Open Innovation Contest to Address Key Challenges in Pakistan
Every company and organisation wants to get its hands on the next big thing, a product, service or innovation that will solve unmet needs and boost the bottom line or cure social and environmental problems.
One of the best ways to source these innovations is through open innovation competitions, either because they catalyse creative minds or they encourage innovators to come out of their corners
The Pakistan Innovation Foundation (PIF) and Indus Motor Company (IMC) has recently announced the launch of the National Innovation Grand Challenge (NICG) 2013-14 to solve some of the country’s key challenges.
The year-long open innovation contest will be focused on such areas as agriculture, energy, rural development and manufacturing. Students, youths, innovators, entrepreneurs, professionals and citizens are all being invited to participate. The competition is modeled after the X-Prize and Grand Challenges in Health and there are three stages: Design, Prototype, and Demonstration.
Challenges
The first challenge available is to “develop a replicable, scalable and marketable product or process that enhances productivity, reduces energy requirement or reduces industrial waste by at least 33 percent.”
The second is “to develop an innovative product, service, or tool that complements or enhances the utility of a manufactured product and has a compelling market potential and cost-performance profile for rapid commercialization in Pakistan.”
Prize Money
Winners will receive one million Pakistani rupees, approximately $9,000 USD. There is also a student prize of half that amount.
During the contest, participants will receive training and mentoring and the winners will be announced in August 2014.
Reader Comments
If I had a nickel for the number of times I've heard someone say, "I can't tell what my invention is for fear it might get stolen." Innovation is hot, it's in, and it's the future. The culture has to be set on how to entice people to bring their most creative suggestions freely to the table. I suppose you can get some valuable information just having an open source site, but for sure a contest would drive the information harbors.
Posted by M. Elliott on December 11, 2013
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