Role: Grouping of several participants in order to achieve certain goals through cooperation. Innovation networks/platforms are alliances of different companies, private individuals, foundations, associations, institutions or even cities that benefit from each other through the exchange of experience, information and competence.

Advantages:

• Distribution of the costs of innovation processes among several companies, thus reducing the financial risk for a single company
• Faster implementation of projects through good networking
• More complex projects can be implemented with less effort due to the increased technical, factual and financial competence and an improved flow of information within the network
• Competitive advantages through knowledge transfer Network of stakeholders with know-how in various areas

Disadvantages: The more stakeholders in the innovation network want to represent their interests, the more difficult it becomes to reach joint decisions.

Examples: Smart City Hub Switzerland, SmartCity Alliance, CityZen