Five outstanding scale -ups from the Baltic States made it Tech5 – The “Champions League of Technology”.
The quintet represents Estonia, Lithuania and Latvia and now challenges rivals from six other regions for the title of the hottest scale in Europe.
In order to earn their place in Tech5, the Baltic competitors had to give up a tough competition. For a combined population of just over six million, the region is the birthplace of a remarkable spectrum of innovations, startups and scale -ups.
Overall, the three states are known for a strong digital infrastructure, technically experienced population groups, global ways of thinking and state guidelines that support innovations. Individually, each country offers its own impressive properties.
Estonia leads Europe in the density of unicorns (privately held startups worth over 1 billion USD). Some follow their roots on the “Skype Mafia” of entrepreneurs that emerged from the video chat pioneer, including Playtech, Wise and Bolt. Last year the country was also classified as the world leader In e-government and venture financing Relative to GDP.
Lithuania bred his own impressive herd of unicorns: VintedNord Security, Baltic Classifieds Group and the latest addition, Flo Health, which became Europe's first FemTech -Einhorn last year. The country is also number one in Fintech Hub in the EU according to the number of licensed companies.
Latvia was appointed Europe's most start-up country by Index Ventures in 2021. The printing company on-demand printful is currently the only unicorn in the country, but the ecosystem grows quickly. Since 2019, the country's start -ups in the company value have grown by 5.3 times – the highest increase in the region, so Data room data.
In view of such a fertile basis for scaleups in the entire region, it was a challenge to only choose five for Tech5.
Our judges chose them after analyzing their growth, their effects and future potential. Do not let us meet in any specific order.
Vok bicycles
Estonia Vok bicycles Develop electrical freight bikes with three important properties: intelligent, safe and sustainable.
The all -wheel drive bikes were developed for the use of urban use and streamlined deliveries and have a range of 100 km and a top speed of 25 km/h. According to VOK, the system stores the maintenance costs of up to 70%.
Acceleration, brakes and reversal are integrated into the pedals, while the finely coordinated torque control reduces tiredness. The design also supports an extensive climbing with heavy loads without overheating the system. Other functions are regenerative braking, intelligent performance disorders, online diagnosis and an interchangeable battery.
Customers include IKEA, which uses VOK bicycles for deliveries in the last mile as well as a lot of delivery, transport and logistics companies.
Last month the company based in Tallinn reported That a VOK XL bike has an ownership costs that is 64% lower than a Ford Transit Connect.
“The resale value also keeps,” said the Scaleup. “After five years, the VOK still retains ~ 22% of its original value.”
Pvcase
Lithuania Pvcase Is the world leading in the solar project software. The company's end-to-end platform covers the entire development of solar parks, from the selection and design of location and design to optimization.
The approach aims to rationalize the design of the solar project, reduce costs and schedules. By accelerating the use of solar energy, PVCase contributes to reducing greenhouse gas emissions and reducing the effects of climate change.
Since the start in 2018, the company based in Kaunas has delivered software in almost 80 countries.
“With 2 Terawatt from Solar, which are already installed worldwide, PVCASE tools enable our customers to design the next Terawatts ten times faster,” the Scaleup told TNW. “This exponential increase in solar design speed is not just an industry statistics. It is a lifeline for our planet.”
The investors were impressed by the progress. In 2023, PVCase secured a cash injection of $ 100 million (EUR 88 million) and brought its total financing to over $ 123 million (€ 109 million).
Jeff app
Latvia Jeff app Supports people with limited access to traditional financial services – the “lower banks”. The Riga-based company offers alternative credit scores in emerging countries and expands the paths to financial inclusion.
Jeff was founded in 2019 and also works as a lead generation service. The FinTech says that it has over 8 million users, with everyone going through creditworthiness and fraud detection tests. Through the partnership with Jeff, banks and lender can use new borrower markets.
Jeff collects, analyzes and modeled data from a variety of sources, including intelligent devices, social media and behavioral analyzes. Customers can access the findings via the API of the Scaleup.
Last year, Jeff secured $ 2 million (€ 1.77 million) in late funds to develop his services further.
“Financially, we can now pursue new product categories that offer a much larger market size and a faster way to a well -known name in emerging countries,” said Toms Niparts, co -founder and CEO from Scaleup.
Roofit solar
Another Estonian flag applicant, Roofit solar Delivers fully integrated solar collectors that connect innovation and elegance.
The panels combine the Nordic design with first -class materials and efficiency. The solar cells are integrated into high -quality metal leaves. The panel then forms a sun roof that is tailored to the aesthetic design of a house. With AI, the system also optimizes energy purchases, sales and stores and maximizes the savings and income of the customer.
The company emerged from the dissatisfaction of the founders with the appearance of traditional solar collectors. In 2016 they started Roofit Solar to prove that solar energy has no compromises in appearance.
In January the company presented a newly designed design: the Velario Slim.
“Our other products are already with high artists when it comes to energy efficiency, but the compact Velario Slim enables even more roof area, and more free energy for real estate owners under the same roof,” said Andres Anijalg, CEO from ScaleUp.
Turing College
Our second Lithuanian finalist, Turing College Offers online courses in which users can be strengthened upkill or reskill on their conditions.
The EdTech, based in Vilnius, appeared in 2021 with a new learning approach. Each course is intended to provide busy specialists with sought -after technical skills. The methodology includes short intensive sprints inspired by the Agile method used by industry leaders such as Google, Apple and Facebook.
Last year, the Scaleup received a grant of EUR 2.5 million from the European Innovation Council (EIC).
“This grant is crucial for us,” said Lukas Kaminskis, founder and CEO of Turing College. “It enables us to invest in solutions that simplify both the work of the mentors and promote the experiences of learners and results.
“While there is a widespread agreement on the potential of the formation of AI, this transformation is still unclear. Our team has been looking for the answer in the last eight years, and we believe that we have found it – at least for training for digital skills.”
What's next for the Baltic ScaleUps?
The Baltic Scaleups will compete with competitors from all over Europe for the Tech5 title.
The challengers of Southern EuropePresent FrancePresent BeneluxPresent The NordicAnd ROOF were also selected. Next week we will reveal the competitors from the last region to take part in the tournament: the United Kingdom and Ireland.
The tournament will culminate next month when the Grand Champion is crowned with Europe for the hottest scale -up.
The coronation takes place at TNW conference On June 19 and 20 – and they can be there too. Tickets for the event are now for sale – Use the Code TNWXMedia2025 at the cash register for a 30% discount.
