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3rd edition SPINOFF Conference 2024
John Atanasoff Forum Sofia, Bulgaria
20 - 21 June 2024
SPINOFF CONFERENCE & HORIZON EUROPE INFO DAY
The Spinoff Bulgaria initiative was created by the Health and Life Sciences Cluster Bulgaria, the Artificial Intelligence Cluster Bulgaria, Venrize – spinoff factory and ISTEB.
We aim to create a sustainable spin-off ecosystem and culture in Bulgaria and Europe by connecting national stakeholders with international partners. We will present best practices, insights from universities, investors, governments, corporations and relevant industry experts, and funding opportunities from European organisations.
AIM: To stimulate interest in spinoff creation, promote knowledge exchange and engage with government, business, academia and investors.
GOAL 2030: Bulgaria to produce 100 homegrown spinoffs and become a powerhouse of innovation in Europe.
Within the event, content is planned to encourage companies to enter into consortia and closer collaboration with universities and existing scientific infrastructure.
Premium Partners: SECURUS Strategic Trade Solutions / VERBUND
Platinum partners: Invest Sofia Agency / Cleantech Bulgaria / EIT Manufacturing South East / BioHub Group / Vangavis
Gold partners: Ministry of Education and Science / Horizon Europe Cluster 1: Health / Fund of funds / European Climate pact
Regional partners: MEDIC-NEST META-CLUSTER IN PRECISION MEDICINE / Imago-Mol Cluster / HealthTech Investor Summit
Strategic partners: United States Department of State Office of Cooperative Threat Reduction (ISN/CTR) / Flanders Investment & Trade / Micar21 / America for Bulgaria Foundation / Cluster of Microelectronics and Industrial Electronics Systems / EuropaBio / European AI Forum / Technical University of Sofia / SPIN-OFF AUSTRIA INITIATIVE / Confederation of Employers and Industrialists in Bulgaria / Valentin Savov & Partners / Google Developer Groups (GDG) Plovdiv
Support by: Innaxe / VELES
Founders / Organisers: Health and Life Sciences Cluster Bulgaria / Venrize Spinoff Factory / AI Cluster Bulgaria / ISTEB
Water Partners: Devin
Coffee Partner: Martines Coffe
20 June 2024 - Day 1
20 June 2024 - Day 1
MAIN STAGE
8:30 - 9:00 Morning coffee and sign-in
9:00 - 9:15 Opening Keynote: Founders of the initiative: Kristina Eskenazi, Paulina Chortova, Kaloyan Ratchev, Dimitar Dimitrov
8:30 - 13:00 Workshop: Protecting Innovation by Managing Technology Proliferation Risk (only for registered Bulgarian and Romanian organisations)
Powered by: United States Department Of State Bureau Of International Security And Nonproliferation Office Of Cooperative Threat Reduction (ISN/CTR)
13:00 - 14:00 Lunch break
14:00 - 14:30 Opening Keynote: Founders of the initiative: Kristina Eskenazi, Paulina Chortova, Kaloyan Ratchev, Dimitar Dimitrov
14:30 - 14:45 - KeyNote: Sarah Ackerman, Ph.D., PMP, Program ManagerProgram Manager at U.S. Department of State
14:45 - 15:30 - Funding the Future: Investor Insights into Spinoff Opportunities
Moderator: Pavel Lisev - Executive director and Member of the Management Board of the Fund of Funds
Speakers:
Sven De Cleyn, PhD - Managing Director imec.istart Fund & istart.nl Fund
Diane Nevin - CEO of Grit International Female Network
Sebastian Schenk - Verbund X Ventures
Henk Joos - General Manager of MEDVIA
Christophe Pompée - Venture Partner in Wippd Ventures
15:30 - 16:10 - HTIS24 - SEE Champions in Medtech (pitch decks)
Moderator: Kaloyan Ratchev
Epix AI
Matrichem
Neuromorphica
Barin Sports
Micar21
MM Watch
Kelvin Health
Simenso ltd
16:10 - 17:30 Presenting the winners from the SPREAD2INNO, Powered by: Clean Tech Bulgaria
