The EU-LAC Digital Accelerator is an initiative financed under the Neighborhood, Development & International Cooperation Instrument (NDICI-Global Europe) in the framework of the EU-LAC Digital Alliance, focused on fostering multi-stakeholder and private sector collaboration, competitiveness, digital skills and innovation, through the establishment of a regional EU-LAC Digital Accelerator.
The #EULACDigitalAccelerator works as a multi-sided platform connecting business opportunities from corporates with innovative startups and SMEs between the European Union, Latin America and the Caribbean. The initiative is formed by ten organisations distributed in these two continents consolidating one strong team.
Do you want to know who is behind the project? Do not miss this edition of our ‘Meet the Team’! Today we are interviewing Mr. Sergio Bandinelli, Business Development Director at Tecnalia Ventures, and the Technical Coordinator of the EU-LAC Digital Accelerator.
Tecnalia Ventures mission is to conceive and engage in new initiatives connecting the agents of the entrepreneurial ecosystem to realise the value of technology developments through innovative businesses.
Look what he told us in this short video and read more details of our talks in the article!
Hello Sergio, we are very happy to have you with us!
Hello, it is a pleasure!
We would like to know more about your organisation, what are you focused on and what is your field of expertise?
At Tecnalia Ventures we specialised in deep-tech venture building. In other words, we work with innovators, companies, entrepreneurs and investors to develop new ventures with the potential to transform the world, addressing the challenges of our society.
Tecnalia Ventures has an experience of over 13 years valorising technological developments in the form of innovative entrepreneurial projects and commercialising IP. Since 2011, Tecnalia Ventures deploys and manages the acceleration programme for Tecnalia Research & Innovation, leading to a portfolio of 15 deep-tech startups, attracting over 30M€ investments during the last four years.
We have successfully applied our unique venture-building and acceleration model to work with other organisations. We have amplified the impact by supporting and building capability for multiple corporate venture programmes in Europe, Asia and Latin America and collaborating with public and private institutions in setting up acceleration programmes and extending the network of supported startups.
Now, how is this linked to the EU-LAC Digital Accelerator? Can you explain the role you envision to play at this meaningful project?
The EU-LAC Digital Accelerator is our favourite initiative right now because it takes the collaboration to the international level, involving talents from two continents: Europe and Latin America – Caribbean and has the potential to address global challenges with a global perspective.
What are the main actions or activities you are working or will work on in the project that you are most excited about?
There is an enormous untapped potential in the development of joint digital businesses between Europe and Latin America – Caribbean and the EU-LAC Digital Accelerator comes at the right moment to activate it.
Digital technology is creating a market disruption that will transform entire sectors of the economy. We have the opportunity to establish joint ventures to address these new opportunities and the Accelerator must play the key role of bringing cross-continental teams together and function as a catalyst for new businesses.
At the EU-LAC Digital Accelerator, what is the positive impact you hope to generate?
The result that we are aiming at the project is the generation of new innovative digital ventures involving startups and corporates from Europe and Latin America – Caribbean. But the expected impact goes far beyond that result: our dream is to establish the basis for a long-lasting collaboration platform with a multiplying effect in the creation and consolidation of joint businesses and collaborations. This involves the consolidation of a community of trust that works for mutual benefit and towards the sustainable development of our societies.
What do you think are the biggest challenges to boosting digital cooperation between Europe and Latin America and the Caribbean? And the keys to solve them?
Technology, and specifically, digital technology, has the capacity of transforming our lives. It is doing it already: think about the impact that technologies such as AI, robotics, virtual reality are having. It is a powerful tool also to transform the economy and create value for our societies in multiple aspects of our lives: from education to manufacturing and from green economy to health.
However, this power also comes with the risk of creating deeper gaps, exclusion and inequalities. In the EU-LAC Digital Accelerator we are determined to work in a collaborative way, creating more opportunities to build a sustainable future for all.
Do you have previous experience managing European projects? What is the most rewarding thing about it?
We have extensive experience in European projects, collaborating with all kinds of partners in Europe and beyond. In EU-LAC Digital Accelerator we have an exceptional team, bringing together complementary views, experience and talent which makes the project absolutely enriching and rewarding.
To close our interesting talk, how would you describe the EU-LAC Digital Accelerator in one sentence?
The EU-LAC Digital Accelerator is a bi-directional bridge, connecting the entrepreneurial ecosystems of two continents. It provides a unique opportunity for creating a community of trust and collaboration to embrace digital transformation as a way to create wellness and equal opportunities in our societies.
Fantastic! Thank you very much for your time Sergio!
The pleasure is mine!
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