UPTEC and the António Pargana Foundation launch School of Startups
The António Pargana Foundation, in partnership with UPTEC - Science and Technology Park of U.Porto, has just opened applications for the latest edition of the School of Startups, this time with a special focus on students of Portuguese descent.
Created in 2013, the School of Startups is a business idea acceleration programme that aims to prepare new entrepreneurs for the main challenges inherent in creating and developing a business project. Thanks to a partnership with the António Pargana Foundation, this edition presents itself as an immersion programme in the entrepreneurial ecosystem for students of Portuguese descent.
Over the course of five days, students from the Portuguese diaspora from all study cycles, universities and polytechnic institutes will have the opportunity to develop skills for ideating, validating and communicating entrepreneurial projects.
To take part in the programme, students don't need to have a business idea conceived, they just need to show an interest in entrepreneurship. Through workshops, corporate visits, conversations with entrepreneurs of Portuguese descent and training activities, the 25 selected students will gain an understanding of the economic, industrial and innovation context of the Northern region, as well as a direct connection with the investment landscape.
The first round of applications is open until 28 November and can be made through the School of Startups website, where more information about the initiative is available. The programme will be conducted in Portuguese and participation is free.
The António Pargana Foundation aims to promote knowledge of Portugal's history, culture and scientific and technological capacity, fostering the connection of the diaspora and their descendants to Portugal and inspiring opportunities for cooperation between people and organisations from these countries. Since its creation in 2007, UPTEC has organised more than 740 business projects in the arts, sciences and technologies.
UPTEC will award two inclusion scholarships for the programme
UPTEC — Science and Technology Park of the University of Porto is awarding two inclusion scholarships for women entrepreneurs and people of African descent to access the Startup School free of charge. These scholarships are part of UPTEC’s actions to correct inequalities in entrepreneurship and innovation ecosystem access.
To access the inclusion grant and be exempt from paying the participation fee of €425 (+VAT), individuals or teams will have to apply via the School of Startups enrolment form.
The School of Startups will select up to 30 business projects to receive support in developing their businesses. The three-month acceleration programme will support business ideas in web3, health, arts&design, tourism, environment, energy, space, fintech, and artificial intelligence, among other topics.
The projects selected to attend the School of Startups will have the opportunity to work in UPTEC’s spaces, participate in the more than 100 events that UPTEC organises each year, and access a wide network of investors, industry partners, and entrepreneurs. Upon completing the programme, the participation fee (425€+IVA) can be converted into four months of free coworking (February to May) to support your business journey further.
The benefits of the School of Startups include individual mentoring by more than 30 experts. These experts will support participants at every stage of the business development process and guide them in developing and defining their business strategy.
During the programme, participants will have access to 11 practical workshops led by experts, over almost 100 hours of training. Market analysis, differentiation, marketing, pricing strategy, intellectual property, preparation for investment and pitch training are among the themes of the School of Startups’s training sessions.
Throughout 11 editions, UPTEC’s acceleration programme has supported almost 500 entrepreneurs and more than 200 business projects, resulting in 70 companies. The startups that have gone through the School of Startups – such as Smartex, Addvolt, Wisecrop, B-Parts, Summary, FAHR 021.3, among others – have raised more than 65 million euros in investment.
The School of Startups applications can be made on the website until 24 September, and two inclusion scholarships will be awarded.
Addvolt among the 150 fastest-growing tech companies in Europe
Addvolt, a School of Startups alumni, is on the podium as the fastest-growing national company in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa
Addvolt and Knok, graduates of UPTEC — Science and Technology Park of the University of Porto, have won top spots in Deloitte’s ‘Fast 500 EMEA’ ranking, which lists the fastest-growing technology companies in the EMEA region (Europe, Middle East, and Africa). At a national level, Addvolt is in second place, and Knok is in third, in a list of 16 companies with an average growth of 810% over the last three years.
Addvolt, which reached 97th place in the global ranking, is a U.Porto spin-off created by alums of FEUP – U.Porto’s Faculty of Engineering. The company develops clean energy solutions for transport, making every vehicle smarter and more sustainable by reducing diesel consumption, CO2 emissions, noise and maintenance costs.
