A year to remember: growth, impact, and the people behind CORE Innovation Group

Markela Kerkezou | December 29th 2025

A year to remember: growth, impact, and the people behind CORE Innovation Group

This past year was a truly remarkable one for CORE Innovation Group. Beyond conferences, milestones, and deliverables, it was a year that reflected who we are, what we stand for, and where we are going. As we close another chapter (and look ahead to celebrating 10 years of CORE Innovation Group this coming August) we wanted to pause and reflect on the achievements, moments, and people that made this year truly special. 

A space that reflects who we are 

One of the most meaningful achievements of the year was not about starting something new, but completing something we have been building with care over time. Our central offices were not created this year, but this year the final touches fell into place. And with them, the space truly became ours.  

What was once an industrial warehouse has been reimagined into a modern, welcoming environment that supports focused work, teamwork, training, and community. There is something deeply symbolic about this; an industrial space, rooted in manufacturing and production, reimagined into a home for our ideas.  

From our amphitheatre and training rooms to shared kitchens, labs, and green corners, the space every element was shaped with the intention to support focus, learning, teamwork, and everyday connection. Over time the office has become our nest, a place where people feel comfortable, inspired, and homey. 

At the same time, flexibility remains at our core. We continue to operate in a hybrid working model, trusting our people to do their best work wherever they are. Presence is not required- trust is. We built this place not to mandate attendance, but to create an environment people want to return to.  

COREbeat 

This year offered some of the clearest proof of what COREbeat was designed to do.  

COREbeat, our end-to-end predictive maintenance platform – now in its latest generation - delivered tangible impact across demanding industrial environments: 

• At Tharsis Mining, COREbeat detected a critical anomaly early, preventing the replacement of an entire machine. Instead, a single component was repaired, saving significant costs, time, and resources. 

• Similar success was achieved at EYDAP, where early anomaly detection once again proved the value of predictive maintenance in complex infrastructure. 

• During the year, COREbeat was also installed at VIOPOL, expanding its footprint in industrial operations. 

• And we proudly closed a major commercial agreement with VITEX, marking a significant milestone in the market adoption of our solutions! 

These cases reaffirm our belief that Industry 4.0 solutions must deliver measurable value, not just promise it. 

CORE Innovation Days: from a first bold step to a growing institution 

This year marked a very special chapter for CORE Innovation Group: the moment where CORE Innovation Days took shape - not as a one-off event, but as something carefully built from the ground up.   

What matters most to us is how it happened. Every part of CORE Innovation Days was shaped in house. The idea, the narrative, the brand identity, the programme, the event planning, the coordination, and the countless details in between. Ιt was the results of long discussions, teamwork, and a shared belief that Greece needed a space like this.  

CORE Innovation Days #1 — Shaping Tomorrow’s Industry, Today 

The first CORE Innovation Days, Greece’s first Industry 4.0 conference, took place in January 15-16, 2025. Designed as a two-day, invitation-only event, it brought together key voices from industry, academia, and policymaking to discuss digital transformation, Industry 4.0 readiness, and the future of manufacturing. 

Funded through the Twin4Twin project under the Horizon EU Widening Work Programme, the first edition was deeply connected to CORE Innovation Group’s mission: turning European research into practical, industrial impact. It was during this event that the Greek Smart Factory was formally introduced — not as a concept, but as a platform for testing, collaboration, and informed investment. 

CORE Innovation Days #2 — From industry challenges to deployed solutions 

Building on this momentum, CORE Innovation Days #2 took place in December 2025, marking a clear evolution in scope, maturity, and ambition. 

With the guiding theme “From industry challenges to deployed solutions”, the second edition of Greece’s first Indrustry 4.0 conference, shifted the conversation decisively toward implementation. Discussions started from real industrial friction points (readiness gaps, interoperability challenges, workforce transformation) and moved toward solutions already being deployed, measured, and refined across Europe. 

What truly defined the second edition was its human dimension: a community of people who care deeply about Europe’s industrial future, and who understand that meaningful innovation requires patience, trust, and collaboration.

