On the 9-10^th of February, Riga will be hosting TechChill startup and tech event for the sixth year in a row. The organizers of the event intend to make it the main meeting place for Baltic startup companies. Over the course of two days, the event will offer lectures, stories and panel discussions by more than 40 speakers from all over the world. TechChill will also feature Startup Expo, an expo of ideas produced by Baltic startup companies, as well as various master classes and discussion panels, startup meetings with investors, and an international startup competition.

TechChill stage will host tech industry giants from more than 10 countries around the world, including Peter Halacsy, co-founder of the well-known presentation tool Prezi; Bob Tinker, the founder of MobileIron, one of the world's largest mobile technology companies; Mike Butcher, editor of the technology media leader TechCrunch; Kei Shimada, Development Manager at Dentsu; David Bizer, former Recruiter at Google, Yael Elad, Financial Manager at the leading Israeli investment fund Aleph VC; Asia Lindsay, Europe Community Lead at TopTal, and other international industry opinion leaders. Having successfully conquered international markets, some of the most successful Baltic startup companies will also take the stage. Among them will be Ernests Jenavs, co-founder of the educational technology tool Edurio, and Dāvis Siksnāns, CEO of Printful, a company that just opened its second plant in the USA and employs more than 130 employees.

Over the course of two days, the event will offer new knowledge and inspiration to tech companies from the Baltic states, Scandinavia and the CIS. Participants will have numerous opportunities to spark the interest of investors, the media and potential clients. Companies will be able to apply for bilateral talks with specially selected international investors and fund representatives invited by the event organizers, while visitors will have the opportunity to see Startup Expo, where they will be able to get acquainted with technology products or solutions developed in the Baltics and beyond. “Our priority is to provide startup teams with a platform for growth and development. Tech companies bring a large contribution to the economy and the whole world is currently competing to have these companies in their country. Riga has the necessary potential to become the Baltic startup capital, if all the necessary conditions are in place for their development locally,” says the event organizer Marija Ručevska.

Startup teams are welcome to apply for the ‘pitch battle’ startup competition, which traditionally allows five excellent startup teams that pass the competition to climb on the big stage and present their ideas to 1,000 visitors, the media and investors, while competing for the main prize. TechChill startup competition will be organized in collaboration with Startup Wise Guys, Europe's leading B2B startup accelerator. “I believe in the Baltic region as a great platform for startup development, taking into account both the relatively low business and living costs, and the educated and ambitious young talents,” says Cristobal Alonso, CEO at Startup Wise Guys.

During the TechChill conference, another event – Riga Venture Summit – will take place in Riga, bringing together high-level policy makers from the Baltic region, as well as startup leaders, corporate business leaders and experienced investors, to discuss the Baltic startup ecosystem development. The summit will feature discussions on the best solutions to support startup businesses and attract global investments to the Baltic region. Riga Venture Summit is organized by the Latvian Startup Association "Startin.LV", in close cooperation with the Latvian Venture Capital Association (LVCA) and the Latvian Business Angels Network (LatBAN).