FinEst Twins: Open Call for Innovative Pilots in Helsinki and Tallinn

Forum Virium Helsinki announces the opening of a call for the second round of innovative pilots aimed at tackling smart city related challenges. This time, a total of 70,000€ will be divided between the six focus areas: data, mobility, built environment, health and wellbeing, clean energy transition, and smart governance. The real-world challenges are provided by a diverse range of organisations, which will support the winners throughout the pilot program. The call is open until March 17, 2025 at 16:00 (EET). 

FinEst Twins is a project funded by the European Union’s research and innovation program, Horizon 2020. The project is expected to contribute to the development of smart, sustainable, and resilient cities by enhancing the cross-border collaboration between Finland and Estonia and establishing a world-class Smart City Centre of Excellence in Tallinn, Estonia. The project brings together leading research institutions, universities, and industry partners to foster collaboration, innovation, and knowledge exchange between the two cities.  

Open Call for Proposals 

The FinEst Twins project’s mini-pilot program offers a unique opportunity for organizations to develop and test innovative solutions to solve challenges provided by host organizations, which are fore-runners in their focus area. In addition, the Mini-pilot program will strengthen the cross-border collaboration between Finland and Estonia by sharing the gathered knowledge during the pilot program.  

The total budget of the call is up to 70,000€, each of the pilots will receive funding between 7,500€ to 15,000€, and the execution of the pilots will last for six months. The call for proposals is open to organizations of all sizes, including companies, SMEs, to be commercialized research projects, research institutions, non-profit organizations, and public sector entities. One proposal must address only one of the six challenges and demonstrate a clear potential for real-life piloting. Applying for more than one challenge is also allowed by submitting multiple applications. 

Submission Deadline 

The call will open on February 17, 2025 at 12:00 (EET) and the deadline for submitting proposals via online form is March 17, 2025 at 16:00 (EET). An online information session will take place on March 5, 2025 at 12:00-14:30 (EET). Join via registration link here. https://forumvirium.fi/en/call-open-for-smart-city-solutions-6-themes-in-finest-twins-mini-pilot-programme/ 

Selection Process 

Proposals will be evaluated by a panel of experts from the FinEst Twins project and the organisations which provided the challenges. The selection will be done by the end of March based on the selection criteria which will include the pilot’s potential impact, innovation, feasibility, scalability and alignment with the challenge’s goals. 

About Forum Virium Helsinki 

Forum Virium Helsinki is a city-owned innovation company that drives the development of Helsinki as a global example in sustainable urban development and agile piloting. The company supports the development of new services and solutions through pre-commercial procurement processes, which allow the public sector to test and validate innovative ideas before making large-scale investments. 

For more information and to apply, please visit the FinEst Twins mini-piloting open call website at Forum Virium Helsinki’s homepage:

CLICK HERE TO APPLY

Contact 

For any questions or inquiries, please contact the organiser of the call: satu.reijonen@forumvirium.fi

The short descriptions of the challenge

Focus area: Data  

Pilot hosts: Finnish AI Region EDIH (FAIR) and AI & Robotics Estonia EDIH (AIRE) 

Challenge: Secure and Open Cross-Border Data Sharing for Urban Resilience 

Short description: This challenge aims to foster collaboration between Finland and Estonia, leveraging shared data to create resilient and smart urban environments. By addressing the technical, regulatory, and practical aspects of cross-border data sharing, we can pave the way for innovative solutions that benefit both nations and contribute to the European AI market area. The maximum amount of grant in this challenge is 10,000€. 

Focus area: Mobility  

Pilot hosts: The City of Helsinki Urban Environment Division (KYMP), Stara Logistics Services and The Finnish Transport and Communications Agency Traficom Challenge: Gathering and managing transport service procurement data

Short description: The City has its own extensive car fleet, but they also procure numerous transport services in all of their divisions and establishments. Understanding the service procurement data and its emission data is a vital step for achieving a carbon neutral fleet in the future. The maximum amount of grant in this challenge is 10,000€. 

