Canvas | Community | The Beacon

Headquartered in Leuven (Belgium) and with research sites across Belgium, in the Netherlands, Taiwan and the USA, an rep offices in China and Japan, imec leverages its state-of-the-art R&D infrastructure and its team of about 4,000 expert scientists, to drive open innovation across the globe. They unite world-industry leaders, Flanders-based and international companies, start-ups, and academia and knowledge centers, for R&D in nano-electronics and digital technologies, including advanced semiconductor scaling, silicon photonics, smart health, smart energy, smart mobility and smart cities solutions, artificial intelligence, beyond-5G and sensing technologies and more.

Next to its R&D offering, imec also leverages its expertise and large international industry network to support smaller organizations that have limited in-house R&D resources as well as larger companies with their innovation process from initial idea to fully functioning product, from the design of a product or chip, to prototyping, testing and optimizing, and manufacturing.

Finally, imec supports tech start-ups and scale-ups with a tailored offering. The imec.istart program is a business acceleration program that provides tech entrepreneurs with specialized coaching, facilities and overall support to help them grow their businesses, while the imec.scale-ups program focuses on larger innovative tech scale-ups looking to conquer the European market.

Get in touch

Commissioned by the Flemish government, Lantis is building connections that make the city and region flourish. Lantis is responsible for the realisation of the Oosterweel connection, which will increase prosperity and improve the quality of life. Lantis is contributing to this by promoting mobility, including the construction of numerous bicycle connections and multimodal junctions on the city outskirts of Antwerp.

Lantis strives for operational excellence in order to carry out projects as efficiently as possible and deliver quality. Thanks to intensive cooperation with the surrounding area, the organisation works transparently and with a focus on results. Innovation and transformation ensure future-oriented projects with a lasting impact on the dynamics of the region. This is the Lantis way of successfully realising large projects in an urban environment.

Lantis stands for Liveable Antwerp through Innovation and Cooperation and is a public limited company. The day-to-day management is in the hands of the management committee led by managing director Luc Hellemans. David Van Herreweghe chairs the board of directors.

Get in touch

As Europe’s second-largest port and largest integrated chemical cluster, the Port of Antwerp Bruges is a major lifeline for the Belgian economy: annually around 238 million tonnes of international maritime freight are handled. The Port of Antwerp Bruges accounts, directly and indirectly, for a total of around 143.000 jobs and more than €20 billion added value.

Innovation and digitisation enable our mission to be ‘a home port for a sustainable future’ as we aim to flexibly respond to a rapidly evolving maritime market. By supporting The Beacon, we want to ensure that our port platform finds relevant points of contact and vice versa. Furthermore, we want to facilitate the exchange effect created through the ecosystem being built around The Beacon.

Get in touch

The city of Antwerp welcomes businesses, researchers, citizens and city officials to experiment with smart technologies that aim to make urban life more enjoyable and sustainable. Antwerp is a living lab where solutions are tested and co-created with its inhabitants. The city is home to highly innovative businesses and with 171 nationalities that live in Antwerp, it is above all a very diverse, and international city. The Ecosystem in Antwerp is developing rapidly, over the past years the amount of start-ups and scaleups in Antwerp doubled.

Innovative companies are the driving force behind the Antwerp knowledge economy. Their growth is crucial for our future. The City of Antwerp therefore strongly believes in the power of digital networking and is developing an ecosystem for digital innovation in which large and small businesses, startups, scaleups, researchers and capital providers with an interest in the Internet of Things and Artificial Intelligence can meet each other. Thanks to the cross-pollination that occurs in The Beacon, innovative products are developed that are relevant to Antwerp’s ‘smart city’ ambitions and to our financial stakeholders: industry and logistics.

Get in touch

The University of Antwerp is a research university where pioneering, innovative research is conducted at an international level. Research and education are closely linked, with 20,000 students and 6000 staff spread across our nine faculties. As a driving force in the Antwerp innovation ecosystem, innovation is a constant focus.

The Beacon is the university’s pioneering pre-incubation structure for the domain of Metropolitanism, Smart City, Mobility & Logistics. It houses the IDLab research group and the Design Sciences Hub.

