To promote joint work between companies together with technological ventures -startups- in member countries of the Pacific Alliance (AP), its Technical Innovation Group launched the AP Open Innovation program, an initiative that seeks to accelerate the digitization of companies hand in hand with startups, developed by Wayra, the open innovation area and corporate fund of the Telefónica Movistar group, in collaboration with the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB).

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According to the creators of the project, within the framework of the health contingency caused by COVID-19, one of the relevant learnings has been that collaboration is essential to face this type of problem and also for the development of different sectors and industries.

The program is aimed at large and medium-sized companies from Colombia, Chile, Mexico and Peru, member countries of the Pacific Alliance, who can participate in it by entering www.innovacionabiertaap.com and completing the registration.

The initiative will be carried out for 5 weeks virtually and will have a methodology developed by Wayra, the open innovation and investment area of the Telefónica Movistar Group, which throughout its 10 years of history, has developed businesses with more than 250 startups at a regional and global level, and has supported a score of companies in their open innovation processes.

^{Image: Courtesy of Open Innovation.}

The program has the participation of experts in the area and will be in a learning-by-practice format, divided into 4 stages:

1. Workshops that will address the main topics of open innovation, such as “Creation of the Open Innovation Thesis, Development of Challenges, Match with Startups and Pilot Design”;
2. A diagnostic tool in open innovation;
3. A reverse pitch of companies for startups and
4. A great business roundtable between companies and startups from the 4 countries that are part of the Alliance.

Participation in the program is completely free and the registration period is until October 8.

Open innovation: a rising trend

In Latin America and also in the world, collaboration between startups and consolidated companies is increasing. On the one hand, it allows startups to scale to new markets and get more clients, while it provides companies with valuable technological solutions to develop new businesses, internal efficiencies and innovate in a much more accelerated way.

According to the Corporate Venturing Latam report developed by IESE Business School and Wayra, only 16% of large Latin American companies collaborate with startups and this program seeks to increase that number.