incMTY 2022, Latin America’s Most Important Economic Platform for Entrepreneurship and Innovation 

Investments totaling more than $300 million (and more than $2.6 billion in foreign direct investment), through new projects of the Government of Nuevo León, private enterprise, and renowned international companies, were announced during this year’s festival, significantly boosting the GDP per capita. 

Monterrey, Nuevo León, November 28, 2022 – incMTY, the innovative entrepreneurship festival organized by Tecnológico de Monterrey, came to a successful conclusion after three days. At this 10th anniversary celebration, the Mexico–Latin America ecosystem—entrepreneurs, investors, businesses, and corporations—interacted, connected, and shared business opportunities. More than 5,000 people attended the event in person, with another 5,000 attending virtually. All participants enjoyed the contributions of more than 300 national and international speakers, 50 venture capital and corporate venture capital firms within the Founders & Investors Summit and Corporate Innovation and Venturing Forum, and key players from more than 20 countries, representing the “quintuple helix” (entrepreneurs, investors, academia, governments, and private investment). More than 40 activities were offered, with on-demand content hosted on the Whova App (available until December 9).

incMTY and the city of Monterrey have become the most important economic generators of business opportunities in Latin America. Proof of this was the announcement of a record-breaking venture capital investment in excess of $300 million this year. Additionally, new projects were presented by the Nuevo León Government (“Peak Nuevo León” – where the government has a goal of 2 to 3 new entrepreneurships opening in Mexico with businesses in the United States), private enterprise, and renowned international companies, resulting in more than $2.6 billion in foreign direct investment.

This forum also saw the launch of the ScaleUp Nation Monterrey initiative, designed to consolidate Monterrey as a specialized hub for scaling innovation-based enterprises, with the collaboration of each actor from the entrepreneurial ecosystem and guided by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). Rogelio de los Santos, president of Tecnológico de Monterrey’s Eugenio Garza Lagüera Entrepreneurship Institute, announced the new brand, titled “Monterrey–Aquí Si.” As de los Santos commented, “There is so much more to build and contribute in the world, but incMTY is already a powerful platform in which opportunities and innovation multiply.”

Presentations and investment announcements at incMTY 2022

• Nuevo León State Government and Invest Monterrey, $2.6 billion: Governor Samuel García Sepúlveda announced this figure to illustrate the impact of foreign investment. Similarly, through the Ministry of Labor and the State Employment Service Office, 1 million pesos were allocated for companies located in Nuevo León, with the aim of generating new jobs and promoting responsible entrepreneurship.

• Daikin Industries, $300 million: The no. 1 global air-conditioning manufacturer from Japan recently announced it would invest this amount in Mexico. As of 2022, Daikin is working with incMTY to achieve innovation in the HVAC (heating, ventilation, and air conditioning) industry. Toward this end, 70 disruption projects participated in the incMTY Disruptair Challenge 2022, in which entrepreneurs in Latin America are challenged to identify or solve problems related to the HVAC industry and its supply chain. The winning teams were SolarX (first place), Flair (second place), and Bono (third place).

• Proeza Ventures, $50 million: The venture capital firm, whose mission is to discover visionary entrepreneurs and build startups to transform the mobility industry and create a more sustainable world, reported that it will invest in 15 startups related to mobility issues.

• German Society for International Cooperation (GIZ), $15 million: GIZ announced that it has earmarked this amount for the Climate Catalyst Fund.

• Nekko Capital, $10 million: The Barcelona, Spain-based venture capital fund, which targets early-stage companies, announced its Seed Capital Fund.

• 99 Startups, $1.1 million: In an investment round, this venture capital fund, which seeks to finance startups in the pre-seed and seed stages, announced its participation in Cuéntame, a platform that uses artificial intelligence to provide appropriate wellness resources for employees and up to three of their family members. 99 Startups is working to consolidate its presence in Mexico, Colombia, and Chile.

• Alaya Capital, $1 million: The Chile-based venture capital fund (“from entrepreneurs for entrepreneurs”) is about to launch its third fund, with the goal of raising $80 million. The fund will then invest approximately $1 million in at least 25 startups that are in the regional scaling stage. (Past awardees include Betterfly, Lemon, and SixClovers.)

• City of Monterrey, 5 million pesos: Luis Donaldo Colosio Riojas, mayor of Monterrey, launched the first Municipal Fund for Technology-Based Entrepreneurship.

