В этом году крупнейший в мире конкурс стартапов Startup World Cup (www.startupworldcup.io) впервые выходит на российскую технологическую арену — в рамках конференции Tech Week 26–28 мая 2025 года пройдет дебютный питчинг инновационных проектов. Это уникальная возможность для отечественных стартапов из сферы AI, робототехники, big data, финтеха, биотехнологий и других передовых направлений представить свои разработки перед ведущими венчурными инвесторами и экспертами.

Startup World Cup — это не просто конкурс, а масштабная технологическая платформа, которая ежегодно объединяет тысячи стартапов из более чем 60 стран, предоставляя финалистам доступ к глобальному инвестиционному капиталу и мировым технологическим трендам. Российский полуфинал, организованный совместно с Startup Grind Moscow (https://www.startupgrind.com/moscow/) и The Yellow Door (www.i8gl.com), станет первой ступенью на пути российских инноваторов к гранд-финалу в Кремниевой долине 17 октября 2025 года, где будет разыгран грант в размере 1 миллиона долларов.

Для стартапов это шанс выйти на международный уровень, привлечь инвестиции, получить менторскую поддержку и представить Россию в Кремниевой долине.The Startup World Cup (www.startupworldcup.io) is pleased to announce its first ever Semi-finals and Finals in Russia, starting with the Moscow Tech Week on May 26-30 2026 (https://techweek.moscow/) and Skolkovo Startup Village (https://startupvillage.ru/en), in partnership with Startup Grind Moscow (https://www.startupgrind.com/moscow/) and The Yellow Door (www.i8gl.com).

The Startup World Cup is the largest conference-competition of startups in the world, with a Grand Final held annually in Silicon Valley. More than 60 countries hold regional Startup World Cup competitions, where they determine a winning startup who will represent the country in the Grand Final and compete for an investment prize of $1 million.

The Startup World Cup is not just about competing startup teams. The Grand Final in Silicon Valley is a unique opportunity to meet leading investors, founders and top corporate executives of innovative companies as Apple, Netflix, Siri, Softbank, LinkedIn, Cisco, Khosla Ventures and dozens of others. Speakers at the competition often include Steve Wozniak, Mark Randolph, Adam Chayer, Marcelo Claur, Reed Hoffman, John Chambers and other major global investors and business leaders. Winners of Startup World Cup Russia are invited to participate as representatives of their country at this Grand Final, taking place in 2025 on October 17 at the Hilton in San Francisco's Union Square. These Finalists will not only have an opportunity to present their project and compete for the $1M investment prize, but also receive coaching, mentorship, and in-person conversations with world experts, "business sharks,” find partners and future investors.

The global organizer of the competition is Pegasus Tech Ventures (https://www.pegasustechventures.com/), whose over $14 billion portfolio includes such companies as OpenAI, Anthropic, SpaceX, Airbnb, SoFi and many more.

Proud to host the Startup World Cup in Russia are Startup Grind Moscow and The Yellow Door. Startup Grind (https://about.startupgrind.com/) is the largest startup community in the world. They host events for founders, innovators and investors in over 350 cities across 110 countries, connecting over 3 million entrepreneurs worldwide. Startup Grind builds a connected network of vibrant startup communities to help fuel innovation, economic growth and prosperity. Their annual Global Conference is one of the most popular in Silicon Valley - the next one will be held April 29-30, 2026 (https://www.startupgrind.tech/). For more information on the Moscow and Russia chapter, contact kat@startupgrind.com.

The Yellow Door (www.yellowdoor.ru) is a project of Innov8 Global Ventures (www.i8gl.com), working the last 15 years as an 'underground' community of local investors, entrepreneurs, thinkers and builders in Moscow and across Russia, Georgia, Ukraine, Belorus and other CIS countries. They offer Silicon Valley a window into tech-rich but historically 'harder-to-reach' corners of the world - and provide a door for top entrepreneurs, investors and corporates from these regions to access trends, capital and markets in developed innovation ecosystems globally. For more information, contact info@i8gl.com or info@yellowdoor.ru.

We are also honored to have the first semi-finals of Russia’s Startup World Cup hosted this year by Moscow Tech Week and Skolkovo Startup Village. Moscow Tech Week is a multi-format conference on digital technologies for business and Artificial Intelligence. Tech Week brings together leading industry experts and business representatives to discuss practical cases and developments in the field of digital transformation, automation and robotization of business processes. Participants learn about advanced domestic solutions that help businesses in the context of import substitution and discuss key trends in the industry. Invest Tech (https://techweek.moscow/page66132399.html) are the organizers of the pitch competition, and is a unique pitching platform where startups and aspiring entrepreneurs present their business ideas to a panel of judges. Skolkovo Startup Village is the largest startup conference in Russia and CIS countries for startup entrepreneurs. This is a unique platform where startup founders meet with mentors and investors, large corporations, scientists, futurologists and government officials to discuss technology trends, ideas and shape a new generation of Russian entrepreneurs

For startups who wish to enter this year’s Startup World Cup Regional competition to represent Russia in the Grand Finale in San Francisco (October 17) and win a $1 million dollar investment prize, please send a note (with your pitch deck if possible) to info@i8gl.com.