GLOBALS on Tour: Pitch on the Bus, 18:30 to 19:30
We wrapped day one with our mobile pitching experience. A private 50-seater bus turned into a rolling stage where founders delivered crisp stories and investors pressed for the metrics that matter. The ride finished at the Sesame Afterwork, an official VDS side event and after party for higher signal conversations with leaders, operators and investors.

GLOBAL Growth Open Pitch, 12:00 to 14:00
Our open mic for founders delivered fast exposure to investors in sixty-second pitches, followed by targeted follow-ups. Attendance was open, pitching required registration. The goal was simple. Put high-intent founders and active investors in one loop and shorten the time to a concrete next step.

Women Speed Dating by Valencia Tech Women, 16:00 to 17:30
The second round added new faces and wrapped warm leads from day one. Another proof point that the women in tech track at VDS is about outcomes, not just optics. Big conversations sparked real follow-ups, from potential hires and advisors to new collaborations and early-stage investors. The energy in the room was electric, and the feedback was unanimous: this format works. Expect to see it scaled across future GLOBALS events.

The startups and teams we pushed forward

Our programming prioritized founders with a readiness to move from visibility to pilots. We weren’t just offering stage time, we were curating opportunities for those with concrete, testable asks and clear paths to collaboration. A selection of teams featured in our sessions and lightning rounds reflected that standard. The mix spanned biotech, robotics, fintech, and clean energy, among others. We kept the format tight, short pitches, quick Q&A, and space for follow-ups.

EVOLVING THERAPEUTICS stood out as the winner of our pitch round, earning a Club GLOBALS membership and a seat in the Xcellerator for tailored mentorship, investor introductions, and international scaling support. TINA ASSISTANT showcased AI and machine learning applied to biotech and life sciences, an elegant example of agentic workflows targeted at regulated industries. SHIN RAI ROBOTICS brought frontier thinking in advanced manufacturing, with use cases spanning aerospace, automotive, and remote sensing. 2 HELIOS positioned itself at the edge of nanotech and clean energy, developing materials that could become key infrastructure for decarbonization. WASIT introduced a fusion of fintech, Web3, and AI designed for data-rich financial inclusion.

LEVOX applied big data and AI to unlock value in greentech through better measurement and forecasting, while HEECAP merged biotech and agritech with electronics and photonics in a novel approach to sustainable production. MIRAMOON PHARMA, a biotech spin-off from the University of the Basque Country and Biodonostia, introduced first-in-class small molecules targeting ryanodine receptors to treat neurodegenerative and rare diseases, starting with a lead program for retinitis pigmentosa. And SKINFUTURE, a Latvian deep tech venture, reimagined UV protection through natural clay minerals and bioactive polyphenols, offering safer, reef-friendly sunscreen ingredients for global cosmetics brands. This is by no means a full list, but it captures the range of innovation we supported. What united these teams was their readiness to act: a focus on execution, not just exposure.

Inside the “Tech in Action” dinner

On October 22, after day one wrapped, we joined hosts Steffi Czerny, Alexander Gerfer, Christian Teichmann, Nacho Mas and Krloos Rivera for the invite only Tech in Action dinner at Palau de les Arts, Espacio Los Toros. The room filled at 8:00 pm for the reception, dinner started at 8:30 pm, and the conversation quickly circled one idea that set the tone for the night. Community first, creativity as fuel, and a constant exchange between technology and the arts. Steffi’s message was simple. Curiosity is a discipline. Do not lose it. Talk to each other, learn in public, and let cross pollination do the work. That framing echoed the DLD ethos of mixing founders, scientists, artists and policymakers, where art meets AI and new ideas emerge between disciplines.

She also sketched the conference map that keeps this community connected through the year. DLD Munich anchors January, DLD Tirana broadened the European footprint in June, and the DLD Future Hub in September focused on AI and circular economy.

Big thanks to Steffi, Mark and Ania for the invite, always a pleasure to catch up with the DLD fam.

What stood out across the summit

Global depth and investor mix
The international share hit 45 percent, with attendees from more than 120 countries. The investor base spanned venture, corporate and public capital, which raised the quality of meetings and made follow ups more actionable.

Scale as a discipline
Scalability Day was built around growth mechanics rather than slogans. Twenty two European scaleups growing above 20 percent and founders from eight unicorns shared the details that matter, from hiring to cross border sales and capital.

Institutional signal
Valencia extended its formal collaboration with VDS by two years. That matters because consistent public support reduces friction for partners to invest time and money the next cycle.

Competition results that mirror the floor
Spacebackend won Early Stage and Zibra AI won Growth Stage in the international startup competition. The split captured the range of this edition, from new space to applied AI for 3D and media.

The Valencia data check
The Valencian Startup Observatory reported 1,689 startups as of September 2025, up 11.34 percent year on year, and more than 160 million euros raised with funded startups up 66 percent versus 2024. The macro matched the micro you could feel walking the venue.

Day by day, in one breath each

Wednesday, October 22
The venue felt like a living lab by mid morning. Early sessions cut through AI buzz and focused on shipping product and measuring lift. A parallel talent thread made the case that teams are the only durable edge. After lunch, longevity and healthtech moved from lab to reimbursement, education put personalization into practice, and late afternoon turned to Europe’s productivity levers. As the sun dropped behind Calatrava’s white curves, agentic AI demos kept people in doorways while our bus rolled out for pitches and a full slate of follow ups.

Thursday, October 23
Growth was the spine of day two. Scalability Day framed the European playbook and backed it with real operators and scaleups. Lakeside, Women Going Global took founders from theory to lightning pitches and intros. Midday, open pitch at the Box put high-intent founders in front of active investors. The evening closed with awards and a clear message in the halls. Pipelines are active, next steps are booked, and the quarter after VDS starts now.

Final word

Thank you to the VDS team and Startup Valencia for a world class summit that turned ambition into action. Thank you to e-Residency Estonia for sharing your space and supporting our speed dating sessions, which helped founders and investors move faster. Mark VDS 2026 on your calendar, add Valencia to your hiring and business development map, and stay close to this community as they are clearly on the right path.

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