VeneTo Stars is a Space Data-driven challenge promoted by the Veneto Region in Italy and open to young European residents. The initiative aims to foster innovative ideas that leverage Space Data and Technology to support the growth of the Blue and Space Economies, while also facilitating connections between young European innovators and local enterprises in these sectors.
The combined opportunities offered by the Space and Blue Economies, along with Italy’s extensive expertise and capabilities in these fields, have the potential to significantly impact the national economy. The Veneto Region stands out in Italy for its leadership in sectors such as the fishing supply chain, maritime transport of goods and passengers, and shipbuilding.
The Space Economy has long been recognized as a sector of entrepreneurial excellence in the Veneto Region, recently securing major public contracts from the Italian Space Agency (ASI) and the European Space Agency (ESA). Most regional companies operating in the Space Economy focus on the “upstream” segment. However, initiatives like the ESA BIC, participation in the IRIDE project, and the Veneto Digital Agenda’s emphasis on space data are increasingly driving the development of the “downstream” sector.
The interplay between the Space and Blue Economies offers the potential to create new applications and services for the population, businesses, and the environment, as well as unlock global market opportunities.
Ideas submitted to the challenge must utilize Space Data or Technology and demonstrate applicability within the Veneto Region, highlighting a clear intersection between the Blue and Space Economies. Potential areas of interest include (but are not limited to):
- Marine environment
- Land and seaways logistics
- Art, culture, and unique landscapes (e.g., Venice and its lagoon)
- Renewable energy and sustainability
- Engineering, materials, and propulsion systems
- Safety and security
- Tourism
- Seafood management
- Climate change and environmental safety
- Marin
VeneTo Stars twofold objectives are to boost the interest of the European young generation for Space Data/Tech sources and promote the use of Space data (and/or Space technologies) to boost the Blue and Space Economy.
Eligibility
The Challenge is open to teams consisting of recent graduates, students, and young professionals residing in the EEA and Switzerland.
Teams must have a minimum of 2 and a maximum of 7 members.
The majority of team members must be aged 18-25 at the time of submission.
Timeline
The VeneTo Stars Challenge covers a five months period and is composed of:
- APPLICATION
Teams can register and submit their ideas/concepts from 13th February to 10th April 2025 hrs 23:59 CET.
- SELECTION
Ten (10) ideas/concepts will be selected and the correspondent teams notified by the 19th of April 2025 hrs 23:59 CET.
- AWARD – SPACE MEETINGS VENETO (20-22 may, 2025)
The 10 selected teams will be hosted in Venice during the “Space Meetings Veneto 2025” where they will have the opportunity to connect with companies and professionals from the Blue and Space Economy.
An international jury will select and award the top three proposals.
- EXPLOITATION (June 2025)
The three winning teams will have the opportunity to spend one week in the Veneto Region in June 2025, participating in a tailor-made program. This program will include coaching, entrepreneurial and technical sessions, as well as advisory activities designed to further develop their prototypes and maybe run a pilot test in a real environment thus interacting with interested stakeholders. The week will be held in a state-of-the-art campus and include entrepreneurial and technical sessions as well as outdoor activities.
At the end of the week will be a final event.
First Phase of the Challenge
Application
1. Ideas can only be submitted through the form available on the official Challenge website (www.venetostars.com) by the designated team contact person.
2. The contact person will be required to provide details for all other team members.
3. Applications must be submitted between 13th February and 10th April, no later than 23:59 CET. Any deadline extensions will be appropriately announced through communication channels, social media, and official web pages.
4. Submission material will include:
- a. A deck of up to 10 slides, structured as follows:
- Problem
- Solution
- How your idea can be applied to the Veneto Region
- Comparison with other existing solutions or similar ideas (if any)
- Team presentation
- Development Timeline
- Final concept to pitch if selected for the Award phase in May
- Type of support the Veneto Region could provide to further develop idea (if selected as overall winner)
- b. Acceptance of the Privacy Statement on the submission page.
5. Please notice that an incomplete submission can lead to an exclusion from the Challenge.
6. Intellectual property will remain with the idea owners and the submitting team members.
Second Phase of the Challenge
Selection
A designated committee will evaluate and select the ten best proposals submitted. The selected teams will be notified via email by 19th April 2025 at 23:59 CET.
The selection committee for the first phase (SELECTION) will include experts from the Veneto Region, supported by representatives from regional research centers and Space Data/Tech specialists.
The selection criteria are as follows:
- Relevance: The alignment of the idea with the goals of the VeneTo Stars Challenge, particularly its applicability to the Veneto Region and adherence to the specified topics (see Section 1).
- Impact: The scale and timeframe at which the idea delivers tangible socio-economic benefits to the region, as well as the measurable outcomes of its application.
- Feasibility: The extent to which the idea can be implemented using existing technologies, its Technology Readiness Level (TRL), and the time required to transform it into a prototype.
- Scalability: The clarity of the steps outlined for progressing from concept to a mock-up, prototype, or demo, to be presented during the Space Meetings Veneto if selected.
- Presentation: The quality, organization, and overall clarity of the submission.
- Team: Gender balance and multidisciplinary composition.
To qualify, proposals must achieve a minimum score of 2 for each criterion. Only 10 teams will be selected, and the jury’s decisions are final and cannot be challenged.
The selected teams will pitch their ideas during the Space Meetings Veneto, held in Venice from May 20–22, 2025. Participants will have the chance to present their mock-ups or prototypes and connect with investors, end-users, and stakeholders.
