B4i Launches the Third Call

B4i - Bocconi for innovation has opened the third Bocconi for Innovation Startup Call: from 9 November to 7 January 2021 startups and business ideas will be able to apply for the third acceleration program by B4i. The selected startups will receive an investment of 30,000 euros each and a four-month acceleration path that provides access to a network of services (legal, accounting, digital marketing and communication packages). It also includes dedicated sessions with experts (professors Bocconi, alumni from different continents and sectors), as well as with entrepreneurs, investors and C-levels of companies. Furthermore, startups can develop commercial networks and sales channels towards B2B customers, taking advantage of discounted services reserved for them by B4i and its partners, including databases, clouds, CRMs, and much more. Finally, a special space was set up on campus with modern offices shared with other startups and program partners, which can be used safely and in compliance with the regulations and decrees for the management of the Covid-19 pandemic. 

To participate in the Bocconi for Innovation Startup Call (two, each year), startups must be feature teams of at least two people in which there is at least one member of the Bocconi community (student, alumnus, member of staff or faculty) or students and alumni of the University of Milan and the Polytechnic of Milan, or researchers of the IIT (Italian Institute of Technology). 

The projects will be chosen on the basis of the innovativeness of the entrepreneurial idea, the quality of the team of founders, the ability to satisfy the market and relevance to the three areas of specialization of B4i - Bocconi for innovation, namely: Digital Tech coordinated by Massimo Della Ragione, Made in Italy led by Gabriella Lojacono and Sustainability led by Stefano Pogutz. 

B4i - Bocconi for innovation was born in 2019 as a platform with the triple role of pre-accelerator, business accelerator and catalyst of entrepreneurship within companies. The objectives of B4i - Bocconi for innovation are to attract the highest possible number of talented and ambitious entrepreneurs, offering a mix of training and resources for the development of their projects, facilitating business development opportunities between startups and large companies. B4i - Bocconi for innovation aims to create a hub where entrepreneurs can grow and confront the market with awareness. 

"Last year we embarked on the path with 5 startups that have gained first-rate experience and knowledge despite the Covid-19 emergency", explained Nico Valenti Gatto, Operating Director of B4i - Bocconi for innovation. "This year the moments of meeting with the 7 finalist startups of the call launched last June were few, but in recent months our structure has consolidated and we can guarantee tutoring, mentorship and services even at a distance".