What makes a Living Lab official? Highlights from the 5th webinar

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On September 10, 2025, the EVOLVE2CARE Training Series for Living Labs continued with its fifth session, focusing on one of the most defining aspects of Living Labs: certification and standardization. Delivered by Gabriella Quaranta and Alessandra Tricarico of the European Network of Living Labs (ENoLL), the session unpacked not only the why of certification, but also the how—from evaluation frameworks and tools, to good practices and lessons learned.

Why certification matters

As Gabriella Quaranta explained, ENoLL certification for Living Labs is widely regarded as a global standard for user-driven innovation, reflecting a structural and methodological assessment of their maturity as an innovation ecosystem.

Harmonization: What is it?

A central theme of the session was harmonization. Gabriella Quaranta highlighted that ENoLL has developed a structured and comprehensive system to assess the maturity, sustainability, and impact of Living Labs. By harmonizing evaluations, ENoLL ensures consistency and quality assurance, while also providing guidance for improvement, enabling global collaboration, transparency, and accountability, and strengthening long-term sustainability.

This harmonized evaluation framework is built around six evaluation chapters, covering:

  • Strategy: Examines macro-level issues such as multi-stakeholder participation, the orchestration role of the Living Lab, collaboration strategies, and its overall business model.
  • Users & reality: Looks at collaboration with users, levels of engagement, and participation, with emphasis on iterative processes in real-life contexts and the correct use of tools and methods.
  • Operations: Evaluates how a Living Lab manages its operations, including infrastructure, equipment, and human resources.
  • Openness: Reviews the openness of processes, partnerships, and projects, as well as practices for feedback and intellectual property protection.
  • Value & Impact: Focuses on the development of co-created values and the identification of impact clusters generated by the Living Lab for its stakeholders.
  • Stability & Scale-up: Assesses financial and organizational stability, long-term sustainability, and the replication of strategies and practices across ecosystems.

Together, these chapters translate into 15 evaluation criteria, forming the backbone of certification.

Tools for Evaluation: Self-assessment and qualitative application

Certification is supported by two complementary tools, as Alessandra Tricarico pointed:

Self-Assessment Tool: A quantitative instrument that allows Livin Labs to assess their maturity and sustainability and following that gives them a customized evaluation report.

Qualitative Application Form: A narrative-based tool where applicants describe governance structures, business plans, internal and external communication, human resources, projects, available equipment and infrastructure, innovation partnerships and processes, and ownership of results. It is limited to 20 pages (plus annexes) and allows supplementary materials. Here, evaluators look not only at facts but also at the story of the Living Lab’s vision and practice.

By combining these two, certification captures both hard data and contextual insights, ensuring fairness, depth, and comparability.

Tips & good practices

To help applicants succeed, the speakers shared practical advice drawn from years of experience evaluating Living Labs:

  • Spend enough time preparing a proper assessment and compiling all supporting material.
  • Start working in advance, avoiding last-minute submissions.
  • In the qualitative application form, answer each question, keep responses to one page (excluding visuals), and ensure all documents are in English.
  • Provide a clear explanation of governance structures.
  • Prepare a business plan that transparently presents future strategies.
  • Detail human resources, specifying who is involved, in what roles, and with what expertise.
  • Describe equipment and infrastructure, emphasizing availability and access.
  • Highlight collaboration strategies, showing how diverse stakeholders are engaged beyond single-project contexts.

These tips underscored the importance of thoroughness, clarity, and forward-looking planning in the application process

What’s next?

The EVOLVE2CARE Training Series will conclude with its final webinar: “Measuring Impact & Evaluating Success” on September 24, 2025, at 15:00 CEST. This closing session will guide participants in defining key performance indicators (KPIs), assessing service design, and measuring the broader impact of Living Lab activities.

Register here

How HealthTech innovators can fundraise with confidence

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The fifth session of the EVOLVE2CARE Training Series for HealthTech Innovators and Researchers took place on 4 September 2025, delivering a deep and practical dive into the realities of startup fundraising. Led by Adriane Thrash, the session “Fundraising & Pitching: An Investor’s Guide” offered a no-nonsense guide to what investors actually look for—and how innovators can meet those expectations with clarity, strategy, and confidence.

