Startup information

Partner startup islands:

• If a partner is bringing eight startups they will exhibit together for the three days of the event. Please note the minimum requirement to maintain this startup island is six startups.

• If a partner is bringing 24 startups, each startup will only exhibit for one day of the event. Startup boards will be switched each day to accommodate all 24 startups (particular exhibition days cannot be requested). Please note the minimum to maintain this startup island is 18 startups.

• If the minimum number is not met, startups will instead exhibit in their industry-vertical and not on an island.

Partner startups:

• Startups that are not being placed within a dedicated partner startup island will exhibit for one day in their chosen industry-vertical. Particular exhibition days cannot be requested.

All startups will be reviewed by our startup’s team. If approved, they will be assigned to the relevant track (ALPHA or BETA.) Please see the criteria below

• ALPHA – To qualify for the ALPHA track the startup can have raised no more than US$1 million in funding.

• BETA – To qualify for the BETA track the startup can have raised no more than US$3 million in funding.

*Startups that have raised more than US$3 million cannot participate in partner startup islands.*

Startups must meet the following requirements to be accepted:

• Must be less than 5 years old.

• Must have their own unique software product or solutions or they must be working on their own connected hardware devices.

• Consultancies, agencies, developers, marketing/advertising agencies, public companies will not be accepted.

• Startups must be their own independent company and not a subsidiary of a larger organisation.

• The startup must be launched and live with their own working website at a minimum.

• The startup cannot already be registered to exhibit at the event.

• The startup must have a logo available in .eps format.

Startups submitted that do not meet the above criteria will not be accepted and can cause delays in onboarding of approved startups.

For any unsuccessful startups, partners will be given the opportunity to find replacements within an agreed timeline. If a partner remains with unused startup packages by October 1st, the packages will be exchanged for three general attendee tickets.

Yes, in order to streamline the application process for all of your startups, it would be beneficial to send a list of all of the startups that you wish to bring to the event, to your partner success manager. See below for the required information:

• Startup company name

• Web address

• Contact name

• Contact email address

It would also be beneficial if you could provide a point of contact (name & email address) so we can include this individual in email communications that will be sent to all of your startups that are attending the event.

Your partner success manager will send you a form, which you should circulate to your startups, requesting them to complete it as soon as possible, so we can begin our review process. The deadline for each startup to complete the form is September 24.

PITCH is Web Summit’s startup competition, highlighting the world’s most promising startups in a pitching battle. The closing date for PITCH applications will be communicated to each startup in an email from their dedicated startup success manager.

• PITCH competitor info pack

• Application page

Startup Showcase is a highly popular startup activation at Web Summit. Startups will have two minutes on stage to showcase their company to the audience. Be sure to expect quickfire presentations of startups’ solutions to the biggest issues within their fields.

Each hour will see our top startups take to the stage to present under a different theme, covering a variety of exhibition industries and current trends, such as the Future of Work, Security & Future of Content. The closing date for Startup Showcase applications will be communicated to each startup in an email from their dedicated startup success manager.

• FAQ guide

• Application Page

Mentor Hours is a series of pre-scheduled, hour-long group meetings between our high-level attendees and selected startups. Mentor Hours have four distinct tracks: lead, engage, build and grow. Each track has a specific focus and carefully selected mentors to ensure the issues discussed are relevant for the startups. |

Each startup will receive a link to apply from their startup success manager. The closing date for Mentor Hours applications will be communicated to each startup in an email from their dedicated startup success manager.

More information can be found here.

Startup Sessions take place in the run-up to Web Summit. These digital webinars run for 45 minutes and are hosted by business experts and leaders in the tech industry. The format of each session is a 30-minute interactive discussion followed by a 15-minute Q&A.

Startups will receive invitations to join upcoming Startup Sessions from their startup success managers. A schedule for our Startup Sessions can be found below:

• 1 Sept - Pitch decks: What are investors looking for?

• 15 Sept - I'm a VC, ask me anything

• 29 Sept - Founder turned investor

• 13 Oct - Growth startups: What I’ve learnt from Web Summit

• 27 Oct - How to make the most of Web Summit

Startup masterclasses at Web Summit focus on different growth paths, discussing everything from the corporate innovation explosion to the ‘must-knows’ of GDPR and the best ways to secure funding. Startup masterclasses run throughout Web Summit.

All participating startups will receive a signup link from their startup success manager.

Investor Meetings is a series of pre-scheduled,15-minute meetings between the biggest investors in tech and the leading startups attending Web Summit. Startups are automatically added to our investor meetings portal.

This is where our attending investors view our startup profiles and select the startups they would most like to meet. If selected, the startup will be contacted by their startup success manager.