Italian Innovation Week in Silicon Valley

Introducing startups from Italy to the sophisticated audience of Silicon Valley has historically been challenging.

Let's face it.

Italian technology? Too exotic, too naive, too remote.

Besides some sporadic fortunate landings, the "road to Silicon Valley" has been a remote possibility for Italian startups.

So, what the heck is going on now?

Just this week a plethora of events is promoting the booming of the Italian startup ecosystem:

- The Italian startup renaissance, a VC prospective: Andrea Baldini (Early Bird VC)

- Welcome party + MTB GYM Open House

- The Connected Vehicle and the Internet of Thing (SVIEC event)

- The Italian Innovation Day (Berkeley, 2/23)

So many events, that we moved from our first timid attempt last year of a day dedicated to Italian innovation, to a resounding Italian Innovation Week in Silicon Valley!

Why?

The bubbling up of Italian innovation that is manifesting itself in the last couple of years is now also spilling over outside its national boundaries.

Mind the Bridge has been beating on the startup-made-in-Italy drum for quite sometime.

But we're not alone now.

Qualified parters such as Intesa Sanpaolo, (Fernando Napolitano's) Italian Business & Investment Initiative, BAIA, Top-IX just to mention a few.

We are all pushing in the same direction.

What does it take now to become the next Israel or India for Silicon Valley?

2 words: quality and quantity. We need both.

We need to maintain high standards of startups representing us and constant volumes.

It's clear we've graduated to the major league.

Our track record so far: from ~ 20 companies in the last 2 years more than half have experienced a mind blowing acceleration:

we had

- 2 exits, 1 winner of Le Web, 1 winner of SeedCamp, 1 winner of Microsoft Bizspark, 6 raised (further) VC money

A success rate that is hard to match even by the best in class.

Now we need to harness the potential and start bringing home some big-shot successes.

Italy is ripe. We are too.