Quezon City Mayor Joy Belmonte announced on Sunday the eight finalists of the StartUp QC Program.

These startups will participate in various capacity-building activities and compete for equity-free grants of up to one million pesos.

Belmonte noted that this year's third cohort will feature exciting innovations, including:

• Alerto Ph: A mobile app centralizing emergency and disaster data for accessible, collated status information during crises.

• BuildIt: A digital canvassing platform for contractors, offering quick pricing assessments.

• CallBack: A digital casting platform connecting artists and producers.

• Kwentoon: A digital platform promoting literacy and contemporary visual arts among Filipino youth.

• Lithos Manufacturing: A portable, foldable tank box with a filtration system providing immediate, sustainable access to safe drinking water in remote or disaster-affected areas.

• Nyha Robotics: A one-stop solution for accessible and flexible robotics education.

• Pasajob: A referral-based job-matching platform.

• RevUp Finance: Aiming to improve SME financial operations by reducing invoicing, follow-ups, payment validation, and reconciliation time by 80% through streamlined workflows.

StartUp QC Cohort 3 features a diverse mix of finalists specializing in governance technology, information technology, creative industries, sustainability, education, and financial technology. Over a 10-week period, the program will enhance their skills, assist in product development, and provide networking support.

“I can proudly say that we have come a long way since launching the program two years ago. And so, as we progress to create a supportive and nurturing ecosystem, the challenge is to search for more impactful, innovative, creative products and services that are scalable on a global level,” Belmonte said during the program’s kick-off on 9 August, 2024.

Following the cohort's official launch, the highly anticipated StartUp QC Program Demo Day will take place in October 2024. During this event, finalists will pitch their ideas to a panel of experts for a chance to receive equity-free grants of up to one million pesos.