Blog — sTARTUp Day - Most Startup-Minded Business Festival

BLOG

Head of Program Artur Kamberg on this year's program highlights, freelance life and Tartu vs Tallinn

You may know Artur Kamberg as a radio voice, podcast and event host but did you know he is also the Head of Program of sTARTUp Day 2022? Let’s get to know him a little bit better as well as...
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Meet our podcast hosts Marleen Aasa and Otto Oliver Olgo

It’s time to get to know Marleen Aasa and Otto Oliver Olgo, consultants at Miltton New Nordics and the hosts of Season...
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Sandra Saarniit on supporting local startup community and personal growth

This week’s hero is Sandra Saarniit, Startup Community Development Manager at Startup Estonia whose mission is to foster collaboration and learning between...
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Martin Vares – the Estonian Young Entrepreneur of 2021!

Martin Vares is the CEO and co-founder of Fractory, a cloud manufacturing company connecting engineers to potential production capacity through an automated...
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Indrek Neivelt on entrepreneurship, modernizing technology from the 16th century, and luck

Indrek Neivelt is the CEO of Respiray, an Estonian startup creating wearable air purifiers that eliminate over 99% of viruses and bacteria...
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Meelis Kadaja: "We need people, and we need biotechnological solutions to take care of them!"

Meelis Kadaja has worked as the Chief Business Development Officer of Icosagen Cell Factory for seven years. He returned to Estonia in...
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Kadri Tammai: ”Everything is possible with empowered people!”

Kadri Tammai runs the Tehnopol Startup Incubator, that helps Estonian early-stage startups conquer the world market. In addition, from this year, Kadri...
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Katrina Laks: “Knowing that we can make people’s lives better inspires us.”

Migrevention is a young startup that scored a victory at BioHackathon 2020 competition. Despite the challenges of the past year, they have...
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Toms Niparts: “If the problem lets you sleep peacefully, you probably should find fulfillment from another place.”

Toms Niparts is the CEO and Co-Founder of Jeff App, the winner of sTARTUp Pitching 2020. Jeff’s mission is to make financing...
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Henri Klemmer: ”We are at the beginning of a significant green transition and digitization trend, which puts us in an ideal position.”

Henri Klemmer is the CEO and Co-Founder of Hepta Airborne. Established in 2017 and headquartered in Tartu, Hepta Airborne automates the analysis...
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Carlos Paniagua: “Take risks that won’t kill you. But take risks!”

Carlos is the CTO and Co-Founder of Glia – a digital customer service platform that allows consumers to interact with their choice...
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Marion Teder: “The continuous learning process goes according to what the world has to offer.”

Marion Teder is the founder and CEO of CareMate – a platform that helps people needing home care assistance meet their personal...
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Randu Riiberg: “Everything comes down to self-belief.”

Randu is a partner at Law Office Glimstedt and has 20 years of experience as a legal advisor and management consultant. He...
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Jüri Kaljundi: “I expect people and businesses to stop the daily destruction of the world.”

Jüri is the co-founder of weekly team management service Weekdone, nature conservancy foundation Koosloodus and non-profit startup foundation Garage48. He is a...
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Remato – this year’s most outstanding startup in Tartu!

Each year, the City of Tartu awards its best companies, including one noteworthy startup. This year, the title of the Most Outstanding...
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Kaarel Holm: “The most significant emotional victory is to see someone use the thing you've created”

Kaarel Holm is the CEO and co-founder of MeetFrank. MeetFrank is a secret recruitment app for top talent that helps you find...
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Eve Peeterson: “Allow yourself to make mistakes!”

Eve Peeterson is the Head of Startup Estonia. Startup Estonia is a governmental initiative aimed to boost the Estonian startup ecosystem in...
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Mart Lättekivi: "Maybe the midlife crisis just hit me at the age of 24."

Mart Lättekivi is our amazing COO! He has been in the sTARTUp Day family for 3 years now. The first year he...
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Aleksander Tõnnisson: “I'm excited that I don't know what's yet to come.”

Aleksander Tõnnisson is the managing partner of Buildit Pre-Seed and Seed Funds and a co-founder of Buildit Hardware Accelerator that supports hardware...
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Jaan Hendrik Murumets – the Estonian Young Entrepreneur of 2020!

