The Malta Council for Science and Technology (MCST), the Malta Environment and Planning Authority (MEPA) and the Malta Information and Technology Agency (MITA) invite you to take the challenge to make Malta smarter!
Why this App Challenge?
On the one hand, public entities, such as MEPA, fulfil missions of public interest. They always have to do more with less. On the other hand, Big Data and open data are become increasingly prominent. A case in point is data provided through the European Copernicus programme which provides free and open data benefiting the environment and security, from satellites and in-situ sources. Europe also invests in satnav programmes: Galileo and EGNOS (the latter is already operational).
Through this App Challenge, MCST, MEPA and MITA would like to raise awareness about the potential of exploiting such open datasets and satnav for the benefit of the public sector, of the economy, and ultimately the citizens themselves. As elaborated in the ‘Starter Pack’ section, these datasets include data derived from Earth Observation (EO) satellites and geo-spatial datasets made available by MEPA and other Maltese public entities.
A challenge for innovative solutions relying on such datasets will benefit all involved:
- MEPA and other public entities will get fresh ideas and explore better tools for them to work with
- IT-savvy individuals and start-ups will show off their creativity and get support in developing ideas anchored in the realities of the users (oh, and there’s also Prize and the Grants!)
- Malta will develop capacities to turn Big Data, in particular Geospatial datasets, into successful products and services
2 Strands, 2 approaches,
Maltese innovation and satellite applications in common
Strand 1: The MEPA/MCST Environment Challenge will award a €15,000 Prize (of which €4,000 worth of high-resolution Airbus images) to a creative and relevant prototype of a solution to MEPA’s needs and challenges. The prototype should include at least one satellite-derived dataset in combination with data from other sources and satnav and/or LBS. It should focus on solving a specific MEPA need as identified with MEPA during the scoping exercise on 16 December (see more in the timeline section). Individuals or teams of up to 3 people are eligible.
Strand 2: The MITA/MCST StartAPP 2.0 Challenge will award two €22,000 Grants, of which €15,000 is a cash injection, for two proofs-of-concept outlining two innovative applications that have the potential to fulfill a market need in Malta or elsewhere, as identified by the competitors’ own market research. The proofs-of-concept should assume the use of at least one satellite-derived dataset in combination with data from other sources and satnav and/or LBS. Start-ups of minimum 3 and up to 9 people, in business for less than 5 years, are eligible. Startups that have not yet formalised into a business undertaking are expected to do so if selected for funding. More information about the MITA/MCST startAPP 2.0 Challenge available here.
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