Meet mentors and investors
Your startup success coordinator will help you find roundtables, masterclasses and mentor hours with the insider advice and expert strategies needed to give your company a competitive edge.
Your startup journey
Startups at Web Summit benefit from masterclasses, competitions, Mentor Hours, and networking opportunities with top investors and industry experts. Our initiatives are designed with your goals in mind.
Join our ALPHA startup programme at Web Summit this November.
What’s on offer to participating startups?
Attendees from across the globe, the world’s leading journalists, investors from the world’s biggest funds, and tech’s most visionary founders. You’ll find them at Web Summit.
Successful applicants to our ALPHA startup programme receive three tickets to Web Summit with full access to curated content across 20+ tracks, access to Investor to Startup meetings, and eligibility to apply for PITCH, masterclasses and more.
The spotlight on your business
Got a standout product or groundbreaking idea? Present your company and your vision to the world and compete at PITCH to put your startup in the spotlight.
Make valuable connections
Web Summit also offers unparalleled networking. From startup roundtables to Investor to Startup meetings, our software will help you interact and make connections with some of the most exciting names in tech.
Accepted to our startup programme? Get started on your journey
Prepare with our startup success team
Our startup success team will help get you Web Summit ready. You’ll be attending through one of three distinct programmes: ALPHA, BETA or GROWTH. Each programme has its own supports, ranging from helping you get your exhibitor stand ready to polishing your pitch deck.
Complete your startup profile
Your startup profile is key to visibility at Web Summit and will be featured on the website. This is the place to showcase your product pitch, complete with links to your website and social media presence. What’s your USP? Share it with our attendees.
Apply for startup activations
There are a number of unique startup activations at Web Summit, including PITCH, Startup Showcase and Mentor Hours. Depending on your needs and goals, you may want to apply for some or all of these. PITCH, for example, gives early-stage startups the chance to compete in a live pitching battle on our largest stages.
Time for Web Summit
Once you’re at Web Summit, there are several ways to make sure potential customers, investors and partners find you. Aside from your stand on the exhibition floor, the Web Summit app is a great tool for networking and arranging meetings.
Startup activations at Web Summit
PITCH
PITCH is our startup competition that brings together the world’s leading startups for a live pitching battle. 105 of our strongest startups will be pitted against each other in a battle to be crowned the champion.
Startup Showcase
Startup Showcase brings together startups from a range of industries to present their company and their vision to our attendees, investors, and international media.
40 words
40 words gives founders a platform to introduce their company, outline their next spend, or tell us why they’re ready to take off – all in just 40 words.
Mentor Hours
Mentor Hours are a series of pre-scheduled, 45-minute group meetings between our high-level attendees and startups. It’s designed to foster both individual and collective growth.
Investor to startup meetings
High-potential startups meet with leading investors in a series of 15-minute, pre-scheduled meetings specially designed to give their startup an edge. This is where you’ll get insider advice on making your startup irresistible to investors.
Startup masterclasses
Learn directly from tech’s leading investors, accelerators, incubators and executives. Startup masterclasses cover the essential elements of startup success, from building a winning pitch deck and startup PR to harnessing the corporate innovation explosion.
Startup roundtables
Take your seat at the table with the leaders shaping their industries. Learn the ins and outs of brand storytelling. Find out how to sustainably scale your startup. Get insider info on the technology that’s about to change the game.
Startup Sessions
Startup Sessions offer the founders of emerging companies advice and direction for facing the challenging modern business environment.
Meet some of our past startups
"The publicity of winning PITCH gave us a great build in momentum."
– Wayve
"Web Summit was a transformational experience for us, bringing investment, inspiration, and collaboration all together."
– Mapwize
"I could not have imagined a more impactful on stage experience."
– Griffin Hale, founder, Full Body Sound