After notification, each team must inform the organizers of the names of up to three members by 24th April 2025. These members will be sponsored by the Veneto Region to attend the Space Meetings Veneto event/exhibition and deliver their pitch.
Third Phase of the Challenge
Award – Space Meetings Veneto 2025
- meet the firms/professionals
- presentation of the proposal (integrata a seguito degli incontri secondo) 10 team
- jury will evaluate the top 3 teams – these 3 will be invited to the EPLOITATION PHASE.
- AWARD the best advancement from ideas/concepts to mock-up/prototype during the finalists’ pitch session at the Space Meetings Veneto SMV (May, 20-22, 202 5); during the SMV MEET some local enterprises active in Blue and/or Space Economy through 1-2-1 sessions to understand their needs and/or challenges.
The (10) ten selected teams will be invited to visit Veneto and participate in the unique three-day event “Space Meetings Veneto” (SMV) in Venice (https://spacemeetingsveneto.com/). During the event, they will have the opportunity to meet professionals and firms, gaining valuable insights to enhance their proposals and further develop them from concepts to mock-ups or prototypes.
The interactions with professionals and enterprises present at SMV 2025 will help the selected teams delve deeper into the topics of their project ideas and refine their presentations to the award jury by adding two specific slides.
The award jury will consist of experts representing the sponsors, the Veneto Region, national and international stakeholders active in the challenge topics, the Italian Space Agency, the National Copernicus User Forum, investors, end-users, and other specialists. The jury will select the three best proposals, and the finalist teams will be invited to spend time in the Veneto Region (tentatively in June).
The selection criteria can be summarised as follows:
- Relevance > the coherence of the idea with respect to the purpose of the VeneTo Stars Challenge, ie the applicability of the idea to the Veneto Region and the compliance with the topics (see section 1);
- Impact > at which time and socio-economic scale is the idea bringing concrete benefits to the region? What could be the main and measurable outputs from the application of the idea?
- Feasibility > can your idea be exploited using existing technology? What is the service/product Technology Readiness Level (TRL)?
- Scalability > (AWARD phase) how well you explained the steps to move from the mock-up/prototype or the demo to a final product
- Presentation > quality, organisation and overall presentation
- Team > gender balance and multidisciplinarity
The award jury will also evaluate the development of the ideas/concepts submitted during the first phase (19th of April), assessing their progress to the final pitch presented at the 2025, including any integration resulting from the 1-2-1 meetings. The evaluation will not only focus on the most original idea but also on how effectively it addresses a need or challenge proposed by one of the enterprises met during the 1-2-1 sessions.
For example, if you submitted a sea-life monitoring tool using GNSS, Copernicus data, and sensors by 10th April and were selected to present in Venice, during the “Space Meetings Veneto” live pitch, you would be expected to showcase a working demo, prototype screenshot, or beta version of the tool. Furthermore, following the 1-2-1 meetings with enterprises during the dedicated session, you will be required to integrate your presentation with two additional slides addressing the specific needs or challenges discussed. These slides will be a crucial part of the jury’s evaluation.
Important notes:
- A maximum of 3 members per team will be covered for travel and lodging expenses
- The decision of the jury is unquestionable.
- According to the sponsors decision some runner-up teams could be awarded a special mention/prize.
Fourth Phase of the Challenge
Exploitation
- EXPLOIT the winner mock-up/prototype by hosting three winning teams for one week in Veneto to learn, develop, enhance and potentially apply their prototype to a real context and maybe continue conversation with one of the enterprises met at SMV
- One week in Venice
- in-depth analysis of the topics
- coaching/mentoring
- presentation of the reviewed project (considering all the inputs gathered during the mentoring phase)
The THREE winning teams members will be invited to spend one week in Veneto Region in June 2025 and a maximum of 3 members per team will be covered expenses. A tailor-made program will be designed to favour meetings, coaching and also advisory activities to further advance the prototype and maybe run a pilot test (i.e. real case application). An additional opportunity will be given to deepen contact and relationship with enterprises who might be interested in exploiting their ideas together.
Resources
The main Space Data sources related to the EU Space Programme can be divided into five main packages:
- Copernicus
- Galileo
- EGNOS
- Govsatcom
- EUSST
The VeneTo Stars Challenge: “Supporting the Blu & Space Economy is interested in ideas using the first three plus ECMWF (see below).
Copernicus is the European Union’s Earth observation programme, looking at our planet and its environment to benefit all European citizens. It offers information services that draw from satellite Earth Observation and in-situ (non-space) data.
EUSPA has created a simple guide on how to access Copernicus data for people who hear about it for the first time.
Galileo is Europe’s Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS), providing improved positioning and timing information with significant positive implications for many European services and users.
EGNOS The European Geostationary Navigation Overlay Service (EGNOS) is Europe’s
regional satellite-based augmentation system (SBAS) that is used to improve the performance of global navigation satellite systems (GNSSs).
ECMWF is the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts whose objective is to produce and disseminate weather forecast data for the National Meteorological and Hydrological Services (NHMSs) of ECMWF Member and Co-operating States and their authorised users.
ECMWF is both a research institute and a 24/7 operational service; the Centre has one of the largest supercomputer facilities and meteorological data archives in the world.
ECMWF is a key player in Copernicus, the Earth Observation component of the European Union’s Space programme, offering quality-assured information on climate change (Copernicus Climate Change Service), atmospheric composition (Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service), flooding and fire danger (Copernicus Emergency Management Service), and through the EU’s Destination Earth initiative, ECMWF is developing prototype digital twins of the Earth.
For further information about this opportunity and the selection criteria click here.