Incubators are everywhere – but what constitutes an environment in which startups can really take off? How the right set-up promotes innovation and enables growth.
A strong idea, a motivated team, perhaps even a first prototype – for many founders the starting point looks similar. The biggest bottleneck often comes later: a lack of laboratories and test environments, little access to research, hardly any contacts with investors or with companies that could be considered as pilot customers.
It is precisely at this point that incubators often decide whether an idea will become a scalable business model or whether it will fizzle out shortly after it is founded. If founders choose a startup incubator that suits their business, they receive early access to expertise, infrastructure and the necessary network.
From idea to company: Find out here how you can advance your startup in the NOI Techpark!
What makes a strong start-up environment
What is crucial for startups is an environment that not only bundles opportunities, but also knows how to combine them sensibly. When ideas are developed right from the start under real conditions and cross-border contacts with research, industry and capital are possible, the setting is created in which young companies can really exploit their potential.
The start-up incubator in the NOI Techpark in Bolzano is such a comprehensively networked ecosystem: around 2,400 people from universities, research, companies and startups work side by side on the campus. Over 70 laboratories and prototype workshops are available for testing, development and pilot projects to drive innovation – from food technology to automotive and automation solutions.
Depending on the phase, founding teams enter one of three programs: This Inventors & Pre-Incubation Programsthe Incubation programs as well as that Acceleration & scale-up programs offer founders individual support with which they can efficiently develop their approaches. You get access to coaches, mentoring, funding advice as well as public and private financing partners. Regular community events also network with investors, scale-ups and corporate partners from the entire DACH region.
The NOI Techpark is therefore much more than a classic incubator – the innovation district is a living cosmos of networks, services and know-how. The result is an international meeting point where experts from all over the world come together to further develop ideas and make innovation tangible.
Innovative topics
A particular focus is on the technology fields of green, food and health, digital as well as automotive and automation. The NOI Techpark has strong expertise and is gaining international visibility, especially in the area of fermentation: In the International Center on Food Fermentations (ICOFF) located there, experts work with companies to research new products and cycle models. The aim is to drive innovation and sustainability in the food sector using fermentation.
Startups such as Looops, which wants to reduce sugar and additives in confectionery with the fermented ingredient BITELOOP, or The Garum Project, which develops a modern version of the ancient Garum seasoning sauce from by-products of the food industry, benefit from this. But digital solution providers such as the startup Arxax, which supports transport companies in their green transformation, also use the network of research, laboratories and industry partners on site.
At the NOI Techpark it quickly becomes clear: a helpful incubator is characterized by the fact that it can not only provide start-up help, but can also offer sustainable added value. In the Bolzano Incubator, this effect is created through the unique integration of the international community with specialized research and programs for every stage of development. These special features enable young companies to turn a promising idea into a resilient, future-proof business model.
Looking for start-up help or a growth spurt? Get exactly the support you need at the NOI Techpark!