Jaan Hendrik Murumets is the CEO and one of the owners of Krakul, a company operating in the field of IoT. In...
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Hero of the week - Urmas Klaas, the Mayor of Tartu

sTARTUp Day 2020 Hero of the week is Urmas Klaas - the Mayor of Tartu! He has been a great support for...
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Kadri Tuisk: “Many problems an entrepreneur faces are new even to the world”

Hero of the Week Kadri Tuisk is the founder and CEO of Clanbeat  - a personal growth support tool helping people to...
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Kaidi Ruusalepp: “Successful people see opportunities where others see risks”

Hero of the week - Kaidi Ruusalepp is the founder and CEO of Funderbeam, the global funding and trading platform of private...
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Taavi Tamkivi: “I was worrying about all the people who were getting hurt”

Hero of the Week Taavi Tamkivi is the co-founder and CEO of Salv. Salv is an anti-money laundering user-friendly platform for financial...
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Hero of the Week - Martin Jeret: “Fear of not succeeding is never a good reason to say no”

Our Hero of the Week - Martin Jeret became CEO of Nevercode in September. At the beginning of December Nevercode signed a partnership...
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Hero of the Week - Taniel Põld: “I am inspired by Estonian startup landscape”

Taniel Põld is the CEO of Degritter, a company specializing in ultrasonic cleaning of vinyl records and is particularly distinguished by its...
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Hero of the Week - Heikki Mägi: “Leadership is about inspiring the people around you.”

Heikki is an entrepreneur, coach, trainer, active health blogger, and a hobby chef. He’s a co-founder and CEO of Fitlap. The company...
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Stenver Jerkku: “Even if everything seems to fail, always look for learning opportunities.”

Stenver Jerkku is a software engineer, a leader, a public speaker and an entrepreneur but most importantly – the co-founder and COO...
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Hero of the Week - Mari Joller: “I want to reinvent how people search for audio”

Mari Joller is an Estonian tech entrepreneur living in New York, who builds companies that are enabled by artificial intelligence (AI). She...
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Hero of the Week - Kristjan Maruste: “I decided that failing my startup would just equal an MBA"

Kristjan Maruste is the CEO and co-founder of Comodule that creates a universal operating system to digitize light vehicles such as electric...
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Raine Toss (k u u l design): “Each failure is necessary for growth”

Raine Toss is the founder and designer of the Estonian clothing brand k u u l. The brand was initially created by...
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The University of Tartu is ranked in the top 300 in Business and Economics according to the newest Times Higher Education rankings

The University of Tartu’s ranking has risen in the Times Higher Education (THE) rankings! The University of Tartu is ranked 201–250 in...
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Ivo Remmelg: “The biggest mistake is to invest in emotions”

Ivo Remmelg is an entrepreneur and one of the founding members of EstBAN. Ivo has over 25 years of experience managing companies....
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Martin Kristerson: "Teamwork makes the dream work"

Martin Kristerson is the founder and CEO of UpSteam – one of the fastest-growing early-stage startups of Estonia. While he was getting...
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Rain Rannu: “I wanted to do something that would not exist unless I do it.”

Rain Rannu is probably best described as a guy with many talents. He is known as a serial entrepreneur, who is behind...
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Ardo Kaurit - the Estonian Young Entrepreneur of the Year!

Ardo Kaurit started building electric bicycles with two friends 5 years ago. At first, it was more of a side-hobby besides motor...
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Meet our new Head Organizer Marili Vihmann

Marili has been with sTARTUp Day since the very beginning. She started as the volunteers’ team lead and was a member of...
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Hero of the Week: Rein Lemberpuu, CEO and Founder of .Contriber: “You Often Have to Work on Balancing the Opposites.”

Rein Lemberpuu – a man who needs no further introduction. Though if you do – he is one of the Tartu startup...
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Oliver Leisalu, CTO & Co-Founder of Bolt: “Be passionate about what you’re doing.”

Oliver Leisalu is the CTO and the third co-founder of Bolt (previously Taxify) of whom we yet don’t know much. Oliver will...
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Peter Vesterbacka, Co-Founder of Lightneer: ”I Always Knew That I Wanted to do My Own Thing.”

