Barcelona tech events for the merry, merry month of May …
Is it just us, or are the number and frequency of tech networking events in Barcelona in danger of becoming … well, shall we say, a “distraction”?
Some people do work (or try to work) in a viable business, whether established or a startup, and most of us (except in the saddest of cases) try to have some kind of meaningful emotive life or even the occasional moment for some true R&R (“reflection and restorative thinking”). So, we ask you: how can anyone possibly attend, much less find lasting value, in any more than a fraction of all the tech networking events on the agenda every month in Barcelona?
Not that Barcelona Tech Talk wants to rain on anyone’s parade, but with all the Damm/Moritz sponsored networking events virtually every day/night, during most weeks of any given month, it’s beginning to feel a bit, well, frothy … no? As though maybe (just maybe?), all the networking events might be substituting a bit for substance, as though (shall we dare say it?) a world-class tech hub can be wished or networked into existence with enough cheerleading … and free Moritz/Damm beer, of course!
Just sayin’ … and if you completely disagree, well, that’s why “comments” on blogsites like this exist. 
So, without further opinion, we hope to see you over a glass of Moritz or Damm beer at one (or more) of the following upcoming Barcelona tech events that we’ve managed to track for the merry, merry month of May. Take a look, especially, at Digital Week Barcelona, running from Mon-Sat, May 13-18th at various venues throughout the city … it promises to be an interesting week, and month!
Thurs, 2 May, 10:00 AM – 2:00 PM
Forum Series: Big Data (http://bit.ly/11U7GTN)
Antiga Fàbrica Estrella Damn, C. Rosselló, 515, 08025 Barcelona
Google Map: http://goo.gl/maps/MmJFf
Thurs, 2 May, 6 PM
Startup World: Barcelona (http://bit.ly/10yV74D)
Barcelona Activa, Carrer Llacuna 162, 08018 Barcelona
Google Map: http://goo.gl/maps/jTZ5f
Thurs, 2 May, 6:30 PM
Founder Institute Information Session (http://fi.co/e/3015)
Deloitte, Avenida Diagonal 654 08034 Barcelona
Google Map: http://goo.gl/maps/45qpC
Suns, 05 & 19 May, 9:00 AM
Startup Sundays at Starbucks (http://bit.ly/13FAwbR)
Plaça de Francesc Macià, 7 08029, Barcelona
Google Map: http://goo.gl/maps/vCP4j
Tues, 7 May, 9 AM
Open Coffee Club Barcelona (http://bit.ly/100vqUr)
021Espai, Carrer Badajoz 88, Barcelona
Google Map: http://goo.gl/maps/0oOmA
Tues, 7 May, 6:45 PM
First Tuesday: Philippe Gelis, Founder, Kantox (http://bit.ly/ZDlAux)
Fàbrica Moritz, Ronda San Antoni 41, 08011 Barcelona
Google Map: http://goo.gl/maps/B4mz9
Wed, 8 May, 9 AM
StartupBootcamp: Pitch Day Barcelona (http://bit.ly/14BQcBw)
Barcelona Activa, Carrer Llacuna 162, 08018 Barcelona
Google Map: http://goo.gl/maps/jTZ5f
Mon-Sat, 13-18 May
Digital Week Barcelona (http://digitalweek.es/)
Venues: Various (see: http://digitalweek.es/registro/)
Tues-Wed, 21-22 May
bdigital: Fòrum TurisTIC (http://bit.ly/Xrjtcx)
Caixaforum, Av. Francesc Ferrer i Guàrdia, 6-8, 08038 Barcelona
Google Map: http://goo.gl/maps/0Qwtu
Wed, 22 May, 4:00-10:00 PM
LaSalle Technova: Tech Demo Day 2013 (http://bit.ly/Y5lCrn)
Sala Congressos, Univ Ramon Llul, Carrer Lluçanès 41-43, 08021 Barcelona
Google Map: http://goo.gl/maps/yS2IZ
Fri, 31 May,
Startup Weekend Barcelona (http://bit.ly/9FdzCL)
Venue: Coworking Creativo, Sta Teresa nº 8 bajos, 08012 Barcelona
Google Map: http://goo.gl/maps/XPVRe
Sat-Sun, 01-02 June
Startup Weekend Barcelona (http://bit.ly/9FdzCL)
Venue: Ingracia, Carrer Jesús 3-5, 08012 Barcelona
Google Map: http://goo.gl/maps/YhrvH
‘Big Data’ comes to Barcelona in a BIG way … BIG DATA WEEK, April 22-28th
The lament of a local tech entrepreneur in a recent conversation with BCN Tech Talk that “Big Data” gets short shrift in discussions of startups and technology here in Barcelona may not have fallen on deaf ears. Or, it may just be that his observation was a bit ahead of its time, because fear no more … Big Data is upon us here in Barcelona, well and truly.
We’ve known for several weeks now that the theme of the annual BDigital Global Congress coming up June 12-14th will be none other than “Challenges of Big Data,” promising three days of “thematic workshops, debates and networking around the challenges of managing and analyzing Big Data, the large amount of data resulting from the digital and mobile revolution.”
But, were it not for a tip from StartupDigest Barcelona about events at local “hacker accelerator” itnig, we might not have seen three itnig Big Data events in one week … and quickly realized that looming much, much closer than the BDigital Global Congress in mid-June is an entire week of Big Data panels, conferences and networking opportunities, all part of the global BIG DATA WEEK extravaganza taking place next week (April 22nd-28th) in 25 cities worldwide.
Already, we’re counting more than 19 events as part of the BIG DATA WEEK Barcelona goings-on, with more apparently being added to the program day by day. Not all events are for everyone — some seem decidedly academic in flavor, others more generally tech-oriented; some of the events are in Català, others in Castellano and a few in English.
With that in mind, and the reality that there are just too many to keep up with on our BCN Tech Talk events list, we’ll just take the easy option and point you to the event schedule, here, and let you get on with getting your head around Big Data and what it means for the future of technology in Barcelona.