One of the core themes of the session was understanding the different types of investors and what each brings to the table. Adriane Thrash broke down the key categories:

  • Angel Investors: Often the first to believe in a startup, angel investors typically invest at early stages. They are usually more flexible and founder-friendly but offer limited capital and may not always bring sector-specific expertise.
  • Venture Capitalists (VCs): VCs look for high-growth potential and scalability. They expect aggressive expansion, clear exit strategies, and strong returns. Their involvement often comes with structured oversight and performance expectations.
  • Corporate Investors: These investors seek strategic alignment with their own business goals. They may offer more than capital—such as access to distribution channels, technical resources, or regulatory support—but their priorities may shift based on internal strategy.
  • Impact Investors: Focused on measurable social or health outcomes alongside financial returns, impact investors are particularly relevant in HealthTech. They value mission-driven innovation and often require robust impact metrics.
  • Public funding sources: These include grants, subsidies, and innovation programs from national or EU-level institutions. While non-dilutive and mission-aligned, public funding often comes with strict eligibility criteria, reporting obligations, and longer timelines. Innovators must be prepared to demonstrate societal value, policy alignment, and long-term sustainability.

Choosing the right type of investor is as important as securing the funding itself.

Fundraising is a strategy, not serendipity

Adriane Thrash emphasized that fundraising is not about luck or charm—it’s about building a strategic plan that aligns with your startup’s stage, goals, and long-term vision. Innovators must understand their business fundamentals and be able to communicate them effectively.

Know your numbers — and your market

Investors want facts. That means knowing your TAM (Total Addressable Market), SAM (Serviceable Addressable Market), SOM (Serviceable Obtainable Market), your projected growth, your burn rate, and your financial runway. 

Transparency builds trust

One of the most important lessons: don’t hide problems. Investors are not deterred by challenges—they’re deterred by surprises. Be upfront about risks, gaps, and what you’re still figuring out. A founder who can clearly articulate both strengths and weaknesses earns credibility.

Pitching is communication

A strong pitch is built on clarity, confidence, and relevance. Adriane Thrash encouraged innovators to focus on storytelling—connecting the problem, solution, team, and market in a way that resonates. Avoid jargon, be concise, and tailor your message to the investor’s perspective.

Prepare for due diligence

Fundraising doesn’t end with the pitch. Adriane Thrash highlighted the importance of being ready for due diligence—the process where investors validate your claims, assess risks, and examine your operations. Innovators should have their data room organized, with financials, legal documents, team bios, and product details ready to share.

What’s next?

The final session of the EVOLVE2CARE Training Series for HealthTech Innovators and Researchers, titled “Measuring Impact & Scaling Pilots — Driving Evidence-Based Growth in Living Labs,” will take place on 19 September 2025 at 15:00 CEST. It will focus on helping innovators define success through SMART metrics, design effective pilot evaluations, and use data to demonstrate real-world impact. Led by Despoina Petsani, ThessAHALL Project Manager at AUTH, the session will guide participants in generating the kind of evidence that funders, policymakers, and partners require to support and scale innovation.

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Communication as the engine of innovation in Living Labs

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The fourth session of the “Trainings on Service Design for Living Labs,” held on September 3, 2025, focused on building innovation networks and engaging stakeholders in meaningful ways. Titled “Building Innovation Networks: Communication and Engagement”, the webinar brought together four speakers who shared practical cases, conceptual frameworks, and tools for stakeholder engagement within Living Lab ecosystems.

Clara Garcia Blanch, Pilot Test Manager at the Social Digital Lab (Suara), opened the session with practical reflections on identifying and engaging stakeholders in co-creation processes. She stressed that while visible actors are crucial, hidden stakeholders often influence project outcomes in unexpected ways. Drawing from her experience, she underlined the importance of mapping, listening, and uncovering less obvious contributors in order to design inclusive and sustainable innovations.

Leen Broeckx, Panel Manager at LiCalab, presented how her organization structures stakeholder engagement in health and care innovation. LiCalab operates test environments involving citizens and care professionals, drawn from its own database, in real-life settings, and works in close collaboration with hospitals, residential care centres, and home care services. Leen explained how their stakeholders are categorized into internal and external, how their stakeholder analysis uses approaches such as power/interest grids to position actors and design suitable engagement activities. She described the identifying needs process, which includes workshops, expert interviews, and inspiration sessions. As an example, she presented the “Orion” dementia care case, where staff and users tested smart technologies such as bed sensors and smart lamps.

Marta I. De Los Ríos White, representing the European Network of Living Labs (ENoLL), provided the theoretical foundation for stakeholder engagement. She defined categories such as internal vs. external, primary vs. secondary, and direct vs. indirect stakeholders, while clarifying distinctions between stakeholders, users, and customers. Marta also highlighted the role of the Quadruple Helix Model, which positions the public sector, businesses, education and research, and civil society as central actors.

