Torino City Lab

What Torino City Lab does

Torino City Lab (TCL) is a public urban innovation platform operated by the City of Turin, Italy, established formally in 2018 after first neighborhood-level Living Lab experiments in 2016 and recognized in 2025 as a structural legacy action of the municipality. The platform enables companies, startups, research institutions, and public entities to test innovative solutions across three strategic domains—Smart Life (urban living and culture), Future Mobility (autonomous, connected, shared, electric transport), and Climate Neutrality (2030 climate goals)—in real-world urban conditions by providing structured access to municipal assets, regulatory facilitation, and partner networks. The organization operates under the Assessorato alla Transizione ecologica e digitale of Comune di Torino and engages more than 100 public and private partners and over 600 ecosystem stakeholders.

The platform's technical architecture rests on three operational pillars: CTE NEXT (Casa delle Tecnologie Emergenti), the national House of Emerging Technologies for 5G, AI, IoT, and Blockchain applications; Living Lab ToMove, a distributed laboratory for Connected, Cooperative, and Autonomous Mobility (CCAM) integrated with the national MaaS4Italy program; and an Urban Digital Twin of Turin built through Mobile Mapping Systems and terrestrial laser scanning with 360° photography. Supporting infrastructure includes Italy's first Ethical Board for Emerging Technologies, four unique European stress-test areas, and cohort programs such as AuToMove (free autonomous shuttle on Turin streets since October 2024), ToMove4Future (13 solutions supporting 20 companies), Space TO Move (2025 sustainable mobility accelerator), Impact Deal (data-driven impact accelerator), Call4Acceleration (up to €15,000 reimbursement) and Call4Testing (up to €70,000 funding).

TCL is funded entirely through public sources—municipal budgets, the Italian Ministry of Enterprises and Made in Italy, European Commission programs (PNRR, Horizon Europe, EIT Urban Mobility), and partner foundation contributions (Fondazione CRT, Fondazione Compagnia di San Paolo, Intesa Sanpaolo Innovation Center)—and does not generate commercial revenue. Access to testing infrastructure is free for selected participants. Since 2018, TCL has activated more than 60 experimentation contracts; CTE NEXT alone has supported over 150 startups across 35 use cases and 173 events/training programs in three years. The platform received European Capital of Innovation (iCapital) 2024-2025, the EU Mission Label for Climate Neutral & Smart Cities, and the European Capital of Smart Tourism 2025 designation, making Turin one of the most visible urban innovation ecosystems in Continental Europe.

Name

Torino City Lab

Legal name

Torino City Lab (Iniziativa della Città di Torino)

Website

https://torinocitylab.it

Company type

Private

Founded year

2018

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Torino City Lab is a City of Turin public platform enabling startups, SMEs, researchers, and public entities to test emerging-technology solutions in real urban conditions across smart living, future mobility, and climate neutrality through structured calls and municipal asset access.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Urban Innovation Services

akta.pro primary industry

Smart Cities & Urban Innovation Programs (Digital Planning, Civic Tech for Cities) (BPAIANAJ)

Keywords

• Urban innovation platform
• Smart city testing
• Living lab programs
• Autonomous mobility testing
• Emerging technology hub

Headquarters

HQ city

Torino

HQ country

Italy

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Personnel, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Public Funding and Grants: Torino City Lab is a publicly funded initiative of the City of Turin, supported by national funding (Ministry of Enterprises and Made in Italy for CTE NEXT), European funding (PNRR, Horizon Europe, EIT Urban Mobility), and municipal budget allocations. The platform does not generate commercial revenue but facilitates access to public assets, data, and regulatory support for participating companies.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Torino City Lab is an urban innovation platform operated by the City of Turin that provides startups, SMEs, research institutions, and large enterprises with free access to municipal assets, public data, and regulatory facilitation for real-world testing of emerging technologies (5G/6G, AI, IoT, Blockchain, autonomous mobility) in three strategic domains: Smart Life, Future Mobility, and Climate Neutrality. Selected participants receive expense-reimbursement funding through structured Calls for Testing, acceleration programs (Living Lab ToMove, CTE NEXT, Space TO Move, Impact Deal, Techstars Transformative World Torino), and dedicated living lab programs such as AuToMove (autonomous shuttle) and ToMove4Future.

Product overview

Torino City Lab (TCL) is a multi-domain urban innovation platform operated by the City of Turin, functioning as a living laboratory framework rather than a singular software product. The platform is structured around three strategic domains: Smart Life (emerging technologies for urban living), Future Mobility (autonomous, connected, shared, electric mobility), and Climate Neutrality (2030 climate goals). Core operational components include Living Lab ToMove (CCAM mobility testing), CTE NEXT/Casa delle Tecnologie Emergenti (5G, AI, IoT, Blockchain hub), and the ToMove4Future testing program. Named offerings include AuToMove (autonomous shuttle), Digital Twin (urban data platform), Space TO Move (mobility accelerator), Impact Deal (data-driven impact accelerator), and Techstars Transformative World Torino (deep tech accelerator). The platform enables real-world testing through Calls for Testing and acceleration programs, supported by an Ethical Board for emerging technologies.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• CTE NEXT (Casa delle Tecnologie Emergenti di Torino): House of Emerging Technologies - National hub for 5G, AI, IoT and Blockchain technologies for innovative urban services
• ToMove
• Torino Impact City