Moderator: Kaloyan Ratchev
Dataphoria (Greece)
H-CAM (Greece)
iCadran/Avisense (Greece)
c-BEMS/INTELIGG (Greece)
Lunar cargo (Greece)
Solumar (Bulgaria)
Mealprot (Bulgaria)
Ridotek (Bulgaria)
Golden snail (Bulgaria)
Relaxify (Bulgaria)
Haikai (Italy)
Capsule Corporation (Italy)
Saferplaces (Italy)
17:30 - 18:00 Presenting the winners from the "Science for the Future" competition, organised by America for Bulgaria Foundation
Moderator: Kristina Eskenazi
Nedislav Veselinov - Sofia Planetarium
Petar Petrov - HiveReader
Blagoy Anastasov - BeVine
Petko Stoev - Re4Life
18:00 - 18:30 - Ceremony Spinoff of the Year
18:30 22:30 - Spinoff Party
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Room 2: Green Room
Workshop: Horizon Europe, Cluster Health
Registration is required HERE
Agenda: Part 1 (issued in Bulgarian)
14:00 - 14:30 - Registration
14:30 - 14:40 - Welcome and opening
14:40 - 15:00 - Horizon Europe strategic plan 2025-2027
15:00 - 15:20 Topics: Topic 1 HORIZON-HLTH-2024-DISEASE-13-01 Presentation, Topic 2 HORIZON-HLTH-2024-CARE-14-01 Presentation, Topic 3 HORIZON-HLTH-2024-DISEASE-12-01 Presentation
15:20 - 15:40 - National Contact Points and Q&A
15:40: 16:10 - Coffee break
Part 2 (issued in English)
16:10 -16:30 - Innovative Health Initiative (IHI) presentation
16:30 - 16:50 - Q&A
16:50 - 17:10 - The role of artificial intelligence and data protection in project work.
17:10 - 17:30 - Q&A
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Room 3: Red Room
14:00 -14:30 Workshop: SPREAD2INNO Module 1: Business Angels and Venture Capitalists (led by European Business Angels Network – the Pan-European representative for the early-stage investor community gathering over 100 member organisations in more than 50 countries.)
14:30 - 15:00 Workshop: SPREAD2INNO Module 2: EU Funds (led by TESEAS - a research and consulting company based in Italy that provides services for industries, commercial companies, private individuals and public administration.)
15:00 - 16:00 VIP Close Meeting: European Health Insitute (invitation only)
16:00 - 17:00 Workshop topic: Harnessing Emerging technologies – AI, next-gen tech to accelerate innovations deployment With Nikolay Chotrov
21 June 2024 - Day 2
21 June 2024 - Day 2
MAIN STAGE / Room 1
10:00 - 10:30 Opening Keynote: Founders of the initiative: Kristina Eskenazi, Paulina Chortova, Kaloyan Ratchev, Dimitar Dimitrov
Official Guest Speaker (Senior Government Stakeholders)
10:30 - 10:45 - Keynote 1: Svetlin Penkov- Chair of AI Cluster Bulgaria, CEO of Efemerai
10:45 - 11:45 - Panel 1: Spinoffs in Focus: Perspectives from European Policymakers
Moderator: Kristina Eskenazi
Speakers:
Dr. Claire Skentelbery - Director General of the EuropaBio
Montse Daban, PhD - President of the Board of the Council for European BioRegions
Anne-Charlotte Joubert - INVEST’HER project leader, Project ManagerProject Manager at Euro-BioImaging
11:45 - 12:00 - Keynote 2: Dario Zoric, Regional digitalisation lead, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Denmark
12:00 - 12:45 - Panel 2: INNAXE: Navigating the European Spin-off Ecosystem
Montse Daban, PhD - BioCat, President of the Board of the Council for European BioRegions
Hickmah TAGAULLY - Head of European Affairs at Medicen Paris Region
Kristina Eskenazi - Chair of the Health & Life Sciences Cluster
Karen Lindegaard - International programme manager at Danish Life Science Cluster
Friedemann Loos - BioRN Life Science Cluster Rhine-Neckar
Alberto Baldi - Senior Project Manager at CEBR
12:45 - 13:00 - Keynote 3: Johan Lecocq, International Relations Manager at MEDVIA.