Knok, which came 146th globally, was founded by José Bastos, an alumnus of FEP — Faculdade de Economia da U.Porto and Porto Business School. It offers telemedicine and digital health solutions for both patients and healthcare providers.
Around a third (32 per cent) of the national companies that took part in the first edition of the ‘Technology Fast 50 2023’ ranking also appear in this new Deloitte ranking, which lists the 500 fastest-growing technology companies in the EMEA region.
This highlight emphasises the outstanding performance of Portuguese companies on the international technology scene. Thus, Portugal occupies 10th place in the Deloitte ranking, with 16 technology companies recognised for their exponential growth.
School of Startups alumni awarded by Portugal Ventures
Portuguese venture capital distinguished Addvolt and Noocity, and the founder of Corium Biotech for standing out in 2022.
Addvolt, Noocity and the founder of Corium Biotech, Maria João Maia, are among the winners of the Portugal Ventures Awards. The distinctions awarded by venture capital to the School of Startups alumni took place during the PV Founders Get Together 2022 event.
In the Industry & Technology Startup category, the winning company is already a UPTEC graduate: Addvolt. This trophy distinguished the company from this business unit, which, in recent years, has presented a superior level of execution in the critical areas of its development. Addvolt created an Electric Plug-in system, a technology developed by alums from the Faculty of Engineering of the U.Porto (FEUP) and already patented in several territories, ensuring the distribution of fresh and frozen products without resorting to diesel. Furthermore, it is free of CO2 emissions and operates with low noise due to the combination of a gas vehicle with the refrigeration system powered in electrical mode by Addvolt.
In the sustainability category, Noocity was awarded in 2023 for being the company in the Portugal Ventures portfolio that contributed most to the issue of sustainability. Installed in UPTEC Baixa, Noocity creates community gardens in public or private spaces to promote the ecological transition. It develops intelligent technical equipment for turnkey vegetable garden installations, which applies to companies, schools, condominiums, hotels, and more.
The entrepreneur award was awarded to the founder of Corium Biotech, Maria João Maia, this being the recognition given to the CEO of the Portugal Ventures portfolio of companies who stood out in 2023 for her leadership abilities. The U.Porto spin-off – also incubated at UPTEC – produces genuine leather in the laboratory, chemically the same as the leather obtained in traditional processes, but in an ecological, sustainable way and without harming animals. Maria João Maia, an alumnus of the Faculty of Pharmacy at U.Porto, has a PhD in Cellular and Molecular Interactions and believes that “the younger generations will not just look at the price, so they will not buy something that has caused animal suffering or impact negative impact on the environment.”
Portugal Ventures Awards: recognition for startups
The Portugal Ventures Awards aim to distinguish startups that stood out in the various categories during the year in question. In its 5th edition, this award highlights eleven categories. It has four winners from startups incubated and graduated from UPTEC, distinguished in the Startup Digital & Technology, Startup Industry & Technology, Entrepreneur and Sustainability categories.
To determine the winners, Portugal Ventures counted on the collaboration of a group of personalities who work daily in the entrepreneurial ecosystem: António Grilo, National Innovation Agency, Luis Guerreiro, IAPMEI, Pedro Silveira, AICEP, Carlos Abade, Turismo de Portugal, Manuel Caldeira Cabral, Startup Portugal, Conceição Zagalo, GRACE, Cristina Campos, Investor, Marcelo Lebre, Remote, Isabel Neves, Investor and Vanda Jesus, iCapital.
UPTEC will support 15 researchers with business ideas
This Startup School for Researchers, a programme promoted by UPTEC as part of the DEEP INVENTHEI project, aims to promote entrepreneurial skills that improve young entrepreneurs' ability to structure and implement business ideas. To this end, during the programme, participants will have the opportunity to meet CEOs of startups and established companies, who will share their experiences as global entrepreneurs. The Startup School for Researchers also includes mentoring moments with UPTEC experts and guest entrepreneurs.
During the programme, which includes 36 hours of sessions, participants can work as a team on their research projects and turn them into business ideas. If participants don't have a research project or a team, they will be grouped together to develop a potential business project. After pitch training, participants can present their solutions to a jury in the final session.
