Cybersecurity and startup development: an EU project relies on BME expertise

BME has become part of an EU-funded project with a total budget of €1.3 million, after successfully applying to the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT) Higher Education Initiative. Called Strengthening Cyber Resilience and Management through Entrepreneurship, the two-year project, known only as InnovaCyBridge, aims to integrate advanced cybersecurity management and startup management education into business training programmes.

The EIT was set up by the European Union to try to unite the so-called knowledge triangle - universities, research institutes and businesses - to boost innovation in Europe. Accordingly, the participants include universities - in addition to BME, the consortium leader Aston University in Birmingham, the Greek Hellenic Mediterranean University and the University Business Academy Novi Sad, two startup mentoring companies - Twinnovation in Israel and Acceler8 in Malta - and the non-profit knowledge hub Israel Innovation Institute.

Knowledge centres, case studies

InnovaCyBridge is designed on the basis of the UK National Cyber Security Framework. Among others, training modules tailored to industry needs, covering strategic cybersecurity management, artificial intelligence integration, cryptographic systems and cloud security are developed within its confines. Startups will be supported, among other things, through Acceler8's proven business development model.

BME's main task will be to set up thematic knowledge hubs and to collect, analyse and develop case studies, but the university will also get involved in startup mentoring. Of the total budget, €186,000 will be used to fund work to be carried out by university experts.

“First of all, we will delegate students (university students, lecturers, admins) to the cybersecurity training programmes launched by Aston University, and secondly, we will focus on the management of university startups and startup initiatives, including cybersecurity,” Vivien Surman, Associate Professor and Deputy Head of the Department of Management and Business Economics, project leader at BME, told bme.hu.

Rector's Office, Department of Communications