ViennaUP’22: Vienna knows startups!

Business festival ViennaUP’22 places Vienna firmly at the centre of the international startup world, connecting thousands of people from over forty different countries to discuss issues of the future in a spirit of cooperation

From 27 May to 3 June, Vienna will take centre stage in the world of networking and business collaboration at the international startup festival ViennaUP’22. The eight-day programme will attract global and Austrian participants representing startups, corporates, non-profits, tech enthusiasts, investors and visionaries. Guests can join the individual events in person in Vienna or online.

Special focus on social and environmental issues, female business leaders

ViennaUP’22 meta-topics include tech & innovation, environment, social sustainability, and the promotion of women as business leaders. Around 30 programme partners, both local and international, are organising more than 60 individual events, on subjects including the life sciences, manufacturing, ICT, FinTech and the creative industries. Thousands of visitors from 40 different countries are expected to join, and can look forward to what promises to be an unforgettable Vienna experience.

Programme highlights and unicorns

At the conference “Lead Today – Shape Tomorrow”, ViennaUP will take a close-up look at female entrepreneurs and founders in a programme featuring 40 inspiring business leaders. The world’s largest startup competition, the Startup World Cup, will hold its Austrian finale in Vienna this year. Social and environmental sustainability also feature prominently: ideas in this field can earn awards of up to 15,000 euros at the three-day Sustainable Blockchain Hackathon. Vienna is hosting the leading conference for social entrepreneurship in Europe at the Impact Days in the Hofburg. The Smart City Summit will revolve around the question of how to ensure that our cities remain liveable in the future. As of this year, the city is home to four unicorns, i.e. startups valued at more than one billion dollars. 

Innovation meets tradition

Above and beyond event content, ViennaUP’22 will be a curated blend of the traditional and new – with the aim of giving visitors a sense of life in the Austrian capital. Viennese coffee houses, for instance, have long served as a kind of co-working space. Participants can dive into the experience at four famous Viennese coffee houses – Cafés Bräunerhof, Savoy, Schwarzenberg and Wortner. A central meeting point will also be set up on Karlsplatz, next to the famed Karlskirche: the ViennaUP Homebase. This will be a space for guests to relax, network, sample Viennese wine and enjoy some top-notch people watching. A global campaign is currently running to promote Vienna and the start-up festival.

International cooperation and cosmopolitanism as a recipe for success

Unlike other startup festivals, ViennaUP is decentralized and community-driven. Partners from across the ecosystem determine hot topics and invite speakers to each of their events, which take place in varied locations, from university spaces to the former imperial palace to an old bread factory that was redone as a residential and commercial space.

Vienna, 11 May 2022