Andrew Coiley
Strategic Communications Manager, Industry & Innovation, European Climate Foundation
About the award
The JA Europe Innovation of the Year Award recognises student start-ups that developed the most innovative businesses and business solutions with real future investment potential. The jury will nominate 1st, 2nd and 3rd place place in the JA Europe Start Up Innovation of the Year 2026 Award.
How winners are chosen
Innovation and Value Creation 30%:
Market and Competition 30%:
Did the team clearly identify the target market and the market potential of their product/service?
Did the team show an understanding of their competition and their product/service differentiation in relation to them?
Finances 15%:
Management & Team 15%:
Ability to Demonstrate Achievements in Learning 10%:
Meet the jury
Andrew Coiley
Strategic Communications Manager, Industry & Innovation, European Climate Foundation
Jonas Alexandersson
CEO & Founder, Kuorolab.ai
Malthe Ludvigsen
Owner of Malthe Invest
Marjolein Nijhuis
Founder Plus Projects / member of EO
Marta Lucia Carneiro Enes
Impact Fund Director at Schneider Electric
Thelma Matuk
Interim CEO and Transition Director at EIT Health
Wided Trifi
Customer Success Manager, Salesforce
Katrina Zarina
CEO, Latvian Chamber of Commerce and Industry
Kim Balle
Customer Success Manager, Salesforce
2026 Winner Spotlight
LIVIA is a space-enabled agricultural intelligence platform that combines Earth Observation satellite data, autonomous drones, artificial intelligence, and digital twin technology to help farmers…
Meet the teamVitisIno turns winery by-products into premium, variety-specific functional ingredients. Every harvest leaves grape pomace behind — rich in polyphenols, fiber and antioxidants, yet mostly discarded,…
Meet the teamSmart4Leak aims to detect leaks in infrastructure networks using sensor-based monitoring and analysis.
Meet the team