ONCE has launched a new edition of the ONCE Innova Emprendedores Challenge, its open-innovation program that seeks to incorporate solutions developed by startups to address real challenges faced by the Organization. Under the motto ‘ONCE seeks startups to solve four challenges in its 2026 open-innovation program edition’, the application period will be open until May 11.
The program targets startups, scaleups and digital SMEs that have market-ready solutions and the ability to develop a pilot in collaboration with ONCE. The goal is to identify innovative proposals that can be implemented in a real environment and generate direct impact on people’s lives, especially in areas related to autonomy, inclusion and the improvement of logistics processes and waste management.
In this edition, ONCE sets out four challenges: improving the autonomous mobility of people with visual impairments, facilitating accessible and informed navigation within its centers, optimizing the lifecycle management of its products, and improving access to training and tools for its network of sellers. These are concrete challenges seeking applied solutions, with the potential to scale within the Organization.
Inclusive Innovation
The ONCE Innova Emprendedores Challenge has established itself as a benchmark open-innovation initiative with social impact. Since its launch, 146 projects have been submitted and eight pilots with startups have been developed, some of which have been scaled within the Organization, demonstrating the program’s ability to connect the entrepreneurial ecosystem with real needs.
The 2026 call will select eight finalist startups, two for each challenge, that will participate in an inclusive innovation and accessibility bootcamp with ONCE teams between July and October. During this period, the startups will receive targeted training in accessibility and will work on co-designing their solutions in a real environment, with the Organization’s guidance.
In the final phase, four winning projects will be selected, one per challenge, giving them the opportunity to develop a pilot in direct collaboration with ONCE, access a real-world validation environment, work with the Organization’s teams and explore scaling possibilities for their solutions.
The selection process will involve a multidisciplinary jury composed of representatives from tech companies, entities in the entrepreneurial ecosystem and experts in accessibility and innovation. Among them are professionals from companies such as Microsoft, Google or AWS, as well as from organizations like ENISA, Fundación Tecsos, Fundación ONCE, Zubi Capital or COTEC, together with key profiles from the ONCE Social Group and the academic community.
Collaborative Approach
This practical, collaborative approach has been key to the success of previous editions. Startups such as Mentiness, specializing in psychological wellbeing in organizations, have moved from participating in the challenge to scaling their solution within ONCE. During their participation, the startup was able to adapt its technology to the organization’s context, incorporating aspects such as accessibility and the diversity of profiles, and validate their proposal in a real environment.
In the same vein, other projects like the pilot developed with YASYT, focused on accessible voice assistants, reflect the program’s potential to drive innovative solutions that combine technology and social impact, especially in areas such as personal autonomy and service accessibility.
With this initiative, ONCE reinforces its commitment to open innovation as a tool to drive technological solutions with social impact, solidifying its role as a bridge between the startup ecosystem and the real challenges faced by a large organization.
