Market of opportunities

At Heidelberg University's first "Impact Day", we present ourselves as exhibitors and let ourselves be inspired by an innovative meeting place with a predominantly student flair.

What's the Impact Day?

The Impact Day took place for the first time at the University of Heidelberg these days. The focus was on the range of topics related to knowledge and technology transfer. There were a total of around 40 stands at the “Impact Fair” in front of the Hörsaalzentrum Chemie (INF). Our InnovationLab GmbH was one of the many transfer projects. The entire event was organized by hei_INNOVATION, Heidelberg University's transfer agency. The project manager for this premiere was Dr. Raoul Haschke with his team. The aim of the Impact Day: to be inspired by the latest inventions and social innovations, to make contacts and exchange ideas. The "Market of Opportunities" was broken down into a trade fair, an ideas competition with an award ceremony and a "get together" with university members and guests from politics, business and society.

Why are we as iL present?

One of our current five shareholders is the University of Heidelberg. The contact point hei_INNOVATION coordinates, InnovationLab does the same. Research, development and the transfer to application are important for both platforms, which are also connected via the Cluster of Excellence "3D Matter Made to Order" (3DMM2O) at the iL in Speyerer Straße 4, which is jointly supported by the university and KIT. At the stand, platform manager Maren Heusser was our contact for the primarily university audience. The "Smart Carpet" (intelligent carpet) they brought with them aroused interest, but above all students asked what possibilities the iL offers.

What's the students feedback?

It turned out that many of the young visitors to the trade fair are new to the university and have little idea why offices, laboratories and clean rooms could be relevant in the further course of their studies. As an application-oriented research and transfer platform for science and business, we can establish direct links to companies and projects. Many were not aware of this. The same applies to internships, working student positions and theses. We are literally creating the next generation of innovators. That sounds tempting.

Who won the hei_INNOVATION competition?

There were a total of 48 submissions for Heidelberg University's ideas competition, which were selected by a renowned jury of experts. In three-minute pitches, the best were allowed to present themselves again to the audience in the lecture hall. In the "Science and Tech Innovation" category, the winner was a group that used Rovance technology to overcome antibiotic resistance. First prize in the “Social Innovation” category went to a “QuantiLight” project, which ensures faster blood tests for the chronically ill. The "Business Innovation" category was won by "TraIN" - an AI personal trainer for your pocket, which allows individual workouts thanks to an app. This prize was presented by former iL employee Denise Feldner. The audience award went to Maximilian Hammer and his team, who developed a hydrogel for the project "The vitreous body inside" so that patients can see clearly again after retinal surgery. The prize money is 5,000 euros each.

What have we learned as iL?

The spectrum of ideas and innovations seems to be immeasurable. And contacts are the salt in the soup, so that we will now exchange ideas with some other exhibitors of the "Impact Fair" afterwards. There are plenty of points of contact. We should focus even more on the fact that InnovationLab can, as always, be an employer for academic talent. We hope to be part of the second edition of the "Impact Day" format next year and to be able to intensify the interaction.

 

Our contact person:

Maren Heusser
Platform Manager
Email contact: maren.heusser@innovationlab.de

Joachim Klaehn
Head of Communications