The Madrid City Council presented today at the municipal technological dissemination center Madrid Innovation Lab, the DesafIA Madrid project. This initiative, driven by the Delegated Area of Innovation and Entrepreneurship, aims to create a space where private organizations and the administration itself can find and test disruptive solutions implemented by startups based on the proposal of different challenges.
In this way, the City Council reinforces its interest in open innovation programs, while promoting the financing of pilot projects in both the private and public sectors, thanks to the entrepreneurial talent in Madrid.
The councilor delegated for Innovation and Entrepreneurship, Ángel Niño, highlighted that initiatives like this contribute to positioning Madrid as a «European technological reference» and promote «public-private collaboration to develop innovative solutions through the entrepreneurial ecosystem.» He also emphasized the need to «adapt to a competitive and technological environment crucial for the business future.»
Two editions that will culminate with pilot projects
DesafIA Madrid will have two editions, the first this year and the second in 2026, in which eight challenges will be proposed and developed in four phases. The first phase will take place during the months of March and April, where the main challenges will be defined proposed by private corporations and public administrations such as process optimization, cost reduction, energy saving, etc.
In the second phase, between April and June, a call for startups will be launched requesting solutions to each of the previously defined challenges, which will conclude with the selection of a solution for each challenge. In the following phase, lasting two months, each startup will work hand in hand with private and public organizations to implement the solution and create a minimum viable product (MVP) for each selected idea.
During the final phase, which will take place in the last quarter of the year, the pilots will be tested, in addition to showcasing the results obtained in the demo days and other events of the innovative ecosystem such as 4FYN and South Summit.