Peter Vesterbacka is a Finnish entrepreneur and mobile game developer who is most famous for being part of wildly successful Angry Birds....
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Sten Tamkivi, Chief Product Officer of Topia: “Don’t say a bad word about anything you're not ready to do better yourself.”

Sten Tamkivi is the Chief Product Officer of Topia and the President of Estonian Startup Leaders Club. He is a true hero...
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Fashion Designer Reet Aus: “For Some Reason, Our Society Doesn’t Value Failures.”

Reet Aus is a fashion, theatre and film artist, with a goal to focus on environmentally friendly and sustainable creation. That is...
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Andrus Purde, Co-Founder of Outfunnel: “One can only hope that people have the patience not to take one marshmallow now but wait for two.”

Andrus Purde is an Estonian marketing guru with over 20 years of experience in marketing. After working at Skype and Pipedrive, he...
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Kadri Bussov, CEO of ESTCube: “Failing Is One of the Greatest Things That Can Happen in Life.”

Kadri Bussov is the CEO of Estonian Student Satellite Foundation ESTCube – she is coordinating the construction of the ESTCube-2 satellite. The...
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Tõnu Runnel, Co-Founder of Sixfold: “Be Ready to Let Go of the Status Quo No Matter What the Question Is.”

Tõnu Runnel is a true multi-talent – he is an entrepreneur, a designer, and a photographer.
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Marili Vihmann, Head Organizer of sTARTUp Talks: “It’s truly a blessing to be a human being with one’s emotions."

Marili Vihmann is the Head Organizer of sTARTUp Talks, the official side event series of sTARTUp Day. Her daily challenge is to...
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Alissa Vassilkova, Co-Founder and CEO of Estelon: “You Just Have to Believe in Yourself and Try.”

Alissa Vassilkova is the CEO and the Co-Founder of Estelon, which is one of the world’s most luxurious speaker brands. Recently she...
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Kaarel Kotkas, CEO & Founder of Veriff: “We Are Creating Trust in a World That is Otherwise Considered Anonymous.”

Kaarel Kotkas might be young but definitely not inexperienced. His company Veriff has completed the Y Combinator program, which is one of...
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Martin Vares, Co-Founder & CEO of Fractory.co: “You Have to Celebrate Even the Smallest of Victories.”

Martin Vares is the CEO & co-founder of an on-demand manufacturing platform Fractory.co, which has been an astoundingly successful startup – recently...
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Hero of the Week: Kei Karlson, Co-Founder of GoWorkaBit Where Fun Factor is a Serious KPI

Year: 2013, location: the legendary Garage48 hackathon. An idea which would change the whole job market was born – it’s called GoWorkaBit....
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Hero of the Week: Märt Aro, Co-Founder of DreamApply: “You Can Be Stupid, But Be Stubborn.”

Märt Aro has taken a mission upon himself – to develop the field of education by the educational software DreamApply which co-founder...
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Hero of the Week: Richard Murutar, Founder & CEO of SprayPrinter: “My Goal is to Have World Peace by 2021.”

Richard Murutar is a man with a vision of making our planet a better environment for us and our children. He does...
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Hero of the Week: Young Entrepreneur of the Year, CEO of eAgronom, Robin Saluoks

Robin Saluoks - co-Founder and CEO of eAgronom, Hero of the week. And yesterday the title of the Young Entrepreneur of the...
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Hero of the Week: Triin Kask, Co-Founder & CEO of Nevercode

“Believing in yourself is the most crucial asset that you have. Trust life and trust that everything turns out good in the...
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Hero of the Week: Kristel Kruustük, Founder & CEO of Testlio

Kristel Kruustük is the Co-Founder and CEO of Testlio, software testing and QA management platform that has become one of the most successful...
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Hero of the Week: Kelly Kangur, Co-Founder & CBO of Decomer Technology

Decomer Technology is developing a novel water-soluble and edible packaging material. Our next Hero of the Week is Kelly Kangur, Co-Founder and Chief...
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Hero of the Week: Ermo Tikk, Head Organizer of sTARTUp Day

It’s the kickoff of our brand new column – Hero of the Week. Our first hero is Ermo Tikk – head organizer...
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Tickets from €159

Tickets

Find your perfect ticket type! All ticket types grant access to all three festival days on 29-31 January 2025. 

