Accelerating the Future of Industry 4.0 in Berlin
The world is constantly evolving, whole industries are emerging or disappearing in revolutionary ways — all because of increasing amounts of accessible data which is changing the way we use and allocate resources. As a result, now more than ever before, there is a tremendous opportunity for enterprises to capture numerous sources of perviously untapped data, which can then enable predictive decisions, and even drive or create whole new utilisations.
In Germany, the strong commitment to Industry 4.0 is creating new opportunities and use-cases for some exciting data-driven breakthroughs.
SAP Industry 4.0 Startup Program:
Following the success of our much heralded 2017 SAP.iO Foundry in Berlin that accelerated startups building ML-enabled enterprise SaaS applications, the SAP.iO Foundry team in Berlin sat down to explore how we could support startups and enable customers to capture value from Industry 4.0 innovations. Many of SAP’s Discrete Industries customers are actively looking to see how “Intelligent Technologies” like AI/ML and IoT can help them in their digital transformations.
We realized that by joining forces with the award-winning SAP IoT Startup Accelerator, we could put together a top-notch program for startups.
The SAP Industry 4.0 Startup Program is founded on our three core offerings for startups: access to curated mentorship, exposure to SAP technologies and APIs and opportunities for exposure to SAP customers.
What we initially anticipated would be a quiet response to our invite-only program became a flood of applications. In just two weeks, we engaged with over 75 startups, all presenting some truly revolutionary solutions in the Digital Manufacturing and Digital Supply Chain space. After reviewing the teams, products, tech, business strategies, competitive landscape and maturity, we narrowed the selection down to 5 exciting startups:
1. Acerta: a machine learning software solution that leverages data from automotive systems to automatically learn their normal behaviour, and then provide real-time malfunction detection and failure prediction
2. Arculus combines advanced network / route optimization with traditional line manufacturing, enabling customers like auto manufacturers to allow cost-effective “mass customization” without compromising on factory productivity
3. Arkite: a Human Interface Mate (HIM) that guides operators in the manufacturing industry by analyzing all human and machine operations and acts real-time, and recommends improvement in the process
4. NeuronSW: an IoT solution for acoustic detection of mechanical issues. NeuronSW uses artificial intelligence to perform vibrational analysis, allowing them to reduce the cost of hardware and achieve virtually perfect detection accuracy
5. 4tiitoo: 4tiitoo’s software platform NUIA increases the productivity and ergonomics of computer workplaces by controlling applications based on user intention, using a combination of eye tracking and artificial intelligence
10 Days in — and we’re already in full swing. We’ve had:
126 one-on-one mentor sessions
10 intensive workshops
10 deep-dives
and 3-ish Biergarten visits!
None of this could have been possible without the incredible teams working tirelessly to prove that small input can in fact provide big output. We have five-more weeks to go before the Demo Day in Walldorf on July 5th! Register here if you’d like to attend.
A huge ‘Thank You’ to the incredible SAP and Berlin startup communities for the overwhelming support and huge turnout at the Kick Off on Monday 28.05.2018. You are what’s powering all of us through these intense six-weeks (and unprecedented heat wave).
