Brunei Startup Summit 2026 Concludes with Strong Participation, Strengthening Brunei’s Startup Ecosystem

Bandar Seri Begawan, 11 February 2026 – The Brunei Economic Development Board (BEDB) today officially launched the Brunei Startup Summit 2026, marking the start of a two-day platform supporting entrepreneurship startup growth, and regional collaboration, reinforcing Brunei Darussalam’s focus on building a resilient, innovation-driven economy. 

The Brunei Startup Summit brought together over 500 participants, comprising startup founders, innovators, investors, corporates, policymakers, and ecosystem partners from Brunei and the region. The strong turnout reflects increasing engagement across the startup ecosystem and growing interest in Brunei as a base for building, scaling and sustaining innovative businesses. 

Designed to deliver practical value for founders and growing enterprises, the Summit featured keynote addresses, panel discussions, hands-on workshops, startup exhibitions, and pitching sessions. These sessions focused on addressing real business challenges faced by MSMEs and startups, including building resilient teams, achieving product–market fit, fundraising realities, strategic use of data and artificial intelligence, and expanding into regional markets. 

Beyond knowledge-sharing, the Summit provided direct access and exposure to investors, partners, and regional ecosystem players. Through networking sessions, pitching opportunities, and business showcases, participating enterprises were able to explore potential collaborations, funding pathways, and market expansion opportunities that support business growth and long-term sustainability. 

The Summit also highlighted the role of startups and innovative MSMEs as contributors to economic diversification and job creation, particularly in knowledge-based and high-growth sectors. By supporting enterprises with the potential to scale, the Summit contributes to strengthening local supply chains, improving productivity, and enabling Bruneian businesses to participate more actively in regional and global value chains.

In his keynote address, Yang Berhormat Dato Seri Setia Dr Awang Haji Mohd Amin Liew bin Abdullah, Minister at the Prime Minister’s Office and Minister of Finance and Economy II and Chairman of the Brunei Economic Development Board (BEDB) emphasised that startups play a crucial role in driving economic diversification, productivity, and innovation-led growth. He highlighted that as Brunei’s startup ecosystem continues to mature, the focus must be outward-looking—leveraging regional connectivity, forging strategic partnerships, and strengthening collaboration to enable Bruneian startups to scale beyond the domestic market and participate meaningfully within the Borneo region, ASEAN, and the wider global. 

In his welcoming remarks, Acting Chief Executive Officer of BEDB, Daniel Leong, noted that while Brunei’s startup ecosystem is still developing, the growing number of founders stepping forward to build, test, and refine their ideas is an encouraging sign of progress. He shared that the Brunei Startup Summit is intended as a platform for learning and exchange, bringing together founders, industry leaders, investors, and ecosystem partners to share real-world experiences, perspectives, and insights that help startups prepare for the next stage of growth and explore opportunities beyond borders. 

The Summit provided tangible value for founders and aspiring entrepreneurs, with one startup founder sharing; “The Summit provided practical knowledge and access to valuable connections. It was encouraging to engage with both local and regional stakeholders who understand the challenges faced by startups and are open to supporting our growth journey.” 

For founders and MSMEs, the Summit provided practical guidance on strengthening teams, achieving product–market fit, and using data and artificial intelligence to improve day-to-day business decisions and operational efficiency. Participants were also exposed to investor perspectives, ASEAN market entry considerations, and pitching expectations, giving them clearer direction on refining their business models, improving investment readiness, and pursuing growth beyond Brunei. Through platforms such as the Brunei Startup Summit, BEDB continues to strengthen the startup and MSME pipeline, build enterprise capabilities and support the growth of innovating businesses into job-creating enterprises that contribute meaningfully to Brunei Darussalam’s long-term economic diversification efforts. 

Delivered through close collaboration with ecosystem partners, the Brunei Startup Summit 2026 was supported by Bank Islam Brunei Darussalam (BIBD), Unified National Networks (UNN), Baiduri Bank, Datastream Digital Sendirian Berhad (DST), Progresif, Royal Brunei Airlines Sdn Bhd (RB), Kristal FM (KFM), Brunei Innovation Lab (BIL), Reactor School, Brunei Darussalam Central Bank (BDCB), Bank Usahawan, Authority for Infocommunications Technology Industry of Brunei Darussalam (AITI), World Bank, Lab and Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia whose participation contributed to the exchange of insights, engagement, and collaboration that support startup and MSME growth.