PRESS RELEASE

Calling IoT Startups: Internet of Things World Forum Steering Committee Brings Back the Innovation Grand Challenge

City of Dubai to Host Third Annual IoTWF to Drive Discussions on the Global Impact of IoT; Innovation Grand Challenge to Give Startups an Opportunity to Showcase How IoT Solutions Drive New Business Outcomes

SAN JOSE, Calif. – May 12, 2015 – During an event on May 12 at Cisco Headquarters in San Jose, California, the Internet of Things World Forum (IoTWF) Steering Committee announced the second Innovation Grand Challenge and finalized the objectives and success criteria for this year's upcoming plenary event in December. Following last year's successful IoTWF in Chicago, Illinois, Cisco is proud to host this year's event in a burgeoning Middle East market ripe for innovation — Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

Taking place December 6-8 at the Dubai World Trade Centre, the IoTWF will bring together global thought leaders, vertical industry and academic professionals, government officials and technology innovators to discuss the growth and advantages of IoT in the region as it develops into a Smart City, as well as the greater global impact of IoT.

Aiming for Dubai to become one of the world's best-connected and smartest cities by 2017, city officials enacted the Dubai Smart City Initiative to help public and private businesses in the city add a predicted value of $4.87 billion through IoE technologies by 2019. In choosing the city to host this year's event, the IoTWF Steering Committee will showcase Dubai as a Smart City leader and allow attendees to see firsthand how IoT and IoE technology is poised to transform the region and impact industries on a global scale, including manufacturing, transportation, energy, healthcare, education and government.

Innovation Grand Challenge

To further demonstrate its ongoing commitment to drive IoT innovations, Cisco is kicking off the second Innovation Grand Challenge for startup businesses. This global competition aims to promote and accelerate the adoption of breakthrough technologies and products created by startups that will contribute to the growth and evolution of IoT in applications, analytics, management, security and connectivity.

Applications for this year's Innovation Grand Challenge can be submitted starting Monday, June 22 and will be accepted through Friday, September 4^th. Winners will be at the 2015 IoTWF. Judges will award $250,000 in prizes to help winners further develop their startups. In addition, Cisco will provide winners with executive and expert mentoring and training. They will also be provided with the opportunity to develop, test and pilot new technologies in Cisco's labs, plus potential investment and partnering opportunities in the future.

Last year, the 2014 IoT Innovation Grand Challenge brought in nearly 1,000 submissions from over 100 countries and awarded Berlin-based Relayr the grand prize.

2015 Internet of Things World Forum Sponsors

The third annual IoTWF is proud to partner with Intel, Rockwell Automation and TTTech as sponsors for this year's event. As key sponsors, Intel and Rockwell Automation will help host the three-day schedule of panels, workshops, presentations, and more. 

Internet of Things World Forum Steering Committee

The Internet of Things World Forum is guided by a Steering Committee representing thought leaders from businesses, universities, cities, and governments worldwide. The IoTWF Steering Committee aims to secure a provocative thought leadership agenda addressing top market opportunities and challenges impacting global, political, and environmental issues. The committee focuses on addressing topics that improve the lives of citizens in broad areas such as health, education, innovation, transportation, job creation and security.

Supporting Quotes

"Winning the Innovation Grand Challenge last year gave us credibility and market acceptance right out of the gates," said Jackson Bond, co-founder and head of product, relayr. "Since winning, we have landed new customers and partners who are now using our technology to rapidly innovate and launch their own IoT products, literally within months. Even after the competition, Cisco has been super supportive presenting us with many opportunities. This kind of outreach and support has been unprecedented in my experiences and shows that Cisco prioritizes its work with the start-up ecosystem as an efficient way to accelerate their own innovation by going beyond their corporate walls and taking risks on small agile companies, and giving them a forceful stamp of approval."

"In the past year, the industry has made significant progress in addressing key IoT technology challenges, use-cases and architectures," said Maciej Kranz, vice president, Cisco Corporate Technology Group. "Now more than ever we need to focus on accelerating innovations across the globe for a safer, sustainable, and more connected world. Which is why, we are very excited to bring back for the second time the Innovation Grand Challenge and would like to strongly encourage innovators, researchers and entrepreneurs to submit their ideas and solutions. "

About the Internet of Things World Forum

The Internet of Things World Forum is a global event created to unite industry leaders and drive discussions around the impact of the Internet of Things on the global economy, society, and the environment. Kicking off its inaugural event in Barcelona, Spain in October 2013, the IoTWF has grown in attendance and has generated lasting, impactful discussions resulting in thousands of attendees and spiking the interest of several key partners to participate in the 2014's IoTWF in Chicago, Illinois. At the end of 2015, the IoTWF will bring together the best and brightest minds and innovators from business, government, and academia in Dubai to lead discussions in setting a new global standard for an Internet of Things powered world.

Tags/keywords: Cisco, Internet of Things, IoT, IoE, Internet of Everything, Innovation, Dubai, Chicago, Internet of Things World Forum

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