Autimelody wins Advanced Award UG Impact Challenge

Autimelody, a team that uses music as a communication tool, won the Advanced Award of €2,500 at the first edition of the UG Impact Challenge on Thursday afternoon at the Academy Building. The Ideation Award of €1,500 was awarded to Neighborly. During the final of the UG Impact Challenge, students of the University of Groningen presented their solutions to major societal challenges.

Energy, good ideas and genuine excitement were at the heart of the final of the UG Impact Challenge. Over the past six months, UG students worked on their business plans during workshops and speed dates. The Challenge offered students a chance to turn their innovative ideas into impactful business plans. During the grand finale of the Challenge, which took place in the Academy Building's aula, 16 student teams had the chance to pitch their idea to an expert jury.

The ideas aligned with the Schools for Science & Society themes and varied widely. From an initiative for sustainability in football to using artificial intelligence to develop multiple sclerosis medication. Notable, too, was the number of initiatives focused on (student) housing, a topic that clearly resonates with students.

The finalists participated in one of two categories: Ideation or Advanced. The former category focused on the idea, while the students in the latter category were already further advanced with their business plan. For both the Ideation Award and the Advanced Award, a four-member jury was composed of UG Impact Challenge partners, including Energy Transition Campus Amsterdam, ASML, Nobian, Johnson & Johnson Vision and Veiligheidsregio Groningen. After their pitch, some teams were briefly questioned by the jury.

Winners

In the end, Autimelody emerged as the winner of the Advanced Award. The team is developing an idea that uses music to improve communication with people with intellectual disabilities. Alice Haywood, bachelor student Global Responsibility & Leadership and creator of Autimelody, came up with the idea when her mother played melodies on the piano to communicate with her sister.

Haywood was delighted about winning the UG Impact Challenge. ‘All sorts of things are going through my mind, but above all I am very proud.’ In the near future, she and her team will work on a pilot of Autimelody, to which the Award can make an important contribution. ‘We want to research further how we can apply the idea.’ Haywood says she learned a lot during the Challenge. ‘The nice thing about the Challenge is that you do it together with other teams, as entrepreneurship can be quite scary.’

The Ideation Award was awarded to Neighborly, a platform that connects people with neighbours in need of help. The public chose Premealing as the Audience Award winner. This initiative helps students make affordable and nutritious meals. The partner network also honoured the finalists with several awards. The Innokite Flight Pass went to Fairsight AI and Autimelody, the ETCA Award went to SolarSDGS and the ASML Young Makers Award was won by Proconceptious.

For many participants of the UG Impact Challenge, the event is just the beginning. Innokite, the incubator and accelerator of the University of Groningen, provides the community, network and structural support to turn ideas into real impact.