INNOVATION DISTRICT

FEUP is located on the university campus in Asprela. More than a campus, Asprela is a true Innovation District which is home not only to other faculties of the University of Porto and schools of the Polytechnic Institute of Porto, but also to private universities, a central teaching hospital, an institute of oncology and various research institutes, both foreign and domestic. It is primarily a technological location, where the strong presence of engineering technologies, health sciences and entrepreneurship lend considerable impetus to the process of innovation

The Porto Innovation District represents one of the largest density of talent, knowledge and innovation in Europe. In a little more than a square kilometer work more than 14,000 people, mostly with higher qualifications and in functions of great complexity. The district also hosts some 38,000 students in more than 500 higher education programmes and launches more than 10,000 graduates a year.

The district is responsible for more than 20% of the national scientific publications and annually raises more than €70 million in basic and competitive research funding, affirming itself as the place of greater production of knowledge of the country. And a place where the strong presence of engineering technologies, health sciences and entrepreneurship lend considerable impetus to the process of innovation.

Asprela is home to about 40 business innovation centers and other anchor companies, and to more than 70 startups in incubation at the University of Porto’s Science and Technology Park (UPTEC), which benefit from proximity to the academy and the production of knowledge. UPTEC was recognized by the European Commission in 2013 with the Regio Stars Award in the category “Smart Growth”.
The Asprela campus is brimming with the entrepreneurial spirit and multidisciplinary research that have allowed FEUP to break new ground in which to operate and thus broaden its expertise. It benefits from the characteristics of a vibrant and authentic urban space as Porto, which attracts and consolidates talent.

All over the world, the essence of cities reappears in these dense spaces where the potential for innovation and talent of academic institutions intersects with global, high-growth companies and high-tech creative start-ups in spaces that facilitate synergistic relationships between talented and motivated people. The Porto Innovation District is the first Innovation District in Portugal, being one of the largest densities of Talent, Knowledge and Innovation in Europe.