Rebuilding Ukraine

    Rebuilding Ukraine,  an international NGO composed of individuals and groups devoted to both protecting and rebuilding Ukraine during and after the Russian invasion, is initiating a 24 hour online Hackathon to create and refine new technologies to help Ukraine recover. 

   According to co-founders Svetlana Shevchenko, Amy Chang,  and  John Toomey, the project will bring together businesses, startup incubators, churches,  and students and researchers from Stanford, Berkeley, Singularity University, Oxford, and Taras Shevchenko National University and Lviv Polytechnic National University in Ukraine to develop new technologies and refine existing ones. "We are interested in supporting every kind of tech which will help Ukraine defend itself and rebuild, including  carbon removal,  AI,  mental health tech, cybersecurity, sustainable building materials, drones, green energy,  AI,  hydrology, construction, building materials, SAAS, autonomous vehicles, aviation, and transport."

  A big part of the program involves supporting female entrepreneurs who live outside Ukraine, and who want to begin startups online even before they can return. There are an estimated 4 million of these in Poland, Romania, and other parts of Europe.

  A Junior Division is prepping the next generation of entrepreneurs who are still children through teaching arts and crafts that develop imagination, problem-solving skills, and critical thinking.  Also planned is a database of AI-generated online courses in Ukrainian which teach valuable skills necessary to every aspect of reconstruction. Courses will be created in Coursera, Delila.ai, and EdApp and shared both with in-country students, and the Ukrainian diaspora, consisting of 8 million Ukrainian citizens who are currently living overseas as refugees.

  Rebuilding Ukraine also is creating the world's largest matching database to connect companies and startups involved in national reconstruction with funders.

  The United Nations estimates that more than 15 trillion hryvnia (400 billion dollars) will be required to repair the damage arising from the current war in Ukraine.  Even though the war has not ended, it is apparent to many that reconstruction must start now.

  Traditionally a hackathon is held during a weekend on a college campus. Students arrive with ideas and inventions, and brainstorm ways to improve them. "That has worked well in starting a lot of successful tech companies" says Save Ukraine's Soani Gunawan, "but we see no reason why the whole thing can't be done online, 24 hours a day, so that any entrepreneur or student inventor in the world can participate at any time. Ukraine desperately needs solutions for all kinds of problems, and we seek to bring genius from around the globe together to build and collaborate."

Participants don't need to be inventors or startups themselves to participate. They can also promote existing tech products, vote in surveys to determine which technologies are most worthy, assist in crowdfunding campaigns, help in translating, and offer assistance with importing, Customs, and regulatory issues.

"We are open to all ideas" says Toomey. "What's really necessary is a passion for helping Ukraine recover and rebuild, knowing that what we learn here will undoubtedly be usable for future crises, and for peacetime."

The rest of this site describes the matching system.  We are in the process of compiling lists of over 2500 potential funders, and 33,000 startups and firms who plan to participate in reconstruction.

• The German Marshall Fund of the United States (GMF), headquartered in Washington, D.C., published Designing Ukraine’s Recovery in the Spirit of the Marshall Plan in September1.

• Australian mining billionaire Andrew Forrest has launched an investment fund that is hoped will be worth at least $25bn (£21bn) to help rebuild war-torn Ukraine2.

• The European Union is setting up a post-war reconstruction fund for Ukraine3.

• Private investors are also interested in investing in Ukraine’s recovery. A conference was held in London on June 21, 2023, where private investors pledged billions for Ukraine rebuilding4.

The following are funders who have shown interest in assisting rebuilding:

Digital Future: A venture capital fund focused on investing in early-stage technology companies in Eastern Europe, including Ukraine.

TA Ventures: A venture capital firm that invests in early-stage technology companies, including Ukrainian startups, with a focus on sectors like SaaS, Fintech, e-commerce, and more.

Horizon Capital: A private equity firm investing in high-growth companies across various sectors in Ukraine, including technology and innovation-driven businesses.

Intel Capital: The venture capital arm of Intel Corporation, known for investing in technology startups globally, including Ukrainian companies with promising innovations.

Eastlabs: A seed-stage venture capital fund that invests in Eastern European startups, including those based in Ukraine, focusing on areas like software, mobile, e-commerce, and more.

Credo Ventures: A venture capital firm that invests in early-stage technology companies in Central and Eastern Europe, including Ukraine, with a focus on software, mobile, and internet sectors.

TMT Investments: A venture capital firm that invests in technology, media, and telecommunications sectors globally, including Ukrainian startups with high growth potential.

500 Startups: A global venture capital seed fund and startup accelerator program that has invested in several Ukrainian startups in the past, with a focus on early-stage investments.

RTP Global: A venture capital firm investing globally in technology companies, including Ukrainian startups, across various sectors such as software, marketplace, fintech, and more.

Khosla Ventures: A venture capital firm that invests in early-stage companies globally, including Ukrainian startups, across sectors like clean technology, mobile, internet, and more.

U.Ventures: A Ukrainian venture capital fund that invests in early-stage startups with innovative ideas, focusing on sectors such as SaaS, AI, cybersecurity, and others.

Haxus Venture: A venture capital fund that invests in early-stage startups, including Ukrainian companies, with a focus on technology and innovation.

Here are some of the companies we will be introducing to funders:

Mate Academy: An edtech startup that provides STEM education and helps grads get their first job in the tech industry.

Finmap: A financial management firm that offers a tool for small businesses to optimize financial data use.

Reface app: An entertainment app that uses AI to allow users to replace faces within images, GIFs, and videos.

Esper Bionics: A biotech startup that develops bionic prosthetic hands with sensory feedback.

Effa Corp.: An eco-friendly startup that produces disposable toothbrushes made of paper.

Snovio: A sales automation platform that helps find leads, verify emails, and automate outreach.

Readdle: A productivity app developer that creates popular apps like Spark, Scanner Pro, and Documents21.

 Donations can be made at https://www.givesendgo.com/letsrebuildukraine

For more information email info@saveukraine.network.