Parque Arauco Startup Challenge 2025: Innovation and sustainability in retail
Parque Arauco solidified its leadership in open innovation by announcing the five winners of the Startup Challenge 2025. This regional program received 117 applications from 25 countries , focusing on technological solutions that generate a real impact on the operation, sustainability, and experience of its shopping centers in Chile , Peru , and Colombia . The initiative stands out for addressing high-demand challenges in the sector: phygital experience (integrating the physical and digital worlds) and water and energy efficiency .
Winning startups and their proposals
Phygital Experience
Delfi (Argentina): An AI-powered platform to create personalized recommendations and automate commercial content, improving brand interaction with consumers in retail.
Somos Wallet (Chile): A solution that transforms Apple Wallet and Google Wallet into active loyalty and communication channels, connecting face-to-face experiences with real-time digital activations.
Water and Energy Efficiency
Zensi (Chile): Innovation in monitoring and intelligent control of water consumption, supporting sustainability strategies in large facilities.
Remote Waters (Chile): Technology for water purification and utilization in industrial and retail contexts, facilitating the optimization of water resources.
Energy Cloud (Peru): A platform for efficient energy management that helps shopping centers reduce costs and their carbon footprint.
Currently, pilot projects are being implemented in the region's main shopping centers to validate and scale these solutions, evaluating their impact on operations and sustainability.
Lessons for founders: opportunities in corporate innovation
The Startup Challenge 2025 demonstrates how large companies in Latin America are open to experimenting with emerging technologies and agile models that solve real-world problems. For startups, understanding specific industry challenges—such as phygital transformation and resource efficiency in retail—allows them to design highly relevant proposals and expand their scalability potential in the region.
Conclusion
Parque Arauco 's commitment to open innovation is a clear signal to founders that concrete opportunities exist for collaboration and rapid validation with key players in the industry. Participating in initiatives like the Startup Challenge not only opens doors to real-world pilot projects but also strengthens the Latin American technology ecosystem focused on sustainability and omnichannel experiences.