Focus area: Smart Governance 

Pilot host: The City of Helsinki Culture and Leisure Division (KUVA) and Helsinki Youth Unit Challenge: Enhancing the impact of public services through customer experience management: Exploring new ways to identify touchpoints in a large public organization by using available data. Short description: The impact of public services is being enhanced through customer experience management. The goal is to find new ways to identify touchpoints in a large public organization by utilizing available data in the process thus providing better services for the customers of Helsinki Youth Services. The maximum amount of grant in this challenge is 15,000€. 

Focus area: Built Environment  

Pilot host: KIRAHub 

Challenge: Reducing CO2 emissions with data in built environment. Short description: To achieve a CO2 neutral built environment, there’s a need for innovative solutions which highlight the impact of residents actions, and new approaches for utilizing data to control and optimize the performance of buildings as holistics systems. The maximum amount of grant in this challenge is 10,000€. 

Focus area: Clean Energy Transition  

Pilot hosts: Helsinki Partners and Business Finland 

Challenge: Building and improving the collaboration of stakeholders involved in large clean energy projects 

Short description: Improving the collaboration of stakeholders in the energy cluster, ensuring the implementation of large-scale clean energy projects, and increasing the social acceptance and information sharing about clean transition and clean investments requires developing a community engagement toolkit or playbook. The maximum amount of grant in this challenge is 10,000€. 

Focus area: Health & Wellbeing  

Pilot host: New Children’s Hospital and Helsinki University Hospital (HUS) 

Challenge: Testing innovative technologies at the New Children’s Hospital to enhance pediatric care 

Short description: New Children’s Hospital provides a real-world setting for testing novel technologies designed to improve pediatric care for patients from newborns to 15 years of age. The maximum amount of grant in this challenge is 15,000€ divided into 7,500€ and 7,500€. 

Summary of the pilot hosts, themes and challenges:  

Organisations supporting the FinEst Twins pilot program are Business Finland, Helsinki Partners, Helsinki University Hospital and The New Children’s Hospital Foundation, The City of Helsinki Culture and Leisure Division (KUVA) and Helsinki Youth Unit, KIRAHub, The City of Helsinki Urban Environment Division (KYMP) and Stara Logistics Services, The Finnish Transport and Communications Agency Traficom, Finnish AI Region EDIH (FAIR) and AI & Robotics Estonia EDIH (AIRE).  

The challenges will target themes in data, clean energy transition, built environment, health & wellbeing, smart governance and mobility. They will cover following topics: 

• Resilient data sharing in a cross-border manner driven by the uncertain geopolitical environment  

• Strengthening the stakeholder collaboration to ensure implementation of large-scale clean energy projects 

• Reducing CO2-emissions in the built environment by optimizing building performance and educating residents about their impact 

• Testing innovative technologies at the New Children’s Hospital to enhance pediatric care of children 

• Identifying the touchpoints between the residents and the Helsinki Youth Unit to improve the customer experience and overall impact of public services 

• Gathering the emission data from sub-contracted services of the city of Helsinki to aid the transition from conventional fleet to sustainable vehicles thus meeting the carbon neutral Helsinki 2030 goals

Focus Area: Data 

Apply here to this challenge after the application period opens on 17 February at 12:00 (EET). 

Challenge: Secure and Open Cross-Border Data Sharing for Urban Resilience  

Pilot hosts: Finnish AI Region EDIH (FAIR) and AI & Robotics Estonia EDIH (AIRE) 

Background information 

The FinEst collaboration project, funded through the Horizon funding instrument, aims to strengthen the collaboration between Finland and Estonia. One of the key areas of focus is the collection, sharing, and security of cross-border data. The Urban Open Platform (UOP) was initially intended to serve as the dual-city data pilot platform for the FinEst Twins project. Although the technical implementation of UOP was limited, its ideology of secure and open data sharing between countries remains relevant. Given the geopolitical uncertainties and the trend towards more nation-centric data governance, there is a pressing need to develop solutions that enhance resilience through shared data initiatives.  

Challenge Description and Objective  

The objective of this challenge is to develop innovative solutions for secure and open cross-border data sharing between Finland and Estonia. The purpose is to better enable and speed up the development of solutions responding to urban resilience – an ability to endure, respond and adapt to even sudden environmental or political changes. Your solution might relate to one or more industries or urban areas, such as health, energy utilization, transportation, construction, housing, citizen engagement, ports and so on. 