The instructor also shared practical tips and tricks for effective communication with stakeholders:

  • Be transparent: Clear communication builds trust and credibility.
  • Be adaptable: Be prepared to adjust communication strategies as projects evolve and stakeholder needs shift.
  • Ensure accessibility: Consider potential language barriers and disabilities by developing inclusive strategies.
  • Aim for two-way communication: Establish mechanisms for feedback and input rather than one-way dissemination.
  • Be present and responsive: Actively listen to stakeholder concerns, questions, and suggestions, and respond promptly.

Finally, she explained why citizens are essential stakeholders, because they:

  • Align the community’s projects with real local needs
  • Secure people’s long-term support to the community
  • Ensure social acceptance
  • Ensure transparency and accountability in decision-making and community operations
  • Empower people to make informed decisions
  • Boost innovation and creativity, bringing fresh ideas and solutions
  • Stimulate economic benefits for the people, such as job creation within the community

Concluding the session, the focus shifted to the Thessaloniki Active and Healthy Ageing Living Lab (Thess-AHALL), presented by Despoina Petsani, Research Associate at the AUTH Medical Physics and Digital Innovation Lab, showcasing how long-term citizen engagement and structured tools can transform a Living Lab into a robust innovation ecosystem. Despoina presented outcomes from projects such as Long Lasting Memories, showing impacts in cognitive and physical training. She also showcased practical tools: Accelup, a collaboration platform for innovators and Living Labs; PaneLab, a panel management platform; and a methodological guide (partners of experience) for citizen involvement. Thess-AHALL’s work demonstrates how trust, continuity, and structured tools help Living Labs evolve into strong innovation ecosystems.

What's next?

The training series will continue with its fifth session on Certification & Standardization of Living Labs, taking place on September 10, 2025, at 15:00 CEST. This upcoming webinar will explore the essential requirements for certification, the benefits of achieving it, and the international recognition it brings to Living Labs.

Register here

EVOLVE2CARE at the Digital Public Health Conference 2025

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On July 24–25, 2025, EVOLVE2CARE was represented at the International Digital Public Health Conference (DPH25) in Madeira by Ecem Özdemir from Sploro. The conference brought together experts from across the digital and public health sectors, offering a dynamic platform for sharing insights and exploring innovative collaboration.

Ecem introduced the EVOLVE2CARE Open Call to more than 60 innovators, highlighting the opportunity for them to access Living Labs services and infrastructures across Europe. Through the Open Call, selected innovators will receive experimentation services support to test and co-develop their HealthTech solutions in real-world environments.

The presence of EVOLVE2CARE at DPH25 helped raise awareness of the project’s role in fostering inclusive, human-centric healthcare innovation. By bridging innovators with a dynamic network of Living Labs, EVOLVE2CARE contributes to building a collaborative ecosystem for the co-creation and validation of impactful solutions that address the challenges of Transitional Care; a critical area where patients move between care settings such as hospital to home, or from specialised care to long-term support.

From protection to strategy: How HealthTech innovators can leverage IP

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The fourth session of the EVOLVE2CARE Training Series for HealthTech Innovators and Researchers took place on 24 July 2025, bringing sharp focus to one of the most essential, and often overlooked, aspects of innovation: intellectual property (IP).

The session, titled “Unlocking IP Value – Protection, Collaboration & AI Innovations,” was led by Yannis Skoulikaris, Founder and Managing Director of PatentMind Netherlands BV, and former Director at the European Patent Office (EPO). PatentMind offers expert guidance based on deep knowledge of software patents, AI innovation, and international patent law.

What is Intellectual Property, and what does it protect?

The session outlined the four types of IP and what they protect:

1. Patents – Protect technical inventions and unique processes or products

Patentable examples include:

  • Algorithms, software methods, if embedded in a technical solution to a technical problem

2. Copyright – Protects code, content, and creative works

Patentable examples include:

  • Source code
  • Manuals
  • Graphics

3. Trademarks – Protect brands, logos and names

Used for:

  • Product names
  • Company logos

4. Trade secrets – Protect confidential information, algorithms and know-how

Includes:

  • Source more
  • Formulas
  • Client lists

The instructor highlighted that Intellectual Property is the secret weapon of innovators for protecting, managing, and unlocking value from their innovation.

Why does it matter?
  • Competitive advantage
  • Company Valuation & Investment
  • Licensing Opportunities
  • Legal defence & Risk mitigation

In the fast-evolving world of tech and AI, strong IP protection is crucial for staying ahead, attracting investors, and safeguarding innovation.

Patents in focus

Patents are one of the most powerful tools to protect and commercialize innovation—especially in HealthTech and AI-driven environments.

What can be patented?

