Who will be among the chosen ones at CeBIT in March: a new finance optimising tool from Iceland, the 10-finger keyboard from the USA, an easy-to-use cash register system from Germany, or the Russian solution for effective meetings management? The best entrants will have the chance to present their concept in an innovation landscape specially designed by leading artists in Hall 16, located at the heart of the exhibition grounds.
The 50 exhibitors, who presented their digital concepts in brief videos, will be announced in January. Chaired by Ulrich Dietz, the contest’s initiator and CEO of GFT Technologies AG, the jury of eight will begin its work in February and select the finalists for the award. Its members include: Prof. Peter Weibel (head of the Center for Art and Media Karlsruhe), Lars Hinrichs (founder of XING), Carsten Knop (business journalist of media partner FAZ) and Dr. Joseph Reger (CTO of Fujitsu).
There was an unusually large number of entries from abroad for the contest. The 400 or so applications came from 42 countries, of which 50 percent are European, around 10 percent North or South American, and 25 percent Asian. There were also submissions from Africa, the Arabian Peninsula and Australia. Most applicants come from Germany (115), closely followed by India with 87 candidates.
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About CODE_n
CODE_n is an international initiative for fresh ideas in the field of IT and the internet. The network aims to bring together the sector’s brightest minds and smartest ideas, to provide ongoing support and to harness this force field for the seeding and fast breeding of new innovations. CODE_n stands for “Code of the New”, the DNA of innovation. The initiator is GFT Technologies, an international supplier of IT solutions and services. The partners include Deutsche Messe, Ernst & Young, Fujitsu Technologies Solutions, BITKOM and the Center for Art and Media Karlsruhe (ZKM). The media partners of CODE_n are brand eins, Computerwoche, Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, MOBILE BUSINESS, t3n and VentureCapital Magazin. In 2012, CODE_n will be presenting the first CODE_n Award to a highly innovative IT-based solution for mobile life. The winner will receive prize money of EUR 25,000 and coaching from the initiative’s strategic partner over a two-year period. www.code-n.org
