This September, in collaboration with its EIC Programme Managers, Enric Claverol and Ivan Stefanic, the EIC Tech to Market (T2M) Venture Building Programme organised two Tech Demo Days in the areas of “Medical technologies and medical devices” and “Food chain technologies, novel & sustainable food”. Two bright groups of EIC Pathfinder and EIC Transition projects pitched their innovations to a panel of top European experts.
The EIC T2M Venture Building Programme helps building start-ups to exploit promising research results through venture building services. To achieve this promise, the programme involves various stakeholders, such as the EIC Programme Managers (PM) that take active part during the Tech Demo Days.
Ivan Stefanic, EIC Programme Manager responsible for overseeing innovations in the “Food chain technologies, novel & sustainable food” area told us about his view on this initiative: “Successful completion of EIC Pathfinder and EIC Transition projects is an important moment for EIC beneficiaries. Up to that point, the job was done by research institutions, and further development of the innovations and their commercialisation should be done by SMEs. That is not just a big step forward, it is a quantum leap. This Programme’s support for EIC beneficiaries is the right solution for that problem”.
The EIC beneficiaries’ view: an opportunity to build a network
We spoke with Siobhán Kelleher, from Sision Medical, representing the EIC project EndoSolve, who participated in the Tech Demo Day for Medical technologies and medical devices, and with Lorenzo Sbizzera, representing the EIC project Asteasier, who participated in the Tech Demo Day on Food chain technologies, novel & sustainable food.
EndoSolve developed a digital biomarker-based risk-stratification platform and associated wearable solutions that can identify patients with inflammatory endocrine conditions, such as endometriosis, to support clinical decision-making and enhance the delivery of personalized care for the individual.
Asteasier’s innovation allows to produce astaxanthin, a red pigment largely used in the aquafeed industry, in a more efficient and sustainable way. Astaxanthin is used to confer pigmentation to salmons, crustaceans and other fishes. This innovation, based on new patented strains of microalgae (photosynthetic unicellular organisms), allows to produce high-quality natural astaxanthin while consuming CO2 and reducing production costs.
The opportunity to broaden a network was something that both Siobhán and Lorenzo found beneficial. For Siobhán, “being in the company of very inspiring deep tech innovation companies/projects and evolving along the path together was very interesting”. The EndoSolve representative added that the individual meetings with the experts helped building a larger network.
Lorenzo highlights that for him the most interesting part was also the opportunity to interact with specialists in the field: “Having the opportunity to present our innovation and receive their feedback and advice was certainly important for the progress of the project”. With the EIC T2M Venture Building Programme, Lorenzo hopes to receive support in completing the team and in the tech-to-market process, when it comes to regulatory aspects and the protection of intellectual property.
By participating in this Programme, Siobhán and her team aim at “establishing the optimum route to market for our technology, improving the lives of patients and decreasing the burden on health systems”.
Both projects moved to the Opportunities’ Exploration phase in the Programme, where they will receive guidance on feasibility from a team of experts with business insights that can support them with recommendations for improvement.
Looking through the experts’ lens
Each Tech Demo Day involves a panel of at least 10 experts. These panelists have different profiles, including academics, investors, corporate representatives, and EIC business coaches. We had the opportunity to talk with 2 experts: Elena Kopanarova, from Oecon Group, who participated in the session of Food chain technologies, novel & sustainable food, and with Samantha Barbero, from ValueXMatch, who participated in the event dedicated to Medical technologies and medical devices.
For Elena, this type of programme “is very important and beneficial to support researchers with cutting-edge innovations entering the business market. This Programme provides them with the necessary skills, knowledge, resources, and network to transform their ideas into viable products or services that can meet the needs and demands of the customers”.
Samantha believes that this Programme is very valuable and the projects “especially in an early phase, should be most supported in terms of presentation creation and team building”.
Elena concluded by saying that the EIC T2M Venture Building Programme “contributes to fostering a culture of innovation and entrepreneurship in Europe, as well as enhancing its competitiveness and attractiveness in the global market”.
If you have an EIC-funded project and you are interested in participating in future Tech Demo Days, read more and apply here.
About the EIC Tech to Market (T2M) Venture Building Programme
The EIC Tech to Market Venture Building Programme aims to help build start-ups to exploit promising research results through venture building services, comprising a range of activities from identification of promising business ideas to venture creation and development.
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DISCLAIMER: This information is provided in the interest of knowledge sharing and should not be interpreted as the official view of the European Commission, or any other organisation.