Rise & Scale 2026 brought together 80+ ecosystem leaders from over 20 countries at Impact Hub Berlin for a curated forum focused on strengthening Europe’s startup support infrastructure. The event created a space for founders, investors, and ecosystem builders to exchange perspectives on one of Europe’s key innovation challenges: turning strong startup creation into global scale.
Discussions highlighted the structural gap between the number of startups emerging in Europe and the relatively small share that grow into unicorns, emphasizing the need for stronger collaboration, access to capital, and cross-border support mechanisms.
InnovX contributed a regional perspective, sharing how collaboration frameworks can connect innovators, institutions, and markets across stages and regions. Rise & Scale reinforced a key idea: strong innovation ecosystems are built through continuous collaboration, where startups grow into scaleups, successful companies reinvest into the ecosystem, and the flywheel of innovation keeps turning.