The IDLab research group of the University of Antwerp and imec performs fundamental and applied research on Wireless technologies, Artificial Intelligence and Internet of Things. IDLab, headed by prof. Steven Latré, targets the most daunting challenges industry is facing to deliver digital transformation, connecting everything and extracting high value from data. Bringing researchers and industrial partners together at the same location facilitates knowledge transfer and enables the cross-fertilization and co-creation insights on smart cities, IoT and AI towards the industrial partners in The Beacon.

The Design Sciences Hub of the Faculty of Design Sciences is an interdisciplinary innovation and valorization lab. They offer design solutions for urban challenges and wicked problems in the triangle of urban planning, built environment, and urban health.

Get in touch

John Baekelmans nieuwe voorzitter raad van bestuur The Beacon

John Baekelmans wordt benoemd tot nieuwe voorzitter van de raad van bestuur van The Beacon. Hij volgt Wim De Waele op, die na zijn voorzitterschap sinds de oprichting in 2018 het roer doorgeeft.

The Beacon zet zo een nieuwe strategische stap in zijn ambitie om uit te groeien tot dé Europese innovatiehub voor digitale oplossingen in haven, industrie en mobiliteit. Met een verscherpte focus op IoT, AI, autonome systemen en (cyber)security wil de Antwerpse innovatiehub de centrale plek zijn waar technologiebedrijven en onderzoekers samenwerken aan de volgende generatie maritieme en industriële toepassingen.

In de komende jaren wil The Beacon zijn rol als verbindende schakel tussen startups, scale-ups, grote ondernemingen en kennisinstellingen nog verder versterken. De nadruk ligt op het ontwikkelen van concrete oplossingen die supply chains efficiënter en veerkrachtiger maken en tegelijk de bescherming van kritieke infrastructuur verbeteren. Daarbij wordt ook sterk ingezet op regionale samenwerking tussen innovatiepolen zoals Antwerpen, Gent, Hasselt, Kortrijk en Leuven, om meer talent en kapitaal aan te trekken en het Vlaamse ecosysteem internationaal sterker te positioneren.

Als nieuwe voorzitter van de raad van bestuur zal John Baekelmans een belangrijke rol spelen in het versnellen van deze koers. Met meer dan 25 jaar internationale ervaring in de technologiesector, onder meer in IoT, AI en digitale innovatie in haven- en industriële omgevingen, brengt hij een combinatie van strategische visie en praktijkervaring mee. Baekelmans werkte bij 3 Vlaamse startups en was als VP actief bij onder andere Cisco & imec en is vandaag Chief Product & Technology Officer bij Pointerpro in Antwerpen. Zijn achtergrond in zowel globale ondernemingen als lokale ecosystemen maakt hem bijzonder goed geplaatst om The Beacon te helpen uitbouwen tot een nog sterker innovatieplatform.

Samen met het team en de partners wil Baekelmans de strategische positionering van The Beacon verder aanscherpen en de groei van de community ondersteunen. De organisatie verenigt vandaag al meer dan 100 technologiebedrijven, startups, scale-ups en onderzoeksinstellingen op bijna 10.000 m² kantoor-, werk- en eventruimte in Antwerpen, met een duidelijke focus op digitale innovatie voor havens, industrie en mobiliteit.

𝐀𝐃𝐋𝐂 𝐎𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐬 𝐁𝐞𝐥𝐠𝐢𝐮𝐦’𝐬 𝐅𝐢𝐫𝐬𝐭 𝐀𝐝𝐯𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐝 𝐀𝐢𝐫 𝐌𝐨𝐛𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐂𝐚𝐫𝐠𝐨

Belgium's first advanced cargo drone hub is being built between Antwerp city centre and the port — and our resident ADLC is behind it.

An air bridge connecting two of the city's most logistically dense zones. No road congestion. No last-mile headaches.

Congratulations to the whole team!

Website

Belgium has launched its first open robotics lab. Here’s what’s happening on the ground!

Our founding partner Port of Antwerp-Bruges launching Belgium's first open robotics laboratory, together with North Star!

North Star, Belgium’s biggest AI and robotics community with more than 800 members, 15 events, and 20 hires, has launched The Vessel at the Antwerp port area (place), supported by Port of Antwerp-Bruges, which supports ongoing robotics and AI prototyping through August and will be featured at the Port of the Future Summit in September.