How clusters and international cluster collaboration can support start-ups and scale-ups to grow?
13:00 - 13:10 Project VELES with Irena Pavlova - European Projects Manager at GATE Institute for Big Data and Artificial Intelligence at Sofia University.
13:10 - 14:30 - Lunch
14:30 - 14:45 - Keynote 4: EIT Manufacturing § South East Region: Services and Funding Opportunities with Dr. Nikos Panopoulos is the Strategic Projects Manager at EIT Manufacturing South-East Europe
14:45 - 15:00 - Keynote 5: Addressing ESG challenges in alignment with the EU Climate Pact for business growth and sustainability with Mariyana Hamanova, Executive Director of Cleantech Bulgaria
15:00 - 15:45 Panel 3: Exploring growth paths and opportunities for startups/spinoffs
Powered: CleanTech Bulgaria
Moderator: Mariyana Hamanova, Executive Director of Cleantech Bulgaria
European Business Angel Network
Fraunhofer
15:45 - 16:00 Coffee break
16:00 - 16:15 Keynote 6: Dr Hamish McAlpine - Director for Policy & Engagement at Oxentia
16:15 - 16:30 - Keynote 7: Ass. prof. Dimitar Nikolov - Assoc. Professor Dimitar Nikolov - SMIES, AI Cluster Bulgaria, TU Sofia
16:30 - 17:30 - Panel 4: Semiconductor Horizons: Navigating the Future with the Chips Act
Moderator: Assoc. Professor Dimitar Nikolov - SMIES, AI Cluster Bulgaria, TU Sofia
Prof. George Angelov - Deputy Minister of Innovation and Growth
Vladimir Grozdanov - Chief Executive Officer at Barin Sports AD
Yani Trendafilov - CEO of Neuromorphica
Nidec Instruments Corporation (TBC)
17:30 - 17:45 - Closing remarks
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Room 2: Green Room
10:45 - 11:05 Keynote - Werner Wutscher: Spin-offs - the Driver of Innovation in Europe - an Austrian Perspective
11:05 - 12:00 Kickoff: Spinoff Danube Alliance - Developing a spinoff ecosystem in the Danube region
Radoslav Invanov - Fraunhofer Venture
Werner Wutscher - Member of the Startup Council of the Federal Ministry of Labour and Economy of Austria and Founder & CEO of New Venture Scouting
Lisa Kratochwill - Verbund X Ventures
Prof. Dr. Eng. Georgi Todorov - Technical University Sofia
14:30 - 15:00 Corporation's Strategy for Innovation and Spinoff Ventures
Lisa Kratochwill - Verbund X Innovation
Thomas Klem Andersen - Director, DeepTech Alliance
15:00 - 16:00 From Lab to Market: TTOs Leading the Charge in Academia Spinoff Ventures
Insights & Best Practices from Bulgarian and International TTOs and Sciencepreneurs
Fabio Bianchi, Head of Entrepreneurship, Oxentia
Svetoslav Mollov, Head of Technology Transfer and Commercialization at Quasar Competence Center (TBC)
Georgi Kirov - Crisp Labs
Valentin Savov - Savov and Partners Law Firm
Ass prof George Toshkov - University of Food Technology - Plovdiv
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Room 3: Red Room
10:30 - 11:00 Workshop: SPREAD2INNO Module 3: Business model (led by Fraunhofer Institute for Production Systems and Design Technology - carrying out applied research and development in the fields of future-oriented technologies for the production process in factories.)
