The ATTRACT initiative
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Overview
 Maxi-ATTRACT: The Challenge.
 Maxi-ATTRACT: How it might look like.
 Mini-ATTRACT: How we prepare ourselves.
MAXI ATTRACT: Challenge
Seed project 1
SME 1
Large
Firm
Seed project 3
Seed project 2
Univ. 2
SME 1
RI
Univ.
SME 2
RI
Univ.1
SME 1
SME 1
Large
Firm 2
Scale project 1
… X 200
SME 2
SME 2
Large
Firm 1
RI
RI
RI 2
RI 1
… X 20
Large
Firm
Scale project 2
How to annually inject and manage over 4 000 MSc students in the “cloud”?
MAXI ATTRACT: How it might look like
Large Number
seed funded
visionary projects
(i.e. 200)
Small Number selected
scale funded visionary
projects
(i.e. 20)
Seed Funding
(1 year)
Scale Funding
(3 to 4 years)
Seed funding
Scale funding
Seed funding
Open call
Open call
Open call
Scale funding
Mini-ATTRACT: How to prepare ourselves
Some suggestions:
 Run minimum one pilot of 20 students (5 teams of 4). DT the best
environment for close proximity to industrial interests.
 Look for “friendly” projects to insert them (“easy to grasp” technology,
open consortium, suitable for applying design thinking.
 Define what we consider a success and how we want to measure it?
(i.e. students experience, value for the project, market readiness” of
emerging ideas/prototypes, etc). … something that connects with EC
interests.
MAXI ATTRACT: The Challenge
Let me share you some personal thoughts…
…following this scheme
ATTRACT: The Challenge
Known-knowns (the easy ones)
 The EC supports strongly initiatives that create
real (job) opportunities for young talent in Europe.
 We are a luxury consortium (i.e. MSc/PhD
programmes in place, IdeaSquare, Design
Factory, Creapolis, etc…)
 We learned lessons and we can share them.
ATTRACT: The Challenge
Known-unknowns
 We all know the ins and outs of our student
programmes …but will they apply?
 Will it work if it is (massively) scaled up?
ATTRACT: The challenge
Known-unknowns
 Sharing information today about how we do things
can unveil aspects we never have considered.
ATTRACT: The Challenge
Unknown-unknowns
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Do we need to reinvent ourselves?
How much of what has been done so far (ME310, PDP, CBI etc.)
applicable?
How do we scale up things massively?
How we get the students REALLY interested?
How do we create REAL opportunities for them?
Who owns the results? What can the students do with the results?
How do we get the different partners in the projects interested in students?
How do we get the projects to share information? What if they don’t?
How will the Design Thinking student teams interface with the projects?
How will the teams interface/interact across the different projects?
Where do the students work and stay? For how long?
Who coordinates (what)? Who gives the student topics? Who does what?
Who pays (and for what)?
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Our website: http://www.attract-eu.org/