This groundbreaking initiative perfectly aligns with The Beacon's mission to drive maritime-tech innovation through AI and automation. Congratulations to the entire Port of Antwerp-Bruges team on this milestone achievement.

Read more here:

Website

Flanders takes the lead in regulation of autonomous and sustainable boating

Flanders is taking a big step towards autonomous and more sustainable boating on inland waterways. Last Friday 9 January, the Flemish government approved a final legal framework that takes innovative vessels out of the pilot zone and steers them towards daily practice. This explicitly positions Flanders as a European pioneer.

Website

Seafar and MAHI call 'permanent framework innovative sailing' strong signal

The permanent legal framework for innovative shipping in Flanders, announced in June 2025, was finally approved by the Flemish Government on Friday 9 January 2026. Sector players Seafar and MAHI call it a strong signal and a model of cooperation.

Website

BubblyDoo secures deal with Disney (DUTCH)

From now on, your kid can embark on adventures with Elsa and Mickey Mouse. BubblyDoo, an Antwerp company which creates personalised children's books, has secured a license agreement with Walt Disney. Last year, the company
BubblyDoo, een Antwerps bedrijf dat gepersonaliseerde kinderboeken maakt, heeft een licentieovereenkomst beet met Walt Disney. The company achieved a turnover of 5 million euros last year.

Website

MAHI powers remote operations for leading Danish dredging and offshore company Rohde Nielsen

AHI powers remote operations for leading Danish dredging and offshore company Rohde Nielsen

We’re proud to share some exciting news from within our own community: MAHI, one of our members, has been selected by Danish dredging and offshore shipping company Rohde Nielsen to equip part of its fleet with remote operations technology.

Rohde Nielsen, known for its innovative approach to dredging and offshore services, has contracted MAHI to enable remote control of its split hopper dredgers. The aim is to optimise dredging operations and create a solid foundation for future remote and increasingly autonomous activities.

Within just four weeks, MAHI successfully installed its remote operations technology on board two Rohde Nielsen vessels, Hugin and Munin. At the same time, a dedicated Remote Operations Centre (ROC) was set up in the company’s home port of Grenaa, Denmark. MAHI also trained the captains who will operate the vessels from shore, ensuring they are ready to take over control from land as operations are phased in.

Rohde Nielsen’s Head of Fleet Operations, Michael Martin Wegener Bjarløv, highlights why they chose MAHI: the company’s pragmatic approach and its ability to deliver a fast, professional installation on two complex split hopper vessels. The project will allow Rohde Nielsen to enhance its operational capabilities and, in collaboration with crew and authorities, take further steps towards remote ship operation.

As MAHI puts it, their mission is to strip away complexity and deliver a future-proof basis that enables a fleet to scale and evolve. This Danish project follows an earlier deployment of MAHI’s remote operations technology for Chilean tug operator Ultratug.

It’s inspiring to see a member of our community driving this kind of innovation in real-world maritime operations.

Dockflow raises 1.4 million in funding

Dockflow has raised an impressive €1.4 million to expand its maritime logistics software with AI-powered predictions. The funding allows them to further develop their platform's capabilities, from real-time container tracking to full predictive AI.

Website

Unikoo launches Marketing AI Studio Markomatic

(DUTCH)
Unikoo lanceert Markomatic, een AI-innovatiestudio die AI-marketingsystemen op maat bouwt en integreert in de bestaande werkwijze van marketingteams. Geen klassiek uitvoerend bureau of consultancy, maar oplossingen die naadloos aansluiten op het dagelijkse werk van marketeers; merkgetrouw in tone of voice, messaging en branding.

“Er zijn zoveel tools, opties en beloftes dat marketeers door de bomen het bos niet meer zien”, aldus Kasper Vancoppenolle, founder van Markomatic. “Veel marketeers gebruiken AI al, maar niet op het volle potentieel. Met Markomatic bouwen we voor elk marketingteam een brigade van AI-assistenten die we trainen met specifieke data, regels en use cases van de klant.”

Wat Markomatic onderscheidt: de oplossingen worden niet gebouwd door AI-consultants, maar door ervaren marketeers die de technologie en haar potentieel door en door begrijpen. Zij slaan de brug tussen marketingnoden en technologie. Binnen zo snel als twee tot vier weken staat er een werkende omgeving klaar, met gedetailleerde documentatie, training en EU-conforme gegevensbescherming.

