Tag: Smart Communities

  • RIVCircular

    RIVCircular

    May 1, 2025 @ 8:00 am – May 1, 2027 @ 5:00 pm CEST

    (PROJECT)

    RIVCircular. “RIVCircular.” Accessed 14.08.2025. https://www.rivcircular.eu.

    RIVCircular is part of the European Innovation Valleys (RIV) initiative under the Horizon Europe Program (Pillar III – European Innovation Ecosystems) and is coordinated by the Community of Madrid.

    The project adopts a holistic approach to the circular economy, promoting interregional cooperation and knowledge exchange to drive sustainable innovation.

    Aligned with the New European Innovation Agenda’s flagship goal of accelerating and strengthening innovation across EU ecosystems while bridging the innovation divide, RIVCircular fosters collaboration among six European regions: southern (Madrid), central (Hauts-de-France), northern (Innlandet and Brandenburg), and eastern (Košice and Kyiv).

    This project is co-funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however this of the author(s) only and do no necessarily reflect those of the European Union or European Innovation Council and SMEs Executive Agency (EISMEA). Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them. Project Nº 101161013.

    Community of Madrid

    View Organizer Website

    Visit the project website
  • Establishment of a Virtual Innovation Ecosystem

    Establishment of a Virtual Innovation Ecosystem

    January 20, 2023 @ 8:00 am – December 1, 2023 @ 5:00 pm CET

    (PROJECT)

    The virtual regional innovation ecosystem project was a business network development initiative in 2023, which was managed by VentureNet AS in collaboration with leading innovation ecosystems in the Inland region of Norway (Klosser Innovation AS, Vaager Innovasjon AS, and Skåppå AS) and the University of Inland Norway. The project received co-financing from Innlandet County.

    The project built on results of a previous FORREGION project on regional innovation ecosystems and laid groundwork that contributed to establishment of several projects to develop national and Nordic Innovation Ecosystems with a connections to the Inland Region of Norway and Greater Oslo Region.

    Project results

    This project created a large national and international partner consortium of innovation actors, business actors, research institutions and universities, which led to the establishment of several project consortia since the start of the project, and which submitted 9 applications for collaborative projects to the Research Council, EU ERDF (Interreg), and EU Horizon in 2023 alone.

    In addition, work is underway to establish 6 large coordination and innovation/development projects in consortia consisting of, among others, Klosser Innovasjon, Vaager Innovasjon, Skåppå, Smart Innovation Norway, the Norwegian Agency for Digitalisation (Digdir), NCE Heidner, NCE Manufacturing, NCE Smart Energy Markets, Cluster for Applied AI, Norway Health Tech, Rikshospitalet, University of Oxford, University of Oslo, NTNU NORCICS, SINTEF, Institute of Energy Technology (IFE), Norwegian Computing Centre, Inland University College, Østfold University College, several municipalities, private business actors, and foreign innovation actors.

    Results are described further below related to the effects and continuation of the project.

    1. Replicable ecosystem collaboration model to build stronger regional ecosystems.

    • Workshops being planned in 2024 and 2025 with key stakeholders in Innlandet, Oslo, Østfold, Sweden, Spain and Germany to identify/plan key networking events and conferences with stakeholders and sponsors.
    • Networking events and conferences from June 2024 to interconnect ecosystems, match businesses and investors.

    2. Virtual innovation ecosystem with hubs & nodes for regions and strategic industries.

    • Digital Infrastructure: open to integration with external systems and fully customizable.
    • Network: 250+ local key stakeholders identified by Siva-incubators; 30+ European regions in partner network.
    • Hubs: 10 regional hubs (incl. tourism, career hubs), 6 initial industry hubs, 14 hubs for Innlandsporteføljen.

    3. Plan for Events, Conference and Projects to interconnect local/regional ecosystems.

    • Conferences: major European “Smart Impact” conference opportunity in 2025-2026.
    • 4 “Ecosystem” plans (RIV, Interreg, EIE, Hub-Node)to finance workshops, networking events and conferences.
    • 12 R&D plans (IPN, Pilot Helse, RFF, EUH, SFI) with leading R&D institutions in AI and cybersecurity.

    Would you like to strengthen the innovation ecosystem in your region?

    Contact VentureNet for more information about the project’s results and collaboration opportunities.

