The national competition “Innovative Enterprise of the Year” is organized by the Applied Research and Communications Fund, ARC Consulting, Enterprise Europe Network – Bulgaria, with the support of the Directorate General for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs of the European Commission, and Sofia Tech Park. It is also in media partnership with the “Innovative” programme of BNT 2, Bulgarian National Radio – Radio Sofia, Economics magazine, Digitalk, Kaldata. bg, “Bulgarian Science” Magazine, Uspelite.bg, Innovation.bg, the portal of the Bulgarian industry IndustryInfo.bg, 3e-news.net and Trending Topics.eu.
The finalist companies in the Innovative Enterprise of the Year contest also receive the right to use the label of the Applied Research and Communications Fund – Excellence in Innovation. Finalists will also get the opportunity to reach potential international partners and customers in all economic areas within the Enterprise Europe Network, in over 60 countries.
During the Seventeenth National Innovation Forum, Bulgarian President Mr. Rumen Radev honored innovative enterprises in the following areas according to the impact of their innovation:
For “Market Leadership” an honorary statuette and a diploma were awarded to Cupffee Ltd.
Cupffee Ltd. offers edible, biodegradable waffle cups for hot and cold beverages made from all-natural ingredients that contain no GMOs, artificial colors, sweeteners or preservatives. Their taste is neutral and does not alter the taste of the beverage. The production process is 100% environmentally friendly and generates no industrial waste – leftover materials are used as ingredients to create other edible products. The company sells its cups in over 40 countries on 6 continents. The company’s new plant, opening in 2021, has a monthly capacity of 2.5 million pieces.
For “Market Leadership” an honorary statuette and a diploma were awarded to Orenda Group Ltd.
Orenda Group Ltd. creates and produces Europe’s first 100% natural sunscreen lotion with transparent zinc that leaves no traces on the skin. The company disperses zinc in oils without the help of nanotechnology, achieving high homogeneity without delamination of the ingredients. The mineral lotion comes in sugar cane packaging that is fully recyclable. The company has entered the markets of 36 countries with its organic cosmetics – baby products and body oils, a spray that restores the natural color of graying hair and other products.
In the “Innovative Startup” category for 2021, Omnio Ltd. was awarded with an honorary diploma..
Omnio Ltd. is developing a software solution with artificial intelligence for automatic verification of financial transactions against money laundering and other abuses. The software verifies and analyzes various aspects of transactions by detecting interconnections with other customer transactions and alerting on suspicious behavior patterns. The solution automates important processes related to financial sector regulations.
The company received a special prize from Sofia Tech Park: 3 free workspaces, participation in one digital edition of the Anonymous Innovator Club and a mentoring session with their Business Development team.
For Green Innovation 2021, an honorary diploma was awarded to Atlas Agro Science Ltd.
Atlas Agro Science Ltd. creates a 100% environmentally friendly liquid biostimulant based on aged, anaerobically digested sewage sludge. The product is suitable for use in agribusiness (including organic farming), landscaping and floriculture. It significantly reduces the need for expensive mineral fertilizers, promotes soil recovery, strengthens plant immunity and resistance to stress factors, increases yield and quality of production.
CMYK Ingredients JSC received an honorary diploma in the“Quality of Life” 2021 category.
CMYK Ingredients is developing liquid fermented herbs and spices for use in clean label and direct consumption foods and beverages. The production technology preserves the valuable flavours, vitamins and minerals when the spices are used at different temperatures, including in frozen products. The company offers its food innovations to more than 30,000 professionals and 40 companies in the hospitality industry.
For “Innovation in the creative industries” ZenHold AD was awarded with a certificate of merit.
ZenHold AD is developing an interactive virtual reality for training purposes based on real captured locations and objects according to business clients’ specifications. The applicability is very broad, but mostly used for simulations of risky situations (such as robberies, fires, etc.) and/or learning repetitive actions (including for production, medical, military and other purposes). A high degree of customization is possible. The company’s products include virtual locations developed for a British history museum.
Spark Vision IS Ltd was awarded a certificate of merit in the Social Innovation category for 2021.
Spark Vision IS Ltd. is developing “smart glasses” for use by blind and visually impaired people. The main functionalities of the glasses are object recognition and text reading. Based on an analysis of the surrounding environment, the extracted information is converted into an audio format that the user hears through headphones. Other functionalities are: color and light brightness recognition, face detection and recognition, intelligent internet search assistant and professional assistance via video call.
Iris Solutions Ltd. received a certificate of merit for “Digital Transformation”.
Iris Solutions Ltd. is the creator of a software application that allows any merchant to accept direct (cardless) bank transfers in their digital channels. Another software solution of the company transforms any messenger (SMS, Viber, Whatsapp) or officially issued document (contract, invoice, debit letter) into a point of sale, integrating direct bank payment. The company currently serves 36 banks and payment institutions through its platform.