Markomatic werkt met een helder stappenplan, van analyse en maatwerk tot implementatie en opleiding. Centraal staat het human-in-the-loop-principe: geen volledig autonome AI-agents, maar systemen die repetitieve taken overnemen terwijl marketeers de regie behouden over strategie, creatieve insteek en finale goedkeuring. AI bepaalt het tempo; de mens de richting.

“Markomatic helpt marketingteams de rol van AI in hun organisatie scherp te zetten en marketingmateriaal op hun eigen voorwaarden te ontwikkelen,” aldus Kenn Wouters, founder van Unikoo. “Het is een toegankelijke manier om structureel waarde te creëren met AI.”

Markomatic sluit naadloos aan bij de diensten van Unikoo, full-servicepartner voor start-ups, scale-ups en kmo’s. Unikoo biedt flexibele en schaalbare samenwerkingen in finance, administratie, HR, marketing en technologie, en helpt organisaties AI te omarmen op een manier die efficiëntie verhoogt en de operationele werking versterkt. Markomatic’s oplossingen versterken deze visie met concrete, snel inzetbare AI-systemen voor marketingteams.

Website

Hyperfox selected for exclusive Google Forum in Silicon Valley

Hyperfox is the only Belgian company selected for the prestigious Google for Startups Gemini Founders Forum in Mountain View, California.
Out of more than 1,000 scale-ups worldwide, only 53 companies were chosen to participate in this exclusive programme, organized by Google for Startups,Google Cloud and Google DeepMind.

The GeminiFounders Forum brings together a select group of the most promising AI scale-ups in the heart of Silicon Valley to share knowledge, gain access to Google's top expertise and collaborate on the future of artificial intelligence.

“This selection is a huge recognition for our team,” says Tom Devos, founder and CEO ofHyperfox. “We use AI to solve a real business problem, enabling us to process orders in seconds instead of minutes, in a specific niche of distribution and transport companies. The fact that Google selected us from more than a thousand candidates shows that our approach resonates internationally.”

Hyperfox is developing an AI platform that automatically processes B2B orders from various channels (such as email, PDF, Excel, WhatsApp, telephone and EDI) and converts them into correct ERP/TMS orders. In this way, the company helps manufacturing and distribution companies save time, reduce errors and speed up their orderflow.

During the Gemini Founders Forum, Hyperfox will work with experts from Google Cloud and DeepMind on AI enhancement, scalability and technological innovation.

“This is a unique opportunity for us as a team,” says Thomas Vangelooven, CTO of Hyperfox. ‘Every day, we apply the latest AI developments to real-world challenges faced by our customers, and it quickly becomes clear that AI is still at the beginning of its maturity curve. The collaboration with Google DeepMind offers us the opportunity to refine our technology at an accelerated pace and apply new generations of AI models to order automation in a concrete way. It is a strong confirmation that we are ont he right track internationally.’

The forum will take place in November 2025 at the Google campus in Mountain View, California.

Gratis workshop over Edge AI samen met MCS & Scailable!

Leer direct van de experts hoe je met Edge AI beveiligingstoepassingen slimmer maakt. Scailable. organiseert samen met Advantech en MCS een gratis workshop over de Scailable AI Manager.

Je krijgt een technische update en er worden nieuwe kansen gepresenteerd. Sinds de introductie van de MCS AI Gateway vorig jaar zijn er namelijk grote stappen gemaakt in de technische mogelijkheden van Edge AI.

Zien wij jou ook op 28 februari in Rotterdam?

📆 Dinsdag 28 februari 2023
⏰ 12.30 - 14.45 uur, inclusief broodjeslunch
📍Kiotoweg 719 in Rotterdam (MCS hoofdkantoor)

#innovatie #beveiliging #artificialintelligence #kunstmatigeintelligentie #iot #workshop

Website

B_ROBOTS_CONNECT

Looking for an exciting way to spend your evenings? Join us for an evening of inspiration, connection, and fun with a community of like-minded professionals and enthusiasts.

Each event you'll discover the latest buzzwords, cutting-edge innovations and emerging concepts in the digital world explained by field experts. Not only will you soak up knowledge and make connections, but you'll also have a blast! Don't miss out on this opportunity to expand your horizons!

