Marketing is changing rapidly. New technologies, tools and ways of reaching customers are constantly emerging. But even the best of them cannot solve the problems of a business that doesn't understand its customers or struggles to align marketing with product development and sales. Finding common ground between these areas was one of the central themes of the October Marketing Masters conference, brought to the region by the Regional Development Agency and the Liberec Region.

ZF Automotive’s Jablonec plant wants to test machine vision on an assembly line, while industrial equipment supplier FOXON plans to visualise data from electricity meters. These are just some of the challenges awaiting participants in TechStarter 2027, a competition programme organised for the third time by the Regional Development Agency and the Liberec Region. The programme gives students at secondary technical schools the opportunity to work on problems that companies are actually dealing with.

Come up with and create anything that makes everyday life easier. That is the challenge for the sixth edition of Business Talent, a polytechnic competition organised by the Regional Development Agency, iQLANDIA and the Liberec Region in cooperation with their partners. Over eight competition rounds, eighth- and ninth-grade primary school students will develop clever solutions to everyday challenges in the iQFABLAB smart workshop. They will have access to a wide range of equipment and technologies, including laser cutting, 3D printing and soldering. This year, they will also have the opportunity to program their inventions.

Regional data make it easier to understand new topics and discover more about the place we live in. Czech, mathematics, biology, geography — or just about any other subject you can think of. Regional data from the Liberec Region Data Portal can be used almost anywhere to connect classroom learning with an environment that pupils and students know well.

A new chip factory being built in Dresden could create new business opportunities for companies in the Czech Republic as well. The Liberec Region is therefore already preparing to become part of the emerging European semiconductor ecosystem by mapping technologies developed by local companies and the Technical University of Liberec and connecting them with international partners. In September, it will head directly to one of the world’s key semiconductor hubs: at SEMICON Taiwan, the region plans to showcase what it has to offer.

He was on his way to crossing the boundary of space and reaching the Moon. Now, he helps young people look beyond the borders of their own region and their own doubts. Through the Moonshot Platform project, choreographer and actor Yemi A.D. connects people aged 15 to 30 who are eager to drive things forward with mentors, investors - and with one another.