Products and services

• Torino City Lab Platform Urban innovation platform by the City of Turin enabling startups, SMEs, research institutions, and public entities to test innovative solutions in real-world urban conditions across Smart Life, Future Mobility, and Climate Neutrality domains.
• Living Lab ToMove Living laboratory focused on cooperative, connected, and autonomous mobility (CCAM), integrating Mobility as a Service (MaaS) solutions for smart and sustainable urban mobility development.
• CTE NEXT (Casa delle Tecnologie Emergenti) National House of Emerging Technologies providing a hub for 5G, AI, IoT, and Blockchain innovation, supporting startups and SMEs with testing facilities and acceleration programs for urban services.
• ToMove4Future Open call for testing that supports companies in developing and experimenting with technologies, services, and innovative solutions for urban mobility, enabling real-world testing through Living Lab ToMove.
• AuToMove Autonomous Shuttle Service Free autonomous shuttle service tested on Turin streets as part of Living Lab ToMove, demonstrating cooperative, connected, and autonomous mobility (CCAM) solutions for public urban transport.
• Space TO Move Acceleration Program Acceleration program under Living Lab ToMove for startups and companies developing sustainable urban mobility solutions, supporting them through mentorship, ecosystem introductions, and pilot pathways.
• Impact Deal European Acceleration Program European acceleration program focused on data-driven enterprises with social and environmental positive impact, promoted by Fondazione CRT, OGR Torino, and Microsoft.
• Techstars Transformative World Torino Accelerator International accelerator program based in Turin focused on Smart Mobility and Cities of the Future, hosting 12 startups and supported by Fondazione CRT, Fondazione Compagnia di San Paolo, and Intesa Sanpaolo Innovation Center.
• Call4Testing Program Open calls for testing innovative solutions using 5G and emerging technologies (IoT, AI, Blockchain) in urban environments, with funding up to €70,000 for selected startups and SMEs.
• Urban Digital Twin (ToMove) Urban digital twin platform integrating mobility data, sensor networks, and real-time monitoring for city planning and operational decision support, supporting autonomous mobility, LiDAR detection, and predictive simulations.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 60 experimentation contracts activated since 2018
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers19 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability12 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

23 partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and supporting.

