GALLERY

About

The Spinoff Bulgaria initiative was created by the Health and Life Sciences Cluster Bulgaria, the Artificial Intelligence Cluster Bulgaria and Venrize.

The 2022 conference is supported by the Bulgarian Small and Medium Enterprises Promotion Agency (BSMEPA) as a general partner. Further supporters are the Bulgarian Employer Association for Innovative Technologies (BRAIT), the Confederation of Employers and Industrialists in Bulgaria (KRIB), the municipality of Burgas.

Our goal is to support a sustainable spin-off ecosystem and culture in Bulgaria and Europe by connecting national stakeholders with international partners. We will present best practices and insights from universities, investors, governments, corporates and relevant industry experts, as well as funding opportunities from European organizations. 

Within the event, it is planned to have content that encourages companies to enter into consortia and a closer collaboration with universities and existing scientific infrastructure.

PROGRAM

DAY 1

Opening & Welcome (10:00 – 10:30 EET) 

• Opening: Welcome, the introduction of the day and the agenda. 

• Boyko Takov, Executive Director Bulgarian SME Promotion Agency

• Bogdan Bogdanov - Director of the Bulgarian Investment Agency 

• Introduction to Spinoff - Value and Best Practices

The Academic Perspective - Academic Technology Transfer Insights, Challenges and Best Practices (11:10 – 11:50 EET) 

Coffee break (11:50-12:10 EET)

The Investors Perspective - Spinoffs as an asset class for investors  (12:10 – 12:50 EET) Keynotes & Presentations by national and international investors

Lunch – Networking (12:50 – 13:50 EET) 

Bulgarian Ecosystem Conditions, Ambitions and Needs (13:50-14:30 EET) Panel Discussion, Representatives of the Bulgarian Ecosystem

Panelists:

• Stoyan Yordanov - Postdoctoral Researcher at Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, BTI

• Andreas Maier - Founder of Industry Association Digital Bulgaria

• Bulgarian Association of Innovative Technologies (BRAIT)

• Bulgarian Innovation Forum (BIF) - (TBC)

Secret Ingredients I - Innovation Commercialisation in Academia  (14:30 – 15:10 EET) Panel Discussion 

Panelists:

• Victoria Sarafian - Prof. Dr. MD, PhD, DMSc, Medical University - Plovdiv

• Prof. DSc  George Todorov - Dean of the Faculty of Industrial Technology (FIT) next to Technical University Sofia

• Kristina Borisova - American University in BG

• Antonio Giordano MD PhD, president of SHRO

• BBI Cambridge - Juan R. Garcia, MBA

Secret Ingredients II – The Role of Intellectual Property (15:10 – 15:50 EET) Panel Discussion

Panelists:

• Prof. Vladia Borisova - Dr., President of The Patent Office of the Republic of Bulgaria

• Dr Stoyan Radkov - PhD EPA - Owner - Priority IP Ltd

Coffee break (15:50-16:10 EET)

Secret Ingredients III - Investment in Spinoff Venture Funds and Early-Stage Innovation  (16:10 – 16:50 EET) Panel Discussion

Panelists:

• Vladimir Tomov - Head of Investment Council next to BCCI

• Alper Celen - Enhance Ventures

Closing remarks (16:40-17:00 EET)

Networking (17:00 - 19:00 EET)

DAY 2

Opening & Welcome (10:00 – 10:30 EET) 

The New European Innovation Strategy, Keynotes

Eva Maydell - MEP, European Parliament

Tsvetelina Penkova - MEP, European Parliament 

EU Funding Programs (10:30-11:10 EET ) Presentations & Discussion

Panelists:

• Albena Kuyumdzhieva - European Innovation Council EIC

• Yumer Kodjayumer - Ministry of Education and Science

• Daniela Tchonkova - EEN-Bulgaria Coordinator, Programme Manager at Applied Research and Communications Fund

Coffee break (11:10-11:30 EET) 

Female Entrepreneurship in Spinoffs (11:30-12:10 EET) Panel Discussion

Panelists:

• Diane Nevin - CEO of GRIT (Grit International Female Accelerator)

• Elena Nikolova - CEO Angels Club

• Alexandra Velkova - Atlas Agro

• Maya Milanova  - Managing Director at Flow Logic

• Assoc. Prof. PhD Agata Manolova - Technical University of Sofia

Community builders Digital Innovation Hubs I Part 1 (12:10-12:50 EET) - Panel Discussion.

Panelists:

• Rumyana Grozeva - European Digital Innovation Hub Zagore

• Mariyana Hamanova - Director of CleanTech Bulgaria

• Svetlana Boyanova - Director of AgroHub 

• Svetlin Iliev - Director of Trakia Digital Innovation Hub

Community builders, Infrastructure & Resources I Part 2  (12:50-13:30 EET)

Panelists:

• Todor Mladenov - Executive Director at Sofia Tech Park JSC

• Prof. Ilia Iliev - Director Centre of Technologies Plovdiv University, PERIMED

• Evgeni Ivanov - Head of Technology Transfer Center QUASAR

• Prof. Sotir Sotirov PhD - Prof. Assen Zlatarov University

• Denitsa Tsekova - Manager Infinitus Ltd.

Lunch – Networking (13:30 – 14:30 EET) 

Community builders, Clusters Part 3 (14:30-15:10 EET)

Panelists:

• Daniela Tchonkova - EEN-Bulgaria Coordinator, Programme Manager at Applied Research and Communications Fund

• Teodora Jilkova - Veritas Cluster

• Prof. George Angelov - Chair of Cluster of Microelectronics, Technical University Sofia

• Genoveva Christova-Murray - president of the Bulgarian furniture cluster and CreaTech Bulgaria

• Petko Georgiev - Chairman of Southeast Digital Innovation Hub

The Role Of PanEuropean Ecosystems (15:10-15:30 EET) Panel Discussion

Panelists:

• Clemens Wasner - ADRA, Member of European AI Forum 

• Andy Bleaden - ECHAlliance

• Montse Daban - Biocat, BioRegion of Catalonia. INNAXE

• Maria Pournari - Institute of Entrepreneurship Development

• Benjamin Talin - MoreThanDigital International

European Cluster Collaborations: Daniel Cosnita– President of the Romanian Cluster Association, Co-chairs of EEN Thematic Group on Clusters (15:30-16:10 EET)

Coffee break (16:10-16:20 EET)

Company Showcase, Venture Builder & Investor Feedback (16:20- 17:00 EET)

Participants:

• Viktor Todorov - Prevento

• Miroslav Gechev -Telelink Business Services

• Dimitar Dimitrov - Hemokin Pharmaceuticals

• Dimitar Mitev - Meteo.RockS

• Assoc. Prof. Hussein Yemendzhiev - Enova H2O

• Alexandra Velkova - Atlas Agro Science

• Hemmel Amrania - Digistain

Bulgarian Spinoff Of The Year Award - Kick-Off Announcement

Closing remarks (17:00-17:20 EET)

SPEAKERS