MusicTech Innovation Programme

MusicTech Innovation Programme

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Marili Randla

Define Target Group

For cross-sector innovation, one of the biggest challenges is to identify how to reach people from outside your immediate sector who might be inspired to engage. In MusicTech, this means not only working with established music professionals but also finding IT/tech specialists who are motivated by music-related challenges.

The first task is to define clearly who your core participants are. In TechTrack case, we looked at:

Music industry professionals open to experimenting with technology.
Tech/IT specialists with a passion for music (often hobby musicians or former professionals).
Innovators and creators interested in building bridges between the two fields.

Being clear about the level and profile of participants you seek (early-stage enthusiasts vs. advanced professionals) helps shape both programme design and recruitment.

What did we seek?

We sought early-stage enthusiasts from both the music and tech fields who were curious, motivated and willing to experiment with solving music industry challenges through technical solutions. Our goal was to bring together people with complementary perspectives – music professionals who understand the problems, and tech specialists who can imagine and prototype solutions.

Why this target group?

We chose this group because early-stage innovators tend to be more open to cross-sector collaboration and experimentation than established experts with fixed routines. At the same time, involving representatives from different music industry sectors in the first session allowed us to validate that the problems were real and relevant. In later sessions, we invited mentors from both industries to provide professional guidance and help participants develop their ideas further.

The second step is to plan how to reach them. While sharing information within the music sector was straightforward, engaging the tech community required a more targeted approach. In TechTrack, we combined channels: from direct outreach to tech hubs, tech universities, to partnerships, to targeted ads. It is important to monitor who responds to outreach efforts to adjust recruitment strategies as needed.

Goals & Objectives

A MusicTech innovation programme helps connect music and technology communities, foster ideation and prototyping, and support early-stage projects. From our TechTrack pilot, high-impact keynotes and focused ideation and prototyping sessions were essential in setting the tone and energizing participants.

To define Goals & Objectives for your own programme, ask:

Why is the programme needed in your region?
What outcomes do you want to achieve (e.g., collaboration, prototypes, ecosystem growth)?
Which participants and stakeholders should be involved and how?

Clear Goals & Objectives guide the programme design, set expectations, and align participants toward meaningful outcomes.

“Based on my international feedback and observations, TechTrack fills a critical gap in the MusicTech development chain. While most incubators and accelerators only work with already formed teams and prototypes, TechTrack uniquely starts at the grassroots level, where people come together around ideas. This makes it especially valuable as a model that can be adapted and replicated in any city or region”. — Marili Randla, TechTrack Project Lead, Music Estonia

Additional materials: TechTrack programme milestones animation/map. This animation illustrates the timeline and key milestones of the TechTrack pilot, from initial ideation sessions and team formation, through prototyping and pitching, to the incubation phase. It helps readers quickly understand the structure, duration, and flow of the programme.

Find Partners & Experts

Building a strong MusicTech programme requires the support of carefully chosen partners and experts. Partners can include universities, coworking hubs, industry associations, innovation ecosystems, and governmental or national support organisations. Experts can contribute industry-specific knowledge, startup methodologies, mentoring in product development, or technical guidance.

In TechTrack, partnerships were central to our success:

Startup ecosystem professionals – Consultants helped design the programme structure and content; a marketing & communications expert managed outreach; and a professional event host ensured engaging, well-run sessions.
TalTech (Tallinn University of Technology) – We initiated and co-organized a pre-event on Music & AI, introducing the programme and attracting participants, including one of the winning teams.
Lift99 Tallinn Hub – Estonia’s flagship startup community and the go-to place for founders. Its vibrant ecosystem made it an ideal venue for TechTrack sessions, helping us engage tech professionals alongside music industry participants.
International experts and mentors – Including product managers, UX designers, international MusicTech experts, and local music industry professionals. They provided input in ideation, prototyping, pitching, and guidance for further development during the incubation phase.
Tallinn Business Incubator – Provided top 3 teams with opportunities to participate in entrepreneurship-focused workshops during the incubation phase.
Supported by: Enterprise Estonia and Tallinn UNESCO City of Music – illustrating the types of organisations that can support similar programmes.

Tip: Ensure partners and experts actively contribute throughout the programme, e.g., mentoring, delivering workshops, or providing feedback, so participants receive practical guidance and the programme achieves meaningful outcomes.

Run the Programme from Ideation to Prototype

Running a MusicTech programme involves guiding participants from initial ideas to tangible prototypes, while fostering collaboration and learning across sectors. A structured yet flexible format is essential to ensure participants can develop, refine, and test concepts effectively.

In TechTrack, the programme spanned three months and included:

Ideation sessions – Participants explored challenges, brainstormed ideas, and formed teams. High-impact keynotes and workshops helped set the tone and inspire creative thinking.
Prototyping sessions – Teams transformed ideas into tangible prototypes with guidance from industry mentors, UX designers, and product managers. Focused sessions encouraged iteration and experimentation.
Pitch preparation and final event – Teams presented their prototypes in a structured pitch format, receiving feedback from international and local MusicTech experts.

