DEEP Startup Ecosystem Conference

Your Next Great Adventure Will Start with an Idea

All ecosystems are built on people. DEEP Ecosystems brings together a community of hundreds of creative minds who believe in innovation to change our world.

Join the global ecosystem building movement!

On 5-6 July, innovation stakeholders and thought leaders convene for two days in Budapest, Hungary, for interactive discussions on ecosystem building. It's the global gathering of innovation ecosystem builders, investors, corporates, and government representatives who seek to build stronger ecosystems that can tackle our communities´ most pressing challenges.

The conference is the gateway to our DEEP Startup Ecosystem Accelerator. Launched in 2018, it’s the first global cohort-based program to boost the growth of new vertical and geographic ecosystems. If you haven’t participated in the DEEP Conference yet, you will have a chance to:

• Explore top international startup destinations and understand how to improve your startup community.
• Showcase your ecosystem and initiatives that you are proud of.
• Connect with international ecosystems, experts, and potential partners in a stimulating conversation.
• Learn about strategic innovation trends and best practices from peers.

We are looking forward to meet you in Budapest! Apart from its rich culture, the city is also turning into a destination for the innovation and technology community, attracting talents and companies from all over the world, as well as multinational tech giants such as SAP, IBM, Bosch, and Microsoft.

Wednesday, 5 July 2023

Part 1: DEEP Visions
Future trends and why they matter for startup ecosystems

9:30 – 9:50 Welcome and Introduction
• Dr. Kovács Levente, Rector, Obuda University
• Thomas Kösters, Co-Founder & CEO, DEEP Ecosystems

9:50 – 10:10 Launch of the Startup Heatmap Report 2023
Dr. Erica Santini, Head of Research at Startup Heatmap and Associate Professor at the University of Trento

10:10– 10:40 Fark Labs: Transformation of an Automotive Company into a Start-up Hub via Innovation
Ömer Hantal, Chief Innovation Optimizer of FARK LABS, Istanbul, Türkiye

10:40 – 10:55 Coffee break

10:55 - 11:05  Explore Hungarian Startup Ecosystem

• Laszlo Bodis, Deputy State Secretary for Innovation, Budapest, Hungary

11:05 – 11:35 PANEL DISCUSSION on the Hungarian Startup Ecosystem 

• Jakab Kitti, Head of Incubation at Lunar Program

• Imre Hild, Obuda University and CEO of Global Traction

• Gergő Gulyás, CFO at Wolves Summit and Co-Founder of iScale Hub

• Csongor Biás, Managing Director, Startup Hungary

• Elemér Eszter, Chairman, The Hungarian Venture Capital and Private Equity Association (HVCA)

•Tibor Héjj, Deputy CEO, Strategy and Business, Express Innovation Agency 

11:35 - 11:55 “Enhance productivity with GPU-accelerated Data Science and Machine Learning for Industrial R&D” 

Kovács László, NVIDIA Certified Associate AI in the Data Center, NVIDIA Deep Learning Institute Certified Instructor and Ambassador 

11:55 – 12:15 Ecosystem Spotlights: Presentations from Around the World

• David Achim, Executive Director at Make IT in Oradea, Romania 

• Dudu Gencel, Senior Project Manager, Vienna Business Agency, Austria 

• Tero Kyckling, Senior Business Advisor, Business Tampere, Finland Karoline Bertelsen, Digital Hub Denmark

• Mariano  Guzzetta, Innovation & Emerging Technologies Advisor, EY, Matera, Italy  

 12:15 – 13:00 Lunch Break

 Part 2: DEEP Dives

Data-driven and action-oriented roundtables to promote ecosystems Building Innovative Ecosystems: DEEP Dives are round tables for professional ecosystem leaders. Each table is co-hosted by a leading ecosystem player with domain knowledge and best practices. Further DEEP Dives are accompanied by a dedicated data analyst who provides each participant with strategic insights before the discussions. The results are summarized and published in a White Paper.

