Barcelona's Weekly Tech Update

Hello hello everyone,

This week’s main headlines:

• Telefonica team up with Elon Musk’s Starlink 🛰️

• Disney+ launches ad-supported subscription in Spain 🏰

• Multiple BCN startups eye optical industry 👓

How do you spend your summer holiday? 🏝️

We’re in the midst of August, meaning lot’s of folks are out of office. This makes us curious 🤔. How are Barcelona-based founders, managers and talent spending this time? From those that never-stop to those that switch off-completely, there is a wide range of approaches and philosophies around. So without judging, let’s find out by taking the anonymous poll below - results will be shared next week.

Have a great week 🥥,

Startup & Investment News

Barcelona investment news

• Waste collection startup Candam Tech raises over €270K

• Wireless electric charging pioneer Magnetika is looking for funding

Barcelona startup news

• Factorial remove "controversial" podcast episode; VIA Empresa also looks into the firm’s future

• Wallbox allies with US superstores & starts selling its chargers in Costco

• Sunglasses brand Meller launches new prescription glasses project exclusively for opticians

• BNPL fintech SeQura also enters the optical industry, with a spin-off that offers glasses under a subscription model

• Deporvillage continues its expansion with physical stores & plans to open in Catalonia

Spanish investment news

• AI government fraud solution IVIX closes €11.4M

• RTLS startup SafeLoc Systems raises €2M led by BeAble Capital & the Basque government

VC, investment & crowdfunding news

• Indra and Bain Capital purchase 9.5% stake in Spanish Aeronautic firm ITP Aero for €175M

Open calls, accelerator news & incubator stories

• EBC is on the hunt for Europe's top 50 blockchain startups, who will get a chance to pitch their ideas at this year’s event; until Aug 31

• Healthcare + Robotics/AI/IoT startups (worldwide) can apply for the Robotics Startup Catalyst; until Sep 9

• New edition of the Mercabarna Paco Muñoz Awards for projects battling food waste is open for nominations; until Sep 12

• EduTECH Emprèn 2023 acceleration program is open for entrepreneurs with innovative e-learning business ideas; until Sep 15

Barcelona startup & entrepreneur profiles & interviews

• Blaine Box: Hyper-realistic artificial plants & bouquets made with sustainable materials

• Minoryx Therapeutics: The first treatment for brain injuries is ready

• Union Avatars: Avatars with a selfie in less than a minute

Tech News

Tech news in Barcelona

• Electric car charging is up 40% in BCN, with a record number of 68K+ recharges

• CaixaBank expands its DayOne division to cover innovative technology companies in Spain

• Singapore Airlines restores direct flights between Barcelona and Singapore

Tech & big company news in Spain

• Disney+ follows Netflix to launch an ad-supported version in Spain & elsewhere this November

• Telefonica teams up with Elon Musk's Starlink to connect remote customers

• Cabify sees uptick in revenue as rides volume returns
  

Politics, legal & economics

• Investors turn gloomy over Europe’s economic outlook

• Bank of Spain authorizes eToro as a virtual currency exchange service provider

Good Reads

• Where deals are made: Europe’s top VC hangouts

• The LK-99 “superconductor” went viral — here’s what the experts think

• Solarpunk and Web3: Envisioning a Sustainable, Collaborative Future

• Why everything you thought you knew about femtech is wrong

• The 10 fastest-growing Spanish startups

Good Videos & Podcasts

• Interview with Anyul Rivas, BarcelonaJUG community leader (Apiumhub, EN)

• The disappearing computer & a world where you can take AI everywhere (TED Tech, EN)

Great Events

This week:

• Wed, 16 Aug @18:30: An Introduction to Coding with CodeOp: Free HTML & CSS Workshop

Upcoming:

• Wed, 23 Aug @18:30: Free Data Science Bootcamp

• Thu, 31 Aug @18:30: Fuckup Nights BCN & Startup Grind BCN Summer Party → Use code SGBCN0823Com for a 40% community discount 🙌

• Tue, 5 Sep–Fri, 8 Sep: Free 3-day Coding Challenge

• Fri, 8–Sun, 11 Sep: IndieDevDay Gaming Event

• Wed, 13 Sep: Women+ Who Have Transitioned to Tech, Parents Edition

• Wed, 20 Sep–Fri, 22 Sep: The District Show: Real Estate Conference

• Wed, 27 Sep–Thu, 28 Sep: The AI & Big Data Congress

• Sat, 30 Sep–Sun, 1 Oct: SmartCon Hacker House: Building Web3

• Mon, Oct 9–Wed, 11 Oct: GSAS 2023 → Use code barcinno-gsas23 for 20% off 🙌 

• Tue, 24–Thu, 26 Oct: European Blockchain Convention 9

See the full event calendar here & add your event here.

Startup Jobs:

• Bourbon Creative is hiring a Content Writer (FR)

• Opticks is recruiting Account Managers, Sales Representatives, and Interns

• Cocunat Natural & Toxic Free is looking for a CRM Graphic Designer

• UNIVRSE is hiring a Senior Unreal Developer

• Yumminn needs a Digital Marketing Manager

• Grasshopper Air Mobility is recruiting a Startup CFO