To receive a patent, an idea must be novel and solve a real problem. The specific requirements vary slightly by region:

  • In Europe, the invention must provide a technical solution to a technical problem.
  • In the US, it must offer a useful solution to a practical problem.
Why do patents matter—particularly in tech and AI?
  • They protect your innovations from being copied by competitors.
  • They increase your company’s valuation and attractiveness to investors.
  • They create new licensing and collaboration opportunities.
  • Importantly, patent rights are granted to the applicant, not necessarily the inventor—making early filing and clear agreements essential.
How does the patenting process work?

The pathway from idea to protection follows a clear structure:

  • Search: First, check if your invention is new.
  • Application: File with the relevant patent office.
  • Search/Examination: Patent office reviews your application in an interactive process, involving the applicant.
  • Patent Granted
The power and peril of collaboration in IP

Collaboration is a cornerstone of innovation—but when it comes to Intellectual Property, shared ownership must be managed with clarity and care. Navigating shared IP ownership—whether with co-founders, collaborators, or licensees—requires balancing benefits and risks.

Why collaboration pays

Working with co-founders, collaborators, or licensees can accelerate development and expand your market reach. Benefits include:

  • Shared expertise and resources, fostering deeper innovation
  • Faster time-to-market through increased development capacity
  • Broader visibility via partner distribution and co-marketing channels

The risks without IP agreements

  • Ownership disputes – unclear title can derail projects
  • Usage conflicts – unauthorized use or overlapping commercialization
  • Enforcement issues or gridlock – difficult to license or defend jointly

Key takeaways

  • IP is a critical asset: Proactively identify, protect, and manage your intellectual property
  • Testing Innovation: Know which aspects of your work are eligible for protection
  • Collaboration: Always set clear IP agreements at the start of any partnership
  • AI’s unique IP challenge: Data, algorithms, and AI-generated works require tailored IP strategies
What’s next?

The next session in the EVOLVE2CARE Training Series for HealthTech Innovators and Researchers is titled “Fundraising & Pitching Strategies – An Investor’s Guide for Innovators.” It will feature Adriane Thrash, Managing Partner at Anthology Ventures, as the special speaker.

The session is scheduled to take place on 4 September 2025 at 15:00 CEST and will offer expert insights on how to craft compelling pitches and navigate the fundraising process with confidence. Designed for innovators looking to connect with investors and elevate their ventures, this event is a key opportunity to gain strategic guidance from an industry leader.

Stay tuned as we continue to bridge the gap between innovation and market with practical knowledge for real-world success.

Register here

Founder’s lens: Building sustainable HealthTech solutions

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The third online session of the EVOLVE2CARE Training Series for Innovators and Researchers took place on 17 July 2025, offering a grounded and insightful look into the entrepreneurial path of a HealthTech founder. Titled “Building a Sustainable HealthTech Business – A Founder’s Journey,” the session was led by Panagiotis Katsaounis, Medical Geneticist and CEO of Metabio, a company pioneering IT solutions for biobanks. 

The session formed part of the six-part EVOLVE2CARE series From User to Market – Faster Validation and Commercialisation for HealthTech Innovators and Researchers, which supports HealthTech innovators working in Transitional Care and Clinical Pathways to accelerate their journey from research to real-world impact.

Why biosamples matter — and Why managing them is hard

Biosamples are a cornerstone of biomedical research and power medical R&D excellence, supporting advancements in diagnostics, drug discovery, genetics and environment.

However, IT systems to manage biosamples and associated data are often inadequate and problematic for researchers; unreliable, leading to poor data harmonization across sources; and limited, failing to capture the historical dimension of biosample usage. As a result, valuable data remains underutilized or inaccessible. 

This challenge laid the groundwork for the creation of Metabio, a next-generation IT platform designed to modernize and integrate the full spectrum of biosample data. By offering real-time access, harmonized metadata, and GDPR/HIPAA-compliant tools, Metabio enables biobanks, researchers and the entire research ecosystem to unlock the true potential of the biosample collections.

Key highlights

Identifying the real value

The instructor described how Metabio emerged from direct experience in the lab, where data quality gaps and outdated biobank IT systems conflicted with cost and time constraints.

Building the business model

Participants were guided through Metabio’s evolution from an idea to a revenue-generating SaaS platform. 

A breakdown of real startup costs revealed a balanced allocation:

  • 35% for team and operations
  • 30% for R&D and clinical validation
  • 20% for sales and marketing
  • 15% for regulatory compliance

This financial transparency highlighted the importance of lean spending, focused prioritization, and resource-efficient scaling.

