The Elis Consortium, active for over 25 years and composed of more than 70 major companies, launched the Open Italy program to connect large enterprises, Italian startups, venture capitalists, and research centers to foster dialogue and enable concrete innovations.
Following the success of the previous edition—with two co-innovation projects for Sky and Trenord—Pigro will participate as a testimonial at the Bologna stop of the 2020 Open Innovation Roadshow, after which the startup applications will close.
On February 5, 2020, the Open Italy 2020 project will be officially presented in Bologna. The event will host representatives from the corporate world, venture capitalists, startups, partners, and media to promote the culture of Open Innovation.
Pigro will share its experience from the 2019 edition, during which the two projects Chatrail and Contact were awarded. These projects were coordinated by Elis and developed in collaboration with Trenord and Sky, respectively.
In the Customer Engagement domain, Pigro partnered with Trenord to improve the user experience and strengthen communication channels with customers. To achieve this, Pigro developed a virtual assistant capable of answering user questions in natural language.
Meanwhile, in the area of Service Management, Sky’s technical operators were supported in optimizing their problem resolution time. This was made possible by using AI-based statistical software, which enabled the creation of virtual assistants able to manage and learn from large, dynamic documentation.
Once again this year, Open Italy facilitates the meeting of supply and demand around innovation in Italy, providing hundreds of new opportunities for collaboration and the development of increasingly efficient, market-oriented services.
What is Open Italy 2020?
“Innovation to impact” is the claim that best represents the fourth edition of Open Italy.
The goal is to offer a stage to new talents in innovation and technology, creating a double impact to boost Italian innovation.
On one hand, junior talents and startups are given the opportunity to grow by engaging with top-tier professional environments, leveraging corporate resources, and collaborating with major companies across different markets.
On the other hand, partners and experts gain a privileged path to develop real innovation projects, thanks to ongoing dialogue, cross-pollination of ideas, and meetings with other stakeholders.
How Open Italy Works
Open Italy is a project designed by the Italian business consortium Elis to stimulate innovation within large companies and support the growth of emerging ones.
Over 12 months, the best startups that apply are tested on topics identified by CEOs and CIOs from large corporations.
Last year’s edition resulted in 20 innovative projects, starting from 262 startups that applied or were recommended via Elis’s online platform. These startups were evaluated during Demo Days, where they presented their projects to innovation and business managers, startup accelerators, partners, and Open Italy judges.
After the presentations, co-innovation teams—made up of startups, corporate representatives, and junior talents—work together to define goals and activities that address the companies’ needs. In the final stage, during the Closing Days, the best Proofs of Concept will be awarded and presented in front of CEOs and CIOs.
The Innovation Journey: The 2020 Path
On December 11, Open Italy kicked off its journey from Rome, where 70 corporations gathered to define the innovation focus areas for the new edition and to discuss business needs.
This year’s focus is on strengthening the community and creating multi-stakeholder projects. Among the new initiatives, a digital collaboration tool for corporates and startups will be implemented, along with a high-impact social project called “ITALY4THE PLANET.”
The eight innovation areas that will define the development of Open Italy 2020 are:
- Customer Engagement & New Sales Channels
- Smart Health & Safety
- Digital HR & New Ways of Working
- Cyber Tech
- Operation Improvement & Optimization
- Clean Technologies & Advanced Materials
- Urban Intelligence & Smart Mobility
- Circular Economy & Social Innovation
The innovation journey will include 10 stops across Italy, 6 seminar-style meetings, 6 community gatherings, and 3 international stages, including Berlin and London.
For all updates on the Open 2020 program, visit open-italy.elis.org.