Don’t miss Barcelona Startup Fair 2013 … 100+ jobs on offer, plus free Moritz beer, with some of BCN’s leading tech startups
‘Tis Spring in Barcelona, and while elsewhere the fancy of a young man or woman may lightly turn to thoughts of love … it’s Spain, still in an economic crisis and the thoughts of most young people are seriously turned to finding work.
It’s a very tall order trying to match companies with a need for staffing, let alone “interesting” companies who are actually hiring, with qualified job-seekers who can fill those posts. And, it’s frequently heard from executives at Barcelona-based technology companies who are looking to markets beyond Spain for growth that qualified candidates with the software engineering and global language skills these employers need can be few and far between.
To help bridge that gap between would-be tech employers and qualified staff … enter Barcelona Startup Fair 2013, the second annual edition of southern Europe’s largest recruitment fair for startups and early-stage technology companies.
Wed 10 April, 6:00PM
Barcelona Startup Job Fair (2013) (http://bit.ly/VQcOrF)
Fàbrica Moritz, Ronda San Antoni 41, 08011 Barcelona
Google Map: http://goo.gl/maps/B4mz9
Co-organized by JobFluent, the Barcelona-based online job board for matching career candidates with tech startups in Europe and beyond, in tandem with Barcelona.IO, the international community about startups and early stage companies led by local entrepreneurs in Barcelona, this year’s edition of the Barcelona Startup Fair is being sponsored by the city of Barcelona’s business development agency and incubator Barcelona Activa and generously backed with both venue and beverage by local beer maker Moritz, known as a solid supporter of tech meetups and events throughout the year.
“The Barcelona startup scene is thriving and we’re excited to see the city converting into one of the top technology hubs of Europe,” says JobFluent Co-Founder Bob Samii. “The objective of the Startup Fair is to shine the light on some of the great tech startups of Barcelona and also help them connect with potential candidates looking for jobs in the sector.”
At last year’s June 2012 Startup Fair, 400 job candidates turned out to meet with recruiters from 30-plus companies, including Tuenti, 3Scale, GetApp, Devex, Kantox, Mobile Jazz, Robot Media, Trovit, Social Point, Wuaki.tv, Yuilop, Zynrco and others.
This year, there are available slots for more than 500 pre-registered attendees and local technology companies will be looking for talent to fill more than 100 new positions, primarily roles in web and software development and design, but also jobs that span broader business areas, including administration, marketing and project management. Candidate/attendees can expect to meet with recruiters from local companies, with this year’s list comprised of companies well-known within Barcelona’s tech community, including: 3scale, Devex, Knok, Nomadica, Mobile Jazz, Offset Options, Robot Media, Tuenti, GetApp, Goodtime, Yuilop, Trovit, Viamo, Change Your Flight, ExoClic, Oblong, Catchoom, Zynrco, Kantox, EnAlquiler and others.
“We are adding more companies all the time and more will be added in the coming few days,” promises Luke Miller, a Co-Founder of JobFluent as well as Barcelona.IO.
So, is this the job fair you’ve been waiting for? The answer is “Yes,” if you have experience or knowledge in the areas of UX Design, Interaction Design, Visual Design, Software Engineering, Web Development, Mobile Development, QA/Testing, Technology Management and Administrators, Product/Project Management, Online Marketing and related business functions; “Yes,” if you’re looking to work in technology with companies founded or based in Barcelona; and “Yes,” if you want to be part of the growth of the most important technology hub in southern Europe and arguably Europe’s most exciting emerging urban tech scene!
To attend the Barcelona Startup Fair 2013, either as a recruiting company or as a job candidate, you need to pre-register using the form at the bottom of the page, here. There is a modest fee for recruiting companies, but there is no charge to attend for qualified job-seekers.
So, if you’re looking for work and you think you’ve got the right tech savvy and tool kit, register now … and then show up on Wednesday April 10th, 6:00PM at the Moritz Factory in Barcelona to vie for exciting new job opportunities with some of Barcelona’s leading tech startups and early stage companies. We hope to see you there!
A veritable April shower of Barcelona tech & entrepreneurship events …
Well, there’s nothing like a little holiday to help put things in perspective … when we left for the Easter weekend, it seemed like there were relatively few Barcelona tech events lining up for April, at least as compared to the monster MWC month of February and a fairly busy March, as well.
But, lo and behold, April is sizing up to be a very busy (shall we say, ‘hectic’) month for technology and entrepreneurship events. Will this event madness never stop? Let’s hope not, as the more networking and learning events there are here in Barcelona, the closer our fair city comes to reaching that critical mass of networking and buzz that helps to create the image of ‘world class tech hub.’
So, here, without further ado are the events we’ve logged so far for April 2013. If yours is not listed, give us an earful at BCNTechTalk@gmail.com or info@BCNTechTalk.com and we’ll plug it into the listings of upcoming BCN Tech Events … see ya ’round!
