2022 EIT CHANGE AWARD WINNER
Name: Anna Vanderbruggen
Project name: Erzlabor
Website: Erzlabor
Nominated by: EIT RawMaterials
Project aim: Anna Vanderbruggen, a researcher who works for the start-up Erzlabor, won first place for developing a revolutionary new way to extract graphite from lithium-ion batteries. Her method, the first of its kind, separates the fine powder from crushed lithium-ion batteries in order to obtain two valuable products instead of one. This process enables the efficient and highly-selective recycling of both graphite and metals from used lithium-ion batteries. It could lead to a truly circular battery supply chain and decrease the environmental footprint of battery production as well as reliance on raw material imports from outside the EU.
EIT connection: EIT RawMaterials
2022 EIT INNOVATORS AWARD WINNER
Name: Bernhard Adler
Project name: ROTATION HEAT PUMP
Website: ROTATION HEAT PUMP
Nominated by: EIT InnoEnergy
Project aim: Bernhard Adler took the top prize for his rotation heat pump, a highly innovative clean technology that combines the advantages of heat pump technology with a centrifuge. It will help speed up the energy transition by providing cleaner, low-carbon industrial heat.
EIT connection: EIT InnoEnergy
2022 EIT VENTURE AWARD WINNER
Name: Christoph Berger
Project name: Vilisto
Website: Vilisto
Nominated by: EIT InnoEnergy
Project aim: Christoph Berger was awarded first place for developing the Vilisto system, a self-learning thermostat that improves energy efficiency in non-residential buildings. In offices and educational institutions, many rooms are unused 80% of the time yet are heated non-stop since usage patterns are not usually taken into account. Vilisto can help companies and municipalities save up to 32% of their heat consumption and reduce their CO2 emissions.
EIT connection: EIT InnoEnergy
2022 EIT WOMAN LEADERSHIP AWARD WINNER
Name: Catherine Schreiber
Project name: ADVITOS
Website: ADVITOS
Nominated by: EIT Digital
Project aim: Catherine Schreiber, CEO and co-founder of ADVITOS, won first place for developing a 4-in-1 organ support therapy for critically-ill patients. Together with Dr Bernhard Kreymann, her co-founder, she created the device from scratch, launching it from an idea to an EU market-approved (CE mark) product. She now runs a fully-certified MedTech company with 70 employees that boasts numerous awards.
EIT connection: EIT Digital
2022 EIT PUBLIC AWARD WINNER
Name: Sabrina Maria Malpede
Project name: ACT blade
Website: ACT blade
Nominated by: EIT InnoEnergy
Project aim: Sabrina Maria Malpede, co-founder and Managing Director of ACT Blade Ltd, which develops the lightest, most controllable and sustainable wind turbine blade on the market. The ACR Blade is a big technological step forward in the ability to harness wind power and exploit aeroelastic science and expertise. It was awarded an EIT InnoEnergy innovation project grant in 2018 to develop the first full scale blade. The innovation was developed by Sabrina during her doctorate studies at the University of Glasgow and has already been employed in the sail design for racing yachts competing in the America's Cup.
EIT connection: EIT InnoEnergy
2020 EIT CHANGE AWARD WINNER
Name: Chaitanya Dhumasker
Project name: MotorFish
Website: MonitorFish
Nominated by: EIT Climate-KIC
Project aim: MonitorFish offers fish farming companies an AI-powered fish farm management software that guides them through automatic fish growth analytics, smart alerting and reporting services. This substantially reduces the fish loss while at the same time minimising their operational costs.
EIT connection: EIT Climate-KIC
2020 EIT INNOVATORS AWARD WINNER
Name: Andreu Martinez Climent
Project name: ACORYS
Website: Corify
Nominated by: EIT Health
Project aim: ACORYS is a medical device that combines software and hardware to help with the diagnosis and treatment of heart rhythm disorder. The advantage of ACORYS is double: it can help with more precise diagnosis and more efficient surgery.
