Nine companies from Singapore and the region bag top honours at 2026 Emerging Enterprise Awards

Winners at the 2026 Emerging Enterprise Awards. A total of 28 companies were shortlisted as finalists.

PHOTO: THE BUSINESS TIMES

Ranamita Chakraborty

Published Oct 27, 2026, 08:12 AM

Updated Oct 27, 2026, 08:27 AM

Nine firms from Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong and Indonesia won top honours at the 2026 Emerging Enterprise Awards for innovation, resilience and sustainable solutions.

Woosa Sleep and MediConCen won the main award, while Alpha AI Technology and Hyperscale DCS won Most Promising Start-up for AI inspection and data centre infrastructure.

Four firms won sustainability awards for green ideas, including recycling gloves, Braille packaging and waste-to-building materials, with winners also getting loans and consulting support.

SINGAPORE - Nine companies from Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong and Indonesia took top honours for their innovative and sustainable solutions at the 2026 Emerging Enterprise Awards on the night of Oct 26.

Jointly organised by The Business Times and OCBC, the annual awards recognise young businesses for their entrepreneurial spirit, innovation and resilience.

The awards, currently in its 19th edition, are open to businesses that are under 10 years old and have an annual turnover of up to $20 million.

Close to 600 applications from a broad mix of industries were received in 2026.

Applications from Hong Kong, Indonesia and Malaysia made up almost 40% of the total, underscoring the growing regional appeal of the awards. A total of 28 companies were shortlisted as finalists.

Award winners and finalists at the Emerging Enterprise Awards 2026, with Senior Minister of State for Energy, Trade and Industry Low Yen Ling (centre). PHOTO: THE BUSINESS TIMES

Award winners and finalists at the Emerging Enterprise Awards 2026, with Senior Minister of State for Energy, Trade and Industry Low Yen Ling (centre).

Singapore-based Woosa Sleep and Hong Kong-based MediConCen received the Emerging Enterprise Award.

The category recognises emerging enterprises with enterprising mindsets that drive consistent, significant and sustainable growth. These businesses also display the ability to scale and expand outside their home markets.

Woosa Sleep is a Singapore-based sleep wellness company specialising in the design, manufacturing and direct-to-consumer sale of a range of premium mattresses, smart storage bed frames, adjustable bases and sleep-related lifestyle products tailored to the region’s tropical climate.

Hong Kong-based MediConCen develops and deploys an agentic artificial intelligence that fully automates the entire insurance claims process for insurers. Its solutions cover claims decisioning, real-time fraud detection, workflow automation and secure medical-network connectivity.

The firm recently introduced an integrated payment solution with Mastercard that enables seamless claims-to-payment experiences.

Winners of the Emerging Enterprise Award category, Tyler Peh, chief executive officer, chief marketing officer and co-founder of Woosa Sleep (left) and William Yeung, CEO and co-founder of MediConCen. PHOTO: THE BUSINESS TIMES

Winners of the Emerging Enterprise Award category, Tyler Peh, chief executive officer, chief marketing officer and co-founder of Woosa Sleep (left) and William Yeung, CEO and co-founder of MediConCen.

In the Most Promising Start-up Award category, Hong Kong-headquartered Alpha AI Technology and Malaysia-based Hyperscale DCS were named winners.

The award recognises enterprises that demonstrate a strong start-up spirit and have a unique and commercially viable idea with long-term potential.

Headquartered in Hong Kong, Alpha AI provides AI-powered inspection and asset-monitoring services that are sensor and platform-agnostic. Its customers include property and facility managers, developers, government agencies, utilities and operators of major structures.

The firm is expanding its presence in South Korea and the Greater Bay Area in China.

Malaysia-based Hyperscale DCS is a specialist in data centre infrastructure focused on power, cooling and modular prefabricated systems.

The company also operates across Singapore, Thailand, Indonesia, Vietnam and Britain.

The winners were honoured at an awards ceremony held at the JW Marriott Hotel Singapore South Beach on Oct 26, which was themed “Diamonds”.

In her speech at the event, guest of honour Senior Minister of State for Energy, Trade and Industry Low Yen Ling said the theme was an apt metaphor for award-winning enterprises, describing how they had “truly emerged as champions after an arduous growth journey” much like diamonds forming under tremendous pressure and polished to shine.

She said: “The path from the seed of bold ideas to scaling the rocks of challenges has brought enterprises to the pinnacle of success tonight.”

She noted that in recent years, companies have had to navigate a more complex and uncertain operating environment, ranging from geopolitical tensions and supply chain disruptions to rising business costs and changing consumer preferences.

