Xpanz 2025: A meeting that articulated and accelerated the innovation ecosystem
Xpanz by 2025 took place on November 21st in the Ritz Ballroom of the Dann Carlton Hotel in Cali, with 220 participants including business leaders, university representatives, researchers, entrepreneurs, and other stakeholders in the science, technology, and innovation ecosystem. The event was structured around three main segments designed to inspire, transform, and connect.
The day began with a welcome session and Networking Express, where leading regional entities that make up NIDO, such as the Valle del Cauca Governor’s Office, the Cali Mayor’s Office, and the Cali Chamber of Commerce, showcased their ability to collaborate to drive innovation and bring to fruition initiatives like the deeptech mapping project, ACTI, Valley Care, and the Agrifoodtech Challenge, demonstrating how Reddi transforms ideas into new businesses. This initial session concluded with a presentation of Reddi-led projects by Juan Manuel Chaves , Reddi’s General Manager, before moving on to the keynote address, “The Future of Innovation – Connections that Transform,” presented by Reddi Colombia, and the sharing of progress on the Mangle Agenda.
For her part, the project director, Mónica Dueñas Fusióni3 Valle , presented the results and key figures, highlighting the impact generated in the university-business articulation in Valle del Cauca, and the maturation of technological solutions.
Simultaneous presentations and impactful alliances
In the simultaneous presentations phase, made possible by the “Silent Room” technology, 20 pitches were executed in parallel, connecting the audience with the experiences of their presenters, thanks to this innovative conference methodology.
In the “Alliances that innovate” space, the 10 university-business alliances of Fusióni3 Valle presented the results obtained during the execution of their projects, showing concrete achievements, development of new products, processes and innovation capabilities.
Both colleagues and other attendees recognized their collaborative work achievements, the agile and engaging way in which they presented their projects, and their remarkable evolution throughout the project. An example of how innovation is strengthened.
“ Ten alliances that worked with universities managed to generate technological developments that will impact the ecosystem,” pointed out Víctor Rodríguez, Transfer Coordinator of the Javeriano Innovation Center.
Simultaneously, at the Demo Day Valley Care event, eight pitches from the open innovation initiative were presented, targeting the healthcare sector. These pitches focused on solutions addressing the four challenges proposed by the partner organizations: Fundación Valle del Lili, DIME Neurocardiovascular Clinic, Cali Ophthalmology Clinic, and Clínica Imbanaco. Also at this event, the two alliances receiving funding from the Agrifoodtech Challenge’s Maturation Fund shared their progress in joint corporate startup planning, initiatives that help to energize the ecosystem.
In the third part of the event, focused on connection, the Experience Day was held, an interactive space with 15 stands where attendees learned about the technologies up close, generated strategic conversations and gave feedback on the projects.
This event concluded with a toast and a final networking session led by Mangle.
During the event, the Aurora Innovation Awards were presented. Recognition was given to the 10 alliances benefiting from Fusióni3 Valle and all their participating companies, the 4 winners of Demo Day Valley Care, and the 2 outstanding alliances of the Agrifoodtech Challenge. Additionally, 10 companies with outstanding results were recognized among the more than 140 organizations that completed the Science, Technology, and Innovation Activities (ACTI) assessment.
A milestone that connects corporations with high-impact technologies
Finally, Xpanz 2025 was the setting for the official launch of the Impact Waves Colombia program, a strategic alliance between Reddi and Wayra Corporate Venture of Telefónica Movistar, with the participation of 20 corporations interested in promoting open innovation pilots and new opportunities for technological scaling.