EIT connection: EIT Health
2020 EIT VENTURE AWARD WINNER
Name: Filippo Bosco
Project name: BluSense Diagnostics
Website: BluSense Diagnostics
Nominated by: EIT Manufacturing
Project aim: BluSense Diagnostics, has developed an innovative nanotechnology-based point-of-care blood testing platform for the diagnostics of life-threatening diseases from a single drop of blood. BluBox (reader) and ViroTrack (test) provides laboratory grade results in a matter of minutes.
EIT connection: EIT Manufacturing
2020 EIT WOMAN AWARD WINNER
Name: Cristina Aleixendri
Project name: Bound4Blue
Website: Bound4Blue
Nominated by: EIT Climate-KIC
Project aim: Bound4blue wind-assisted propulsion solutions will reduce C02 emissions from the maritime industries. They have developed two innovative wingsail systems which, when integrated onto vessels, generate effective thrust from wind power and thereby reduce the engine power required.
EIT connection: EIT Climate-KIC
2020 EIT PUBLIC AWARD WINNER
Name: Karthik Laxman Kunjali
Project name: Stockholm Water Technology
Website: Stockholm Water Technology
Nominated by: EIT InnoEnergy
Project aim: Stockholm Water Technology has developed a water purification technology that combines hardware and software in a unique product that can be used across multiple domains (industrial, commercial & domestic water). The technology has a low energy footprint and high water recovery and is flexible in tailoring water quality.
EIT connection: EIT InnoEnergy
2019 EIT CHANGE AWARD WINNER
Name: Michael Dittel
Project name: Leaftech
Website: leaftech.eu
Nominated by: EIT Climate-KIC
Project aim: Leaftech improves the well-being and anticipates the needs of people in indoor environments. Its digital building twin predicts upcoming energy and comfort demands to upgrade building automation and smart home systems.
EIT connection: EIT Climate-KIC
2019 EIT INNOVATORS AWARD WINNER
Name: M
arc Julien
Project name: Diabeloop - D4Kids
Website: diabeloop.com
Nominated by: EIT Health
Project aim: Diabeloop D4Kids is an automated type 1 diabetes management solution to help children with diabetes live life to the fullest, while making it easier for their families and carers to manage the disease.
EIT connection: EIT Health
2019 EIT VENTURE AWARD WINNER
Name: Matthew Dickson
Project name: CorPower Ocean
Website: corpowerocean.com
Nominated by: EIT InnoEnergy
Project aim: Developing the first-of-a-kind full scale Wave Energy Converters (WEC) and electrical collection systems, leading the wave energy converter technology.
EIT connection: EIT InnoEnergy
2019 EIT WOMAN AWARD WINNER
Name: Sara Guimarães Gonçalves
Project name: Rigger - Trigger Systems
Website: trigger.systems
Nominated by: EIT InnoEnergy
Project aim: Reducing the environmental impact of irrigation and agricultural activities in Europe by tackling the excessive use of water in irrigation with control systems that uses calculation models, based on weather forecasts and plant conditions.
EIT connection: EIT InnoEnergy
2019 EIT PUBLIC AWARD WINNER
Name: David Pistoni Perez
Project name: Zeleros
Website: zeleros.com
Nominated by: EIT Climate-KIC
Project aim: Designing and developing new technologies for a more sustainable and efficient transportation of people and cargo worldwide. The hyperloop-inspired system combines the speed of a plane, the convenience of a train and the frequency of an underground system, making long distance journeys faster, more energy-efficient and direct-emissions free.
EIT connection: EIT Climate-KIC
2018 EIT CHANGE AWARD WINNER
Name: Simone Accornero
Project name:FlexiDao
Website: flexidao.com
Nominated by: EIT InnoEnergy
Key words: prosumers, blockchain for the electricity market
Project aim: Harnessing the power of blockchain to revolutionise how energy generation and consumption data is exchanged, controlled and secured, to enable energy retailers to offer digitised, smart, green energy services.