11:00 - 12:00 Workshop: EIT Manufacturing programs and funding calls: AI in Manufacturing
Lector: Dr. Nikos Panopoulos is the Strategic Projects Manager at EIT Manufacturing South-East Europe
12:30 - 13:00 Workshop: SPREAD2INNO Module 4: European Innovation Ecosystems (led by MINDS&SPARKS - an independent, non-profit research organisation based in Vienna, Austria fostering science, innovation and technology to address major challenges and develop new methods and solutions for a better society.)
14:30 - 14:50 - Workshop: Exploring Dual-Usage Technologies
Lector: Vassil Karaivanov - Chairman of the Sofia Tech Park
14:50 - 15:30 Shaping Public Health: Prioritizing Prevention and Early Detection Efforts in Bulgaria (issued in Bulgarian language only)
Lidiya Chorbanova
15:30 - 16:30 - Panel Discussion: Female Founders Evolution
Anne-Charlotte Joubert - INVEST’HER project leader, Project Manager at Euro-BioImaging
Sarah Ackerman, Ph.D., PMP, Program Manager at U.S. Department of State
Ass. Prof Agata Manolova - Technical University Sofia
Diane Nevin - CEO of Grit International Female Network
OPEN CONTEST: SPINOFF OF THE YEAR 2022!
OPEN CONTEST: SPINOFF OF THE YEAR 2022!
TIMEFRAME:
Campaign period: 10 January 2023 - 10 September 2023
Meeting of the jury and selection of winners: June 11 - June 21
The official announcement of winners: June 22, 2023, during the Spinoff Bulgaria conference!
Categories:
Corporate spinoff
University spinoff
Academy spinoff
Government spinoff
Only projects that have successfully passed at least the second stage of technological readiness according to the internationally accepted scale for evaluating the maturity of a newly created technology (Technology Readiness Levels) will be evaluated, and work has begun on the third stage - proof of concept in the experimental environment.
Innovation Areas: Applicant need to propose activities in biotechnology, health, food tech, semiconductors/chips, artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, and VR&AR.
Evaluation criteria:
Skills of the team, knowledge of the sector, the feasibility of the project;
The development stage of the product/service;
Degree of innovation and its defensibility;
Positioning concerning competitors;
Consistency with the market and customers’ needs and potential outreach;
The business potential of the idea;
Completeness of the documentation presented.
The expected results of the project need to be clear, measurable, realistic, bound to a specific period and be a logical consequence of the planned activities.
Apply HERE!
A spinoff is an entity, formed as a separate and independent enterprise from an existing organisation, which holds novel value and new strategic purpose. Spinoffs often come from academia, corporates, government and healthcare.
Spinoffs are the bedrock of economic growth and innovation. They create jobs, unlock private capital, stimulate R&D and adoption of innovation. One prominent example of a spinoff powerhouse is the UK, with 1,500 spinoffs in the last 10 years, which created 6000 jobs and £11b of capital raised.
Some prominent clusters such as Oxford, generated 200 spinoffs since 2011 which unlocked £2.4 billion of private capital. The famous ‘Golden Triangle’ produces over 100 spinoffs every year. Moreover, a spinoff on average has 50% higher valuation at seed stage than a non-spinoff company.
A Spinoff innovation can be created and developed via a number of different models. These models are applicable at different stages of the innovation cycle. They share similar purposes and characteristics but vary by strategy, execution and organisational context.
Technology Transfer – protection and commercialisation of research, often experimental and scientific, developed by a university for economic and social benefits.
Venture Build – the process of developing a venture in a controlled manner by putting the best ideas, teams and resources together.
Design Thinking – a solution based approach which redefines problems and builds ventures with alternative strategies that address customer needs effectively.
