Stanford Research Park, built in 1951 by Stanford University and the City of Palo Alto, was the first contemporary science park. The park was instrumental in creating the ecosystem that ultimately gave rise to Silicon Valley – the hub that transformed global entrepreneurship and technological advancement. 

Science parks serve as a catalyst for economic transformation, acting as focal points for research, development and commercialization. They offer startups and research teams the infrastructure and network needed to scale ideas into businesses. 

The growing number of science parks in SEE represents a significant opportunity to replicate this model. By uniting academia, industry, and governments, these parks aim to build a robust entrepreneurial ecosystem, much like Silicon Valley, to fuel innovation and economic growth across the region. 

To advance this goal, the upcoming South East European Innovators Challenge (SEEIC), organized at Sofia Tech Park, is a pioneering effort to accelerate this vision, with tech parks uniting from Bulgaria, Greece, Romania, Serbia, and Türkiye.

Introducing the South East European Innovators Challenge

The South East European Innovators Challenge is a newly launched regional tech startup competition, set to take place between October 27-28, 2024, at Sofia Tech Park. 

Through this event, the SEE Science & Technology Parks Alliance aims to gather top startups from the region for a two-day forum in Sofia, where participants will have mentoring sessions, expert consultations, and finally pitch their projects to a jury comprising international experts, investors, and media representatives. 

As part of the competition, three main awards will be presented by the SEE Science & Technology Parks Alliance for the best startups in Southeast Europe. Additionally, two special awards will be granted by Sofia Municipality and Sofia Tech Park. A media jury will select the Social Impact winner, recognizing the startup with the most innovative societal solutions.

The the competitors list includes 16 startups from Bulgaria, Greece, Romania, Serbia, and Turkey. The competitors include Smartest (digital education, Bulgaria), Neuromorphica (AI neuromorphic systems, Bulgaria), Momfident (postpartum support, Bulgaria), Enthela (agriculture biostimulant, Bulgaria), FoodOxy (nutrition and testing, Greece), Upiria (tourism platform, Greece), Jobful (recruitment, Romania), Syndical (digital healthcare, Romania), Irisphera (personal stylist, Romania), City&Me (urban mobility, Serbia), Nais Robotics (AI for sports, Serbia), Dobbli (virtual real estate tours, Serbia), Vinaver Medical (cancer treatment planning, Serbia), Pavza (cloud and IoT, Türkiye), Afatek (fraud simulation, Türkiye), and Pure Solutions (analytics, Türkiye).