28DIGITAL

Design the future of global study experiences with 28DIGITAL. €25k awaits the best idea! 💻🌍 We are looking for organisations who can implement a short-term programme with a focus on innovation ecosystems and deep-tech entrepreneurship. Two complementary tracks are possible: 🌍 Global Exposure: European participants explore leading innovation ecosystems outside Europe. 🇪🇺 European Immersion: international participants engage with European innovation ecosystems The proposed programmes should offer intensive 5–10 day experiences for students, professionals as well as young entrepreneurs combining visits to leading innovation actors, interactive workshops and cultural immersion. The Innovation Study Tours are expected to take place between January and February 2027 and should be designed for a minimum of 15 participants. 📅 DEADLINE: 31 July 2026 DM Oana Neagu for further questions Further info, including how to apply 👉 https://okt.to/bfL7yA

Europe is ready! 🇪🇺 Ready to grow and ready to collaborate. 🚀 And we are behind everyone who is pushing it! 🤝 The latest European Innovation Scoreboard reveals an encouraging shift in Europe's innovation landscape. 28DIGITAL helps build the ecosystem behind it. 🇮🇹 Italy recorded the second-largest year-on-year improvement in the EU. 🇪🇸 Spain continues to strengthen its innovation performance. 🇬🇷 Greece remains one of Europe's strongest performers for SME innovation. The data points to a clear trend: innovation capacity is growing across Southern Europe with key partners in our ecosystem contributing, including: Billd, Scidrones, OZZIE robotics, Clevergy, YouAddict, VoiceMed LEVELS, Politecnico di Milano, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, Hellenic Centre for Defence Innovation S.A. and many more. But innovation alone isn't enough. To move from promising ideas to lasting economic impact, startups and SMEs need access to funding, industry partnerships, mentorship and routes to market. That's where 28DIGITAL comes in. Through our Venture Incubation Programme, Co-Creation Accelerator, university partnerships and STEM talent initiatives, we're helping build the innovation ecosystem that enables founders and SMEs to scale. The European Innovation Scoreboard measures performance. 🇪🇺📈 We're focused on helping create it. 🚀 Read our latest analysis to explore what the data tells us 👉 https://okt.to/tnw9H6 Full report: https://okt.to/s3T1tR

Up to €250k in funding is on the table—but the application window won't stay open for long. If you missed our Co-Creation Accelerator Info Session, don't worry—we're just a DM away. ⏳ The best startup opportunities don't come around often—and neither do the right industry partnerships. 🤝 If you're building innovative technology, this is your chance to co-create, validate, and scale your solution with leading corporate partners. 📈 That's why 28DIGITAL's Co-Creation Accelerator brings ambitious digital startups and corporate partners together to co-create, validate, and scale innovative solutions—with up to €250k in financial support available. 🚀 What you'll get: ⚫ Up to €250k financial support ⚫ The opportunity to co-create and validate solutions with industry partners ⚫ Tailored mentoring and Speed Master sessions ⚫ Access to the 28DIGITAL ecosystem This call is open to startups applying together with a corporate partner, bringing a shared innovation challenge to the programme. Together, you'll develop and validate solutions with the support of the 28DIGITAL ecosystem. Corporate partners are also invited to submit new Industry Challenges throughout the application period. Tell us the challenge you face, and we'll help match you with a startup that has the technology to solve it. Apply now if you're an early-stage startup in: 🟢 Deep Tech 🟢 Strategic Tech 🟢 Green & Social Tech 📅 Application deadline: 8 September Apply now 👉 https://okt.to/n9j8OL 💬 Missed the Info Session? No problem—send us a DM, and we'll be happy to answer your questions and share everything you need to know.

Creating initiatives with partners in mind to help strengthen the European Digital Ecosystem is something we take pride in here at 28DIGITAL 🇪🇺 Including our Venture Incubation Program, which has given many of its participants a platform to go on to bigger things, such as Inneürope 🇪🇸 "Through initiatives like the Venture Incubation Programme we implemented in 2025, we actively support AI-driven entrepreneurship, helping ecosystems translate innovation into scalable, market-ready solutions." Elena Femenía, CEO, Inneürope Our Ecosystem Lead for Spain and Portugal, Micol Beittel, supports this, "Through the Venture Incubation Program in 2025, Inneürope supported strategic early-stage projects led by entrepreneurs from across Europe—four of which have already evolved into companies." Stay tuned for an announcement on who's been successful for this year's Venture Incubation Program 👀 If you want to become a part of Europe's largest open innovation ecosystem 👉 https://okt.to/qrclES

28DIGITAL is on the ground in Madrid, for a sit down with the inspiring María Benjumea, the founder of South Summit and the Lidera Program, discussing women in business and women in tech. Did you know? In 2024, female-founded companies in Europe raised over €10 billion for the fourth year running. Their valuations also surged, growing from €19.9 million to €28.9 million at the venture-growth stage in just one year, and they secured 21.5% of all VC exits across Europe, a year-over-year increase. Despite this momentum, the number of VC deals for female-founded companies in Europe still fell 26% in 2024, showing capital remains concentrated in fewer, larger rounds. Join the waiting list for South Summit 2027 👉 https://okt.to/0s5HI2

