A quick view on Antwerp innovation projects. With only 2 years in the making, we got quite far already.

1. ANTWERP STARTUP CITY
when city innovation & business development collide
Evert Bulcke, Barcelona, City Innovation Summit, 18/11/2014

2. ANTWERP
Top 5 largest ports in
the world
Strategic industrial
cluster

3. ANTWERP
70% of world diamond
trade passes through
Antwerp

4. ANTWERP
World class
creative hub:
Fashion!

5. ANTWERP
World class
creative hub:
Tomorrowland

6. ANTWERP
Corporate: yes!
Creative: yes!
Innovative: not so much!
* that’s the year 2012 we are talking about

7. ANTWERP INNOVATION HUB
Spot the gap:
1. …
2. ‘Primary School’
ideation, business model, acceleration
3. …
4. ‘College / University’
international growth, VC and M&A

8. STUDENT BUSINESS CENTRE
Gate 15
Stimulating ideation
and entrepreneurship

9. STARTUP VILLAGE
Affordable growth space
for mature startups.
Linking with corporate.

10. WHERE?
CITY CENTRE!
Tapping in to vibrant
city communities

11. ANTWERP INNOVATION HUB
…
• MakerSpace: state of the art machinery
open to students, creatives and tech startups
• Skill-focused education: non-academic courses
open to students and older professionals
• BlueChem: sustainable chemistry incubator
…

12. VIRTUAL INFRASTRUCTURE
Antwerp Operating System
(aOS)
Living Lab ‘City of Things’

13. ANTWERP OPERATING SYSTEM
“When the rate of
change on the outside
exceeds the rate of
change on the inside,
the end is near”
Jack Welch

14. ANTWERP OPERATING SYSTEM
Physical World Virtual World

15. ANTWERP OPERATING SYSTEM
... a platform where
programming students
meet knowledgeable
pensioners.

16. LIVING LAB ‘CITY OF THINGS’

17. LIVING LAB ‘CITY OF THINGS’
• Europe’s Largest Urban Infrastructure for
Data-Driven Mobile Service Experimentation
and Innovation
• 200k users total, 50k users in Antwerp
• Sensor infrastructure
• Focus on mobile services

18. LIVING LAB ‘CITY OF THINGS’
• Sandbox and data infrastructure
for startups, SMEs, and researchers
to test new services, concepts, ideas,
business models
• Methodological and financial support
advice on new products, services,
and business models.

19. IN CLOSING …
Evert Bulcke
@EBulcke
evert.bulcke@stad.antwerpen.be
www.businessinantwerp.eu