The programme combined elements of hackathons and structured workshops, providing sufficient time for deeper exploration than typical short events. This approach allowed participants to not only generate ideas but also validate and refine them into viable solutions.

Why we chose this hybrid approach

Classic hackathons are great for generating energy, networking, and quick ideas. However, their short timeframe makes it difficult for participants from different sectors to build trust, understand each other’s perspectives, and develop viable solutions. In MusicTech, this was especially relevant: music professionals often lack prototyping experience, while tech specialists may have limited knowledge of the music industry’s specific needs.

In contrast, traditional incubators provide structured support for refining and scaling projects. But they assume a pre-existing project and focus less on early-stage ideation and cross-sector learning.

TechTrack combined the strengths of both approaches. The programme was structured as three hackathon-style sessions over three months, giving participants time to explore problems, generate ideas, iterate, and receive guidance from mentors, UX designers, and product managers. After these sessions, an incubator-like stage supported the three winning teams, helping them refine and further develop their projects.

This hybrid approach allowed early-stage enthusiasts from music and tech to co-create solutions in a supportive environment, while providing enough time and guidance to overcome sector-specific knowledge gaps and develop tangible prototypes.

Additional materials: TechTrack Session 1 agenda example. This material illustrates how a session was structured, providing practical guidance for planning your own programme

Unlike typical hackathons or accelerators, TechTrack piloted a completely new concept, combining elements from these formats into an innovative, cross-sectoral model tailored for MusicTech development.

Key decisions included structuring the programme into a three-month workshop phase followed by six months of incubation, allowing teams to progress from early ideas to tested prototypes and business models. Designing the concept with startup and hackathon experts, and partnering with Lift99 and Tallinn Business Incubator for venues, networks, and know-how, was critical. Structured mentor involvement and targeted outreach through TalTech, Enterprise Estonia, and Music Estonia networks ensured a diverse participant pool.

TechTrack activated Estonia’s emerging MusicTech ecosystem, generating 13 ideas, 6 finalists, and 3 teams entering the incubation phase. At the programme’s conclusion, teams presented at the international conference Music Frontiers Startup Showcase, demonstrated readiness to validate their ideas and advance to the international scene. New collaborations between participants, mentors, and organisations continue beyond the programme.

"A fantastic initiative by Music Estonia. In such a short time, six sufficiently mature and development-ready ideas — real companies — have emerged. The local music-tech scene greatly needs such a programme." — Priit Uustulnd, EstBAN, TechTrack jury

“I did not expect my idea to take off when I signed up. The most valuable features were that it brought together the right people and provided a structured path to team up and start working.” — Heidi Reial, Synchub, TechTrack Top 3

“Participating at TechTrack opened a lot of doors for us, from amazing new connections, pitching opportunities and knowledge on how to build a startup as a first time founder.” — Alice Kattago, Synchub, TechTrack Top 3

“TechTrack was absolutely instrumental in bringing our seedling idea into a start-up reality. The program equipped us with essential know-how on first steps, provided a stage for validation and visibility, and offered real opportunities to challenge ourselves and get BitLab off the ground. It was an amazing journey – well organized, curated by music professionals with true heart, providing practical, motivating outputs.” — Mattias Turovski, BitLab, TechTrack Top 3

Practical insight: Starting at the grassroots level, combining ideation, prototyping, pitching, and incubation with structured mentor support, is key for building a cross-sectoral innovation ecosystem in any city or region.

Incubation and Follow-Up for Team Development

The incubation phase provides targeted support to help teams turn prototypes into viable projects and maintain the momentum gained during the programme. Structured mentorship, tailored training, and networking opportunities ensure teams are prepared for real-world implementation and future growth.

In TechTrack, after the three-month workshop phase, the top teams entered a six-month incubation programme, which included:

Mentorship – Each of the top teams was assigned a dedicated international MusicTech expert mentor, providing tailored guidance to refine concepts, validate solutions, and prepare for implementation.
Training – Teams had the opportunity to attend entrepreneurship-focused workshops offered by Tallinn Business Incubator, covering business development, product management, pitching, and other skills relevant to advancing their prototypes.
Networking and international exposure – Teams gained access to international MusicTech conferences (Latitude59, Wallifornia MusicTech Summit, Music Frontiers), experts, and potential investors to expand their opportunities and connections.

This follow-up phase was critical for enabling teams to take the next step in their development, fostering collaboration, strengthening community ties, and creating pathways for further project growth and innovation.

Additional materials: TechTrack top 3 teams video interviews showcasing the programme’s impact on team development and lessons learned. Interview 1. Interview 2. Interview 3.