TUM Innovation Networks

TUM Innovation Networks focus on transdisciplinary "High Risk - High Gain" research and collective creativity. Being a key element in our strategy TUM Agenda 2030, they are essential in identifying and pursuing future-oriented and high-potential research focus areas that can later lead to large-scale, far-reaching research consortia.

The projects are intended to create the basis for future-oriented research and shape at an early stage future innovations into critical masses.

As an institute for excellence and creative research, the IAS is involved in the selection process as well as in organizing and hosting so called “Exploratory workshops”.

From the pool of applications, the most promising teams are invited to participate in a dedicated, project-specific two-day TUM Exploratory Workshop at TUM-IAS, designed for efficient knowledge exchange and identification of collaboration partners. Principal Investigators are mentored by international experts, among others TUM IAS-Fellows and further researchers. The goal of the TUM Exploratory Workshop is to prepare for the elaboration of a 10-page concept paper which will be the final basis for making a funding decision of the respective TUM Innovation Network.

„Innovation Networks are a new instrument of our institutional TUM strategy. With them, we want to identify and promote topics across Schools and Departments that can only be successfully addressed through interdisciplinary research approaches. The Innovation Networks will later give rise to large-scale priority programs or comprehensive funding projects that will strategically complement TUM in the long term. The TUM-IAS, an exchange place of knowledge with its experienced and proven evaluation system at the top international level, is exactly the right place to conduct selection and competition on the Innovation Networks.“ says Professor Molls, director of the IAS.“

Reflecting the TUM-IAS motto „risking creativity“, the TUM Innovation Networks are designed to function as powerful germ cells growing into future fields of research that hold promise for successfully funded collaborative research projects.

TUM-IAS follows a bottom-up process and therefore does not suggest one single workshop format as required workshop format for all TUM Exploratory Workshops, but takes into account the scientific culture of the different research areas involved. Thus, it ensures the most fruitful workshop discussions and excellent results within each project team.