• The festival saw the launch of the Kuikmatch–Pacific Alliance platform, with the signing of a collaboration agreement for $100,000, free of equity. The aim of this platform is to promote the winning science- and technology-based ventures.

The most outstanding capital raisings at incMTY 

• Betterfly, considered the first Latin American “social” unicorn (a business that maximizes social welfare in addition to financial valuations), outlined how it raised $125 million in a Series C investment round.

• During the Founders & Investors Summit, investments of $100 million in SparkCognition, the global leader in artificial intelligence for industrial applications, were announced. Dalus Capital and March Capital are partnering to help grow this company.

• Yaydoo, the “B2B paytech,” announced its $20.4 million capital raising and merger with PayStand, with the goal of serving all of America’s small and mid-sized businesses. To date, the company is valued at more than $2 million.

• The Mercado Libre Fund, which invests in tech companies (typically in Series A and B rounds), announced an investment of $20 million in the Elenas platform.

• Autolab, an automobile parts and repair platform, reported that it had raised $6.5 million in a seed capital and debt round led by Bullpen Capital, with the participation of Proeza Ventures.

• Orchata, a Mexican startup whose founding director, Luis Mario García, promises “from the supermarket to your doorstep in 15 minutes,” began its expansion by raising $4 million in an initial round. Y Combinator, JAM Fund, FJ Labs, Venture Friends, Ivesto, and Foundation Capital are the main investors.

• Nowports, a Monterrey-based company and the first LogiTech unicorn in Latin America, shared its valuation of $1.1 million with its Series C milestone, led by the SoftBank Latin America Fund.

• Calii, a Mexican startup that connects fruit and vegetable producers directly with homes, restaurants, and retailers, announced that it had raised $22.5 million.

To learn more, visit the Tecnológico de Monterrey newsroom.

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About incMTY

incMTY, a yearly three-day entrepreneurship festival, is a unique Tecnológico de Monterrey platform to promote innovative entrepreneurship. Founded in 2013, its purpose is to inspire, connect, and empower entrepreneurs, investors, businesses, and corporations, activating an ecosystem to create and promote ideas and initiatives that become innovative and transformative companies. Attendance at the festival has consistently grown since 2013, drawing more than 81 thousand attendees in each of the past eight years.

incMTY is the result of many alliances that together translate into content and support that allow great things to happen. Organizations such as Google, Facebook, Silicon Valley Bank, Draper Network, IBM, Amazon, Ashoka, Hult Prize, Hootsuite, Global Entrepreneurship Network, WeXchange, International Accelerator, FEMSA, América Móvil, CCM Heineken, Santander, OCV Monterrey, Startup Bootcamp, and Growth Institute have been crucial in the festival’s development. incMTY has also featured a number of relevant personalities, including Mayim Bialik, Richard Branson, Peter Diamandis, Jeremy Gutsche, Daymond John, Guy Kawasaki, Jenn Lim, Kevin O’Leary, Alexander Osterwaider, Jason Silva, and Gary Vaynerchuk, as well as inspiring entrepreneurs such as Xavier López Ancona and Tanya Moss—among hundreds more.

About Tecnológico de Monterrey

Tecnológico de Monterrey is a private nonprofit multi-campus university system founded in 1943, distinguished globally for its academic excellence, innovation in education, entrepreneurship, and global vision. The institution is also noted for its deep engagement with industry and employers and its high execution capability. With a presence across 28 cities in Mexico, the institution has more than 67,000 enrolled undergraduate and graduate students, almost 7,000 faculty members, and more than 26,000 high school students served by 2,500 professors. Tecnológico de Monterrey has been accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and School Commission on Colleges since 1950. According to the QS World University Rankings 2023, Tecnológico de Monterrey ranks 170th globally and among the top 30 private universities worldwide. The QS Graduate Employability Rankings 2022 place the institution 1st in Latin America and 26th globally for Employer Reputation. The Times Higher Education Latin America University Rankings 2022 rank the institution 1st in Mexico and 5th in Latin America. Tecnológico de Monterrey is the only university outside the United States included in the Princeton Review & Entrepreneur Magazine ranking of Top Schools for Entrepreneurship Studies (2023), placing 4th for undergraduate entrepreneurship programs. Tecnológico de Monterrey belongs to several prestigious global networks, including the Association of Pacific Rim Universities, Universitas 21, and The Worldwide Universities Network.