NovaUCD meets corporates for 5G accelerator

University College Dublin (UCD)’s tech transfer unit and incubator NovaUCD joined forces yesterday with telecoms provider Vodafone Ireland and communications technology supplier Ericsson to launch an accelerator targeting 5G-enabled products.
The Ireland-wide program will help hone the business strategy, commercial viability and technical feasibility of new 5G products and services, with graduates becoming eligible for early-stage funding.
Services available through the initiative include access to investors and finance, as well as mentoring and education programs covering venture creation and use-cases for 5G and internet-of-things technologies. Both Vodafone and Ericsson will provide technical and business expertise.
The announcement came as Vodafone Ireland began piloting a live 5G network operation in Dublin by demonstrating an international holographic call to the corporate’s Innovation Centre in Germany.
Tom Flanagan, director of enterprise and commercialisation at UCD, said: “It will be exciting to see new 5G products, services and businesses that have truly global potential be launched first here in Ireland. We are delighted to be working with Vodafone and Ericsson on the new NovaUCD 5G accelerator program announced today.”
Anne O’Leary, chief executive of Vodafone Ireland, added: “Making Ireland’s first ever live holographic call over 5G was a demonstration of how this new technology could eventually transform how we interact with each other across borders and time zones.”