Project description
Stimulating experimentation with blockchain technology
Promoting a resource efficient, greener and more competitive economy is a priority for the European Union. To ensure sustainable EU economy growth, the bloc needs to re-industrialise, leveraging innovation and digital intelligence. The EU-funded Block.IS project will build a cross-border, cross-sectoral innovation ecosystem that applies cutting-edge blockchain technology in three economic sectors: agri-food, logistics and finance. Blockchain is an incorruptible digital ledger of economic transactions or any kind of information stored in blocks. It can also reduce bureaucracy, increase the efficiency of administrative processes, and increase the level of trust in public record keeping. The project will also support the creation of new blockchain-based solutions – from ideation to commercialisation.
Objective
For the EU economy to grow sustainably it needs to re-industrialise, leveraging innovation and digital intelligence. Blockchain Innovation Spaces (Block.IS) envisions to build an open and collaborative cross-border, cross-sectoral innovation ecosystem that fosters the use of this cutting-edge technology in three vital sectors for the European economy: agrifood, logistics and finance. Block.IS will bring together (connect) actors (with an emphasis on SMEs and clusters) from these three heavily interconnected sectors, with SMEs/ innovators, to catalyse their cooperation towards innovation-driven and mutual growth (boost).
The catalysation is aimed at networking the members of the ecosystem, raising understanding of the benefits of blockchain technology and stimulating the creation of new blockchain-based solutions - Cluster Missions and Clusters-Innovators Assembly.
Block.IS will support innovators (SMEs) all the way from ideation to commercialisation offering them tailored business and technical support as well as direct funding, through a novel funnel approach - Innovate > Experiment > Commercialise acceleration programme.
As such, the project will directly foster and strengthen competitiveness of digital SMEs (that will develop the solutions) and of the clusters and SMEs of the three verticals which will use them to offer added value to their customers.
The Block.IS consortium is a fusion between: Tech founders and SMEs community (F6S), sector-oriented clusters and sectoral associations (VOICT, FEDACOVA, IT-Log, DSME, FTS), international innovation and Tech-transfer specialists (INO, IDI, CIVITTA, SYN) and Blockchain tech experts (INTRA, TNO); with an outreach of >1,017,000 SME.
Block.IS invests 81% of the EC budget in SMEs and 51% through Open Calls (€2,800,000)
Fields of science
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Programme(s)
Funding Scheme
IA - Innovation actionCoordinator
EC1V 2NX London
United Kingdom
The organization defined itself as SME (small and medium-sized enterprise) at the time the Grant Agreement was signed.