A special edition preceded by a series of appointments, including the new Commonground format: three days of events and debates on three strategic themes: health, electronics, and culture Tagliavanti (President of CCIAA Rome): “I am truly proud that Maker Faire Rome has turned 10 years old. We have evolved and strengthened over time by telling the story of technological innovation and connecting people and ideas. We are a consolidated platform able to involve companies, schools, and enthusiasts in co-designing, learning, training, and matchmaking” Mocci (President of Innova Camera): “Innovation is an essential and decisive challenge for everyone. Rome is very competitive on this front also thanks to our event. Now new prospects are opening up for our city that must be developed’
Rome, 21 September 2022 – Innovations, ingenious ideas and projects that have changed the lives of so many of us and anticipated the future we need. “Maker Faire Rome – The European Edition” (https://makerfairerome.eu), the event promoted and organised by the Chamber of Commerce of Rome, crosses the finishing line of ten editions and returns on time again this year, in the evocative spaces of the Gazometro Ostiense, an area that Eni, the event’s main partner, is redeveloping to transform it into a true “innovation district”, from 7 to 9 October. The 2022 edition is the tenth of an event that has grown and evolved over time, always remaining a reference point for all those who want to change the world, for the better, with their creativity. Ten years of innovations and ideas that have turned into concrete projects and inventions that have improved and revolutionised entire sectors of our society, making possible what, just a few years ago, seemed unattainable. Ten editions of MFR, in presence and online, have brought together companies, universities, schools, research centres, people, thoughts, opinions, knowledge and skills from all over the globe, creating increasingly strong and indissoluble ties thanks to a universal language: that of innovation.
For the occasion, #MFR2022 will be a true “special edition” preceded and followed by a series of events and initiatives, including digital ones, that do not end with the three “classic” days of the event.
One of the most significant novelties of this tenth edition bears the name Commonground, a new format dedicated to the three days preceding the event with thematic events created to celebrate – 10 years after the first edition – the role of Maker Faire Rome as a facilitator of innovation, together with and thanks to the institutions, organisations, partners and talents that have been at the event’s side along its path over the years. A path born from a “common ground”, commonground in fact, a space of connection (between people, companies, research centres, schools, universities) dedicated to doing together, which has allowed many ideas to turn first into concrete projects and then into real businesses. Each day will feature a theme developed together with prestigious national and international speakers, around whom a programme of conferences, workshops, panel discussions and matchmaking sessions (Gazometro Ostiense, pavilion 30) will be built, aimed at entrepreneurs, policy makers, academics and investors. The macro-themes identified are: health (3 October), electronics (4 October) and culture (5 October). Each day will attempt to fully cover the ecosystem under consideration, with the ambition of offering a clear picture of each sector and all its facets. Space will also be given to socially relevant insights such as education, inclusion and sustainability that are crucial to understanding the value spectrum embraced by the respective markets.
The 2022 edition will also have a Main channel, always live, from which many stories of innovation will be told. To this end, there will be a real television studio, set up in the spaces of the Gazometro from which, live, national and international protagonists of the world of innovation will be met and listened to where they work or experiment.
A total of around 300 exhibition spaces (stands and set-up areas) with ideas, prototypes and innovative projects are ready to be unveiled. The contents on offer are many, varied and of the highest quality. Now we are waiting for you!
The main themes
From agritech to foodtech, from digital manufacturing to robotics, from artificial intelligence to mobility, from circular economy to health, from IoT to recycling to the discovery of the metaverse and augmented reality, in addition to the dedicated Maker Art and Maker Music sections that will explore the intersection of arts, music, science and technology: the contents are many, new and ready to surprise.
How to Participate
To participate you must purchase – according to your needs and exclusively online – the various types of entrance tickets: a simple operation that must be done directly from the website www.makerfairerome.eu. The entrance to the fair is in Via del Commercio 9-11, from 10 am to 7 pm.
“Maker Faire Rome,” explains Lorenzo Tagliavanti, President of the Chamber of Commerce of Rome, “is by now a consolidated and important appointment not only for the city of Rome, but for the country and the whole of Europe. It is a great platform and a great networking moment that involves the academic world, schools, research and industry, start-ups and innovators all. All this is being done in Rome also thanks to the role of facilitator played by the Chamber of Commerce and the commitment of all the partners who have shared with us their passion, work and purpose for the event. I am truly proud,’ Tagliavanti concludes, ‘to be able to celebrate this year’s tenth edition, in a constant crescendo of projects and public involvement. We are an event that has evolved and strengthened over time that facilitates and narrates technological innovation by connecting people and ideas. A platform capable of involving innovation enthusiasts in co-designing, learning, training and matchmaking paths”.
