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The Space3ac technology accelerator will support the development of the downstream segment of the space industry, which utilizes data sources such as Earth Observation, satellite navigation, telecommunications and/or meteorological data.
“The mission of the accelerator is to develop the Polish space sector by linking the business, industry, state-owned companies and public administration with startups. We intend to back the export of Polish space-related products and services not only to Europe, but also beyond” said Wojciech Drewczyński, one of the creators of Space3ac.
Startups, Galileo Masters and Copernicus Masters finalists or academic teams working on projects utilising various satellite data can apply to the acceleration program. During the selection of the best projects the following will be taken into account: technical knowledge, market awareness, team composition, business potential, and above all the project itself and the problem, which it should solve.
The application process is open until the 20 June 2016 at the www.space3.ac website. Initially, 10 teams will be preselected, which will be invited to the Preparation Camp at the Gdańsk Entrepreneurship Incubator Starter taking part between the 27-29 June 2016. The acceleration program for the 5 best teams selected at the preparation camp will start on 18 July 2016 and will continue to 28 August 2016. During that time the teams will be provided a place to work in Gdańsk including accommodation and catering. The first class of the acceleration program will finish on 8 September 2016 at a Demo Day, in front of a group of international investors.
During the programme the participants will learn how to conduct and manage space projects. A large group of local and international mentors will support the teams in business and technical issues needed for project implementation.
The best team will be awarded 50,000 PLN (approximately 12,000 EUR) for Research and Development activities. Teams will also get the chance for a commercial implementation of the created technologies among the programme partners, especially coming from the industry and state-companies. The current total pool of investment funds coming from national and international sources amounts to 2,000,000 PLN (approximately 450,000 EUR) and will likely rise over the coming months. In addition to financial support the teams can also benefit from the broad contact network of Space3ac in such entities as ESA, GSA, POLSA, and Polish and international space industry companies.
Partners of the Space3ac accelerator are as follows: City of Gdańsk, Black Pearls VC, Blue Dot Solutions, Industry Development Agency, Pomeranian Special Economic Zone, Polish Space Agency, Polish Agency for Industry Development, Interizon Cluster, Creotech Instruments, O4, and “Starter” Entrepreneurship Incubator in Gdańsk.
