Luiss and LVenture Group join forces for the future of education

LUISS AND LVENTURE GROUP JOIN FORCES FOR THE FUTURE OF EDUCATION

“Shaping the Future of Higher Education” is now open: a call for startups and teams with Education Technology projects to innovate educational models and learning processes and foster the development of future-proof skills.

Rome, October 2 – Today marks the launch of “Shaping the Future of Higher Education,” a call for startups and teams with projects in the field of Education Technology (EdTech). The initiative is spearheaded by Luiss University, a leading institution at the forefront of innovative educational models, and LVenture Group, a publicly traded venture capital holding company and one of Europe’s top startup accelerators.

The call, open until January 15, is aimed at early-stage startups with a product developed and validated through initial market interactions, as well as teams of at least two people with an innovative project in the field of Education Technology (EdTech).

The selected startups will have the opportunity to advance to the final selection for the 2021 summer edition of LUISS EnLabs – LVenture Group’s Acceleration Program, a joint venture with Luiss University. Upon joining the Program, they will receive services valued at 60,000 euros and financing of up to 100,000 euros, convertible into equity. Startups will also be able to validate their MVP with Luiss students and faculty, and gain access to the corporate and investor network of Luiss and LVenture Group.

The selected teams will be able to receive an equity-free grant worth 5,000 euros, test their project with Luiss students and faculty, and gain visibility on the University’s communication channels for their contribution to developing the Luiss educational model. They will also be able to refine their projects through an evaluation and feedback session with the selection team, as well as access entrepreneurship support training provided by Luiss and the Luiss Business School.  

The call aims to foster the creation of technological solutions and platforms that enable new processes, pathways, or educational models, with a particular focus on innovative learning methodologies: data-driven tools and immersive experiences to facilitate student interaction and engagement, both in the classroom and online.

As the World Economic Forum recently pointed out, the change sweeping through the world of work will result in 42% of current skills being replaced by 2022, affecting more than a billion people by 2030. At the same time, it is estimated that 133 million new jobs will emerge in just two years, a figure that will rise to over one billion within 10 years. This is a true “reskilling emergency” that can only be addressed with a new form of “higher education”—an excellent educational offering that combines new technologies with the digital transformation of society.

“Luiss is internationally recognized as a center of excellence in Open Innovation. And our position has been further strengthened with Professor Henry Chesbrough, the father of this new paradigm. We are now laying the groundwork to build an innovation ecosystem that brings together research institutes, companies, startups, public authorities, incubators, and accelerators. This call we are launching with LVenture on Education Technology reinforces our role as a university that recognizes the importance of fostering collaboration among key players in the world of innovation,”said Andrea Prencipe, Rector of Luiss Guido Carli University.

“This Open Innovation program, which we are launching today in partnership with Luiss, fully aligns with LVenture Group's mission: to empower top digital talent not only with financial resources but also with the know-how needed to become the game changers of the future. New technologies are playing an increasingly central role in education and learning, as the world rapidly moves towards digital transformation. We are convinced that our synergies with Luiss University in higher education, including our partnership with 42 Roma Luiss, the international coding school located in our Hub, will nurture talent and launch new startups and entrepreneurial projects poised for great success,” said Luigi Capello, CEO of LVenture Group.