Venue access
Ϟ Day 0: Side Events on January 29
Ϟ Day 1 on January 30
Ϟ Day 2 on January 31
Matchmaking
This is where the magic happens. Through our matchmaking app, you can schedule 20-minute meetings with participants and meet them at our matchmaking area. General access to the matchmaking app will be available at the beginning of the festival week.
Stage program
There will be three stages at sTARTUp Day 2025 – Starlight Stage, Insight Stage, and Pitching Stage – with speakers and presenters who cover a variety of topics for every taste.
Demo Area access
This is the Mecca of Entrepreneurship! Explore the latest innovations and discover new products, services, friends, opportunities and perhaps, your new career challenge.
sTARTUp Night
The legendary sTARTUp Night wraps up the first conference day on January 30. The afterparty is bringing together the coolest festival visitors, good music, and lots of surprises!
Seminars
Practical seminars to sharpen & level up your skills.
Side events
Vibrant side events take place all over Tartu before and during the official festival.
Early access to matchmaking app
With early access, you’ll gain access to our matchmaking app two weeks earlier than most people. Use the opportunity to get a head start and request meetings with the hottest participants before all their slots are full.
VIP Reception
Celebrate the beginning of sTARTUp Day in style! The VIP Reception brings together speakers, investors & executives for an unforgettable night.
VIP Lounge access
Escape to your lounge where you can kick back and relax, get some work done, or prep for the next meeting.
Investor Day
Investor Day on January 29 is an exclusive investors' meetup to share experiences, learn from each other, and create meaningful contacts. Structured in a way you'd feel both elevated by and busy with new ideas while leaving enough room for networking.
Executive Day
Executive Day on January 29 is about taking the time to listen, talk, and network with other leaders. This is the place to bounce your thoughts and learn about challenges and solutions across different industries.
List of attending investors
Startups will see the participating investors' list (investor's name + investment fund's name) which enables them to request meetings with the right investors through our matchmaking app.
List of attending startups
There are over 300 unique startups at sTARTUp Day, which can be quite overwhelming at times. We'll send you a database of all of the participating startups so you can browse through them all and select the ones you want to meet beforehand.
Personalised startup matches
With the help of our good friends from Dealum, we will find the most relevant startup matches based on each investor’s profile. This means that investors will get a list of hand-selected startups that meet their requirements, making it even easier to meet the right startup.
Visibility at sTARTUp Day website
All validated startups and the biggest VC funds will be featured on the sTARTUp Day website.

Visitor

179 €
BUY NOW
Venue access
Ϟ Day 0: Side Events on January 29
Ϟ Day 1 on January 30
Ϟ Day 2 on January 31
Matchmaking
This is where the magic happens. Through our matchmaking app, you can schedule 20-minute meetings with participants and meet them at our matchmaking area. General access to the matchmaking app will be available at the beginning of the festival week.
Stage program
There will be three stages at sTARTUp Day 2025 – Starlight Stage, Insight Stage, and Pitching Stage – with speakers and presenters who cover a variety of topics for every taste.
Demo Area access
This is the Mecca of Entrepreneurship! Explore the latest innovations and discover new products, services, friends, opportunities and perhaps, your new career challenge.
sTARTUp Night
The legendary sTARTUp Night wraps up the first conference day on January 30. The afterparty is bringing together the coolest festival visitors, good music, and lots of surprises!
Seminars
Practical seminars to sharpen & level up your skills.
Side events
Vibrant side events take place all over Tartu before and during the official festival.
Early access to matchmaking app
With early access, you’ll gain access to our matchmaking app two weeks earlier than most people. Use the opportunity to get a head start and request meetings with the hottest participants before all their slots are full.
VIP Reception
Celebrate the beginning of sTARTUp Day in style! The VIP Reception brings together speakers, investors & executives for an unforgettable night.
VIP Lounge access
Escape to your lounge where you can kick back and relax, get some work done, or prep for the next meeting.
Investor Day
Investor Day on January 29 is an exclusive investors' meetup to share experiences, learn from each other, and create meaningful contacts. Structured in a way you'd feel both elevated by and busy with new ideas while leaving enough room for networking.
Executive Day
Executive Day on January 29 is about taking the time to listen, talk, and network with other leaders. This is the place to bounce your thoughts and learn about challenges and solutions across different industries.
List of attending investors
Startups will see the participating investors' list (investor's name + investment fund's name) which enables them to request meetings with the right investors through our matchmaking app.
List of attending startups
There are over 300 unique startups at sTARTUp Day, which can be quite overwhelming at times. We'll send you a database of all of the participating startups so you can browse through them all and select the ones you want to meet beforehand.
Personalised startup matches
With the help of our good friends from Dealum, we will find the most relevant startup matches based on each investor’s profile. This means that investors will get a list of hand-selected startups that meet their requirements, making it even easier to meet the right startup.
Visibility at sTARTUp Day website
All validated startups and the biggest VC funds will be featured on the sTARTUp Day website.

