IMPACT Connected Car awarded during the 2019 Cluster Awards

2019 has been so far extremely productive for IMPACT Connected Car (ICCar), the mobility start-up acceleration project coordinated by FundingBox*.

The ICCar team, led by its project manager, David Seoane, also FundingBox’s specialist when it comes to mobility topics, has been participating in several conferences around Europe. One of them was the European Cluster Conference, that took place in Bucharest, Romania on May 14–16, 2019. The event aimed at defining the future priorities for cluster policies to support an innovative and sustainable industrial modernisation as well as interregional cooperation on topics such as circular economy or digitalisation.

A main highlight of the conference was the Cluster Awards Ceremony during which IMPACT Connected Car, won the trophy in the category INNOSUP-1 Cluster Project of the Year 2019!

The European Union rewards indeed the most successful collaboration between clusters across the whole European territory. Needless to say this is an incredible achievement!

So, how did IMPACT Connected Car make it happen?

• ICCar successfully managed two open calls** as they both involved more than 200 qualified applicants. Out of them and after a meticulous selection process, 31 are and will be completing the full acceleration program.
• ICCar succeeded in partnering with heavyweights in the mobility field, a key requirement for FundingBox who aims at gathering a maximum of expert advice for its start-ups. Corporates and organisations, such as PSA Group, Ferrovial Servicios, Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA) and the FIWARE foundation hence joined the party.
• These solid partnerships allowed the mobility project to organise and take part in many useful events for the selected start-ups. Among them:

1. The Imagine Mobility Meetings: This matchmaking event gathered more than 200 international companies. ICCar beneficiaries could establish a first contact with corporates interested in investing in them or to follow-up with previously-met entities.
2. An Investor Forum, a side event celebrated within the framework of the FIWARE Summit: It gave the 21 participating startups a fantastic opportunity to pitch their solutions in front of 13 different private investors. 8 IMPACT Connected Car startups selected during the Jury Day*** took the stage to present their smart mobility solutions and obtain extra funding, an empowerment topic dear to FundingBox’s heart.

The energy put in the project by the whole ICCar team led to some amazing outcomes for some of the selected SMEs and start-ups.

Take for instance Worldsensing who was selected out of 500 applicants to be one of the 15 selected startups to enter the first IMPACT Connected Car acceleration programme. The start-up successfully conducted a pilot project to increase the value of traditional Smart Parking solutions. Thanks to its smart parking sensor, FastprkDuo, parking operators can now monitor parking behaviour in real time and act accordingly.

David Seoane, Project Manager ofIMPACT Connected Car, during a panel discussion of the Cluster Awards (1)

David Seoane, Project Manager of IMPACT Connected Car, during a panel discussion of the Cluster Awards (2)

The IMPACT Connected Car community, an online social platform that brings together 850 smart mobility entrepreneurs and enthusiasts has also been a part of ICCar’s success. The community has been fostering collaboration possibilities and acted as a springboard for the selected startups to gain recognition.

Keen on mobility topics or developing your own mobility concept? Join the community now!

* FundingBox is committed to helping early-stage start-ups grow fast through equity-free fundraising and community knowledge sharing. FundingBox collaborates with the European Union to select, through a variety of projects (Robotics, Mobility, Blockchain etc.) the most promising start-ups on the European stage.

** An Open Call is a start-up selection process ultimately leading to equity-free funding and an acceleration program for the selected start-ups. Applicants go first through a pre-scoring phase before finally pitching their solution in front of the Open Call organisers generally made up of experts from various backgrounds and companies.

*** The “Jury Day” is the last stage of an Open Call during which the startups have to pitch their concept in front of a jury composed of the Open Call organisers.