That’s Hackathon: US–Italy Hackathon for Innovative Business Ideas

That’s Hackathon: US–Italy Hackathon for Innovative Business Ideas was an international event dedicated to innovation and entrepreneurship, designed and held in 2025 with the goal of fostering dialogue and collaboration between the Italian and US innovation ecosystems, promoting the birth of innovative business ideas through collaborative dynamics and gamified approaches.

The initiative was funded by the United States Department of State – Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, with support from the Meridian International Center, and was organized and moderated by SPICI, which managed the operational development of the project, defining the activity plan, timeline, budget, and target audience identification.

The project is the result of the IVLP Impact Award, achieved by Chiara Romano following her participation in the IVLP – International Visitor Leadership Program of the United States Department of State, dedicated to the theme of Women and Entrepreneurship.

In this context, That’s Hackathon is configured as a concrete action of returning and enhancing the skills and international relationships developed within the IVLP program.

The event took place in July 2025 and combined two main moments:

a business creation hackathon, aimed at students and young entrepreneurs from all over Italy and international backgrounds, and a public conference dedicated to the themes of entrepreneurial culture, innovation, and international cooperation.

The hackathon involved 40 aspiring entrepreneurs, organized into multidisciplinary teams, who worked on the development of internationally oriented business ideas through business creation tools, training sessions, mentoring, and game mechanics. The process fostered the meeting of diverse skills and the experimentation with innovative business models.

The conference included a high-profile panel that brought together public and private stakeholders from the Italian, European, and international innovation ecosystem. Among the participants were, among others, Amazon, Mastercard, the Campania Region, the US Consulate General in Naples, the University of Naples Federico II, NorthStar Innovation Partners (USA), the Business Angels of Slovenia, the Slovenian Startup and Scaleup Association, the Polish company Bugstruck, and the Italian alumni community of the International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP) based in Naples.

Among the main results of the initiative, the winning team Clinequal, constituted according to multidisciplinary criteria and accompanied by SPICI, continued its development path through structured mentoring activities, participating in the Start Cup Campania, accessing the Premio Nazionale per l’Innovazione (PNI), and later becoming an incubated startup at Fabbrica Italiana dell’Innovazione.

The concluding event, That’s Hackathon: US–Italy Hackathon for Innovative Business Ideas, was held on 9 July 2025 and represented a concrete example of international cooperation aimed at promoting youth entrepreneurship, innovation, and the transfer of skills between ecosystems.