is now open nominations for the 4th edition of the entrepreneurship competition sponsored by Vodafone and Ericsson, BIG smart cities . Until May 4, all technology-based business ideas that improve the daily lives of those who live, work or visit a city can apply through the website www.bigsmartcities.com , enabling was thus a cash prize of 10,000 euros, six months of incubation at Vodafone Power Lab and a trip to meet a center of innovation in Europe Ericsson .
at a time where modern cities are facing growing challenges – be they demographic, territorial or climacteric, as well as sharing and management of natural resources (water, energy, global warming) and human (population aging, social exclusion) – technology is a key ally to transform cities in increasingly intelligent cities and promote the quality of life of its inhabitants, workers, businessmen and visitors.
Aware of this, Vodafone and Ericsson have become partners for this year’s BIG smart cities, thereby reinforcing the determination of both companies to contribute to the development of technological ideas that make the urban environment more and more developers of quality of life and sustainability.
With four areas of opportunity identified – Smart Mobility, Smart Living, Smart Tourism and Smart Government – the contest this year features several innovations, the fact that evolve from local format the most important being that characterized so far, to pass to have a national scope. So this year, the initiative takes place in Oporto, Coimbra, Évora and Lisbon, with each city to promote local events, titled BIG city challenges: Four competitions, taking place during the month of April, where he will assess the proposals of potential registered entrepreneurs and elect a finalist for the city. In addition to gain direct access to the end of the competition, the four chosen projects will receive a prize of 500 euros.
Entrepreneurs who can not be present in the City Challenges Porto (April 14), Evora (20 April), Coimbra (April 21) and Lisbon (April 28), but submit their online applications will be assessed at a distance by the jury and later through in-person interviews. At the end of the selection process will be chosen 20 finalists, to be announced on May 16, beginning then the 9-week pre-acceleration program where the finalists will receive training, mentoring and support to transform their business ideas viable. The end of the BIG smart cities will take place on July 5, which will be publicly presented the pitches of the finalists and which will be unveiled the winning design and four honorable mentions projects.
In addition to the incentive of 10 thousand euros for they can begin to make your ideas into reality, technological proposal to present the best idea of city sustainability can develop your idea on the premises of the accelerator Vodafone Power Lab, receiving training, coaching and mentoring sessions and benefiting also from the environment sharing knowledge, experiences and mutual support between startups that lives in the accelerator. Alongside this, you will have the opportunity to visit a center of innovation Ericsson in Europe.
In previous editions were awarded the GuestU startups (2013), Inviita (2014) and Horizontal Lisbon (2015), among others , companies that have developed and evolved their ideas with the support of Vodafone Power Lab, which in addition to training and mentoring also facilitates networking between entrepreneurs and potential investors so that new businesses are able to successfully launch their business in the market.
the BIG smart cities has strengthened the long bet Vodafone in supporting innovation and entrepreneurship and is now a major storefronts Vodafone Power Lab, a program created in 2009 and has helped more than 80 startups born and helped to create more than 50 jobs.
in the Networked Society, Ericsson is the leading advocate for ‘Technology for Good’, encouraging innovation to help meet the challenges of sustainability . BIG smart cities is to foster the development of ideas based on Information and Communication Technologies that contribute to a better quality of urban life and a more sustainable world.
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