Wprost 2026 Innovators Conference: How to strengthen Poland’s position on the innovative map of Europe
Poland is increasing spending on research and development, and domestic startups are successful around the world, but it still lags behind many European countries in innovation rankings. Experts agree: without better cooperation between science and business, greater access to capital and investment in competences, it will be difficult to use the full potential of the economy.
The participants of the panel discussed cooperation between science and business and barriers hindering the development of innovation in Poland “How to strengthen Poland’s position on the innovative map of Europe.” Experts emphasized that greater involvement of enterprises in research and development and the creation of conditions conducive to the commercialization of science are of key importance.
– There is a lack of companies in Poland that invest in scientific research. We need to find a place where we show companies that it is worth investing in innovation – said Piotr Sankowski from the IDEAS Research Institute
Poland needs not only greater investments in innovation, but also scientists ready to cooperate with business and implement research results on the market.
– Building an entrepreneurial image of a scientist is important – said Krzysztof Gulda, president of PARP.
Andrzej Horawa, CEO of AWS, said that we have fast AI adoption dynamics, but we use very basic solutions in business – only 16% use agent-based solutions.
– We don’t have the capital to do this. We need to train young people to be able to create this business – said Horawa from AWS.
The panel participants agreed that increasing the innovativeness of the Polish economy requires both systemic changes and greater involvement of the scientific community and business. It will be crucial to create conditions conducive to cooperation and the implementation of new technologies.
Innowatory Wprost is an award granted since 2011.
We reward innovative solutions in the most important sectors of the economy and the most promising Polish innovations in the field of science. This year, the gala was preceded by a conference devoted to the innovation market in Poland. The main topics are the condition and opportunities of the Polish AI industry and local content. The discussions concerned, among others: artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, dual-use technologies, robotics, modern technologies in industry, medicine, electromobility, waste management and financing innovations.
