From May 27–29, a Ukrainian delegation took part for the first time in the international innovation, technology, and entrepreneurship festival Panathēnea Festival in Athens. The festival brought together over 10,000 participants, more than 250 speakers, and representatives of venture funds, corporations, and innovation ecosystems from around the world.
Within the delegation, Ukraine was represented by 16 startups: 8 civilian startups (coordinated by the Ukrainian Startup Fund) and 8 defense-tech companies (coordinated by Brave1).
The civilian delegation of the Ukrainian Startup Fund included the following startups: Beholder, Generect, Memoria Global, Revisior, UA GREEN LLC, UCAT-3D, Wild.Codes, Sec-TA.
Over two days, Ukrainian companies were showcased at the Panathēnea Startup Exhibition at Zappeion in central Athens. The startups held dozens of meetings with potential partners and investors, gained access to leading EMEA funds, and expanded their presence in the European innovation network.
On May 29, the Ukrainian delegation joined the WIN2EDIH & SmartAttica session at the National Centre for Scientific Research “Demokritos,” one of Greece’s leading research institutions.
Anna Motrych, project manager at the Ukrainian Startup Fund, presented Ukraine’s innovation ecosystem, the Fund’s activities, and the Win-Win EDIH Ukraine project aimed at integrating Ukrainian startups into the network of European Digital Innovation Hubs (EDIH).
Key results of the delegation included:
Wild.Codes: negotiations on investment with more than 20 funds and companies, including TECS Capital, iGrow Venture Partners, Apeiron Venture, Blossom Ventures, Zephyr Angels, Flashpoint, Boost Capital Partners, Rockaway Ventures, Genesis Ventures, Big Pi Ventures, Skybound, Perigee Ventures, Bek Ventures, Venteri Capital, BRYCK / BRYCK Startup Alliance, Tech Tour, Factorial, Taleron, Antenna Digital Ventures, and others.
Beholder: contacts with Olumpos Group, Lars Rasmussen, Metlen; potential partnerships with the National Research Center and DIH Smart Attica.
Generect: networking with SeriousMind, LoopCV, Spinal, AXIA Ventures Group.
Revisior: market research in Greece, contacts with 2 business angels and one venture fund.
UCAT-3D: contacts with Metavallon VC and Big Pi; focus on Greece and Romania markets; potential investment pipeline of $2.2 million.
The participation of the Ukrainian startup delegation was organized by the Ministry of Digital Transformation of Ukraine and the Ukrainian Startup Fund.