    VentureNet

  • Norwegian Digital Innovation Ecosystem Launch: Development of Critical Digital Infrastructure in Norway

    Norwegian Digital Innovation Ecosystem Launch: Development of Critical Digital Infrastructure in Norway

    June 6, 2024 @ 9:30 am – 5:30 pm CEST

    (EVENT)

    The launch event for the Nordic Digital Innovation Ecosystem brought together stakeholders from leading research, innovation, public and private sectors to discuss development of next-generation digital infrastructure in Norway.

    To ensure a well-functioning and competitive digital future for Norway and the Nordic region, it is crucial that business and the public sector actively contribute to the development of our digital infrastructure. Join an important initiative by taking part in the work to:
    • Create value through data sharing and digital trust.
    • Build a robust and secure digital infrastructure.
    • Develop new and innovative technologies.

    In connection with the rapid development of important national initiatives with tight deadlines, we have had the opportunity to discuss development plans with Ulrich Ahle, CEO of Gaia-X, a European initiative for secure digital infrastructure, who is visiting Hamar on June 6. Ahle will participate in the opening of a national center for data-driven innovation that includes a Nordic Gaia-X hub and Fiware iHub.

    Visit the digital platform and video clips on VentureNets Online Marketplace and on Youtube.

    VentureNet

    Hamar Kulturhus

    Torggata 100
    Hamar, Innlandet 2317 Norway     + Google Map
    View Venue Website
    Visit the NDIE platform
  • Nordic Digital Innovation Ecosystem

    Nordic Digital Innovation Ecosystem

    May 22, 2024 @ 8:00 am – December 1, 2026 @ 5:00 pm CEST

    (PROJECT)

    The Nordic Digital Innovation Ecosystem (NDIE) is an ongoing business network development initiative to support development of trustworthy systems and infra- structure in critical sectors by connecting public and private sectors and research institutions and supporting project establishment.

    The project was initiated in 2024 and managed by Klosser Innovasjon AS and VentureNet AS in collaboration with the Norwegian Computing Center (NR), the Norwegian Center for Cybersecurity in Critical Sectors (SFI NORCICS), the Institute for Energy Technology (IFE), and Smart Innovation Norway, with financial support from Innlandet County in Norway.

    Within 5 months of the project’s start, NDIE organised and executed 9 successful international events, including some of Norway’s first seminars and webinars on European Data Spaces and a trailblazing 2-day Nordic Matchmaking Event at DNV Headquarters and NR Headquarters in Oslo.

    Some of the speakers included representatives from the Norwegian Digitalisation Agency, Sykehuspartner, Det Norske Veritas, DNV-Nixu, FICEC, F-Secure, Defendable, Business Finland, the City of Wien in Austria, Gaia-X, and FIWARE.

    Visit the digital platform and video clips on VentureNets Online Marketplace and on Youtube.

    VentureNet

  • Norwegian-Finnish Workshop and Matchmaking Event: The Role of Cybersecurity in Digital Resilience

    Norwegian-Finnish Workshop and Matchmaking Event: The Role of Cybersecurity in Digital Resilience

    November 18, 2024 @ 12:00 pm – November 19, 2024 @ 5:00 pm CET

    (EVENT)

    This event aimed to strengthen collaboration on cybersecurity and digital resilience initiatives between industry, research and public sectors in Norway and Finland.

    Organized in collaboration with the Norwegian Center for Cybersecurity in Critical Sectors (SFI NORCICS), the Norwegian Cybersecurity Cluster (NCC), the Finnish Center of Expertise for Cybersecurity (FICEC), North European Cybersecurity Cluster (NECC), University of Jyväskyla, DNV Norway and Finland, NR, NTNU, the Norwegian Ecosystem for Secure IT-OT Integration (NESIOT), and the Nordic Digital Innovation Ecosystem (NDIE).

    One of the outcomes of this 2-day event was the establishment of the Nordic European Cyber Days 2025 conference in collaboration with the European Cyber Security Organisation (ECSO), the North European Cybersecurity Cluster (NECC) and all 8 Nordic and Baltic National Coordination Centers for Cybersecurity Research and Innovation (NCCs).

    Download the brochure to see the list of speakers and partners.

    NDIE_The Role of Cybersecurity in Digital Resilience_4Download

    VentureNet

    Hamar Kulturhus

    Torggata 100
    Hamar, Innlandet 2317 Norway     + Google Map
    View Venue Website
  • Digitalization, innovation and network effects in rural and mountainous regions: a study of the status quo and opportunities for the IMS

    Digitalization, innovation and network effects in rural and mountainous regions: a study of the status quo and opportunities for the IMS

    June 1, 2021 @ 8:00 am – May 31, 2022 @ 5:00 pm CEST

    (PROJECT)

    The IMS project was completed in 2022 with support from the Eastern Norway Research Institute (a division of the University of Inland Norway) and SINTEF, one of Europe largest independent research institutions. The project was managed by an affiliate of VentureNet, which VentureNet acquired in 2023, and the project received co-financing from the Research Council of Norway and Innlandet County through the FORREGION program.

