City of Glasgow College has launched the UK’s first open innovation competition (IPHatch®) that connects entrepreneurs and emerging start-ups with access to impactful sustainable technologies from multinational corporations.

In a new partnership with Intellectual Property (IP) Investment Bank, Piece Future, IPHatch® is a unique programme that enables the start-up community to explore overseas market expansion by building sustainable solutions towards a greener future through a series of workshops and the IPHatchathon®.

IPHatch® connects emerging start-ups with renowned multinationals including Nokia and Panasonic and, for the first time outside Asia, will offer patents portfolios to the start-up community, including those in Advance Imaging and Recognition, Reliable New Cloud solutions and Advance Imaging and Recognition.

Since 2017, this world-leading open innovation challenge has supported 60 start-ups across Asia, empowering these early-stage entrepreneurs to use technology as a seed for sustainable impact.

After the launch of the competition at the college’s City Campus, Paul Little, Principal and CEO at City of Glasgow College, said:

“It is the very first time an IPHatch® open innovation competition is being held outside of Asia, and we’re delighted that it was launched at City of Glasgow College. Annually, we produce a wealth of accomplished graduates and many of them start up their own businesses with the entrepreneurial skills and business acumen learned here at the College. It is a huge boon for the innovation sector in Scotland and across the UK, so we’re delighted to be partnering with IPHatch® and connecting with multinational companies to support and encourage start-ups and entrepreneurialism with sustainability and technological focus.”

Shinji Miura, General Manager, Panasonic Intellectual Property Management Company Ltd said:

“We are very excited about IPHATCH®’s launch in UK. With its proven success in Asia over the past five years, we believe that IPHATCH® represents one of the best sustainable ecosystems which is dedicated to maximising the potential of

technologies with a unique contribution to, and influence on, our society. Through IPHATCH® UK, we hope that our patented technologies will be fully exploited and optimised by as many ambitious UK start-ups as possible, and we very much look forward to establishing robust connections with these promising entrepreneurs to create a truly sustainable future together.”

Dr Jari Vaario, Head of Asia Patent Transactions & External Alliances, Nokia Technologies, added:

“Nokia is a longstanding supporter of IPHatch in Asia. We are delighted that the program is coming to Europe and look forward to seeing European entrepreneurs build upon our innovation in the coming years.”

Jason Loh, CEO & Founder, Piece Future said of the UK’s first competition:

“The IPHatch programme provides all applicants with an immersive and invaluable learning experience in how to fully exploit intangible assets – through applying powerful high-tech patents to sustainable businesses to extending the lifecycle of innovative companies in a disruptive way.

As the saying goes “knowledge without application is useless” same goes for already available technologies and patents. With the support of our global network, I am excited to see how IPHatch develops in the UK and it can be impactful for promising start-ups here.”

More information on IPHatch or to apply for IPHatch UK 2023.