ATHENS - Now in its fourth year, The Hellenic Initiative (THI) Venture Fair offered the chance for 10 vetted startup companies to pitch their ideas before a panel of judges, competing for seed funding prizes. The event was held at the Hilton Athens in July.
The 10 competing startups included Olyra, which produces all natural snacks with traditional grains; Kalepso, an end-to-end encrypted cloud database system; B2B Wave, an ecommerce ordering and catalog solution for wholesale distributors and manufacturers; Nantech, an integrated IT solutions developer in the financial institutions market; Quantimetrica, a voice recognition software and hardware developer; Pobuca, a business contacts organizational tool developer; Sentio Solutions, an artificial emotional intelligence wristband developer; Think Silicon, a graphics solution for cost sensitive/battery-powered products, which won the $4,000 third prize; PD Neurotechnology, which focuses on dosage devices and optimal timing for Parkinson’s patients, and won the $6,000 third place prize; and Viral Loops, an incentivized marketing service, which won this year’s grand prize of $10,000.
The event closed with remarks from THI Chair, George Stamas and THI Chairman Andrew Liveris, while THI Executive Director and Venture Fair Emcee Mark Arey, THI Director of Development Peter Poulos and THI Project Manager Michael Printzos were also in attendance.
The following morning, THI hosted its inaugural Diaspora Summit at the Gennadius Library, with a panel discussion on the role of Diaspora Greeks in building stronger connections and investing heavily in the country.
"With THI representatives from the U.S., Australia, Canada and the U.K. in attendance, we knew that it would be a good opportunity to get all of us in the same room at the same time to discuss how we can work together more efficiently and with more impact," Poulos said.
THI works to mobilize the Greek Diaspora and Philhellenes around the globe to invest in the future of Greece.
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WORDS: Portes Magazine
PHOTOS: The Hellenic Initiative