Thinking about venturing in Slovakia or craving info about the local startup ecosystem? Well, today’s your lucky day. We have put together a fine selection of useful organisations, cool guys, and of the hottest events around the country. If ever our vigilant eye has missed something, hit us up!
BRATISLAVA
Photo: Creative Commons License, http://bit.ly/1cfB9fn
Coworking spaces
Connect Coworking offers coworking, workshops – and a spa for members! Additional to workshops with partners such as Startupcamp and Neulogy for fixed and flexible prices both ensure there is somethingin it for everyone!
Whether you are looking to work on artificial intelligence, cryptography or a web application – progressbar is the place for all programmer aspirations in Bratislava!
BrainHouse is a mix of a coworking space and an accelerator, providing startups with a space to work, a wide network and access to events. And all that free of charge, with “no strings attached”, as they put it.
Creative space
The Spot – startups begin here. Counting Google and KPMG among its partners and events in Bratislava, Kosice and Vienna, The Spot is both a creative space that offers startup discounts on various services, legal/tax advice, marketing and tech know-how and most of all, an atmosphere for startups to thrive and grow!
Co-location space (Smart office spaces)
Need a shared office space? Check out Clusterhaus. The self-proclaimed “proworking” space combines the benefits of a personal office with the upsides of coworking – interaction, networking, creative input and an exciting atmosphere. With partners like Slovakia’s news broadcasting channel TA3 and venture builder Alps Ventures, Clusterhaus offers anything a startup might need or want.
Startup Incubator(s)
If you have a brilliant idea and want to make it a reality, the University Incubator is the place for you. A project of the University of Technology of Bratislava, it’s designed to specifically support technology startups. The offer technology advice, have partners like Microsoft, preferential prices for recent founders and founders-to-be. Really, what more could you want?
Initiatives
Social Impact Award – the local branch of Europe’s largest student entrepreneurship competition is well represented. Growing innovative social businesses is what the SIA is all about. Want to get in contact? Do it now!
Rozbehni Sa! – or “get going”, for those of us with minimal Slovak language knowledge, is a platform for both inspiration and advice. Inspiring young people to dream big with success stories and offering support to turn their ideas into a business.
i.e.SMART, a European initiative to support startups across borders is also represented in Bratislava. i.e.SMART’s goal is to boost emerging businesses from Europe to grow at US rates.
Partnering with Accenture, The Spot will once again host a startup summer – a summer workshop for budding developers to combine tech with entrepreneurial skills.
For their existing members, The Spot also hosts their ongoing training programme Guru @ the spot. Leading experts talk about pitching techniques, negotiation and marketing skills. See all events here!
NADSME, the National Agency for Development of Small and Medium Enterprises, is an institution of the government of Slovakia, connected among others to the Ministry of Finance. It offers various services for startups, microloans, advice and contact to similar bodies in neighbouring countries, workshops and many more.
Last but certainly not least, ZMPS, the Slovak association of young entrepreneurs, offers advice on administrative matters, networking workshops, and an atmosphere of inspiration and cooperation.
Events and meetups
Rubyslava holds monthly meetups for developers of all programming languages – along with job postings and networking opportunities.
If you are a dart developer in Bratislava, you are in luck with the Dart user group Bratislava, which holds monthly meetings for socialising, and exchanging ideas and know-how.
Despite what it sounds like, the SUX (The Slovak user experience meetup) promises to be loads of fun – check it out!
GameSpot is one of the events at The Spot dedicated to all things game development.
There is nothing like chilling out after work with pizza and beer, especially when it involves friendly and enlightening discussion about a dedicated topic. Next time at afterwork @ thespot the talk will be about the Wayra Academy – don’t miss it!
Once you belong to the esteemed group of Slovak business founders, you may find yourself admitted to the exclusive founders’ club where successful business founders meet up to mingle and discuss their experiences.
500 past events. 250 cities. Partners like Coca-Cola, Amazon Web Services and Google. A Startup Weekend Bratislava hardly needs additional introduction. Taking part in this event, you will hone your vague idea into a sharply defined startup business. Upcoming events in Bratislava are to be announced.
Of course, no country’s startup scene could ever be complete without its startup awards. The same holds true for Slovakia – the Startup Awards.SK brings together partners such as Google, BMW and many more to reward and recognize innovation! Looking for another monthly meetup – why not check out the Startupcamp? Suited for everyone interested in startups; founders, developers and business enthusiasts in general.
The TwinEntrepreneurs workshop series, organised by the Vienna Business Agency, aims to bring startups from Vienna and Bratislava closer together. Catch up on our previous coverage here, and check out their upcoming events!
KOSICE
Photo: Creative Commons License, http://bit.ly/1fMJMz4Initiative(s)
Founded by companies such as Siemens, Deutsche Telekom Slovakia, Cisco, Microsoft and by the Kosice University of Technology, the Kosice IT Valley seeks to promote technological innovation in the area. By offering regular workshops and education programmes, the initiative seeks to create the perfect environment for innovation to flourish.
Events and meetups
Startup Weekend Košice is locally organised and sponsored, among others, by AZU, which is behind a number of workshops and training programmes for students. Whether you are a serial entrepreneur or new to the startup scene, do not miss this event!
If you are a member of the social network Kyberia and have an interest in the startup scene, make sure to check out the Kyberia Business meetup.
Created by ZMPS, there’s also Podnikateľský nápad roka – a contest to find this year’s very best entrepreneurial ideas. With partners like Deloitte and Microsoft, desirable prizes are sure to await the winners in 2014!
ZILINA
Photo: Creative Commons License, http://bit.ly/OsOfkoStartup Incubator(s)
Developed to help implement research and technology generation in small and startup companies, incubator VTP Žilina is where ideas come to grow. Their connection to the University of Zilina help VTP Zilina recruit students for internships gather experience and hone their business literacy.
Event(s)
Zilina also has its very own Startup Weekend – the most recent took place this past December. But with partners like Google, Coca Cola and Amazon, there are sure to be more of those to come!
This list was compiled with the help of Paul Leitner and Matej Ftacnik.