Practical advice for HealthTech founders

Panagiotis Katsaounis shared several turning points, including a major shift from offering physical infrastructure to delivering modular, interoperable software. He emphasized that being responsive to market feedback and recognizing internal limitations were critical to navigating early-stage uncertainty.

The session closed with a set of key takeaways aimed at helping other innovators design more viable and resilient ventures:

  • Prioritize Speed and Iteration: Avoid over-engineering early on. Launch MVPs quickly rather than chasing perfection.
  • Cultivate deep customer and patient empathy: True innovation starts with understanding. Invest time in interviews, shadowing, and co-creation.
  • Build resilience and a supportive network: Surround yourself with a core team that shares the long-term vision. Replace doubt with determination.

What’s next

The upcoming session “Unlocking IP Value: Protection, Collaboration & AI” on Thursday 24 July, 2025, at 15:00 CEST, will explore how to protect intellectual assets, manage innovation in collaborative environments, and navigate new IP challenges in the age of artificial intelligence.

Stay with us as we continue to equip innovators with the tools to build, scale, and sustain meaningful healthtech solutions—from user to market.

Register here

Applying Service Design in Living Labs: Webinar highlights

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The second session, titled “Designing Tailored Living Lab Services for Innovators”, which is part of the Living Labs Training Series, took place on 9 July 2025. It focused on designing structured, user-oriented services that enable Living Labs to better support innovators, accelerate experimentation, and ensure sustainable operations.

This six part training program is specifically crafted for Living Lab managers, researchers, and innovation professionals. It brings together top experts in service design and real-world practitioners from across Europe. The last webinar featured contributions from:

What is Service Design?

Francesca Sperandio opened the session by introducing the central question: “What is Service Design?” She explained that Service Design is about intentionally planning and organizing all the different touchpoints and interactions—from users and staff to platforms and operations—that collectively make up a service. 

  • Service Design is human-centered, evidence-based, and follows an iterative, collaborative process.
  • Living Labs, likewise, emphasize active user involvement, real-life experimentation, and co-creation.

Case Studies from the Thessaloniki Action for Health & Wellbeing Living Lab

In her turn, Despoina Petsani shared two concrete case studies from the Thessaloniki Action for Health & Wellbeing Living Lab, developed within the framework of the VITALISE project. VITALISE enables researchers from various disciplines to access European Living Lab infrastructures through Transnational Access.

These examples highlighted not only the innovative services developed—such as ASSURE, an AI tool for dysphagia detection, and HESTIA, a thermal monitoring system to support informal caregiving—but also the concrete resource needs involved in delivering them.

For each pilot, she presented a side-by-side comparison of time and personnel dedicated by internal and external teams. Internal refers to the Living Lab’s own staff, who are familiar with lab protocols, logistics, and stakeholder engagement, while external refers to visiting researchers granted access through the project.

The data showed needs for 170h/30d internal vs. 52h external for ASSURE project, and 121/28d internal vs. 14d external for HESTIA—demonstrating that effective Living Lab services require considerable coordination and time investment.

Structuring and Pricing Living Lab Services

Marta I. De Los Ríos White guided participants through a practical methodology for turning Living Lab activities into repeatable, well-defined services. 

The structured 5-step Servive Design Process included:

  1. Discover: the phase of immersion, where tools like interviews, observations, and self-documentation help capture real user needs and contextual insights.
  2. Define: a period of analysis—making sense of the findings, spotting patterns, and setting a clear design challenge.
  3. Develop: the creative core of the process, where ideas are generated, sketched, and prototyped through both visual and tactile methods.
  4. Deliver: this stage transforms ideas into action—pitching, role-playing, testing, gathering feedback, and capturing learnings.
  5. Evolve: a forward-looking stage focused on scaling, building partnerships, tracking impact, and celebrating even subtle change.

Do you know how to price your services?

To close, Marta I. De Los Ríos White presented three guiding steps for Living Labs ready to define the value of what they offer. First, she encouraged participants to assess the value their services provide to innovators, including the time saved, risk reduced, and unique benefits delivered. Next, she stressed the importance of understanding internal costs—factoring in people’s time and expertise, specialized tools, resources, and overhead. Finally, she highlighted the need to align pricing strategies with the Living Lab’s broader mission and funding model, ensuring financial sustainability while staying true to core objectives.

What’s next?

The next session for Living Labs, “Navigating Legal, Ethical & Regulatory Frameworks,” will take place on August 27, 2025, at 15:00 CEST, and will approach the ethical, legal and regulatory frameworks, explores the sector-specific compliance and engages with regulatory bodies.

