Greek start-ups are proving resilient in the face of adversity as they continue to innovate and attract foreign capital.
Despite the current economic uncertainty, over 70 Greek start-ups secured funding topping €485 million in 2023, according to the Found.ation annual report, indicating growing interest from US tech giants–including Hewlett Packard Enterprise, Cisco, Dell and Intel–in acquiring Greek start-ups by the end of 2024.
Foreign investors appeared cautious, but Greek innovation retained its momentum, witnessing a 24.5% decrease compared to a 38% drop across Europe as a whole.
Foreign capital was key in 2023, contributing to 78% of total investment, with 33% from American investment schemes alone.
RetailTech, Artificial Intelligence (AI), and AgriTech startups took the top three spots for investment in 2023, which was in line with global trends.
The value of the Greek innovation system rose to €8.2 billion in 2022, a significant increase from €1.1 billion in 2017, with 800 registered startups on Elevate Greece employing over 7,000 staff.