Startup

159 €
BUY NOW
Venue access
Ϟ Day 0: Side Events on January 29
Ϟ Day 1 on January 30
Ϟ Day 2 on January 31
Matchmaking
This is where the magic happens. Through our matchmaking app, you can schedule 20-minute meetings with participants and meet them at our matchmaking area. General access to the matchmaking app will be available at the beginning of the festival week.
Stage program
There will be three stages at sTARTUp Day 2025 – Starlight Stage, Insight Stage, and Pitching Stage – with speakers and presenters who cover a variety of topics for every taste.
Demo Area access
This is the Mecca of Entrepreneurship! Explore the latest innovations and discover new products, services, friends, opportunities and perhaps, your new career challenge.
sTARTUp Night
The legendary sTARTUp Night wraps up the first conference day on January 30. The afterparty is bringing together the coolest festival visitors, good music, and lots of surprises!
Seminars
Practical seminars to sharpen & level up your skills.
Side events
Vibrant side events take place all over Tartu before and during the official festival.
Early access to matchmaking app
With early access, you’ll gain access to our matchmaking app two weeks earlier than most people. Use the opportunity to get a head start and request meetings with the hottest participants before all their slots are full.
VIP Reception
Celebrate the beginning of sTARTUp Day in style! The VIP Reception brings together speakers, investors & executives for an unforgettable night.
VIP Lounge access
Escape to your lounge where you can kick back and relax, get some work done, or prep for the next meeting.
Investor Day
Investor Day on January 29 is an exclusive investors' meetup to share experiences, learn from each other, and create meaningful contacts. Structured in a way you'd feel both elevated by and busy with new ideas while leaving enough room for networking.
Executive Day
Executive Day on January 29 is about taking the time to listen, talk, and network with other leaders. This is the place to bounce your thoughts and learn about challenges and solutions across different industries.
List of attending investors
Startups will see the participating investors' list (investor's name + investment fund's name) which enables them to request meetings with the right investors through our matchmaking app.
List of attending startups
There are over 300 unique startups at sTARTUp Day, which can be quite overwhelming at times. We'll send you a database of all of the participating startups so you can browse through them all and select the ones you want to meet beforehand.
Personalised startup matches
With the help of our good friends from Dealum, we will find the most relevant startup matches based on each investor’s profile. This means that investors will get a list of hand-selected startups that meet their requirements, making it even easier to meet the right startup.
Visibility at sTARTUp Day website
All validated startups and the biggest VC funds will be featured on the sTARTUp Day website.

