Puff, the magic jacket: In this EU project, students design some surprising tech prototypes
When Anna Cain, a master’s student in Barcelona, was looking for inspiration for a school project, she was thinking about climate change and how technology might help.
There was a severe drought underway that “was really bad where we were living in Barcelona,” she recalls; “so I think it was just at the top of my mind.” What if, she and some friends wondered, you could get water directly from the air?
Master classes: How innovation happens for real?—Register now!
Since its founding in 1954, CERN has been powered by the passion of scientists and engineers determined to push the boundaries of knowledge and technology in the quest to understand the universe. This drive has sparked groundbreaking innovations and continues to shape the future of science and society. But these achievements are more than just milestones. They are the result of relentless curiosity, bold collaboration, and a deep commitment to exploration. At CERN, innovation isn’t just a goal.
ATTRACT Final conference—Register now!
The ATTRACT effect: How big science and tech will make Europe more competitive
This event serves as a dynamic platform, bringing together all key actors involved within the ATTRACT phase 2 to showcase their achievements and impact. It underscores ATTRACT’s transformative role in fostering deep-tech innovation, bridging the gap between cutting-edge research and market-ready applications, and strengthening Europe’s global competitiveness.
How a swim helped launch one of Europe’s fast-moving quantum start-ups
It was in a swimming pool that Massimo Caccia, an Italian physicist, first got the idea that would lead to what is now one of Europe’s promising new quantum electronics start-ups.
At the time, he was struggling with some pesky quantum “noise” that kept disrupting the output of photon detectors he had been working with at the CERN particle accelerator near Geneva.
ATTRACT Academy: empowering Europe’s next generation of innovators
The ATTRACT Academy is revolutionising how students engage with deep-tech innovation and entrepreneurship. Born from the success of the ‘Young Innovators and Entrepreneurs’ pilot in ATTRACT phase 1, it scaled up its impact during phase 2, expanding its reach to multiple universities across Europe.
What happens when you let a bunch of sociologists loose in a tech lab?
Around the world, governments spend billions of euros a year to get new discoveries out of the lab and into the market. But do they actually know what works and what doesn’t?
Spoiler alert: not really. In many cases, the design of R&D support programmes is just a matter of “well-intentioned guesswork,” says Albert Bravo-Biosca, director of the London- and Barcelona-based Innovation Growth Lab, a non-profit that studies innovation policy.
IdeaSquare launches its new educational programme after completing its pilot phase
With the launch of the IdeaSquare Planet programme comes an opportunity to participate in a co-creation workshop involving science fiction and space.
With the launch of the IdeaSquare Planet programme comes an opportunity to participate in a co-creation workshop involving science fiction and space.
Prototype profile: Stirling cryo-cooler
A Stirling machine is a device, that can be used as a heat pump to effectively cool down a given system. In reverse it can be used to generate electricity out of a heat source. It was invented 200 years ago and has not been improved/changed greatly since then, as there was never an economic interest.
1st Next Generation Triggers Hackathon: a week of innovation and collaboration
The 1st NGT Hackathon, held at CERN IdeaSquare from 7–11 April 2025, brought together more than 40 students and researchers from across the Next Generation Triggers (NGT) collaboration and 15 other institutes.
IdeaSquare progress report – 10th anniversary special edition
IdeaSquare passed an amazing milestone in 2024. We celebrated our 10th anniversary, and it was a moment to look back – at our origins, our development and, most crucially, our impact. With this report, we invite you to be part of our project, share in this occasion and discover everything we have done, do and aim to do.