• Innovation

The University of Bordeaux leader of a University Innovation Cluster

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The University of Bordeaux is one of the 29 institutions pre-selected to lead a University Innovation Cluster with all its academic partners.

Photo : Optical fibre © Frédéric Adamietz of the Institute of Molecular Sciences (ISM)
Optical fibre © Frédéric Adamietz of the Institute of Molecular Sciences (ISM)

Within the framework of the French research programming law and the France 2030 plan, the University Innovation Clusters (Pôles universitaires d'innovation - PUI) programme aims to accelerate the innovation dynamic of territorial ecosystems by strengthening the role of universities in their structuring. The ambition is to reveal the full innovation potential of academic players by developing partnership research with companies and creating startups based on research results (so-called "deeptech" startups).

The consortium formed by the University of Bordeaux and its partners already benefits from many assets. In addition to its large size, its strong multidisciplinary nature and its international stature, it can count on an already recognised practice of innovation, which is reflected by a very good position in the dedicated rankings (INPI, Reuters, THE), by a particularly dynamic socio-economic ecosystem and by a real strategic convergence with local authorities.

From an operational point of view, the project aims to better prepare and support researchers and their projects thanks to an organisation that is both robust and agile: to develop a shared vision of the territory's key issues, to create fertile ground for innovation and to multiply the opportunities to transform a research result into a solution with a positive impact for mankind, society and global issues. This ambition complements the one already promoted thanks to the University of Bordeaux's major institutional transformation programmes, including the ACT and InnovationS projects, which respectively offer frameworks conducive to experimentation for the benefit of transitions and to innovation in all its forms for the benefit of the common good.

3 strategic axes

  • Axis 1 - Tiss'Innovation: a pact to work better together. The impact will be an optimisation of resources, time management optimisation and a greater satisfaction for stakeholders; 
  • Axis 2 - Declic'Innovation to render the innovation activity "attractive". The impact will be to increase opportunities for partnership research and pre-maturation and maturation activities;  
  • Axis 3 - Impuls'Innovation: to encourage and support more innovation stories. The impact will be to increase the success rate of innovations, whatever their type.

Strengthened by its regional roots and its openness to the world, the University of Bordeaux, guided by a solid partnership dynamic, has positioned itself as the leader for coordinating and accelerating the ongoing structuring of its research and innovation development ecosystem by joining forces with 15 co-founders: the French National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS), the National Institute of Health and Medical Research (Inserm), the National Research Institute for Agriculture, Food and the Environment (INRAe), the National Institute for Research in Digital Science and Technology (Inria), the Bordeaux Polytechnic Institute (Bdx INP), Sciences Po Bordeaux (SPBx), the National School of Agricultural Engineering - Bordeaux Sciences Agro (BSA), the Institute of Advanced Industrial Technologies (ESTIA), the Institut d'Optique Graduate School (IOGS), Bordeaux University Hospital (CHUBDX), Arts et Métiers, Bordeaux Montaigne University (UBM), the Ecole Nationale Supérieure d'Architecture & de Paysage de Bordeaux (ENSAP Bdx), SATT Aquitaine Science Transfert (AST) and ADERA.

The 34 partners associated with the University Innovation Cluster are the other stakeholders in the innovation value chain: competitiveness clusters, clusters, technological resource centres, industrial technical centres, economic development agencies, etc. They also include the French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission (CEA), the French National Aerospace Research Office (ONERA), the Bordeaux University Foundation, the New Aquitaine Region and Bordeaux Metropole.

The final selection will take place before the summer; currently, the consortium led by the University of Bordeaux is finalising its in-depth self-diagnosis and specifying its action plan with a view to implementation in the autumn.