SPLET Tech, the largest regional conference on innovation and innovative entrepreneurship, organized by two projects, supported by the United States Agency for International Development – USAID: Venture an Idea implemented by the Digital Serbia Initiative and Serbia Innovates implemented by the ICT HUB, is being held today in the MTS Dvorana.
The two teams Serbia Innovates and Venture an Idea have decided to join forces in creating a prominent technological conference that will have a great impact on both local and regional development of the innovation ecosystem and the creation of new opportunities for domestic industry and society as a whole.
The event was officially announced at yesterday’s gathering, where representatives of the two projects, USAID, and the conference speakers Zoran Vasiljev, CEO of Centili Group, and Borivoje Nikolić, Professor of Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences at the University of California, Berkeley, pointed out the importance of SPLET Tech for Serbia and the region.
On this occasion, Serbia Innovates director, Aleksandra Popović, said: “For the first time, we have managed to bring together different participants of the innovation ecosystem with a unique vision – a vision that the future of Serbia is directed towards technological development, based on knowledge and innovation. SPLET Tech is an opportunity for everyone who wants to start a new or improve an existing business, to hear advice and experience from more than 70 speakers, successful and less successful stories, as well as current technological trends that will shape the accelerated growth of our economy. What makes SPLET a unique event in Serbia is the fact that visitors will be given NFTs with the main messages of the conference.”
At 8 spots in the MTS Dvorana in different formats, the participants will have the opportunity to learn about all current topics in the field of gaming, virtual reality, the blockchain, biotechnology, artificial intelligence and medicine, and find out how good ideas become successful entrepreneurial ventures. Through the entire duration of the programme, pioneers of innovative entrepreneurship will be presented in the exhibition hall, and participants will be able to see some of the innovations developed in Serbia on the spot.
Among more than 70 speakers, there are some of the best known national and international names. There is special interest in the public pitching session where participants will find out how challenging it is to tell everything about a startup in a short period of time and what are the questions that are most often asked to startup founders at these sessions.
“The idea behind the SPLET conference is to connect all actors of the domestic ecosystem and additionally encourage communication and exchange of ideas between them. In one place, we gather representatives of research and development centres, academic communities, founders of startups, innovators in various fields, representatives of state institutions and thus further strengthen the community, opening up space for promoting communication and launching new initiatives. The non-standard form and programme of the conference, which will take place in parallel at eight spots and cover a large number of topics – including ‘How can you know that your business idea is the right one?’ and ‘Where is digitalization in medicine taking us?’, will enable participants not only to hear all about experiences of the biggest domestic innovators and tech entrepreneurs, but also to acquire additional skills and knowledge. I’m sure that SPLET will be talked about even after the end of the conference, because that’s exactly our idea – to use SPLET to create an atmosphere in the community that will constantly encourage new innovation and development of successful businesses,” said Nebojša Bjelotomić, project director of Venture an idea.
“We have witnessed constant development of the IT sector in Serbia in recent years, and this affects the shaping of trends and general flows in other areas as well. Various products developed by teams in IT companies are applied in other spheres, enabling acceleration of the digitalization process and application of innovative solutions. That is why it is necessary to constantly talk about innovative technologies and the strength of the IT sector and raise awareness of the general public about the importance of this sector. The growth of the IT sector means at the same time progress for the domestic economy and creating of various business opportunities for individuals and organizations,” said Zoran Vasiljev, CEO of Centili Group.
Thanks to the SPLET Tech conference, the Serbian public will have the opportunity to find answers to all questions in the field of innovation and innovative entrepreneurship and be part of a new tradition of innovation.
Sponsors of the SPLET Tech Conference: NFTIZER by MVP workshop, MCF, OTP banka, Coca Cola HBC, Bambi, Takeda and the Embassy of Israel. The conference is supported by: Microsoft, BioSense Institute, Serbian Games Association (SGA), Garaža powered by Tenderly, Ferdinand Knedle, ALL ART, GIZ, Metropolitan University in Belgrade.
Media Sponsors: Blic, Nedeljnik, Euronews, Biznis.rs, Telegraf, CorD.
You can find all additional information about the conference on the official website SPLET TECH CONFERENCE 2022.