    Background: small-and-medium-enterprises (SMEs) need help with data management.

    Problem: Limited availability and access to private sector (business) data.

    • High cost of generating business data and analysis for startups and SMEs.
    • High cost of harmonizing business data using Big Data and artificial intelligence (AI).

    Opportunities: make business analysis more cost-effective for SMEs using Big Data.

    • “Core” business data points are reused in sales, fundraising and other processes.
    • Gather existing “core” business data using Big Data to save time and cost for SMEs and advisors.
    • Exchange “core” business data across digital platforms to save cost and generate revenue for SMEs, advisors, customers, investors, making SME data more valuable and cost-effective to analyze.

    Challenges required advanced knowledge of regional dynamics and data science.

    • Lack of digital platforms designed to make use of business data exchange and virtual networking.
    • How to build a network of businesses and advisors that benefit from enriching and exchanging data.
    • Technical bottlenecks in Big Data related to data harmonization, enrichment and exchange.

    Project objective

    Inform design of a main research project to develop new machine-learning and data exchange models for Big Data and digital B2B platforms that accelerate digitalization, innovation and network effects for SMEs in rural areas.

    Hypotheses for lower growth rates in rural and mountainous regions:

    • The Lemon Problem: lower trust in SMEs due to a lack of verified data (“Information Asymmetry).
    • Lower access to capital and specialist expertise in non-metropolitan areas (“Agglomeration Effects”).
    • Lower growth ambition? The Inland region of Norway has a high proportion of micro-enterprises.
    • Is this due to a perception of lower access to private capital?
    • Possible lower access to specialist/M&A expertise?
    • Other factors, such as cultural factors, systemic inequalities or biases, or lower competitiveness?

    Project Results

    Key results from the University of Inland Norway

    • Statistical analysis of ICT companies in the Inland region using publicly available data from Proff.
    • Use of Centralization Index as a basis for future ethnogeography studies and statistical analysis.
    • Mapping of advisory services and financial services available for companies in Innlandet.
    • Questionnaire templates to evaluate knowledge and utilization of digital tools and advisory services.
    • Other relevant suggestions from HINN colleagues for use in future research projects:
      • Social network analysis and gender study methods to analyze cultural and systemic factors linked to growth.
      • Analysis of industry clusters and network effects to identify best practice and factors linked to value creation.

    Key results from SINTEF

    • Clarified that the IMS has an innovative approach to data enrichment, which can be used to develop advanced machine-learning models with Humans-In-The-Loop, a current challenge for data scientists.
    • Identified opportunities to reduce time and cost of data entry by using machine-learning techniques for data harmonization and enrichment.
    • Identified areas for further development: Data Fusion, Dynamic Data Enrichment, Data Exchange.
    • Delivered a toolbox and recommendations for potential suppliers and partners to enhance the IMS:
      • Several leading data sets providing broad access to available business data in Norway and Europe.
      • Leading ontologies and vocabularies for harmonizing and enriching data with machine-learning.
      • Advanced methods and software for data mining, harmonization, and enrichment.

    Project Outcomes

    Clear path for development of advanced Big Data solutions (software, methods and data).

    • Data Harmonization/Fusion: integrate multiple data sources to dynamically produce structured data.
    • Data Enrichment: develop HITL machine-learning models to dynamically enrich missing/incomplete data.
    • Data Exchange: re-use “core” business data securely and cost-effectively across platforms and users.

    Scalable frameworks and templates for further research and studies into regional dynamics.

    Plan and partnerships to build a user ecosystem and test platform for data exchange.

    Clear project opportunities and expressions of interest from leading research institutions.

    • SINTEF invitation to join the EU Horizon “EnrichMyData” industrial research project with OECD.
    • Dialog with SINTEF and NTNU-NorCIS to establish NRC Collaboration Project in cybersecurity.
    • Private sector consortium of digital platforms in NRC Innovation Project (IPN) for data exchange.
    • Assisting INN to establish “Inn-the-Loop” NRC Social Impact Project (KSP) in artificial intelligence.
    • Dialog with INN and IESE Business School to apply for EU Horizon Expanding Investments Ecosystems.

    Want to learn more?

