Startups and business initiatives will be able to benefit in the coming months from the opportunities of the Open Future_ programme, the open innovation ecosystem created by Telefónica, thanks to the agreement signed today by the digital telco and the Provincial Council of Gipuzkoa, which entails the launch of Gipuzkoa Open Future_. The two institutions have come together in this initiative to promote talent and entrepreneurship in “strategic sectors of the future”, that is, in cyber security, gastronomy digitalisation, sustainable mobility and bioscience.
The provincial councillor for Economic Advancement, Rural Environment and Territorial Balance for Gipuzkoa, Ainhoa Aizpuru, and the general manager for the North of Spain at Telefónica, Javier Zorrilla, today signed the collaboration agreement between the two institutions. This agreement will materialise in the coming months through the launch of open innovation processes that provide solutions to business challenges for enterprises based in Gipuzkoa, involving entrepreneurs, startups and SMEs and using the Open Future_ platform and methodology as a vehicle. It is anticipated that the first business challenges to be launched will be focused in the fields of gastronomy and biosciences –specially related to medical devices in the second one-, what will allow to accelerate various business initiatives in both areas.
As part of the Etorkizuna Eraikiz initiative by the Provincial Council of Gipuzkoa, which aims to design and advance policies governing the future of the region, the Economic Advancement department focuses its efforts on the realisation of strategic commitments in growing sectors to lead and aid the growth of the economy in Gipuzkoa in the mid-/long term. These commitments are in line with its RIS-3 smart specialisation strategy and focus on the aforementioned cyber security, gastronomy digitalisation, sustainable mobility and bioscience sectors.
According to Aizpuru, the commitment to strategic sectors is not limited, in the case of the provincial institution, to activating calls for proposals; rather, projects which are in line with these strategic spheres are being prioritised. “The agreement we are signing with Telefónica opens up a new opportunity along these lines, since Open Future_ is a powerful programme which will make it possible to boost talent and galvanise new business projects in all these growing sectors”, she said.
Telefónica’s  general manager for the North of Spain stated, “Gipuzkoa Open Future_ combines the Provincial Council of Gipuzkoa's interest in attracting talent and generating quality employment related to new technologies with the need for companies to digitalise their processes”. Javier Zorrilla added, “The Open Future_ programme encourages both objectives as we have been observing in each agreement that we have entered into with the authorities.”