On 19 February, a group of carefully selected projects enteredthe startup BootCamp in Brno, Czech Republic. Three months later, on 15 May, this very same batch will emerge from intense work at the grand finale. The StarCube Show – a demo night for the spring 2013 class of startups participating in the StarCube accelerator – will begin at 16:30 at Bakala Hall in downtown Brno. Last tickets for the all-English event are available – free of charge – here.
The Show
The StarCube Show is about finding out which one of the competing projects is the best. But to the organisers, the evening means more. “It is an opportunity to see not only interesting projects from our accelerator, but also meet entrepreneurs, investors and experts from both Czech Republic and abroad,” Vojtěch Krmíček, Project Manager at StarCube accelerator, told inventures.eu.
The StarCube startup accelerator is an initiative of the South Moravian Innovation Centre, and was brought to life in 2010. Twice a year, competitive projects are selected to participate, and over the following months are provided with space, consultations, and the opportunity to exchange ideas at workshops and further develop their business projects. Today, the programme has helped a total of 36 teams, and has eventually given rise to 11 companies.
The class
The present class, graduating on Wednesday, seems to be different from past years. “Compared to previous years, this time StarCube is international – we have teams from abroad [from Syria, Palestine, and Italy, for example]. This is why the StarCube programme is now conducted in English, including all lectures, workshops, and mentor-led activities. We could also see the tendency of having more mature projects in our applications,” Krmíček said. Most of the participating startups are tech startups, but this year’s batch also includes tools to improve nutritional habits, recruiting tool or a math-teaching aid for kids.
The programme will start with each of the participants introducing their ideas in five-minute slots. Three titles await the winners in three categories, each awarded by a different arbiter during the night.
The overall winner will be chosen by an international five-member expert board, led by Silicon Valley-experienced Matej Ftacnik. The main criteria for the jurors’ choice should – according to the organisers, be: value proposition, elevator pitch, business potential and execution. The audience, estimated at around 300 people will select the holder of the People’s Choice Award, and the iHned.cz Award winner will be chosen bythe online vote of the main media partner.
You can check out how last year’s winner CAVER is doing here.
What’s the winner getting?
The three best teams will get rent-free office space, free consultations by partner experts and mentors, free promotion by partner media, and the covered costs of registering a company. On top of this, the winner will participate at a Bitspiration startup event in Krakow for free, and will get free access to another European startup event of their choice.