Together, the two editions of CORE Innovation Days reflect CORE Innovation Group’s own evolution. From initiating dialogue to enabling deployment, from isolated projects to interconnected ecosystems, the event has become a natural extension of our role in European R&D and industrial innovation. 

And this is only the beginning. 

As we look ahead, CORE Innovation Days will continue to grow as a space where challenges are addressed honestly; solutions are tested rigorously, and collaboration is not a slogan - but a shared practice. See you at CORE Innovation Days #3! 

From European projects to real-world impact 

This year was particularly rich in R&D activity and European projects,  although probably next year, it will be even more rich!

New beginnings 

We launched several new projects, each one responding to real challenges across industry, digitalisation, and sustainability: 

CREDIBLE, INBLANC, NURISH, BIOGMSE, and ORGANIC. 

Each project marks a new collaboration, a new question to explore, and a new opportunity to turn research into something that can be applied, tested, and improved. 

Closing important chapters 
 
At the same time, we brought several major projects to a close, including SATO, DiGiT, AUTOTWIN, SXAIPI, Circular TwAIn, and PIONEER. 

And then there was Twin4Twin: a project with special meaning for CORE Innovation Group.  

Twin4Twin exploitable results include:

• Business model for Greek Smart Factory 

• A Hybrid Digital Twin for metal Additive Manufacturing  

• Digital Twins Best Practice Atlas  

• CORE Proposal-to-Project serious game  

• Proposal writing workshop  

• Knowledge Repository powered by Agentic AI 

We also submitted more proposals than ever before, reflecting both the maturity of our ideas and the strength of our partnerships. We are now eagerly awaiting results, confident in the quality and ambition behind each submission.  

Investing in people: learning, care, and community 

At CORE Innovation Group, innovation starts with people. This year, we consciously invested in our team, both professionally and humanly. 
 
Continuous learning 

At some point during the year, we decided to slow our pace for a little while and spend time learning together. 

We organised a few internal trainings around things that are already part of our everyday work — LLMs, AI agents, and Horizon Europe proposal writing. Nothing formal, nothing distant. Just time to sit together, ask questions, and share experience. 

One of those moments was the first time we played our Proposal Writing Game as a team. It’s something we have been building with the idea of sharing it more widely in the future. But before that, it felt important to try it first among us and to see how it feels, what works, what needs care. 

Team Bonding Day

We spent a day playing together. Quite literally.

Through simple games like the Rainbow Orchestra and the Hula Hoop challenge, we found ourselves listening more carefully, adjusting to one another, and realising how much each small action affects the whole group. When someone lost the rhythm or pushed too fast, everything shifted: a reminder that everyone’s contribution matters.

That’s where the idea of accountability became real for us. Not as a rule, but as a shared choice: noticing what’s happening, taking responsibility for our part, and acting with others in mind. The Accountability Ladder helped us put words to what we were already experiencing through play.

We walked away a little more connected and a little more aware of how we show up for one another, every day.

Care beyond the workplace 

We also made space for what matters beyond projects and deadlines: blood donation initiatives, participation in charity runs such as the cancer marathon, moments of rest during the summer, Christmas gifts, and everyday gestures that reinforce balance, trust, and appreciation. 

A balanced team 

This year, our team reached 50/50 gender equality, a milestone that reflects our commitment to inclusion, diversity, and equal opportunity, not as a checkbox, but as a lived value. 

Approaching 10 years: a milestone built together 

Reaching a decade of activity is more than an anniversary. It is a moment of gratitude for everything that has happened along the way.  

Over the past ten years, CORE Innovation Group has grown from an ambitious idea into a trusted partner for industry and research, in Greece and across Europe. That trust was not built overnight. It came from showing up consistently, doing the work with care, and staying honest about what we believe in.  

As we approach our 10-year milestone, this year feels especially meaningful. So many of the foundations we have been building over time are now clearly visible, strong, and future-ready! What guides us forward is purpose. Purpose in how we work, how we support one another, and how we choose the partnerships we build. We move ahead grounded in our values, grateful for the people who make this journey what it is, and quietly excited for what comes next.   

To everyone who has been part of this journey — partners, collaborators, clients, and, above all, our people: thank you!

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