“Maker Faire Rome,” says Luciano Mocci, President of Innova Camera, the Special Agency of the Rome Chamber of Commerce, “continues to grow and attract the attention of an ever-growing public, and this is also thanks to our ability to not stop in the face of obstacles and to overcome difficulties. We are now in our tenth edition and, with great satisfaction, we continue to spread the culture of Open Innovation, enabling the production system to make use of ideas, solutions, tools and technological skills that come from outside and from below. Rome has demonstrated that it can compete, at high levels, in the field of innovation: if this has happened, it has been thanks to Maker Faire Rome’s ability to build a bridge between Rome, Italy and Europe. New prospects are therefore opening up for our city, which must be further consolidated’.
Opening Conference
This is the unmissable appointment that officially kicks off the event, scheduled for 6 October. The theme of Opening 2022 is ‘Commonground’, i.e. the role of innovation as ‘common ground’, as a ‘common good’, for everyone, whatever the industry.
Commonground explores the indispensable value of the ‘innovation mindset’ for personal and collective progress, and the way in which it is deployed in different industries, organisations and societies. These topics will be addressed by international speakers and experts with great vision and surprising experiences such as Tony Fadell (Ceo & Founder of Futureshape), Julya Stoyanovich (Assistant Professor at New York University), Johathan Menhuin (Ceo of Israel Innovation Institute), Kenneth Mikkelsen (Ceo & Founder of Future Shift), Matthias Mayer (Europe Director of Ifixit), Paolo Netti (Professor of Biomaterials and Tissue Engineering at the Federico II University of Naples), Andrea Devincenzi (Paralympic Athlete), Valentina Primo (Ceo & Founder of Startup Without Borders), Monica Spada (Head of Research and Technological Innovation at Eni).
Eni, once again the main partner of Maker Faire Rome, will be present during the event with its own installation aimed at telling visitors about magnetic confinement fusion, one of the most innovative technologies in its path to decarbonisation, and it will do so in the Gazometro Ostiense in this place that is increasingly becoming a “District of Innovation”. In fact, in the same spaces that gave rise to industrial Rome, supplying energy to businesses and citizens, technological innovation projects will be created that will contribute to providing the energy of the future.
The installation will reproduce, in a conceptual key, a prototype reactor – called the ‘Tokamak’ – a fundamental component of the magnetic confinement fusion process, with which the aim is to reproduce, on Earth, the same form of energy that powers the stars.
Through the immersive audio-visual content of the installation, designed by CRA – Carlo Ratti Associati and Italo Rota in one of the decommissioned and redeveloped gazometers in the area, visitors will be able to “become aware” of a new form of energy that is cleaner, safer and virtually unlimited, a fundamental step in Eni’s path towards the Just Transition, i.e. an energy transition that is fair not only from an environmental point of view but also economic and social, made possible thanks to technological innovation.
Robotics and Artificial Intelligence
Among the topics that, over the years, have featured at Maker Faire Rome and attracted growing public interest are robotics and artificial intelligence. This is also thanks to increasingly strong collaborations with the Institute of Robotics and Intelligent Machines (I-RIM) chaired by Antonio Bicchi and the National Artificial Intelligence Laboratory of Cini (National Interuniversity Consortium for Informatics).
Once again this year, dozens of realisations and prototypes will be presented to the public, proposed by individual makers, universities, university spin-offs and research institutes. A vast series of projects ranging from the medical sector to industry, from transport to cultural heritage.
All the leading groups in Italian Robotics research will be represented, both from universities (Siena, Bologna, Rome, Naples, Pisa) – and from research centres of excellence, IIT (Italian Institute of Technology) and CNR (National Research Council) in the first place.
In its fourth participation in Maker Faire Rome, I-RIM, in addition to the traditional I-RIM 2022 conference, organised by Antonio Frisoli and Federica Pascucci, will be enriched by two brand new events: “The new Science of Intelligence”, in collaboration with Nature Italy and Maker Faire Rome, and the RoboPitch.
The event “The new Science of Intelligence” (7 October) will see internationally renowned speakers such as Katja Mombaur, Mirko Kovac, Barbara Mazzolai, Dario Farina, Rita Cucchiara and Davide Scaramuzza take to the stage to show both the impressive results they have achieved in their fields and the scientific challenges that still lie ahead. Amongst the many implications, the spaces that AI and robotics can occupy to accelerate ‘coexistence’ with humans will be explored, fostering the sharing of values such as ‘human-centredness’, respect for and protection of the natural environment, access to learning, sustainability, and economic and social development. The event aims to activate connections between actors who share values and interests in innovation and in the role that AI and robotics play in facilitating the transition to more efficient and effective organisational and business models.
