Allied For Startups at Techarena 2025: Towards a Stronger Innovation Ecosystem

On 20-21 February, 2025, Allied For Startups attended Techarena 2025 in Stockholm, where we joined forces with our amazing member associations to drive the conversation around startup and innovation policy in Europe.

On the first day of the conference, we co-hosted a dedicated Startup Policy Track in collaboration with SISP – Swedish Incubators & Science Parks. Our Startup Policy Officer, Kalle Fahlvik, opened the session with an introduction to the EU Startup and Scale-up Strategy. He was joined by an exceptional panel of experts: MEP Arba Kokalari (European Parliament), Ana Catarina Araújo Silva (SPOT Nordic), Dan Zethraeus (Elonroad), Salla Franzén (Navigare Ventures), and Olivia Nestius (Graphmatech). The panel, expertly moderated by Stina Lantz from SISP, explored how Europe can close the innovation gap and what priorities the Strategy should address.

Key topics included improving access to funding, unlocking public procurement for startups, ensuring the free flow of data, simplifying regulations, and providing support throughout all growth stages. The discussion was lively and insightful, with valuable contributions from both the panel and attendees. A sincere thank you to Ellinor Bokedal, Stina Lantz, and the entire SISP team for such a meaningful collaboration, and to everyone who participated and shared their perspectives.

On the second day, the conversation continued with a panel hosted by Startup Portugal, focused on building a more unified and competitive regulatory environment for startups in Europe. Our Head of Policy, Vasco Pereira da Silva, joined Ellinor Bokedal (SISP) and Anne Lidgard (Vinnova, ESNA – Europe Startup Nations Alliance) to explore a range of issues, including the EU Startup and Scale-up Strategy, the concept of a 28th regime, and the importance of establishing a clear legal definition of a startup. Moderated with expertise by João Silva, the session offered valuable insights into the steps needed to create an innovation-friendly legal and policy landscape across the EU.

Thank you to Startup Portugal for the invitation and to our fellow panellists for such a thought-provoking discussion. As the AFS Tour continues, we look forward to further dialogue, collaboration, and action to drive a strong, inclusive startup policy agenda for Europe.