The open innovation process as part of the Innovation Booster Artificial Intelligence is divided into two stages – i) the Challenge Stage, and ii) the Idea Stage. Participation in the Challenge Stage is a prerequisite for entering the Idea Stage. In the Challenge Stage, challenges are identified and discussed and team creation and team building is supported. In the Idea Stage, the innovation teams work on their idea and get methodological and financial support.

Challenge stage

The Challenge Stage consists of activities that are useful for problem exploration, identifying challenges, and developing and generating new ideas and solutions together. This includes ideation and open innovation events as well as call-for-participations to involve stakeholders from other networks, potential customers/users, and experts in the field of AI. The goal is to understand the problem more deeply and co-create novel ideas for radical solutions. Based on the challenge stage, there will be the possibility to apply for financial and expert support for the testing of the co-created idea in the Idea Stage.

Idea stage

In the Idea Stage, the co-created ideas will be further developed by shaping the value proposition or having a first proof-of-concept with critical feedback sessions. Depending on the degree of maturity of the solution, an implementation of a prototype (Minimal Viable Products, MVP) can then be aimed for. The Idea Stage entails the testing of an idea’s desirability, viability, and feasibility and is not solely a feasibility study. Assistance in the form of financial or methodological support can be requested. However, financial support can only be used for personnel expenses in the context of idea development, and a cash contribution of at least 10-15% of the requested amount is required.