The innovation competition Tallinnovation brings smart solutions to Tallinn

The innovation competition Tallinnovation, organised by the Tallinn Science Park Tehnopol and the City of Tallinn, is open for applications from May 12. The competition seeks to find smart city solutions to make the municipal services and urban environment in Tallinn more convenient for both residents and visitors.

The objective of the innovation competition with a prize fund of €50,000 is to introduce new smart city solutions that help make Tallinn even more contemporary, friendly, green, sustainable and open. The initiative stimulates cooperation between the city and technology companies, creating opportunities for the use of innovative hardware-based products and services.

The innovation competition was first launched last year and it turned out to be very successful, with 12 entries qualifying and five promising ideas brought into life. The competition is organised by Tallinn Science Park Tehnopol on behalf of the City of Tallinn.

“We want to turn the Tallinn region into a focal point of the smart and green economy in Northern Europe, with an excellent living environment and fast and comfortable connections,” said Deputy Mayor Aivar Riisalu. “Our well-being is based on a knowledge-intensive economy, a good living environment and balanced development, which in turn relies on smart and creative people. That is why new developments for the smart city are very useful for us.”

The competition is open to smart city ideas that offer viable alternatives to both existing and completely new solutions. Participation is open for companies registered in Tallinn. Participants submitting an idea have the opportunity to receive financial support, pilot their project, obtain contacts, advice and resources from the city of Tallinn, and use the support of the Tehnopol mentor network.

According to Indrek Orav, CEO at Tallinn Science Park Tehnopol, it is important for start-up companies to develop their products with the help of a safe test environment. “Tehnopol contributes to the creation, development and growth of state-of-the-art technology companies. The opportunity to test an innovation created in a real environment is an essential intermediate step in reaching the first customers in the market. We have decided to support companies by offering a test environment, and this has brought a high concentration of innovation to our campus – smart pedestrian crossings and street lights, roads paved with solar panels, line marking and package delivery robots, a self-service mini-shop,” said Orav. He added that last year’s competition showed that participating in the Innovation Fund would bring real benefits to companies, which hopefully will give additional motivation to this year’s candidates.

Among the recipients of funding from the Innovation Fund last year was a project of developing mini weather stations submitted by infrastructure engineering company Teede Tehnokeskus AS. Developing such a network of will support the development of a safe and friendly urban environment and transport system. The network regularly sends weather observation and forecast data to the dashboard of public authorities. This will present opportunities for prompt responses, like sending street cleaning cars to improve road conditions if needed. According to Stanislav Metlitski, the head of the company’s ITS and road information systems department, the competition accelerated hardware development activities and helped to adapt the products and services under development to suit urban conditions. “In addition, participation in the project increased the interest of both city authorities and road maintenance companies in our solution. We have been able to introduce our company’s activities to potential customers both in Estonia and abroad,” he said.

The evaluation of the Tallinn city innovation competition Tallinnovation takes place in two parts. First, applications are reviewed, additional information is requested and applicants are contacted to find the best solutions. In the second part, the best selected solutions are presented to the committee, which includes experts in the field from both the city and Tehnopol. Ideas that require both financial and non-financial contributions are welcome, such as testing e-solutions or data collection. 

The competition is open from May 12 and applications can be submitted until 23 August. The advantage of submitting an idea early is the opportunity to supplement your application and receive additional information based on the feedback. You can read more about the competition and submit applications on the website: innovatsioonifond.tehnopol.ee.  

The aim of Tehnopol, the largest science and business campus in the Baltics, is to contribute to the emergence and growth of world-class technology companies in Estonia and to support their expansion into foreign markets. To this end, a comprehensive solution is offered, from commercial real estate to needs-based business development services in three focus areas: smart city, green technology and health technology.

Tallinnovation is an international innovation brand of the City of Tallinn, the aim of which is to involve and introduce the implementation of innovative solutions in Tallinn.