Welcome back from Summer! Wow what a scorcher it has been! Hot, hot, hot. And so, we’re back with HOT news about HOT stuff coming up in the Autumn, including:

1. Come join the Monica Hackathon 24-26 August in Roskilde, Greater Copenhagen
2. Tech Nordic Advocates’ 2018 Annual Summit “Best of Nordic/Baltic (Fin)Tech Summit – Part 2” 15 November at The Factory in Oslo
3. Feedback from our “Best of Nordic & Baltic (Fin)Tech Summit”, 13 June in London during London Tech Week
4. Please share your views on the tech landscape
5. Rapid growth of Global Tech Advocates
6. REMINDER: Kindly pay your annual Tech Nordic Advocates membership fee

1. Monica Hackathon 24-26 August in Roskilde, Greater Copenhagen, Denmark
Interested in developing IOT solutions to improve user experiences/engagement at big open air events?
Got what it takes to win the €5000 cash prize, access to a business growth programme and chance to have your prototype tested?
Sign up for the Monica Hackathon 24-26 August in Roskilde, Greater Copenhagen in collaboration with Tech Nordic Advocates’ Creative Tech working group here. Deadline: 17 August. So hurry up!

2. Our 2018 Annual Summit: “Growing the Nordics/Baltics into a global tech/startup hub”, 15 November, Oslo
Did you miss our “Best of Nordic/Baltic (Fin)Tech Summit” in London in June during London Tech Week? Or perhaps you were there and want to follow-up with everyone? Come join our Annual Summit, which this year, is at the super cool The Factory in Oslo – thank you for hosting us!. – in collaboration with The Factory, Oslo Fintech Hub, Finance Innovation, Oslo Business Region, Fintech Mundi and TheNorwegian-British Chamber of Commerce

Summit objectives are:

• Enable new and strengthen existing Nordic, Baltic and global contacts and networks
• Connect Nordic and Baltic startups and scaleups with investors, corporates and other ecosystem partners to support their growth and foster new partnerships
• Stimulate general Nordic/Baltic (fin)tech startup ecosystem collaboration
• Connect Nordic/Baltic (fin)tech startup ecosystem leaders with other global tech/startup leaders and hubs to support market expansion and growth
• Offer investors/corporates/ecosystem partners with an interest in Nordic/Baltic (fin)tech unique access to high growth Nordic/Baltic (fin) tech startups and scaleups
• Help grow the Nordics/Baltics into a global (fin)tech/startup hub

Target participants:

• Nordic/Baltic (fin) tech startups and scaleups, commercial and technical co-founders (CEOs, CTOs) and developers
• Nordic/Baltic and global investors, accelerators, corporates and other (fin)tech/startup ecosystem partners interested in Nordic/Baltic (fin)tech

Target industries:

• FinTech, HealthTech, Creative Tech (AdTech, Gaming), Urban Tech Deep tech (AI, ML), Nordic/Baltic stronghold technologies (Blockchain, AR, VR)

Get your ticket HERE

3. Feedback: “Best of Nordic & Baltic (Fin)Tech Summit”, 13 June in London during London Tech Week (LTW)
First things first: thank you to all 102 people who attended our 13 June LTW “Best of Nordic & Baltic (Fin)Tech Summit”, in London, to Barclays Rise for hosting us and all other sponsors and partners (see image below) without whom we cannot run events like that.

Congratulations to the 23 startups/scaleups selected to pitch to investors and partners.You did a great job (see feedback chart below).  We know many of you have connected/are in dialogue with the investors and partners you met at the Summit, which is great and what it’s all about.  We have permission to share contact details from most Summit attendees. If any of you would like to contact the Summit sponsors and partners, please email the Secretariat. 

Thank you also to all who have provided post-Summit feedback. We received a very high response rate – thank you for that. Tells us how engaged all participants were with the Summit. As you can see below, the feedback has been very good. There’s always something you can do better. So we’re listening very carefully to what you have said, and building your feedback into our 2018 Annual Summit (see above).

In response to the verbatim questions you told us (in summary):
Q1. ‘As a result of The Best of Nordic & Baltic (Fin)Tech Summit, I will’:
Answers: connect with the people we met, grow our network, follow-up with investors and partners, explore partnership opportunities with the banks, watch the Nordic/Baltic region more closely, improve our pitching skills and style

Q2. ‘My one suggestion for improvement is:’
A: more focus on value-creation for the partners/investors as well, not just the startups, e.g. how to better create value together with partners and startups, more (targeted) investors, adding a private event for key investors to meet w/ key founders (e.g. breakfast), opportunity for investors/partners to give feedback to the startups/scaleups (e.g. panel after pitches), non-concurrent startup pitches, more staff, better sound quality and room layout for pitches at venue, inclusion of Nordic government agencies to give a feel for the policy / regulatory landscape, improve speed dating format.

Thank you for this constructive feedback. We are actively building it into the planning of our 2018 Summit and future events.
In addition, many of you have asked if we will repeat “The Best of Nordic/Baltic (Fin)Tech Summit” @LTW 2019. We are exploring this.

4. Please share your views on the tech landscape
We are working with ourTech London Advocates and Global Tech Advocates family to build a more in-depth understanding of the key strengths and challenges of different global tech/startup hubs, including the Nordics/Baltics and London/the UK. Could you please help us by sharing your views here . Super quick – we promise:! We will share the responses when the survey period has finished early Autumn.
THANK YOU IN ADVANCE!

5. Rapid growth of Global Tech Advocates
Our global tech/startup ecosystem is growing rapidly:

• TLA Taiwan launched on 9^th April 
• Tech Italy Advocates launched on 4th July in Milan
• Tech Scotland Advocates is launching Autumn 2018
• Tech Paris Advocates is launching Autumn 2018
• Tech Japan Advocates launching 2019
• Tech Shenzhen Advocates launching 2019

We are building a global tech/startup community!. Gain access to it by joining Tech Nordic Advocates (see below)

6. REMINDER: Kindly pay your annual TNA Membership fee
Some Advocates (non-business members) have still not paid your €125 annual membership. Please can you do so here ASAP
As you know, TNA is a not-for-profit membership network. We cannot exist without your contribution. In return you get: 

• Access to the only pan-Nordic/Baltic tech/startup ecosystem network spanning the 5 Nordic & 3 Baltic countries
• Access to Global Tech Advocates: the world’s only global tech/startup network – see above
• Free access to Tech Nordic Advocates events (non-members pay a standard event pass fee)
• Access to Tech Nordic Advocates Working Groups (verticals): where you can meet customers/partners, expand your sector specific network, identify new business opportunities and help remove roadblocks to growth in your sector (vertical)
• Access to Collaboration Platforms: Access to Tech Nordic Advocates’ networking and collaboration platforms
• Personal profiling/branding: Unique opportunity to appear in Tech Nordic Advocates directory of Nordic/Baltic tech leaders for all to see
• Digital/tech talent and career opportunities: Unique access to top digital/tech talent and/or new career opportunities in the Nordic/Baltic/international tech sector

What happens if I don’t pay?
Sadly, if you don’t pay, we will assume you are not interested in the above. So, we have no choice but to remove you from our database and platforms. Not fair on paying members otherwise, is it? If you’re a startup and can’t afford to pay the membership fee, please email the Secretariat .