betapitch come to Copenhagen


    One of the things that fosters a healthy and active start up scene is a good pitching competition. It’s a space for new ideas to get aired and face the test of public opinion, plus for the winners there are prizes that can offer money, office space, coaching and exposure. There are many such events taking place all over Europe throughout the year and one coming soon is betapitch | copenhagen which is open to applications right now.

    This pitching competition will be taking place at republikken, Copenhagen, on the 20th of June. The idea is simple, those selected from the applicants will have five minutes to pitch followed by three minutes of questioning. A format I’m sure everyone who’s attended something like this before will be familiar with.

    It’s also just one part of a much larger competition. betapitch is a start up competition that started at betahaus in Berlin and has recently completed a hardware pitching competition in the city. Next, along with the event in Copenhagen, they’re hosting others in Sofia and Krakow, plus more to follow in Hamburg and Vienna before the big finale back in Berlin for betapitch | global.

    The main prize for the Copenhagen event is six months worth of free co-working space at republikken, useful if you’re without an office of your own and based in or around Copenhagen, but perhaps not so much if you’re elsewhere in Scandinavia. There is also the benefit of getting intros to the investors and media that both republikken and betahaus are networked with, and there are some other prizes provided by the likes of Elance, Explainer Rocket and Axel Springer Plug and Play Accelerator.

    If that isn’t enough to tempt some of the more ambitious start ups then there is another lure they’ve thrown out. The winner also gets fast tracked to the final betapitch | global in Berlin where the prizes are bigger. Winning the global event will net the successful start up €5,000 cash, a fully sponsored trip to Silicon Valley, and more prizes from others including Microsoft Ventures and Seedrs.

    betapitch are encouraging all start ups from Scandinavia to apply, whether they’re already running a start up, only have a prototype in place, or just a thought through idea. You’ll have to quick though, applications are only open until the 6th June, so you’ve only got a few days left to apply. If you’re not interested in applying or pitching but would still like to attend the event, you can also book a ticket, and with the promise of free drink, food and a great party I’m tempted to go myself.

    We wish each Scandinavian start up applying the best of luck, and we’ll be cheering the winners on as they represent our region in the finals at the end of August in Berlin as well.

    Image courtesy of Shutterstock//Giving a talk