Three DTU spin-outs are among the six finalists in the Danish Tech Challenge. In January, they will compete for the Danish Industry Foundation’s Entrepreneur Award and a DKK 500,000 prize.
Twenty started out. Then there were twelve. Now six are left. And three of them are from DTU: Bifrost Communications, Senserna, and Shape Robotics.
Over the past four months, the businesses have competed against one another as part of the Danish Industry Foundation and Scion DTU’s development contest—the Danish Tech Challenge (DTC)—for hardware enterprises. A development process where each start-up has had access to both QAs with consultants and mentors, as well as access to a prototype workshop and investors.
"Winning first prize means a great deal for the start-ups. Most entrepreneurs suffer from financial constraints, so DKK 500,000 is a welcome injection of capital."
Jakob Svagin, project manager at Scion DTU
On Thursday, 12 January, HRH Crown Prince Frederik will present the Danish Industry Foundation’s Entrepreneur Award of DKK 500,000 to the winner of the Danish Tech Challenge 2016.
“Winning first prize means a great deal for the start-ups. Most entrepreneurs suffer from financial constraints, so DKK 500,000 is a welcome injection of capital. However, we also get the sense that the value which the winners derive in the form of stronger networks, lots of sparring and advice and valuable media coverage is worth far more,” says Jakob Svagin, project manager at Scion DTU.
Finding the perfect application
Jakob Svagin believes that this year’s field of contestants has three things in common: They have strong technologies. They have a good dialogue with their customers, which demonstrates that the product can be marketed. And then they also have strong teams, which can drive the projects on towards their respective goals.
“DTU spin-outs are often in a situation where you have a unique technology which you then have to find the perfect use for. Sometimes it’s a quick process, but it can also involve having to make several different variants and run trials before arriving at the right version of the product and knowing which customer group to target with your particular solution,” says Jakob Svagin.
“The other DTU spin-outs which have been participating in DTC have not been as far advanced in their development. It takes time to build a hardware company, and even though everyone has worked hard, the top three finalists have progressed further by convincing their market and building up their team.”
Bifrost Communications
Good, stable, and fast internet is a high priority for most modern people. Bifrost is setting out to supply the next generation of ‘fibre-to-the-home’ solutions. The demand for bandwidth is increasing exponentially, but there are also costs in adding data with higher speeds. Bifrost is paving the way for more channels in fibre-to-the-home systems. The technology is based on many years of research at DTU Fotonik. The team behind Bifrost includes Jesper Bevensee Jensen, a former assistant professor at DTU Fotonik.
Senserna
How do you know what the temperature is when you are heating food and drinks in a microwave oven? You’ve got no idea, have you? And this can be a problem if, for example, you need to heat up a bottle of infant formula. Senserna offers a solution. Senserna is introducing the first temperature sensor in the world designed for use in microwave ovens. Senserna was founded by Kristian Lindberg-Poulsen, a PhD student at DTU Electrical Engineering, and Henrik Schneider, who holds a PhD from DTU Electrical Engineering.
Shape Robotics
The robots are coming, and you will building them. The need for the programmers is growing, and robotics will soon have a place on school timetables. Shape Robotics is therefore launching the product Fable, a modular robotic system that will make it simple, fun and educational for everyone to build their own robots. The team behind Shape Robotics includes Associate Professor David Johan Christensen and Moises Pacheco, PhD, from the Center for Playware at DTU Electrical Engineering.