Prague, December 4, 2024 – The CzechInno Association, in collaboration with its partners, has announced the winners of the 14th annual Visionaries competition. The competition annually seeks, evaluates, and rewards innovative achievements in Czech business with the most significant technological, economic, and social contributions—or a combination of these. This year, five awards Visionaries 2024 were granted, alongside five honorable mentions. For the first time, the jury also introduced a special award for promoting the reputation of Czech innovations abroad. Jiří Holoubek, President of the Czech Electrotechnical Association, was named the Personality of the Visionaries 2024 project.
“In this 14th edition of Visionaries, the jury had an incredibly challenging task,” said Pavel Švejda, Chairman of the Expert Jury, summarizing the competition. “We received the highest number of nominations in the history of the competition, and we couldn’t eliminate any of the submissions in the first round because all of them featured valuable innovations authored by the applicants themselves. The selection process was extremely tough, and only those innovations with the greatest potential to influence the future succeeded,” Pavel Švejda concluded.
The jury invited applications only from nominees whose innovations combined technological, economic, and social aspects. Among these, the most successful were those with strong technological execution and the potential to prevent significant damage or protect the environment. The 2024 Visionaries include innovations in hazardous waste processing, artificial intelligence for disease diagnostics, improving conditions for critically endangered species, and achieving savings and damage prevention in construction. Recognition was also given for contributions to cybersecurity.
Petr Očko, Deputy Minister for Digitalization and Innovation at the Ministry of Industry and Trade of the Czech Republic, which has long supported the Visionaries competition, commented on the ministry’s involvement: “The Visionaries project inspires us every year with insights into the direction of Czech innovative business, trends in advanced digitalization, the practical use of artificial intelligence, and the application of technologies for the benefit of humanity and the planet. I see it as a vital activity that shows others that innovation, despite initial challenges, makes sense because it can improve everyone’s lives. The Ministry of Industry and Trade is proud to be part of this project, and we are happy to support Visionaries in their further development through our business support programs,” concluded Petr Očko.
“The Visionaries in this room never cease to amaze us with their ingenuity and resilience in turning their visions into reality,” commented Marta Hrabovská, Director of the Corporate Center at Komerční banka, the project’s main professional partner, during the awards ceremony. “At Komerční banka, we are eager to follow their future innovation trajectories and support their development with our services, products, and consulting,” added Marta Hrabovská.
“České Radiokomunikace contributes to the development of the Czech Republic not only through data services but also by supporting innovation and promoting a responsible approach to the environment,” said Anna Tůmová, a member of the company’s leadership responsible for sustainability. “Collaboration with the Visionaries project and its awardees is an opportunity to push boundaries and jointly create a more sustainable future.”
The Visionaries 2024 Award recipients are:
- COMTES FHT, a.s. – For their innovative methodology for measuring the mechanical properties of materials using miniature test specimens and its technological, economic, and social benefits in material technologies.
- GEMA, s.r.o. – For CorrSen, a real-time atmospheric corrosivity monitoring system, and its technological, economic, and social contributions to construction.
- ProSpon, spol. s r.o. – For the Magro system, a non-invasive growing endoprosthesis for pediatric oncology patients, and its technological and economic impact on healthcare.
- TRAFIN OIL, a.s. – For their technology and production facility for processing used cooking oils into biofuels, and its technological, economic, and social impact on environmental protection.
- Výzkumný a zkušební letecký ústav, a.s. – For the eVTOL MiYa electric hybrid aircraft and its technological, economic, and social benefits for logistics.
Special Jury Award for Promoting Czech Innovations Internationally:
- Blindspot Solutions, s.r.o. – For spreading the reputation of Czech innovations abroad through the Tehanu Interspecies Money project.
Honorable Mentions:
- Alphaserver, s.r.o. – For their Security Operations Center (SOC) with unique parameters designed for small and medium-sized enterprises, contributing to cybersecurity.
- HERBAVITA CZ, s.r.o. – For their AI-based system detecting and resolving mastitis causes in cattle, contributing to agriculture.
- Intellmaps, s.r.o. – For their Intellmaps application integrating multi-source data to create digital twins of buildings, contributing to construction.
- SILMOS, s.r.o. – For their KAPS-LE technology improving cost-efficiency and quality in forest road construction, contributing to forestry.
- Stabilplastik, spol. s r.o. – For their Smart Pallet, offering technological, economic, and social benefits in logistics.
Personality of the Visionaries 2024:
- Ing. Jiří Holoubek – President of the Czech Electrotechnical Association, for his long-term contribution to the successful and balanced digital transformation of Czech small and medium-sized enterprises.
The project aimed not only to recognize exceptionally innovative Czech companies but also to offer them immediate collaboration through innovation support projects led by CzechInno, its partners, and among the awarded companies themselves.
