A game developer was one of a number of tech entrepreneurs to take the plunge into ice cold waters to pitch their company to investors during Finland’s annual Polar Bear Pitching event in Oulu last night.

Representatives for each start-up are required to take a dip in a small pool of icy water to pitch their new business to a panel of investors.

Each pitch typically just lasts between two to four minutes, given the icy cold temperature of the water and the freezing weather conditions. The entire event is also live-streamed and open to the public to attend.

The winner stood the chance to receive a €10,000 prize plus the publicity from taking part in the event.

Cold reality

One participant was Jussi Kajala, Chief Operating Officer and co-founder of games for education start-up 3DBear.

Wearing a virtual reality headset, he explained how the company aims to make 3D printing fun and engaging in schools.

3DBear is a game that runs on tablet devices, PC and virtual reality headsets, enabling users to explore different worlds. Players can then 3D print out objects and characters created in the game.

The idea is to gamify learning in schools and teach children about subjects like history, mathematics and science in a new way.

A host of other start-ups took part in the event, from silent ear plug creator QuietOn to location-based technology outfit First Bond.

The winner of the pitching event was Virta, which offers a solution for managing electric vehicle charging services and hopes to help generate a sustainable ecosystem around them.