Oscar Sala, The Collider director, innovation area of Mobile World Capital Barcelona
Mobile World Capital Barcelona contributes to the international promotion of Barcelona as an attractive environment for innovation, bringing science and market together and fostering the creation of highly technological companies, called “deep tech”. Through its innovation area The Collider, the foundation specializes in the development of spinoffs offering service products born from innovations in disruptive technologies. MWCapital Barcelona’s commitment is to accompany these companies as they develop, thus maximizing the development of R&D in research centers and corporations, as well as attracting talent and foreign investment. Its ultimate purpose is, therefore, to promote sustainable economic activity and quality employment, to achieve positive social impact in its scope territories: locally, stately and internationally.
The Collider was born in 2017 following the foundation’s same calling of identifying and accompanying disruptive tech based projects to transform them into technological startups that would solve future challenges and help apply technological solutions to improve our society. However, we all know that such a mission is difficult to achieve. For early stage and deeptech technology solutions, market entry is difficult. But at The Collider we believe that disruptive technologies will respond to future socioeconomic challenges, and we accompany the teams and solutions that corporations and industry experts are betting on.
We know how to train scientists and OTRIS ( Research Results Transfer Offices) from research institutions. We know how to train scientists in market validation (The Collider training programs for OTRIS and scientists). And we know how to accompany the maturation of teams in our business creation program. This is how, in 5 years, we were able to collaborate with 72 research institutions to train 220 scientists in technological solutions market validation. And we contributed to the creation of 18 start-ups valued at almost 20 million euros. Start-ups that help detect neurocognitive diseases in children; offer sustainable refrigeration solutions; improve the lives of people with epilepsy or prevent earthquakes, among many others.
All this has been possible thanks to the spirit and experience of Mobile World Capital Barcelona in terms of public-private agreements. The Collider and the foundation’s teams and ecosystems are especially proud of the consolidation of our own methodology of Cleantech and Healthtech scientific-technological startups accompaniment and creation, which today make up our portfolio. One of The Collider’s differentiating aspects is the industry’s involvement in its “deep tech” companies creation program, particularly in the definition of innovation challenges and proposal of own projects (Corporate Venturing). Another one are our efforts to identify serial entrepreneurs who complement teams of scientists and take on responsibilities as CEOs and COOs of the companies we create. And a third one is The Collider and MWCapital Barcelona’s ambassadors and experts bet on medium and long term business opportunities by creating, investing and accelerating tech and science based startups that contribute to Barcelona, Spain and Europe’s knowledge economy.
The connections and alliances between national and international DeepTech innovation agents – research centers, companies, governments and investors at European level- have been the key to the fulfillment of our mission and will continue to be. Together with all of them, The Collider-MWCapital Barcelona will soon celebrate its fifth anniversary. And the icing on the cake is to act as the exclusive representative in Spain of the DeepTech Alliance. This European International collaboration and innovation platform connects the best deep tech incubators and accelerators in Europe, its purpose being the acceleration of scientific-technological startups. We can’t think of a better birthday present.
Soon you will be invited to the celebration of the innovation area of MWCapital Barcelona.