Acceleration – the development of an existing venture or idea by supporting launch or market access by offering expertise and finance for a fixed period of time.
Incubation – a centre which offers early stage organisation access to infrastructure such as office, laboratories and resources to support the growth of a business.
Founders
Founders
Partners
Partners
Become a partner
Become a partner
General Partner
General Partner
Amount: 5000 €
Positioning of the General partner, along with the organizers, in general place, in all printed and digital materials.
Display of the General Partner logo before the start of each presentation during the events
Full access to the event for up to 10 representatives of the General partner.
Publishing an active General partner Logo/Banner on the front page of the site.
Opportunity to present and participate in the panels of the events organized for 2023.
Оpportunity to position General partner stand and banner at the events organized for 2023.
Five dedicated posts in social media, with the ability to shape the target audience.
Оpportunity to distribute advertising information materials of the General partner among the participants and guests of the events.
Mention the General partner in all press releases to the media before and after the event.
The logo and name of the General partner will be visible on the photos from the event, which will be published on the event website.
Gold Partner
Gold Partner
Amount: 2500 €
Positioning the logo of the Gold Partner and mentioning at the beginning and end of all organised events for 2023.
Full access to the event for 4 representatives of the Gold Partner in all events for 2023.
Post an active Gold Partner Logo/Banner on the front page of the website.
Link to the page of the Gold Partner in all social networks
Three dedicated posts during the social media campaign, with the ability to shape the target audience.
Оpportunity to distribute advertising information materials among the guests of the events.
Mention as a Gold Partner in all press releases to the media before and after the event.
Contact us for more information: info@spinoff.bg
Silver Parner
Silver Parner
Amount: 1500 €
Positioning the logo of the Silver Partner and mentioning at the beginning and end of the organised events for 2023
Оpportunity for distribution of advertising information materials, provided by the Sponsor to the guests of the events.
Full access to the event for 2 representatives of the Silver Partner in all events for 2023.
Publishing the Silver Partner Logo/Banner on the front page of the website.
One dedicated post during the campaign on social media, with the ability to shape the target audience.
Mentioning the Silver Partner in all press releases to the media before and after the event.
Contact us for more information: info@spinoff.bg
Check out previous events of the Spinoff Initiative
Check out previous events of the Spinoff Initiative
Speakers in 2022
Speakers in 2022
Kristina Eskenazi
Chairwoman of Health & Life Sciences Cluster, Founder of AI Cluster Bulgaria
Chairwoman of Health & Life Sciences Cluster, Founder of AI Cluster Bulgaria
Dimitar DimitrovChairman of Health & Life Sciences Cluster, AI Cluster Bulgaria, Founder of Venrize & Micar21
Kaloyan Ratchev
AI Cluster Bulgaria, Founder of Venrize Ltd and Vangavis
AI Cluster Bulgaria, Founder of Venrize Ltd and Vangavis
Boyko Takov
Executive Director Bulgarian SME Promotion Agency
Executive Director Bulgarian SME Promotion Agency
Hristo Etropolsky
Director Marketing and investment services at InvestBulgaria Agency
Director Marketing and investment services at InvestBulgaria Agency
Vesna Baltina
Deputy Mayor of the Burgas Municipality
Iva Marinova
Senior expert from the Bulgarian Small and Medium Enterprises Promotion Agency
Zoya Stoyanova
Senior expert Strategic planning, Digitalization & Sustainable development, Burgas Municipality
Dobrinka Blagova
Director, Digitalisation, Innovation & Investment Directorate (Innovative Sofia), Sofia Municipality
Viktor Goussev
Sofia Investment Agency
Dennis Weiss
Investment & Organisation Manager at Spinoff Austria
Prof. Nikolai Zhelev
CSO Venrize, Prof. - University Of Dundee
Ass. Professor
dr. Costin Lianu
General Manager USH Pro Business, Spiru Haret University
Antonio Giordano
MD PhD
president of SHRO
Dr. Tanja Sovic
Head of Patent & Licence Management, TU Vienna
Maria Todorova
Director for Policy and Analyses at the Ministry of Innovation and Growth
Ivailo Ivanov
Founder Institute
Stoyan Yordanov
Postdoctoral Researcher at Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, BTI
Andreas Maier
Founder of Industry Association Digital Bulgaria
Ivan Mihaylov
Chairman of the Bulgarian Association of Innovative Technologies (BRAIT)
Prof. Dr.
