From review meetings to investment calls, deep tech to dual use technology, it’s been a very busy month for FINEST SCALEUP and our partners! In fact, we’ve had events happening in Lithuania, the Netherlands, Estonia and Poland.
Considering the things we’ve done and the places we’ve been, we thought it was high time for a recap.
FINEST SCALEUP turns its attention to building connections
Startup Lithuania hosted the FINEST SCALEUP consortium in Vilnius for our review meeting. This was an opportunity to reflect on the progress we’ve made so far – from strengthening deep tech ecosystems and cross border collaboration in the Baltic Sea Region to investor engagement, matchmaking activities, startup support and regional capacity-building efforts.
But this meeting was about more than just spotlighting our successes, it was also a chance to look at the challenges ahead. That’s why a great deal of our discussions centred around a broader challenge: how to move from individual initiatives and towards stronger collaboration models across the Baltic Sea Region.
To address this challenge, in the coming months we’ll be focusing even more on building connections – making them active, useful and capable of generating long-term value for startups, investors and research organisations.
This is where the real work begins, and FINEST SCALEUP looks forward to helping get the job done!
Turning a business idea into a business success
At the beginning of the month FINEST SCALEUP, together with Pärnumaa Arenduskeskus, supported a three-day program in Pärnu, Estonia.
Entitled ‘From Business Idea to Entrepreneur’, the event brought together entrepreneurs, investors and experts who shared practical insights, experiences and advice on how best to turn an idea into a real business.
Hello Tomorrow!
FINEST SCALEUP was in Amsterdam for Hello Tomorrow, the world’s most curated Deep Tech event.
During the event, project partner Startup Lithuania hosted a dedicated session on why the Baltics and Ukraine have become the new centre of gravity for deep tech innovation in Europe.
The event was also a chance to shine the spotlight on emerging technologies from across the deep tech spectrum, including AI, dual-use innovation, biotech, medtech, advanced materials, and clean energy.
And of course, there was plenty of time for networking and creating connections with key stakeholders from Europe’s innovation ecosystem.
Calling all deep tech ideas
FINESTSCALEUP partner Estonian Business Angels Network (EstBAN), together with the Finnish Business Angels Network (FiBAN) and the Latvian Business Angels Network, recently organised a joint syndicate investment call.
During the call, six startups – including several from the Baltic Sea Region – had the opportunity to pitch their deep tech ideas to investors.
After due diligence and careful deliberation, two winners were announced during Latitude59, a global startup event in Estonia:
- Granarium Technologies (Finland) – redesigning supercapacitors from renewable materials to stabilise electricity grids. Spinning out of VTT, Finland’s national technical research centre. Won the Slush sustainable materials competition. A deep-tech bet with serious institutional credibility behind it.
- DogBase (Estonia) – AI-powered platform for working-dog teams: police K9, SAR, military, and service programmes. The founder is an active SAR K9 handler and former Special Forces veteran who bootstrapped DogBase through serious personal health challenges. Founder/market fit at its most literal.
Granaries received an investment of up to EUR 200K and DogBase an investment of up to EUR 100K.
Congratulations to both!
Deep tech, dual use and resilience
Not only are Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Finland and Poland home to a vibrant deep tech scene, they’re located along Europe’s eastern flank – making the Baltic Sea Region a natural laboratory for matching civilian innovation with EU defence needs.
With this in mind, FINEST SCALEUP hosted an event on deep tech, dual use and resilience – from the Baltic Sea to the frontline.
The invite-only event was an opportunity to showcase such dual-use applications as 3D printed drones, airspace monitoring systems, body armour, radar systems and unmanned vehicles and highlight their role as both a deterrence tool and driver of economic growth.
It was also a chance to discuss how FINEST SCALEUP can help Baltic dual-use companies access the EU’s Defence Equity Facility and Fund-of-Funds, as well as defence VC funds.
