The 10 finalists in this year’s European Prize for Women Innovators were announced this week by the European Innovation Council (EIC).
The annual prize, now a joint venture between EIC and the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT), has three categories: Rising Innovator, Women Innovators, and the EIT Women Leadership category.
“From creating entirely new alternatives to our current food system to medical technology that improves cancer treatment, these women produced game-changing innovation. I hope that this will inspire more women in Europe and beyond to pursue a career in innovation and lead the way,” said Iliana Ivanova, European Commissioner for Innovation, Research, Culture, Education and Youth.
In the Women Innovators category the winner will receive €100k, with two runners-up walking away with €70k and €50k. While the winner of the Rising Innovator category, which is for innovators under 35, gets €50k, and the two runners-up €30k and €20k respectively. With the winner of the EIT Women Leadership for ‘exceptional members of the EIT Community’ set to win €50k, and the two runners-up receiving €30k and €20k.
The winners will be announced next month in Brussels at the opening of R&I Week.
__
The finalists, as presented on the EIC website:
Rising Innovators category:
- Sara Correyero Plaza (Spain), CEO and Co-Founder of IENAI SPACE, which develops and manufactures electric propulsion modules for nanosatellites together with mission optimisation
- María González Manso (Spain), CEO and Co-Founder of tucuvi, which automates follow-up phone consultations with empathetic artificial intelligence
- Bàrbara Oliveira (Ireland), CTO and Co-Founder of Luminate Medical, whose technology helps prevent the side effects of cancer treatment
- Eva Sadoun (France), CEO and Co-Founder of Lita.co, which makes it easier to invest in social enterprises
In the Women Innovators category:
- Elena García Armada (Spain), CEO and Co-Founder of Marsi Bionics, which develops paediatric exoskeletons and robotic knees
- Rana Sanyal (Türkiye), CSO and Co-Founder of RS Research, which develops smart nanomedicines for targeted chemotherapy
- Natalia Tomiyama (Germany), Managing Director and Co-Founder of NÜWIEL, which develops e-trailers that can match the movement of the pedestrian or biker pulling it
In the EIT Women Leadership category:
- Julia Bialetska (Estonia), CEO and Co-Founder of S.lab, which develops alternatives to plastic foam packaging
- Deniz Ficicioglu (Germany), Managing Director and Co-Founder of BettaF!sh GmbH, which develops seaweed-based alternatives to fish
- Cristina Purtill (Ireland), CEO of Plio Surgical, which developed a magnetic solution to intestinal post-surgery recovery
__
Sign up for our newsletter and get the latest innovation news and more sent to your inbox.
