The Grand Finale of the third annual INNOVA Europe competition was hosted at ESMT Berlin’s campus in Schlossplatz—once the seat of power for the former German Democratic Republic, now the home of several of the city’s major museums as well as the imposing Berlin Cathedral. The competition brought together a showcase of forward-thinking, creative innovation, addressing challenges such as the environmental transition and access to healthy living.
Teams competed across two categories, with prizes available for both budding ideators aiming to get their ideas off the ground (‘Young Hopes’), and early-stage entrepreneurs seeking incubation (‘Rising Stars’). In line with INNOVA’s core values, each year the competition promotes projects that are transformational, impactful, and aligned with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Projects in the Young Hopes category competed for €5,000 in funding, while there was €20,000 available for the winner of the Rising Stars award. Winning projects will also benefit from incubation services as well as connections with other entrepreneurial alumni and students across the INNOVA network, comprising 10 European schools.
The competition—which also featured SP Jain Institute of Management and Research, an invitee from India—saw teams present an array of projects offering solutions split across the competition’s key categories: nine projects tackled environmental transition, seven focused on empowerment and inclusion, and five on health and wellbeing.
AcouBatt pitch their science-backed solution to tackle battery-related wastage ©Manuel Soria
London Business School MBAs win grand prize
For the Rising Stars award, judges valued projects based on their progress and lessons learned so far, teams’ ability to explain the viability and market readiness of their solutions, along with clearly defined next steps. The winners hailed from the UK’s London Business School (LBS).
Chris Haoxin Xu and Arthur Fordham met at LBS during the school’s Innovation to Market MBA experiential module. Xu was studying for his MBA while Fordham was an external participant completing his PhD at University College London.
Standing together on stage at INNOVA in the former GDR ballroom, Xu and Fordham pitched AcouBatt, their startup which uses machine learning and acoustic sensors to ‘listen’ to batteries and detect signs of degradation. The science-backed solution is designed to help reduce wastage in battery formation and promote more sustainable production processes. It is based on Fordham’s PhD research.
The AcouBatt team leveraged their expertise and credentials to impress the INNOVA judges with a solution that tackles a $20bn problem, they highlighted. Their success means will AcouBatt receive not only €20,000 in funding, but also free incubation services at the three founding INNOVA business schools, EDHEC Business School, ESMT Berlin, and POLIMI Graduate School of Management.
“The INNOVA competition is incredible – it’s very special, and we’re so proud of what we have achieved so far. Being part of this competition has given us the opportunity to branch into Europe, which is both exciting and transformative for our project. The prize money will be hugely impactful for us. It will allow us to finalize our product, strengthen and scale our software, and accelerate our development in ways that would not have been possible otherwise,” said the pair.
AcouBatt’s win is also a notable success for LBS, which launched the Innovation to Market module in 2021 to help connect deep tech academics with MBA students and commercialize their research.
Kris Nadiryan, CEO and founder of Hovanka, pitches the mental health app to the judges ©Manuel Soria
Mental health app from Kyiv wins Young Hopes award
The Young Hopes category saw teams pitch a range of solutions, many of which focused on promoting access to health and wellbeing. Within this category, judges sought projects where teams could demonstrate clarity of vision and the ability to solve specific sustainability challenges. The singularity of their value proposition was also key.
The winner of the €5,000 prize was Hovanka, a team from Kyiv School of Economics who pitched a mental health app that combines psychoeducation with practice to support users between therapy sessions.
Developed in response to the ongoing mental health crisis in Ukraine, Hovanka’s ‘Mindset Architect’ app aims to promote emotional literacy skills among young people and prevent severe conditions. The team is led by Kris Nadiryan, CEO and founder, who shared details of her own mental health journey during the pitch.
The judges were impressed by Hovanka's solution, which is designed to provide more holistic support than the many mental health apps available today.
“This prize money will boost Hovanka’s growth and will allow us to be fast in our development. I’m originally from Ukraine, and despite what is going on, we are still creating and competing. These competitions play a vital role in helping us continue to create and grow our project. Ultimately, the INNOVA competition has been great for networking and meeting others. It has supported us mentally. INNOVA is so well organized, and we have felt supported every step of the journey,” said Nadiryan.
INNOVA: Europe’s growing startup competition
Hovanka and AcouBatt were standouts among 21 startup projects pitched by more than 45 entrepreneurs throughout the third INNOVA Europe Grand Finale.
With 11 schools taking part this year, the competition was larger than the 2024 installment (which featured nine schools) and demonstrated significant growth since it was founded by three schools in 2022.
A new step for the coalition, for the first time, attendees were presented with new research conducted by the INNOVA team, which featured insights into a new Barometer of Responsible Practices in Startups set to launch in October this year.
“When we launched INNOVA Europe three years ago, we envisioned a platform where academic excellence, entrepreneurial spirit, and social impact could converge. Today, seeing 11 of Europe’s top business schools and a growing community of international students come together to co-create solutions for a better society is a source of immense pride,” said Tommaso Agasisti, associate dean for Institution & Public Administration at POLIMI.
“We believe that Europe has a unique role to play in shaping the future of responsible business. Through entrepreneurship education, incubation, and cutting-edge research, we empower students to create ventures that combine performance with positive impact,” added professor Ludovic Cailluet, associate dean, Centre for Responsible Entrepreneurship at EDHEC.
