Mobile World Capital Barcelona and Barcelona Activa have signed an agreement to strengthen the deep tech innovation ecosystem. The agreement provides access to incubation, training, and project referral.
Mobile World Capital Barcelona (MWCapital) and Barcelona Activa have sealed a collaboration agreement to promote the creation of deep tech spin-offs in the city. The agreement, signed this Thursday, establishes a framework for joint work to accelerate the technological transfer from universities and research centres to the market.
The alliance connects two key programmes of the Barcelona innovative ecosystem: The Collider, from MWCapital, which supports scientific projects in becoming technology-based companies, and the deep tech entrepreneurship promotion strategy of Barcelona Activa, which includes advisory services, incubation, and funding in early stages.
Thanks to the agreement, spin-offs promoted by The Collider will have preferential access to the Startup Lab incubation space, located at the Campus Glòries of Barcelona Activa. Furthermore, both entities will jointly organise training and networking activities, and will cross-promote events and opportunities for the entrepreneurial ecosystem.
The agreement also provides for the referral of projects with potential for technological transfer between the programmes of both organisations. The aim is to support entrepreneurial teams at different stages of maturity and maximise their growth opportunities.
The General Director of MWCapital, Laia Corbella, highlighted the importance of the agreement:
“The future of European competitiveness depends on its ability to turn scientific research into high-impact companies. Deep tech technologies are key to advancing towards greater strategic autonomy and generating responses to major social, industrial, and environmental challenges.”Corbella added that the collaboration will allow for broader detection of opportunities and mobilise entrepreneurial talent to generate impact in Barcelona and Europe.
Raquel Gil, the fifth deputy mayor of the Barcelona City Council and president of Barcelona Activa, emphasised that the agreement aligns with the three plans of the agency: creating quality employment, having a positive impact on society, and contributing to the city's economic competitiveness.
“Deep tech sits at the high end of these three plans, which is why we focus on it through specialised programmes, services, and facilities. Aligning objectives and resources with MWCapital will be key to making a leap in scale.”
The alliance will have an initial duration of four years and reflects the shared commitment of both entities to foster innovation and technology transfer. The agreement aims to consolidate Barcelona as one of the leading European hubs for deep tech innovation.
Barcelona Activa, the economic promotion agency of the City Council, has 40 years of experience in supporting entrepreneurship. Each year, nearly 250 startups go through one of its programmes and services. In recent years, it has consolidated the deep tech push with initiatives such as StartupLab, which hosts 50 startups annually, mostly deep tech; Barcelona Deep Tech Node, with the five public universities; Barcelona Deep Tech Fund, a municipal investment fund of 10 million euros; and the Barcelona Deep Tech Summit, the leading international congress in the sector.
For its part, MWCapital is a public-private foundation that promotes the digital development of society. It contributes to positioning Barcelona as a global benchmark in the digital field by promoting technological transfer initiatives, digital talent promotion, and socially impactful technological projects. MWCapital hosts the MWC in Barcelona, founded 4YFN, and connects the international developer community through Talent Arena.
The agreement represents a step forward for Barcelona's entrepreneurial ecosystem, which already has a solid support network for innovation. Entrepreneurs and researchers who wish to benefit from the resources can contact both entities to learn about specific programmes.
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