TEF Ignition: A Program Transforming Students into Founders
An eight-week program, a network of international mentors and a final demo day. This, in short, is the formula for TEF Ignition, an initiative launched by the Tech Europe Foundation (TEF) in collaboration with Bocconi University and Politecnico di Milano, designed to bring the students of the two universities closer to the world of innovative entrepreneurship.
The program, whose call will open on 1 September, is aimed at teams of students — a maximum of 50 per university per semester — who intend to develop a business idea with highly innovative content. The selected projects will access a track that alternates training modules, thematic workshops and sessions with mentors. Each team will receive initial funding of €2,000 to develop their idea and, for the best projects, the track ends with a demo day.
"TEF Ignition was created to stimulate students' project design skills and support them in the most delicate phase: the transition from idea to action," comments Nicoletta Corrocher, Academic Director of the program for Bocconi. "Direct contact with very high-profile mentors and entrepreneurs represents a unique learning opportunity."
Program objectives and structure
The program is divided into five phases, from application to the demo day, with a calendar that includes two editions each year (fall and spring). The activities include: a kick-off meeting (on 13 October), two interim workshops with mentors, the drafting of progressive pitches to be uploaded to a dedicated platform and lastly the final presentation of the project (on 16 December).
The teams are given guidance in structuring their business idea, analyzing the market, building a business model and presenting it in a convincing way. The track is designed to provide an initial concrete experience as a startup, with the aim of stimulating the creation of new businesses and uncovering potential founders within the university environment.
Mentors: different experiences, common vision
A distinctive element of TEF Ignition is the presence of mentors selected from among international entrepreneurs, investors and researchers, active in areas such as biotechnology, digital technologies, pharma, AI, marketplaces and industrial innovation. The 2025 mentorship network includes:
Francesco Maria Benedetti – founder of a cleantech based in the United States
Valentina Cerolini – CEO of a marketplace in the luxury sector, Italy
Daniele Calvo Pollino – CEO of a travel marketplace based in Italy
Marco Ferroni – entrepreneur in the medtech sector, Italy
Giorgio Giatsidis – physician, researcher and startup advisor, United States
Laura Indolfi – co-founder and CEO of a US biotech
Claire Lelièvre – investor and former founder, Canada
Salvatore Mascia – CEO of a pharmaceutical company, United States
Riccardo Sabatini – scientist and entrepreneur, United States
Emiliano Saurin – co-founder of a digital innovation studio, Italy
During the workshops, the mentors will provide feedback, help define the next development steps and assess the maturity of the entrepreneurial project.
An initiative based on an expanding ecosystem
Tech Europe Foundation, the initiative’s sponsor, is a non-profit foundation founded by Bocconi, Fondazione Politecnico di Milano, the ION Foundation and FSI, with the support of the Milan Chamber of Commerce. It aims to accelerate the transition from scientific research to business, with a focus on European deep tech.
In addition to TEF Ignition, the foundation has launched funding programs for PhDs and postdocs, collaborating with the international accelerator Creative Destruction Lab (CDL-Milan).
With this initiative, TEF aims to not only support new ideas, but also train a new generation of entrepreneurs capable of mindfully navigating the global innovation landscape.