brussels startup scene (belgium)
DESCRIPTION
• Ramon: expat that came to Brussels to work in EU Parliament, grow bored of it, loved the city and Internet business, mixed both. Organizer, speaker, consultant- • Brussels: Very active and vibrant. Full of opportunities, ideas and projects in development. • Took off 4 years ago with Betagroup (but other groups already existed) • National culture does not favor entrepreneurship: civil servant minded = risk averse, security, conservative. • All in takes is one person to launch one event (and a lot to attend and promote): importance of champions/ambassadors. • DO IT!!! If you want something to happen, don’t just wait, make it happen. • If it is happening: help promote it and grow! • Jean Derely , French. Ramon, Spanish . Leo, Russian. • Mostly in English, but people can use other languages in most events. • Inspiration: show that entrepreneurship is possible and cool. • Networking: real networks grow on face to face meetings. Create opportunities and facilitate. • For all of them > If you want to organize something like it, contact the organizers in Brussels, they will help. • Promotion: promote startups and entrepreneurs. • Check Tech events calendar in Betagroup’s site and attend. • Betagroup: largest network of Belgian professionals & entrepreneurs in the IT/Tech/Mobile sectors. Organizes a monthly pitch-slam for startups attended by 350 people. 3500 members. Very well known in entrepreneurship/tech circles, not so much among general public. Twodler: mashable, fox news in 2 days. • Betacowork: the coworking space of the Betagroup for the IT/Tech/Mobile community. Host a lot of groups/events. • Founder Institute: Startup course/accelerator: from idea to sustainable business in 4 months. • Startup Weekend Brussels: Intense 54 hour weekend to transform a mere idea into the beginnings of a viable startup, working with people you don't know. • Webmission: grassroots effort by Belgian Web, Mobile and Tech entrepreneurs to promote Belgian entrepreneurship and its startups abroad. • Café Numerique: weekly meeting that tries to break the digital divide and introduce tech subjects and people to a broader audience. • Some specialized like mobile • Mobile Monday: regular mobile business meetup. • DroidCon and Apps Marathon: events for mobile app developers. • Apps Marathon: mobile app pitch marathon & contest. • HackDemocracy: group that wishes to improve democracy with the use of technology. Open Data advocates. • Quantified Self: group that is using hardware / applications / methodologies to better understand and track everything about themselves and their bodies. Related to e-health and privacy issues. • Tedxbrussels: largest TED in Europe (1500 attendees). Mostly inspirational and a place to network and meet. Organize your own here. • Challenges: o Sponsors o Women o Seed & pre-seed investment. o General public reach. • Looking to improve networks acrossTRANSCRIPT
Belgian Tech Startup Scene
@ramonsuarez ##InternetBeta 2011
Champions / Ambassadors
And many more…
