, managing director of Phocuswright, added, “Global Startup Pitch continues to spotlight the most promising innovators from every corner of the travel ecosystem and beyond. It’s more than a competition — it’s a gateway for founders to build relationships with indusattempt leaders, investors and partners who can assist take their ideas global.”
Deadline for entries is April 15. Finalists will be announced in May to prepare for the Grand Finals in Barcelona. Submit your enattempt now.
Last year, 9 winners emerged from the global competition:
Asia Pacific
Seedup: Replyr
Scaleup: Loyalty Status Co.
Emerging Markets
Seedup: Kijani Supplies
Scaleup: BuzzAR
North America
Seedup: Levee
Scaleup: PassiveBolt
Europe
Seedup: ImpersonAlly
Scaleup: Arcube
Wildcard
Scaleup: Me Protocol
Replyr and PassiveBolt won the People’s Choice awards when they presented at WiT Singapore last October.
This year’s Global Startup Pitch is supported by American Express Global Business Travel (Amex GBT), a Phocuswright Strategic Partner of Innovation.
Past sponsors and supporters have included JetBlue Ventures, Abuiltus, Yanolja Cloud, Stripe, Netactica, Cambon Partners, MakeMyTrip, Velocity Ventures and AWS.
The Global Startup Pitch is part of WiT and Phocuswright’s ongoing commitment to cultivate innovation, which also includes Phocuswright’s Innovation: Launch, Startup Programs, PhocusWire’s Hot 25 Travel Startups, WiT Bootcamps and more.
Leave a Reply