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Highlights from the 1st webinar for Living Labs

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The first session of “Trainings on Service Design for Living Labs”, held on June 25, 2025, successfully brought together 23 participants for an engaging and insightful webinar titled “The Role of Living Labs in the Innovation Ecosystem.” The session featured five distinguished speakers—Prof. Dr. Dimitri Schuurman,  Senior Research Strategist (ENoLL), Ingrid Adriaensen, Business Manager (LiCalab), Dr. Eva Kehayia (RehabMaLL), Clara G. García Blanch, Pilot Test Manager, (Suara), and Sofía Ballesteros Rodríguez, Social Worker (Fundación INTRAS)—and was facilitated by Marta I. De Los Rios White and Francesca Sperandio from ENoLL.

The discussion began with Prof. Schuurman, who situated Living Labs within broader innovation frameworks, tracing their evolution from the Triple Helix model (government, academia, industry) to the more inclusive Quadruple Helix, which incorporates civil society. He emphasized the strategic role of Living Labs in open innovation, particularly their contributions to value creation, co-creation, and real-life experimentation. He also introduced a framework for navigating complexity across strategic, tactical, and operational levels.

Building on this, he described the importance of anchoring Living Labs in a clear mission and vision—one that addresses long-term partnerships, user needs, and value creation—through an ecosystem-driven approach. Finally, he illustrated how Living Labs function in practice across three layers: multi-actor orchestration at the organizational level, multi-method and real-life experimentation at the project level, and active stakeholder engagement through co-creation and co-design at the activity level—underscoring their dual role in fostering open innovation and empowering user innovation.

Following this, each speaker presented a unique Living Lab case, offering practical insights into how these collaborative environments are driving user-centered innovation across diverse sectors.

Ingrid Adriaensen – LiCalab

Ingrid Adriaensen presented the Living and Care Lab (LiCalab) based in the Province of Antwerp, Belgium, embedded within Thomas More University of Applied Sciences. She explained how LiCalab supports companies in developing and validating care-related innovations by offering a strong user research infrastructure, including a panel of over 1,200 citizens and care professionals, and by leveraging collaborations with hospitals, municipalities, and international networks.

LiCalab focuses on care technology—including e-health, medtech, assistive and communication tools—and innovative models for collaboration in care settings, with a strong emphasis on sustainability, inclusion, and both digital and health literacy. A key example was the ‘Welgerust’ (Well Rested) project, a multi-actor initiative tackling sleep issues through a blended care approach. The solution combines the Moonbird device—which uses biofeedback to guide users through optimal breathing patterns—and tailored psychological support. The project, which targets both adults and children, caregivers, and a local hospital, illustrates how Living Labs can drive user-centered innovation from early-stage development to real-world testing.

 

Dr. Eva Kehayia – RehabMaLL

Dr. Eva Kehayia (CRIR – Centre for Interdisciplinary Research in Rehabilitation of Greater Montreal) presented the Rehabilitation Living Lab (RehabMaLL), a pioneering initiative promoting full social participation and inclusion for people with disabilities. Situated in a public commercial mall in downtown Montreal, RehabMaLL offers a real-life environment where citizens, researchers, clinicians, policy makers, and community organizations come together to co-design and test socially inclusive innovations. Eva showcased the TeleRehab-GT platform, developed collaboratively with stroke survivors, caregivers, and health professionals to ensure that telerehabilitation tools align with users’ needs and values. The Living Lab fosters innovation through inclusive, interdisciplinary collaboration, combining real-world conditions with simulation spaces, and guided by the core principles of respect, equity, and user empowerment.

The RehabMaLL is a multi-tasking environment that enables users to engage in everyday activities (e.g., shopping, and social interaction) while testing assistive or rehabilitative technologies. This setup allows researchers to evaluate user experiences in dynamic, real-life contexts, increasing the relevance and applicability of innovation outcomes.

Clara G. García Blanch – Suara Social Digital Living Lab

Clara García Blanch presented the work of Suara’s Social Digital Living Lab, which promotes technological and service innovation within one of Spain’s largest social economy cooperatives. The Living Lab is grounded in four core values: a person-centered approach to care and innovation, digital inclusion as a means to reduce inequalities, co-creation with all stakeholders from the outset, and a strong commitment to continuous evaluation, learning, and adaptation.

She explained that Suara delivers a wide range of services tailored to individual needs across the life course—from early childhood to elderly care, including areas such as functional diversity, social inclusion, adult education, and justice.

A key focus of her presentation was the collaboration with Broomx, an immersive technology company. Through this partnership, Suara implements immersive and virtual reality experiences for mindfulness, cognitive stimulation, and recreational purposes in care settings. These interventions support core areas such as well-being, neurorehabilitation, and psychostimulation, particularly benefiting vulnerable or older populations.