“For emerging enterprises, all these pressures can be very daunting, given your relatively limited resources and the demands of scaling your businesses,” said Low, who is also Senior Minister of State for Culture, Community and Youth.

She added that resilient emerging enterprises are “not distinguished simply by the ability to withstand challenges, but also the willingness to adapt and find new ways to create value”.

That willingness to adapt was evident in the sustainability space.

Low said she was “encouraged” that promising enterprises continue to vie for the Emerging Enterprise Sustainability Award as their ability to harness technology and innovation to develop clever solutions helps Singapore tackle climate impact and enhance its green sector.

The award in 2026 went to four companies: Singapore-based Matwerkz Technologies, Malaysia-based Geomax Rubber Innovative Products, Malaysia-based Lafre Global and Indonesia-based Parongpong Raw Lab.

Introduced in 2023, the award recognises emerging enterprises that are capitalising on growth opportunities in the green economy.

These businesses embed sustainability in their operations while leveraging technology and new solutions to move towards low-carbon business models and industries.

Matwerkz Technologies develops thermal management, fire protection and functional materials technologies. Its flagship technology, Thermorphous, can improve battery performance and safety at the same time.

The company has customers and partners across six key markets: Singapore, China, Japan, Malaysia, India and Europe.

Geomax Rubber Innovative Products uses patented recycling technology to turn rejected nitrile rubber gloves into value-added products. Its circular business model gives discarded materials a second life in products such as safety footwear, coasters and floor tiles.

Lafre Global is Malaysia’s first sanitary pad brand to introduce Braille packaging nationwide. The initiative addresses challenges faced by visually impaired women, who may have difficulty identifying and purchasing intimate care products independently.

Lafre saids its sanitary pads also deliver 50 times the absorbency of conventional pads.

In Indonesia, Parongpong Raw Lab specialises in research, development and production focused on sustainability, the circular economy and material innovation.

Through its patent-pending Prototech technology, the company converts low-value waste – particularly discarded fishing nets – and other hard-to-recycle materials into higher-value products such as structural building materials.

Parongpong Raw Lab works directly with coastal fishing communities and informal waste collectors in Indonesia.

The Most Promising Sustainability Start-up Award in 2026 went to Singapore’s XEL Lifecare (AIRE).

The award recognises enterprises with a commercially viable green or sustainability-related business model that has long-term potential and a strong start-up spirit.

AIRE is a start-up specialising in adult incontinence care. Its products, co-developed with seniors in Singapore, include adult pull-up pants, diapers and overnight variants.

The winners received their awards from Low at the ceremony.

Winners of the Emerging Enterprise Sustainability Awards category, (from left) Leong Yew Wei, CEO and founder at Matwerkz Technologies; Inthira Kalanjiam, CEO and founder at LAFRE Global; Steven Ng, director at Geomax Rubber Innovative Products and Rendy Aditya Wachid, CEO and founder at Raesaka Amanah Widyakarya (Parongpong RAW Lab). PHOTO: THE BUSINESS TIMES

Winners of the Emerging Enterprise Sustainability Awards category, (from left) Leong Yew Wei, CEO and founder at Matwerkz Technologies; Inthira Kalanjiam, CEO and founder at LAFRE Global; Steven Ng, director at Geomax Rubber Innovative Products and Rendy Aditya Wachid, CEO and founder at Raesaka Amanah Widyakarya (Parongpong RAW Lab).

The two winners of the Emerging Enterprise Award, as well as the four winners of the Emerging Enterprise Sustainability Award, each received a two-year, interest-free term loan of up to $200,000 and a business consulting package from RSM Singapore worth $15,000.

All nine winners will also be featured across BT’s print, digital, social media, radio and podcast channels in Singapore and the region.

BT editor Chen Huifen said: “The journey from submission to shortlist and finalist has put these young enterprises through close scrutiny of their ideas, execution and potential for growth. While not every finalist will walk away with the top honours, standing among the final selection is an exceptional achievement in itself.”

That recognition matters all the more given the climate in which these businesses operate, said Christie Chu, head of emerging business, international and global commercial banking at OCBC.

“Young businesses today need more than access to capital to succeed,” she said.

“They also require visibility, trusted networks, market access and the right ecosystem of support around them – all of which the EE Awards provide.”

