Smart City Aachen

Smart City Ideas competition

The winners have been announced! Congratulations to the winners.

New approaches for SmartCity Aachen
The Smart City think tank is calling on you to submit ideas for the Smart City Ideas Competition 2024/25 from 15.10.2024.

What is it about?
We are looking for new solutions to current challenges facing our city and want to give you the opportunity to put your own smart projects and ideas into practice.

Who can take part?
Anybody who has a good idea and wants to make something of it. Regardless of whether you are an initiative, an association, members of a university, a start-up, a company or "just" committed representatives from civil society. You can convince us of your smart and/or digital idea in two rounds of the competition.

And who are we?
We are the Think Tank Smart City and the organizers of the ideas competition, consisting of:
the Department of Economics, Science, Digital City and Europe, the Department of Mobility and Transport, the Department of Climate and Environment and the Department of Geoinformation and Land Management of the City of Aachen. In addition, the digitalHUB Aachen e.V., the Innoloft GmbH, the STAWAG, regioIT Gmbh, Regionetz GmbH, the NetAachen GmbH and the KI Center der RWTH Aachen.

Ways to a better Aachen
The aim of the ideas competition is to strengthen Aachen's position as an important science and business location, to make a contribution to achieving climate neutrality by 2030 and, in particular, to support the path to SmartCity Aachen.
In addition to micro-projects, larger projects, product and business ideas or research results with exploitation potential can also be submitted. These can be digital solutions, but do not have to be. Above all, it is important to us that the projects reflect the idea of the Smart City, that you break new ground and thus create sustainable added value for people and/or the environment. Because we all benefit from a SmartCity Aachen.
The range of content is therefore deliberately broad. Be it the use of intelligent technologies that contribute to climate neutrality in companies or entire industrial estates, concepts that revitalize the retail trade or enable completely new business models, promote the participation of older people or improve energy supply and mobility: All ideas are welcome!

To the ideas competition Teilnahmebedingungen zum Ideenwettbewerb

Step 1: Idea phase.

You can submit your project idea online from October 15 to December 1. You can find all the important information at smart.aachen.digital. To submit your idea, you need to register on the Digital Innovation Platform. You can then create your project here. Your idea will then be publicly visible on the platform.

After the end of the idea phase, the submissions will be viewed and evaluated from 02.12. to 06.12.2024. The ideas selected by Think Thank Smart City will then be admitted to the second phase of the competition.

The Smart City Manager of the City of Aachen Nick Nowara and the EDIH project manager at the digitalHUB Roman von der Lohe are available to answer any questions.

Step 2: Public Voting.

For the lucky chosen ones from the idea phase, things are just getting started. To support further development in the second work phase, the teams are given access to the work and meeting rooms in the digitalHUB and thus also to other start-ups and, if desired, advice.

How you develop your project depends on your idea and can be coordinated with the Think Tank Smart City. For example, demonstrators or prototypes can be built, design mock-ups or videos created or a written concept developed.

Step 3: Final

The final will take place on the evening of February 14, 2025 at the digitalHUB (link). Finally, you can pitch your results in front of an audience and have them evaluated live on site by a jury of experts.

The five best projects will be selected and will each receive a grant of up to €10,000 for the further implementation of the project idea. Over the following six months, the award-winning projects can be implemented under the guidance of a mentor from the cooperation partners of the City of Aachen, the digitalHUB Aachen e.V., the Innoloft GmbH, the STAWAG, regioIT Gmbh, Regionetz GmbH, the NetAachen GmbH or the KI Center of RWTH and brought to market maturity.

For the implementation period, the teams also receive the Startup Business Membership Package of digitalHUB Aachen e. V..V. This includes access to the digitalHUB startup community, startup coaches, other founders, potential customers, mentoring and access to the work and meeting rooms of digitalHUB Aachen e. V.On September 1, 2025, the winning teams will present their project progress at a closing event at the digitalHub.
All results of the call for ideas will be published and the collected results from the work phase will also be exhibited in the OecherLab (insert link) at Kapuzinergraben.

Operator

Information according to § 5 TMG;
Innoloft GmbH c/o digitalHUB Aachen
Jülicher Straße 72a
52070 Aachen
Represented by: Sven Pietsch

Design concept:
Bureau Spürsinn

supported by

digitalHUB Aachen e.V.

Jülicher Straße 72a
52070 Aachen
T: +49 241 89 438 50
F: +49 241 89 438 599

digitalhub-service@innoloft.com
www.aachen.digital

Aachen city

Department of Economics, Science,
Digitization and Europe
Administration Building Katschhof
Johannes-Paul-II. Str. 1
52062 Aachen

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