South Summit, co-organised by IE University, has decided to extend the registration deadline for its Startup Competition in Madrid until 28 February 2025. Since its first edition in 2011, the Startup Competition has stood out not only for its economic impact, but also for its ability to attract innovative talent from different cultures and regions. Proof of this is the fact that 19% of the participating start-ups are of Spanish origin, while 21% come from the rest of Europe. Other regions include Latin America, which accounts for 29% of projects, Asia-Pacific with 13%, North America with 11% and Africa with 7%.
From all the applications received, 100 are selected which are then divided into 10 tracks, the tracks change every year, for example in 2024 they were: climate technology, consumer, digital culture, enterprise, fintech and insurtech, future of work and talent, health, industry 5.0, mobility and smart city, trust tech. Each track has a winner and from them the 5 overall winners are then chosen with the best team, the best scalability, the most disruptive, the most sustainable, the one with the most global potential.
Participation in the competition offers start-ups considerable media exposure. The finalists benefit from coverage through the official South Summit channels, including social media and newsletters, amplifying their visibility within the global entrepreneurial ecosystem. In addition, strategic press partnerships (including with Startupbusiness) and dedicated media clippings ensure that their stories reach a wide audience, strengthening their credibility and attracting potential investors, customers and collaborators.
Since its first edition, the South Summit Madrid Startup Competition has served thousands of startups to make themselves known to investors and companies and as a springboard to become global benchmarks in the entrepreneurial ecosystem. A good example of this is JobandTalent, one of the nine unicorns that emerged from South Summit Madrid and which in September this year received a $20 million convertible loan from its investors, with which it has already raised more than a billion dollars in several investment rounds.
Another success story is that of Wallbox, the global winning startup of South Summit Madrid 2017, which closed a €41.6 million capital raise this summer and has already accumulated more than $600 million in several investment rounds. For its part, PLD Space, a Startup Competition 2015 finalist startup and a pioneer in the Spanish aerospace industry, has closed major funding rounds throughout its history, including €31 million for the development of its Miura 5 orbital launcher.
Among the most innovative projects that have been finalists in the Startup Competition is Idoven, which has had investors of the calibre of Pau Gasol and Iker Casillas and was recognised in 2021 at the South Summit as the most disruptive startup for its impact on preventing heart disease through artificial intelligence. The last edition of South Summit Madrid crowned Navilens as the most sustainable startup and, since then, it continues to add spaces in big brands such as Nestlé, Foxy or Cinfa, where it provides information to visually impaired people through its codes.
South Summit Startup Competition means international visibility for competing projects, but also success, development and growth. In this regard, María Luke, founder and CEO of global 2023 winner Uelz, says: “The opportunity to showcase what we do to the entire entrepreneurial ecosystem was invaluable. Winning the Startup Competition put us in the spotlight for a long time and, to this day, it continues to open doors and build confidence in the industry ”.
This is evidenced by the fact that the more than 1,000 finalist start-ups that participated in the 13 editions achieved a survival rate of almost 90 per cent and generated some $11.4 billion in revenue, raising $17 billion in investment rounds and creating almost 60,000 jobs. Moreover, the finalists of the different editions led to more than 100 exits and nine of them became unicorns, including Spain’s Cabify, Factorial and JobandTalent. “The visibility and impact it has given us has been enormous, allowing us to connect with investors, customers and strategic partners who have driven our growth.” Luke adds.
More than 4,700 start-ups applied in the last edition, 81% of which came from outside Spain, highlighting the global nature of this competition. Among them, the title of global winner went to Madrid-based startup Invopop, while the other awards went to Sycai, most disruptive, Navilens, most sustainable and Shakers and Embat, most scalable and startups with the best team, respectively.
Héctor Mata himself, founder and CEO of Shakers, emphasises the importance of the South Summit Startup Competition in giving visibility to participating start-ups. “Winning the Most Scalable Startup award gave us exceptional visibility among international investors, potential customers and top talent.” Mata also emphasises the importance of presenting an entrepreneurial project at an event like this. “Presenting Shakers on the main stage at the South Summit was an incredible experience, a truly memorable moment. But it is also a great opportunity to challenge oneself, to improve and to learn how to deal with the nerves we all face.”
Ana Zamora, CEO of Vitancee, also a finalist in last year’s edition, advises future participants to “prepare thoroughly, get to know your value proposition and enjoy the experience. The South Summit is a unique opportunity to present your startup to the world’.
The next edition of South Summit Madrid will be held from 4 to 6 June 2025 at La Nave with the theme ‘In Motion’. It will also be a unique opportunity for the startup finalists to present their projects to investors and representatives of large international companies, as well as to participate in one-to-one meetings and become part of an exclusive network for innovation and growth.
In its previous edition, the South Summit Madrid brought together more than 18 thousand participants from 133 countries. Among them were more than 6,500 entrepreneurs, two thousand investors with a combined investment portfolio of more than $500 billion, an increase of $174 billion over the previous year, as well as six thousand representatives of international companies and 26 unicorns.
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED ©