Fifty Founders Battle - Baltic Edition
Bring your A-game on for up to 300K EUR investment opportunity from Firstpick, LatBAN & Depo Ventures!
TechChill is bringing some spice to the Fifty Founders Battle 2025 by focusing on the Baltics startup ecosystem! Why, you might ask? We see the strong indicators of Fifty Founders Battle dominating by Baltic startups.
This is an opportunity for the 50 best startups to pitch on TechChill’s stage in front of investors & compete for up to 300k EUR investment prize & 10K no-strings-attached. Put on your best shoes, wear the best hoodie and get ready to pitch your startup in front of international investors and stakeholders looking for the next Baltic unicorn!
About
➞ Your chance for a spotlight
TechChill's yearly startup competition, Fifty Founders Battle, showcases emerging companies in their early stages. The contest selects 50 of the most promising startups from the Baltic region. This includes businesses headquartered elsewhere but with a *dominant base in Estonia, Latvia, or Lithuania. Chosen semi-finalists will have the chance to pitch their business concepts on TechChill's stage to an audience of more than 200 investors and other attendees.
➞ How we pick the lucky 50
All eligible applications will be evaluated by VCs, accelerators, angel investors, and industry experts. In the first phase, the evaluators will focus on the business idea, its scalability, the team behind it, and the overall quality of the application. The platform of choice for multiple years running is our good friend HopoHopo. The fifty companies with the highest average scores will receive a confirmation. So, channel your inner startup superhero, keep your entrepreneurial spidey-senses tingling, and may the odds be ever in your favor!
➞ How we pick Top 10
TOP 10 will consist of 5 startups selected by the syndicate partners in advance + 5 startups selected by investor jury at the TOP 50 semi-finals happening on TechChill stage. All startups will be competing for the 10K no-strings-attached prize, while only the 5 startups selected by the syndicate jury will be evaluated for the up to investment prize.
➞ You should know these dates
December 2 Application deadline
January 8 TOP 50 announced
January 20-21 Pitch training for TOP 50 (online)
January 27 TOP 5 finalists announced (for the Investment prize)
February 5 Pitch Bootcamp in-person @Fantadroms
February 6 TOP 50 semi-finals on TechChill stage
February 6 Additional TOP 5 announced (for the 10K no-strings-attached and other prizes)
February 7 THE FINAL TOP 10 pitches & awards
➞ Got Qs?
Still unclear about something? Feel free to reach out to Anna anna@techchill.co
Who can apply? Baltic Startups
➞ Stage & Previous funding
Your startup has not received more than 700k EUR in exchange for equity. Grants are fine. Most likely, the company is not older than 3 years, but there could be exceptions.
➞ Marketplaces, deeptech, and anything between
The 2025 competition is sector-agnostic. What it means in practice is that the applications are open to everyone regardless of their represented industry. The fifty best startups will then be split into five groups which make the most sense.
➞ Baltic startups - we are calling for you!
This year we would like to invite startups from the Baltics, including companies with HQs elsewhere but with a dominant base* in Estonia, Latvia, or Lithuania.
What is dominant base you would ask?
*Legally registered or headquartered in Estonia, Latvia, or Lithuania.
or
For startups with headquarters outside the Baltics (must comply with 1 or more points):
a) At least 50% of the company's full-time employees must be based in one or more Baltic countries.
b) The startup's primary research and development activities are conducted in the Baltics.
c) The startup's main product or service development takes place in a Baltic country.
d) The startup was founded by citizens or permanent residents of Estonia, Latvia, or Lithuania (at least 1 of the co-founders).
Prize pool
➞ Up to 100k EUR investment prize by Firstpick!
In true fashion of Latvian and Lithuanian 'braļukas’ relationship we collaborate together to bring forward all the perspective early-stage startups and make their A-game possible. Firstpick help founders build companies by offering a bulletproof combination of investment and knowledge through our pre-acceleration and acceleration programs. What a combo!
➞ 10K EUR no strings attached from TechChill community - eazyBI, Plug & Play ✨
…or maybe more? Win a prize pot of a of 10,000 EUR, no strings attached.
So many things you can do with it:
🍾 Team sauna for your office…. or maybe 2 saunas, if you wish
🤘 A waterproof sound system to blast your best hits
☀️ Solar panels to charge all of your laptops
➞ Up to 100k EUR investment prize by Depo Ventures!
With around 20% of our portfolio coming from the Baltics, DEPO has been a believer in the CEE region way before it became cool. Supporting #50foundersbattle is just another way for DEPO to pursue its mission to help founders from the region grow and succeed on a global stage.
➞ Up to 100k EUR investment prize by LatBAN!
➞ Draper University Hero Program tuition
Deep-dive program for founders to boost their tech success journey alongside industry leaders.
DraperU will select candidates for full scholarship for the Summer 2025 Hero Training program in Silicon Valley. Their amazing alumni from 100+ countries have raised $950M+ in investment, have created 7000+ jobs and most importantly, have built a life-long bond with their fellow DraperU heroes.
This scholarship will cover tuition fee worth of $12,000 USD, accommodation, activities and events with DU and some meals. Extra expenses that are not covered are flight tickets, daily meals and personal expenses.
...and more is yet to be announced!
This is it for now but by the time the competition arrives, expect the list to be much longer. Some things you can expect:
💰 Exposure on stage in front of 200+ international investors, media and 2K+ attendees;
💰 Media and social media exposure.
Fifty Founders Battle prize partners
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