Entries for 2017 STARTS Prize are now being accepted

An international jury convenes on April 10th to choose the winning projects, which will be presented at a press conference in early May. The official awards ceremony is set for September 8th in conjunction with the Prix Ars Electronica Gala in Linz. Entries for 2017 STARTS Prize consideration may be submitted online beginning today, January 11th; the deadline is March 3th. There is no entry fee.

STARTS Prize: More Innovation for Europe

The European Commission"s STARTS Prize initiative targets projects and people that can make meaningful contributions to mastering the social, ecological and economic challenges that Europe now faces. Here, the essential driving forces are sure to emerge, above all, at the nexus of science, technology and the arts"”STARTS for short. The competition to determine the recipients of this prestigious award is divided into two categories"”one focuses on artistic works that influence the way we look at technology; the other seeks very promising forms of collaboration between the private sector and the world of art and culture. A prizewinning project will be selected in both categories and each will be supported with a €20,000 grant. The projects will then be showcased at the Ars Electronica Festival in Linz, at the BOZAR Electronic Arts Festival in Brussels, and at the Waag Society in Amsterdam.

Ars Electronica meets STARTS

Since 1979, Ars Electronica has been exploring the multifarious impacts that digitization and networking are making on our world. In going about this, art, technology and society are never scrutinized as discrete domains; instead, they"re considered as interrelated elements of a unified vision. Ars Electronica"s process of artistic reflection on explosive developments, its ongoing inquiry into alternative future scenarios and the framework circumstances, strategies and protagonists necessary for their emergence, as well as the ways and means inherent in all of these activities to encourage people to get actively involved in configuring our shared future are what make Ars Electronica the ideal partner of the STARTS program. In recognition of Ars Electronica"s highly successful launch of the STARTS Prize in 2016, the European Commission has chosen the Linz media art platform to manage the call for entries as well as to conduct the competition for the 2017-20 STARTS Prizes.