Wed, 3 April, 6:00 PM – 10:00 PM
TEDxChange 2013: Positive disruption (http://bit.ly/XUQrAW)
Col.legi Oficial d’Odontòlegs i Estomatòlegs de Catalunya – Travessera de Gràcia, 93–95, Barcelona 08006
Google Map: http://goo.gl/maps/AQHio
Thurs, 4 April, 10:00 AM – 2:00 PM
IBM Forum Series (http://bit.ly/XUTyqF)
Antiga Fàbrica Estrella Damn, C. Rosselló, 515, 08025 Barcelona
Google Map: http://goo.gl/maps/MmJFf
Fri, 5 April, 12 noon – 2:00 PM
INLEA: Plan Angel Presentation (http://bit.ly/ZYbfIK)
Sala Mon, Barcelona Activa, Carrer Llacuna 162, 08018 Barcelona
Google Map: http://goo.gl/maps/jTZ5f
Fri, 5 April, 6:00 PM – 9:00 PM
Women 2.0 – Founder Friday Barcelona (http://bit.ly/16irdy6)
Bar Velódromo, Muntaner 213, 08036 Barcelona
Google Map: http://goo.gl/maps/z8ChO
Tues, 9 April, 6:30 PM
Founder Institute: Startup Pitch Bootcamp (http://fi.co/e/2699)
LaSalle Technova, Sant Joan de la Salle, 42, 08022 Barcelona
Google Map: http://goo.gl/maps/sKTnQ
Tues, 9 April, 6:30 – 9:00 PM
Future Web: New Ideas for Design, Technology and Culture (http://bit.ly/10v8CgM)
La República, Carrer Mercé 13, 08002 Barcelona
Google Map: http://goo.gl/maps/FvvN3
Tues, 9 April, 6:45 PM
First Tuesday: Enrique Dubois, Fundador, Mola.com (http://bit.ly/10e07uj)
Fàbrica Moritz, Ronda San Antoni 41, 08011 Barcelona
Google Map: http://goo.gl/maps/B4mz9
Wed, 10 April, 9:00 – 11:30 AM
Open Coffee Club Barcelona (http://bit.ly/Sf8we8)
021Espai, Carrer Badajoz 88, Barcelona
Google Map: http://goo.gl/maps/0oOmA
Wed 10 April, 6:00PM
Barcelona Startup Job Fair (2013) (http://bit.ly/VQcOrF)
Fàbrica Moritz, Ronda San Antoni 41, 08011 Barcelona
Google Map: http://goo.gl/maps/B4mz9
Wed 10 April, 7:45PM-9PM
Barcelona Internet Startups: Design Thinking – How To Create a Remarkable Product or Service (http://bit.ly/YQWVQc)
MOB – Makers Of Barcelona, Carrer Bailen 11, 08010 Barcelona
Google Map: http://goo.gl/maps/xkAmC
Thurs, 11 April, 6:30 PM
Founder Institute: Information Session (http://fi.co/e/2698)
Deloitte, Avenida Diagonal 654 08034 Barcelona
Google Map: http://goo.gl/maps/45qpC
Thurs, 11 April, 7:00 PM
Barcelona, capital de la alta tecnología (http://bit.ly/10ynJpK)
U. Ramon Llull/LaSalle, Sala Paraninfo, Edificio Sant Jaume Hilari, C. Quatre Camins 30, 08022 Barcelona
Google Map: http://goo.gl/maps/klWwd
Thurs, 11 April, 7:00 PM
IE Venture Network Barcelona (http://bit.ly/10vB96R)
Restaurante Dime Barcelona, Doctor Fleming 11, 08017 Barcelona
Google Map: hhttp://goo.gl/maps/7qLhf
Thurs, 11 April, 7:30 PM
itnig – What do we know about mobile marketing? (http://bit.ly/XADOhJ)
itnig, Carrer Àlaba 61, 5-2, 08005 Barcelona
Google Map: http://goo.gl/maps/EcsM6
Thurs, 11 April, 8-10 PM
Catalyst: Designers Meet Hackers (http://catalyst.cat/)
MOB – Makers Of Barcelona, Carrer Bailen 11, 08010 Barcelona
Google Map: http://goo.gl/maps/xkAmC
Fri-Sun, 12-14 April
Microsoft: Megathon Barcelona 2013 (http://bit.ly/YI9oVR)
Oficinas Pasiona Consulting, C/Pujades 350, Planta 10, 08019 Barcelona
Google Map: http://goo.gl/maps/Dbc8m
Fri, 12 April, 6:30 PM
itnig fridays: “Neuromarketing: Are we irrational?” (http://bit.ly/10OXxs1)
itnig, Carrer Àlaba 61, 5-2, 08005 Barcelona
Google Map: http://goo.gl/maps/EcsM6
Sat, 13 April, 11 AM – 6 PM
Softonic University: We Love PHP 2 (http://bit.ly/17ongeP)
Softonic, Carrer Rosselló i Porcel 21 / 17, 08016, Barcelona
Google Map: http://goo.gl/maps/CpTsF
Tues, 16 April, 6:30 PM
Founder Institute: Startup Ideation Bootcamp (http://fi.co/courses/2701)
LaSalle Technova, Sant Joan de la Salle, 42, 08022 Barcelona
Google Map: http://goo.gl/maps/sKTnQ
Tues, 16 April, 8:00 PM – 9:45 PM
Barcelona Internet Startups: Empowering Women and Entrepreneurship (http://bit.ly/WTLYAB)
IBM Client Center, Edificio l’Illa Diagonal, Diagonal 571, 8th Floor, 08029 Barcelona
Google Map: http://goo.gl/maps/gdvhX
Wed, 17 April, 7:00 PM
Webcat (http://webcatbcn.com/)
Bar Scorpio, Carrer d’Alí Bei 6, 08010 Barcelona
Google Map: http://goo.gl/maps/7KpMA
Fri-Sun, 19-21 April
D-IVE Mobile Photo Festival (http://www.d-ive.com/en)
Venues: various, see D-IVE website
Fri, 19 April, 6:30 PM
itnig fridays: “Develop stable & robust code with Unit Testig and TDD” (bit.ly/10PtNZv)
itnig, Carrer Àlaba 61, 5-2, 08005 Barcelona
Google Map: http://goo.gl/maps/EcsM6
Mon, Apr 22, 7:00 PM
itnig BIG DATA WEEK: “Does Monitoring on the Internet have a Return?” (bit.ly/10PtNZv)
itnig, Carrer Àlaba 61, 5-2, 08005 Barcelona
Google Map: http://goo.gl/maps/EcsM6
Tues, Apr 23, 11AM-12noon
itnig BIG DATA WEEK – “Privacy by Design in the Big Data Age” (bit.ly/Xpx97U)
itnig, Carrer Àlaba 61, 5-2, 08005 Barcelona
Google Map: http://goo.gl/maps/EcsM6
Tues-Thurs, 23-25 April
IMS World Forum 2013 (http://bit.ly/dJKEdP)
Hotel Fira Palace, Av. Rius i Taulet, 1, 08004 Barcelona
Google Map: http://goo.gl/maps/Zh3at
Thurs-Sat, 25-27 April
Unreasonable at Sea BARCELONA (http://bit.ly/WjnCkk)
Venues: Various, see: http://unreasonableatseabarcelona.com/program
Fri, Apr 26, 6:30 PM
itnig BIG DATA friday: “Visualizing large datasets” (bit.ly/10PvLJu)
itnig, Carrer Àlaba 61, 5-2, 08005 Barcelona
Google Map: http://goo.gl/maps/EcsM6
Barcelona gets ready to welcome ‘Unreasonable at Sea’, April 25-27th …
If the “business of technology,” the seemingly never-ending startup quest for funding, the drive of the bottom line, the buzz about buyouts and deals and world-capital-this and global-congress-that is starting to wear a bit thin for you … then you might be encouraged to know that there’s also a considerable social entrepreneurship side to Barcelona.
