In Cisco’s commitment, at least one billion people will be positively impacted by 2025 and as such, there is a worldwide search for early-stage technology-enabled solutions and services which can enable economic development and/or benefit society and/or the environment through the Cisco Global Problem Solver Challenge 2022 – Cisco Global Problem Solver Challenge 2022 for Early-Stage Entrepreneurs ($1,000,000 USD in Prize Money)
As part of its work, Cisco seeks to inspire and empower a generation of problem solvers globally who will thrive in an increasingly digital economy. Good ideas now have the ability to make a difference quickly as compared to before with digital technologies simplifying the connecting of devices and data.
The aim of this 6th Yearly Cisco Global Problem Solver Challenge is to identify business ideas that are new and make technology available for social impact from early-stage entrepreneurs all across the globe. The prize money for this award is intended for early-stage help accelerated adoption of breakthrough technology, products and, services which drive economic development and/or enable solving social or environmental problems.
The prizes for this award are;
- A single team will be declared the grand winner with a grand prize of $250,000
- Three teams from around the globe (Americas, EMEAR and APJC) will be declared regional first runners-up and each will receive $75,000
- Three teams will be declared as second runners-up and each will receive $50,000
- The finalist team that will receives the greatest number of votes will get the People’s Choice Award and a prize money worth $10,000
- The finalist team that receives the greatest number of votes cast will get the Cisco Employee’s Award worth $15,000
- Only one team will be declared the winner of the Climate Impact & Regeneration prize worth $100,000
- Four teams will be declared as the Climate Impact & Regeneration prize runners-up and will each receive $50,000 in prize money
- Only a single team will be designated the winner of the HBCU Start-up prize worth $50,000
This challenge will have two different submission rounds.
On November 30, 2021, round one opened and will close on February 11, 2022 at 5:00 PM PST. You are required to complete an online questionnaire in order to prepare your submission. The questionnaire covers;
- Defining the problem that you are solving
- An overview of your solution
- The benefits of your solution and how it makes use of digital technologies
- How unique your solution is and will be taken to the market
- The risks associated with your solution
- And lastly, a 90-second video explaining your solution
Once ready, you can prepare your submission by clicking here
The Challenge Timeline
November 30, 2021, 10:00 AM: The applications open
February 11, 2022, 5:00 PM: The application closes
April 26, 2022, 10:00 AM: Semifinalists are invited to submit
May 20, 2022, 5:00 PM: Semi-finalist submission closes
July 5, 2022, 10:00 AM: The finalists are announced and the People’s Choice voting opens
July 29, 2022, 5:00 PM: People’s Choice voting closes
August 23, 2022, 10:00 AM: The winners are announced
You should note that all time is in PST
You can click here for more information on the Cisco Global Problem Solver Challenge 2022 for Early-Stage Entrepreneurs ($1,000,000 USD in Prize Money)
