SBIR Call for AI, Image Recognition and Remote Sensing for the Built Environment

The Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs is challenging industry to find innovative AI-driven solutions for image recognition and remote sensing. For this, the Netherlands Enterprise Agency RVO has issued a new SBIR call.

Objective of this SBIR call

1) Developing AI solutions using imagery with remote sensing (sensing on the ground, with drones and/or satellites) for solving societal questions for the design of the living environment of public organisations.

This involves:

• solutions to the spatial planning of the Netherlands;
• solutions for the development of climate-neutral cities (think about insight into and accountability for emissions)
• solutions for supervision and enforcement in the physical space;
• other solutions for social questions in physical space.

2) Developing solutions to make imagery accessible with remote sensing and exchange of data and transparency, when using AI applications.

Duration of the assignment

The assignment runs from November 2022 to September 2024. It is important that you have the motivation to make your innovation a success and continue when the SBIR funding stops.

Phase

This call is for phase 1: feasibility study of the innovation. For an explanation of the phases and the procedure, see our information page: How SBIR works

Budget

A budget of € 400,000 is available for phase 1 and at least € 250,000 for phase 2 (including VAT). In phase 1, the maximum amount per feasibility study is €25,000 (including VAT).

We will announce the desired number and the maximum amount of the tenders for phase 2 at the latest in the invitation to tender for phase 2.

Deadline

This call opened for proposals on Friday 24 June 2022 and will close on Monday 3 October 2022 at noon CET.

Online information webinar: 4 July 2022

Register for the online information meeting about this call on Monday 4 July 2022 from 9:30 to 10:30 am. Based on this meeting, we will draw up a Memorandum of Information.

Call details

You can find all details for this call on the call webpage here (in Dutch) and in an information leaflet (pdf, in Dutch) here.

DotSpace Expertise

The DotSpace Foundation has relevant experience in the area of remote sensing for smart cities. For this purpose we developed a route map and workshops, that were used by ‘Ideas for Europe’. We are happy to share this expertise with you. Please contact us at info@groundstation.space for all info.

About the SBIR Programme

The core of the SBIR (‘Small Business Innovation Research’) instrument is the method by which the Dutch government, through an innovation competition, challenges entrepreneurs to come up with innovative products and services to solve social issues. In this way, innovations that emerge from SBIR competitions help society move forward.

The Netherlands Enterprise Agency (RVO) issues SBIR calls on behalf of various government agencies. Through an SBIR call a client can make use of the innovative power of companies. Each SBIR call leads to assignments for research and development, around various subjects. The government is a potential customer (‘launch customer’) of the products developed.