The Spain Pavilion at 4YFN 2026: startups, innovation and connections for the innovative entrepreneurial ecosystem

The innovative entrepreneurial ecosystem met again at 4YFN, the benchmark event for startups held within the framework of the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona. Over several days, this space brings together startups, investors, corporations, institutions, and other actors in the innovative entrepreneurial ecosystem with the aim of generating connections, sharing knowledge, and exploring new opportunities for collaboration.

In this context, Spain once again had a prominent presence through the Spain Pavilion, organized by Red.es and ICEX Spain Trade and Investment, which consolidated itself as a meeting point to showcase the country's entrepreneurial and technological talent.

In this edition, 48 startups from Spain participated as exhibiting companies in the pavilion, showcasing their technological solutions to investors, corporations, and other international actors of the ecosystem.

These companies represent different areas of innovation, from deep tech, artificial intelligence or robotics to digital health, fintech, IoT or industrial technologies, reflecting the diversity and dynamism of the innovative entrepreneurial ecosystem in Spain.

A program of activities to boost the ecosystem

The Spain Pavilion hosted throughout the different days of 4YFN a broad program of activities aimed at boosting the innovative entrepreneurial ecosystem, fostering the connection between startups and investors, and sharing knowledge about technological trends and growth opportunities.

Among the initiatives, different sessions of pitching stood out, in which startups from Spain presented their solutions to investors, corporations, and other ecosystem actors. During these sessions, innovative projects such as Hydra Space, Conus Airway, Zerintia HealthTech, Protofy.xyz, Syntetica or Wealthreader could be discovered, among other startups that were part of the pavilion and that work in fields such as space, digital health, artificial intelligence, or industrial technologies.

The program also included sessions of reverse pitch with national and international investors, in which different funds shared their investment theses and the technology sectors they are prioritizing in their strategies.

In addition, roundtables and thematic sessions were held focused on key issues for the development of startups, such as open innovation, cooperation between entrepreneurial ecosystems, funding opportunities, internationalization, or the adoption of emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence or quantum computing.

As a whole, these activities helped turn the Spain Pavilion into a dynamic space for knowledge exchange, opportunity generation, and connection among the different actors of the ecosystem entrepreneurial.

The ONE Platform within the Spain Pavilion

Within the Spain Pavilion, the ONE Platform was present during the days of the event as a point of information, guidance, and connection for startups and ecosystem actors.

The platform team attended to entrepreneurs interested in learning about resources, support instruments, and tools available for the development of innovative projects.

Guidance was also offered on how to use the platform to identify calls, access up-to-date information, and learn about strategic initiatives of the innovative entrepreneurial ecosystem.

Furthermore, the presence of the ONE Platform made it possible to facilitate connections between startups, investors, corporations, and public and private entities present at the event, contributing to generating new collaboration opportunities.

The conversations held during the event also made it possible to identify some of the recurring challenges among startups, such as project scalability, access to market, technological validation, collaboration with large companies, or securing investment.

“We talk with…”: open innovation and collaboration between startups and corporations

Within the program of the Spain Pavilion, the ONE Platform organized the “We talk with…” session, a conversation space focused on open innovation and collaboration between startups and corporations.

This meeting featured Cayetana García-Borbujo, Business Development & Operations at Wayra, and Helena Ortiz Gil, Ecosystem Relation Manager at Opentop, in a conversation moderated by Elena Cidón, Area Manager at Red.es.

During the session, different key issues were addressed for startups interested in collaborating with large organizations, such as the benefits that open innovation can provide, the usual channels to initiate this type of collaborations, or the aspects that should be prepared before taking that step.

It was also analyzed how these types of collaborations develop once a startups is selected by a corporation, as well as the factors that contribute to these alliances generating impact and value for both parties.

This space made it possible to highlight the role of collaboration between startups, corporations and hubs of innovation as one of the engines to drive the development of the innovative entrepreneurial ecosystem.

Connecting talent, innovation, and opportunities

Participation in 4YFN has once again demonstrated the value of these spaces to generate connections, share knowledge, and bring opportunities closer to the entrepreneurial ecosystem.

Through its presence in the Spain Pavilion, the ONE Platform continues working to facilitate access to information, resources, and contacts that contribute to the development of new innovative projects. 

To learn about upcoming meetings and connection opportunities within the innovative entrepreneurial ecosystem, you can consult the ONE Platform Agenda, where relevant events and initiatives for startups and ecosystem actors are compiled.