- SET University, Startup Wise Guys, and tech2impact organized a Bootcamp for CEE startups
- The mission is to help Ukraine’s startup ecosystem prepare to become one of the main contributors to the country’s post-war recovery
- The organizer’s welcome everyone to an Open Day on August 26
Kyiv-based SET University teamed up with the well-known European startup accelerator Startup Wise Guys and the global impacttech hub & accelerator tech2impact to launch SET Bootcamp. 30 CEE startups were selected to take part in the Bootcamp’s 3-week educational project that represented a complete guide to startup development, bringing founders the skills needed to raise funds and scale in new markets. The project will wrap upon August 26th with an Open Day with speeches from distinguished professionals and pitches from finalists.
Startup Ecosystem as a Key Factor in Restoring Post-War Ukraine
SET University is a part of the Roosh Group – a Ukrainian corporation uniting several tech companies, including Pawa, Reface, AI House, Zibra.AI (which ITKeyMedia covered recently), and more. The University educates Ukrainian students all over the world about modern technologies and how to apply them in business.
Moved by the Ukrainian leaders’ statement in Lugano saying that Ukraine would require USD 750B to recover after the war, Set University’s management thought they should contribute to their country’s future recovery. Seeing how the Ukrainian tech sector had accounted for 4% of the country’s GDP before the war and it remains one of the very few sectors that keep contributing to the national economy, the University decided it should help the devastated country develop the most prospective sector of its economy.
The University has the reputation of an educational hub focusing on entrepreneurial culture, research, and a well-connected community. As such, ‘developing an innovative economy and supporting our businesses will be a key factor in accelerating Ukraine’s post-war recovery,’ Iryna Volnytska, the President of SET University is convinced.
Joint Effort of Those Who Care
For the SET Bootcamp, the University’s first effort in this direction, it joined forces with the organizations experienced in startup training – Startup Wise Guys and tech2impact. As a Ukrainian herself, tech2impact’s founder Sasha Lipman sees the urgency to channel resources into impact technologies in the current situation.
‘Like many people in the world, we at tech2impact asked ourselves: ‘What useful things can we do to support Ukraine?’ Drawing on our strengths, we decided to support startups focusing on Ukraine’s recovery, with acceleration to help them develop their ventures further and raise the funding needed to create more impact,’ Ms Lipman states.
Startup Wise Guys has over 300 companies in their portfolio, 40 out of which are Ukrainian. As one of the strongest believers in the Ukrainian startup ecosystem, they were eager to partner up with SET University and tech2impact to help the Ukrainian startup sector continue thriving.
‘It is heartbreaking to see the country torn apart by the current war, especially in such a thriving time for the startup scene and its wider technological advancement. In tough times – it is the community and standing together that makes the difference,’ Startup Wise Guys’ CEO Cristobal Alonso adds.
Navigating and Scaling Startups under the Circumstances
The Bootcamp welcomed startups at any stage – from the MVP or Market Test phases to startups seeking to raise capital, and the programme was meant for startup founders, product/innovation managers or C-level executives to help them navigate and scale their businesses under the current circumstances. The organizers stressed that even though investors will be present during the Bootcamp, the program itself does not presuppose any cash prizes or other forms of investment
The deadline for applications was July 24, and only 30 applicants were selected to participate. The programme of online master classes are scheduled between August 8 and 26 before wrapping up with an Open Day. At the Open Day, the organizers will de-veil the education process and what will become of it. More precisely, there will be pitches from finalists and speeches from the Bootcamp’s mentors:
- Natalia Modenova, co-founder of DressX, co-founder of Fashion Tech Summit, Executive Director of Mercedes-Benz Kyiv Fashion Days
- Alex Yermolenko, VP at Flyer One Ventures
- Veronika Korzh, co-founder and CEO at GeekPay
- Anna Saltykova, investor coordinator at Web Summit, private specialist in connecting early-stage founders with investors from Europe and the USA
In a Nutshell
- Where: Online (Zoom link)
- When: August 26 2022, 10 AM EEST
- More information about the Bootcamp: here
Kostiantyn is a freelance writer from Crimea but based in Lviv. He loves writing about IT and high tech because those topics are always upbeat and he’s an inherent optimist!