• CTE NEXT (Casa delle Tecnologie Emergenti di Torino)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2018CTE NEXT is the national House of Emerging Technologies for Turin, established in 2021 as a public-private partnership funded by the Ministry of Enterprises and Made in Italy. It serves as the primary technology hub within Torino City Lab, focusing on 5G, AI, IoT, and Blockchain applications for urban services. In three years, it supported over 150 startups and developed 35 use cases. The initiative expanded to CTE NEXT 2.0 in 2025 with broader partnerships and intervention areas.
• Fondazione Piemonte InnovacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFondazione Piemonte Innova serves as the industrial qualification partner for ToMove Living Lab, building pathways for direct involvement of national enterprises in the public-private dialogue program, mapping competencies, project experiences, and industrial investment interests in research and innovation activities.
• Techstars Transformative World TorinocoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerTechstars operates an international accelerator program in Turin focused on Smart Mobility and Cities of the Future, now in its Transformative World edition. The program hosts 12 startups and is supported by Fondazione CRT, Fondazione Compagnia di San Paolo, and Intesa Sanpaolo Innovation Center, with new partnerships from LIFTT, Arcanys Ventures, and Hyrise.
• Intesa Sanpaolo Innovation CentercoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerIntesa Sanpaolo Innovation Center is a strategic partner facilitating connections between Torino City Lab and the financial ecosystem. It co-organizes Torino Talent Gateway and serves as the historical partner for Techstars programs, with Elena Deambrogio from the City of Turin serving as mentor.
• European Network of Living Labs (ENoLL)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerENoLL is the European network of Living Labs that Torino City Lab has been affiliated with for many years. Turin participates in ENoLL summits and uses the network for international collaboration and best practice sharing with living labs across Europe.
• Enterprise Europe Network (EEN)majorGTM or Marketing PartnerEnterprise Europe Network helps SMEs grow, innovate, and internationalize. EEN supports Torino City Lab events and provides access to European business cooperation opportunities and B2B matching.
• EIT Urban MobilitymajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerEIT Urban Mobility aims to bring together city consortia, NGOs, academic institutions, and commercial partners to initiate projects engaging people on urban mobility and public space topics. Co-organizes events and projects like MoTO with Torino City Lab.
• Camera di Commercio di TorinomajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Chamber of Commerce of Turin co-organizes international events with CTE NEXT including the 5G towards 6G for CitiVerse conference and participates in European partnership initiatives.
• 6G-IA (6G Smart Networks and Services Industry Association)supportingTechnology or Integration6G-IA represents European industry and research for next-generation networks and services. It supports Torino City Lab events as part of international networks advancing 6G technology.
• MaaS4Italy / Dipartimento per la Trasformazione DigitalecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMaaS4Italy is a government initiative promoted by the Digital Transformation Department and Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport, funded by the PNRR. Torino participates as one of the MaaS metropolitan cities, with ToMove Living Lab demonstrating autonomous driving applied to urban transport.
• 5T (Torino Tree Transport)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner5T is the Turin technology company that coordinates MaaS ToMove for the City of Turin, providing technological infrastructure and integration for mobility services.
• GTT (Gruppo Torinese Trasporti)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGTT is the local public transport authority participating in ToMove Living Lab, providing access to transport data and infrastructure for mobility innovation testing.
• Politecnico di TorinocoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPolitecnico di Torino is the primary technical university partner collaborating on mobility research, Digital Twin development, and urban innovation projects including AuToMove autonomous shuttle testing.
• University of Turin (UniTo)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerUniversity of Turin participates in Living Lab ToMove activities, contributing to research on mobility innovation and citizen engagement.
• Links FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLinks Foundation (formerly Links Engineering) serves as a technical research partner for urban innovation projects including Digital Twin development and sustainable logistics workshops.
• Digital MagicsmajorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerDigital Magics co-manages the Call4Acceleration program for CTE NEXT, providing acceleration services and mentorship to CleanTech startups.
• The DoersmajorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerThe Doers co-manages the Call4Acceleration program for CTE NEXT, contributing expertise in startup acceleration and business development.
• Smart Communities Tech ClustermajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe national Smart Communities Tech Cluster organizes Partnerships for Horizon Europe events and supports Torino City Lab participation in European research collaborations.
• CLIMABOROUGH Project ConsortiummajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCLIMABOROUGH is a EU co-funded project under the Climate Neutral and Smart Cities mission. Turin serves as an HUB specifically dedicated to the 'From Waste to Circularity' activity, hosting webinars and workshops on carbon neutrality pathways.
• Turismo TorinosupportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerTurismo Torino collaborates on smart tourism initiatives, integrating the Neta AI tourist assistant with local databases and the organization's CRM for visitor services.
• Sperimentazioni ItaliasupportingTechnology or IntegrationSperimentazioni Italia provides regulatory authorization for autonomous vehicle testing on Italian roads, enabling the AuToMove autonomous shuttle pilot in Turin.
• TrialsNet ProjectmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerTrialsNet is a European project funded by Horizon-JU-SNS-2022, comprising 13 innovative use cases leveraging beyond-5G networks to improve urban environments. Turin participates with experiments in museums and cultural sites.
• Convince ProjectsupportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerConvince is a European project collaborating with CTE NEXT on Torino Easy to Visit initiatives for innovative technologies in culture and tourism.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Milano Innovation District (MIND): Italian innovation district developed on the Expo Milano site, hosting research institutions and corporate labs for urban-tech experimentation. Closest domestic peer to TCL; both pursue city-backed innovation ecosystems in northern Italy.
• Curiosity Lab (Peachtree Corners): US-based real-world testbed for autonomous vehicles, IoT, and smart-city technology on a public roadway. Direct peer on the autonomous-mobility living lab dimension that underpins TCL's ToMove and AuToMove programs.
• Helsinki Forum Virium: Finnish municipality-owned urban innovation company running smart-city pilots in the Helsinki metropolitan area. Most direct European analogue to Torino City Lab: public-sector-owned living lab, real-world testbed for emerging tech, and multi-domain (mobility, AI, energy) experimentation model.
• Amsterdam Smart City: Public-private platform connecting companies, citizens, and the City of Amsterdam to run urban innovation projects on mobility, energy, and circular economy. Directly comparable as a city-led living lab with similar governance and 5G/IoT experimentation focus.

Broad incumbents

• 22@Barcelona Innovation District: Barcelona's urban innovation and technology district hosting startups, research centers, and pilot projects. Larger, more established urban innovation ecosystem in a competing European city.
• Sidewalk Labs / Google Urban Innovation: Alphabet-affiliated urban technology company that built analogous smart-city testbeds (Sidewalk Toronto). Broad incumbent in the urban-innovation space with more capital but focused on planning software vs. TCL's real-world testing focus.

Others

• EIT Urban Mobility: European public-private partnership that funds and coordinates urban mobility innovation across cities, including Turin. Functions as a peer and ecosystem partner sharing TCL's CCAM/MaaS mission across 30+ European cities.
• European Network of Living Labs (ENoLL): International federation of certified Living Labs that Torino City Lab is affiliated with. Comparable as an ecosystem shaper; many member labs (Hamburg, Barcelona, Eindhoven) overlap directly with TCL's programs.

Regional players

• Smart City Wien (Vienna): Vienna's municipal smart-city strategy and experimentation program covering mobility, energy, and digital services. Regional peer with comparable municipal-led governance and EU program access, but operating in a different geography.
• Brainport Eindhoven: Dutch regional innovation ecosystem with public-private governance around mobility and emerging-tech testing, including living lab facilities. Comparable ecosystem-level model in another EU region.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/TorinoCityLab
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UC9UgOGmZ-SwHWSF5m8mogSQ
• Facebookfacebook.com/tocitylab
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/torino-city-lab

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Subsidiaries2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Torino City Lab