A new milestone for Accelup, the European Network of Living Labs (ENoLL), and the lasting legacy of EVOLVE2CARE!
We are delighted to share that Accelup, the digital marketplace connecting innovators with certified Living Labs across Europe, is now featured among the innovation services of the European Commission’s EU Innovation Platform!
Launched in June 2026, the EU Innovation Platform provides a central gateway to European innovation support services, helping researchers, startups, SMEs and other innovation actors discover opportunities, access expertise and establish partnerships to bring their innovations closer to market.
For EVOLVE2CARE, this recognition marks an important milestone in a two-year journey of close collaboration with ENoLL and our project partners, during which Accelup was further developed, tested and refined to support a more effective model of collaboration between innovators and Living Labs.
From a matchmaking platform to a comprehensive experimentation ecosystem
Originally developed through the Horizon 2020 VITALISE project, Accelup is powered by ENoLL, providing innovators with access to its extensive network of certified Living Labs and their expertise in co-creation, testing and real-world validation.
Through EVOLVE2CARE, the platform underwent significant improvements, moving beyond its initial matchmaking capabilities towards a more structured and user-friendly experimentation environment.
These developments included:
- Improved user experience and project management, with redesigned dashboards, enhanced profiles, advanced project filtering, automated notifications and project progress tracking.
- More informed matchmaking, through enriched project descriptions capturing innovators’ experimentation needs, target users, social readiness and regulatory or data-related requirements.
- Standardised Living Lab services, building on the ENoLL Living Lab Harmonization Framework and sector taxonomy to establish a common language between innovators and service providers.
- A combined digital and human-centred matchmaking approach, bringing together the platform’s evolving matching functionalities with ENoLL’s facilitator-led support and expertise.
Together, these improvements have strengthened Accelup’s potential to support the complete collaboration journey, from identifying experimentation needs and suitable partners to managing projects and evaluating results.
Validated through real-world collaboration
Crucially, EVOLVE2CARE provided an opportunity to test Accelup in practice, rather than solely focusing on its technical development.
Through the project’s Open Call, the platform facilitated:
- 44 innovation projects posted by innovators seeking experimentation opportunities.
- 32 bids submitted by Living Labs offering their expertise and services.
- 18 successful matches between innovators and Living Labs.
- 10 selected mini-consortia, bringing HealthTech innovators together with five Living Labs for funded experimentation in real-life settings.
These results offered practical evidence of the platform’s matchmaking potential, while generating valuable feedback on the needs, expectations and challenges of both innovators and Living Labs.
Beyond demonstrating the value of the marketplace, the experience helped advance a more structured, transparent and collaborative approach to accessing Living Lab experimentation services, with particular emphasis on HealthTech innovation and Transitional Care.
ENoLL: A key partner in Accelup’s evolution and future
Throughout this journey, ENoLL has played a central role in connecting Accelup’s technological development with the wider European Living Lab community.
Its contribution extended from mobilising Living Labs and facilitating matchmaking to promoting standardised service offerings, knowledge exchange and capacity building.
In particular, ENoLL’s Harmonization Framework helped shape the platform’s service classifications, while its dedicated training programme on Service Design for Living Labs strengthened the capacity of Living Labs to respond effectively to innovators’ needs. The ENoLL Academy and Knowledge Hub also provide important opportunities for connecting Accelup with a broader ecosystem of learning resources and practical tools.
This close collaboration has been instrumental in preparing Accelup for its next phase, with a phased commercialisation and sustainability strategy envisaging an initial operational model linked to ENoLL, and opportunities to extend the marketplace’s application beyond HealthTech.
Building a lasting legacy for EVOLVE2CARE
Accelup’s inclusion in the EU Innovation Platform is especially meaningful as EVOLVE2CARE reaches the end of its implementation.
It represents a tangible step towards one of the project’s central ambitions: ensuring that the tools, partnerships and experimentation opportunities developed through EU-funded research continue to generate value beyond the funding period.
The listing also builds on ENoLL’s efforts to position Accelup within Europe’s broader innovation support landscape, creating new opportunities to attract innovators, strengthen partnerships and support the platform’s long-term uptake.
After two years of shared work, experimentation and learning, we are proud to have contributed to this progress alongside ENoLL and the entire EVOLVE2CARE consortium.
The project may be concluding, but the foundations for new collaborations, continued growth and a more connected Living Lab innovation ecosystem are firmly in place.
Discover Accelup on the EU Innovation Platform: View the official service listing
Explore the marketplace: Visit Accelup
