– PLAI, the Mondadori Group startup accelerator aimed at turning AI-based ideas into successful businesses, was a leading player at SMAU (www.smau.it/milano), a reference for the innovation ecosystem in Italy, which was held in Milan at FieraMilanoCity on 29 and 30 October.

During the event, PLAI – the Mondadori Group accelerator — together with other companies of excellence accepted the SMAU 2024 Innovation Award, the prestigious prize for Italian companies with a strong propensity for innovation, capable of driving the country’s growth. It aims to enhance collaboration between companies and startups through open innovation and co-innovation projects to promote competitive solutions internationally. The SMAU Innovation Award is dedicated to companies that embrace innovation as a strategy for growth and success, becoming a model for the Italian and international markets.

‘The SMAU Innovation Award is a source of pride for the entire Mondadori Group, which places technological progress and related applications at the basis of its strategy for success. To do so, it has created an accelerator to select and support the development of innovative startups and open a concrete market outlet for the most promising,’ says Stefano Argiolas, CEO of PLAI.

Stefano Argiolas talked about his experience with PLAI at the live show ‘Open innovation models and approaches, how to stimulate innovation in the enterprise’. Open innovation allows companies in general, but startups in particular, to work with external partners that encourage creativity and open opportunities for growth and the development of solutions and processes.

SMAU proved to be an event full of workshops, networking and unique opportunities to make contact with people driving change: Andrea Santagata, CEO of Mondadori Media and Chief Innovation Officer of Mondadori Group, was involved in the working table behind closed doors, chaired by Alessandro Fermi, Councillor for University, Research and Innovation of the Lombardy Region, entitled ‘Artificial intelligence: ongoing experiences and future prospects’ formed with other companies to discuss issues related to artificial intelligence and collaboration models with startups.

In the matching area, the space designed for networking, PLAI also met the request for interaction to present the solutions of its young businesses — of the 165 invited by SMAU — that align with the interests of Mondadori Group: education, books and publishing, new media & advertising and retail.

‘We decided to participate in SMAU for the first time because we consider the event to be the stage for innovation in Italy and also the preferred place for interaction among entrepreneurs. We have received several requests for meetings from startups that view PLAI as being able to transform the future. Our mapping and scouting does not end here. We are already thinking about the next acceleration cycle,’ declares Stefano Argiolas.

October was a month full of networking and presentations for PLAI, from Milan Digital Week to SIOS24 Florence by Startup Italia, from Codemotion Conference Day to Intersections 2024, the event stemming from the union of IAB Forum and IF! Italians Festival — dedicated to digital innovation, marketing, communication, creativity and technology — and finally to SMAU 2024.

PLAI is the Mondadori Group startup accelerator that aims to transform ideas based on the use of artificial intelligence into successful entrepreneurial ventures. PLAI offers them a distinctive field of application and an industrial market both within the Group and with the initiative’s partners. PLAI operates in the pre-seed and seed phases, selecting and investing in Italian and international startups. In addition to capital, the accelerator provides startups with concrete areas to apply AI, structured training and mentorship courses, and the opportunity to participate in networking events, partly thanks to the unique set of skills and assets provided by major Italian and international partners.