EIT Digital @ ICT 2015: Growing Europe’s Digital Innovation ecosystems

EIT Digital will demonstrate how its work is helping Europe’s digital entrepreneurs to ‘Innovate, Connect and Transform’ – the theme for the event, organised by the European Commission and Portuguese Government agency, FCT.

Sessions hosted by EIT Digital will provide opportunities to explore how the digital innovation ecosystem can continue to support the growth of the data-driven economy in Europe and of open innovation.

Innovation ecosystems for the European Big Data economy Networking session organised in partnership with the Big Data Value Association (BDVA)
October 21, 09:50am-10:50am, Room 5B
“Big data is creating new growth opportunities and new types of companies in different industrial segments. Europe needs to join forces to claim a share of the emerging and global business” says EIT Digital Research Director, Fabio Pianesi.

The networking session will focus on challenges that data-related businesses face and how innovation ecosystems can help entrepreneurs deal with them. Examples from various innovations spaces, such as the EIT Digital Co-location centres, the Idea Challenge and Business communities are presented.

Hear from the entrepreneurs - meet Big Data start-up LeanXcale and F-SecureLeanXcale is a Spanish-based startup that offers a new disruptive approach to large companies who are willing to take profit from their data.

F-Secure offer cyber security solutions for modern businesses, developed by a European pioneer in security and data protection - trusted by millions.

Open innovation breeds global monopolies

Networking session: Open Innovation 2.0 October 21, 16:00-16:45, Room 5C
“Open innovation is about having no contract beforehand. It should not be interpreted as free innovation. In order for open innovation to work three things have to be in place - technical enablers have to fit with other solutions, economical enablers like incentive systems have to be available and social enablers that create a shared interest of developers in the area.” Says Tatu Koljonen, Node Director EIT Digital Helsinki, who will moderate the session.

Koljonen is joined by Bror Salmelin, Advisor Innovation Systems, DG Connect, Jukka Salmikuukka, Director, New Business Concepts, KONE Corporation and Walter Weigel, Vice President, Huawei European Research Institute (ERI) for discussion on the pros and cons of different open innovation strategies, and the move towards global ecosystems and local clusters of trust, rather than individual innovations.

INNOVATE track – Digital Innovation HubsOctober 21, 16:40-18:10, Session 7I - Auditorium 6

This session explores how several different digital innovation hubs contribute to the success of their members, in particular SMEs and startups, and how these hubs can become sustainable. EIT Digital is amongst the innovation hubs being showcased, for its approach to addressing both innovation and entrepreneurial talent growth, and its work to connect to other innovation hubs, actively contributing to their success and sustainability, e.g., FIWARE’sinnovation ecosystem through the I3H initiative.