Open Innovation at Würth Elektronik

Open innovation at Würth Elektronik: Collaborating with startups worldwide through the Innovation World Cup and Würth Elektronik's central innovation management platform.

How Würth Elektronik scouts relevant startups globally, evaluates their potential, initiates successful collaborations, and integrates interested teams across the organization.

“Through the Innovation World Cup, we get to know hundreds of qualified international startups and scaleups every year, network with them, and start co-creation projects. By automatically uploading the startups from the Innovation World Cup database into the ITONICS system, many more colleagues now have access to the relevant startup information.”

– Thomas Waldman, Start-Up & Venture Manager, Würth Elektronik

Creating together for the future

Open innovation—inviting external innovators into the innovation process—is a powerful accelerator for product development and innovation management. Würth Elektronik, a leading manufacturer of electrical and electromechanical components, circuit boards, and intelligent systems for the electronics industry, continually enhances its innovation management process.

The company’s commitment goes beyond manufacturing. With its “Creating Together” philosophy, Würth Elektronik positions itself as a dedicated industry partner, providing comprehensive support and collaboration throughout the product lifecycle. This commitment extends to working with startups, ensuring that innovation is fostered both within and outside the company.

By embracing open innovation, Würth Elektronik can develop a future-resilient product and service portfolio in key areas such as wireless connectivity, sensors, power modules, IoT, cloud & software services, and big data. This approach enables Würth Elektronik to identify emerging trends, engage with innovative growth partners, and build market segments well in advance.

Open innovation goals

Würth Elektronik's open innovation efforts are guided by several key goals that drive its collaboration with startups and scaleups. These objectives include:

Systematic identification of relevant startups across key innovation fields
Promotion of the company's portfolio and the "Creating Together" philosophy
Company-wide collaboration with qualified startups, including other Würth Group companies
Driving sales growth by entering new market segments through startup innovations

Since 2018, Würth Elektronik has been working with TECHPRNRS and the Innovation World Cup to reach hundreds of thousands of startups and developers. Through this partnership, Würth Elektronik is informed about the latest technologies from some of the world's most innovative startups.

From targeted scouting to revenue generation

Würth Elektronik's open innovation approach, supported by the Innovation World Cup and the Würth Elektronik innovation management platform, enables the company to systematically scout, evaluate, and collaborate with startups worldwide. By centralizing innovation efforts, Würth Elektronik streamlines the process from startup identification to revenue generation, ensuring a faster path from innovation to market success. Additionally, Würth Elektronik leverages the TECHPRNRS ecosystem to showcase its technology portfolio to hundreds of thousands of startups, empowering them to integrate Würth Elektronik components into their next-generation products.

Targeted startup scouting

Würth Elektronik has defined dedicated innovation fields in which it seeks qualified startups. These fields form the basis for targeted scouting efforts. To help promote the application and development of new technologies, Würth Elektronik also provides free development kits to selected startups and scaleups via the TECHPRNRS’ Innovation World Cup program.

The Innovation World Cup

As a partner of the Innovation World Cup since 2018, Würth Elektronik taps into a vast network of more than 800,000 IoT techpreneurs each year. With the scope covering fields such as Industry 4.0, energy, mobility, security, agriculture, smart buildings, smart construction, and healthcare, Würth Elektronik is able to connect with cutting-edge startups and scaleups, fostering innovation and exploring potential collaborations across a broad range of industries.

Global awareness campaign

The Innovation World Cup reaches between 500,000 and 800,000 startups and scaleups annually. Würth Elektronik leverages this program to promote innovation on a global scale. Each year, the company also participates in around 10 pitch events at leading trade fairs and startup festivals. Acting as speakers, jury members, or mentors, Würth Elektronik representatives use these opportunities to connect with startups and spread the “Creating Together” philosophy.

Aggregating startup information

Selected startups from the Innovation World Cup and targeted scouting are added to the Würth Elektronik innovation management platform, along with their pitch decks and relevant information. This ensures that teams across the company can easily access, review, and discuss the startups and their proposals in detail, helping everyone stay informed and make timely, well-informed collaboration decisions.

A central knowledge database

With the Würth Elektronik innovation management platform, powered by the ITONICS Innovation OS, Würth Elektronik has built a central knowledge database that captures critical insights from external startups and scaleups. This system allows Würth Elektronik to track future-relevant trends, innovative technologies, and potential partners across various sectors. By bringing all of its innovation knowledge into one system, Würth Elektronik aligns teams in their innovation efforts and speeds up the process from scouting to implementation.

Direct sales generation

Würth Elektronik's open innovation with startups and scaleups has led to tangible outcomes, including direct sales generation. By integrating the Würth Elektronik innovation management platform with its CRM system, Würth Elektronik ensures that promising startups identified through the platform are seamlessly entered into the sales pipeline. This integration enhances collaboration and provides real-time visibility into new opportunities, allowing the company to convert innovation efforts into revenue streams.

Achievements

Through its collaboration with TECHPRNRS and the implementation of the Würth Elektronik innovation management platform, Würth Elektronik has significantly enhanced its ability to scout, collaborate with, and integrate innovative startups into its product development process. These efforts have resulted in a number of key achievements that drive both innovation and business growth.

Systematic scouting of startups: Enhanced ability to identify and engage qualified startups globally through targeted scouting, building a strong pipeline of high-potential ventures.
Accelerated adoption of product portfolio: Promotion of Würth Elektronik’s technologies to hundreds of thousands of techpreneurs.
Enhanced product development: Faster adoption of innovative startup solutions into Würth Elektronik’s product development process, boosting innovation.
New perspectives: Gained systematic input from external startups, offering fresh perspectives that inspire new ideas and solutions.
Increased company-wide innovation competence: Strengthened innovation capabilities across the company by involving more employees in startup collaboration and knowledge sharing.
Scalability: Expanded the reach of innovation efforts by enabling more employees to access startup information and ensuring the efficient processing of innovation activities.

These accomplishments have not only strengthened Würth Elektronik’s innovation ecosystem but also positioned the company to capitalize on emerging technologies and market opportunities, ensuring sustainable growth and long-term success.