EIT connection: EIT InnoEnergy MSc Energy for Smart Cities
2018 EIT INNOVATORS AWARD WINNER
Name: Ioannis Tarnanas
Project name: Alzheimer's Disease Prediction Service (ADPS)
Website: altoida.com
Nominated by: EIT Health
Key words: alzheimer's disease prediction, cognitive test
Project aim: To make brain health measurable and actionable and detect Alzheimer's disease at an early stage.
EIT connection: EIT Health Innovation Project
2018 EIT VENTURE AWARD WINNER
Name: Bieke Van Gorp
Project name: FibriCheck
Website: fibricheck.com
Nominated by: EIT Health
Key words: atrial fibrillation, heart rhythm, remote monitoring, stroke prevention
Project aim: To bring certified digital health solutions to everyday practice by offering user-friendly, high quality and proven mobile applications at a low cost.
EIT connection: EIT Health Head Start and EIT Health Scale-Up
2018 EIT WOMAN AWARD WINNER
Name: Isabel Hoffmann
Project name: Tellspec
Website: tellspec.com
Nominated by: EIT Food
Key words: portable rapid sensor for food analysis, food fraud detection, food quality control
Project aim: To detect fish fraud in less than a minute through a portable system able to reliably measure fish composition.
EIT connection: EIT Food RisingFoodStars
2018 EIT PUBLIC AWARD WINNER
Name: Laura Soucek
Project name: Peptomyc
Website: peptomyc.com
Nominated by: EIT Health
Key words: cancer therapy, innovative cancer treatment, inhibitors
Project aim: Providing cancer patients with more effective and less toxic treatment.
EIT connection: Prize winner at EIT Health Summit 2016
2017 EIT CHANGE AWARD WINNER
Name: Florence Gschwend
Project name: BioFlex - Chrysalix Technologies
Website: chrysalixtechnologies.com/
Nominated for: 2017 EIT CHANGE Award
Nominated by: EIT Climate-KIC
Key words: Wood, bio refinery, circular economy
Project aim: To use any type of woody material to produce the chemicals, materials and fuels of a cleaner tomorrow
EIT Community connection: EIT Climate-KIC Summer School
2017 EIT VENTURE AWARD WINNER
Name: Hans Constandt
Project name: Ontoforce
Website: ontoforce.com/
Nominated for: 2017 EIT Venture Award
Nominated by: EIT Health
Key words: Business intelligence, health, big data
Project aim: To heal patients with smarter data and have a global impact on bringing drugs to market faster
EIT Community connection: EIT Health, EIT Go Global
2017 EIT INNOVATORS AWARD WINNER
Name: Martin Steinberg
Project name: Stockholm3 Test (STHLM3)
Website: sthlm3.se
Nominated for: 2017 EIT Innovators Award
Nominated by: EIT Health
Key words: Detection, diagnostics, prostate cancer
Project aim: To predict the risk of aggressive prostate cancer by analysing five protein markers, more than 100 genetic markers, and clinical data
EIT Community connection: EIT Health
2017 AUDIENCE AWARD WINNER
Name: Carsten Mahrenholz
Project name: COLDPLASMATECH GmbH
Website: oldplasmatech.de
Nominated for: 2017 EIT Venture Award
Nominated by: EIT Health
Key words: Plasma medicine, chronic wound therapy, bacteria
Project aim: To pioneer the next step in modern medicine, treat chronic wound patients, and kill multi-resistant bacteria
EIT Community connection: EIT Health Germany, winner of the Business Plan Accelerator "Best of the Best" 2016, and winner of the Public Award in Barcelona
2016 EIT CHANGE AWARD WINNER
Name: Allen Mohammadi
Project name: Complex Disease Detector (CDD)
Website: hippogriff.launchrock.com
Nominated for: 2016 EIT CHANGE Award
Nominated by: KIC InnoEnergy
Key words: Heart screening tool
Project aim: To create a movement to transform public health by helping individuals become aware of, and involved in, their own health
