Barcelona's Weekly Tech Update

Good morning & feliç diada de Catalunya ❤️💛,

This week’s main headlines:

• Seat to make way for Cupra 🚗

• BCN fintech hub underway 🏢

• Spain launches AI regulation agency 🤖

BCN FinTech is back with a can’t-miss 10th edition 🎉

💥 The Barcelona ecosystem is back in full swing for September. The Catalan government opened the tender process for the creating a fintech hub at the Stock Exchange building. And multiple local fintechs raised new funds. Fittingly, BCN FinTech is kicking it off this month in style too with a can't-miss event on Wed 20 Sep.

This special 10th edition will feature a fireside chat with Benoit Menardo, Co-Founder at the amazing Payflow 🙌

As always, there will be a Q&A, a chance to pitch your service or request help, and plenty of time to network (with free drinks and snacks 🫒) in the best venue, OneCoWork Placa Catalunya.

Tickets are limited, so be quick and secure yours here (Barcinno community discount already applied 💌) now.

And talking of great events…

Have a great week doing great thigns! 🚀

Startup & Investment News

Barcelona investment news

• Automated wind-assisted propulsion systems developer Bound4Blue secures €22.5M investment, €15.9M in series A funding plus €6.5M from grants

• On-demand car service platform Cafler closes €8M seed round

• Fintech company Inari gets €4.85M to boost its growth and product plans

• Real estate fintech Unibo raises €1.2M after its first year of operations

• Bluetech Ocean Ecostructures gets €392K through Acció’s Nuclis R+D program

• Blockchain-based electoral software Ekratos launches first round of financing at €500K

• Renewable energy startup Experta Solar sells stale to German unicorn 1komma5°

• Tramontane Therapeutics gets acquired by US firm Kriya Therapeutics

Barcelona startup news

• Healthtech Doctomatic closes two agreements to promote telemedicine in Mexico

• Quantum computing startup Qilimanjaro arrives in 22@ with a 2000 m2 headquarters

• Barcelona and Boston-based Neuroelectrics collaborate with artist at MoMA to determinee how the human brain reacts to AI art

• Nude Project - which was born in collaboration with Good News, the fastest growing coffee start-up in Spain - will open its first conceptual cafe in Barcelona

Spanish investment news

• Madrid firm Citibox acquires Celeritas for €21M to boost online returns through its smart mailbox network

• Madrid AI talent platform The Wise Seeker gets €10M from Moira Capital, a 37% share

• Madrid-based Spanish-language writing tool Correcto raises €6.4M

VC, investment & crowdfunding news

• Catalan multinational Werfen launches We Venture Capital to invest in diagnostic startups

• Lanzadera has selected more than 100 startups for its September call; Juan Roig also scrapd the current 4-stage categorization process

• French “superangel” Founders Future launches €150M fund for climate & AI startups

• Lisbon-based APEX launches €50M athlete-driven fund to invest across sports, media and entertainment

Open calls, accelerator news & incubator stories

• Participate in the Catalonia female entrepreneurship survey to contribute to a research study by the Diversity & Gender Commission of EAE Business School; until Sep 15

• Participate in the 11th edition of the Premio Emprendimiento, the winner will receive a prize of €15K; until 29 Sep

• The 1st European Blockchain Convention Hackathon will take place in Barcelona during the 9th edition of the event; apply now

Barcelona startup & entrepreneur profiles & interviews

• Interview with Cooltra Co-Founder & CEO Timo Buetefisch

• Psquared: The proptech that lets you invest in real estate with €100

Tech News

Tech news in Barcelona

• Seat to make room for Cupra, focusing mobility solutions instead of cars

• Catalonia opens tender process to for the creation of a new financial hub in the Barcelona Stock Exchange building

• Gameloft Barcelona & FemDevs launch Femloft, an initiative for women and non-binary people who want to work in the gaming sector

• Barcelona identified as Europe’s second-best hub for biotech investment

• America's Cup & the Catalan government work together to ensure the event's impact and technological legacy in Catalonia

• Global connectivity & automation platform Boomi opens center of excellence in 22@

Tech & big company news in Spain

• Iberia, Repsol, ArcelorMittal and Holcim join forces to launch All4Zero, a new platform to accelerate development of renewable fuels and CO2 capture in Spain

• Facebook tripled its Spanish division in 2022 to reach 280 employees, even with an ERE

• Starlink Spain tripled its 2022 turnover to €1.2M & increased profits 7-fold

• BBVA reaches $45M investment in Lowercarbon, a specialized climate change fund

Politics, legal & economics

• Spain to defend ‘strategic interests’ after Saudi telecoms group buys 10% stake in Telefónica

• Spain launches AI regulation agency AESIA in bid to become industry leader

• Ministry of Industry says 100 Spanish startups have now been certified by ENISA

• EU confirms six (mostly US) tech giants are subject to Digital Markets Act

Good Reads

• Forbes List: The most creative women in the business world 2023 (ft. Co-founder & CEO of BCN startup Keybotic)

• How AI can rewrite job descriptions to be more gender inclusive

Good Videos & Podcasts

• The Spanish company very close to being a unicorn, with Joaquim Lecha from Typeform (Itnig, ES)

Great Events

This week:

• Wed, 13 Sep @11:00: Women+ Who Have Transitioned to Tech, Parents Edition

• Wed, 13 Sep @18:30: Attico Learnings: The secret for a high performance team

Upcoming:

• Tue, 19 Sep @10:30: Work in Barcelona! Job Fair

• Tue, 19 Sep @18:45: Investment and Startups: Navigating the Future of Work

• Wed, 20 Sep @18:30: BCN FinTech X Barcinno #010: Benoit Menardo (Co-Founder at Payflow) → Code already applied for your Barcinno member discount ☺️

• Thu, 21 Sep @19:00: Startup Talks: Future Trends in B2B Sales

• Tue, 26 Sept @18:00: 1st Bananatech Meetup: Networking for Ecuadorian techies 

• Wed, 27 Sep @18:30: Honeypot [Workshop] Women in Tech: From Awareness to Action

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

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

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

• Wed, 25 Oct @18:00: Barcelona Tech Job Fair Autumn 2023

• Tue, 24–Thu, 26 Oct: European Blockchain Convention 9 → Use promo code BARCINNO to get a discount

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

Startup Jobs:

• Norrsken Barcelona is looking for a Community Lead

• Antai Ventures is hiring a Growth Marketer

• Barcelona Supercomputing Center needs a Research Engineer/Researcher

• Flanks is hiring a Senior Project Manager