For the sixth year running, the Business Talent competition will challenge eighth- and ninth-grade students to put their technical skills, creativity and teamwork to the test. This year, the organisers – the Regional Development Agency, the iQLANDIA science centre and the Liberec Region – have set them the following task: use the available components in the modern iQFABLAB workshop to create a smart solution that makes everyday life better. Schools can register until Thursday, 10 September.
“By the eighth and ninth grades, young people are already starting to think about what they want to do next. Business Talent can show them that technology is not just about formulas and calculations, but also a field where they can put their own ideas into practice. This kind of hands-on experience can help uncover a talent that neither the student nor their teacher may have known was there,” says Jitka Skalická, Member of the Liberec Regional Council responsible for education and sport, who has granted her patronage to the competition.
A competition for tech enthusiasts, creative minds and budding entrepreneurs
Business Talent introduces a new theme every year, but its core principle remains the same: to encourage young people to combine technical thinking with creativity and an entrepreneurial mindset. And to show them that even seemingly complex technologies can be fun.
This year, the competing teams will once again receive a box full of components together with a challenge: come up with and build a smart solution that makes everyday life better. The organisers are not yet revealing exactly what that will involve. What is certain, however, is that within a single day the teams will have to turn their idea into a tangible product and present it to an expert jury at the end of the day.
“We are really looking forward to seeing this year’s solutions. Every year, we are amazed by the originality of the prototypes students manage not only to come up with, but actually build in just one day. At the end, they receive feedback from an expert jury, which can help point them in a new direction and offer a fresh perspective on their idea,” adds Stanislav Rousek, project coordinator from the iQLANDIA science centre.
Eight rounds and one grand final
Teachers and headteachers from primary and lower-secondary schools across the Liberec Region can register their classes for the competition until 10 September. All they need to do is complete a short registration form – and they should not wait too long, as demand exceeds available capacity every year.
For schools, it is a unique opportunity to experience education differently: through hands-on, project-based learning with a tangible outcome that is evaluated by experts from local companies.
The competition has also earned long-term appreciation from teachers. “I like the way the competition is designed and the range of activities the children get to try. They gain an insight into the world of entrepreneurship while also thinking about whether their idea is not only creative, but meaningful,” says Jan Kacafírek, headteacher of U Lesa Primary School in Nový Bor, who has taken part in Business Talent with his students several times.
The highest-rated team from each round will advance to the final, where an expert jury will determine the overall ranking. Parents, friends and supporters of the participating schools will traditionally have a say as well through a public vote.
The winning team will receive an interactive football table and a tour of Praktik System in Stráž pod Ralskem. The runners-up will receive a CZK 15,000 voucher for polytechnic education, while the third-placed team will take home a portable video production kit. The winner of the public vote will receive a full day of experiences for their class at the iQLANDIA science centre.
Business Talent is organised by the Regional Development Agency and the iQLANDIA science centre in cooperation with the Liberec Region and CzechInvest. The competition is held under the patronage of Jitka Skalická, Member of the Liberec Regional Council responsible for education and sport. The Business Talent 2026 student competition is co-financed through the Smart Accelerator of the Liberec Region III project, funded by the EU with co-financing from the Liberec Region.
The organisers would like to thank the competition partners for their support: Atrea, Barevný svět Liberec, Crytur, Nadační fond Gago, Nadace Preciosa, Praktik System, Valbek, ZF, Albi, Bohemia Interactive, Knihkupectví Fryč, the Statutory City of Liberec, Energetika Liberec, Elmarco, Metrostav and PPlaser. The competition’s media partner is iLIBERECKO.cz.
