Why purpose-driven startups like Timtim are the future of innovation

What if innovation wasn’t measured by profits but by the lives it transforms?

This year, Stone & Chalk were once again sponsors of the Innovation Award at the University of Adelaide’s ThincLab eChallenge, a growth program for emerging entrepreneurs in South Australia

The Innovation Award highlights startups that embody creativity, resilience, and transformative potential, where entrepreneurs focus not just on what they can build but on who they can help.

Among the decorated list of potential winners, one startup stole the spotlight: Timtim.

Timtim: Building connection where it’s most needed

In many parts of the world, being yourself can mean being alone.

In Vietnam and South-East Asia, this is the case for many LGBTQ people, who face profound isolation and societal stigma just navigating their daily lives. Timtim’s founders – Daisuke Kuwano, Thi Be Vy Nguyen, and Le Anh Dao To – set out to change that.

Driven by a diverse team of LGBTQ advocates, marketers, AI specialists, and finance experts, Timtim is on a mission to solve a deeply human challenge: the need for authentic connection.

Unlike typical dating apps focused on swipes and superficiality, Timtim offers a safe, inclusive platform for meaningful connection and building a community rooted in pride and authenticity.

“We want everyone who joins Timtim to feel supported, seen, and connected in a way that goes far beyond surface-level interactions,” say the founders of Timtim.

Their mission resonates deeply with Stone & Chalk’s values of inclusion and impact.

As Dr. Tim Mahlberg Sie, Stone & Chalk’s General Manager South Australia, shares: “Timtim shows what happens when empathy and purpose drive technology. It’s a powerful reminder of the good innovation can do.”

How the eChallenge gives opportunity to new entrepreneurs

For the past two decades, the Australian eChallenge has supported entrepreneurship in South Australia. It equips emerging entrepreneurs with the tools to solve real problems, working towards the goal of launching a startup.

Throughout the program, participants develop their business models by focusing on viability, feasibility, desirability, market analysis, and target audiences.

To help them with this, participants gain access to mentors, academics, and industry leaders who guide them to transform their early concepts into startups.

“It is through this stimulating education process that new entrepreneurs are born,” says Professor Noel Lindsay, Pro Vice-Chancellor (Entrepreneurship) from the University of Adelaide.

This year, a prize pool of $76,700 drew an impressive array of participants. Along with Timtim, a big congratulations to the other key winners on the night:

• First Prize: Typpio – Developed by Savannah Fung and Oveena Widyaratne, this startup introduces authentication technology based on typing patterns, setting a new standard in digital security.
• Second Prize: Ulab Coffee – This project brings deep personalisation to coffee culture with a kit that scientifically matches users to their ideal coffee flavour.
• Third Prize: SkyPay – The company that tackles financial inclusivity with a platform to eliminate upfront costs for essential goods.

Like Timtim, these entrepreneurs are treading the path toward building companies to make life better for everyday people through technology.

Giving innovation a purpose

The eChallenge is a proving ground for real-world impact, and our recognition of Timtim is an acknowledgement of the power of purpose-driven innovation.

At its core, the startup is doing more than fighting loneliness. It’s giving the LGBTQ community a space to belong.

The team’s victory underscores a vital lesson for all entrepreneurs: the most powerful ideas often stem from lived experience and real problems. Pairing technology with empathy, Timtim is proving that innovation can be deeply human.

“What impressed me most about Timtim was their focus on building more than a product,” said Dr. Tim Mahlberg Sie. “They’re tackling a social issue that affects many people who would otherwise struggle on their own, and making a real difference.”

In using technology to address systemic challenges, Timtim is a shining example of how startups can drive meaningful change.

The future of purpose-driven innovation in Australia

Stone & Chalk builds communities of innovators, and our sponsorship of the eChallenge works to cultivate a culture of impact and collaboration in Australia.

“Our mission is to support startups that combine bold ideas with genuine purpose,” said Dr. Tim Mahlberg Sie. “Timtim embodies that perfectly.”

“When you back an entrepreneur, you’re investing in more than an idea, you’re investing in their potential to make a difference.”

As the Australian eChallenge continues to grow, its impact on the entrepreneurial ecosystem only deepens.

For Timtim, their win is just the beginning. With plans to expand into South-East Asia, they’re on a mission to scale their impact and help even more people feel connected.

We see the future of innovation as bold, purposeful, and profoundly human. And each day we’re working to make that a reality, and supporting those who have set out to do the same.