Sofía Ballesteros Rodríguez – MINDLab

Sofía Ballesteros presented the work of Fundación INTRAS, a non-profit organisation dedicated to supporting people with mental health conditions, cognitive impairments, and other vulnerabilities. At the core of INTRAS’ innovation strategy is MINDLab, its certified Living Lab and a member of ENoLL. MINDLab acts as a permanent co-creation space supporting innovators through close collaboration with users and professionals. Its intervention scope centres on people with mental health challenges and cognitive decline, and its main competencies include:

  • Cognitive intervention & rehabilitation through new technologies
  • Sensory Stimulation
  • Digital Health
  • Empowering personalized interventions
  • Co-design with users and public involvement
  • Dissemination, knowledge transfer & research networking
  • Digital learning, inclusion, and accessibility
  • Connected Care at home and Independent living solutions

Also, she introduced VIVEMAIS, a cross-border and transdisciplinary initiative funded by the European Union, which aims to promote the design, adoption, and use of assistive technologies (ATs). These technologies are essential tools that enhance the functional capabilities of individuals facing challenges in communication, mobility, memory, and learning.

The session set a solid foundation for the series, sparking meaningful dialogue and offering actionable insights for Living Labs committed to advancing user-centered innovation.

What’s next?

The next session for Living Labs, “Designing Tailored Living Lab Services for Innovators,” will take place on July 9, 2025, at 15:00 CEST, and will introduce service design principles while exploring how Living Labs can create customized services to better support innovators and their specific needs.

Register here

Webinar on HealthTech impact with Design Thinking & Living Labs

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On June 19, 2025, the EVOLVE2CARE Training Series for HealthTech Innovators and Researchers continued with its second session, gathering over 20 participants for an engaging webinar on “Design Thinking in Action — A Living Lab Approach to HealthTech Innovation.” The session was led by Ioannis Poultourtzidis, Coordinator of the ThessAHALL Living Lab, a pioneering hub for health and wellbeing innovation, driven by the AUTH Lab of Medical Physics and Digital Innovation based in Northern Greece since 2014.

This insightful session offered a practical look at how Living Labs, when combined with Design Thinking, can empower researchers and innovators to build HealthTech solutions that are ethical, inclusive, and truly responsive to user needs. It addressed one of the core challenges in health innovation: too many technologies are developed without real-world validation. Living Labs help address this challenge by involving real users in real contexts, enabling co-creation and testing that lead to more relevant and usable solutions.

The 3-Step framework for impactful HealthTech innovation

At the core of the session was a practical 3-step framework developed to accelerate HealthTech solutions:

  • Understand

Innovation begins with an in-depth exploration of user needs, challenges, and environments. This phase involves stakeholder mapping, needs assessment, and early framing of design hypotheses. Living Labs enable immersion into users’ real-life settings — homes, clinics, and communities — without artificial filters. Special attention is given to capturing gender-sensitive and inclusive insights, ensuring solutions reflect the full diversity of users.

  • Engage

This step focuses on co-creation with all relevant stakeholders — patients, caregivers, clinicians, policy-makers, insurers, and technologists. Rather than gathering feedback after development, Living Labs bring stakeholders into the design process itself through co-design workshops, design sprints, and digital collaboration platforms. This inclusive, participatory model ensures that the solutions developed are relevant, feasible, and widely accepted. Innovation thrives on collaboration!

  • Build for impact

The final step emphasizes rapid prototyping, real-world testing, and iteration. Living Labs allow innovators to trial functional prototypes directly with users in authentic environments. This accelerates learning, reduces development risks, and ensures technical and business feasibility. The process supports agile development by turning insights into measurable outcomes, such as improved health, increased usability, and meaningful adoption

Innovation journey – 4 Phases

Living Lab Networks guide innovators through each of the four phases: design, technology, business, and impact.

Design: Human-centered design frames the solution based on desirability and real needs

Technology: Prototypes are tested for technical feasibility within Living Lab environments

Business: Viable business models are validated, considering cost, sustainability, and market fit

Impact: Solutions are evaluated on outcomes such as improved patient care, usability, and long-term value

This journey ensures that innovation is not just about new technology, but about developing sustainable, scalable solutions that create measurable value for healthcare systems and the people they serve.

Why Living Labs matter in HealthTech?

Living Labs offer a unique environment to design with, not just for, users by:

  • Providing access to diverse populations in natural settings
  • Capturing real-time feedback and behavioral insights
  • Helping de-risk innovation by validating usability and integration early
  • Supporting ethical, GDPR-compliant, and inclusive research practices

What’s next in the EVOLVE2CARE training sessions series for HealthTech Innovators and Researchers?

