• Since its founding in November 2024, the Czech Startup Association (CSA) has achieved significant successes: its own subcommittee, its first conference in the House of Commons, and support across the political spectrum.
• In its first months, the Association has gained over 70 members and significant strategic partners. It has become a member of the Confederation of Industry and Transport of the Czech Republic and cooperates with sector associations in fintech, AI or IT. It has also joined the European coalition of startup organisations S9+ and the global organisation Allied for Startups.
• The association is now establishing the Czech Innovation Platform (CIP), which will systematically connect the startup world with established companies and public institutions.

In its six months of operation, the Czech Startup Association has contributed to a tangible shift in the startup ecosystem. It has managed to achieve a greater connection between representatives of the political sphere and the sector and actively grasp key topics that are burning startups and investors. The Association is working on the preparation of systemic legislative measures and newly launched the Czech Innovation Platform. The latter aims to fulfil the economic potential of the Czech Republic by actively connecting startups with companies and institutions.

Startup topics have had a firm place on the agenda of the parliamentary Subcommittee on Startups, Science, Research and Innovation since January, where, for example, the introduction of a meaningful employee stock ownership plan (ESOP) or the upcoming Startup Act are being discussed. In March, the Association hosted the Upgrading the Startup Environment conference in the House of Commons, which provided a platform for deeper dialogue between politicians, investors, startups and other players in the innovative sector.

Representatives of the Association are also in close contact with foreign partners, where, among other things, they gather experience and inspiration for further practical measures. Examples include Spain, where the Startup Law is successfully functioning, or the Swedish matchmaking platform Ignite Sweden.

Examples from Sweden, Spain and Ireland clearly illustrate the potential for ecosystem development in connecting small and large companies: a significant acceleration of innovation, job creation and faster economic growth. This is also the goal of the new Czech Innovation Platform – led by Dana Vaníčková, who will build on years of experience and contacts from the technology business.

Martin Jiránek | Chairman of the Czech Startup Association

“The Association is now communicating with the economic leaders of all relevant political parties. From the feedback from politicians, which we are very pleased with, we perceive that they want a partner for startup topics and transformation to an innovative economy and appreciate cooperation with us. Between now and the election and the end of the year, we will work with politicians, officials and experts on concrete proposals for change to make them as ready as possible for the next government. These include the Startup Law, incentives for the development of the investor environment, strengthening the capital market, the development of regional innovation centres and the preparation of the 28th regime at the EU level.”

Dana Vaníčková | CEO of the Czech Innovation Platform

“The Czech Republic has a huge but largely untapped innovation potential. Our data and international comparisons show that companies are eager to innovate – but often lack systemic support, capacity or opportunities for collaboration. The Czech Innovation Platform was created precisely to connect the world of startups with established companies and public institutions. Our goal is to deliver concrete results: new business opportunities, meaningful partnerships and innovation with real impact. For startups, this means big new clients, for established companies access to innovative solutions, and for our economy, new jobs, GDP growth and increased competitiveness. We build on structured matchmaking, thematic innovation meetings and close collaboration with leaders from business, the public sector and academia.”

The association has established a number of collaborations and partnerships, and in the spring it became a member of the Confederation of Industry and Transport, the European startup coalition S9+ and the global organisation Allied for Startups. The Czech Innovation Platform is also teaming up with major players in the market and will soon announce strategic partnerships. Partners Banka and Stratforce.one are the Platform’s first partners , while the first joint project with the Confederation of Industry and Transport has already taken place.

Companies want to innovate regardless of size and sector

The survey, which was conducted in cooperation with the Confederation of Industry of the Czech Republic, showed that Czech companies are open to innovation. Half (52%) of companies have a specific innovation strategy or plan, while another 48% approach innovation on an ad-hoc basis, without a long-term concept. Companies clearly identified the lack of human and time capacity as the main obstacle to innovation . This finding is confirmed by the fact that just under a quarter of companies (23%) have a person or team directly dedicated to the innovation agenda. In the rest of the companies, innovation is mostly handled by the CEO or another senior executive, but they have many other tasks and innovation is logically not always a priority. Expert help and a systematic approach could therefore be the solution for many companies to define their needs correctly, find the right partner, implement the innovation successfully – and gain a new competitive advantage.

The survey was conducted from 25 April to 9 May and was answered by 105 companies of various sizes. The manufacturing industry was the most represented, followed by the financial sector and IT.

Innovation and new technologies are the engine of economic growth, but the Czech Republic lags far behind in this area. Only 48% of SMEs use digital technologies such as cloud, data or AI – while the EU is aiming for 90% (Digital Decade Report, 2024). Only 28% of innovative companies in the Czech Republic collaborate with others, which hinders the spread of new solutions (Community Innovation Survey, 2022). Moreover, according to the OECD, only 32% of domestic firms are involved in the supply chains of global firms in the Czech Republic, while the OECD average is 50% – this also reduces our ability to scale innovation. This is also why we are ranked as only a moderate innovator in the European Innovation Scoreboard. The numbers speak clearly, and the Czech Innovation Platform wants to change this situation.

The Czech Startup Association represents the interests of the startup ecosystem – startups, VC funds, angel investors, incubators, accelerators and innovation centres – in dialogue with the government and Parliament. The immediate goal is to prepare a comprehensive set of concrete legislative and systemic measures to improve the startup ecosystem. The Association currently has over 70 registered members and is in talks with dozens more to join.

The Czech Innovation Platform connects startups, established companies and public institutions to facilitate their collaboration on specific innovative solutions. It builds on structured matchmaking and thematic meetings and takes inspiration from successful international models such as Ignite Sweden, BIND Basque and Innovation Exchange Ireland. The platform helps companies to clearly define their innovation needs and efficiently find technology partners among startups. It aims to translate the potential of collaboration between the ‘big’ and the ‘small’ into new business opportunities, business growth and strengthening the competitiveness of the Czech economy.

More information about the Czech Startup Association can be found at startupczechia.cz and about the Czech Innovation Platform at innovationczechia.cz.

Source: Czech Startup Association

Photo: Czech Innovation Platform – Martin Jiránek, Dana Vaníčková, Vojta Roček