柠檬导航

News

AECO Digital accelerates prototypes from hackathons into global business

AECO Digital is an accelerator that facilitates hackathon teams to further develop their ideas together with potential clients.

Digitalization is transforming the construction business and providing new global opportunities. If Finnish companies don鈥檛 keep up with the pace of digitalization, innovations and production will move abroad and Finland will become merely a consumer of smart construction components and services.

To tackle this challenge, Finland鈥檚 first AEC (Architecture, Engineering, Construction) Hackathon was organized in November 2015. Hackathons are 1-2 day intensive sessions, where multi-skilled teams develop new digital prototypes to solve specific problems. In hackathons groundbreaking ideas are born extremely quickly and affordably. Teams, on the other hand, rarely have capabilities or necessary connections for turning their prototypes into global business.

Prominent ideas further developed with potential clients

AECO Digital accelerator is now taking forward some of the most prominent ideas born in the November Hackathon and working together with two teams 鈥 Qualia Interactive and VisuaLynk. Qualia Interactive (on the photo) developed a virtual reality application for kitchen renovations where one can see and compare how different materials would look like. VisuaLynk is a visual user interface for holistic information management in facilities management.

These ideas are now being further developed together with potential clients and stakeholders towards scalable international business. The process is facilitated by Aalto University鈥檚 SimLab that has extensive experience in supporting such co-development.

- If this experiment is successful, then the idea is to build a global network of AECO Digital accelerators that work closely with the global mentor communities of AEC Hackathons. We welcome companies in the construction business to join the ecosystem, says Teemu Lehtinen, the co-founder of AECO Digital and a doctoral student at Aalto University鈥檚 SimLab.

AECO Digital is one of the finalists in the 鈥溾 鈥 idea challenge of the Technology Industries of Finland Centennial Foundation. The next AEC Hackathon in Finland will be held at Sweco Finland on the weekend of June 3-5.

Follow AECO Digital on Twitter: #AECO #AECHackathon

More information:
teemu.lehtinen@aalto.fi

The 鈥 research consortium aims to model the digital disruption and to strive for active measures for influencing the direction and speed of the change. We work closely with the industry through experiments like the AECO Digital.

  • Updated:
  • Published:
Share
URL copied!

Read more news

Split image: left shows a white truck on a road with plants; right shows digital lines and a partial face. Text: unite! #UniteSeedFund
Awards and Recognition, Cooperation Published:

Two Unite! Seed Fund projects involving Aalto secure top EU funding

Two prestigious EU grants have been awarded to projects that were initially supported with Unite! Seed Funding. Both projects involve Aalto.
arotor adjustable stiffness test setup
Cooperation, Research & Art Published:

Major funding powers development of next-generation machine technology aimed at productivity leap in export sectors

The BEST research project is developing new types of sealing, bearing, and damping technology.
Unite! Seed Fund 2026: Call opens on 20 January. Applications open for student activities, teaching and learning, research and PhD.
Cooperation, Research & Art, Studies, University Published:

Unite! Seed Fund 2026: Call opens on 20 January 2026

Gain an early overview of the Unite! Seed Fund Call of Spring 2026. The call includes three funding lines: Student Activities, Teaching and Learning, and Research and PhD.
Aalto Creatives pre-incubator visual
Campus, Cooperation, Press releases Published:

Call for Applications: Aalto Creatives Pre-incubator Programme Spring 2026

Join the Aalto Creatives afterwork and info session on 20.1.2026 to find out more about the open call and meet the Aalto Creatives team.