AppCircus arrives in São Paulo on January 11 with a special event focused on Microsoft developers. The event will bring together some of the best apps for the Microsoft platform for the thriving Brazilian app scene and will include workshops for developers and app entrepreneurs.

During AppCircus São Paulo Spotlight on Microsoft, the city will bring together some of the developers of the most creative and innovative apps in Brazil. Each participant will pitch their app live to the audience and a jury of experts, before the best app is selected. The winning app will have the opportunity to become one of the 20 finalists to participate at the prestigious Mobile Premier Awards, which will take place in Barcelona on February 25 2013, coinciding with the Mobile World Congress, the world’s most important mobile technology event.

Participating in AppCircus is free and open to any designer, startup or business with a working app ready to present for three minutes live on stage.  To take part in AppCircus São Paulo Spotlight on Microsoft, participants must first register their app online at the AppCircus website before December 28.

Special workshop

Aside from networking with some of Brazil’s leading app experts, attendees can also take part in a special workshop focused on "Windows Phone – Platform Overview & Opportunities". Destined to disrupt the smartphone industry by offering its unique user interface and slick performance across several devices, Windows Phone is continuously attracting new customers in several markets worldwide. Companies (big, small or startups) have already figure out ways to capture new business opportunities via innovative applications running on Windows Phone. On this workshop, the Microsoft team will present an overview of the Windows Phone Platform, including its tools and SDKs as well as cover how companies can increase their revenue and market share while developing apps for Windows Phone. It is also an opportunity for iOS and Android developers get introduced into the Microsoft Windows Phone platform. You cannot miss that opportunity.

Brazil leads the app market in South America

Brazil currently leads the app market for mobile devices in the region thanks to the big growth in smart phones and tablets. According to Carles Ferreiro, CEO at AppCircus, the use of apps by Brazilian consumers is growing spectacularly: “there have been more than 400 apps developed for Windows mobile in Brazil and the scope for further growth is extraordinary thanks to the potential of areas like e-commerce and tourism”. The development of the Windows app ecosystem is a sector with “huge vitality” that offers “great professional and business opportunities for innovation and economic development”, says Carles Ferreiro. “This event gives us the chance to check out the potential of Microsoft Windows as a mobile app development platform and see some of the great ideas coming out of Brazil at the moment”.

AppCircus Bilbao incluye un interesante programa de workshops gratuitos con todas las claves del éxito de una app, que será impartido por expertos procedentes de HTML5, PayPal y Nokia. La inscripción se puede formalizar en este link.

El evento, que cuenta con el apoyo de Nokia, tendrá lugar a las 10 horas del 26 de noviembre en la Universidad de Ingeniería de la Universidad de Deusto. ¡Os esperamos!

Se pueden obtener entradas gratis de un día para la Smart City Expo 2012 y el evento registrándose aquí

Smart City Expo 2012 acogerá el 15 de noviembre la Open Cities App Challenge, que es parte de Open Cities project, un proyecto coordinado por ESADE que está explorando cómo el crowdsourcing, open data, la instalación de fibra en los hogares y los open sensor networks pueden utilizarse para mejorar la vida en siete grandes ciudades europeas: Ámsterdam, Barcelona, Berlín, Bolonia, Helsinki, París y Roma.

Las principales ciudades del mundo se enfrentan a un crecimiento de población, las personas que las habitan necesitan aumentar la eficiencia y reducir sus gastos y, a su vez, es necesario asegurar una buena calidad de vida para el conjunto de los ciudadanos.

Una nueva generación de aplicaciones móviles está usando open data para transformar cómo interactuamos con las ciudades en las que vivimos

Para hacer frente a estos retos, Open Cities Project ha invitado a los desarrolladores a enviar sus aplicaciones para las ciudades, con la opción de participar en la Open Cities App Challenge en Smart City Expo 2012. El ganador recibirá un premio de 3.000 euros.

Las apps finalistas proceden de Europa e incluyen soluciones para mejorar la movilidad urbana, compartir información entre ciudadanos y el gobierno local, ayudar a personas ciegas a encontrar su camino en la ciudad o localizar los aseos públicos.

Nice City Passport (España)

ComunicaPA (Italia)

Huellasolar (España)

Toilet Map Vienna (Austria)

BikeCityGuide (Austria)

BlindSquare (Finlandia)

Eureka (Italia)

PayPark (España)

Hogenood (Países Bajos)

Wheelmap.org (Alemania)

La Open Cities App Challenge tendrá la forma de un evento AppCircus, donde cada participante tendrá tres minutos para presentar su aplicación ante un jurado de expertos. Además del premio en efectivo, la aplicación ganadora tendrá la oportunidad de participar en los Mobile Premier Awards, considerados los premios de referencia del sector de las aplicaciones móviles, que se celebrarán en Barcelona durante el Mobile World Congress.

También tendrán protagonismo en el evento los tres finalistas de Urban Lab Challenge, que pretende convertir las ciudades en laboratorios urbanos para facilitar el uso de espacios públicos para probar programas piloto de productos y servicios con un impacto urbano. Para este evento, se ha pedido a los desarrolladores que encuentren tecnologías de generación, almacenamiento y distribución de energía para los edificios con el fin de reducir su huella en la emisión de carbono.

