IEEE Innovation Nation Inspires Students and Young Professionals In Bosnia and Herzegovina
Early this December, the IEEE Entrepreneurship Initiative was thrilled to attend the IEEE Innovation Nation event in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The event focused on creating a space in Eastern Europe for people interested in entrepreneurship and technology to gather and learn, innovate, and grow together. It successfully integrated students, industry professionals, and academic professionals into a collaborative space that celebrated the opportunities created by tech entrepreneurship.
About The Event
This event brought together more than 450 individuals. 200 university students from every major \engineering university in the Bosnia and Herzegovina area, 180 high school students from all over the country, over 50 industry professionals from both global and local companies, professors, teachers and everyday citizens attended. Over a dozen workshops were hosted, along with the first ever Innovation Expo in Bosnia & Herzegovina with over 50 innovations exhibited. The workshops included topics such as “Design Thinking Methodology,” which attempts to explain how to come up with a good idea and how technical sciences can lead to these ideas that may stimulate local economies in countries like Bosnia & Herzegovina. There were also hot tech topics, such as “Bitcoin and Blockchain Technology”, both newer forms of technology of which are predicted to change the way we operate in financial areas across the globe.
The pinnacle of the congress was the pitching of innovations at the 2017 YEP/IEEE Innovation Challenge. Over six months of design thinking, business and technical mentoring resulted in twelve (12) high quality startup potential companies. These teams participated in what was called the “YEP/IEEE Innovation Challenge,” where they pitched their ideas for companies that had the potential to disrupt their respective industries and push the boundaries of what has been accomplished in those industries so far.
About The Companies
Participating teams and their ideas for entrepreneurial ventures included the following:
1) “Poseidon”: A water level measurement system with an online platform for presentation of results.
2) “CHA – Clean Home Air”: An air filtration and heat exchange system.
3) “Parasolar”: A venture focused on integration of sunshades with solar collection system.
4) “SBE – Smart Ball Extinguisher:” An automatic fire detection and extinguishing system.
5) “Vertical Wind Turbine”: A wind turbine of innovative shape with increased degree of wind utilization.
6) “Little Medical Device”: A multifunctional medical device, whose functions include a variety such as blood extraction and others.
7) “Help Management System – Support in Business Decision Making”: Software for price calculation and estimation.
8) “WEE Charger”: A bicycle accessory for contactless conversion and storing of mechanical into electrical energy.
9) “Information System for Agriculture (vineyards)”: A hardware and software solution for optimization of the wine grape growing related processes.
10) “Vret Virtual Reality”: A company focused on modern virtual reality solutions in psychological care.
11) “Smart Bag”: An integration of new technologies in high fashion women bags.
12) “Medical Assistant”: A system for sharing medical information on patients in urgent situations.
The winners of the competition included Vertical Wind Turbine, Vret Virtual Reality, and Clean Home Air. Congratulations to these teams for their excellence in collaboration and cooperation to create functional business and engineering plans for these companies!
To learn more about the IEEE Innovation Nation event, the winners of the pitch competition, and plans for this event in 2018, visit this site.
