Terra & Tech: innovation, experimentation and results

First launched in 2023, Terra & Tech is the national open innovation program for Italian viticulture, organized and promoted by the association Filiera Futura in collaboration with the Innovative Companies Incubator of Politecnico di Torino (I3P). Since its inception, the initiative’s main objective has been to identify evolving needs in the wine industry by engaging directly with key players in the supply chain and to involve a selection of innovative start-ups capable of implementing technological solutions that support the wine sector.

Following a series of roundtable discussions held in 2024 with the six Foundations of Banking Origin partnering in the program – Fondazione CRC, Fondazione Cariverona, Fondazione Cassa di Risparmio di Lucca, Fondazione Carifac, Fondazione Cassa di Risparmio di Jesi, and Fondazione con il Sud – and their networks of associated producers, the collection of over 70 project proposals was completed in 2025 through an international call for start-ups. From among all the applications, the 20 most promising solutions were selected, and a series of field tests, still ongoing in 2026, was launched in several regions of Italy to test the potential of the innovative technologies developed by these young companies.

The event, scheduled for Thursday, September 24, 2026 and starting at 10:00 a.m. in person at the Sala Agorà of the I3P incubator in Turin, will feature a roundtable on the program’s achievements: a meeting to publicly explore the opportunities for discussion and improvement generated by Terra & Tech, the experiences gained by participating start-ups in the producers’ vineyards, and the prospects for developing the technological systems used based on data collected during the pilot trials. The initiative is part of Terra Madre Salone del Gusto 2026 and will be held in Italian language.

In addition, the event on September 24 will also provide an opportunity to share the first previews of the second edition of the Terra & Tech program, which will continue to expand with new opportunities for discussion on the concrete needs of producers, new research into the most disruptive technologies for the agri-food sector, and new innovation processes to be pursued with and in regions across Italy, for the benefit of all stakeholders involved.

How to join the event

The meeting with the organizers and key participants of Terra & Tech will take place on September 24, starting at 10:00 a.m., in person at the Sala Agorà in the I3P incubator, located in the Campus of Politecnico di Torino and accessible via the pedestrian entrances at Corso Castelfidardo 34 and Via Borsellino 53/N in Turin, Italy.

Attendance at the event is free of charge, subject to registration on Eventbrite.

Agenda

10:00 a.m. | Welcome and registration of participants

• Vincenzo La Forgia, Filiera Futura, Terra & Tech Project Manager

10:15 a.m. | Institutional greetings

• Elena Giannini, Vice President of Filiera Futura
• Paola Mogliotti, Director of I3P

10:30 a.m. | The first edition of Terra & Tech: objectives, phases and achievements

• Adriano Marconetto, Serial Entrepreneur and Business Angel
• Riccardo Valpiani, Business Consultant of I3P

10:50 a.m. | Field trials by innovative start-ups

• Testimonials from the young companies involved in the project

11:20 a.m. | Preview of the second edition of Terra & Tech

11:30 a.m. | Conclusions