Barcelona's Weekly Tech Update

Hello and happy Monday,

There’s lots going on this week in the ecosystem, from big award nominations and valuations to layoffs and pre-bankruptcy for some of our 5 local unicorns.

Enjoy the issue and have a great week!

Startup & Investment News

Barcelona investment news

• Solar construction scaleup Amelia raises €5M

• Delfos Energy raises €3M to build AI virtual engineer

• Artish social platform SoundStorming raises €600K from BStartup

• SETT to invest over €600K in Robopedics

Barcelona startup news

• Wallbox files for pre-bankruptcy proceedings

• Two Catalan entrepreneurs are finalists in EIT’s 2026 European Prize for Women Innovators: Judit Camargo Sanromà (Roka Furadada) & Judit Giró Benet (The Blue Box)

• Biotech FLOMICS named finalist at South Summit Brazil 2026 out of over 2K applications

• Factorial aims to be Spain’s most valuable startup with a potential $2B

Spanish investment news

• Madrid edtech Graddus closes €600K

• Madrid digital identity startup Sybol raises €500K

VC, investment & crowdfunding news

• Samaipata launches €110M Fund III backing early-stage AI-native startups

• BBVA Spark grants $53 million to Mexican fintech Equity Link

• Grow Venture Partners & the FITA Fund complete 9 investments in their first year of operations

Open calls, accelerator news & incubator stories

• Terrassa Chamber of Commerce accelerates 10 projects in new 'Impulsa Startup' program

• Future Foods Lab by Nomad Foods: Applications now open for the Culinary Creativity Open Innovation Challenge

• ERIA (Grupo Estabanell) launches 3rd edition of its energy startup accelerator to advance technologies in real-world environments; deadline 13 April

Barcelona startup & entrepreneur profiles & interviews

• Amphora: From Catalan startup to global logistics engine

• TATTOOX: EdTech specializing in training for tattoo artists

Tech & Business News

• Glovo announces mass layoff affecting 750 drivers after abandoning its independent rider model

• Shein strengthens presence in Spain with a new hub in Barcelona

• Urban development plan for the Catalunya Media City project in Tres Xemeneies unveiled

• Eurecat technology center marks 10 years with €1.25B impact on Catalonia’s economy

• BlackRock and Spanish developer Twin Peaks join forces to invest €400M in flex living in Spain

Good Reads & Watches

• The women who are changing the Spanish technology ecosystem

• BCN FinTech Awards: 6 FinTechs That Stood Out at 4YFN 2026

• Emprendedores guide: Who can help you start a business in 2026

• David Vrensk (BCN-based Ealyx) on why 2 CTOs protected the dev team from commercial noise (ES)

Great Events

This week:

• Wed 18 Mar @19:00: Fintech Vermut & Networking - by BCN FinTech

• Thu 19 Mar @18:00: Glovo Women in Tech Conference 2026

• Thu 19 Mar @18:00: Mindstone Barcelona March AI Meetup

• Thu 19 Mar @17:00: Skill-a-thon HackNight

• Sat 21 Mar: Women Tech Makers IWD 2026: Break the Pattern

Upcoming:

• Thu 26 Mar @18:00: OpenAI Codex Community Meetup

• Thu 26 Mar @18:30: Beyond the algorithm: AI, humanism and the future of talent

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