The Emerging Enterprise 2026 Awards is supported by Mastercard, RSM - Singapore, the Agency for Science, Technology and Research, CBRE and Enterprise Singapore. THE BUSINESS TIMES

SME/Small and medium-sized enterprise

2026年新兴企业奖获奖名单公布。共有28家公司入围决赛。

图片来源：商业时报

拉娜米塔·查克拉博蒂

发布于 2026 年 10 月 27 日上午 8:12

更新于2026年10月27日上午8:27

来自新加坡、马来西亚、香港和印度尼西亚的九家公司在 2026 年新兴企业奖中凭借创新、韧性和可持续解决方案荣获最高荣誉。

Woosa Sleep 和 MediConCen 荣获主要奖项，而 Alpha AI Technology 和 Hyperscale DCS 则凭借其在人工智能检测和数据中心基础设施领域的卓越表现，荣获最具潜力初创企业奖。

四家公司凭借绿色环保理念荣获可持续发展奖，其中包括回收手套、盲文包装和废物变建筑材料，获奖者还获得了贷款和咨询支持。

新加坡——在 10 月 26 日晚举行的 2026 年新兴企业奖颁奖典礼上，来自新加坡、马来西亚、香港和印度尼西亚的九家公司凭借其创新和可持续的解决方案荣获最高荣誉。

该年度奖项由《商业时报》和华侨银行联合举办，旨在表彰年轻企业的创业精神、创新精神和韧性。

该奖项目前已举办至第 19 届，面向成立不到 10 年且年营业额不超过 2000 万美元的企业开放。

2026年，我们收到了来自各行各业的近600份申请。

来自香港、印尼和马来西亚的申请数量占总数的近40%，凸显了该奖项日益增长的区域吸引力。共有28家公司入围决赛。

2026年新兴企业奖获奖者和入围者合影，图中人物为能源、贸易及工业部高级政务部长刘燕玲（中）。图片来源：《商业时报》

2026 年新兴企业奖的获奖者和入围者，以及能源、贸易和工业部高级政务部长刘燕玲（中）。

总部位于新加坡的 Woosa Sleep 和总部位于香港的 MediConCen 获得了新兴企业奖。

该奖项旨在表彰那些具有进取精神、能够推动持续、显著且可持续增长的新兴企业。这些企业还展现出拓展业务规模、进军海外市场的能力。

Woosa Sleep 是一家总部位于新加坡的睡眠健康公司，专门从事设计、制造和直接向消费​​者销售一系列优质床垫、智能储物床架、可调节床架和睡眠相关生活方式产品，这些产品均针对该地区的热带气候量身定制。

总部位于香港的MediConCen公司开发并部署了一种智能体人工智能，可为保险公司实现整个理赔流程的完全自动化。其解决方案涵盖理赔决策、实时欺诈检测、工作流程自动化以及安全的医疗网络连接。

该公司最近与万事达卡合作推出了一项集成支付解决方案，实现了从理赔到付款的无缝体验。

新兴企业奖得主为Woosa Sleep首席执行官、首席营销官兼联合创始人Tyler Peh（左）和MediConCen首席执行官兼联合创始人William Yeung。图片来源：《商业时报》

新兴企业奖的获得者是 Woosa Sleep 的首席执行官、首席营销官兼联合创始人 Tyler Peh（左）和 MediConCen 的首席执行官兼联合创始人 William Yeung。

在最具潜力初创企业奖类别中，总部位于香港的 Alpha AI Technology 和总部位于马来西亚的 Hyperscale DCS 荣获该奖项。

该奖项旨在表彰那些展现出强大的创业精神，并拥有独特且具有商业可行性、具有长期发展潜力的企业。

Alpha AI总部位于香港，提供与传感器和平台无关的AI驱动型检测和资产监控服务。其客户包括物业和设施管理公司、开发商、政府机构、公用事业公司和大型建筑运营商。

该公司正在扩大其在韩国和中国大湾区的业务。

总部位于马来西亚的 Hyperscale DCS 是一家专注于数据中心基础设施的专家，主要业务包括电力、冷却和模块化预制系统。

该公司还在新加坡、泰国、印度尼西亚、越南和英国开展业务。

10 月 26 日，在新加坡南海滩 JW 万豪酒店举行的以“钻石”为主题的颁奖典礼上，获奖者受到了表彰。

在活动致辞中，能源、贸易及工业部高级政务部长刘燕玲作为主宾表示，该主题恰如其分地比喻了获奖企业，并描述了它们如何“经过艰苦的成长历程，真正脱颖而出成为冠军”，就像钻石在巨大的压力下形成并被打磨得闪闪发光一样。

她说：“从大胆的创意萌芽到克服重重挑战，这条道路将企业带到了今晚的成功巅峰。”

