Searching for ideas and expertise has never been easier: introducing Expert Wall, the new feature on the Knowledge Share platform
Finding new ideas and certified scientific expertise is at the core of companies’ need for innovation, and today it is possible thanks to a specialised search engine for deep tech. This tool is offered by Expert Wall, the new feature of Knowledge Share, the platform developed by Netval, the Ministry of Enterprises and Made in Italy-MIMIT, and Politecnico, which gathers the results of national research in terms of patented technologies and spin-offs. Expert Wall officially launches on September 24, during the Netval Annual Conference, on Knowledge Share.
“Expert Wall was born out of the needs expressed by users of the Knowledge Share platform – explains Federico Novembrini, Project Manager of Knowledge Share – Often, users start their scouting process by looking for specific skills needed in their company, rather than searching for a particular topic related to research or innovation. So, we decided to develop a tool that lets businesses or any innovation-driven organisations identify researchers and inventors based on their expertise, which is derived from the inventions already published on Knowledge Share”.
With Expert Wall, users can explore profiles in two ways: by navigating through the list of research centres and universities, or directly by browsing individual inventors. In both cases, the system is guided by a skills-based approach, helping to identify the most relevant profiles for potential collaborations between academia and industry.
Each inventor profile includes a short biography and research background, a list of patents published on the platform, related spin-offs, and direct links to the inventor’s LinkedIn, ResearchGate, and ORCID profiles. Companies can explore profiles using filters such as research centres, keywords, industrial categories, trending sectors, or initiatives. A semantic search engine will further enhance the matching process.
Originally launched in 2016 by the Technology Transfer Office of Politecnico di Torino, Knowledge Share scaled to the national level in 2018 with support from the Italian Ministry of Enterprises and Made in Italy (MIMIT). It was later funded under the EU’s NextGenerationEU program as part of Italy’s National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR). Today, it is jointly managed by MIMIT, Netval (the national association for research valorisation, which brings together nearly all Italian universities and research institutes), and Politecnico di Torino. Knowledge Share enables companies to discover technologies developed and patented by Italian research, university spin-offs, and now, through Expert Wall, directly access the skills and expertise of individual researchers. This significantly streamlines technology transfer and third mission activities, helping to create a direct match between innovation demand and supply.
“The goal of Expert Wall is to create a simple and immediate contact point between researchers and the companies that can benefit from their work – explains Novembrini – The core of this interaction is the Technology Transfer Office (TTO) of the university or research centre, which mediates between the company’s request and the researcher”.
But what happens if a first contact does not lead to immediate results? This is where Netval’s central role as the platform operator becomes crucial. If the first direct contact through Expert Wall does not result in a prompt reply, a built-in escalation process is activated. A dedicated project team steps in to support the communication process, ensuring responses within 48 hours from both academia and industry.
Highlighting the importance of this new feature and the platform itself, Eng. Giuseppe Conti, President of Netval, comments on the introduction of Expert Wall within the platform: “Expert Wall marks a significant evolution of the Knowledge Share platform, strengthening the strategic role of technology transfer in enhancing and valorising Italian public knowledge and research. Beyond enabling a structured identification of both innovation needs and opportunities across universities and public research institutions, while fostering interaction among researchers, TTOs, and companies, this new functionality also helps to showcase and develop the skills of young researchers and PhD candidates”.