Hello and happy Monday!

The event season is heating up with some great workshops, conferences and network opportunities coming up in October.

26th Oct - Barcelona International Community Day

The Barcelona International Community Day offers visitors the opportunity to find information and services that are useful when a person arrives and settles down in Barcelona. It features workshops, conferences, networking sessions and all kind of leisure activities for children and families. Sign up for free here.

8th Oct - SaaStock Local Barcelona - Scaling Up

SaaStock Local is back following a brief summer break and this edition will focus on how to successfully scale your tech business. A stellar line-up featuring the CEOs of Typeform, ForceManager, Holded and ABA English will meet up in the Movistar Centre to share their experience & advice on how to scale beyond product-market fit. Read this article for more details & get 40% off your ticket with this link here (code BARC40).

9th Oct - Startup Grind BCN hosts Elisenda Bou (Vilynx)

Next week on Wednesday (Oct 9th) Startup Grind is hosting Elisenda Bou, the CTO & co-founder of Vilynx. Discover the secrets of their success during the fireside chat and, of course, you’ll enjoy the typical open-mic session & networking opportunities too to make friends as well as business connections. Get 40% off your ticket with this exclusive link here (code: barcinnorocks)

Ok, that's it from me. Have a great week and we'll see you out there!

Startup & Investment News

Investment news

• Barcelona startup Kosmos Tennis, which was founded by FC Barcelona player Piqué, gets €60M from Caixabank

• Spanish startup Smart Protection secures a €5.2M investment

• Catalonia's surgical robotics company Rob Surgical raises €5M

• Barcelona insurtech startup ELMA receives a €3M investment

• Catalan sports platform Racetick closes a €600K investment round

• Barcelona startups Reloadly & Acquistic get €350K from EAE

M&A news

• Barcelona startup Innroute was acquired by German firm sennder

Startups news

• Barcelona social startup Boolino launches Fiction Express to encourage reading through co-creation

• - 10 Inspiring Social Startups From Barcelona

• Catalan startup Scytl and Indra in price-war to win the deal to manage and diffuse vote count of the upcoming general elections in Spain

• Black Toro Capital and KTM create a joint venture for global launch of Catalan motorcycle manufacturer GASGAS

• Why Barcelona startup Brokoli didn't take off and had to shut down

VC, investment & crowdfunding news:

• German VC firm Target Global opens office in Barcelona

• - They plan to make 1-3 investments of up to €15M every year

• Barcelona health-sector-focused VC firm Healthequity takes part in €16M investment in Swiss startup Versantis

• Santander InnoVentures takes part in €52M seed round of Mexican startup Klar & in €13M investment round of US firm Securitize

• Wayra and TheVentureCity sign a global deal to co-invest in Latin-American startups focused on deep tech

Open calls, accelerator news & incubator stories:

• Cooperate with a Catalan firm for your R&D project (Nuclis Programme); you can apply until the 10th of Oct

• Iberdrola is looking for innovative solution for cleaning photovoltaic panels; startups can apply until the 18th of Oct

• Telefónica opens the call for Open Future 2019 program; startups can apply until the 31st of October

• Spanish energy-focused association AVAESEN launches €2.5M accelerator; EU startups can apply until the 20th of December

Barcelona startup profiles, interviews & success stories:

• ABLE Human Motion: Innovative technology to walk again

• Heura: plant-based chicken that is causing a vegan revolution

• Nid-O: premium furniture design made of circular new materials

• Tropicfeel: the perfect shoe for travelers looking to lighten their load on their next trip

• Spitche: Turning Customers Into Ambassadors; interview with CEO Kevin Markwoski

Tech News

• Swiss company ERNI opens IoT tech hub in Barcelona & plans to create 100 jobs in the next two years

• Catalonia and Scotland allocate up to €1.5M to promote innovation projects between companies in both territories

• Leaders of IoT will meet in Barcelona at the IoT Solutions World Congress

• Barcelona to host the most important seafood fair in the world

• Catalan Government approves 'National Plan for the 2030 Agenda' which includes 900+ commitments for sustainable development

Barcelona's 'Superblock' mobility model is making waves:

• Barcelona's car-free 'superblocks' could save hundreds of lives

• Seattle May Try to Replicate Barcelona’s ‘Superblocks’

• What are Superblocks? This video by the BBC explains it

Tech news affecting Spanish companies:

• Telefónica and unions sign a leave plan that affects 4,500 employees

• Over 1000 employees of Banco Santander have already left the company under their redundancy program

• El Corte Ingles to plans to reach €1B in online sales next year

• The number of Spanish students opting for STEM degrees is falling, despite a growing demand on the labour market

• - Why fewer people are studying STEM degrees in Spain

Economic news

• House prices in Barcelona drop for the first time since 2013 after a 1% decrease in Q3

• Spain's GDP continues to slow down with Q2 2019 recording a mere 0.4% growth, according to the INE

• Spain's inflation is falling dramatically with the consumer price index hitting 0.1% this month

Good Reads

• Overview of the successful biotech sector in Catalonia

• The Evolution of the Startup Ecosystem in Spain

• Why FM radio has experienced a slow death everywhere around Europe except in Spain

• "The startup bubble will burst", Pep Gomez, CEO of Reby

• Overview of the Valencian Tech Ecosystem

Good Videos & Podcasts

• Investing in venture capital funds - with Oscar Farres, Head of Unit at EIF

• Itnig interviewed Oscar Pierre, CEO of Glovo

Great Events

This Week

• Tue, 1 Oct @09:00: Breakout Growth Workshop with Sean Ellis & Itamar Gilad

• Wed-Thu, 2-3 Oct: Data Council Barcelona Conference 2019

• Wed-Thu, 2-3 Oct: Escuela de Business Angels

• Wed-Fri, 2-4 Oct: South Summit (Madrid)

• Thu, 3 Oct @08:30: Barcelona Health Hub Summit

• Thu, 3 Oct @18:30: Imagine Silicon Valley 2019 - Final Event

• Sat-Sun, 5-6 Oct: Maker Faire Barcelona

Next Week

• Mon, 7 Oct @08:30: Dream BIG Circular Economy

• Mon, 7 Oct @10:30: Conference: Engaging with the Start-up Scene

• Mon-Tue, 7-8 Oct: Clinic Summit 2019 - Digital Marketing Congress

• Tue, 8 Oct @18:00: SaaStock Local Barcelona - How to Take Your SaaS to the Next Level

• Tue, 8 Oct @18:00: WomenHack

• Tue, 8 Oct @18:30: Gala Premis Dona TIC

• Wed, 9 Oct @18:30: Startup Grind BCN hosts Elisenda Bou (Vilynx)

• Wed, 9 Oct @18:30: Founders in Barcelona

• Thu, 10 Oct @08:00: Global Software Architecture Summit

• Thu, 10 Oct @19:00: Tech Bloom: Sustainable Innovation

• Fri-Sun, 11-13 Oct: HackUPC

See the full event calendar here.

Startup Jobs In Barcelona

• Be.Green is looking for a Chief Executive Officer

• Global Elite Pay is recruiting a Personal Assistant (Bilingual)

• Chimpy is hiring a Business Developer

• Bourbon Creative is hiring a Digital Marketer

See the full job board here.