And you might want to get ready for Unreasonable at Sea Barcelona, the three-day stop-over in Barcelona from April 25- 27th of the Unreasonable at Sea project, a curiously named enterprise with a noble cause, currently sailing around the world and making stops in 13 countries over 100 days under the ambitious banner of “a radical experiment in global entrepreneurship to combat the greatest challenges of our time.”
Now out on the high seas somewhere near South Africa, sailing at who-knows-how-many-knots per hour toward Barcelona, the Unreasonable at Sea voyage began in San Diego in January and has brought together 11 social entrepreneurs with a rotating crew of 20 very distinguished mentors in an exercise aimed at showing how entrepreneurship can change the world for better. The voyage is a project of the Unreasonable Institute, founded in 2010 in Boulder, Colorado, and with an impressive list of accomplishments to its name so far. In just over two years since its inception:
• 70 ventures have gone through the Institute’s program;
• 86% have remained active after the program; with,
• 400 individuals employed by participating ventures; and,
• 71% of participating fellows successfully raising more than $26 million USD in funding.
Eleven tech-based global startups from the health, energy, education and Internet worlds won slots to participate as fellows in the Unreasonable at Sea voyage, beating out nearly 1,000 other applicants from more than 80 countries. The Unreasonable startups currently shipbound toward Barcelona include:
• Aquaphytex: Providing clean water to 300,000 people w/out chemicals or energy (just plants);
• Damascus Fortune: Nanotechnology that transforms carbon emissions into material for spaceships;
• Innoz: Most used mobile-app in India. Designed to leapfrog internet. +120,000,000 users;
• Guru-G: Educates and empowers teachers through a “gamified” platform;
• The IOU Project: Shifting the dynamics of supply chains in apparel in a BIG way;
• Solar Ear: World’s 1st digitally programmable and rechargeable hearing aids;
• Protei: Wind powered, shape shifting, open source sailing drones that clean oceans;
• Evolving Technologies: Radically affordable medical devices for maternal care in emerging markets;
• One Earth Designs: Harnesses the sun for cooking & energy. Ranked best solar cooker on earth;
• Prakti Design: Feeding 250,000 people daily with ultra-affordable and fuel efficient stoves; and,
• Artificial Vision for the Blind: Artificial intelligence leveraged as a non-invasive cure for blindness.
Organized with the support of the Catalan Generalitat’s ACCIÓ agency for business development and entrepreneurship, Unreasonable at Sea Barcelona aims to bring together those entrepreneurs, some of the Unreasonable mentors and the founders of the Unreasonable Institute with Barcelona’s own local tech and entrepreneurship community for three days of public and private meetups, workshops and press events aimed at showing the world how unreasonable ideas when teamed with entrepreneurship can help to change the world.
According to Oriol Pascual, Director of Enviu Barcelona and spearhead of the local organizing efforts, the three-day stopover in Barcelona will include a large-scale welcoming event designed to bring together more than 800 individuals from the local tech startup, social entrepreneurship and investor communities to meet and hear the stories of the project’s founders, as well as a workshop linking up local entrepreneurs, students and some of the Unreasonable at Sea mentors.
Advance registration for the events is now available online, here. And, organizers are actively encouraging sponsorship of Unreasonable at Sea Barcelona for those who might be interested in the opportunity to associate their company or organization with the Unreasonable project, before, during and after the actual events in Barcelona.
We know you may already have seen this Unreasonable video at TechCrunch and/or Vimeo … but in case not:
Five (or more?) Barcelona tech events in this week’s lineup …
Yet another busy lineup of evening tech events in Barcelona this week …
Starting tonight with Barcelona Loves Entrepreneurs’ presentation of BLE & Robots, continuing on Tuesday with SeedRocket’s sixth Investors’ Day event in the afternoon and in the evening, the official presentation by the Ajuntament of the new Apps4BCN Portal.
Take a break on Wednesday and then you’re back at it on Thursday evening with a choice of the monthly UOCMeet, this time focused on the theme of Smart Cities, or over at the Makers of Barcelona venue, try ‘Interactive Startup Pitch Sessions’ presented by Barcelona Internet Startups.
Check ‘em out:
Mon, 18 March, 7:00 PM
Barcelona Loves Entrepreneurs: BLE & Robots (http://bit.ly/10j1vvN)
Fàbrica Moritz, Ronda San Antoni 41, 08011 Barcelona
Google Map: http://goo.gl/maps/B4mz9
Tues, 19 March, 4:00 PM
VI SeedRocket Investors’ Day (http://bit.ly/ZAmKXn)
Barcelona Activa, Sala Empren, C/ Llacuna 162-164, 08018 Barcelona
Google Map: http://goo.gl/maps/WPGPc
Tues, 19 March, 7:00 PM
Presentació: ‘Apps4BCN’ Portal (http://apps4bcn.cat)
Sala d’Actes del Cibernàrium, MediaTIC Building, Roc Boronat 117, 08018 Barcelona
Google Map: http://goo.gl/maps/ESNqo
Thurs, 21 March, 7:00 PM
UOCmeet Smartcities: Pilar Conesa and Júlia López Ventura (http://bit.ly/127TGKy)
Sala d’Actes del Cibernàrium, MediaTIC Building, Roc Boronat 117, 08018 Barcelona
Google Map: http://goo.gl/maps/ESNqo
Thurs 21 March, 8PM
Interactive Startup Pitch Sessions (http://bit.ly/112oc2r)
MOB – Makers Of Barcelona, Carrer Bailen 11, 08010 Barcelona
Google Map: http://goo.gl/maps/xkAmC
Interview: Jochen Doppelhammer, Founder & CEO, yuilop
Jochen Doppelhammer is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of yuilop, a Barcelona-based free communication service provider, delivering integrated free calling to any phone number and text messaging (SMS) and real-time multimedia chat via a mobile app that is compatible with all major mobile platforms and devices.