Investor

259 €
BUY NOW
Venue access
Ϟ Day 0: Side Events on January 29
Ϟ Day 1 on January 30
Ϟ Day 2 on January 31
Matchmaking
This is where the magic happens. Through our matchmaking app, you can schedule 20-minute meetings with participants and meet them at our matchmaking area. General access to the matchmaking app will be available at the beginning of the festival week.
Stage program
There will be three stages at sTARTUp Day 2025 – Starlight Stage, Insight Stage, and Pitching Stage – with speakers and presenters who cover a variety of topics for every taste.
Demo Area access
This is the Mecca of Entrepreneurship! Explore the latest innovations and discover new products, services, friends, opportunities and perhaps, your new career challenge.
sTARTUp Night
The legendary sTARTUp Night wraps up the first conference day on January 30. The afterparty is bringing together the coolest festival visitors, good music, and lots of surprises!
Seminars
Practical seminars to sharpen & level up your skills.
Side events
Vibrant side events take place all over Tartu before and during the official festival.
Early access to matchmaking app
With early access, you’ll gain access to our matchmaking app two weeks earlier than most people. Use the opportunity to get a head start and request meetings with the hottest participants before all their slots are full.
VIP Reception
Celebrate the beginning of sTARTUp Day in style! The VIP Reception brings together speakers, investors & executives for an unforgettable night.
VIP Lounge access
Escape to your lounge where you can kick back and relax, get some work done, or prep for the next meeting.
Investor Day
Investor Day on January 29 is an exclusive investors' meetup to share experiences, learn from each other, and create meaningful contacts. Structured in a way you'd feel both elevated by and busy with new ideas while leaving enough room for networking.
Executive Day
Executive Day on January 29 is about taking the time to listen, talk, and network with other leaders. This is the place to bounce your thoughts and learn about challenges and solutions across different industries.
List of attending investors
Startups will see the participating investors' list (investor's name + investment fund's name) which enables them to request meetings with the right investors through our matchmaking app.
List of attending startups
There are over 300 unique startups at sTARTUp Day, which can be quite overwhelming at times. We'll send you a database of all of the participating startups so you can browse through them all and select the ones you want to meet beforehand.
Personalised startup matches
With the help of our good friends from Dealum, we will find the most relevant startup matches based on each investor’s profile. This means that investors will get a list of hand-selected startups that meet their requirements, making it even easier to meet the right startup.
Visibility at sTARTUp Day website
All validated startups and the biggest VC funds will be featured on the sTARTUp Day website.

Executive

259 €
BUY NOW
Venue access
Ϟ Day 0: Side Events on January 29
Ϟ Day 1 on January 30
Ϟ Day 2 on January 31
Matchmaking
This is where the magic happens. Through our matchmaking app, you can schedule 20-minute meetings with participants and meet them at our matchmaking area. General access to the matchmaking app will be available at the beginning of the festival week.
Stage program
There will be three stages at sTARTUp Day 2025 – Starlight Stage, Insight Stage, and Pitching Stage – with speakers and presenters who cover a variety of topics for every taste.
Demo Area access
This is the Mecca of Entrepreneurship! Explore the latest innovations and discover new products, services, friends, opportunities and perhaps, your new career challenge.
sTARTUp Night
The legendary sTARTUp Night wraps up the first conference day on January 30. The afterparty is bringing together the coolest festival visitors, good music, and lots of surprises!
Seminars
Practical seminars to sharpen & level up your skills.
Side events
Vibrant side events take place all over Tartu before and during the official festival.
Early access to matchmaking app
With early access, you’ll gain access to our matchmaking app two weeks earlier than most people. Use the opportunity to get a head start and request meetings with the hottest participants before all their slots are full.
VIP Reception
Celebrate the beginning of sTARTUp Day in style! The VIP Reception brings together speakers, investors & executives for an unforgettable night.
VIP Lounge access
Escape to your lounge where you can kick back and relax, get some work done, or prep for the next meeting.
Investor Day
Investor Day on January 29 is an exclusive investors' meetup to share experiences, learn from each other, and create meaningful contacts. Structured in a way you'd feel both elevated by and busy with new ideas while leaving enough room for networking.
Executive Day
Executive Day on January 29 is about taking the time to listen, talk, and network with other leaders. This is the place to bounce your thoughts and learn about challenges and solutions across different industries.
List of attending investors
Startups will see the participating investors' list (investor's name + investment fund's name) which enables them to request meetings with the right investors through our matchmaking app.
List of attending startups
There are over 300 unique startups at sTARTUp Day, which can be quite overwhelming at times. We'll send you a database of all of the participating startups so you can browse through them all and select the ones you want to meet beforehand.
Personalised startup matches
With the help of our good friends from Dealum, we will find the most relevant startup matches based on each investor’s profile. This means that investors will get a list of hand-selected startups that meet their requirements, making it even easier to meet the right startup.
Visibility at sTARTUp Day website
All validated startups and the biggest VC funds will be featured on the sTARTUp Day website.