    Contact VentureNet for more information about the project results and collaboration opportunities.

    VentureNet

  • INN-the-Loop: Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence

    INN-the-Loop: Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence

    January 12, 2024 @ 8:00 am – March 30, 2025 @ 5:00 pm CET

    (PROJECT)

    INN-the-Loop was a research project in 2024 managed by the University of Inland Norway (INN) with contributions from the Norwegian Computing Center (NR), SINTEF, NTNU SFI NORCICS (Norwegian Center for Cybersecurity in Critical Sectors), and VentureNet AS. The project was co-financed by the Research Council of Norway and Innlandet County through the Regional Research Fund (RFF) program.

    The INN-the-Loop project analysed limitations and risks related to ML, GenAI and Agentic AI. It identified significant risks and barriers to widespread adoption of AI in healthcare and other critical sectors that demand high standards of accuracy, safety, security, and privacy.

    The project builds on results from a research project in 2023 with several leading Norwegian research institutions and VentureNet AS, a Norwegian technology company specialising in data exchange automation. A key result from the 2023 project was a framework for Human-Guided Artificial Intelligence and Data Exchange (Human-GAIDE).

    Human-GAIDE was developed to address widespread challenges with data accuracy in AI models. AI and machine learning (ML) models are vulnerable to missing data, erroneous data, manipulation of data and systems, and AI bias, all of which can impact the accuracy of an AI-model. Error and cyber vulnerabilities can compromise the safety of AI-enabled systems and lead to undesirable outcomes, such as proliferation of manipulated and distorted information or medical device failure.

    The project developed a highly scalable methodology to design trustworthy AI-systems with dynamic HITL models for smart healthcare. This is applicable to several critical sectors with high requirements for safety, security and resilience.

    Go to Project Webpage
  • INN-the-Loop: Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence

    INN-the-Loop: Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence

    “INN-the-Loop” was a research project on artificial intelligence (AI) for critical sectors in 2024 that analysed limitations and risks related to ML, GenAI and Agentic AI. It identified significant risks and barriers, as well as solutions for adoption of AI in healthcare and other critical sectors that demand high standards of accuracy, safety, security, and privacy.

    The project was managed by the University of Inland Norway (INN) with contributions from the Norwegian Computing Center (NR), SINTEF, NTNU SFI NORCICS (Norwegian Center for Cybersecurity in Critical Sectors), and VentureNet AS. The project received co-financing by the Regional Research Fund (RFF) Innlandet supported by Innlandet County and the Research Council of Norway.

    Abstract

    Building on rapid development and investment in Artificial Intelligence (AI), the year 2025 heralded in “Agentic AI” as the new frontier for Generative AI (GenAI). The implication is that virtual assistants will be able to autonomously solve problems, set goals, and increase productivity by automating workflows, generating documents, and enhancing the productivity of humans who use AI-supported systems.

    However, for Agentic AI to be suitable for use in critical sectors, a solution is needed to address inherent limitations of AI related to accuracy, safety, security, adaptivity, trustworthiness, and sustainability. This article summarizes results from a research project in 2024 with leading Norwegian research institutions titled the “INN-the-Loop”. The aim of the project was to pre-qualify a framework to design, develop and test human-centric AI-systems for critical sectors, with a focus on smart healthcare as a use case. The project’s findings on AI risks shed light on the importance of digital regulation to ensure safety and security, while also presenting possible solutions for compliance automation to cost-effectively cope with changing regulatory, technical and risk landscapes.

    This article describes a framework, methodology and system/toolkit to develop trustworthy and sustainable AI-systems with Humans-In-The-Loop (HITL). The framework aims to address limitations and risks of current AI approaches by combining human-centred design with “Data Space” technologies, including privacy-enhancing technologies (PETs) for decentralised identity and data access management.

    The project’s results are aligned with European initiatives to develop federated, sustainable and sovereign digital infrastructure for high performance (HPC) and edge computing. The results can inform design and planning of next-generation digital infrastructure, including local digital twins (LDT) and interconnected digital marketplaces, which can strengthen supply chain resilience in critical sectors.

    Download the full research report.

    INN-the-Loop Article v3.2Download
  • NCC-NO: “ECSO-VentureNet” A cross-sector platform to strengthen cybersecurity and resilience in critical sectors.

    NCC-NO: “ECSO-VentureNet” A cross-sector platform to strengthen cybersecurity and resilience in critical sectors.