Currently available in more than 40 countries and for more than110 destinations, yuilop won the award for “Best Mobile App” in the The Next Web Spanish Startup Awards 2013 competition, held in Barcelona in early-February.
In the runup to Mobile World Congress 2013, Jochen agreed to field a few questions from Barcelona Tech Talk about the tech and mobile scene in Barcelona, as well as the significance of Mobile World Congress for the local tech community and what it’s like for a mobile pure-play startup with global reach and ambitions to be based in Barcelona.
Prior to 2006, your background was fairly traditional corporate business and telecoms – Accenture, T-Mobile International, etc — why the move to Barcelona and why the shift into startups?
Beyond my “corporate” CV, I’ve always been involved from early on in a variety of entrepreneurial activities, small things, less commercial in the very early computer days — C64 and the first PCs, for example, mainly related to my father’s business. At the end of 1999, I left Accenture and started my first company with some colleagues, but we got blown away when the dot-com bubble burst.
After T-Mobile International, I had the opportunity to leave with a small package and by then I was really tired of the corporate politics and inability to do anything within corporations. I came to Barcelona more for private reasons, a kind of compromise between personal life and career, and I did a few more entrepreneurial projects here until the right opportunity came along.
How has Barcelona changed, for better or worse, as a hub for technology and innovation since you arrived here?
Barcelona had a great vibe in the early 2000s, from 2001 through 2003. It was still benefiting from the post-Olympics boom, the city was thriving and there were lots of new opportunities and development, with people arriving in the city.
Barcelona Activa [the municipal enterprise development agency and startup incubator] has been around since very early days, promoting Barcelona mainly to corporate companies and attracting them to Barcelona. For small companies, it has always been quite difficult, but things have improved a bit since then and local institutions do try to help, even though starting up a company remains complicated within the larger scheme of things.
During the last few years, there have been some big startup success stories and now BCN has its successful “grown-ups” [successful startups], some of which have even already had there exits, which creates a climate for potential new spin-offs in the near future.
So, is there a real transformation going on in the startup scene here? And, if so, what’s fueling it?
There are many different actors, some more local and Catalan and many others international, who are trying to push Barcelona forward and get it onto the map as an international technology hub. The city council is also establishing a new initiative around an e-Commerce Cluster that they aim to create and build the Barcelona tech scene around.
In addition, there are some professional VCs around — including Nauta Capital, Active Venture Partners and others — that can help startups get to the next level. Plus, there are Business Angels and even some of the Spanish banks that have their VC arm, as well as startup incubators like Creative HotHouse, which is also organizing the TecTec event this week, that can help people get started. So in that sense, yes, Barcelona’s tech startup scene is becoming more professional and mature.
It appears the technology startup scene in Barcelona is now trending toward mobile… why do you think that is happening and do you think it’s sustainable?
Many companies and startups are launching mobile apps, but it’s still very early days. In terms of mobile pure plays, Yuilop is definitely one of the leaders in mobile. There are quite a few smaller mobile startups all around Barcelona and Spain, so there is clearly something going on.
What’s the missing link or links in the technology value chain here?
Some of the Universities are getting involved in incubation and fostering more entrepreneurial activities, not just business schools, but also some of the tech faculties. But, if there is a missing link, it’s probably bringing all the many different activities within the city together and making the connections within the eco-system stronger.
I think communication is a key factor and within communication it’s also language. As long as some events and initiatives are still purely in the Catalan language, it excludes a lot of the international crowd. Even if people do adapt and learn the language, it’s still at another level to be able to really participate in such events. As Berlin shows, the language in international technology and the Internet is English.
In addition, the link between corporations and the startup scene is still very weak. Telefónica I&D [research & development] is present in Barcelona and that will help a lot for the mobile space, as will Telefónica’s Wayra incubator. But startups need more big players around from different sectors and especially from technology and the Internet.
Despite Spain’s gloomy economic news, the tech and startup scene here is starting to get some attention from abroad … What’s causing the growth, even in the midst of an economic crisis?
The Internet enables people to choose the place where they want to work and live and there are many people who choose Barcelona. There is a lot of international influx of talent and entrepreneurs, who have just decided they want to live here. I have many international friends that decided to live in BCN and to run there business from here, even if their markets are global, in Asia, the Middle East, elsewhere in Europe or in Latin America. Sometimes it might feel a bit harder to compete and it requires some more effort, but the quality of live balances that out. Also young people more and more realize the opportunities that the technology & internet sector offers them … and young people like Barcelona.
Barcelona has really geared up for the annual Mobile World Congress … is MWC a big benefit to local tech companies? Or, a distraction that’ll leave the tech scene with a big vacuum (and hangover) once it’s over?
To have the Mobile World Congress in the city is a big opportunity. Perhaps not so much for many startups in terms of participating in the MWC itself, but there is an opportunity to meet a lot of people from within the mobile eco-system during a few days in one city. There are many networking events outside the actual MWC exhibition and conference site. Everybody in mobile will be in the city during MWC week and the main opportunity is in meeting with people.
What’s the local business and engineering “talent” like in terms of hiring for a startup technology company? Is there a sizable and qualified native talent pool here?
