Past events | Innovation

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

Community Potluck Apéro | Kwart Na Bier With A Twist

Kwart Na Bier with a twist! Join us for our Potluck Apéro, where everyone brings a snack to share while we provide the drinks.

The Beacon @ SPRINT ROBOTICS WORLD CONFERENCE

World conference for inspection & maintanance robotics

Halloween Horror Movie Night

Join us for a spooky night of Halloween horror movies at The Beacon!

Tech Scoop | Cybersecurity

Get ready to dive into the world of cybersecurity, we ride at dawn! September 27, 8.45am - 2pm

Beacon and Eggs | Community Brunch

Join us for a Summer Brunch while connecting with the Beacon Community!

Slice & Strategize Resident Brainstorm

We want to know what ideas our Beacon residents have to take our community and building to the next level. Time for a brainstorm!

The Beacon Community Connect | Hybrid

Join us at The Beacon Community Connect event to meet other members and build a stronger community together!

Skybar invites The Beacon Community

The Skybar has finally opened its doors. On August 1st The Beacon Community is invited to discover the new bar on the 10th floor!

Euro2024 Kwart Na Bier | Football game broadcast

Come and watch the Euro2024 quarterfinals with fellow Beaconeers over a beer!

[Workshop] Threat Modelling

introduction of the concept and need for threat modelling and indicate how it can be used for the use of product development cybersecurity

The Beacon SummerFest

Celebrate summer with us at The Beacon SummerFest - a fun-filled event with music, food, and good vibes!

Lunch & Learn: Get Ready for the AI Act

Join us for a Lunch & Learn session where we'll discuss the impact of the AI Act on Europe's tech industry - don't miss out!

Euro2024 Kwart Na Bier

Take part in the Euro2024 prediction contest and show off your soccer expertise!

Lunch & Learn: Europe versus Machine - Get Ready for the AI Act

Join us for a Lunch & Learn session where we'll discuss the impact of the AI Act on Europe's tech industry - don't miss out!

Beacolympics 2024

Welcome to the most anticipated competition of the year - the Beacolympics!
Unleash your inner champion in our very own version of the Olympic Games. Dust off those running shoes, polish up your ping pong paddle, and perfect your dart-throwing aim because the Beacolympics are here!
First up, we have the exhilarating 10 Miles. Lace up your sneakers and join our team. Whether you're a seasoned runner or just love a good challenge,everyone is welcome.
>> But that's not all! We're also bringing the thrill of indoor sports to the shores with our Ping Pong and Darts competitions. Whether you're smashing serves on the ping pong table or hitting bullseyes with precision on the dartboard, these games are guaranteed to bring out your competitive spirit and keep the fun going.
To finish this years Beacolympics, we are returning to the padel fields of The Box Padel at Plein Publiek.
So, get ready to make a splash at the Beacolympics. It's not just about winning medals, it's about creating unforgettable memories.
Let the games begin! 🏅

PortTech Summit by COOCK Smart Port 2025

The Coock Smart Port 2025 project comes to an end. Look back at what we have achieved and let us inspire you for a final time in this setting. We invite you to talk about innovation in the port and network with peers.
PROGRAM
13:00 – 13:30 Doors open
13:30 - 13:45 Welcoming by Bart Verhoeven of imec-IDLab and Robin Pauwels of The Beacon
13:45 - 14:20 Looking back on past projects
POC Albertkanaal by Simon Van den Eynde of Qonic (former imec-IDLab)
POC Wind turbine modellering by Sofie Van Hoecke of imec-IDLab
POC nautical chain optimalisation by Valentin Carlan of University of Antwerp
14:20 - 14:45 Originated COOCK projects from industry
Sergio Barbarino, Senior Director Research Fellow at P&G
Toon Wassenberg, Mobility Advisor at Siemens
14:45 – 16:00 Break
Demo fair & matchmaking through Conversation Starter
16:00 - 16:40 Keynotes
Anne De Beule, Teamlead Intermodal at Haeger & Schmidt Logistics - Sustainability Challenges for Logistics Service Providers
Jef Verbruggen, Product Owner FAST platform at Euronav - The FAST platform and collaboration with ZeroNorth
16:40 - 17:00 Closing word by Erik Mannens of imec-IDLab
Impact of COOCK in numbers
17:00 - 22:00 Networking with walking dinner, drinks and DJ

ABOUT COOCK SMART PORT 2025
This event is organized in the framework of the COOCK Smart Port 2025 project. This three-year program, funded by VLAIO, aims at disseminating the vast knowledge that the University of Antwerp and Imec have in terms of Model-Based Systems Engineering Artificial Intelligence, to the port and logistics community in Flanders. As part of this project, The Beacon is organizing activities and events at which tech companies, port, and logistics operators, and academia are represented.
_ ___________________________________________________________________________________________
LOCATION
Stormkop, Droogdokkenweg 4, 2030 Antwerpen

Together we take it to the next level

Missed an event?

Missed an event?

Community Potluck Apéro | Kwart Na Bier With A Twist

The Beacon @ SPRINT ROBOTICS WORLD CONFERENCE

Halloween Horror Movie Night

Tech Scoop | Cybersecurity

Beacon and Eggs | Community Brunch

Stay informed!

Slice & Strategize Resident Brainstorm

The Beacon Community Connect | Hybrid

Skybar invites The Beacon Community

Euro2024 Kwart Na Bier | Football game broadcast

[Workshop] Threat Modelling

The Beacon SummerFest

Stay informed!

Lunch & Learn: Get Ready for the AI Act

Euro2024 Kwart Na Bier

Lunch & Learn: Europe versus Machine - Get Ready for the AI Act

Beacolympics 2024

PortTech Summit by COOCK Smart Port 2025

Community Potluck Apéro | Kwart Na Bier With A Twist

The Beacon @ SPRINT ROBOTICS WORLD CONFERENCE

Halloween Horror Movie Night

Tech Scoop | Cybersecurity

Beacon and Eggs | Community Brunch

Slice & Strategize Resident Brainstorm

The Beacon Community Connect | Hybrid

Skybar invites The Beacon Community

Euro2024 Kwart Na Bier | Football game broadcast

[Workshop] Threat Modelling

The Beacon SummerFest

Lunch & Learn: Get Ready for the AI Act

Euro2024 Kwart Na Bier

Lunch & Learn: Europe versus Machine - Get Ready for the AI Act

Beacolympics 2024

PortTech Summit by COOCK Smart Port 2025