With barely two months to go until 2025, our team has been reflecting extensively on what we have achieved this year and the lessons learned along the way.
We’re proud to have hosted our second Growth and innovation event on “AI for Good” last month and to have simultaneously expanded our community of ambitious entrepreneurs in Mauritius.
In this article, we highlight the key events and initiatives that have influenced this shift beyond startups, as well as several key updates from our ecosystem.
Expanding our support to innovative entrepreneurs beyond startups
As an incubator, we recognise that innovation is not exclusive to “startups”. Our partnership with Novaterra and Punch.mu for our July and August Let's Meet Up events respectively, as well as our contribution to La French Tech Mauritius' Green Tech Summit in April 2024 reaffirmed this perspective.
Want to learn more about our recent strategic decision to expand our support and services beyond startups? Check out this article covering the highlights from events we hosted or participated in this year, which drove this strategic shift.
Our second Growth and Innovation event: Exploring the transformative power of AI in being inclusive communities
Given the great potential for synergies between Punch.mu, Novaterra and our incubator, we were proud to join forces for our second edition of our Growth and Innovation event series last month at Beau Plan Creative Park.
Our theme, AI for Good, brought together a full house of tech entrepreneurs, policy and changemakers dedicated to growth, innovation, sustainability, and smart, inclusive development.
We were inspired by South African technologist Najen Naidoo who spoke about the transformative power of technology in creating smarter, more connected communities. His #TechForGood presentation highlighted innovative solutions that drive sustainable growth and improve urban living. Najen demonstrated how AI can be harnessed to benefit communities in tangible ways – and more.
We also had the pleasure of hosting Kelly Ng-Lun, Community Manager at Punch by MCB Group, Loic Mamet, Smart City Admin Manager at Novaterra, Sareeta Issur-Suntah, Chief Technical Officer at the Ministry of Housing and Land Use Planning, and Najen Naidoo in a panel discussion focused on sustainable territorial development. Discussions offered insights into how critical this topic is to ensure resilient, sustainable, and inclusive growth for all.
🚀The Evolution of the Startup Ecosystem in Mauritius: Insights from Michel Cordani
In October, EXPAT.COM featured an interview with Michel CORDANI, our Managing Director. Dive into this conversation to learn why Mauritius is becoming a hub for expat entrepreneurs and how La Plage Factory is contributing to this transformation.
Insights from the Green Tech Summit
Earlier this year, La French Tech Mauritius organised a Green Tech Summit at Institut Français de Maurice, featuring innovative green tech startups from the Indian Ocean and African region. La Plage Factory led a workshop on boosting and financing green tech initiatives, where participants shared ideas on advancing the green tech industry in Mauritius. As an incubator embracing the #Tech4Good philosophy, we are excited to share the insights and top curated ideas from this workshop in our report. Special thanks to La French Tech Mauritius’ co-presidents Sandra Leblé and NICOLAS GOLDSTEIN for organising this impactful event. 🌍📊
Read the full report on LinkedIn to explore these insights and ideas further.
🗓️ Ecosystem updates
Mo Angels hosts the Africa Early Stage Investor Meetup
In October, Mo Angels and like-minded organisations from across 40+ African countries hosted pre-summit regional meet-ups, in the run up to the 11th Edition of the Africa Early Stage Investor Summit in Cape Town. The Mauritius chapter edition of the Africa Early-Stage Investor Meetup featured inspiring talks from leaders like Vinay Guddye (EDB Mauritius), Isabelle de Melo (Mo Angels), Padmaja Ruparel (IAN Group), and Harry 'Tomi Davies (ABAN).
This event aimed to bring key stakeholders together to explore opportunities for Mauritius and India in the African early-stage investment landscape. Another equally important objective was to bridge the early-stage funding gap with supportive policies to derisk angel investing and innovative investment models for cross-border collaboration.
Check out this testimony from Managing Director Michel CORDANI to find out more about the importance of strong policies and financial instruments for early-stage funding, to develop a robust entrepreneurial ecosystem in Mauritius.
Startup founders gear up for Africa Ignite
We are thankful to Mo Angels for offering two of our startup founders, Thierry Lincoln and Joffrey Vitiere the opportunity to pitch during the meet-up. This month, both Thierry and Joffrey will be part of the Mauritian startups delegation attending #AfricaIgnite in Cape Town, the premier event spotlighting Africa’s most promising startups. Thibaut Walle, the founder of Alaprann.mu will also be joining them.
French Tech Mauritius to host AI for Good event
This month has been rich with insightful events on the theme of AI for Good, and we’re excited to continue the dialogue with a special event organised by La French Tech Mauritius.
On 15 November, participants will have the opportunity to dive into the latest advancements in AI and discover how innovative initiatives by businesses and startups are concretely reshaping our future for the better.
For more information, click here.
Mentor Nathalie Sanchez and Startup Alumna Stephanie Bouloc take part in discussions on World Architecture Day
One of La Plage Factory’s mentors, Nathalie SANCHEZ, and STEPHANIE BOULOC, the founder of La Déchetèque, participated in a round table last month organised by the Collectif NOU and the National School of Architecture (ENSA) Nantes (Mauritius).
They had the opportunity to share their views on the crucial challenges faced by urban environments and their impact on the next generations, and on the need to create cities that are not only greener but also more environmentally friendly and inclusive.
🔊 Call to action
Our mission is to support ambitious entrepreneurs in building strong, sustainable business models. As 2024 draws to a close, our team has been busy planning the recruitment of our next Growth and Innovation cohort for 2025.
Calling Smart, Ambitious, and Innovative Entrepreneurs: We’re always on the lookout for innovators, mentors, and partners. If you are or know an innovative entrepreneur in Mauritius and/or have an ambitious and innovative project:
- Visit laplage.io and contact us at hello@laplage.io.
- Join us at our next monthly Meet Up at Coworking Port Louis on 29 November at lunch time!
- Do both 😉
“Let's build a brighter future together for Mauritius, Africa, and the world! 🌍”
Related
Star-tup of the month: Smart Communities, a Tech4Good platform
Call for Innovative Projects: join our Growth and Innovation Cohort 2025!