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Rapidly developing Internet of Things (IoT) technology is opening up multiple new business opportunities for operators and enterprises, spanning many industries - public safety, healthcare, connected mobility, smart cities and more. Nokia’s vision is to expand the human possibilities of technology to improve people’s lives and help them thrive by enabling a programmable world where billions of people, things, sensors and devices are connected.

At Nokia we envision a future that’s marked by a whole new way of being – that of automated, connected experiences tailored to people’s needs. We believe in the benefits of harvesting the data produced by everything for everyone by turning it into new groundbreaking possibilities.

The Nokia Open Innovation Challenge 2016, arranged in partnership with venture firm Nokia Growth Partners, is looking for futuristic technologies, the next big ideas and new business models in the Internet of things (IoT) domain.

Innovators, startups or academia from around the world can participate in this challenge and take a leap towards making the programmable world happen. The rewards for the finalists include receiving a technology boost by entering the Nokia innovation accelerator program, access to the internal and global market of Nokia and investment opportunities from Nokia Growth Partners (NGP) and other venture capital firms. What's more the top three teams will share incubation prize money of €100, 000.

Read about the previous Nokia Open Innovation Challenges

Scope and Domain:

The Nokia Open Innovation Challenge 2016 is a call for innovative ideas, technologies, or business models addressing opportunities in IoT scope. We are specifically looking for innovations in the provinces of connected automotive, public safety, security, industry 4.0, digital health, utilities and smart cities.

Nokia IoT solution at a glance:

• Nokia's IoT portfolio brings a flexible, secure and scalable multi-tenant platform that is device-agnostic and helps operators and enterprise customers to rapidly develop, roll out and support new applications and business models.
• The Connectivity Management feature helps operators manage the rapidly growing number of connections from sensors and devices.
• Application Platforms let operators create customized IoT applications and services quickly and cost-effectively.
• Device management capabilities are designed for rapid, remote deployment of any device, sensor, meter, or module and Nokia supports all current IoT device management standards.
• Nokia's IoT services provide the expertise to design, integrate and customize connectivity management platforms and application layers to cater to the specific needs of different verticals.

What’s in it for the finalists?

• The opportunity to enter the Nokia Innovation Accelerator Program to work with Nokia experts on creating joint business models while receiving a technology boost by accessing Nokia’s products, services and resources. In addition, a €100, 000 incubation prize will be shared between the top three teams!
• Access to Nokia’s global market and the opportunity to form valuable partnerships.
• Investment opportunities.

Nokia Growth Partners (NGP) IoT fund: NGP has raised a new Internet of Things (IoT) fund of USD 350 million from Nokia in February 2016. The fund will serve to identify new opportunities to grow the ecosystem in IoT solutions, supporting Nokia’s goal to become a leader in a world where everybody and everything is connected. The fund will also serve to create value through investment gains as a continuation of the successful venture model NGP is running for Nokia. The fund will invest in promising technologies primarily around Connected Enterprise, Consumer Solutions, Digital Health and Connected Car as well as enabling technologies for networks with a focus on capabilities in data and analytics.

Who can apply?

The Nokia Open Innovation Challenge is open to innovators around the world aiming to find the next big idea! It can be a new technology, a business model or a combination of both that will help us make lives better!

Selection process

Step 2. Online pitching round for top 25 innovator teams.

Step 3. The top 15 applicants will be notified and invited to the pre-incubation phase in Paris financed by Nokia.

Step 4. During the pre-incubation phase, the top 15 innovator teams will attend a two-day Concept Development Workshop with their assigned Nokia mentor to brainstorm and co-create the next steps towards making joint business.

Step 5. Following the pre-incubation phase, the top 15 teams will present the results of the workshops to the jury* during the award ceremony. The jury will select the teams most suited to join the Nokia Innovation Acceleration program.

*10 Nokia decision makers will form the jury.

Step 6: Selected innovators will continue their collaboration by entering the Nokia Innovation Accelerator Program to incubate their ideas within Nokia, accessing Nokia’s global market and networking with investors including Nokia Growth Partners.