iCEE.fest UPGRADE 100: The Ultimate Startup Program. Join the pitch until June 6th and win prize of €50K

iCEE.fest comes with a new format this year, and start-up.ro supports the pitching competition The UPGRADE 100 Floors Elevator, which allows startups from Romania and abroad to compete for a 50,000-euro prize.

iCEE.fest UPGRADE 100, the biggest festival in Central and Eastern Europe dedicated to Internet and technology transformations, will be held in Bucharest from June 13th to June 14th.

In the two days of the event, over 140 speakers, experts and authors of major works in the field of Internet transformation and new technologies will be present at a large festival.

The edition comes with a new format, UPGRADE 100, and start-up.ro supports the pitching competition The UPGRADE 100 Floors Elevator, which launches a 50,000-euro prize offered by the venture capital fund GapMinder Venture Partners.

The festival announced the two-day agenda, which included several events in parallel.

The second session of the first day of the UPGRADE Stage 2 event proposes an agenda of interest for any startup, with investors presenting hundreds of millions of euros in Romania and Europe in search of companies with growth potential globally.

Among those who will discuss the most important investment aspects for startups in the region are:

  • Dimitris Kalavros-Gousiou – Velocity Partners VC
  • Ondrej Bartos – Credo Ventures
  • Mihai Sfinţescu – Abilito Capital
  • Iulian Cîrciumariu – V7 Capital
  • Dragoş Stănescu – O Day Capital
  • Cosmin Ochişor and Dan Mihăescu – GapMinder Venture Partners
  • Mihaly Szalontay – Flashpoint Venture Capital
  • Mălin Ştefănescu – TechAngels Romania
  • Panagiotis Karampinis – Endeavor Greece
  • Krzysztof Palucki – OTB Ventures
  • Vlad Buşilă – Mozaik

The day will be open at 11 o’clock with a debate led by Octavian Palade, Events & Content Strategist at start-up.ro , about financing opportunities at any level of development.

The complete program for UPGRADE Stage 2 can be seen here.

100 pitch floor pitching competition

The pitching competition is an additional reason for startups to be present at iCEE.fest. Students have free access to UPGRADE 100 with the help of the Linde Scholarships, which allows them to get free of charge at the event. Sign up here if you are a student.

How do you get on the stage to introduce yourself?

  • Go to the UPGRADE 100 website here to see all the details, but it’s simple.
  • Send a short pitch deck to 100@start-up.ro until June 3 (end of the day).
  • The jury will decide the 15 finalists by June 9. All applicants will be notified by email if they reach the final or not and must confirm their presence at the event.
  • Prepare to climb up the UPGRADE 100 where you will pitch for 3 minutes and 30 seconds in front of jury members. The stake is the € 50,000 investment from GapMinder Venture Partners. At the end of the pitch, you will also get questions.
    Remember that the pitch is in English and you have to fit in time. The pitch deck sent by mail can also be used on the stage. The UPGRADE 100 Floors Elevator competition takes place on June 14th.

On Upgrade Scene 2 there will be the 100 Floors Elevator startup competition, supported by start-up.ro, and before will be different panels and speeches of international investors, as well as growth hackers that will teach you how to increase your startup.

Presenter of the UPGRADE 100 startup scene is Octavian Palade. He will lead the discussion throughout the day.

iCEE.fest 2019: The complete festival agenda

The festival announced its two-day agenda , which includes several events in parallel:

  • A digital & tech event with star speakers such as Salim Ismail – co-founder of “Singularity University”, well-known futurologist Matthew Griffin, professional speaker David JP Phillips – “Mr. Death by PowerPoint “and other guests
  • A global giant conference in Bucharest: the largest number of speakers and trainers from Google, Facebook, LinkedIn and other major global players (Facebook and Google with dedicated scenes, one day a day) who have ever participated in an event of this type organized in Romania
  • An important event dedicated to startups, supported by start-up.ro: “UPGRADE 100 Floors Elevator Pitch” replacing “200 Seconds of Fame” this year.
  • Not less than 11 specialized conferences on 11 verticals: Disruptive Innovation | Advertising & Marcom | Creativity, VR, AR & Experiential | AI & Robotics | E-commerce & Retail | Digital Content & Adtech | Fintech & E-money | E-health & Medtech | Tech & Democracy | Startups & Investments Video Gaming & Entertainment .

Speakers grouped on each line of content are listed.