Sep 14, 2026
Meet our 2026 NFC Forum Innovation Awards Finalists – Cast Your Vote!
From farmers to pharma, submissions for this year’s NFC Forum Innovation Awards demonstrated the new and novel ways in which NFC solutions are being adopted across an increasingly diverse number of use cases. Entrants were tasked with demonstrating how the use of NFC contactless technology has improved people’s lives, with more than 30 submissions received.
The Innovation Award winners will be announced in-person at the NFC Forum European Member Meetings in Lisbon, Portugal, with the presentation held at the event’s Networking Reception and Demo Expo evening on Tuesday 6 October.
We are now excited to reveal the shortlist of ten finalists and invite the wider NFC community to provide your input on the top three products that you believe best show innovation, end user impact, a progressive use of NFC technology, and a user experience where NFC usage is transformative.
Who should be crowned the winners of the Innovation Awards? Public voting is now open and closes on 18 September. Listed below alphabetically by company, the finalists and award contenders are:
VOLTEND Battery-Free NFC Lockout/Tagout System by 3ALogics
VOLTEND is a battery-free NFC padlock powered by the user’s smartphone. A tap of the phone powers the lock, allowing it to authenticate the user and operate padlock action in as little as two seconds. Lock keys can easily be provisioned or withdrawn, it is simple to use, and it creates a verifiable digital record of all those who have access to the lock, allowing for centralized safety monitoring.
Blok is a physical solution to digital distractions. It allows users to select apps and websites that could be a distraction, then with a tap of the phone against the Blok card, keychain or magnet the selected websites are inaccessible until reactivated by a second tap. This provides a physical barrier to digital distractions that allows users to build lasting healthy habits.
KM8000 & M Sense: Smart Cooking System by Miele
Miele’s KM8000 smart cooking system combines active and passive NFC behind one illuminated touchpoint. Active NFC helps pair the cooktop with Miele’s M Sense pots and pans, allowing it to monitor temperature and adjust temperature automatically. Meanwhile, its passive NFC functionality enables app onboarding, connecting the cooktop to the user’s smartphone as part of a smart home set up.
SenseTap is an app designed to help blind and visually impaired people live more safely and independently. Caregivers can create, write to, and manage haptic tags through the SenseTap app, then when a user scans the tag with their smartphone the information stored is read aloud. In this way, SenseTap promotes greater orientation, independence, and participation in daily life for those with visual impairments.
Pragmatic NFC Protect PR1311 by Pragmatic Semiconductor
Counterfeit goods undermine brand trust and take sales from legitimate products. And in sectors like wine and spirits, nutritional supplements, baby formula, beauty and cosmetics or pharmaceuticals, they can put lives at risk. Pragmatic NFC Protect provides customers with tamper-resistant evidence of a product’s integrity, accessible with the tap of a smartphone.
Using NFC, those looking after cattle can access information on each animal in a herd including its medical and vaccination history with just a tap of a smartphone. And as encrypted data is stored natively within the credential, one tap provides authorized individuals with the data they need from anywhere, with no internet access, cloud server, or central database required.
NFC and BLE 6.0 Based Smart Start Stop Button (SSB) for Vehicle Access by Spark Minda
Spark Minda has developed a smart start stop button for vehicle access that combines NFC and Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) technology to deliver a secure, intuitive and cost-effective solution. BLE 6.0 provides seamless presence detection while NFC delivers intentional close-range verification before the engine starts. By using the two standards in harmony, it provides a frictionless user experience while remaining resolutely secure.
TM NFC+ Augmented Reality Restaurant Menus by TM Technologies, Inc
Restaurant patrons can tap to experience an Augmented Reality view of the dishes available on a menu without requiring a WiFi connection or QR code. This provides a unique dining experience that allows guests to make an informed choice of what they want to eat.
TRIFORA Smart Kitting by TOA Corporation
Traditionally, setting up a network camera required it to be powered on before it could be connected. TRIFORA Smart Kitting uses NFC to bypass this requirement, allowing the user to tap their phone against the new device then write its name, IP address and non-default password without requiring a power connection. In doing so it makes provisioning new devices easier and quicker.
XanTag’s smart bottle has NFC integrated into the cap, eliminating the need to apply labels on the production line. This provides pharmacists with digitally connected packaging that ensures product authenticity from the production line to when it is in the end users hands. It also allows for a “tap-to-talk” virtual pharmacist experience to guide patients on when and how to take their medicines.
Cast your vote for the top three entries that you believe demonstrate the most innovative use of NFC, and get your ticket for the European Member Meetings to see the winners announced!