The RoboPitches will give us a glimpse of the imminent future through the eyes of young entrepreneurs who will present their ideas to an audience of international investors, academics and representatives of competence centres.
And there are numerous realisations and prototypes that will be presented to the public again this year, using artificial intelligence methods and techniques. The CINI National Artificial Intelligence Laboratory, through its exhibition space, will present a series of innovations developed thanks to artificial intelligence, with a special emphasis on the realisation of applications by start-ups employed in the sector. The workshop event will take place on 8 October at the premises of the Istituto Superiore Antincendi (adjacent to the Gazometer). The aim is to highlight the impact that artificial intelligence can have in a wide range of contexts, e.g. medicine, economics, energy, security and, in some cases, even in systems involving robots and agents operating in the physical world.
Among the demonstrations of artificial intelligence systems, Maker Faire Rome will host, as per tradition, the ‘RoboCup’ tournament starring the Nao Devils Dortmund team from Germany. A tournament in which fully autonomous humanoid robotic systems will compete in football matches, testing state-of-the-art artificial intelligence methods and techniques.
Lastly, a novelty that this year will put the Lazio Region at the centre of the exhibition – in collaboration with the main universities in Rome and with the contribution of qualified specialists – will be the presentation of robotics and artificial intelligence associations for precision agriculture: infrastructures and methodologies capable of radically changing the working scenario of a strategic sector for our country and the entire world. An overview of the most interesting research projects will be employed on the 200 square metres of agricultural field that Maker Faire will make available during the days of the event.
II VRMF – Virtual Reality Movie Festival
Another of the surprising novelties of the tenth edition of Maker Faire is the VRMF or Virtual Reality Movie Festival. This is the first original format in Italy dedicated to narration through images in virtual reality and to the viewing of films and documentaries shot with VR/AR immersive technologies. The main objective of the VRMF is to offer the curious and enthusiasts the opportunity to directly experience the brand new frontiers opened by the most advanced technologies, exploring unprecedented forms of participation, narration and relationship with reality. The event programme presents an all-round experience in the world of Virtual Reality. The aim is to introduce the general public to and explore in depth with experts in the field all the best new products with a selection ranging from documentaries to entertainment, from gaming to video dance, up to entire theatrical performances conceived or reproduced in virtual reality.
Viewers will be able to experience different types of technology with a different level of interaction (from non-interactive 360° films to real videogames with high levels of movement and interaction) and a wide choice of themes (from investigative documentaries for journalism enthusiasts to animated shorts for children).
There will also be a Fabroom or immersive room, a physical space in which the virtual enters the scene and the spectator becomes an actor. Upon entering the Fabroom, one will be enveloped by projected images, on the front wall, the two side walls and the floor, with which the public will be able to interact.
In the furrow of innovation and sustainability, Acea – a partner of MFR for 9 years – will present, among the various proposals, the Smart Comp, a mini-composting plant equipped with a revolutionary sensor technology that transforms wet waste directly on site into compost through an aerobic process that in about 90 days produces fertiliser ready for use. Not only that, the Acea stand will also feature the MIDA project, developed in collaboration with the Italian start-up Wesii for monitoring photovoltaic plants. This is an ultra-technological model of autonomously guided drones that, equipped with a thermal camera, can fly over the plants at a height of 25 metres, monitoring the integrity of the panels in real time and optimising interventions and maintenance costs.
Maker Art and Maker Music
MakerArt, the special section of MFR curated by Valentino Catricalà that unites the world of innovation with that of artists, presents for the first time in Rome STORMS by Quayola. The research of Quayola – born in 1982, of Roman origin, and one of the most important international media-art artists – moves in the combination of digital, robotics and artificial intelligence and an iconography rooted in the history of art, from ancient, Renaissance and Baroque, to the genre of landscape, from Romantic to Impressionist. STORMS is a work that is part of a series of video works that fits precisely into this cross-section, continuing the artist’s research on traditional landscape painting, where what is explored, through the use of advanced technologies, is not so much the image itself as the pictorial substance, understood both as material and as the medium of the ideational origin of the image itself.
