The Startup Olé conference in Salamanca is just around the corner, and starting April 17, some 5,000 startups, entrepreneurs, universities, and media specialists will come together in the spirit of entrepreneurship.
Synergy, selective networking and business opportunities await over 452 Startups, 52 Accelerators, 40 Corporates, 276 Speakers and 50 Investors with a total investment portfolio of over €10 billion.
Startup-oriented activities include a startup fair, pitching competitions, matchmaking with corporates, curated contact with mentors, and even an accelerators’ competition.
Sixty-four startups will be participating in the pitch competition, and it will be divided into eight verticals consisting of eight startups each, and each vertical will have a 60 minute slot (about 7.5 minutes per startup, according to the math).
The vertical categories include:
- Mobile Based | Deep Tech | Big Data
- Energy | Agro-Food Tech
- Health Tech
- Robotics | Aviation | Drones
- TravelTech – Tourism
- Ed Tech – Social
- Fintech
- Media
One startup per vertical will be selected for the Pitching Finals. The eight startups selected for the final pitch round will be announced on the evening of April 18.
Pitching Finals will take place on Thursday, April 19 from 12:00 to 13:00 at the Startup Olé Main Stage.
Emilio Corchado
“We want to create synergies, selective networking and business opportunities,” said Startup Olé CEO Emilio Corchado.
In previous editions of Startup Olé, startups have gone on to great success as a result of their participation in the conference.
According to an interview with Corchado on El Pais, the winning startup of Startup Olé 2017, Beonprice, received financing of €1.6 million by K-Fund (one of the most reputable venture capital funds in Spain) as a direct result of its participation.
Another startup, Canard Drones, received more than €1 million of investment after winning Startup Olé 2016.
“It is also possible to name Wayook, who was selected by Wayra in the first edition of Startup Olé and who subsequently received €650,000 of investment from Axon Partners,” said Corchado.
With the continuous support of Startup Europe (European Commission), Startup Olé 2018 will be “showcasing startups and providing them with the right connections (Accelerators, Investors, Public Administrations, Policy-Makers, Universities, Talent, etc.). It will also provide a forum where startups can share experiences and develop synergies so that they can grow together.”
The list of speakers include:
- Isidro Laso: Head of the Startup Europe European Commission
- Pilar Troncoso: Blockchain Entrepreneur at NodalBlock
- Diego Rodríguez Roldán: Director of the Innovation Center, Deloitte
- José Manuel Rodríguez: Startup Business Development Manager at Amazon Web Services
- Gary Stewart, Director at Wayra UK
- And many, many more.
Each night from April 17 – 19 will culminate in tapas and cocktails with plenty of networking with high-level players.
For the selected startups, Startup Olé 2018 offers:
· 2 days access to the event
· Stand at the fair
· Promotional material
· Logo on website
· Promotion in the event App
· Access to special Workshps
As well as:
· Social media mentions
· Access to cocktails for 2 people
· Pitching Competition
· Networking
· Curated Matchmaking
· Mentoring
Startup Olé has become a benchmark event for the international tech-entrepreneurial ecosystem, and its fourth edition is expected to be the biggest and most impactful ever.