At the end of 48 hours of presentations and pitches, the winners of the XXII edition of the Italian National Innovation Award (PNI), the most important and widespread business plan competition in Italy, were announced on December 6, 2024. The initiative is promoted by PNICube, the Italian Network of Universities, Academic Incubators and Regional Start Cups, and organized this year with the University of Rome Tor Vergata as part of the Rome Technopole Regional Innovation Ecosystem, with the Main Sponsorship of Gruppo Iren, Gilead Sciences and Prysmian Group, and the Main Partnership of Almaviva.
The winners represent the best among the knowledge-intensive innovative business projects selected from the 17 regional competitions (Start Cups) activated by the 56 universities and research institutions that are members of PNICube, in 18 regions of Italy including Piedmont and Valle d'Aosta. The award-winning projects were chosen from the 77 finalist start-ups by a Jury composed of representatives from the business, research and venture capital worlds on the basis of criteria such as value of technological or knowledge content, technical feasibility and development potential, adequacy of team skills, and attractiveness to the market.
At the culmination of the event, which was also streamed online, Inflant, the winning project of Start Cup Piemonte Valle d'Aosta 2024, won the overall cup of PNI 2024, which will then return to Turin after Focoos AI's victory in the last 2023 edition.
Deplotic, the best new Industrial project in Italy
During the PNI 2024 final, the Industrial - Prysmian Prize worth €25,000 was awarded to Deplotic, a spin-off from Politecnico di Torino, for its technology revolutionizing in-orbit satellite maintenance with deployable and retractable robotic manipulators for more sustainable and efficient space missions. The start-up, also from Start Cup Piemonte Valle d'Aosta 2024 in which it took 4th place ex-aequo, is supported by I3P, the Incubator of Politecnico di Torino.
Through the development of IDRA, an inflatable, deployable robotic arm that enables medium-to-large satellites to perform self-maintenance operations directly in orbit, Deplotic is responding to the growing need to extend the operational life of satellites, quickly and without costly external intervention. IDRA consists of inflatable links that compress during launch, optimizing space on board, and then deploy once in orbit, providing a large working area. The IDRA project is funded by the NODES Ecosystem, through Spoke 1 “Aerospace and Sustainable Mobility” in which I3P is a partner, with funds from the funded by the Italian Ministry of University and Research (MUR) under the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR).
“This robotic manipulator is capable of inspecting, maintaining and repairing various satellite components,” said Pierpaolo Palmieri, CEO of Deplotic, ”thus making a significant contribution to reducing the cost and environmental impact of space operations.” The technology uses advanced materials such as Kevlar and Vectran, known for resistance to extreme temperatures and excellent mechanical performance. Deplotic fits into the fast-growing On-Orbit Servicing (OOS) market, a strategic sector that aims to improve the sustainability of space systems while addressing the growing demand for innovative satellite services.
Presented the award was Luca De Rai, Director of Energy Research and Development and Innovation at Prysmian Group: “We are pleased to award Deplotic for the Industrial category, an award that is even more significant given the high level of this year's competition. We proudly support innovation in this strategic sector and this award is intended to be a contribution to the development of increasingly efficient and sustainable solutions. Innovation and Sustainability are the core values that guide Prysmian's growth strategy and we are very proud to share these values with PNI with whom we have been collaborating for 6 years now, strengthening and supporting the research and start-up ecosystem in Italy.”
Sponsor prizes and special mentions
Among the many sponsor awards and special mentions of PNI 2024, several were awarded to projects from Start Cup Piemonte Valle d'Aosta and the I3P network. Specifically:
- the CDP Venture Award, which recognizes the 16 PNI finalist teams to enable them more informed and accelerated access to the capital market, was also awarded to three start-ups from the I3P network: Deplotic, MediaMiner and Point Zero.
- The Young Entrepreneur Program (YEP) Special Award, corresponding to 10 Grants for a 7-day stay at two Pépite (Pôles Étudiants pour l'Innovation, le Transfert et l'Entrepreneuriat) of the France network with a program of personalized meetings to foster the development of entrepreneurial skills, was won by Deplotic along with other projects.
- The SearchOn “AI for future” Special Award for the best finalist start-ups that have applied AI for quality of life was also won by Deplotic. The Prize consists of an exhibition space at the AI Festival, powered by Search On and WMF We Make Future, scheduled for Feb. 26-27, 2025 in Milan, Italy.
- Point Zero received the Encubator Special Mention, which allows direct access to the semifinal stage of Encubator, an acceleration program promoted by the Milan Monza Brianza Lodi Chamber of Commerce, PoliHub and Politecnico di Milano aimed at technology projects in the areas of sustainability and Climate Tech.
“We closed an extraordinary two days: the PNI final was once again a moment of comparison and growth for the entire Italian innovation ecosystem,” commented Paola M.A. Paniccia, President of PNICube and Delegate for Enterprise Development, Start-ups and Spin-offs for the University of Rome Tor Vergata. “And the projects presented at PNI, not just the finalists, are concrete evidence of how talent, research, entrepreneurship and sustainability, if properly supported and enhanced, can converge to provide answers to the grand challenges and sustainability needs of society and the planet.”