13:00 – 13:10 Introduction and expectations 

Arnbjörn Eggerz, Managing Director, Iceventure 

13:10 – 15:10

DEEP Dive 1: Startup Accelerators “University Accelerators: A Sandbox for Future Startups Unicorns” 

• Thomas Kösters, Co-Founder & CEO, DEEP Ecosystems 

•  Marius Almstedt, Managing Director at PatentPlus.io, Munich, Germany 

• Donnie Lygonis, Innovation Strategist & Business Coach, KTH Stockholm, Sweden 

• Tamas Szeker, Co-Founder, Innovation and Business Growth Partner at iScale Group

• David Trayford, Founder, Wow Media

DEEP Dive 2: Impact Ecosystems & Investing “Building the impact innovation scene in emerging markets” 

• Nadim Choucair, Founder & CEO, Global Goals Directory 

• Dora Marosvolgyi, Founder and CEO, DARE Innovation 

• Morten Kildahl Sorensen, Strategic Programmes Orchestrator, Climate-KIC 

DEEP Dive 3: Raising funds & Diversity “Financing Gender Gap” 

• Leyla Karaha, Founder at Your Y Network 

• Sara Usinger, Local leader, Founder Institute Impact and Sustainability

• Dr. Erica Santini, Head of Research, Startup Heatmap  

DEEP Dive 4: Startup Technology Trends “Communities of Future: The Blockchain and Decentralized Autonomous Organizations (DAOs)” 

• Shivam Dhawan, Founder & CEO at GetBoarded Technologies 

• Zoran Nasteski, Co-Founder and CEO at Qpick 

15:10 – 15:25 Coffee Break

Part 3: DEEP Match 

Marketplace for ideas & opportunities 

15:25 – 15:55 “Decoding Silicon Valley: Attitudes, Beliefs, and Culture of Innovation” 

Michelle Messina, CEO of Explora International, Silicon Valley insider 

15:55 – 16:40 ​​Open networking via speed-dating and 1:1 or group meetings 

Part 4: DEEP Accelerate 

DEEP Startup Ecosystems Accelerator for moonshot collaborations to tackle global challenges 

16:40 – 16:50 Presentation of the DEEP Startup Ecosystem Accelerator 

Harald Eisenhauer, Co-Founder & Head of Platform, DEEP Ecosystems  

16:50 – 17:30 DEEP Accelerator DEMO DAY: ecosystem initiatives pitch their projects to win the audience/juries votes for the Ecosystem Project Award 

• Mary Nemciuc, CEO and Founder, Technovator, Moldova  

• Mohamed Muse Hassan, Director, SIMAD iLab, Somalia (online) 

• Zoran Nasteski, Co-Founder and CEO at Wrockchain & Qpick, Poland  

• Emilia Engblad, Co-founder and Creative Director, RHĪZ 

• Dominique Diouf, Head of Exploration, UNDP Accelerator Labs, Senegal  

• Karlo Kukec, Project Manager, Invento Capital Partners, Croatia  

17:30 – 18:00 Ecosystem Spotlights: Presentations from Around the World

• Aneri Pradhan, Chief Operating Officer, New Energy Nexus, Germany

• Valeria Mosiienko, Project Coordinator, Greencubator, Ukraine

 • Denny Drossmann, Start-up Labs Bahrenfeld, Hamburg 

• Sofie Pauwels, Business & Innovation, City of Antwerp, Belgium

• Laviniu Chis, Head of INNO Department & Investment Attraction, North West Regional Development Agency, Romania

18:00 – 18:10 Ecosystem Project Awards Ceremony 

Peter Csillag, Angel Investor, President of the Board, Hungarian Business Angel Network  

18:10 – 19:00 Closing Remarks & Cocktail Reception  

DAY 2: Thursday, 6 July 2023

Community Building Activity: Join us on an exciting and entertaining Boat Tour on the Danube River! 

10:30 – 11:30 Budapest Danube Boat Tour 

12:00 – 14:00 Lunch together 

Want to attend for free?

We empower current and future ecosystem builders, no matter what stage they are at. Are you...

• A student interested in learning about startups and ecosystems?
• An entrepreneur who wants to start a conversation with ecosystem builders?
• Building a movement to support entrepreneurs & have a limited budget?

Then we want to support you! Apply for a free ticket here.