Impact beyond technology: EIT Manufacturing nominees won EIT Awards 2025

Nine finalists of the EIT Awards 2025 took the stage in Budapest on 25 November. This is the long-awaited moment, featuring achievements of innovation projects, startups and changemakers – all coming from the EIT Community. This EIT Awards 2025 edition is remarkable for EIT Manufacturing, as all the nominees headlined the awards in all three main categories.

Ann LoCicero secured first place in the EIT Innovation Award; Charlotte Stigen Låstberg claimed third place in the EIT Venture Award and Farnaz Baksh earned third place in the EIT Changemaker Award.

Solutions that matter

The EIT Awards celebrate Europe’s brightest entrepreneurs within the EIT ecosystem in three distinct categories. EIT Changemaker highlights innovators from EIT education programmes creating social impact in their communities. EIT Innovation Team celebrates multidisciplinary projects bringing transformative technologies to the market for the benefit of the industry, environment and society. EIT Venture recognises startups challenging norms with bold, scalable ideas.

Among this year’s finalists, the ideas in the EIT Changemaker category ranged from a smart software that extends battery life and a platform empowering new angel investors and underrepresented founders to an open-source study companion robot for students. Alongside them were projects from the EIT Innovation Team showcasing breakthroughs in human-centric industrial artificial intelligence (AI), personalised breast cancer screening and voice-based health diagnostics. Startups joined the race for the EIT Venture prize with affordable exoskeletons, a circular solution for minerals recovery and smart sensor technology that reduces chemical use.

Clean sweep for manufacturing innovation

With all three EIT Manufacturing nominees winning the awards, their achievement reflects a clear trajectory: people-centred, sustainable and inclusive innovation is driving the future of European manufacturing, delivering both social impact and industrial competitiveness.

The awards were presented by Antoaneta Angelova, Director of the Directorate-General for Education, Youth, Sport and Culture (DG EAC) of the European Commission, alongside Stefan Dobrev, Chairperson of the EIT Governing Board.

Industrial intelligence starts with people

The AI Industrial Analytics project, led by Ann LoCicero, won first place in the EIT Innovation Team Award! Designed to simplify AI adoption on the shop floor, the project delivers real-time insights without the need for coding, empowering non-technical operators to make smarter decisions, reduce waste and increase efficiency. This milestone celebrates the collaborative efforts of a consortium including smartFAB, BIBA, Beko Europe, BIC Violex, Dana Italia and Goodyear.

Ann LoCicero won first place in the EIT Innovation Team Award 2025

Eliminating guesswork for smarter chemicals management

Charlotte Stigen Låstberg’s startup, Digiclean Solutions, earned third place in the EIT Venture Award. The company revolutionises chemical use in industry by deploying Plug-and-Play AI-powered sensors, which optimise industrial fluid use. Now chemical use is measurable, efficient and sustainable – helping factories cut waste, reduce emissions, extend fluid life and improve performance.

Charlotte Stigen Låstberg, third-place winner of the EIT Venture Awards 2025, and Antoaneta Angelova

Redefining support for students worldwide

The third place and the EIT Changemaker Award went to Farnaz Baksh, Inventor of Robot Study Companion (RSC). Having experienced firsthand how difficult it can be for students to access the support they need in their studies, she created an affordable, open-source social robot that offers emotional and organisational support to students, fostering academic success and well-being through peer-like companionship.

Farnaz Baksh, winner of third place in the EIT Changemaker Award 2025, and Antoaneta Angelova

Writing Europe’s next innovation chapter

Leaving Budapest with three awards, the EIT Manufacturing Community is solidifying the breadth of innovation potential, bold ideas changing the status quo and the role of our industry as a foundation for Europe’s growth.