Pitching day: Finalists of the Apply AI Startup Award.
The top 10 finalists of the Apply AI Startup Award will pitch on 20 October 2026.
Written by AI from EU Digital Strategy's published text.
Pitching day: Finalists of the Apply AI Startup Award Anonymous (not verified) Mon, 08/24/2026 - 10:19 20 October 2026 Watch the pitches of the top 10 finalists of the Apply AI Startup Award and learn more about how the European Innovation Council (EIC) and the European Commission support AI startups. The Appply AI Award, organised by AI BOOST , recognises innovative European startups and scaleups developing AI solutions in the 11 strategic sectors covered by the Apply AI Strategy . In July, national startup associations nominated 24 European AI startups and scaleups across 16 Member States. Independent experts have evaluated the nominations and chose the top 10 finalists for the pitching event. Each startup will have 3 minutes to pitch their AI solution and convince the jury. After the pitching session the jury will select the 3 winners. Among other rewards, they will be invited to pitch their solution and receive a trophy and certificate on the main stage of the Apply AI Summit . Registration Click and fill the form to register Top 10 finalists AID, s.r.o. Better Medicine blueOASIS DAITABLE, s.r.o. Flinn Prewave GmbH ReportAId s.r.l. Seedsight TrollWall AI Zortify S.A . You can learn more about the these 10 finalists of the Apply AI Startup Award . Jury The jury members are: Dr. Panagiotis Kikiras Deputy Head of Unit for Excellence in AI and Robotics, at the European AI Office, European Commission With over 20 years of experience in computer and network engineering, Dr Panagiotis Kikiras' expertise lies in IoT, wireless sensor systems, embedded technologies, wearables, cyber defence, security, privacy, and mission-critical C4ISR systems. Before joining the Commission, he held senior positions across industry, academia and public institutions, including the European Defence Agency. He also led major European and national security and defence projects. Dr Hedi Karray Programme Manager for AI at the European Innovation Council (EIC) Dr Hedi Karray is the EIC Programme Manager for AI, where he shapes innovation strategies to accelerate Europe’s next breakthroughs in frontier AI. He manages a broad portfolio of high-potential AI start-ups, scale-ups and exploratory deep-tech projects, supporting their journey from cutting-edge research to market-ready solutions and global growth. His work focuses on identifying emerging opportunities across frontier AI models, embodied intelligence and AI-enabled industrial systems, while fostering trustworthy, sovereign and competitive European AI capabilities. Diva Tommei Chief of Innovation and Investments at 28DIGITAL Diva leads activities spanning researcher entrepreneurship, technology transfer, venture incubation, startup acceleration, scaleup growth and access to finance across Europe. An entrepreneur and investor, she was previously Investment Director at Enea Tech and founded a Silicon Valley–backed technology company. Agenda 14:00-15:30 CET(to be confirmed) Welcome and introduction Part I - Pitches Presentation from the Directorate-General for Defence Industry and Space (DG DEFIS): EUDIS & AGILE - opportunities for AI Startups in defence Presentation from EIC Part II - Pitches Conclusion Registration form Related topics Events Artificial intelligence Apply AI Summit