Marineterrein Amsterdam Living Lab (MALL) is a dynamic urban innovation district located on a former Royal Netherlands Navy base in the heart of Amsterdam. The historic naval terrain has been transformed into a publicly accessible living laboratory where startups, researchers, students, government agencies, and residents co-create solutions for future-proof cities.
The Living Lab operates as a collaboration between active community members, the Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences (AUAS), AMS Institute, and Bureau Marineterrein. The terrain's unique status as a private area that is publicly accessible makes it particularly suitable for testing innovations that would be difficult to trial in regular public space, such as autonomous vehicles, novel waste collection systems, and experimental energy infrastructure.
Active experiments on the Marineterrein include autonomous vehicle testing on shared public spaces, a smart grid with bidirectional electric vehicle charging, aquatic drone water quality monitoring, circular construction demonstration buildings, and a microclimate sensor network. The site also hosts Droppie, an innovative waste collection point that rewards recycling, exemplifying the lab's approach to combining technology with behavioural change.
The Marineterrein's development integrates culture and creative industries alongside technology innovation, following a successful model previously applied at Amsterdam's Westergasterrein. The former shooting range (Schietbaan) has become a space for arts and culture exploring the interaction between humanity and nature.
MALL partners bring together expertise, networks, and communities in research, innovation, urban development, and experimentation. The aim is to create scalable experiments that are tested on the grounds and ultimately applied in broader urban environments, with an ambition to evolve from a living lab into a climate-neutral area.