Valencia hosted the health and wellness vertical in 2021, becoming the third leading innovation hub in Spain and the healthiest city in the world for the second year in a row.Valencia hosted the health and wellness vertical in 2021, becoming the third leading innovation hub in Spain and the healthiest city in the world for the second year in a row.The disagreements that arise from the debate surrounding remote work and office work, hybrid models, or the newest concept of ‘liquid office‘, disappear when discussing the benefits of attending events in person. In that case, the verdict is unanimous: the presence of startups and entrepreneurs at tech events is key to expanding their network of contacts. For this reason, in this post we will compile the main startup fairs and tech events that every entrepreneur should mark in their calendar.
Similarly, just as working remotely is already a reality at the vast majority of startups, either due to their own company culture or so as not to lose the battle to attract talent, we can also see consensus among investors, founders and managers on the desirability of attending tech events in person. Especially in a context where there are fewer physical meetings make it more crucial to attend events for personal relationship building with venture capitalists, clients, and partners.
Additionally, the inspirational component of attending talks and presentations by leading figures in the tech and innovation world must also be positively recognised. As well as the motivating effect that getting out of their daily routine has on attendees, many of them startup employees. After all, ‘companies are the people who make them up’.
So, open your calendar and block your availability for these 10 tech events for startups and entrepreneurs that you can’t miss. See you there!
South Summit
The flagship event of southern Europe’s innovation ecosystem celebrated its tenth edition in 2022 in Madrid. Valencian talent stood out with Zeleros, was named the most disruptive startup of a competition held in parallel to the tech event. The overall winning startup was the fintech Payflow.
One of the special features that South Summit has recently incorporated is the holding of satellite events throughout the year. More precisely, its health and wellness vertical was the side event that Valencia hosted in 2021.
- Valencia hosted the health and wellness vertical in 2021, becoming the third leading innovation hub in Spain and the healthiest city in the world for the second year in a row.
A city recognised as the fastest growing tech ecosystem at the national level due to the region’s consolidation as the third leading innovation hub in Spain. Not to mention the pronouncement of Valencia as the healthiest city in the world for the second year in a row.
If you can’t wait until for this event’s return, there is a satellite event in Bilbao on the 10th and 11th of November.
TNW
For entrepreneurs or startups based in Spain who want to make international contacts, The Next Web Conference is the key event in Europe
With an atmosphere resembling more that of a festival than a trade fair, the event held in Amsterdam every year, is coming to Valencia on March 30th and 31st, 2023.
The Financial Times-promoted event is a must-attend to discover tech trends and get a close-up look at companies that will shape the future. If you don’t believe it, just take a look at the summary of this year’s edition.
Web Summit
The Iberian Peninsula is home to some of Europe’s main startup hubs, including Madrid, Barcelona, Valencia, and, on the west coast, Lisbon. A startup nation’s capital, such as Portugal also hosts one of the most important tech events on the continent: the Web Summit.
Speakers including Y Combinator, Amazon, Revolut, Jeeves, Miro, and Binance have already confirmed their attendance at the Lisbon event. It anticipates to welcome more than 70,000 attendees. Even the legendary Juventus FC player Alessandro Del Piero, ambassador of Socios.com, is among the speakers at the Web Summit.
The next edition of the Web Summit is one of the few events left on the 2022 calendar.
4YFN (MWC)
4YFN began almost as an anecdote next to the Mobile World Congress, a kind of satellite event to showcase tech-based and highly innovative projects, at that time when the concept of a ‘startup’ was not so common. However, over the years the Barcelona event has sculpted its own identity and many people have come to prefer it over the MWC, which instead focuses on showcasing the latest generation of devices and major tech advances.
In 2023, 4YFN will be held from the 27th of February to the 2nd of March. It is undoubtedly, along with South Summit, one of the events to which the Valencian startup ecosystem travels en masse. If you are a Valencian entrepreneur or startup and you are planning to attend 4YFN, maximize the return on your attendance by relying on your local network to open more doors and generate new connections.
VivaTech
By number of attendees and size of the venue, the flagship event of the French startup ecosystem. It is also the most attended in Europe, although with less experience, having held six editions to date.
In 2023 it will coincide with TNW, so you will have to choose between one of the two major events on the Old Continent. If you opt for Paris, in addition to VivaTech it is advisable to visit one of the largest startup campuses in the world: Station F.
DES Malaga
Andalusia’s main tech and innovation hub is in Malaga and the Digital Enterprise Show is its flagship event.
Last June’s edition was attended by Barack Obama, who spoke about the four-day workweek in his conference, along with other issues and speakers.
During the celebration of this tech event, the Valencian entrepreneurial ecosystem played a key part and was represented by Startup Valencia, which hosted in its space all the Valencian startups that attended the event with the aim of strengthening the positioning of the Valencian Community as the third leading tech hub in Spain and showcasing the talent of our region.
eMerge
The eMerge Americas ecosystem turns Miami into the tech center of America every year and represents a unique opportunity to promote innovation and investment in Florida and Latin America.
Its seventh edition, held on the 18th and 19th of April, focused on topics such as cybersecurity, entrepreneurship, and the FinTech and e-Health sectors. It also featured three thematic congresses on e-government, Women, Innovation and Technology, and Investors Summit.
The most important tech event in Miami was attended by seven Valencian startups this year that, accompanied by Startup Valencia, sought new launch and investment opportunities and pitched to internationally recognized investors.
TOA Berlin
Much more than just tech, the flagship event of the German entrepreneurial ecosystem shares with TNW that festival spirit that facilitates networking and inspires its attendees to, as its slogan says, become futureproof.
Europe’s most alternative tech event, held in Berlin of course, is also a perfect opportunity to get to know Silicon Allee, the entrepreneurial community of the German capital.
The most interesting talks, presentations and round tables from past editions can be found on its Youtube channel.
We Make Future
The international tech event We Make Future was held from the 16th to the 18th of June this year in Rimini, Italy, with the aim of pushing for a better future through the promotion of digital education, innovation and the boosting of cooperation between social, economic and social actors.
This tenth edition once again brought together the world of innovation in an international context and focused on robotics as the main theme.
An event that also had representation of the Valencian tech and innovation ecosystem by the hand of Valencian startups that had their own space at the event.
Valencia Digital Summit
The fifth edition of the international tech event of the Valencian innovation ecosystem organized by Startup Valencia, will be held from the 24th to the 26th of October at the City of Arts and Sciences. Under the slogan ‘Inspiring the Good Future‘, Valencia Digital Summit (VDS) will showcase how technology, innovation and digitalization are building a better future. Emphasizing why they are fundamental in tackling the major social and economic challenges facing society.
At VDS2022, entrepreneurs will have the opportunity to showcase their projects to the more than 10,000 people from over 35 countries. The event will also feature over 300 presentations by renowned national and international speakers and will bring together 250+ investors, 150+ corporations and 1,500+ startups.
Leading Spanish investment funds, including Lightspeed Venture Partners, Cocoa, and Elaia, with a combined portfolio of over €6 billion, have confirmed their participation in VDS2022, an internationally recognized event.
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