It’s already very competitive for highly qualified tech talent like in most places. We’re having more and more difficulty finding the right top talent in Barcelona. We’re actually hiring mostly from abroad — which is not always easy due to very difficult and lengthy work visa processes — or in other Spanish cities. We’re also looking for people who have very good English skills, which is a key criteria for us. And, more than a university degree, we’re looking for “hacker spirit.” For example, one of our best hackers actually studies social communications and marketing and he’s a hell of a hacker, the real thing.
Why Barcelona for Yuilop? Why Barcelona for any startup that is looking to expand into global markets?
Barcelona is still a very attractive place to find international, diverse talent. It’s also attractive to draw people from London or Berlin to move to Barcelona for the quality of life. For us, it’s very important to assemble multinational teams. We’re not focused on one market, so if you have an international focus Barcelona is a great place to startup.
Barcelona is competing with London, Berlin and other tech and innovation hubs for the title of ‘Silicon Valley of Europe’ … what are its chances of eclipsing those other cities?
Barcelona needs to play its advantages and assets well, One of those advantages is the attraction of the city for talented individuals. In a world were physical location becomes less and less important to do business, the quality-of-life aspect is very important for people in making their decisions about where they want to work. The new generation has more of a free spirit and is not just following big corporations, but actually prefers different lifestyles, and, Barcelona has that to offer.
MWC is over … now it’s time for some BCN home-grown tech networking!
Well, people … the craziness of Mobile World Congress 2013 is over. Or nearly, so … still one last party tonight (MLOVE @ Ocaña) before it can be officially declared, “The Party is Over!”
So, it’s back to the business of technology as usual in Barcelona, and here are a few of BCN’s own home-grown tech events to keep you busy during the month of March.
We haven’t had time amidst all the MWC madness to update this list beyond the following, but this should be enough to get you started planning your tech networking agenda for the coming weeks. Check our regular BCN Tech Events page on the horizontal nav bar here on the site for updates as more March 2013 events pop onto the BCN Tech Talk radar screen.
Tues, 5 March, 7:00 PM
First Tuesday: Manel Sarasa, Fundador, Wineissocial (http://bit.ly/Y8o9Uo)
Fàbrica Moritz, Ronda San Antoni 41, 08011 Barcelona
Google Map: http://goo.gl/maps/B4mz9
Thurs, 7 March, 7 PM
TECTEC Barcelona: Jochen Doppelhammer, Ignasi Costa, Jacinto Roca (http://bit.ly/12dzQxH)
Creative HotHouse, C. Llull 70-72, 08002 Barcelona
Google Map: http://goo.gl/maps/ze9o1
Thurs, 14 March, 9:00 PM
Raspberry Pi (zza) (http://bit.ly/Z3DVPt)
Punt Multimèdia, Muntadas 1-5, Barcelona, 08014
Google Map: http://goo.gl/maps/Vc4NP
Thurs, 21 March, 7:00 PM
UOCmeet Smartcities: Pilar Conesa and Josep Ramon Ferrer (http://bit.ly/127TGKy)
Sala d’Actes del Cibernàrium, MediaTIC Building, Roc Boronat 117, 08018 Barcelona
Google Map: http://goo.gl/maps/ESNqo
Thurs 21 March, 8PM
Interactive Startup Pitch Sessions (http://bit.ly/112oc2r)
MOB – Makers Of Barcelona, Carrer Bailen 11, 08010 Barcelona
Google Map: http://goo.gl/maps/xkAmC
Fri 22 March, 9AM-6PM
#truBarcelona HR & Recruiting Unconference (http://bit.ly/135OaHO)
Venue: t/b/a
More events on the horizon …
Wed 10 April, 7:45PM-9PM
Design Thinking: How To Create a Remarkable Product or Service (http://bit.ly/YQWVQc)
MOB – Makers Of Barcelona, Carrer Bailen 11, 08010 Barcelona
Google Map: http://goo.gl/maps/xkAmC
Tues-Thurs, 23-25 April
IMS World Forum 2013 (http://bit.ly/dJKEdP)
Hotel Fira Palace, Av. Rius i Taulet, 1, 08004 Barcelona
Google Map: http://goo.gl/maps/Zh3at
Wed-Fri, 12-14 June
BDigital Global Conference (http://bit.ly/eC2ASG)
Caixa Forum, Av. Francesc Ferrer i Guàrdia 6-8, 08038 Barcelona
Google Map: http://goo.gl/maps/f7Zpv
Thurs-Sat, 27-29 June
Webvisions: Web & Mobile Design, Technology & UX Conference (http://bit.ly/XKa23n)
Disseny Hub, Avinguda Diagonal 686, 08034 Barcelona
Google Map: http://goo.gl/maps/rGJSV
MWC13: See what Barcelona and Catalonia-based mobile products & services providers are offering!
If you’re one of the 70,000 attendees expected to throng the halls and pavilions at the new Fira Gran Vía venue for Mobile World Congress 2013 this week, you might just want to take a stroll through the Congress Square area between Halls 4 & 5 and visit the 50 or so Barcelona and Catalonia-based mobile products and service providers who are exhibiting at the show.
Between the 49 local companies exhibiting in the Catalan Pavilion (CS50) plus a few more exhibtiing next door along with other companies from elsewhere in Spain in the Spanish Pavilion (CS60), not to mention a handful to be found interspersed throughout the App Planet and other halls, Catalan exhibitors this year are making a strong showing with a broad range of mobile services, apps and products.
In the Catalan Pavilion itself, visitors will find mobile hardware and software companies, ranging from providers of back-end telecoms services and infrastructure companies to mobile business solutions providers and developers and publishers of business- and consumer-oriented mobile content and software applications. They include:
ADI Intelligent Guides, Adsmedia Mobile, Albedo Telecom, Artificial Solutions, Avant Web Solutions, BeRepublic, Captio, Code Factory, Compegps, Connectis, Digital Legends, Edenic Games, e-movilia, EyeOS, Genaker, GiroPark, GlobalComm, Good Deal, Icar vision, idneo, Infocket, Inqbarna, iSoco, JoinUp Taxi, Kailab, Kriter, LaFactoria, Lona Systems, MasVoz, MediaLab, Mobetia, Mobile Jazz, MultiActiva Mobile, NO2, OpenTrends, Scytl, Sensing Control, Sixtemia, SlashMobility, Soft for you, Tempos21, Thechanner, Ubiqua, Urbiotica, Verasat Global, VozTelecom, We Smart Park, yuilop, and Zyncro.
