InCube 2024: five days of innovation on the Paradeplatz

Between 14 and 18 October 2024, five students took up residence in a glass cube in the middle of the bustling Paradeplatz in Zurich. Here, they slept, ate, and most importantly: developed innovative solutions to a pressing challenge of the modern world. As a partner and a sponsor of this cube, Axpo was with them all the way.

The idea behind the InCube, a project by the ETH Entrepreneur Club, was to put five students together in a glass cube for five days and have them hash over a specific problem with the aim of developing innovative solutions. After playing a successful role in the 2019 edition, Axpo was back this year to support a cube once again. A total of seven cubes, each occupied by students working on different problems, were set up in Zurich and Basel, as well as in Germany and Finland. Axpo was partnered with the cube on the Paradeplatz in the heart of Zurich, which was given the challenge ‘How can we enable urban citizens to adopt energy transition technologies?’.

The challenge

On 18 June 2023, 59% of the Swiss voting public approved the new climate and innovation act. In the city of Zurich, the figure was as high as 77%. This means that urban residents are overwhelmingly on board with bringing about the green energy revolution – but they’re often limited in terms of what they can actually do. 85% of the Swiss population live in towns and cities, and only 15% of them own their own home. Despite the availability of technical solutions for greener energy (solar panels, batteries, charging stations, heat pumps and so on), this means they are unable to access these solutions and lack the authority to make decisions about installing them. Axpo’s purpose is to enable a sustainable future through innovative energy solutions. With all this in mind, we gave the students the task of developing creative approaches to breaking down these barriers.

This year’s challenge is linked to the problem that was tackled in 2019, when the five students in the Axpo cube worked to answer the question of ‘How can we stop energy waste in cities?’. Building on this, we are once again challenging the students to find ways to make it easier to access sustainable energy solutions in urban areas.

For the students, the journey began with an intensive ‘OutCube’ week in Zermatt. Here, the participants were introduced to a variety of approaches to solving problems, including the well-known ‘design thinking’’ process. Simon Weiher, Head of Group Innovation at Axpo, was also on hand to provide the students with valuable insights into Axpo’s activities and the challenges it faces. By the end of the week, the students were well-prepared for the real challenge in the cube.

On Monday 14 October, our five students took their places in the glass cube on the Paradeplatz. Just 25 square metres in size, this would be their home for the next five days. Living, working, sleeping and developing innovative solutions for the transition to green energy in such close quarters is no easy task. Not only did this unique experience get the participants thinking creatively, but it also presented them with some fascinating challenges both on a personal level and in terms of group dynamics.

During this intensive week, the students were supported by experts from the Axpo Group, who were on hand to provide advice, tips and information.

At Friday’s grand finale, all the cubes gave a short pitch to present the solutions they had worked so hard on. A panel of three judges was tasked with choosing the team with the most innovative solution. 

Even though our Axpo cube did not take the top spot, we are extremely proud of our five ‘cubees’. They really gave this challenge their all, investing countless hours of their time in addition to their passion and creativity. What they achieved during this one intensive week is far more than just a competition – it is a symbol of their dedication and resilience, and a shining example of the power of true teamwork. This experience inspired us and them, and demonstrated that true success is not always measured in trophies.

Our ‘cubees’

Our ‘Axpo cubees’ – the five students who took up residence in the Axpo cube – come from different universities, bringing a mix of perspectives and skills with them:

• Daria Kazmina, holder of a Bachelor’s degree in International IT Management from the Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts
• Akshata Chitnis, Master’s student in Service Design at the Royal College of Art
• Zinan Lin, Master’s student in Business Administration at SDA Bocconi
• Alexandre Piveteau, holder of a Master’s degree in Computer Science from EPFL
• Hitesh Sewani, Master’s student in Energy Science at ETH

Each and every one of the students poured their heart and soul into the Axpo challenge, and in doing so made a valuable contribution to the discussion about the future of green energy. Axpo would like to say a big thank you to the five students. Their dedication, creativity and willingness to dive into such an intensive experience is truly impressive! They have shown just how important it is to find innovative ways to get urban citizens involved in the green energy revolution and inject fresh ideas into this debate. Without a doubt, this will continue to be a hot topic in the coming years.