We are looking for SMEs and (to be) commercialized research projects to join the challenge. 

The challenge responds to three acknowledged developmental bottlenecks: 

1. Lack and/or difficultness of accessing and utilizing of relevant data for resilient urban development 
2. Unfamiliarity and lack of access to previous pilots, trialing, and results in resilient urban development 
3. Nonexistence of secure and regulatorily compliant platforms for data sharing and utilization between Finland and Estonia.  

The solutions should address at least one of the following key aspects:  

1. Data Collection: Efficient and standardized methods for collecting data from various urban sources in both countries.  
2. Data Sharing: Mechanisms for sharing data securely and openly across borders, ensuring compliance with both national and EU regulations.  
3. Data Security: Robust security protocols to protect data integrity and privacy while enabling open access.  
4. Urban Resilience: Utilizing shared data to enhance urban resilience, including disaster response, infrastructure management, and public services.  

Key Considerations  

• Compliance with Regulations: Solutions must adhere to GDPR and other relevant data protection regulations.  

• Interoperability: Systems should be designed to ensure interoperability between different data platforms and standards used in Finland and Estonia.  

• Scalability: Solutions should be scalable to accommodate future growth and additional data sources.  

• User-Centric Design: Focus on the needs of end-users, including city planners, emergency responders, and citizens and data provisioning parties, for example. 

• Technological Integration: Solutions must incorporate advanced technologies such as Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Extended Reality (XR). Additionally, the use of Blockchain technology is recommended to ensure data integrity and transparency.  

Expected Outcomes of the Pilot 

• Prototype Development: Creation of a working prototype that demonstrates the feasibility of the proposed solution.  

OR 

• Pilot Implementation: Pilot the solution in selected urban areas in Finland and Estonia to test its effectiveness and gather feedback.  

AND 

• Policy Recommendations: Provide recommendations for policy changes that support secure and open cross-border data sharing.  

AND 

• Business Model and Financing Strategy: Develop a sustainable business model and financing strategy to ensure the long-term viability and scalability of the solution.  

Budget 

10,000€ (VAT 0%). The budget can be used to develop a technically functioning prototype, or for expenses occurring from testing and research work related to the solution proposed. 

Evaluation and selection process 

The company continuing to the paid pilot will be selected using the general evaluation criteria by the jury including experts from FAIR, AIRE, Forum Virium Helsinki and FinEst Twins project. The selection will be based on applications. If an online event for presenting the solutions is needed, applicants will be informed. 

Tenders for focus area data are submitted using this specific form. In addition to filling in the form, each Bidder can submit a maximum of four (4) other attachments supporting their tender. Please note that in this focus area it is not mandatory to submit any attachments. 

Forum Virium Helsinki, The FinEst Twins project’s experts and the selected members from each pilot host organisations will evaluate the tenders submitted by the deadline and select the best tenders based on scoring. The final selection in each challenge is made based on the general evaluation criteria. All participants in the tender competition will be notified of the results. The procuring entity has the right to decide not to carry out the procurement, considering factors such as the total funding available or the quality of the tenders submitted.  

Order of precedence:  

1. The information provided on the form
2. The information presented in the attachments to the tender
3. The information provided in the potential online event

Materials and information provided outside the form, its attachments, or the online event will not be considered as part of the tender. 

General Evaluation Process 

For the purpose of evaluation, tenders submitted will be evaluated based on the following quality criteria in accordance with the specified weightings: 1) feasibility (40 %), 2) novelty and innovativeness (30 %), 3) impact and sustainability (20 %), and 4) scalability (10 %). The maximum number of points is 100. Each challenge has a fixed price, which means that the price is not an evaluation criteria. 

Each evaluation criterion is scored on a scale of 0–3 points. The maximum total score that a tender can receive is 100 points. 

The scoring will be evaluated accordingly: 

• 3 points: The criterion is met excellently. 

• 2 points: The criterion is well met. 

• 1 point: The criterion has been taken into account to some extent. 

• 0 points: The criterion has been taken into account weakly or not at all. 