EIT connection: KIC InnoEnergy Master’s School ENTECH programme (KIT and Uppsala University, 2013-2015)
2016 EIT VENTURE AWARD WINNER
Name: Florian Schneider
Project name: Nerdalize
Website: nerdalize.cloud
Nominated for: 2016 EIT Venture Award
Nominated by: Climate-KIC
Key words: Affordable heating, cloud computing, sustainable technology
Project aim: To create a world where heating is free and sustainable computing power is an affordable commodity
EIT connection: Part of the Climate-KIC Accelerator programme at the Dutch Co-location Centre
2016 EIT INNOVATORS AWARD WINNER
Name: Norbert Kuipers
Project name: WE4CC-II – (Water and Energy for Climate Change)
Website: we4cc.eu
Nominated for: 2016 EIT Innovators Award
Nominated by: Climate-KIC
Key words: Water and indoor air, waste heat and solar heat, distillation and absorption
Project aim: We use membrane distillation and desiccant recovery systems to turn low-grade waste heat or renewable solar PVT heat into high-quality water and indoor air
EIT connection: Climate-KIC helped us by bringing partners from different disciplines together, with funding, and with different dissemination and education activities such as introductions within the community
2015 CHANGE Award Winner
Name: Govinda Upadhyay
Project name: LEDsafari
Website: www.ledsafari.com
Nominated for: EIT CHANGE Award 2015
Nominated by: KIC InnoEnergy
Key words: Low cost, do-it-yourself, solar LED lamp
Project aim: To empower people in developing countries to make their own solar rechargeable lamps, using locally available material to promote sustainability and health, develop skills and gain jobs
EIT connection: KIC InnoEnergy SELECT Master programme – graduated in 2012
"Then no-one can stop you" - Interview with Govinda Upadhyay
2015 Venture Award Winner
Name: Regnar Paaske
Project name: Nordic Power Converters
Website: www.nopoc.com
Nominated for: EIT Venture Award 2015
Nominated by: Climate-KIC
Key words: Small, long-lasting power converters
Project aim: To become the new standard for electric power converters for LED, chargers and other applications
EIT connection: Supported at Climate-KIC’s Nordic Co-location Centre through the Accelerator programme and runner-up in the Climate-KIC Venture Competition 2014
2015 Innovators Award Winner
Name: Rajai Aghabi
Project name: Neptune
Website: Neptune
Nominated for: EIT Innovators Award 2015
Nominated by: KIC InnoEnergy
Key words: Affordable wind energy
Project aim: To develop a cost-effective, accurate and reliable offshore wind measuring system
EIT connection: KIC InnoEnergy Iberia Barcelona
2013 CH.A.N.G.E Award Winner
Name: Kate Hofman
Project name: GrowUp
Website: www.growup.org.uk
Nominated for: EIT CH.A.N.G.E Award 2013
Nominated by: Climate-KIC
Key words: Sustainable urban farming
Project aim: To demonstrate a sustainable, commercial model for urban agriculture through vertical growing and aquaponics
EIT connection: Climate-KIC Contextual Learning Journey student and EIT Foundation Young Leader Programme
To learn more about Kate, check out her full profile and watch the complete interview.
2013 CH.A.N.G.E Award Winner
Name: Dorottya Maksay
Project name: Homebuddy
Nominated for: EIT CH.A.N.G.E Award 2013
Nominated by: EIT ICT Labs
Key words: Connecting generations
Project aim: To develop Homebuddy into a sustainable social enterprise
EIT connection: EIT ICT Labs Master School student (2012 onwards)
To learn more about Dorottya, check out her full profile and watch the complete interview.
2013 CH.A.N.G.E Award Winner
Name: Eduardo Appleyard
Project name: Solar Lighting for Africa
Website: Project for www.solar-aid.org
Nominated for: EIT CH.A.N.G.E Award 2013
Nominated by: KIC InnoEnergy
Key words: Focus, empower and grow!
