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EDP Open Innovation accelerator selects 10 startups from 10 different countries

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Tim Hinchliffe

Oct 1, 2018

edp open innovation accelerator

EDP ​​Open Innovation, an acceleration project that joins Energias de Portugal (EDP) and Expresso, selects 10 finalist startups from 10 different countries for this year’s edition.

Now in its seventh edition, this year’s acceleration program, which counts Beta-i for the first time as an acceleration partner, received 210 applications from 34 countries and begins this month in Lisbon.

The best team will be awarded €50,000, and the top three teams will have the opportunity to attend Web Summit, the largest international event of technology and entrepreneurship.

Read More: Call for applications: EDP to award €50K for clean energy innovation

edp open innovation accelerator

Luis Manuel

“EDP Open Innovation, which is in its seventh edition, aims to challenge entrepreneurs to take their business to the next level. It’s a success story, which has already helped accelerate many startups, giving them tools to grow,” said Luís Manuel, Member of the Executive Committee at EDP Inovação, in a statement.

“Proof of this is the interest this year in 210 teams from 34 different countries, and we have 10 elected from 10 countries, proof of the international reach of this initiative,” he added.

The 10 teams selected represent areas as diverse as Clean Energies, Digital Innovation, Customer Focused Solutions, Intelligent Networks and Energy Storage, and include:

“It is very gratifying for EDP to receive this high number of applications from countries as diverse as Bangladesh, Germany, and Brazil,” said Manuel, adding, “this is proof that this is an increasingly global project with a very ambitious expansion potential. We are very excited about the quality of the 10 finalists, who will bring very interesting and distinctive projects to Lisbon.”

Portugal’s lone startup on the list, Lisbon-based crowdlending platform GoParity, won €25,000 through the MetLife Inclusion Plus Iberia competition in July with a chance to go to the world final in New York in October.

Read More: Lisbon crowdlending platform GoParity wins €25K via MetLife Inclusion Plus Iberia

The focus of the EDP Open Innovation accelerator is very much on startups dedicated to innovation in the field of energy and major industry trends: decarbonisation, decentralization and digitization. At a time when innovation and technology are playing an increasingly important role in the energy sector, the jury has focused on innovative projects that can make a difference in a rapidly changing market.

The prizes are the result of a merger between the Energias de Portugal project and the ‘EDP Inovação Prize’, which a decade ago brought together EDP and the Impresa Group, which together have awarded more than half a million euros to innovative startups.

Since the first edition in 2012, the EDP has sharpened its award program, reducing the number of selected participants from 50 to 10 whilst adding a financing component that has grown to the €50,000 offered today.

In 2016, Brazilian startup Delfos was the first winner to present at the prestigious Web Summit its innovation on how to the increase the productivity and lifecycle of wind turbines.

Last year, the award went to Spanish startup Rated Power for their innovative concept of efficient planning of solar power plants.

In addition to supporting the EDP innovation price, Beta-i is also responsible for the Lisbon Challenge startup acceleration program. Earlier this summer, Beta-i organized the Lisbon Investment Summit (LIS) that took place from June 6-7.

Read more: Beta-i wants to create a ‘new consciousness’ for investing in Portuguese startups

The organization says it wants to work to create “a new consciousness,” so that institutional investors invest more in the local startup ecosystem, both in Lisbon and in Portugal as a whole.

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