Future 100: build an application around evidence

Future 100 announced registration and nominations for a new edition this October, according to WAM’s 9 October report. The initiative, run by the Ministry of Economy and Tourism and the Government Development and the Future Office, recognised its third cohort at Investopia Bridge in Abu Dhabi. For a founder considering the next edition, the useful first task is to organise evidence about the business.

The report describes four evaluation pillars: creative capability, market potential, business model sustainability and scalability, and environmental, social and governance impact. Use those as headings for a working note. The suggestions below are SIBRIS preparation advice, not an official application form, a scoring formula or a guarantee of selection.

For creative capability, describe the problem you solve and how your approach differs from the alternative a customer uses today. Attach the most concrete evidence you can share: a working demonstration, a prototype result or a clear product walkthrough. Separate what exists now from what is still planned. A reader should be able to identify the innovation without first decoding a page of adjectives.

For market potential, identify the customer and the situation in which they would use the product. Keep evidence of actual demand separate from estimates of the wider market. If you cite interviews, trials or customers, add the period covered and explain what each number counts. Ten conversations, ten pilot users and ten paying customers are different facts; label them accordingly.

For sustainability and scalability of the business model, explain how the company delivers its product today and what would need to change to serve more customers. Record the main dependencies, team responsibilities and assumptions behind your plan. Distinguish an established process from a proposed one. The aim is a consistent account of how the business works, not a prediction dressed as a result.

For environmental, social and governance impact, choose claims that can be supported. Record the measure, its source, the period covered and any important limits. Keep targets separate from results already achieved. If a measure is not available yet, explain the gap and your proposed method instead of supplying an impressive but unsupported number.

Before submitting, check the programme’s current official channel for eligibility, the application route, required fields and the closing date for this edition. The announcement cited here does not give a precise closing date, and an older programme timeline should not be treated as the new deadline. This article does not confirm that the live form has been tested or that applications remain available at the moment you read it.

Keep one final evidence folder and one version of your answers. Give a colleague the draft and ask them to identify anything they cannot verify, any unexplained number and any claim that changes between sections. Remove confidential material you are not authorised to share, then retain your submitted version and receipt. Good preparation makes the business easier to assess even before anyone adds an award label.

Cover: original AI-generated conceptual illustration of an imaginary startup studio. It is not a Future100 facility, a participating company or a photograph of the programme.