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Our Startup of the Week is Hopin! An online platform helping to bring sustainability to the events industry. Hopin is the first of its kind, being a live events platform that enables attendees to connect with new people in the same way they would at a physical event.

London-based Hopin was founded last year, built to improve the virtual events industry whilst helping to reduce carbon emissions, the startup claiming that:

鈥淲e built Hopin because we want to bring the world together without harming it. Hopin events are sustainable, carbon-neutral, and 100% online, so everybody can come.鈥�

Reports show that events contribute a significant amount to CO2 emissions and waste, a three-day conference of 1,000 people creating over 5,600 kilograms of waste, whilst the average attendee at a conference will produce more than 170 kilograms of CO2 emissions a day.

Hopin has created a solution to this, helping to reduce CO2 emissions whilst also helping people attend events they would otherwise not have access to – including those who can鈥檛 afford ticket prices, those with disabilities facing non-accessible events, and other professionals who can鈥檛 take the time off work.

With Hopin鈥檚 platform, users can host up to 100,000 for an event that鈥檚 anything from a few hours to a few days long. It鈥檚 virtual venues can replicate much of the experience from a physical event, with main stages, backstages, expos, face-to-face networking, group breakout sessions and more.

The startup as recently raised 鈧�6 million in seed investment, which will be used to grow and expand the business. In a time where travel has been restricted for the foreseeable future, this funding couldn鈥檛 have come at a better time, as businesses everywhere have had to adapt the way they connect with both their employees and their client. Hopin state:

鈥淎s one can imagine, we are getting inundated with inquiries right now due to the coronavirus. Whilst we are saddened, we are excited to give event producers a way to keep their events going and attendees a way to attend them. From Asia to LA, from business to government to education to tech to non-profit, we are seeing an incredibly vibrant mix of interesting events, large and small, hosted on Hopin, happening now and over the coming months.鈥