6 June 2019 – The call is out for aspiring entrepreneurs across the UK to enter into an international space competition, with the opportunity to win thousands of pounds in cash and business support for their innovative idea.
The Galileo Masters competition is open to anyone who has an idea that uses satellite navigation technology – be it for position, time, navigation or any other use, including iPhone, iPad and Android apps, as well as applications in any professional field.
GRACE (the Geospatial Research and Applications Centre of Excellence) at the University of Nottingham is hosting the UK rounds of the Galileo Masters competition, where the region’s champions will win £1,000 in cash and £4,000 worth of business support including an incubation programme. The UK winners will then go on to compete at international level for a €10,000 cash prize, as well as further support such as an accelerator programme.
The competition comes at a crucial time, as uncertainty continues over the UK-EU relationship post-Brexit. Should the UK winners be successful internationally, the collaboration with European industry and business is vital post-Brexit, enabling the UK to maintain ties with EU partners and shape the future of satellite technology.
From healthcare, military and leisure, to traffic management and transport logistics, satellite navigation is used around the globe. The Galileo Masters sets out to find the innovators of tomorrow with ideas that improve everyday life, which will advance Europe’s satellite technology capabilities.
The competition provides support for innovative ideas at any development stage, with the ultimate aim to turn them into reality. In previous years the Galileo Masters has helped launch a number of successful business ventures.
Those entering with links to a university should enter the University Challenge and start-ups, businesses and aspiring entrepreneurs should apply to the UK Challenge.
Successful entrants will be invited to a ‘dragon’s den’ style pitch to a panel of UK space industry experts, who will decide the winning idea to go forward to the international competition.
The competition is sponsored by Collins Aerospace, SPRINT, Nottingham Scientific Limited, the Manufacturing Technology Centre and the Royal Institute of Navigation with the support of the Satellite Applications Catapult and the UK Space Agency.
More information and details on how to enter the competition is available at https://www.nottingham.ac.uk/grace/galileo-masters/index.aspx and https://www.galileo-masters.eu/prize/uk.
The closing date for entries is 31 July 2019.