A review of the London Bootcamp: Delivering on the SynchroniCity marketplace

This initial market, under the framework of SynchroniCity, aims to be an agile solution to starting and booming digital markets in cities and regions. In order to do this, the marketplace must be tested, sustainable, compliant to new regulations, and protective of personal data. This was where the London bootcamp came in.

The bootcamp helped to share the vision of SynchroniCity and its marketplace.

“What is so fascinating about this setup is that it allows us to pilot our program with early adopters and cities who believe in providing good quality of life for their citizens.” said Vinay Venkatraman, CEO of Leapcraft.

Following a packed agenda, the bootcamp was a great opportunity to shape and improve the strategic and operational details of the close to 50 services being rolled out across more than 18 cities. City and business partners had the opportunity to sit down with experts from other SynchroniCity partners to share and learn through dedicated booths, workshops and presentations. The booths covered issues such as compliance to data protection regulation, technical validation, use of stakeholder validation tools, and the overall technical framework of SynchroniCity. Other booths also looked at helping the pilots understand and work through the reporting requirements of the project, assisting with their communication strategy, and looking at the sustainability of their business models.

Presentations and Workshops helped the partners to better understand and prepare for the challenges ahead. For example, Sofia Peres and Daniela Monteiro from Porto Digital, looked at citizen engagement tools and methods by presenting the results of their own experiences in service provision and support. Koen Vervoort from IMEC, delivered and facilitated an engaging workshop looking at how to involve different groups of stakeholders in the making and delivery of each service.

From the results of the next six months, SynchroniCity will shape its position to provide an agile, sustainable approach to IoT markets. The more than 50 services that will be put in place will test the strength of the SynchroniCity technical framework and give the real market testing necessary for sustainable and transferable solutions for IoT services in cities and communities.