For “Innovation Management” A Data Pro Ltd. was awarded with a certificate of merit.
A Data Pro Ltd. is a sustainable innovator that effectively manages its innovation activities. The company offers its clients analysis and measurement of consumer interest in various topics, for example which news readers and social media users interact with the most. The core of the technology is information clustering, and to help its users the company has created a platform for easy analysis and visualization of all data.
All finalists of the Innovative Enterprise Contest in 2021:
AvtoIkonom Ltd. is creating the world’s first mobile platform for end-to-end customer needs management – it enables two-way communication and direct connection between customer and service provider in the automotive, insurance and leasing industries. The platform allows each user to choose between a range of service providers. The company has developed a mobile app with a digital service booklet where the end customer can manage all services related to the car, its leasing and its insurance in one place.
Barin Sports AD is developing an electronic system for tracking the performance and sports form of professional football players, based on a proprietary radio protocol. It provides process automation and saves significant human resources. The system works very well in difficult conditions (e.g. in the presence of metal visors in stadiums that interfere with signal reception), while allowing the tracking and analysis of dozens of indicators.
Bastun Media Ltd. is creating a budget technology for semi-automatic restoration and enhancement of audio-visual archival material, whereby a higher resolution product is produced. Based on artificial intelligence and open-source components, the material is evaluated and restored, and can be fully coloured or enhanced to its original colouration. Manual adjustments and additional processing are made where necessary.
Brandi Kampani Ltd is developing rainwear for cyclists, moped riders and other users of two-wheeled vehicles. The product has a specific innovative fastening – in the standard position it serves as a raincoat type outerwear, but in rainy conditions it can be quickly and easily transformed into overalls, providing maximum comfort and protection up to mid-calf so that the user can move around safely.
Vidas Company Ltd. offers soft drinks with Bulgarian herbs and fruits, which do not contain artificial colors and sweeteners, flavors, white sugar, caffeine or preservatives. The products are of 100% natural origin and sweetened with pure grape juice. Stabilization is achieved by bottling them in a vacuum environment, which significantly extends the final shelf life. Flavors currently available are pomegranate with black cumin, fig leaf, elderflower with lemon, peach with St. John’s wort, and Mursal tea with lemon.
GetMonety Ltd. creates educational games to improve the financial literacy of children and their families. The product is developed in three main areas: playing cards to stimulate financial and strategic thinking in children, flash cards with financial concepts and household tasks, a web application with which, based on a QR code, children accumulate points for completed household activities, which they can then convert into money or rewards. The games are also suitable for use in schools or daycare centers.
Cardinal Bites Ltd. produces raw sugar-free protein candy with vegetable or milk protein by combining traditional Bulgarian and exotic ingredients, such as cocoa, Bulgarian rose and eastern mahlab. The candy contains the full range of essential amino acids and fiber to increase satiety and improve digestion, with 20% fewer calories than a standard chocolate candy.
Quanterall Ltd. is the creator of a hardware-software product that allows any object – vending machine, gas station, store, etc., to accept and process payment with both a bank card and a crypto wallet, via a mobile application. The device works with universal protocols, allowing it to be quickly and easily connected to almost any point of sale (including the ability to generate and use a QR code for payment purposes), and telemetry data and reports are among the features for operators.
Mutiv BG Ltd. created the first “liquid thermometer” – a new type of solution for monitoring body temperature, based on thermochromic crystals and designed for direct application to the skin via roll-on. The product allows continuous monitoring of temperature changes by lasting up to 24 hours on the skin and changing color from black, through purple to pink, depending on the current level of body temperature.
Serpact Ltd. created a process and digital tool for optimizing the performance of companies in search engines. Based on machine learning, the available digital data of the companies’ products and services are analyzed in order to increase their sales. The tools enable the handling of all the user’s phrases and keywords up to 16 months back, which provides the opportunity for comprehensive analysis. A tool has also been created that identifies revenue-generating keywords and allows companies to focus on them to increase revenue.
3 EN 3 Ltd. creates a paint that, after application, absorbs carbon dioxide from the indoor air for 10 years and filters it out in several stages – when the paint is applied, when the paint comes into contact with the air, and through a bacterium that feeds on carbon dioxide (the latter is subject to further testing). The production process is also environmentally friendly – the resulting carbon dioxide is not released into the atmosphere but is captured and sold to companies that use it as a resource in their operations.
Health in Box Ltd. offers vending machines and micro-markets stocked with healthy, carefully selected products. Each machine has a POS terminal for contactless payment and the micro-markets are self-service with a fully cashless payment system. They provide employees in large companies and shared business spaces with consistent access to quality, healthy food and beverages.
Campaign website of the National Contest “Innovative Enterprise of the Year” 2021
Video recording of the event on YouTube
