Why Innovation Needs Its Own Social Network and How INSPIRED Is Leading the Way
Every day, ideas with the power to change the world are born. Some could transform healthcare, others could accelerate the energy transition, or reinvent how we grow food, travel, and live. Yet too often these ideas remain hidden, disconnected from the visibility and support they need to thrive. Innovation has no shortage of brilliance. What it lacks is a stage. That is the problem Maximilian Werner set out to solve when he created INSPIRED, the world’s first social network dedicated entirely to innovation.
A Founder’s Realization
The spark came while Maximilian was working in private equity in Zurich. He saw promising ideas every day, but most never reached the public, never found funding, and never connected with the people who could turn them into reality. At first, his ambition was to democratize investing. He envisioned a system where anyone could put as little as ten dollars into a startup. It was a bold attempt to open up private equity and challenge outdated laws that reserve startup investing for a select group of professional investors. But as he pursued this across jurisdictions, he realized the bigger obstacle was not just regulation. It was visibility. Innovators were not failing because their ideas were weak. They were failing because no one could see them. That realization became the foundation of INSPIRED.
Building a Digital Stage for Innovation
Maximilian’s vision was clear. If innovation is the most effective way to solve global challenges, then the world needs a network built entirely to support it. It cannot be confined to a conference with limited capacity or a pitch day that ends when the lights go out. It must be a living, always-on digital stage where every innovator can showcase their project, connect with collaborators, and be visible to aligned investors. In 2023, he began building INSPIRED with a small team and a single mission: make innovation visible, not just for the well-connected but for the truly impactful. The journey was built without venture capital, sustained entirely by Maximilian’s own resources and a team of 15 who believed in the mission. By launch, thousands of people from around the world were already waiting to join, becoming the earliest active users. Today the network has grown to more than 12,000 members and continues to expand rapidly. Collectively they have generated over 1.5 million project views, offered more than one million expressions of support to innovators, and attracted engagement from high-profile investors including the CEO of Hertz and EcoWave Power.
Why the World Needs a Social Network for Innovation
Traditional platforms are built for entertainment and distraction. Innovation gets lost in that environment. A breakthrough in health tech or climate solutions cannot compete with celebrity gossip or viral videos. INSPIRED is different. It is designed with one purpose: to give bold ideas the stage they deserve. Innovators can share their projects in formats that highlight their depth, from short videos to detailed profiles. Collaborators and partners can discover opportunities aligned with their expertise. Investors gain access to curated deal flow focused on measurable impact and solutions tied to the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The community itself helps decide what rises to the top. Through competitions and challenges, innovators gain exposure based on the strength of their ideas, not the size of their marketing budgets. Because innovation cannot be solved in silo. The world’s greatest challenges demand that ideas are tested, refined, and advanced collectively. The essence of innovation lies in connection. Visibility strengthens ideas, and collaboration gives them the momentum to grow.
Shining Light on the Unseen
One of INSPIRED’s most powerful outcomes has been the ability to highlight projects that would otherwise go unnoticed. Among them is a project using drone mapping in the Amazon to help local communities generate sustainable income while protecting the rainforest. These are not household names with big PR budgets. They are exactly the kind of initiatives that too often remain buried in grant proposals or academic journals. INSPIRED brings them into the open, where collaborators, investors, and global audiences can engage with them directly and provide the resources they need to grow and scale.
Contests as a Catalyst for Innovation
One of the most engaging ways INSPIRED brings ideas to the forefront is through contests. These challenges give innovators the opportunity to showcase their projects to the global community while creating excitement and momentum around breakthrough ideas. In the pre-launch contest, Basel-based startup Mycrobez won €10,000 for its biodegradable mycelium-based alternative to polystyrene packaging. The launch contest awarded €7,000 to Bioverse, a Brazilian startup, which uses geospatial intelligence to track deforestation in the Amazon and monitor biodiversity loss. The next contest begins on October 1, 2025, with €20,000 for the winner, chosen directly by the INSPIRED community. In the future, organizations and investors will also be able to host their own contests on the network, creating an ongoing pipeline of challenges that surface impactful innovations.
Achievements in the First Chapter
INSPIRED has already demonstrated traction that few platforms achieve so quickly.
- More than 12,000 users have joined worldwide, with the community growing week by
week. - Over 1.5 million project views have been generated since launch.
- Half a million expressions of support have been given to innovators, ranging from
investor interest to offers of expertise and resources. - High-profile investors and executives are beginning to engage directly with projects on
the network.
From Startup to Movement
For Maximilian, INSPIRED is more than a product. It represents a cultural shift. The old ways of showcasing and funding innovation are too slow, too limited, and too exclusive to meet the urgency of today’s challenges. The future will not be shaped by incremental improvements. It will be shaped by systemic, disruptive changes that require collaboration across borders and industries. INSPIRED is designed to be the connective tissue for those changes. Already, the competitions running on the platform are surfacing trends in climate tech, health, and other critical fields. These are not just campaigns. They are real-time reflections of where innovation is heading and how the community itself can help decide which projects deserve greater visibility and resources.
Looking Ahead
The journey is only beginning. INSPIRED are building new features to strengthen discovery, collaboration, and trust. They are cultivating partnerships that will bring more
investors and experts into the network. And they are positioning themselves as the global home for anyone serious about innovation with impact. The ambition is bold. INSPIRED is not another place to compete for attention. It is a stage built to honor the ideas that matter most. “Innovation is humanity’s best chance to solve the challenges we face. But
it cannot thrive unseen. It needs a stage. It needs a network designed for it.” And now, with INSPIRED, it has one.
