Open Geneva is an annual festival of open innovation with the mission “to promote open innovation with a spirit of knowledge sharing for the common good. Open Geneva aims to foster open innovation for the arts, science, technology, and for society in the Greater Geneva Area.” The framework of the festival is aligned with the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

This year, the festival welcomed 30+ hackathons hosted by various organizations such as the HUG (Hôpitaux Universitaires de Genève), Oracle, Coty, the University of Geneva, Hospice Général, and Terre des hommes. The hackathons welcomed 800+ participants, coming from all around Switzerland - with special guests from China and New York! - who worked on diverse topics, such as sustainable development, smart cities, mobility, health, blockchain, migration, beauty, academia, and gender equality. 

All of the hackathons’ organizers put an emphasis on diversity and creativity in the innovation process. In parallel to hackathons, conferences and workshops were also organized by the community.

Open Geneva also offers a festive approach to innovation. To end this year on a high note, a silent party was organized. During the night, hackers could also fine tune their projects and posters in preparation for the closing on the day after.

This week of innovation ended beautifully on the campus of the Haute Ecole d’Art et de Design (HEAD - Genève) (url HEAD) with a hackshow, gathering all the festival’s organizers. This final event was open to the public and posters of the projects developed during the week were exposed to share the results of the hackathons. Our CEO, Abir Oreibi, also hosted a panel to discuss life after hack with Yvan Cognasse (Oracle), Cécile Catalano (Hospice Général), Pierre Mirlesse (Hewlett Packard Enterprise), and Isabelle Jacob Nebout (BNP Paribas Switzerland).

What's next?

Open Geneva is all about projects that last after the end of the festival. The association partenered with several acceleration programs to guarantee a follow-up of the projects developed during hackathons.