The Catalan Pavilion exhibitors were chosen from among more than 100 submissions fielded by the Catalan regional government’s General Directorate of Telecommunications and Information Society and its ACC1Ó business development agency, which also has played a lead role in organizing Brokerage Event 2013, which will run across the first three days of Mobile World Congress. Every year since 2006, ACC1Ó has joined with a core group of partners from the Enterprise Europe Network to organize the B2B matchmaking event with goal of helping European start-ups, SMEs and Research groups from the mobile technology sector meet with potential business partners and investors.
Also exhibiting along with the local Barcelona and Catalan companies in the Catalan Pavilion this year will be a number of tech and telecom research centers and private institutions, including the Center for Innovation and Technology of the UPC, the Telecommunications Technological Center of Catalonia, Neàpolis, the Barcelona Media Foundation, the Foundation for the Promotion of the Knowledge Society, the Ascamm Foundation, the Barcelona Digital Technology Center Foundation, the I2Cat Foundation, and the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative, which is a co-organizer of the Brokerage Event 2013 and has brought a delegation of companies from the U.S. state of Massachussetts to Mobile World Congress 2013.
Interview: Christophe Primault, Co-Founder, CloudWork and GetApp
Christophe Primault is co-founder of Barcelona-based GetApp, the largest independent marketplace for cloud-based enterprise apps worldwide, and of CloudWork, a pioneer in the integration of cloud-based enterprise apps that help small businesses increase their productivity and efficiency.
Prior to co-founding GetApp and CloudWork, Christophe was CEO of Barcelona-based Kinamik, a global provider of data centric security solutions, from 2006-2009. Previously, he was CEO of Fluiditi Ltd in London for two years, after having served as VP of Global Marketing with NCR Corp.
Christophe sat down recently with BCN Tech Talk in the GetApp/CloudWork offices in central Barcelona to give his impressions of the city’s development as a tech and innovation hub and where Barcelona’s tech scene may be headed in the future.
How has Barcelona changed, in terms of its growth as a technology and innovation hub, since you first arrived here?
I moved to Barcelona in 2003. I was actually working in the UK with another company, commuting to Barcelona every weekend. Then in 2006, I joined Kinamik, a company backed by Nauta Capital, and in 2009 left to start GetApp, which is also funded by Nauta.
I actually don’t think things have dramatically changed since 2003. There is a lot of activity, there are just more startups and early stage companies. The tech scene in Barcelona is mainly consumer web oriented, what is changing is the number of mobile startups in the last couple of years.
What’s missing in the technology value chain here?
One thing that is missing is serious investment – I don’t think there are many serious VCs in Spain. That said, you hear some entrepreneurs blaming that as the reason local startups are not developing, saying it’s a lack of capital. I actually think that’s completely wrong. If you’re with the right startup with the right team, you’re going to find capital, wherever you are based.
There are currently a lot more early-stage startups here, but not many that are really making it. There was more early-stage investment prior to Spain’s economic crisis, but for many of these companies that is drying up. As a result, it’s becoming extremely difficult to get early-stage funding for a company started up in BCN.
Another thing that’s missing here is a change in mindset. Processes and mindset have not changed, they’ve remained much the same as before. There’s a huge difference with Silicon Valley, for example, where there’s more transparency and openness. As a result, the tech scene here has grown horizontally, but there’s no integrated project: How can we build synergies? How can people come together to do something important here to put on a common voice to present to the world?
The change here needs to come from entrepreneurs themselves, from the bottom up, from the distinct actors in the value chain. But, I don’t see a sign of that happening in a big way. If I’m being optimistic about Barcelona and Catalunya, I’d say that yes, there is a history of entrepreneurship here, so we can expect a stronger tech entrepreneurship movement in the future, but I don’t really see it happening right now. What is interesting is the “foreign legion” of BCN-based entrepreneurs seem to be more active. We’re seeing this with the numerous meetup initiatives or recently the interest from TechCrunch and TheNextWeb in the Barcelona tech scene.
Where do you see the technology startup scene trending in Barcelona?
The two trends in the startup scene here are still much the same: First, there’s web, web and web! Mostly copycats, actually very good at copying Anglo-Saxon initiatives and having success in their markets, but not really innovative companies. And then, there’s a pretty good mobile scene, from what I understand, though that’s not the area I work in.
It’s ironic, because there are some very interesting companies that have been founded here, for example Scytl, which is the world leader in election management software. But, you rarely hear them discussed locally. And, while most of the global tech news these days is all about big data, cloud-based solutions and SaaS, here there’s very little discussion of cloud-based services and solutions here.
The news headlines in Spain and abroad focus on the “doom and gloom” of Spain’s economic news … What’s the economic reality for startups, early stage and growth tech companies here? Is it all that bad?
Those companies that strictly operate in the national market in Spain do have problems. But, for companies like ours, which has no clients in Spain, or for companies that have few clients locally, the economic crisis doesn’t affect us much at all. On the contrary, it actually gives us access to talent in the international market because Barcelona is a very attractive place to live and work. In some ways, the crisis has lowered the cost of our labor and of maintaining an office.
It can also be a positive in terms of attracting other startups to Barcelona, because talent is attracted to the city and the lifestyle. That said, it’s not easy to hire someone who is not European here in Barcelona — it’s even more difficult now because of the unemployment situation in Spain. There are foreign students at business schools like ESADE who want to stay on here and work. That does represent a good talent pool and an opportunity for companies looking to get people at a far more reasonable cost than you can in London or Silicon Valley, unfortunately the local authorities do not make it easy for us to hire this talent.
