With one month left until the application deadline, over 600 startups from 55 countries have submitted their applications to participate in the VDS Startup Competition, breaking all previous participation records and surpassing last year’s numbers.
The main topics to be addressed at VDS include artificial intelligence, which is also the primary technology of the startups that have already applied, mobility, sustainability, women in tech, the Future of work, and health.
Selected startups will have the opportunity to connect with over 12,000 professionals from more than 100 countries that VDS expects to gather on October 23-24 at the City of Arts and Sciences in Valencia, including more than 700 investors with assets under management totaling over 30 billion euros. Additionally, the 10 finalists will present their projects on the main stage of VDS.
This international competition aims to find the world’s most disruptive startups developing innovative solutions to generate a positive impact and transform society.
The international competition is open to startups worldwide until June 28, with the only requirement being to have at least an MVP (Minimum Viable Product) and to develop an innovative solution embracing the current technological evolution.
The VDS Startup Competition is divided into two categories:
– Early Stage Track: The startup must be self-financed or in its first formal round of external funding up to Series A. Startups in this category must have been founded between 2018 and 2024, employ fewer than 100 people, and create or market software or hardware products.
– Growth Stage Track: The startup must have received external funding and can be in Series A > B/C. Startups must have been founded between 2010 and 2024, and create or market software or hardware products.
Participants can choose from the following categories: Digital Transformation & Enterprise Solutions, Consumer Technologies & Services, Social Impact & Sustainability, Media & Entertainment, and Emerging Technologies. In each category, up to two utilized technologies can be indicated.
In the initial selection, the jury will designate the Top 50 startups, and an international jury, selected by TNW, will be responsible for choosing the Top 10 from which the two winners of the VDS Startup Competition 2024 will emerge.
TNW – from the Financial Times group -, organizer of one of Europe’s leading technology festivals, is collaborating in this edition of the VDS Startup Competition, providing additional opportunities for innovative companies from across Europe to share their ideas. Additionally, Plug and Play, the innovation platform connecting corporates with the world’s best tech through acceleration programs focusing on Silicon Valley, will strengthen the attraction of startups globally. Gellify, a global corporate innovation platform, will also collaborate with the competition to amplify its international reach.
In the 2023 edition, the finalists of the second phase were Autoscriber (Netherlands), Beynex (Turkey), Bridgewise (Israel), Cafler (Spain), Ender Turing (Estonia), Legitify (Ireland), Quantic Brains (Spain), Spendbase (Ukraine), Welii (France), and Zim Connections (England). The winners of VDS2023 were Ender Turing in the Seed category and Cafler in the Growth category.
Submit your application to the VDS Startup Competition 2024 by June 28 by clicking here.