    April 1 @ 8:00 am – September 30 @ 5:00 pm CEST

    (PROJECT)

    In recent years, cybersecurity has gained increased attention as a critical development area for society and industry to mitigate risk and enable data-driven value creation. The rapid global expansion of cybercrime has raised awareness of daunting challenges in cybersecurity for the public sector and businesses alike. Geopolitics and the Covid-19 pandemic have raised awareness of risks to security, safety and supply chain disruption, and a need for solutions to ensure resilience of digital systems and supply chains for critical sectors.

    In Europe, cybersecurity solutions and expertise have a wider role beyond mitigating and preventing risk and cybercrime. Privacy-enhancing technologies are enablers for data sharing and artificial intelligence (AI) in compliance with EU regulations. As such, cybersecurity can play a key role enabling businesses and communities to unlock data silos and generate value from data sharing and AI, increasing productivity with less resource consumption.

    The ECSO-VentureNet project aims to bring together cyber solution providers, experts and stakeholders from public and private sectors to collaborate on project establishment and research addressing key challenges and opportunities in cybersecurity, supply chain resilience and data-driven innovation.

    The project will plan a 3-day European cybersecurity conference in Oslo in collaboration with the European Cyber Security Organization (ECSO), North European Cybersecurity Cluster (NECC), Norsk Regnesentral (NR), and SFI NORCICS (among others). Preparation for the event will entail applied research and active engagement of SMEs, investors, industry clusters, and public sector partners through existing partner networks.

    The events and research are intended to develop a community, collaboration platform and framework for managing cybersecurity, supply chain resilience and data-driven innovation, including access to digital tools to find knowledge, partners and markets in Norway and Europe.

    VentureNet

    Visit the project webpage
  • BITS, BYTES OG BEREDSKAP: DIGITALT FORSVAR FRA KOMMUNALT TIL NORDISK NIVÅ

    BITS, BYTES OG BEREDSKAP: DIGITALT FORSVAR FRA KOMMUNALT TIL NORDISK NIVÅ

    August 14 @ 12:00 pm

    (EVENT)

    Telia. “BITS, BYTES OG BEREDSKAP: DIGITALT FORSVAR FRA KOMMUNALT TIL NORDISK NIVÅ”. Accessed 12.08.2025. https://www.arendalsuka.no/programsoek/details/23690

    Om arrangementet

    Norge står i en alvorlig sikkerhetspolitisk situasjon der digital infrastruktur på alle nivåer er særlig utsatt. Som et av verdens mest digitaliserte land er vi ekstra sårbare for sammensatte trusler. PSTs trusselvurderinger indikerer økt risiko for hybride angrep som kan lamme alt fra lokale helsetjenester til nasjonal forsyningssikkerhet. 

    Det digitale sikkerhetsarbeidet må styrkes på tvers av geografiske nivåer. I kommunene hviler samfunnskritiske tjenester på stabil kommunikasjon, samtidig som nordisk samarbeid blir stadig viktigere for å sikre robust infrastruktur i en urolig verden. 

    Langtidsplanen for forsvarssektoren understreker at i møte med sammensatte trusler er det nødvendig med sterkere sivil-militært samarbeid. Viktige beslutninger om utvikling og sikkerhet i det digitale rom blir i stor grad tatt av kommersielle og ikke-statlige aktører. Dette krever et tettere samarbeid mellom offentlige myndigheter på alle forvaltningsnivåer – fra kommuner og fylker til nasjonale og nordiske organer – og private aktører for å sikre digital robusthet i hele Norden. 

    Hvordan kan vi sammen skape et sterkere digitalt forsvar som fungerer både lokalt på tvers av landegrenser? 

    På dette arrangementet vil vi få et eksempel på en kommunes digitale beredskap, Posten deler erfaringer med konkrete sikkerhetstrusler, og vi har med oss en historie fra Ukraina og hvordan de sikrer kommunikasjonsløsninger på tross av strømbrudd og brutte linjer.

    Medvirkende

    • Erik Wehler – Sikkerhetsdirektør, Telia
    • Volodymyr Kabanenko – Tidligere teknisk visedirektør i den ukrainske mobiloperatøren Kyivstar
    • Tore Orderløkken – Sikkerhetsdirektør, Posten Bring
    • Karianne Oldernes Tung – Digitaliserings- og forvaltningsminister
    • Stian Jenssen – Direktør for myndighetskontakt og internasjonale forhold, Aker ASA
    Go to Event Page

    Telia

    Hamar Kulturhus

    Torggata 100
    Hamar, Innlandet 2317 Norway     + Google Map
    View Venue Website
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