Italian Master Startup Award – IMSA 2024

The Italian Master Startup Award (IMSA), established in 2007, is the only national competition that rewards young, knowledge-intensive startups with a significant market impact, born from research at universities and public research institutions within the PNICube network.

IMSA 2024 is organized by PNICube, the largest and most extensive National Network of Universities, Academic Incubators, and Regional Start Cups – local business plan competitions, in collaboration with the Innovative Business Incubator of the Politecnico di Torino – I3P, which has supported over 360 incubated startups in developing their business since 1999.

The 18th IMSA Award will take place in Turin on Wednesday, September 25, 2024, at I3P, located within the Politecnico di Torino Campus, as part of the “Side Events” of Italian Tech Week.

Co-financed by thePiedmont Region through the European Social Fund Plus, IMSA 2024 is sponsored by the Ministry of Enterprises and Made in Italy, theItalian Alliance for Sustainable Development (ASviS), and the Embassy of Italy to the Holy See, with prestigious partnerships: Invitalia, OSIF (Scientific Observatory for Women’s Enterprises, University of Rome Tor Vergata), EIT Digital, Business France (the public agency for the internationalization of the French economy), and GammaDonna.

The event will feature the participation of eleven finalist startups in four sectors: Cleantech & Energy, ICT, Industrial, and Life Sciences / Medtech. The startup with the best performance will be announced at the event and will receive a cash prize of €10.000, co-financed by PNICube and I3P.

New this year: Special Services Award by Invitalia for the best female-led startup, in collaboration with OSIF; Special EIT Digital Award for the best startup in the ICT category; free support from Business France for IMSA finalist startups wishing to establish a presence in France. By bringing together the innovation ecosystem and offering a platform for promising startups, IMSA 2024 provides an ideal context for exchanging ideas and concrete proposals on how to support innovative entrepreneurship in the journey toward sustainability.

How to participate

The 18th IMSA Award will take place on Wednesday, September 25, 2024, from 2:30 PM to 4:30 PM, in the Agorà Room at I3P, located inside the Politecnico di Torino Campus, accessible via the pedestrian entrances at Corso Castelfidardo 34 and Via Borsellino 53/N. In addition to attending in person, it will also be possible to follow the event online via live streaming.

Participation is free, but registration is required on Eventbrite.