BASF and AHK Romania announce the competition for innovative start-ups

The world’s biggest chemical company, BASF, along with AHK Romania, is once again opening applications for a great innovation contest, including start-ups and individual innovators from Romania. Participation is free, and submitted ideas should offer concrete solutions in the field of green and digital transition. BASF Innovation Hub 2023 is focusing on Cleantech, Circularity, and Farm to Fork – and you can read more about topics on the official website.

“The world of start-ups is an exciting place! There are many creative entrepreneurs in the region, producing innovations that can make our lives easier, improve quality of life, and find answers to current challenges. Often ideas remain on paper if the necessary support is not provided for them to materialize and become useful, applicable, and sustainable in markets. Sustainability stands behind this year’s BASF Innovation Hub because our overarching theme – Envision 2050 – stands in line with our vision that Europe will become the first climate-neutral continent by 2050”, said Andreas Lier, Managing Director for Romania, Bulgaria, and North Macedonia.

The Application Phase for BASF Innovation Hub 2023 will last until September 29 at midnight, and the only requirement for participation is that start-up members or individual innovators are above 18 years of age.

Participants from Romania will have a chance to pitch their ideas together with participants from Bulgaria and Greece. Two winners will automatically qualify for the Grand Finale, where they will once again present their ideas together with the rest of the winners from 11 countries of Central and Southeast Europe. Grand Finale winner will receive a prize in the amount of EUR 5,000 gross.

“BASF Innovation Hub is a constructive platform and competition, encouraging, supporting and motivating promising innovators to develop solutions that will lead us even faster to a sustainable future. It is a step in our joint effort to reduce pollution and limit climate change by supporting those who can bring added value to green technologies and sustainable agriculture. We welcome the involvement of companies that have the capacity and expertise to discover innovative ideas and transform them into projects,” adds Sebastian Metz, General Manager of AHK Romania.

Andreas Lier states that BASF Innovation Hub is an important event and that he is happy that in addition to developmental support for the winner, the company will gladly provide all participants with other types of support such as expertise, networking opportunities and exposure.

“We live in a time of rapid development when the path from idea to implementation is technically more feasible than ever before. I believe that corporations, with their developed infrastructure and their experts have experience, which they should even more share with innovators,” noted Lier.

For more information about the project, requirements and the manner of applying visit the official web page and the official YouTube channel of the event.