她指出，近年来，企业不得不应对更加复杂和不确定的经营环境，包括地缘政治紧张局势、供应链中断、不断上涨的经营成本以及不断变化的消费者偏好。

“对于新兴企业而言，考虑到资源相对有限以及业务规模扩张的要求，所有这些压力都可能非常令人畏惧，”同时也是文化、社区及青年部高级政务部长的刘程强表示。

她补充说，具有韧性的新兴企业“不仅能够抵御挑战，而且还愿意适应变化并寻找创造价值的新方法”。

这种适应能力在可持续发展领域表现得尤为明显。

Low表示，她“感到鼓舞”，因为有前途的企业继续角逐新兴企业可持续发展奖，它们利用技术和创新开发巧妙解决方案的能力有助于新加坡应对气候影响并加强其绿色产业。

2026 年的奖项颁给了四家公司：新加坡的 Matwerkz Technologies、马来西亚的 Geomax Rubber Innovative Products、马来西亚的 Lafre Global 和印度尼西亚的 Parongpong Raw Lab。

该奖项于 2023 年设立，旨在表彰那些抓住绿色经济增长机遇的新兴企业。

这些企业将可持续发展理念融入到运营中，同时利用技术和新解决方案向低碳商业模式和产业转型。

Matwerkz Technologies公司致力于开发热管理、防火和功能材料技术。其旗舰技术Thermorphous能够同时提升电池性能和安全性。

该公司在六个主要市场拥有客户和合作伙伴：新加坡、中国、日本、马来西亚、印度和欧洲。

Geomax Rubber Innovative Products公司采用专利回收技术，将废弃的丁腈橡胶手套转化为高附加值产品。其循环商业模式赋予废弃材料第二次生命，用于生产安全鞋、杯垫和地砖等产品。

Lafre Global是马来西亚首个在全国范围内推出盲文包装的卫生巾品牌。此举旨在解决视障女性在识别和独立购买私密护理产品时面临的挑战。

Lafre表示，其卫生巾的吸收能力是传统卫生巾的50倍。

在印度尼西亚，Parongpong Raw Lab 专注于可持续性、循环经济和材料创新方面的研究、开发和生产。

该公司通过其正在申请专利的 Prototech 技术，将低价值的废料（特别是废弃的渔网）和其他难以回收的材料转化为高价值的产品，例如建筑结构材料。

Parongpong Raw Lab 直接与印度尼西亚的沿海渔业社区和非正规垃圾收集者合作。

2026 年最具发展前景的可持续发展初创企业奖颁给了新加坡的 XEL Lifecare (AIRE)。

该奖项旨在表彰具有商业可行性的绿色或可持续发展相关商业模式、具有长期潜力和强大创业精神的企业。

AIRE是一家专注于成人失禁护理的初创公司。其产品与新加坡老年人共同开发，包括成人拉拉裤、尿布和夜用型尿布。

颁奖典礼上，获奖者从Low手中接过奖项。

新兴企业可持续发展奖获奖者（从左至右）：Matwerkz Technologies首席执行官兼创始人梁耀伟；LAFRE Global首席执行官兼创始人Inthira Kalanjiam；Geomax Rubber Innovative Products董事Steven Ng；以及Raesaka Amanah Widyakarya (Parongpong RAW Lab)首席执行官兼创始人Rendy Aditya Wachid。图片来源：《商业时报》

新兴企业可持续发展奖类别的获奖者（从左至右）：Matwerkz Technologies 首席执行官兼创始人梁耀伟；LAFRE Global 首席执行官兼创始人 Inthira Kalanjiam；Geomax Rubber Innovative Products 总监 Steven Ng；以及 Raesaka Amanah Widyakarya (Parongpong RAW Lab) 首席执行官兼创始人 Rendy Aditya Wachid。

两位新兴企业奖获得者以及四位新兴企业可持续发展奖获得者，每人获得最高 20 万美元的两年期无息定期贷款，以及 RSM 新加坡提供的价值 1.5 万美元的商业咨询服务。

所有九位获奖者都将在 BT 在新加坡和该地区的印刷、数字、社交媒体、广播和播客渠道上进行展示。

《商业时报》编辑陈慧芬表示：“从提交申请到入围最终名单，这些年轻企业都经历了对其创意、执行力和发展潜力的严格审查。虽然并非每个入围者都能最终摘得桂冠，但能够跻身最终名单本身就是一项非凡的成就。”

华侨银行新兴业务、国际及全球商业银行部主管朱佳婷表示，鉴于这些企业所处的经营环境，这种认可就显得尤为重要。

“如今的年轻企业要想成功，需要的不仅仅是资金，”她说。

“他们还需要知名度、可信赖的网络、市场准入以及合适的配套支持体系——而所有这些都是 EE 奖项所提供的。”

2026年新兴企业奖由万事达卡、RSM新加坡、新加坡科技研究局、世邦魏理仕和新加坡企业发展局赞助。《商业时报》

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