Eurosonic/Noorderslag, Europe’s biggest music showcase and industry festival will kick into full gear this week. Aside from hundreds of bands to choose from, there are a couple of cool prototypes being tested too, like smart trash cans and edible cups. And this week is also Chordify’s birthday, which they will be celebrating in style.
This is the fourth year Innofest has hosted pilots during the festival, helping entrepreneurs to test their ideas and prototypes at 11 different festivals throughout the country. The initiative gives startups, students and companies ample opportunity to extensively test their ideas, which is very necessary, because lack of testing is the main reason why 75% of all innovations fail. A couple of really cool innovations from the previous years include cardboard festival tents, toilets using space tech to filter urine into mint tea and beer made from rainwater.
Smart trash cans and a hacking escape room
E-waste Arcades will be testing their new and improved version of the ‘trash hole’ and combine the power of gamification and comedy to make waste sorting fun, with sassy voice commentary whenever you drop something in there. The new prototype will also collect data about how much trash is collected and where.
Digital crime like phishing, pharming and identity theft is on the rise and costs and damages are soaring for both companies and consumers. Cyber security company Qbit wants to show just how easy it is to hack private information and developed a pop-up escape room where visitors can try their own hand at hacking.
Vegan kebab and Dutch soy milk
Shift Diets, a projects of the Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences wants to figure out the best ways to help convince consumers to switch to more sustainable diets. During Eurosonic, they’ll be testing three different ways to market vegan kebab. The very first Dutch produced soy milk will also make its debut during the festival, made from soy farmed in the Netherlands.
Coffee from cookie cups
Coffee ordered on the go creates needless waste in the form of discarded paper or plastic cups. Cupbite wants to change that, by testing a very special alternative: an edible cookie cup. They won’t be focusing on taste alone for this test, but also in terms of usability for baristas during rush hour.
Celebrate Chordify’s birthday
Seven years ago, Chordify was officially launched during Eurosonic. To celebrate their seventh birthday, they’ll be hosting free live music sessions at the Vismarkt on Thursday, Friday and Saturday. Be sure to drop by and check out a couple of promising and up and coming international acts in a very intimate setting in a glass container.