Even the title, STORMS, is an obvious reference to the work of the Englishman William Turner and his famous storms, which represent an important source of inspiration for Quayola. Turner’s energies, in Quayola’s paintings, are thus the digital vectors that impart forces. In STORMS, movement is not an animation, not an external influence, but an internal motion, an eruption of intrinsic dynamics. Dynamics that are exaggerated and allowed to flow in a contemplation of the natural-digital sublime. STORMS are, in the end, unfinished paintings, works that “paint themselves” in the flow of a dilated time, pictorial forms that unravel on the canvas of the screen, breaking down towards an abstraction of forms.
Like the great painters of the past, Quayola sees and feels nature as a universal space, a space to be explored in order to interpret reality, a space of encounter and continuous struggle between natural and artificial forces. Quayola whose characteristic feature is that of a glance at the past, of a digital reinterpretation of our cultural heritage moves and gives rise to what could be defined as a true contemporary Sturm und Drang. Exactly what was desired and sought after for this fourth edition of MakerArt.
From art to music. Maker Music 2022 will tell the story of the making of music, from the point of view of innovation, creativity and technology. For the tenth edition of Maker Faire Rome, the thematic area dedicated to the universe of music proposes a journey into sound through an innovative Soundscape, a soundscape that connects musical creativity, visual art and technology with multidirectional immersive performances.
Experiencing for the first time the unprecedented multi-lingual live performance, guests of Maker Music 2022 will be NAIP, Teho Teardo, Studio Cliché and Samuel, who will offer performances born from the creative dialogue that has seen them each confront their own artistic and musical element. It is no coincidence that these are artists who, in the past, have experimented with different languages and media, combining sounds, music and sonorities with new technologies and different art forms.
Sound, light and video art will come together in a simultaneous creation that will synchronise music, light and images in a unique space, a contemporary performance setting in which the audience – physically at the centre of the stage – will literally be traversed and enveloped by sound and images, for a sensory experience born from the notes and creative dialogue between the artists.
Agrifood and sustainability
The Maker Faire pavilion dedicated to sustainable agrifood innovation brings together a panorama of projects applicable to companies, agricultural supply chains and local systems.
As in previous editions, the participation of the most important national research organisations is confirmed, including the Sapienza University of Rome, CREA, CNR, ENEA, complemented by a selection of innovations from private companies engaged in the sector. In total, more than 40 solutions for agriculture and the environment will be presented.
This year’s innovations are in line with the needs of the moment: these include agro-energy optimisation systems (energy audits), solar cooking equipment, and sustainable and healthy nutrition, such as the new patent for legume-based, low-calorie ice cream, vegetable protein pizza, and new technologies for enriching vegetable preserves with noble fermentates.
A demonstration park on the use of robots in agriculture and the monitoring of product quality through photonic spectrum detectors, video traps for alarm systems that measure pest infestations in real time, and a smart receipt for fruit and vegetable sales counters, with immediate assessment of the degree of ripeness of products, will be among the ways to improve efficiency in agriculture.
The European project Horizon Switch, dedicated to changing the lifestyles of six major European metropolitan areas, including the city of Rome, towards a new healthy and sustainable life, will also be presented.
Education
The new generations are looking to the future through Maker Faire Rome. This is confirmed by the great participation of universities (more than 20 universities and polytechnics present with their projects) and schools through the relevant calls. In the Education area of MFR 2022, projects from 13 Italian secondary schools, from Sicily to Veneto, and 4 European ones (Hungary, Croatia, Estonia and Germany) will be on show.
And also this year, the best projects developed within the ITS 4.0 2022 project will be present. The path promoted by the Ministry of Education in collaboration with Ca’ Foscari University of Venice has seen the commitment of over sixty ITS Foundations throughout the country. The innovation paths developed by the students ranged in different directions, from manufacturing to services, from agriculture 4.0 to the world of education, once again demonstrating the potential of these training institutions as true laboratories of technological development. The use of advanced innovation management tools enables virtuous collaboration between companies and technical education and produces results that deserve to be seen and appreciated.
CampuStore, then, reconfirms its partnership with Maker Faire Roma for the offer aimed at the world of schools and training: in this area there will therefore be several innovations declined for school contexts, also with the possibility – for teachers and educators – to participate in “hands-on” and certified training workshops by CampuStore Academy. Many suggestions will be on offer, with solutions for Steam and educational robotics, but also intriguing proposals for childhood, for green and sustainability, for the metaverse and immersive classrooms, and above all an overall vision capable of proposing new challenges and visions for hybrid learning environments, which move naturally between the digital and the real world, in a human and inclusive way.
The partners
Maker Faire Rome – The European Edition” can count on the support of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and institutional partners such as the ICE Agency. Once again this year, ICE has made a number of Offices available to the fair as part of the scouting of foreign operators and communication activities addressed to the entire potential audience of visitors (there will be 60 among them investors, journalists, bloggers) from France, UK, Germany, USA, Israel, and India in order to contribute to enhancing the event and making it increasingly international and business-oriented.
