We can see that a vibrant startup community is being built in Sofia, and more importantly, it has an international zest. Stephane Gantchev, a partner at the local pre-seed fund Launchub told me in a conversation, that French, German, and Dutch team move to Sofia to build their startups. They not only benefit from the access to high-quality IT talent at an affordable price, but also take advantage of being a part of an evolving ecosystem. According to Stephane, during the past three years Bulgarian startup community has seen between 200 and 250 investment deals, an enormous boost compared to the previous period.
DigitalK, the startup conference that contributed a lot to the progress of the Bulgarian tech scene, will be hosted for the fifth time in Sofia on May 19-20. The organizers are Capital.bg, the leading business media platform in the region, Launchub, the early-stage VC fund, and NEVEQ, a seed stage investment fund. DigitalK became one of the top tech events in South Eastern Europe, and soon will be added to Startup Sesame program on a par with Pioneers Festival, Slush in Helsinki, Tech OpenAir in Berlin and other major European conferences.
Sofia attracts startups from South East and Western Europe. Photo credit.
DigitalK will feature more than 50 handpicked speakers and provide access to renowned investors, including YCombinator, 500 Startups, Point Nine Capital, Kima Ventures, Hoxton Ventures, Credo Ventures, Index Ventures, and the list is not exhaustive. You would pay Eur 130 for the regular 2 days pass and Eur 500 for the VIP pass. GoalEurope’s readers can apply for a special 30% discount geu2dk30. To redeem tickets visit http://digitalk.bg or go directly to DigitalK ticketing system on Eventbrite, the discount will be applied automatically: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/digitalk-2016-tickets-21380501656?discount=geu2dk30
Startups from all over Europe are encouraged to apply to DigitalK startup competition and compete for the opportunity to win Eur 10,000 in cash, with no obligations whatsoever.
At GoalEurope, we already feel the vibes coming from Sofia, and are looking forward to mingling with cool startups and smart investors at DigitalK.
