Uruguay Inaugurates Open Innovation Laboratory for Green Technologies

By Pittaluga Abogados

Uruguay’s government and scientific institutions have launched Uruguay GreenTech, a new open innovation laboratory aimed at advancing research and development in environmentally sustainable technologies. The initiative is led by the Agencia Nacional de Investigación e Innovación (ANII) and the University of the Republic (Udelar), with an operating start scheduled for 2026. 

The laboratory was formally announced with the signing of an inter-institutional agreement that included participation from key national authorities, including the ministers of Industry, Energy and Mining, and Economy and Finance, alongside representatives of ANII, Udelar and the Ministry of Education and Culture. 

Uruguay GreenTech is designed as a space for applied research, skills training and technology transfer. Its primary areas of focus will include the development of:

-Battery technologies and electromobility
-Solar photovoltaic energy
-Other technologies linked to environmental sustainability and the energy transition

The laboratory emphasizes collaboration between academic research, private sector companies and technological enterprises. It seeks to promote joint projects that generate knowledge, validate new technologies and foster productive development both within Uruguay and internationally. 

The initiative is structured on the principle of open innovation — bringing together students, researchers, businesses and public sector actors to share knowledge, co-develop solutions and address practical challenges. According to university leadership, this model aims to create innovation ecosystems where problems, technologies and expertise circulate across traditional institutional boundaries.