IoT Space Challenge with ESA

By submitting your solution, you might be selected to attend the next IoT Space Challenge Pitching session in May 2023. In addition, your solution may be considered for the IoT Space Challenge, with up to 10,000 EUR in funding per team for developing your pitched use-case as Proof-of-Concept (PoC), and access to our support and insights during a course of this prototyping activity. Those who successfully participate in the IoT Space Challenge will be talked through the investment opportunities available at ESA, Deutsche Telekom, and hubraum.

You will be able to work with DT IoT connectivity technologies like NB-IoT/LT-M and business mentors from Deutsche Telekom, get insights about the European Earth Observation data from ESA experts, and access Copernicus Data Space Ecosystem with T-Systems expert support. Last but not least, you will also be able to use hubraum’s campuses in Berlin and Krakow and access support from our diverse team (whose expertise ranges from engineering to investment).

We are looking for startups, companies or developer teams who

• are based (have their registered headquarters) in one of the following countries: Albania, Armenia, Austria, Belgium, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, the Faroe Islands, Finland, France, Germany, Georgia, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, North Macedonia, Malta, Moldova, Montenegro, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Tunisia, Turkey, Ukraine, the United Kingdom and Canada.
• have a reasonably mature product or service — you should have already tested out your MVP in a real-life setting. We're also open to you bringing already-developed IoT solutions or Earth Observation applications to explore how these two fields best combine.

Unfortunately not! The challenge can only be participated in by existing teams who already have a product which needs further improvement.

Up to ten.

Applications will be scored against a set of criteria, covering business and technical aspects to evaluate how well your proposed use case caters to the scope of the prototyping activity. Your idea should present a new product or service where combining IoT and Earth Observation data adds extra value. Final evaluations will be made by the IoT Space Challenge management, which consists of experts from Deutsche Telekom and ESA.

During the onboarding meeting in Krakow, we retain the right to select a limited number of use case proposals (up to six) for further development in the form of sponsored Proofs of Concept.

While we will strive to give as much context and constructive suggestions to those who have applied as possible, unfortunately, we cannot guarantee feedback.

The challenge will consist of virtual and physical meetings. Physical meetings will be organized at locations in Poland, Italy and/or the Netherlands. Each of them will last for a maximum of a few days. You will not be obliged to re-locate your company for the challenge. However, Hubraum campus spaces in Kraków and Berlin are available to participants upon request for the duration of the prototyping.

After selecting respective participants, the challenge will last from May 2023 till September 2023. 

If you were selected, participating in the challenge would mean attending up to three non-virtual meetings, each of which will last between two and three days. Winning teams would have to develop their use cases as a Proof-of-Concept to confirm whether their combination of IoT and Earth Observation data might have commercial potential.

No! Besides which, the cost of participating in the physical meetings will be covered by us (like transportation and accommodation) for up to two members of each team.

Equity investment is not an obligatory part of the challenge. However, hubraum investment team is open to discussions about specific investment opportunities.