On 26, 27 and 28 October 2026, Instituto Pedro Nunes (IPN) hosted the bootcamp of the Coimbra Innovation Programme under the European CHAngeing – Excellence Hubs project. Over three days, researchers developing solutions in the field of active and healthy ageing took part in training and mentoring sessions aimed at translating their research results into innovation and exploring their market potential.
Led by IPN and focused on research and innovation strategy, the programme included a preliminary phase to identify innovation opportunities and map technologies, carried out in partnership with the University of Coimbra and CoLAB4Ageing. This assessment provided insights into the teams’ solutions and needs, enabling the development of tailored entrepreneurship training.
The bootcamp built on this work, combining practical sessions with mentoring from experts at IPN, CoLAB4Ageing and companies within the ecosystem.
The programme began with three sessions covering the fundamentals of innovation and entrepreneurship: “Value Proposition Canvas and Lean Canvas”, delivered by Clara Luxo Correia, Innovation Manager at IPN; “How to Protect Your IP”, led by José Ricardo Aguilar, Head of Legal & IP at IPN; and “Funding: Challenges and Opportunities”, presented by Ana Jegundo, Director of the Organisational Planning and Management Department at IPN. These sessions addressed value proposition and business model development, intellectual property protection, and funding challenges and opportunities.
Ana Maria Alves, Innovation Manager and Researcher at IPN, led “Roadmap Challenges for a Healthcare Startup”, focusing on planning the development of healthcare startups. This was followed by “Go-to-Market Strategy”, delivered by Alexandre Almeida, Incubation Manager at IPN, which explored market entry strategies. Both sessions included teamwork activities, allowing participants to apply the content directly to their projects.
The “Pitch” session, led by Jorge Pimenta, Innovation Director at IPN, concluded the three days of training. Through practical exercises, brainstorming and presentation preparation, participants refined how they communicated their ideas and presented the potential of their solutions.
The programme will culminate on 4 November 2026 with an online Demo Day, showcasing the solutions and work developed by the teams. Before a panel of experts, participants will present the potential of their proposals to address specific challenges in healthcare and ageing.
