ctrlX developR Challenge:
Showing real passion

Ms. Heim, to what extent are you exploring new paths with the ctrlX developR Challenge?

Many people will be familiar with classic hackathons in development circles. During a typical hackathon event, teams spend 24 to 48 hours working together to solve a problem. We’re doing things differently: We’re giving creative minds several weeks in which to grow and develop ideas which ideally could bring benefits for the automation market in the long term. They can realize their visions with the help of our ctrlX CORE control platform.

It’s not just a question of the idea and how it’s put into practice – it’s also a question of the business relevance. Participants must come up with a suitable marketing and sales concept which reveals the market potential – developing this concept is as important as developing the idea itself. As a result, the finished product should have the potential to be used in the ctrlX AUTOMATION ecosystem.

What has the response been like to date and at what stage are the participants now?

Even though the challenge is taking place for the first time, we’ve been really impressed by its reach. People from all over the world have entered. We’ve received applications from a wide range of countries – even from Asia. 25 participants have made it into the implementation phase with their ideas. We’ve noticed that everyone involved – from the participants and the mentors to the jury – are highly dedicated and would like to create something big together. They’re showing real passion. The solution phase will last until June 26, 2022.

Why is the challenge so relevant internationally?

Most of the participants are from Germany, but we have also some from Austria, Great Britain, France, Italy, Switzerland, and the USA too. There are good reasons for this international acceptance. After all, Bosch Rexroth has an international presence and ctrlX AUTOMATION has been launched at the same time in countries around the world.

More than 500 customers have already acquired or are using components and solutions connected with our automation system. Our third-party companies are equally international. 45 are now part of the ctrlX World.

Can you tell us what the pitch event will be like?

The pitch will be part of the two-day ctrlX developR Conference. This will begin with a ctrlX World partner event followed by the finalists’ pitch presentations and jury speeches. All pitches will then be assessed by the jury and during an evening event the award ceremony will take palce. I’ve got my fingers crossed already!

What will we have gained at the end? Do you have a vision for beyond the challenge?

In technological terms, ctrlX AUTOMATION is completely open and is highly innovative. One reason for this is the co-creation approach which we’ve followed rigorously from the beginning. This means that customers and third-party providers have an opportunity to actively shape our automation world and to create their chosen functions – in line with the prosumer principle.

The ctrlX developR Challenge is resulting in even greater dynamism here. Our aim is to develop never-before-seen functions which ideally can be incorporated into the ctrlX AUTOMATION ecosystem.

We already expect our national companies in the various regions to continue the challenge to write automation history together and encourage talented developers.