Deel has announced the launch of The Pitch, a bold new global startup competition designed to uncover and fund the next generation of borderless founders. Unveiled on 25 February 2026 in Kuala Lumpur, the initiative reinforces Deel’s mission to level the playing field for entrepreneurs by focusing on merit rather than geography, access, or personal networks. Aimed at seed-stage startups, The Pitch seeks to surface high-potential companies from across the world using a data-driven, merit-first evaluation process.
The tournament is expected to engage more than 20,000 startups across seven global regions, culminating in an investment pool of up to $15 million. Up to 100 regional winners will each receive $50,000 in funding, while as many as ten global champions will be awarded $1 million each to help scale their businesses. With a final acceptance rate of just 0.05 percent, The Pitch positions itself as one of the most selective startup competitions globally—surpassing even many top-tier accelerators in rigor and competitiveness.
Unlike traditional venture capital models that are often limited by local ecosystems and closed networks, The Pitch introduces a new standard for global venture investing. The competition blends a high-stakes tournament format with expert-led analysis across a wide range of performance and traction indicators to identify what Deel describes as “high-signal” startups. This approach is designed to ensure that exceptional founders can be discovered regardless of where they are building.
Applications are now open to seed-stage founders worldwide, with the competition journey leading to seven in-person regional finals in major tech hubs such as Singapore, New York, London, and Berlin, before concluding with a global finale in May 2026. The Pitch is presented by J.P. Morgan, with support from leading partners including Andreessen Horowitz, dLocal, Google, Orrick, Prodware, Ribbit Ventures, and Stripe. More information, including application details and livestream links, is available on the official Deel Pitch page.
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