INTA Announces the Winners of Its 2026 Open Innovation Challenge

INTA hosted its annual Open Innovation Challenge (OIC) on Sunday, May 3, in London, UK, during its 2026 Annual Meeting. Tanya Fickenscher (Major League Baseball, USA) and Lara Kayode (O. Kayode & Co., Nigeria), the Annual Meeting Co-Chairs, announced the winners later that day during the Opening Ceremonies.

The OIC, which has now been held for the fourth consecutive year at the Annual Meeting, provides a unique opportunity for early- to mid-stage start-ups and scale-ups to pitch and promote their business ideas, technology innovation, or research applications to a distinguished panel of judges, including experts in branding, brand valuation, business advisory services, intellectual property (IP) law, marketing, ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance), and finance.

The competition is split into three categories: Early-Stage Start-Ups; Mid-Stage Start-Ups; and Early-Stage Scale-Ups. This year’s OIC attracted a record 84 applications from 26 jurisdictions across the three categories. The UK led with 21 applications—reflecting the host city of London’s thriving start-up scene—followed by South Africa (12), the United States (10), and Nigeria (7), with strong participation from Brazil, France, Jordan, Kenya, Israel, and Qatar.

Unsurprisingly, many submissions featured AI-driven solutions, particularly in IP enforcement, trademark analytics, brand protection, legal tech platforms, agri-tech, climate resilience, med-tech, and education technology.

Nigerian start-up Heart and Tale won in the Early-Stage Start-Up category. The company creates culturally inclusive educational and gifting products that preserve oral histories and elevate underrepresented communities. The company’s founder, Adaora Chinenye Vivian Momah, spoke to the role of IP in protecting early innovation: “The OIC showed me that innovation without IP protection is a gift to your competitors. For founders like me, building at the intersection of culture and technology, IP is not the fine print—it is the headline.”

UK-based Peripear Ltd. was named the Mid-Stage Start-Up winner. The company has developed an automated thermal wearable that delivers controlled warmth and hands-free perineal support during vaginal birth to help reduce injury. Company co-founder, Nina van Schaick, highlighted the strategic role of IP: “Before co-founding Peripear, I understood IP primarily as a protective mechanism, something you filed to stop others from copying your work. Building a MedTech company has changed that entirely. When our patent was granted, I watched it shift investor conversations, change how hospitals assessed us, and raise the bar for any competitor entering our market. IP, I realized, is not a defensive wall but an active commercial asset that shapes fundraising, partnerships, and positioning in ways I hadn’t anticipated.”

In the Scale-Up category, Aisthesis Medical Ltd., also based in the UK, was recognized for advancing innovation at a later stage of growth. Aisthesis Medical Ltd. is the leading AI technology company predicting sepsis in patients 48 hours before usual symptoms appear. Similarly to the other winners, the company’s CEO and co-founder, Ioannis Gkouzionis, shared how participation in the OIC has evolved how he views the role of IP in his business: “The OIC helped me see IP not simply as legal protection, but as a strategic asset that enables entrepreneurs to protect innovation, build investor confidence, and translate ideas into real-world impact.”

Beyond the competition itself, the OIC continues to highlight INTA’s role in supporting entrepreneurs and fostering a deeper understanding of how IP underpins sustainable business growth. As participation grows year over year, the initiative reflects a broader shift toward embedding IP strategy at the earliest stages of innovation.

INTA will host the OIC again next year as part of its 2027 Annual Meeting in San Diego, California, USA, continuing its commitment to connecting innovators with the global IP community. The competition will launch later this year.

Although every effort has been made to verify the accuracy of this article, readers are urged to check independently on matters of specific concern or interest.

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