Barcelona has all the top qualities of a booming startup ecosystem. One of it’s most solid pillars is a community with a strong collaborative mindset that fosters innovation, encourages the birth of new projects and supports their growth. This environment has produced more than 1,200 startups, and there are many more to come. These are the companies that we at Barcelona Startup News want to showcase to the world.
The name of the city has always been synonymous with innovation, which makes it an ideal setting for a technology hub. It’s also home to many renowned entrepreneurs, investors, mentors and other influencers who act as catalysts in driving progress.
Each year, Barcelona’s calendar is webbed by a network of startup events that bring together local and international players of the startup scene. An ecosystem could not thrive without the invaluable ideas shared, lessons learned and connections made during these moments. However, startup events and tech conferences in Barcelona are not the only forums for entrepreneurs: coworking spaces, startup incubators and accelerators also contribute to bringing the community together.
Below, we share the success stories of the best startups in Barcelona and the people behind them: how they started and where they’re heading. We also bring you lists of top Barcelona startups in different industries, the most recent Barcelona startup news and guides to the Barcelona tech scene.
Read on to discover what makes the Barcelona startup scene thrive!
In 2014, in the midst of the rise in dominance of Airbnb as a supplier of alternative accommodation, four leading and competing vacation rental agencies – predicting that they would need to find new solutions to distribute their properties in order to survive in the post-Airbnb world – decided to … more of this ‘Stories’ post
TravelPerk is one of the most talked-about Barcelona startups of all time – with good reason. The company was founded at the start of 2015 by co-founders Avi Meir and Javier Suárez to provide a solution to the tiresome process of booking and managing business travel. Since then, they’ve been … more of this ‘Stories’ post
A new innovation hub has been born in Barcelona. It’s in a beautiful old building right by the harbor and it’s home to Barcelona’s only Digital Business School, The Valley. Apart from being one of the only schools in Spain where students can attend courses focused specifically on digital innovation, … more of this ‘Stories’ post
Imagine a platform where any entrepreneur, from anywhere in the world, could set up an EU company with EU banking, without ever having to set foot in an EU country. If you lived in Barcelona, for instance, you could choose whether you want to go through the potentially gruelling (if eventually … more of this ‘Stories’ post
Barcelona-based Alpha, a Moonshot facility established by Telefonica, adopts Google X’s mentality to change the world Not that long ago, in this very galaxy, Google came up with the concept of Moonshots. They’ve been using this semi-branded neologism to refer to most of their innovative projects rolling out of the … more of this ‘Stories’ post
Mattia Franco is the CEO and Co-Founder of Xceed, a Barcelona startup that just won the award for the fastest growing startup in Spain at Tech5 Awards. They may be known as a “party startup” because of their app, which lets users find and buy tickets to the best parties in … more of this ‘Stories’ post
Memories are the best gifts you can possibly give to you loved ones. But until we can export memories directly from our brains Black Mirror style, how do you actually wrap them up and hand them over to your family and friends? zapptales, a Munich-based startup founded by Barcelona-born Daniel … more of this ‘Stories’ post
Luis Martín Cabiedes is one of the most important investors in internet and technology ventures in Spain. He’s also a professor at IESE, a philosophy graduate, a sailor, a motorsport enthusiast – and he must have a wealth of other faces that I have not yet had the chance to … more of this ‘Stories’ post
Startups in Barcelona have had another great year. According to the latest figures, 2018 has managed to surpass 2017 – the best year in the history of the ecosystem until now – in terms of investment, with 130 deals sealed and more than €900M in funding raised by Barcelona startups. There … more of this ‘Top startups’ post
We’re super impatient when it comes to potentially groundbreaking technologies that are almost a reality but not quite yet. That’s why we’ve taken it upon us to find three Barcelona startups that we can’t wait to see grow – and change our reality. What these startups have in common is … more of this ‘Top startups’ post
The food industry is an ideal field for experimentation, and Barcelona startups are on the front line. They’re coming up with more and more innovative ideas on how to reduce food waste by foodsharing, how to become as efficient at food delivery as possible, and how to create diet plans, for example. Their … more of this ‘Top startups’ post
Travel tech startups, from Barcelona and around the globe, are taking off at an incredible rate and changing not just the way we book our trips or pick out destinations, but our entire concept of travelling. Prominent trends in the travel tech industry typically rely on using artificial intelligence, machine … more of this ‘Top startups’ post
This year, Barcelona made the Eu-startups annual list of hottest European startup hubs once again. And not just made it, but came fifth for the third year in a row, bested only by the humongous ecosystems of London, Berlin, Paris and Amsterdam. The ranking itself is great news and definitely … more of this ‘Top startups’ post
Now that virtually every startup wants a slice of the delivery cake, the question is no longer what to order for lunch, but which delivery app to use. We’ve been on a mission to find the best food delivery service in Barcelona, and we’ve finally found the one! We put … more of this ‘Top startups’ post
