Startups from Serbia to get 50,000 to 150,000 euros – Applications for PowerUp! open until March 11

The cabinet of the minister for innovations and technological development of Serbia has supported this year’s PowerUp! contest, organized by EIT InnoEnergy, where startups from Serbia will compete for the monetary award of EUR 50,000 and an investment of up to EUR 150,000.

– The European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT) is one of our most important partners in building an ecosystem for innovations. Programs such PowerUp! are a great opportunity for our startups to get the best support for growth and development in the global market. I am convinced that our partnership and joint projects will contribute considerably to the economic growth of the Republic of Serbia, based on knowledge and innovations, the opening of a larger number of startups and the creation of new, “smart” jobs – Minister Popovic said after a meeting with Jakub Miler, the CEO of EIT InnoEnergy for Central Europe.

Miler pointed out that InnoEnergy was actively looking for opportunities for investments in Serbia and that he believed that the ministry was the best possible partner in locating the most promising projects to invest in.

– The cabinet of the innovations minister has contributed considerably to the promising negotiations with important players in the Serbian ecosystem, which gives us an opportunity to exchange information about our portfolio and expertise. InnoEnergy is happy to accept the ministry’s support in promoting this year’s PowerUp! contest of Serbian entrepreneurs, researchers and students, to the end of choosing a local winner, who will represent Serbia in the great finals – Miler said.

PowerUp! is the biggest startup competition in Central and Eastern Europe in the field of energy, mobility, smart cities, heating and other solutions related to clean technologies. In addition to the monetary award, the winner will also get to participate in the prestigious Highway business accelerator of InnoEnergy.

From this year, the contest is related to the air pollution issue (“Clear Air Challenge”). The startup with the best idea in this field will receive a special award.

The applied startups will be invited to take part in training programs of European business mentors. These workshops will prepare the contestants for the national and the regional finals, during which they will present their ideas to an expert jury. The national final for Serbia will be held on April 9 in Belgrade, whereas the regional winner will be selected on May 21 in Krakow, at Impact’19, one of the biggest economic conferences in Central and Eastern Europe.

Terms of participation, the application form and all other necessary information are available at https://powerup.innoenergy.com/.

Applications are open until March 11.