Up to 400 participants from the CEE region consisting of startup enthusiasts, venture capital investors, leading corporations and young people from technology universities, will gather in one place. Tech Happy Hours is jointly organized by the Startup Kitchen platform and the Czechinvest agency on Tuesday, October 22, in Prague and is part of the newly established initiative Czech Startup Week.
“This year, we decided to push the boundaries of our traditional Investment Conference through strategic cooperation with key partners in the ecosystem. The result is the emergence of the international event Tech Happy Hours, which retains the proven elements of the original conference, such as expert panels focused on ecosystem and venture capital challenges. I believe that systematic collaboration within the Czech startup environment will lead to even better results and higher quality events. This year, for the first time, we are also umbrella-ing everything under Czech Startup Week – a new concept within which more than a dozen events will take place during one week, with Tech Happy Hours being one of the largest,” adds Petr Kopeček, Director of the Startup Acceleration Department at the CzechInvest agency.
Among the most prominent guests visiting Prague will be Linn Kretzschmar, Director of the newly established CERN Science and Technology Center, who will make her first visit to the Czech Republic to present the newly established initiative for DeepTech startups. The perspective of a successful international founder will be delivered by Jan Rezab, founder of one of the most successful Czech startup exits, Socialbakers (now Emplify), or Martin Felcman, product leader at the Czech Republic’s most valuable startup, Productboard, or representatives of the NATO Innovation Fund, which consists of resources from all 24 member countries and is ready to invest more than 1 billion EUR in DeepTech areas. Israeli Or Haviv, Head of Global Innovation at Arieli Capital, will also speak and organize a workshop for startups.
“The goal of the first edition of Tech Happy Hours is to gather leading startup entrepreneurs, investors, representatives of international organizations, and students in Prague to exchange experiences, know-how, and best practices among each other. We are pleased that speakers from European unicorns, such as Productboard, from VC funds like Credo Ventures or KARMA VC, as well as representatives from CERN have accepted the invitation. We believe that by doing so, we will cover all the key topics that budding entrepreneurs may encounter on their journey,” says Nikola Naxerová, Head of Event Production at Startup Kitchen.
DeepTech will be the main theme of the entire event. The foreign perspective will be provided by investor Linda Voeras from the leading European DeepTech fund KARMA VC, and representing the Czech investors will be Lukáš Hurych, partner at one of the most successful Central European VC funds, Credo Ventures, which manages 250 million euros and has supported successful stories like UiPath, ElevenLabs, Productboard, or Deepnote. Jan Zadák, the former highest-ranking Czech in the corporate world of Hewlett Packard Global, or influencer and model Jitka Nováčková on the topic of everyday sustainability, will also speak.
An important aspect of the day will be the international startup competition composed of representatives from Czech, Central European, and Taiwanese startups, visiting the Czech Republic primarily for Tech Happy Hours. The winner of the evening will receive a wildcard to the regional finals of the Startup World Cup the following day. Another opportunity to support entrepreneurship will be the Technology Incubation #demoday by the CzechInvest agency, showcasing the successes of the Technology Incubation project. Guests from among investors, potential partners, and other innovation enthusiasts can watch presentations from startups supported by this project, as well as listen to its breadth of activities from its director, Tereza Kubicová, who describes the event: “Demo day is not just about presentations – it’s an opportunity for startups to get feedback, establish key contacts, and show that the Czech Republic is a true innovation hub. Supporting the startup community is crucial for our economy. These young companies bring revolutionary ideas and solutions that transform entire industries. They generate jobs, attract foreign capital, and strengthen our competitiveness. Demo day is proof that investments in innovative entrepreneurship have long-term and multiple benefits for the entire society.” Four startups with the best pitches will then compete on the main stage with international companies.
The event will take place at Paspův Hall in Prague, Anděl, address: Nádražní 43/84, Prague Smíchov. Tickets are on sale in several waves on the website https://techhappyhours.com/