General Evaluation Criteria 

1. Feasibility, weight 40 % (0-21p equals max. 40 points)

• Equivalency: The proposal meets the specific challenge description. (0-3p) 

• Clarity of the tender: The description of measures, goals, timetables and resources shows that the solution can be implemented in a high-quality and safe manner, within the agreed timeframe and at the location specified in the invitation to tender. (0-3p) 

• Technical feasibility: The solution can be realistically implemented with current technology/data/resources available. (0-3p) 

• Competence: The Bidder demonstrates that they have sufficient competence and resources to implement the service. Competence of the personnel assigned for the pilot project, e.g. CVs or other characterisations and support material. (0-3p) 

• Restrictions: The Bidder has no limitations (e.g. policy issues, competitive setting, or other) to work in collaboration with the pilot hosts, stakeholders, and other operators being involved in the pilot programme. (0-3p) 

• Economic viability: The solution is economically viable. Consider development costs, operating costs, and potential return on investment. (0-3p) 

• Market viability: The solution has a market fit. (0-3p) 

2. Novelty and innovativeness, weight 30 % (0-9p equals max. 30 points)

• Novelty: The solution is new to the industry or to the specific area it targets. (0-3p) 

• Innovative qualities: The solution has innovative qualities which bring value for the challenge it solves. (Evaluation is carried out based on the personal competence and general and special know-how of the members of the evaluation panel selected by the procuring entity) (0-3p) 

• Degree of change: The pilot project introduces more disruptive innovations than incremental improvements like new practices/solutions/perspectives compared to the existing similar solutions. (0-3p) 

3. Impact and sustainability, weight 20 % (0-9p equals max. 20 points)

• Comprehensibility: The intended impact of the service and the method to verify the impact are described clearly. (0-3p) 

• Positive impact: The solution demonstrates a clear positive impact on solving the identified challenge. (0-3p) 

• User needs: The solution addresses a real need or solves a challenge. Innovations that are problem-driven are more likely to be successful. (0-3p) 

4. Scalability, weight 10 % (0-9p equals max. 10 points)

• Replicability: The service can be replicated or reproduced in another environment. (0-3p) 

• Scalability: The Bidder demonstrates that their solution has sufficient possibilities to be beneficial for wider usage (e.g. different audience or user groups, more organisations, other countries, or other factors) than only during the specified 6 month pilot period. (0-3p) 

• Business value: The solution offers potential for new business. (0-3p) 

Each criterion will be evaluated as a whole. Points will be awarded at a minimum interval of 0-100 points and expressed to 2 decimal places. Tenders evaluated to be of equal value may receive the same score. In a situation where multiple tenders receive the same total score, the deciding factor will be the highest score of the criteria starting from the first criteria of the top category feasibility to the last criteria of the last category in a numerical order.  

This challenge aims to foster collaboration between Finland and Estonia, leveraging shared data to create resilient and smart urban environments. By addressing the technical, regulatory, and practical aspects of cross-border data sharing, we can pave the way for innovative solutions that benefit both nations and contribute to the European AI market area.  

About FAIR and AIRE 

Finnish AI Region and AI & Robotics Estonia EDIHs are European commission co-funded initiatives with a mission to help small and medium sized companies in adopting emerging technologies, and especially artificial intelligence in their corresponding regions. These innovation clusters offer low threshold high expertise and infrastructure advisory and testing services, as well as support in skill development, networking and access to funding. 

Finnish AI Region offers businesses low-threshold expertise in artificial intelligence, augmented reality, high-performance computing, and cyber security. Most of our services are free of charge. We aim to accelerate and expand the adoption of artificial intelligence in small and medium-sized enterprises. 

AI & Robotics Estonia AIRE supports Estonian industrial and manufacturing startup SMEs in adopting smart digital solutions in the field of artificial intelligence and robotics. AIRE offers knowledge, contacts and information about funding and helps your company train in the field of AI.  

Support provided during the pilot period 

During the pilot period, both innovation clusters’ test-before-invest and development support services are available. FAIR and AIRE can also help out in allocating a suitable piloting platform. Support is provided as per requested by the selected company. Feel free to get to know our services already in advance from fairedih.fi and aire-edih.eu. 

The clusters’ services are open to all applicants, only one will receive the additional financial support for the pilot. 

In case of any questions, please contact the organizer satu.reijonen@forumvirium.fi.