Last year the Ideas competition 'Solve for Tomorrow' was held for the first time on the topic of '5G for Society'. The program is aimed at students and young people with other educational backgrounds. Patron and Member of the German Bundestag Thomas Sattelberger says:
"I've been supporting the STEM movement for over a decade because we need both enthusiasm for technology and a vibrant culture of innovation. When young people—regardless of their educational background—work on ideas for our future, this is the best thing that can happen to us as a society."
'Solve for Tomorrow' offers prize money, workshops and mentoring
Interested parties can apply until 4 July 2021 apply online or participate in design thinking workshops beforehand. In a second phase, ten teams will be selected and coached in a bootcamp by experts from various disciplines – including Rico Radeke from 5G Lab Germany, Kaja Balzereit from Fraunhofer IOSB-INA, and Rahel Demant, founder of the XR Bootcamp. After a development phase lasting several weeks, the selected teams will pitch their concepts to a panel of experts. Three winning teams will receive a total of €22,500 to further develop their ideas. In addition, the winning teams will receive intensive mentoring from industry and academic partners for a further six months on their path to realizing their own ideas.
Last year, 172 young people in 63 teams submitted ideas as part of 'Solve for Tomorrow'. According to the organizers, tangible positive effects of the program were measured: entrepreneurial knowledge increased in 88 percent of participants, and motivation to start a business increased in 72 percent of participants.
"Through the program, we were able to start our own company and give children the opportunity to experience technology. The media interest was enormous and a great starting point for what we hope will be a lifelong journey full of further developments,"
so Anne Kirchberg and Franziska Weser, founders of Heartucate and finalists of 'Solve for Tomorrow' 2020.
