During the event, guest speakers shared their personal pitching stories and worst experiences. Among the guest speakers were Supliful Co-founder & CEO Mārtiņš Lasmanis, VP of Bank Account Data at GoCardless (ex-co-founder of Nordigen) Rolands Mesters, as well as Founder & CEO of Jeff App Toms Niparts.

Altogether 13 teams from the ESI incubator presented their works. Each of them discussed their business idea, the business opportunity, and why they are the best equipped to solve this problem. Team presentations were evaluated by a jury of Alise Lazdāne from RIMI Latvia, Kārlis Karolis from SEB, Maija Milbrete from Printify and Dmitrijs Kravčenko from SSE Riga. The incubator was led by Kristīne Nagle and Katrīna Peipiņa.

"The insights presented by the young entrepreneurs about how their ideas have transformed during incubation were particularly appealing, as were the created idea prototypes. It confirms the quality of the ESI incubator program and allows entrepreneurs to involve potential customers or users in the testing of ideas at an early stage, thus contributing to the creation of viable business models." – reveals Karlis Karolis, Baltic Head of Innovations at SEB bank.

Kristīne Nagle, Head of the Incubator, admits that " when mentoring teams from the idea generation to first prototype development, it is a pleasure to see their progress and enthusiasm to continue working on their ideas. All teams demonstrated an innovative approach and commitment to work. "

The Incubator program teams worked on their ideas for four months, during which the business ideas were tested, developed and took tangible shape. During this period, mentors helped research the target market, build a prototype of the product or service and test it in a realistic environment. Teams could use the 4,500 EUR funding offered under the program to build their first prototype.

Among the graduating incubator teams, the following presented their ideas:

  1. Skillarize – online coaching platform that allows personalization
  2. Bdetect – melanoma detection equipment
  3. Asha Gaum – solution for battery testing to define its capacity, charge, etc.
  4. InLable – accessible and affordable solution to fight counterfeiting
  5. Seagard – 100% compostable clothing that is environmentally-friendly
  6. 3DPetsWorld – 3D-printed, personalized toys and accessories for pets from environmentally-friendly materials.
  7. Goodbug – wasps for decreasing ticks that carry viruses
  8. Pawtastic – shampoo for dogs with recyclable packaging
  9. OtherWorld – augmented reality products for artists, architects, and companies.
  10. P-Agro Minerals – solution for keeping wastewater with low levels of phosphorus
  11. Wormeko – public composting plants collect food waste and turn it into compost
  12. Florere - cosmetics products for acne
  13. Adjustable and modular wood furniture - modular furniture that allows dynamic living and adapting to ever-changing needs. It can be reconfigured to different spaces, styles and needs.

The ESI Student Innovation program invites students to join other events and courses. On the 3rd of August, a webinar will be held about financing opportunities for newly established startups with Solveiga Sama, Project Manager from Civitta Latvia. You can register for the event here.

Applications are open for the course “Eco-Innovation, Social Responsibility, and Sustainable Management”. You can register for the course here till the 17th of August. The course is free of charge.

The program is co-financed by the European Regional Development Fund and supported by SEB Latvia and RIMI Baltic. The program is organized by the Stockholm School of Economics in Riga, Riga Graduate School of Law, Latvian Academy of Arts, Rēzekne Academy of Technology, Techhub Riga, and other industry partners. Project number: 1.1.1.3/21/A/008.a.