[Excerpt from South China Morning Post, Jul 22, 2026]
OKOsix was selected as one of the Top 5 finalists in the EQT Impact Challenge Hong Kong 2026. Eddie Yu, co-founder and chief executive of Okosix, explains his green-tech company’s business plans to jury members.
More than 200 entries were received for this year's EQT Impact Challenge, a figure which reflects the strength of Hong Kong's start-up ecosystem. The calibre of applicants has not disappointed.
“This year, we have built on our learnings from last year,” Salata said. “We reached a broader group of founders, attracted another strong cohort of applicants, and brought a wider range of perspectives into the selection process and final discussions.
“What stood out for me was the complex nature of the problems the contestants are trying to solve in areas such as healthcare, artificial intelligence [AI] and sustainability. It takes ambition and courage to tackle these challenges, but shows exactly the kind of innovation EQT hopes to support.”
One of the first challenges for the competition’s judges came on the Jury Day on July 14, when they had to identify five finalists from the already stellar pool of 10 shortlisted candidates.
The competition format gave contestants three minutes to present their case without reference to their slide deck and supporting documents, which had been submitted for the jury to study in advance.
This necessitated a concise and fluent summary of the start-up’s objectives, methods and business plans. Some opted for a narrative element and a mention of what inspired them, while others put more emphasis on the precise technical or medical aspects of their work and where it could lead. A five-minute question-and-answer session followed.
The first thing jury members looked for was whether the start-up was solving a problem that really matters. Any technology involved had to be clearly differentiated, but the questions from the jury were always focused on the themes of who needs this, why now and whether the team has what it takes to succeed.
“The warning signs are usually around lack of clarity,” Salata said. “If the market demand is not clear, if the assumptions are not well supported, or if the technology is looking for a problem rather than solving one, that becomes difficult. I am also cautious if a team cannot explain how they will move from scientific promise to commercial adoption.”
Accordingly, the various presenters were asked about actual or prospective sources of funding, professional and scientific advisers and competition within their sector, as well as feasibility, market potential, execution to date and hoped-for impact.
However, the jury also scored them on qualities including drive, leadership, the character to withstand adversity and the ability to recruit a strong team.
After due deliberation, five outstanding start-ups were selected to progress to the final.
Green-related problems are also the focus of green-tech company Okosix, which has developed an innovative biopolymer platform to replace fossil-based plastics in high-specification healthcare and hygiene applications.
Co-founder and chief executive Eddie Yu said the product had already gained commercial traction, with revenue of about US$3.2 million to date, but that the next step was to secure market share by transitioning to patent licensing and regional production partnerships.
As part of its plan to scale, the company was looking to set up in Europe and North America, where the outlook was good, he said.
“The broad strategy is to lower the cost of our technology to increase sales on a global basis,” Yu said. “At the moment, we are looking to hire more people and are getting a lot of help from our scientific advisers.”
The grand finale of the EQT Impact Challenge 2026 will take place in September at the M+ Museum, in Kowloon, with the winner receiving €500,000 from the EQT Foundation to support business growth. Other runner-up finalists will also receive funding from Salata's family office, Central Cove Group.
Source: South China Morning Post