Action for 5G: Vodafone puts 2.5 million on the plate

5G, Huawei reiterated very explicitly during the presentation of its Cybersecurity & Transparency Center in Rome yesterday, is an enabling element. Simple 5G is therefore not innovation in and of itself, but it is the spark that is able to unleash innovation through study, research and creativity. With the new “Action for 5G” call, Vodafone is now looking for these new elements: ideas, talents and projects with which to express the potential of 5G in new ways and with a positive impact on the economy, society and daily life.

Action for 5G: ideas wanted

Action for 5G makes available up to 2.5 million euros to support the selected companies: from today until February 1, 2021 it will be possible to subscribe your own application on the official website of the initiative, with an invitation extended to startups and companies that think they have the right idea in their hands to make 5G a new essential accelerator.

Projects - in the Education, Energy, Entertainment sectors & Gaming, Healthcare, Industry 4.0, Mobility & Transport, Retail, Safety & Security, Tourism, Wellbeing & Sport Tech - must use and enhance at least one of the distinctive features of 5G: connection speed up to 10 Gigabits per second, latency under 10 milliseconds, high connection density.

The projects selected by Vodafone will then have to go through three phases:

Design in 5G

"starting from April 2021 and will receive technical and business advice to finalize the project idea in a 5G perspective and present it to the Board at June 2021. The Board - made up of members of Vodafone Italia, PoliHub and venture capitalists “; 5G prototype development

“in which they will receive up to 100,000 euros for the development of the first prototype running in 5G“; Development in 5G

"with the aim of finalizing the solution and bringing the first commercial trials to the field". Since 2017, 12 projects have already been financed, the first small pieces for a market that intends to explode as soon as possible with the progressive explosion of coverage of 5G networks in the area.