Startup World Cup & Summit

On 10th April 2019, at the Prague Congress Centre, the first ever European finals of global competition Startup World Cup 2019 in history is held, as a part of Startup World Cup & Summit (SWCSummit).

For the first time, Prague is going to witness the best startup projects found in Europe, the winners of almost twenty national finals of Startup World Cup. The finalists will compete to win 500,000 USD, the title of European Startup Champion, and the entry to world finals held in San Francisco. Europe is the first continent to hold its own finals of this startup competition. In the scope of the SWCS, the regional finals of Visegrád Group takes place. The winning startup of the V4 finals will get the European finals entry as well as the entry to the global grand finale taking place in Silicon Valley in May.

The first confirmed keynote speaker is James Quarles, the CEO of Strava - a globally successful unicorn startup - and the former Instagram vice-president. The main topic of the summit is "What’s Next, Europe?". The aim of the event is creating a European startup network on a long-term basis.

Prague will be hosting one of the most important events of both the European and the global startup scenes. Startup World Cup & Summit (SWCSummit) will offer, apart from keynote speakers from all over the world and networking, the European finals of Startup World Cup 2019, with the winning European startup getting half a million USD and the title of the European Startup Champion. The winner will also get an entry to the global grand finale to be held in Silicon Valley in May; the global grand finale’s winner will get one million USD.  The organizers’ goal is to get European businessmen inspired by the best of the startup world and show them how startups can represent, sell, attract investors, and expand to other markets. In short, how to get Europe back on the map of the most innovative destinations in the world. The main program of the Summit will take place at the Prague Congress Centre on 10th April 2019. Startup World Cup & Summit is organized by startup incubator UP21 and investment fund Air Ventures.

"What’s Next, Europe?" is the main topic of the event whose goal is to create a talent network, draw public’s attention to small businesses’ value added, and, most importantly, boost the European startup scene’s confidence. In this sense, there is, according to organizers from UP21 and Air Ventures, still unutilized capacity on the scene, in comparison to aggressive competitors from Silicon Valley and other innovative epicenters.

The organizers are expecting the attendance of 350 startups from over fifty countries, who can sign up via the Summit’s page. The event will be divided into several specialized zones for startups, innovators from corporations, investors, and general public. During the SWCSummit, visitors can use mobile app Miva for networking and matchmaking. Over fifty mentors and speakers will present at the Summit, for example James Quarles, the CEO of Strava, the successful app for athletes and a true startup unicorn that is growing by 4 million new users every month. Quarles also made an impact as the vice-president of Instagram, which topped Facebook in popularity, especially among the young generation, during Quarles’ time there.

For Czech startups, the way to European finals leads through the regional one, for which 21 best startups of Visegrád four region are nominated. The finals is held on 9th April, when the 4 best startups will get their chance to pitch their project within the European finals. The winning startup from the regional round is guaranteed the entry to the world finals.

Tickets for Startup World Cup & Summit are now available at www.swcsummit.com