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F.acT: How did the Alpine Tech_Innovation Sprint go?
Werkstätte Wattens: From 18 to 20 October 2018, Werkstätte Wattens organized the 1st Alpine Tech_ Innovation Sprint in cooperation with its partners from I.E.C.T. Hermann Hauser and MAD. We brought together nine international start-ups from Italy, Belgium, Norway, Switzerland, Austria and Germany and Tyrolean tourism experts to solve problems together. The three-day sprint was also supported by Tirol Werbung and Standortagentur Tirol. Interested tourism companies were able to submit problems in advance(see TTR Inspiration from May 2018). A total of 5 companies submitted 6 challenges.
These were the tourism experts & their challenges:
Swarovski Crystal Worlds: Development of an experience tracking system for three Swarovski locations to capture visitor needs and feedback.
TVB Wilder Kaiser: Development of an online solution for the existing "Club of Excellent Employers" to counteract the shortage of skilled workers in the region and to further strengthen the region as an employer brand.
TVB Serfaus-Fiss-Ladis: Creation of a centralized database for recording all customer touchpoints for the entire destination and thus all tourism service providers while integrating existing data sources.
Tirol Werbung: Development of a tool for updated opening hours of restaurants and huts in Tirol, integration into the existing Tirol geodata pool and provision of this data for other platforms such as Google or Tripadvisor.
Tirol Werbung: Development of a central event calendar for Tyrolean guests and locals.
T-Mobile: Analysis of the traffic problem in the municipality of Wattens and development of technology-based solutions.
After start-ups and tourism experts got to know each other, they worked on specific problem tracks for 24 hours. The results were then presented to a panel of experts, investors and other interested parties on the final day.
F.acT: What innovative solutions were developed during the three days?
Werkstätte Wattens: The winner of the public voting at the final on the Umbrüggler Alm in Innsbruck was the Italian university spin-off Emoj. Their solution - developed for Swarovski Kristallwelten - was convincing. As the winner, they received 1,000 euros and a consultancy package from Werkstätte Wattens, I.E.C.T. Hermann Hauser and MAD. Much more important, however, is the opportunity to continue the cooperation initiated as part of the Alpine Tech_ Sprint.
The winner of the public vote: Emoj for the Crystal Worlds
The starting point was the problem that ratings are difficult to record using traditional questionnaires and also have limited informative value. In addition, guests often only give feedback when it concerns negative experiences. The EMOJ team around founder Luca Giraldi wants to improve the quality of guest reviews by using new technologies for facial recognition. The emotional state of the guest is recorded using a camera and 4 emotions are derived from this.
"For us at Swarovski Kristallwelten, the Alpine Tech_ Innovation Sprint was a valuable insight into a new way of finding solutions to entrepreneurial problems, especially in tourism. Over the three days, we were able to experience interesting approaches and get to know motivated, innovative start-ups. EMOJ (and also Enchant) have shown us good solutions that we will examine internally and decide in the coming months whether and in what form a project collaboration will come about." Thomas Weberberger, Head of Online Communications, Swarovski Kristallwelten
The Norwegian start-up Nordic Analysis, on the other hand, pitched a solution to the traffic challenge submitted by T-Mobile. With the help of augmented reality, the start-up wants to create traffic forecasts for cities and municipalities in order to intelligently manage the volume of traffic. In concrete terms, this can mean reducing or restricting traffic or switching to alternatives.
Tirol Werbung sponsored two problems that are relevant to all tourist destinations in Tirol. According to Christian Klingler from Tirol Werbung, these results will now be followed up by the regional tourism organization sitting down with interested TVBs and discussing the results and further steps.
F.acT: How do you rate the success of the first event and how would you like to continue it in the future?
Werkstätte Wattens: We are very satisfied with the progress of the Alpine Tech_Innovation Sprint. Ideally, longer-term business relationships will develop between start-ups and tourism professionals. An accelerator program is also planned for next year, which will last several months. The aim is to position the topic of Alpine technologies even more strongly in Tyrol and to offer regular programs that bring start-ups and established companies together. In the future, both tourism and software as well as cooperation programs with other Alpine sectors (e.g. infrastructure, sports equipment and clothing, etc.) will be offered.
Präsentation der Ergebnisse von den Startups am Abschlusstag vor einer Fachjury, Investoren und anderen Interessierten., © Destination Wattens Regionalentwicklung GmbH
Werkstätte Wattens is an international business and creative center for founders, start-ups and manufacturing and service companies in various stages of development. The focus is on technology, innovation, regional value creation and sustainable growth.
In addition to workshops and production areas, team offices, a co-working space and a Fablab for individual use are currently available to entrepreneurs on an area of 4,200 m² in parts of the former Swarovski Plant 2. The offers and programs for business model development and prototyping as well as the partner contacts in the entrepreneurial ecosystem accompany professional development - and offer space and opportunities for interdisciplinary exchange and networked work.