Viktoria Sarafian
Medical University
of Plovdiv
Assoc. prof. Svilen Kunev, PhD
Assistant professor - University of Ruse
Krasimir Tonchev
AI Cluster Bulgaria, Technical University Sofia
Georgi Georgiev
American University in Bulgaria
Juan R. Garcia, MBA
Managing Partner at the BBI Business School
Prof. DSc
George Todorov
Dean of the Faculty of Industrial Technology (FIT) - Technical University Sofia
Jeannette Gorzala
IP Law Austria
Prof. Dr. Vladia Borisova
President of the Patent Office of the Republic of Bulgaria
Fabian Lim
Senior Executive, Industry Partnerships & Commercialisation. Imperial College London
Neli Poprelkova
Law Firm
Tzvetkova & Partners
Kamen Slavov
Member of The Board of Directors of Fund of Funds in Bulgaria (FMFIB)
Vladimir Tomov
President of BCCI Investment Council, Member of the Board of BCCI
Alper Celen
Enhance Ventures
Angel Angelov
Managing Partner at Innovation Capital
Eva Maydell
MEP, European Parliament
Tsvetelina Penkova
MEP, European Parliament
Thomas Hellebrand
Health policy lead, DIGITALEUROPE
Albena Kuyumdzhieva
European Innovation Council EIC
Yumer Kodjayumer
Ministry of Education and Science
Daniela Tchonkova
EEN-Bulgaria Coordinator, Programme Manager at Applied Research and Communications Fund
Diane Nevin
CEO of GRIT (Grit International Female Accelerator)
Elena Nikolova
Community Manager of CEO Angels Club
Alexandra Velkova
Atlas Agro
Maya Milanova
Managing Director at Flow Logic
Assoc. Prof. PhD Agata Manolova
Technical University of Sofia
Rumyana Grozeva
European Digital Innovation Hub Zagore
Mariana Hamanova
Director of
CleanTech Bulgaria
Svetlana Boyanova
Director of AgroHub
Svetlin Iliev
Director of Trakia Digital Innovation Hub
Todor Mladenov
Executive Director at Sofia Tech Park JSC
Prof. Ilia Iliev
Director Centre of Technologies Plovdiv University, PERIMED
Evgeni Ivanov
Head of Technology Transfer Center QUASAR
Prof. Sotir Sotirov PhD
Prof. Assen Zlatarov University
Denitsa Tsekova
Chairman of the Managing Board of IIRDE
Teodora Jilkova
Consulting Cluster Veritas, International Relations & Business Development
Prof. George Angelov
Chair of Cluster of Microelectronics, Technical University Sofia
Petko Georgiev
Chairman of Southeast Digital Innovation Hub
Assoc. prof. Dimitar Nikolov
Technical University Sofia
Clemens Wasner
ADRA, Member of European AI Forum
Andy Bleaden
Communities Director ECHAlliance
Montse Daban
Vice President of CEBR, Biocat, BioRegion of Catalonia, INNAXE
Maria Pournari
Institute of Entrepreneurship Development (iED, Larissa)
Benjamin Talin
MoreThanDigital International
Daniel Cosnita
President of the Romanian Cluster Association, Co-chairs of EEN Thematic Group on Clusters
Emil Shekerdzhiiski
Founder
Networking Premium Spaces
Husein Yemendzhiev
ENOVA H2O
Dimitar Mitev
Meteo.Rocks
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