Barcelona is a major events tech events hub, Mobile World Congress most notable among the events that occur here. Is that a positive for the local tech scene?
I don’t think Mobile World Congress distorts or contributes to the local tech scene, either way. And, I wouldn’t put it that way … I don’t think Barcelona is really a tech event hub, it’s more a business events hub. For the city to be a real tech events hub, there would need to be more input from the local tech scene in the industry events that take place here.
The technology events hosted here are more private, contained tech events that don’t really mingle with the local tech scene. Mobile World Congress may prove to be the exception, but I am not sure to which extent it has a negative or positive impact locally. On the other hand, it does bring positive recognition to Barcelona and puts us on the radar of the global mobile industry. But, does it really translate into positives that impact the local tech scene year-round?
What’s the local “talent” like in terms of hiring for a startup technology company? Is there a sizable and qualified native talent pool here?
The engineers coming out of local universities have pretty good education and good training. That said, they’re not entrepreneur-style engineers, but tend to be academic-style engineers. Their skills are very good, but finding people with good skills who are also willing to push to the limit, who want to take risks and are hard working … that’s not so easy to find.
Part of the problem is that their English is lacking, which means there aren’t many who have left Barcelona to go abroad and work, gotten experience and brought it back to Barcelona.
You need someone in your team who has an understanding of what’s coming next, who’s always trying things, testing things. There are plenty of opportunities for engineers to advance like that in startups. You don’t want everyone in your organization like that, but you need to have someone in your team to help move the team forward and this “hacker” style is difficult to find here. The same could be said for marketing profiles.
Why Barcelona for GetApp & CloudWork? What’s the advantage of having your cloud-based services platforms based here?
Barcelona was a very good choice personally and from a business perspective, as well, but if you want to start and run a business from Barcelona you do have to be aware of the pitfalls I’ve mentioned.
There is also a perception among international investors that if you’re in Barcelona, you’re just here because of the lifestyle – nice place to go to the beach, but not much work gets done! I’ve not only heard this from other companies, but I’ve actually heard it myself!
It’s important to change that perception. What will make it change? Take a few stellar companies that have been built here, showcase them, share their stories to the world … that could be a very positive thing for Barcelona.
Barcelona is competing with London, Berlin and other tech and innovation hubs for the title of ‘Silicon Valley of Europe’ … what are its chances of eclipsing those other cities?
Competing with other cities for the title of ‘Silicon Valley of Europe’ … that’s far in the future. You don’t see nearly the level of creativity here that you see in Berlin, for example. Yet, there has probably been more investment poured into technology here in the past decade than in Berlin, so why the difference? Why is Berlin today the third-largest tech hub in Europe after London and Paris?
Barcelona is a great place to build a business and you can be successful here. I’ve seen a lot of initiatives and a good dose of goodwill. But I don’t see the real willingness to come together and act as one community as you’ve seen in Berlin. That’s been holding us back. So I would say that the potential is there but it is not being exploited yet.
Are Barcelona startups ready to turn to crowdfunding to bootstrap their ventures?
Amidst purely anecdotal reports we’re hearing that early-stage venture capital may be drying up for Spanish startups, are Barcelona entrepreneurs beginning to turn to crowdfunding in order to bootstrap their startup “with a little help from (their) friends”?
The launch of two new crowdfunding startups in Barcelona would seem to indicate there is room to make this a future trend. One is Lemon Fruits, a Barcelona-based equity-based crowd-funding platform for investment in startups that is currently in Beta and slated to launch next week at www.lemonfruits.com. Lemon Fruits has designed an end-to-end crowdfuncing solution, with inputs and outputs for startups at every stage of the process — from building a funding project database, to project screening, defining the community funding targets, drawing up an equity agreement and launching the funding campaign.
According to CEO Xavier Olivella, here in Barcelona Lemon Fruits has a business development team located at the Technocampus Maresme and a tech development team in BCN Activa, as well as a registered and staffed office in the Netherlands and plans to expand into the U.S. market soon.
Another platform is Nuuuki, which launched on February 6th with a first-round call for submissions by startups to be included in a list of nine most innovative projects that will be published on April 1st and open to receive funding via the Nuuuki platform.
Founded by Alexis Vegas Egea, Nuuuki will enable micro-investors to contribute anywhere from 90 to 3,000 euros and become shareholders in the funded project.
According to a local news article this week in El Periódico, more than 35 startup submissions were received in the first week following Nuuuki’s launch.
The near-simultaneous launches of Lemon Fruits and Nuuuki come on the eve of a Barcelona meetup focused on crowdfunding tonight, sponsored by the UOC, featuring two crowdfunding platforms that focus on micro-financing for innovative projects:
Thurs, 14 February, 7 PM
UOCMeet – Crowdfunding: Verkami i Goteo (http://bit.ly/V9dpkL)
Espai Fòrum del FAD, Plaça dels Àngels 5-6,08001 Barcelona
Google Map: http://goo.gl/maps/2zu81/a>
Speaking at tonight’s UOCMeet will be Enric Senabre Hidalgo, co-Founder and Coordinator of Projects & Community at Goteo.org, an innovative crowdfunding platform for collective financing as well as distributed collaboration for services, infrastructures and micro-tasking on creative projects.
Also speaking will be Jonàs Sala, co-Founder and Partner at Verkami, a Mataro-based crowdfunding platform for creative projects that matches innovative projects and their creators with patrons online. Joining in from a platform user’s perspective will be writer, filmmaker and graphic design professor Alexis Barroso, who’ll talk about his experience with crowdfunding projects through Verkami.
So, is crowdfunding an emerging trend for bootstrapping Barcelona startup projects? If you’re interested in finding out more, you might want to turn out for the UOCMeet tonight — conducted in Catalá, though Q&A is often a mix of Catalá and Castellano — to ask just that question and to see what the crowdfunding experience might be like for local startups and projects in Barcelona.