If you missed out on our current Mentor Me Program - don't worry, we have opened applications for our September start! 🚀🌍 The 28DIGITAL's Mentor Me Program is designed to help new entrepreneurs with fantastic mentorship and offer incredible resources to participants. Listen to the experiences of past participants! Aja Hadžić from Shario said: "Mentor Me has been much more than a mentoring program for me. It has been an opportunity to look at my startup from a completely different perspective and learn from people with real experience in building successful companies. Starting a startup is exciting, but it is also incredibly challenging, especially when you are building your first business. No matter how much you believe in your idea, there are many situations and decisions that no one can fully prepare you for. I would genuinely recommend Mentor Me to any startup founder who wants to learn from experienced mentors, accelerate the development of their idea, and gain knowledge that will continue to be valuable long after the program ends. " Join us to scale your vision, refine your roadmap, and turn challenges into opportunities. Apply before 20 August 👉 https://okt.to/9qsrxS Denes Csiszar Diva Tommei, PhD

The future of AI is built through collaboration. 🤖🤝 28DIGITAL is proud to partner with KIC Europe (Korea Innovation Center Europe) to host the EU–Korea: AI & Digital Innovation Summit. 🇪🇺🇰🇷 Bringing together innovators, policymakers, startups, SMEs, corporates and research organisations, this unique summit will explore how Europe and Korea can strengthen collaboration in artificial intelligence, digital innovation and startup growth, while creating new opportunities for international partnerships and market expansion. 📅 Date: 7 September 2026 🕙 Time: 10:00–16:00 CEST 📍Berlin, Germany, (Exact venue TBA) Whether you're a startup founder, SME, corporate innovator, researcher or public sector organisation, this summit offers a unique platform to connect, collaborate and shape the future of AI and digital innovation between Europe and Korea. Save the date and register your interest today 👉https://okt.to/WmjcCA We look forward to welcoming you to Berlin this September! 🇩🇪 Jongwoon Hwang, Boyoung L., Sooyoun Choi, Vibhindika Chawla, Tuan Trinh, PhD, Krisztian Gal, Botond Vajda Gergely Horváth

Innovation doesn't end with experimentation—it begins there. 🌍 How can Europe better connect experimentation, scaling and collaboration to strengthen its innovation ecosystems? 🇪🇺 Join us for "From Experimentation to Scale: Mapping Innovation Ecosystems for Clean Tech and Deep Tech", a joint online event organised by 28DIGITAL and HEC Paris Sustainability & Organizations Institute (S&O) under the Horizon Europe projects FINEX project and FINEST SCALEUP. Together, we'll explore how experimentation spaces, deep tech scaling and cross-border collaboration can accelerate innovation and strengthen Europe's competitiveness. During the session you'll discover: 🟢 Insights from the FINEX and FINEST SCALEUP projects 🟢 Best practices from innovation ecosystems across Europe 🟢 Policy recommendations for supporting Clean Tech and Deep Tech innovation 🟢 Perspectives from policymakers, researchers and innovation experts 📅 16 July 2026 🕘 09:30–11:00 CET 💻 Online 👉 Register now: https://okt.to/hQaJ12

Sardinia gets supercharged through 28DIGITAL. 🇮🇹🚀 We're proud to share a new cooperation agreement with the Regione Autonoma della Sardegna, aimed at strengthening the region's innovation ecosystem, advanced skills development, and entrepreneurship. This gives Sardinian businesses, research centres, universities and institutions a direct connection into our pan-European network — helping the region integrate more closely into Europe's deep-tech value chains. As the CEO of 28DIGITAL Federico Menna says: 'Innovation does not happen in isolation. It happens when ambitious regions connect talent, innovation, entrepreneurship and industry to global networks." We're grateful to Regione Autonoma della Sardegna and the EIT - European Institute of Innovation and Technology for this trust. There's serious work ahead, and we're ready for it. Read more 👉 https://okt.to/L7qVCS

Applications for our SPIN: Rise programmes have been live for a week and together with our 4 partners, we cannot wait for you join us! 🙌 But how do you know which of the 4 industry-thematic programmes is the right one for you? Introducing our 2nd partner, Plug and Play Tech Center Italy, who are hosting the "DualRise: Empowering Next-Generation Dual-Use Technologies" 🇮🇹💻 Aimed for those: ⚫ Dual-Use Technologies ⚫ Researchers developing low-TRL dual-use technologies ⚫ Looking to uncover the market or societal potential of their research The programme runs between September and November, followed by a 3 day in-person bootcamp in Turin! For further information, including how to apply 👉 https://okt.to/k1ncUQ