Pomeranian innovation

Founded only five years ago, IVO Software - the company behind inventions such as an internet browser which reads websites out loud and a "speech synthesizer" - provides software solutions based on artificial intelligence and is taking on the world's computer giants. The company, which puts the idea of cooperation between scientists and business people into practice, operates in the Pomeranian Science and Technology Park in Gdynia (PPNT).

"The admission of IVO Software into the Pomeranian Science and Technology Park not only strengthened the reputation of the company, but also considerably lowered costs, as the company got the opportunity to lease offices in an attractive location on preferential conditions, and free access to the internet. Moreover, the company could benefit from the support of consulting specialists co-working with PPNT," says Łukasz Osowski, the company's CEO.

IVO Software's biggest achievement so far has been the speech synthesizer IVONA, which is now used in the telecommunications market. The company forecasts that this year's revenues will reach zł.2 million.

IVO Software is currently one of 42 companies which operate in PPNT. The park boasts that it offers ideal development conditions for high-tech business from fields such as biotechnology, environment protection, IT and industrial design.

"The point is to create space where these companies could lease offices paying symbolic money," says deputy president of Gdynia Bogusław Stasiak. "There's a race with technologies at stake, but it is also a race against time, whether we will manage to create such conditions for foreign capital so as to keep people in the region," explains Stasiak, referring to the brain-drain there.

The six-hectare Pomeranian Science and Technology Park is located in the center of Gdynia. The area has been revitalized in order to cater for the needs of modern companies. The park has just recently expanded with a new facility, which should begin operation in July.

However, it is not the only such park in the region. The three-hectare Gdańsk Science and Technology Park was opened in February this year in the center of Gdańsk. It was designed for high-tech start-up and knowledge-based small and medium-sized enterprises. The park is part of the 383-hectare Pomeranian Special Economic Zone (PSEZ).

Created in July 2001, PSEZ offers incentives such as tax exemptions and financial grants for investment in the region.