April 7, 2025 by Ezra Beloso
On March 27, 2025, SIM presented the new report on incubators and accelerators in Italy. The Social Innovation Monitor (SIM) is an international team dedicated to conducting research, reports, consulting, and training on entrepreneurial ecosystems, with a strong focus on social and environmental impact. The report was developed by its research team, based at the Politecnico di Torino, collaborating with its partners as well as an Advisory Board of experts.
The study resulted in the publication of two reports: a public report, which provides a summarized version of the key findings and is freely available to everyone, and a comprehensive report, which includes the full analysis.
The main goals of the research are to map incubation and acceleration activities on a national scale, by analyzing the development of the organizations involved; examine the business models adopted, as well as the services offered and the differences among various types of incubators; explore the characteristics and challenges faced by incubators supporting enterprises with a significant social and environmental impact and assess the effectiveness of the support provided, offering an initial evaluation of its impact on the sector.
It is important to highlight how the sample represents the target population, with 55 incubators participating in the survey. The report highlights a decrease in the number of identified incubators, dropping from 262 to 239. Despite this decline, the sector continues to grow, as the increase in total incubator revenue from €527M to €623M, along with a rise in the number of employees in incubators suggest.
The majority of incubators are concentrated in Northern Italy (54%), with Lombardy leading the ranking with 23% of the total incubators, followed by Emilia-Romagna and Lazio (11% each). Further insights can be found in the reports available on SIM’s website, covering not only the Italian landscape but also other countries such as Argentina, Brazil, Canada, France, Germany, and the United Kingdom, as well as a comparative report analyzing multiple EU countries.
In conclusion, the report offers valuable insights into the current state of the industry. Despite a decrease in the number of incubators, the overall growth in revenue and employment suggests the resilience and increasing importance of these organizations in fostering entrepreneurship, particularly in social and environmental domains. As incubators continue to evolve and adapt, the findings of this study provide important implications for policymakers, entrepreneurs, and investors looking to support sustainable innovation and social impact in Italy and beyond.
Social Innovation Monitor 2024, “Report sugli incubatori/acceleratori – Report pubblico 2024 https://socialinnovationmonitor.com/