Los visitantes de la Smart City Expo 2012 pueden asistir a AppCircus Open Cities App Challenge el 15 de noviembre, de las 15.00 a las 18.30 horas en la Sala 5, Módulo 2, en la Fira de Barcelona, Recinto Gran Vía.

Register today for the Cairo Transport AppChallenge

App developers: we need you to help us solve Cairo’s transport chaos

20 million people, 14 million cars on the road every day… a growing city on the edge of transport collapse. How can your app help? That’s where our challenge begins!

The World Bank is collaborating with Google Developer Group (GDG) Cairo and AppCircus to launch the Cairo Transport AppChallenge. How can we use mobile technology to improve transport in Cairo, make it less congested and safer for drivers, passengers and users of public transport.

That’s our challenge.

Now it’s up to you, if you are a freelance app developer, app development company or you just have a great idea and a dream to become one of the above, this could be your chance to turn your ideas for great apps into reality.

One of the main aspects of the Cairo Transport AppChallenge is the first hack@home, powered by AppCircus: a hands-on, ongoing project where developers, designers, businesses and creative people, come together to create innovative apps that provide the answers to everyday problems.

Taking part in the challenge will give you the chance to get expert help to build your app from our online mentors, form a team by connecting with like-minded designers, developers and programmers and make a real impact in the daily lives of millions of people.

Get involved! Start taking part now!

How does it work?

• The Cairo Transport AppChallenge is open to all app creators: developers, marketeers or users with ideas.
• The first step is to register for the challenge and start building your team. This is where hack@home will help you to make and manage those contacts.
• Now it’s time to get the briefing, understand the problem and start applying your creativity to find the solution.
• hack@home has begun! Now you’ve got the chance to use our online mentors to make your app a reality.
• If you already have an app that you think fits the bill, you can submit it for consideration before the final deadline.
• Our team of experts, along with the online community, will choose the top 10 transportation apps to participate in our grand final in Cairo on December 15.
• Along with a cash prize, the winners will get the chance to present their app at the Mobile Premier Awards, which coincide with the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona in 2013!

Why do we need you?

Cairo is in transformation: at the forefront of the biggest social changes in the region, it’s a city in constant evolution. Cairo has inspired us and helped us to see that when people come together they can actually change things for the better. Now it’s time for us to try and give something back. Lets help Cairo run more smoothly.

Traffic congestion is a serious problem in the Cairo metropolitan area with substantial adverse effects on personal travel time, vehicle operating costs, air quality, public health and business operations.

We think that Mobile technology could provide the answer to some of the biggest challenges faced by Cairo’s commuters:

• Lack of awareness of driving regulations and safety on the road.
• Lack of information about private and public transport in Cairo.
• The need to improve the quality of public transport by integrating new technologies.
• Finding ways to improve security and minimize harassment of women traveling on public transport.
• Improving mobility for people with physical challenges.
• Finding ways to control traffic infractions and identify dangerous driving.

These are just some of the ways mobile technology could improve transportation in Cairo.  Now it’s up to you.

Get involved! Go to Cairo Transport AppChallenge today and start turning your app into a reality.

The Cairo Transport AppChallenge is sponsored by Google and Orange and supported by the World Bank, AppCircus, Google Developer Group (GDG) Cairo, Egyptian Ministry of CIT, TIEC, ITIDA, Egyptian Ministry of Transport, Green Arm, AYB, Arabnet and Wamda.

About hack@home

hack@home has been created with the purpose of asking app creators to come up with ideas for specific challenges to improve our daily lives. Working with NGOs, governmental institutions and businesses, hack@home is an innovative new platform that brings together app creators and app experts and gives them a series of online tools to allow them to collaborate more fluidly. hack@home is all about creating Apps for Life.

About AppCircus

AppCircus is the world’s largest travelling competition for applications. The event serves as a showcase for new app developers to premier their latest creations in front of mobile industry experts, angel investors and other developers. Since it began in 2010 there has been over 100 AppCircus events around the world in over 30 countries, with over 2,500 apps submitted.

About the World Bank

The World Bank is a vital source of financial and technical assistance to developing countries around the world. It is a unique partnership to reduce poverty and support development, comprising two institutions managed by 188 member countries: the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) and the International Development Association(IDA). The IBRD aims to reduce poverty in middle-income and creditworthy poorer countries, while IDA focuses exclusively on the world’s poorest countries. These institutions are part of a larger body known as the World Bank Group.

About the GDG Cairo

GDG Cairo [Google Developer Group - Cairo] is one of the biggest technical communities in Egypt, organizing some interesting conferences, competitions, and many other creative activities. It is a technical user group for people who are interested in Google's developer technology; everything from the Android and App Engine platforms, to product APIs like the YouTube API and the Google Calendar API, to initiatives like OpenSocial. Volunteers, experts in many fields, manage the group, which is always open to accept new volunteers interested in being part of the organizational team.

Last night, the teams behind 10 applications pitched their products at AppCircus São Paulo, bringing Innovation Qualcomm 2012 to a close. After an exciting evening of competition, the winners were announced.

VideoVivo came in first place. The app is a community marketplace for professionals to market and sell their services over live video. Founded in 2011, the company is headed by Ofer Baharav and Carl Jackson and based out of São Paulo and Silicon Valley.

The runner-up was iPostal, an app that allows users to create and print real postcards from the pictures and messages on their phones. Currently working with iOS, it will be available for Android soon.

The winner receives a nomination to the Mobile Premier Awards 2013 during the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona.