The initiative, led by the Antofagasta Industrial Association and supported by leading companies in the sector, is developed within the framework of the upcoming edition of EXPONOR 2026, establishing itself as one of the main platforms for applied innovation in the country, promoting solutions aimed at strengthening the national value chain.

EXPONOR announced the 30 participants selected for the "Launch Your Innovation" contest, a program that seeks to support and highlight Chilean innovative talent with real challenges in the industry, through joint work between technology ventures, large companies and the public and academic ecosystem.

In this regard, Andrea Moreno, EXPONOR manager, highlighted the strategic importance of the contest with respect to the growing needs of the productive sectors, emphasising that "the programme reflects the commitment of the event to innovation that goes beyond the idea stage and is tested and projected in real-world environments. The selected participants represent concrete solutions for the sector’s current challenges and have a high potential to strengthen its value chain." she said.

30 participants selected with high potential

A specialised jury evaluated and subsequently selected from the submitted ideas, reviewing over 50 projects submitted from various regions of the country, and selected 30 proposals for their level of development, projection and relevance for application in the industry. The initiatives address challenges associated with operational efficiency, sustainability, digitalisation and enabling technologies, with a focus on strategic sectors such as mining and industrial services.

“The companies that advanced to the next stage of the competition and will be part of EXPONOR 2026 are:”

PULSO SpA; HI Mining; DEVCODERX SpA; Smart Rental Equipments SpA; Lavor Mining Technology; Totew SpA; ZigoMin Online; Neuritiva SpA; Servicios y Tecnologías Avanzadas Tres Andes SpA (Botiia); Matter of Trust Chile; Tomos; Rukian Tech; IAP Solutions SpA; SPF Ingeniería SpA; Neuro4B SpA; RHENÜ SpA; Neos AI; GUNJOP Chile SpA; ZIZCAR SpA; BQSense SpA; AMV LATAM; SentryApp; PURELI SpA; Duhomec SpA; Zuvar Control; ISANTO Security; Warriors Innova SpA; Sogeco Norte Grande SpA.

Programme leadership

"Launch Your Innovation" is one of EXPONOR's strategic initiatives aimed at promoting applied innovation and technology transfer to the industry, strengthening the connection between emerging solutions and productive actors.

The valuable support of the companies Antofagasta Minerals, Escondida | BHP, Spence | BHP and SQM Yodo, made it possible to increase the award to be given to the winning innovations: 10 million pesos for first place and 5 million pesos for second place.This incentive positions "Launch Your Innovation" as a unique opportunity to scale future business ideas and technological ventures for the development of solutions that impact the industry.

Sebastián Díaz, Project Engineer at the AIA Business Development Centre and in charge of this edition of the "Launch Your Innovation" programme, explained that this initiative narrows the gap between technological development and the real needs of the industry. "Here we work with specific challenges, which makes it easier for solutions to evolve with a clear focus on their implementation,"he said.

Evaluation with a comprehensive perspective

The selection process was carried out by a panel composed of representatives from the public, private and academic ecosystem, who evaluated the proposals considering technical, commercial and impact criteria for the industrial value chain.

The panel was composed of Solange Medina, Spence | BHP; Valentina Wyman, Fundación Chile; Isabel Allanca, PUC; Bastián Parra, Escondida | BHP; Shierley Leyla Farfán, Antofagasta Minerals; Maricho Gálvez, CORFO; Gloria Cartagena, SQM Yodo and Melissa Gajardo, Executive Director of the Corfo Antofagasta Committee.

In this regard, Melissa Gajardo, a member of the jury, highlighted the relevance of Lanza Tu Innovación for the country’s entrepreneurial ecosystem, sharing some of the considerations taken into account when evaluating each project. "A project with real impact is distinguished by the clarity with which it defines its commercial maturity, its approach to customers, and how it positions its technology in the market. What matters is not only the level of technological development, but also whether the team has identified the challenges it must face to move forward, whether to scale sales or to carry out its first commercial operations."

The impact of winning: 2024 experience

The value of the programme is also reflected in the experience of those who participated previously in "Launch Your Innovation". The winner of the 2024 version, Matías Iraida, International Business Engineer at WM Technologies and creator of the Magic Eye project, highlighted the reach and visibility provided by this platform at the national level. "It's a perfect opportunity to establish a presence in the sector. Although the mining sector always talks about Antofagasta, Iquique, and the north in general, this type of initiative allows ventures from all over Chile, from any region of the country, to gain visibility and reach the right people to sell their services to," she said.

Trajectory linked to innovation

The "Launch Your Innovation" programme began in 2017 with the aim of focusing technological development and entrepreneurship on the requirements and needs of strategic sectors of national industry. Over the years, it has become a platform for solutions that now operate in real-world environments.

The selected companies now move on to the next stage of this contest, which is focused on preparing them for their participation in EXPONOR 2026, where they will have an exclusive space to present their ideas, which will be supported by official "Launch Your Innovation" catalogues, which will contain the details of each of their innovations and the potential impacts they could have on the industry.