Programme Topics
* Ideation
* Business Model
* Intellectual Property
* Pitch Structure
* Presentation Techniques
* Pitch Training
* Final Presentation
Schedule
13/May | 11am to 12
Kick-off and Q&A - Online
03/June to 07/June | 10am to 5.30pm |
Workshops - in person
14/June | 10am to 1pm |
Final presentation - face-to-face
Only students who participate in 80% of the sessions and submit a final report will receive a certificate of participation.
Target Audience
Master's or PhD researchers who want to validate the potential for their business ideas to enter the market. This programme is exclusive to master's and doctoral students at the University of Porto.
Fee
Free
Idioma
Inglês
Application Deadline
7th May, until 23:59
Communication of results
9th May
APPLY
(only 15 places available)
This programme is an INVENTHEI initiative
DEEP INVENTHEI is a project of the EIT HEI initiative: Innovation Capacity Building for Higher Education launched by the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT) and led by EIT RawMaterials - one of the EIT Knowledge and Innovation Communities.
UPTEC opens applications for the School of Startups for Researchers
This hands-on programme aims to develop entrepreneurial skills and empower master and doctoral-level students with the necessary tools to identify meaningful problems, create innovative solutions and validate the underlying business models.
The winners will have access to monetary prizes — first place is entitled to 2500 euros, second place receives 1500 euros, while third place will receive 500 euros — and four months of free cowork incubation at UPTEC. In addition, winners who are U. Porto's students or researchers will have the opportunity to participate in the European Innovation Academy free of charge.
Participants will have the opportunity to learn the best practices from experienced startups CEOs and get insights from industry experts about the new tech trends that are disrupting markets.
During the School of Startups for Researchers – which consists of 12 workshops and a Demo Day, in a total of 62 hours of training – the teams will be mentored by the experienced UPTEC crew and guest entrepreneurs and will be guided on the path to turning ideas or research projects into a successful business.
After the hands-on workshops, mentoring, research, and pitch training, the teams will participate in the Demo Day, an opportunity to present their solutions in an open house event, which will include investors and members of the UPTEC community.
Prizes
1st place - €2500
2nd place - €1500
3rd place - €500
Programme Topics
Ideation
Lean Canvas and Jobs to be Done
Marketing and Sales
Emerging techs
Intellectual Property
Behavioural Economics for startups
Financials for Startups
Communication & Pitch
Pitch Training
Schedule
Online Kick-off - 24/feb | 1h
Workshop 1 – 28/feb | 8h
Workshop 2 - 10/mar | 4h
Workshop 3 - 20/mar | 4h
Workshop 4 - 29/mar | 4h
Workshop 5 - 13/apr | 4h
Workshop 6 - 17/apr | 4h
Workshop 7 - 09/may | 4h
Workshop 8 - 18/may | 4h
Workshop 9 - 29/may | 4h
Workshop 10 - 13/jun | 4h
Workshop 11 - 21/jun | 4h
Workshop 12 - 30/jun | 8h
Demo Day - 05/jul | 3h
Except for the Online Kick-off, all the Workshops and the Demo Day will be held in person, at UPTEC Asprela I. The workshops can be done in the morning or in the afternoon, according to the lecturer’s availability.
Target audiences
This programme is exclusive for Masters or Ph.D. students and was designed for those who want to develop entrepreneurial skills. To participate in the programme, it is not necessary to have a business idea, research project, or team.
Teams or individuals with business projects can apply to the programme. Participants without a team will be organized into working groups – between 4 and 5 elements, with complementary profiles (technical plus management). All teams must have at least one element from the University of Porto.
The projects can belong to any area of knowledge, from Digital Transformation and Information Technologies to Creative and Cultural Industries and to Life Sciences and Biotech, or a mix of those.
The School of Startups for Researchers will accept up to 12 teams, with a maximum of 60 participants. At the end of the programme, those who participate in more than 80% of the activities will receive a certificate of participation.
Fees
Free of charge
Language
The workshops can be delivered in English or Portuguese, depending on the requirements of the selected participants.
Application Deadline
February 12th
Communication of results
February 17th
APPLY
Before applying, please make sure to have read the Program Playbook. If you have any questions, please contact: schools@uptec.up.pt
This programme is a POCH initiative
POCH funding (Human Capital Operational Program – PT2020)