Our first session will be filled with interesting, funny and eye opening facts and insights about the Metaverse brought to you by Jeroen Baert, computer scientist and comedian known from Podcast Nerdland and many other radio and tv shows.

After the show, all this new information can be digested during a networking dinner.

Seats are limited!
In order to be sure of a seat, register via https://b-robots.be/connect

Website

Connectivity fair: CO-OP 21/03/23

Citymesh is happy to invite you to CO-OP, the connectivity fair of the year. Learn more about connectivity in practice and get inspired by new trends. The name of the event reflects what Citymesh stands for: connecting opportunities, or CO-OP for short.

Why you shouldn't miss our exhibition:

-Learn how connectivity can support your business, regardless of size or sector
-Get up close and personal with practical use cases that address real challenges
-Gain new knowledge from speakers with a wealth of experience
-Take advantage of valuable networking opportunities
-Great food

What do you think: fancy combining knowledge, inspiration, conviviality and networking? Want to know how connectivity can make a difference for you and your organisation?

PRACTICAL
Date: 21 March 2023 from 10:00 to 18:00
Location: Skyhall, Brussels Airport

Website

The power of together! Beacon members collaborate : Dockflow and NxtPort International

Track & share live container #shipment data ! A new collaboration between two Beacon members, NxtPort International & Dockflow!
Proud to announce that the “Container Visibility” application of Dockflow is now available on the Nxtport International digital marketplace covering Asia, Americas and Oceania!
It combines powerful features with a wide range of #data integrations. Customers and their logistics partners always have access to the right information while saving time.
Dockflow users also have instant access to: Ocean carrier updates, Vessel position (#AIS) & Cargo monitoring devices!

Website

ClimateCamp raises 700k€ to reduce suppliers’ ecological footprint

Belgian ClimateTech start-up ClimateCamp raises 700k€ to reduce suppliers’ ecological footprint in the food & beverages industry

Website

Aloxy raises 3.8 Million Euro to scale up their Industrial IoT solutions globally

Aloxy, a spin-off of imec and University of Antwerp, that develops plug-and-play Internet of Things technology for the chemical and energy industry, closes its next funding round. A consortium of investors, Industrya, QBIC II, Innovation Fund, imec.istart and the University of Antwerp have joined forces with the team to invest € 3.8 million in the scale up and further growth of Aloxy. In the coming year, the company will focus on growing its sales activities as well as expanding the product range and further developing the Aloxy Industrial IoT Hub platform.

With this new round, Aloxy welcomes Industrya as a new investor who led this round. Industrya is a hands-on investment fund that operates exclusively in the industry 4.0, energy and new materials sectors.

Website

Cubitec nominated for IT project of the year

Exciting news for our community members at Cubitec.

Their project for Bebat has been nominated for IT project of the year in the Enterprise sector by Computable

Bebat is a forerunner when it comes to digital transformation and Cubitec is proud to work with them on a safe future for batteries

More here

Website

Dockflow launches Europe's first End-to-End Cargo LoraWAN based temperature monitoring service

Massive news from our community members at Dockflow.

The Port of Antwerp, Europe’s second-largest container hub, in collaboration with, Foodcareplus an integrated international logistics provider offering specialty services in the food transportation industry, Dockflow the world’s first integrated logistics enablement platform offering container visibility, and TrakAssure, a leading provider of cargo monitoring solutions based on the ever-growing global LoRaWAN IoT network, have announced a service offering cargo temperature condition monitoring service for logistics assets and cargo, providing exception alerting solutions for cargoes for both shippers and 3PLs.

The solution uses existing LoRaWAN infrastructure at the port, where TrakAssure monitors are installed at load location and data streams into Dockflow’s servers via API, allowing it to be shared with relevant stakeholders in the cold chain.

You can read all about this exciting news here

Website

Geosparc announces partnership

Great news for our community members at Geosparc.

GEOSPARC announced at the Intertraffic conference a partnership in the development of data-driven mobility management.
A Geosparc platform trusted by numerous cities and municipalities across the Benelux region will now be powered by Mobilisis parking sensors.

More here

Website

Aloxy secures US patent

Aloxy is happy to announce the US patent is granted for the Aloxy valve position sensor.

Great news for our community members who are working hard on expanding in the US market.

Read the full article here

Website