Looking back at Q3&Q4/2019
As a way to look back at the last two quarters of this year, we have compiled a brief summary of all our events and activities in summer and autumn/winter in 2019. We have kept ourselves busy this year and will continue to do so in 2020 as well. We will be delighted to see you at one of our events next year!
Wrike to open its first EU R&D office in Prague
This Silicon Valley-headquartered work management platform is entering the European Union market for the first time by opening an office in Prague, Czech Republic. The goal is to hire first 80 employees until the end of 2019 and surpass 250 within the next three years.
At the event of this long-anticipated expansion Wrike also hosted its first product-focused contest open to the public and aimed at making teams be more productive. Contestants were asked to identify a problem and suggest a solution, which would complement or extend the existing platform. The contest was open to most Central and Eastern European developers, designers, and product managers and awarded the winner and two runner-ups with $25,000, $10,000 and $5,000 respectively.
More information about the expansion can be found in the official press release.
Czech companies @ Siggraph LA
For the first time in history, the Czech Republic was present at one of the major VR/AR/design/animation conferences, SIGGRAPH in Los Angeles. From July 28 until August 1, 2019, three Czech companies participated in the conference and showcased their cutting edge technology.
VRgineers, Inc. introduced their state-of-the-art forefront VR headset equipped with 5k resolution, 180 degree view and hand and eye tracking. Together with PRECISMO, a graphic content provider utilising the most up-to-date technology and Somnium Space, a designer and operator of a lifelike VR world, they composed a top-notch Czech-Tech trio, which brilliantly represented the innovative, high-level and worldwide competitive talent born in the Czech Republic.
We were proud to collaborate with Marino Radacic, our Trade Commissioner at the Consulate General of the Czech Republic in Los Angeles on this event and are looking forward to co-organising the next edition in Washington, D.C. in 2020.
CzechAccelerator, batch #6
On September 11, 2019 we welcomed the sixth batch of companies selected for CzechAccelerator, the most prestigious abroad-based accelerator program of the Czech Republic. In cooperation with USMAC we hosted a networking evening on the premises of Reed Smith LLP in the very heart of San Francisco, where Sensority, Overax and eParkomat successfully gave their first public pitch in the Bay Area.
CzechTech Week, a prelude to the TechCrunch Disrupt
Every year, CzechInvest sends a group of companies to represent the best of the Czech startup scene to San Francisco's legendary TechCrunch Disrupt. This year was no different and eight companies flew across the pond and joined our team in the first week of October.
Our office kicked the week off by hosting a Czech / Slovak panel discussion on Monday, September 30, where well-established entrepreneurs and working professionals based in the Bay Area shared their experiences and insights from Silicon Valley. On Tuesday, we hosted the biggest CEE event of the year promoting the startup potential of the region of Central and Eastern Europe. CEE entrepreneurs, a keynote speech by a Stanford professor Dr. Burton Lee and a moderator duo of Miro Tenkl and Pavlina Yanakieva were three pillars of the great success of the event.
We are proud to have had a great delegation from the Czech Republic with us and are already looking forward to the next year!
A list of participating companies can be found on the event's website.
Drone Tour 2019
Czech drones in Las Vegas! In the last week of October, Czech Drone Tour took in Las Vegas, where six UAV/UAS companies attended the Commercial UAV Expo Americas and presented their top products at a stand representing Czech Republic in this field. The three-day long conference filled with demonstrations, presentations and use case expositions also served as an opportunity to compare technologies with competition and brainstorm about international partnerships as well.
In the remaining two days, our delegation visited the site of Nevada Institute for Autonomous Systems and Desert Research Institute to discuss drone use possibilities in the GovTech space and potential possibilities for transatlantic projects. One last meeting was held at Nevada Governor's Office of Economic Development where our UAV specialists learnt about the investment and innovation climate of the state of Nevada with regards to drone technologies.
Company profiles and further information can be found on the official website of the Drone Tour.
December in Denver
With the aim to explore the innovation and trade ecosystem of the Centennial state, we decided to go on a roadshow to Denver and the second most innovative hub in the United States, Boulder. Our ultimate goal was to promote the business and innovation landscape of the Czech Republic in this fast-growing tech environment.
In alignment with our Silicon Valley based activities, we focused on promoting the potential of the Czech Republic as a destination for international expansion and visiting Colorado-headquartered companies which have already established offshore R&D offices in Czechia as a part of our after-care services.
Additionally, we visited Techstars, a widely-known start-up accelerator, and HQ of Galvanize, a co-working space and coding bootcamps provider. Our roots also led us to the local community of Czech tech innovators, who shared their experience and knowledge of the local start-up sphere.
Christmas party
As a thank you to all our partners, we are hosting a Christmas party on tonight! We greatly appreciate the support we get from our network, which is why we would like to take a moment to look back at the most significant milestones of 2019 and celebrate the biggest achievements of the year.
We would be delighted to welcome you at our event just a few weeks before the beginning of 2020 to enjoy an evening full of good wine and good company.