Among the institutional partners, once again this year the Lazio Region will be present at Maker Faire Rome together with the Chamber of Commerce of Rome, in the wake of a collaboration that has been consolidated over the years and that has proven to be fundamental for the promotion of the productive fabric of our territory and the technological innovations of Lazio enterprises.
Regional activities will include the presentation of the best prototypes created in the regional FabLabs during the initiative “Waiting for Maker Faire Rome 2022” and the winners of the latest edition of the “Startupper School Academy” (in the category “Startupper among the school benches – Prototype your Idea”). Also on the calendar are a series of meetings on digital manufacturing with experts from the sector.
Lastly, there will be an exhibition area of around 75 square metres in which Lazio start-ups will be the protagonists, with Lazio Innova technicians providing information on the projects and activities planned in the Active Spaces and FabLab Lazio, and on the Lazio Region’s initiatives for young people and businesses.
At the tenth edition of Maker Faire Rome, Inail will present a number of projects developed by its researchers in the fields of ergonomics, sensor technology, robotics, technological innovation and augmented reality, with the aim of studying potential, new and emerging risks to the health and safety of workers and developing cutting-edge devices for the prevention of occupational injuries and illnesses.
This year’s contests
Maker Faire Rome is not only a point of arrival for the many makers exhibiting their projects, but a starting point towards a better future. The 2022 edition includes three contests aimed at enhancing the best projects, to ensure visibility and development of the various initiatives presented: a public and tangible recognition to the value of the creativity exhibited during the event.
Established in 2016, in close collaboration with Maker Faire Rome and now in its seventh edition, Make to Care is Sanofi’s initiative that enhances unpublished and unconventional ideas and projects aimed at improving the quality of life and inclusion of people with disabilities, their families and caregivers. The competition, which will once again this year reward the winners with an intensive training experience in Israel, has over the years seen the participation of dozens of start-ups, patients and professionals from the healthcare and caregiving sectors, contributing to the growth of the debate on new healthcare policies and structured reflection on Patient-driven-Innovation.
Then there is ‘MakeITCircular’, which rewards the best ideas in line with the principles of the Circular Consumption Charter and which promote its dissemination and the involvement of various actors in its implementation. The contest, – organised by Innova Camera and the Consumer Associations of the National Council of Consumers and Users (CNCU) – requires that the projects aim to raise awareness of the environmental impacts of products and the industrial processes that generate them, promote knowledge of the concepts of “circularity” and the “environmental footprint” of products/services; overcome the “disposable” approach, in consumption and production, promoting values of durability, sharing, repair, reuse and re-use of products and material resources. Up for grabs are EUR 3,000 for the best idea and three prizes of EUR 1,000 for three special mentions.
New, among the contests, of the tenth edition is the Rotary prize “Take a leap 2022”, which provides an award (in cash) for the best Maker in Lazio, chosen from among those who have distinguished themselves during Maker Faire Rome – from among the applications received through the selection of the “Call for Maker 2022” – for innovation, creativity and development potential, with particular regard to social aims. The jury’s attention will be focused on projects with the objectives of peace building and conflict management, disease prevention and treatment, environmental protection and community economic development, with areas of intervention including the use and enhancement of sanitation, maternal and child health, literacy and basic education. The contest is conceived and promoted by the Rotary Club of Roma Nord, with the patronage of Rotary District 2080 and the participation of the Rotaract Club of Roma Nord.
Organisation and partners
Maker Faire Rome, now in its tenth edition, is promoted and organised by the Chamber of Commerce of Rome, through its special agency Innova Camera, and can count on the support of institutional partners – including the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, the ICE Agency, and the Lazio Region – and private individuals.
“Maker Faire Rome – The European Edition 2022” is curated in terms of content by Alessandro Ranellucci assisted by a qualified team of area managers: Carlo Hausmann (food and agritech), Valentino Catricalà (art), Andrea Lai (music).
MFR2022 has the patronage of Roma Capitale, the European Commission, and the Embassies of the United States and Israel in Italy, and enjoys the partnership of Sviluppo Campania, Inail, InfoCamere, Unioncamere, Dintec, Pid, and PaviaSviluppo.
The many sponsors, both national and international, make the realisation of the event feasible and multiply the offer of usable content. These include Eni (main partner), Sanofi, Digi-Key Electronics, Acea, Arrow Electronics, STMicroelectronics, Unidata, Arduino, Terna, Sony.
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