Is it just a fad, or is it a new revolutionary way of living and consuming that’s taking over the world? The effect of the sharing or collaborative economy can be seen very clearly in a wide range of industries from tourism to entertainment, and it’s constantly on the rise. … more of this ‘Top startups’ post
Another month has gone by, and we’ve selected another batch of Barcelona startups that just closed funding rounds to serve as living proofs of the undiminished vitality and amazing potential of our city. From biotech to virtual reality, IoT and social networking apps, Barcelona startups are at the top of … more of this ‘Top startups’ post
When it comes to the variety of tech and startup events a city has to offer, Barcelona does not disappoint. A workshop about foodtech and how innovation is changing gastronomy? Check. A full-day conference dedicated to entrepreneurship? Check. A fireside chat with a female VC? Check. A ladies’ night about … more of this ‘Events’ post
With an increasing number of online businesses vying for the attention of consumers, competition in ecommerce has never been fiercer. Are you doing everything you can to maximize the effectiveness of your Facebooks Ads and other digital campaigns? Facebook and Ecommerce Mastery Live is a two-day training program for agencies, … more of this ‘Events’ post
Another month, another amazing lineup of events brought to you by the Barcelona startup community. In April, you’ll network with vacation rental professionals, attend hands-on workshops designed to help you achieve startup success, meet entrepreneurs from all over Europe at the Startup Grind Tech Conference, and more. Start signing up … more of this ‘Events’ post
On May 2-3, EU-Startups will gather the hottest Europeans startups and the most talked-about celebrity entrepreneurs in Barcelona once again. The EU-Startups Summit will have everything that a startup event needs: great content and endless networking opportunities. Join over 1,200 startup founders and investors, meet old friends and find new … more of this ‘Events’ post
Make friends, not contacts. It’s the number one value that the international Startup Grind community stands by, and it’s something that the Barcelona chapter, one of 500 Startup Grind chapters worldwide, has really taken to heart. Join them for their annual Startup Grind Barcelona Tech Conference and experience what it’s … more of this ‘Events’ post
Hiring Talent is one of the key priorities of any start-up or scale-up. But as much as it is a key priority, it is also one of the most difficult challenges any company faces.The bad news: The shortage of talent is only getting more fierce. The good news: Your competition … more of this ‘Events’ post
Women’s Day 2019 is around the corner and we are so so so proud to see how lavishly it’s being celebrated in the Barcelona tech and startup community. Join hundreds of women at networking events, discussions, parties, meetups, coding bootcamps and job fairs to talk about some of the most … more of this ‘Events’ post
Every year, the one and only MWC Barcelona comes with a range of fantastic side events that no one in the Barcelona tech and startup community should miss. Enjoy the craziness and make the most of the busiest week in the life of our city by making friends, building relationships and … more of this ‘Events’ post
To celebrate summer in Barcelona, Bida app is offering their app completely free till October 1st! That means anyone and everyone (over the age of 18, of course) can discover Barcelona’s top-rated bars and restaurants and get a free drink every 3 hours in any of these hotspots. If … more of this 'News' post
The Barcelona Ventures Silicon Valley Acceleration Program is presenting 6 startups with the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to get access to funding in the United States. The 6 companies planning to expand or raise capital in the US have completed the first 5 weeks of the acceleration program in Barcelona and are … more of this 'News' post
No more cash or awkward face-to-face meetings when you’re buying or selling second-hand stuff on Wallapop! One of Barcelona’s most popular startups, the leading mobile marketplace in Spain, Wallapop is expanding its realm by launching a new, secure in-app payment service called Wallapay. Future plans include starting a home delivery service and … more of this 'News' post
The German electronics manufacturer Bosch is planning to bring its electric scooter sharing system, which is already successfully running in Berlin, to the streets of Barcelona and Madrid, according to El Confidencial. As the city with the second largest number of motorcycles in Europe, Barcelona could prove to be an ideal … more of this 'News' post
Electric car owners can now charge their vehicles at Tesla charging stations in the parking lots of El Corte Inglés department stores in Madrid, Barcelona and Bilbao, reports El Español. Charge It While You Shop The idea is that by plugging their car in, owners can take advantage of the time … more of this 'News' post
The future is is much closer than it seems. Zero 2 Infinity, a privately owned, Barcelona-based startup that designs and launches satellites to near space, has completed a milestone mission on 1 March, when it successfully launched its first rocket from the Edge of Space. A small step for mankind, a huge … more of this 'News' post
With only one week to go until Mobile World Congress Barcelona, the tech world is completely hyped to find out what mind-blowing innovations the biggest names are about to announce. That the mobile industry’s race against time will continue with new technologies aiming to increase download speed and enhance user … more of this 'News' post
The multinational e-commerce giant Amazon will be opening its Barcelona logistics center in El Prat de Llobregat and starting the delivery of packages on 4 October. The company is planning to create no less than 1,500 jobs at the new site in three years’ time. As of right now, 40 open … more of this 'News' post