MANILA, Philippines—Connected Women was one of the 12 startup companies that participated in the MIT Inclusive Innovation Challenge (IIC) Asia Regional Celebration at the University of the Thai Chamber of Commerce in Bangkok, Thailand last August 24, 2018.

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The 12 finalists were shortlisted from over 165 applicants across 25 countries in Asia, and Connected Women was one of only two Philippine startups to be included in the shortlist, along with Storm Technologies.

Connected Women was also a top 3 finalist in the Skills Development and Opportunity Matching category. The eventual category winner, iMerit, is a social enterprise that hires and trains underserved communities in data and content work for machine learning and computer vision.

The MIT Inclusive Innovation Challenge is the flagship program of the MIT Initiative on the Digital Economy. The IIC identifies and promotes organizations that pioneer innovative and groundbreaking technology solutions to reinvent the future of work.

Connected Women is a social impact startup that matches entrepreneurs with Filipinas looking for remote work. Through the Connected Women Jobs website, Filipinas can search for online jobs, and entrepreneurs gain access to high-quality, affordable talent.

“It was a humbling experience to meet people from around the region who are tackling some of the world’s most challenging problems through innovation-driven entrepreneurship.

Connected Women is honored to be recognized as an MIT IIC Asia Finalist among them,” said Gina Romero, CEO and Co-Founder of Connected Women.

The IIC calls on entrepreneurs worldwide to present tech-driven solutions to transform the future of work. iMerit, ftcash, Plastics for Change, and SOLShare are the four Asia winners that will vie for the MIT IIC Global Grand Prize Gala with one million dollars prize money at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology on November 8.