Future Innovators Program

Future Innovators Program developed by Unicorn Factory Lisboa, challenges university students to develop a problem-solving mentality. This journey consists of a 3-stage Innovation Program that leads from a concrete real-world challenge to the development of a business idea.

SBI collaborated with Unicorn Factory Lisboa for several months, being responsible for its design, implementation, operation and dynamization. From aligning with partners and setting up the online academy, to carrying out the hackathon, as well as devising and developing the acceleration program, supporting young entrepreneurs from all over the country to turn their ideas into reality.

The initiative, carried out in partnership with José de Mello, Sonae, Claranet and .pt, to promote innovation and entrepreneurship among university students, has the support of the PRR, and is divided into three phases: a digital academy, regional hackathons and a pre-acceleration program.

The first stage consists of training on topics such as the ideation, validation and development phase of new solutions, with participants also having the opportunity to learn from experts such as Cristina Fonseca (Indico Capital Partners), Miguel Santo Amaro (Coverflex and Shilling VC) and Jaime Jorge (Codacy).

The challenges proposed to the students vary from "reinventing education", a theme proposed by Sonae and José de Mello; "transforming the physical and digital experience in shopping centers", proposed by Sonae Sierra; or "innovating the smart city experience through the development and modernization of applications", created by Claranet.

The second phase consists of two hackathons based on challenges set by partner companies, while the last and third phase includes various training and mentoring sessions, as well as validation of the projects on the market, culminating in a Demo Day where participants have the opportunity to present their projects to partners and potential investors.