New partnership to boost innovation districts in London and Milan

Milan Innovation District (MIND) and White City Innovation District have forged a new partnership to enhance their status as leading innovation hubs. The signing of the agreement on 12 June in London was attended by the Italian ambassador to the UK, Inigo Lambertini, MIND CEO Igor De Biasio and Hammersmith & Fulham council leader, Stephen Cowan.

“Today is an important milestone for us”, said Igor De Biasio. “We know that innovation is something that we can create and foster only with other important partners – and White City is this kind of partner for us”.

Both districts share a focus on life sciences and technology, aspiring to become centres of scientific excellence. Milan’s district features a teaching hospital, a STEM campus, and a research institute with substantial lab space. White City hosts Imperial College London’s I-Hub and the new £150 million EdCity development.

NATO’s first defence innovation HQ, together with industry leaders such as L’Oreal and Novartis, are based in White City, while Milan is home to AstraZeneca, Illumina, and E.ON. Both districts also support numerous startups and scale-ups emerging from local universities.

The collaboration between the two IASP full members seeks to enhance research-business synergy, driving sustainable economic growth through foreign investment and job creation.