The Basque Culinary Center (BCC) accelerates its digital transformation. The first Faculty of Culinary Sciences in Spain, and a worldwide academic benchmark in this field, has joined forces with Gipuzkoa Open Future_ – a Telefónica initiative, its technological partner, and the Gipuzkoa Provincial Council – to launch a technological challenge to help it improve its inventory management and foster excellence in educational experience, both for its students and the professionals who are part of the institution.

The challenge set by the Basque Culinary Center through Gipuzkoa Open Future_ (a programme created to galvanise talent and entrepreneurship in future strategic sectors in Gipuzkoa) seeks, among other goals, to discover an innovative system so that non-food materials are inventoried and their whereabouts located, preferably in real time. With this solution, it hopes to anticipate demand by improving the quality, monitoring and restocking of the materials, where appropriate.

Local, national and international entrepreneurs, startups, SMEs, universities and technology centres wishing to take part in the challenge should submit their entries between today and 18 December through the Telefónica Open Future_ platform at the address http://gipuzkoa.openfuture.org/.

Among other benefits, the winner of the challenge will have the opportunity to conduct a real pilot of the winning solution with the Basque Culinary Center, funded by the BCC, and a prize of 15,000 euros awarded by the Gipuzkoa Provincial Council. In addition, provided they meet the conditions, they will be eligible for the financial aid regulated by the provincial institution to drive the creation of innovative enterprises, as well as innovation, investment and internationalisation of projects.

Among the phases of the challenge, the people behind the chosen projects will take part in an immersion session lasting three days around Gipuzkoa (Gipuzkoa Immersion Trip) subsidised by the Gipuzkoa Provincial Council, in which the participants and the Basque Culinary Center will be able to pool knowledge and boost co-creation and networking. Following the Gipuzkoa Immersion Trip, the selected projects will have an additional period in order to develop their solutions and submit them once again. These solutions will be defended during Demoday, where each team will provide a virtual pitch for their solution.