The next session in the series, “Building a Sustainable HealthTech Business – A Founder’s Journey,” will take place on July 17, 2025, at 15:00 CEST. Participants will have the opportunity to hear from Panagiotis Katsaounis, CEO of Metabio, as he shares the real-world story of growing a HealthTech startup from idea to validated solution. The session will explore key business decisions, unexpected challenges, and the strategic pivots that shaped the company’s journey, offering a grounded look into the entrepreneurial side of healthcare innovation.

Register here

First webinar on supercharging innovation with LLMs & No-Code Tools

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On June 12, 2025, the EVOLVE2CARE project successfully kicked off the first session of its Training Series for HealthTech Innovators and Researchers titled “From Users to Market – Faster Validation and Commercialisation for HealthTech Innovators and Researchers”, introducing participants to cutting-edge strategies for accelerating innovation through Large Language Models (LLMs) and No-Code platforms for rapid prototyping.

Led by Metaxas Gamvrelis, Technical & Training Lead at Anthology Ventures, the session “Accelerating Innovation — Leveraging LLMs & No-Code for Rapid Prototyping” brought together over 15 healthcare innovators and researchers, and offered a practical and inspiring deep dive into how tools and No-Code platforms like ChatGPT, Landbot, Lovable, and Google Gemini can dramatically shorten the innovation lifecycle—from early ideation to real-world deployment.

Rethinking prototyping: From weeks to days

Metaxas Gamvrelis opened the session by contrasting the traditional approach to prototyping—often slow, costly, and resource-intensive—with today’s possibilities enabled by AI and automation. He introduced a streamlined 4-stage framework that demonstrated how LLMs and No-Code tools transform each step:

Stage 1: Idea to Prototype

AI-LLMs can accelerate product ideation and planning by:

  • Brainstorming product features and user stories
  • Drafting Product Requirement Documents (PRDs)
  • Generating user personas & customer journey maps
  • Summarizing market research

Stage 2: User testing

Feedback is fuel for innovation. With AI-powered support, innovators can:

  • Set up user tests quickly and with minimal resources
  • Gather diverse feedback from surveys, interviews, and chatbots
  • Perform initial analysis of results to identify key insights fast
  • Perform sentiment analysis and theme extraction

Stage 3: Iterate & Improve

Once initial feedback is collected, the real power of LLMs and No-Code tools emerges, enabling rapid iteration, continuous refinement, and smarter decision-making without starting from scratch.

  • LLMs help extract insights from user feedback, generate improvement suggestions, and update designs/requirements in real time.
  • Tools like Lovable and Figma support versioning and A/B testing, making iteration cycles faster, smarter, and more agile.

Stage 4: Deploy Rollout (MVP)

With minimal development time, MVPs can be launched using No-Code platforms such as Glide, Replit, and Retool.

LLMs assist by:

  • Generating product documentation
  • Drafting marketing copy, landing pages, FAQs
  • Creating onboarding flows (emails, chatbot scripts)
  • Even code snippets for future integrations

Living Labs reimagined: More agile than ever

In the next part of the session, the training and technical expert explored how this tech revolution aligns perfectly with the Living Lab methodology, a cornerstone of EVOLVE2CARE project. By combining co-creation, iteration, and real-life user involvement with the agility of LLMs and No-Code:

  • Prototypes can be created on-demand during co-design sprints
  • Feedback can be gathered in real-time through smart forms and bots
  • Iteration becomes virtually limitless within project timelines

“Living Labs are a huge gift,” he said, “because they help people check services before they’re fully developed. And now, they can do it faster, with less risk.”

To close the session, Metaxas Gamvrelis walked participants through real-time examples of how he uses ChatGPT in his own workflow. He emphasized the value of clear, well-structured prompts and shared one of his go-to techniques: “At the end of each prompt, I always ask: ‘Do you understand the task?’—it’s a small step that ensures accuracy. 

What’s next?

This first session set the tone for EVOLVE2CARE’s Training Series—equipping HealthTech innovators and researchers with practical tools to accelerate early-stage development using LLMs and No-Code platforms. The second session, “Design Thinking in Action — A Living Lab Approach to Healthtech Innovation,” is scheduled for Thursday, 19 June 2025 at 15:00 CEST.

Join us as we dive into the power of design thinking in real-life healthcare contexts. Led by Ioannis Poultourtzidis, Coordinator of the ThessAHALL Living Lab, the session will explore how co-creation, inclusivity, and user-centered design lead to more relevant, ethical, and effective innovations.

Register here