Project aim: To develop a solution to help SolarAid, an international charity specialising in clean, affordable solar product distribution in Africa, to sell one million lights through its social enterprise
EIT connection: KIC InnoEnergy Master School – SELECT Programme student (2010-12)
To learn more about Eduardo, check out his full profile and watch the complete interview.
2013 Venture Award Winner
Name: Dominik Peus
Project name: Biowaste to Biocoal
Website: www.antaco.co.uk
Nominated for: EIT Venture Award 2013
Nominated by: Climate-KIC
Key words: Carbon neutral coal
Project aim: To make our biomass conversion green energy technology available on a global scale
EIT connection: Winner of the Climate-KIC UK 2012 Venture Competition
2013 Venture Award Winner
Name: David Tacconi
Project name: CoRehab (main product: Riablo)
Website: www.corehab.it
Nominated for: EIT Venture Award 2013
Nominated by: EIT ICT Labs
Key words: Enjoy, control, rehabilitation
Project aim: To increase the international sales of Riablo, an innovative rehabilitation product
EIT connection: EIT ICT Labs support at their Node in Trento
To learn more about David, check out his full profile and watch the complete interview.
2013 Venture Award Winner
Name: Lionel Chaverot
Project name: Enerstone
Website: www.enerstone.fr
Nominated for: EIT Venture Award 2013
Nominated by: KIC InnoEnergy
Key words: The future of rechargeable batteries
Project aim: To help battery manufacturers prolong battery lifespan and reduce the environmental impact of their products
EIT connection: KIC InnoEnergy Highway® supported venture
To learn more about Lionel, check out his full profile and watch the complete interview.
2012 Climate-KIC Winner:
One man's journey produced Naked Energy
For a career path, Christophe Williams has not made the obvious choices. He started at St. Martin's art college in London, and went on to be a creative executive in the ad world. But then he went solar, founding Naked Energy, a renewable energy company. And now his company has been nominated as a finalist in the European Institute of Innovation and Technology's (EIT) entrepreneurship awards.
Williams is the first to say he has an artistic, not technological, background. Nonetheless, engineering isn't entirely foreign to him: his grandfather designed a renewable energy system in the 1960s and his father was a mechanical and aeronautical engineer. "It must have rubbed off on me," said Williams, whose own past projects have included working with the government on its global climate-change advertising campaign, 'Act on CO2'.
2012 EIT ICT Labs Winner:
Germany's Trifense fights the unknown cyber-threats
Protecting a company or organisation against known cyber-security threats is one thing; protecting them against unknown cyber-threats is quite another. But that is exactly the goal of Trifense, a Technical University of Berlin spin-out named as an EIT ICT Labs finalist for the EIT Awards.
"It is crucial for governments, operators of critical infrastructures such as utilities, and companies in all sorts of sectors from financial services to healthcare to be able to detect such risks and protect themselves against them," said Trifense Managing Director and Co-founder Patrick Duessel. "A modern society can be vulnerable to pretty huge threats. Our technology can address this appropriately."
2012 KIC InnoEnergy Winner:
Think CO2 wants to build your ideal 21st century home
Rosa Vilarasau was approaching her 40th birthday when she decided she had had enough of working for a Spanish confectionary company. "If I'm going to do something on my own, it has to be now," she recalls thinking to herself.
So she contacted a university friend, Pol Guiu, and they started throwing venture ideas around. They finally hit on one that chimed with them both: designing the perfect 21st century house. What's that? In their view, it's a sustainable, mobile home. "You evolve as a person, but your home doesn't evolve with you," Vilarasau said, explaining how they wanted to free the home from the land and allow it to adapt to its owners' new job in a new city or a new addition to the family. "Technology allows this solution to be possible," said Vilarasau, who with Guiu founded the company Think CO2 in December 2009.