“If you can dream it, you can do it”
Walt Disney
Welcome
Scotland has an ambition of building a world-leading entrepreneurial and innovative nation, a place where inclusive growth delivers benefits to all of society.
Venturefest Scotland, previously a one-day annual innovation summit, has transformed into VentureFest – a year-long festival of discovery and enlightened entrepreneurship that will inspire and support the innovation journey helping to create more visionary, global businesses that embrace the possibilities of tomorrow.
Co-created by leading organisations across Scotland’s innovation ecosystem, VentureFest will connect SMEs to the game-changing innovators, academics, entrepreneurs and investors, in Scotland and around the world, to help them grow, scale and succeed.
VentureFest Scotland and its sister spring festival CAN DO Fest represent focal points for driving Scotland’s ambition to be a world-leading entrepreneurial and innovative society.
Headline Events
The core VentureFest programme constitutes a cluster of headline events in November of each year with a series of connected fringe events throughout the year.
2018 ClimateLaunchpad Global Grand Final
1-2 Nov 2018
ClimateLaunchpad’s mission is to unlock entrepreneurial potential that addresses climate change. We’re the world’s biggest cleantech ideas competition, helping turn ideas into start-ups with global impact. We offer training, coaching and support. This year our Global Grand Final is being hosted in Edinburgh’s McEwan Hall by the Edinburgh Centre for Carbon Innovation (ECCI).
2018 ClimateLaunchpad Global Grand Final
1-2 Nov 2018
9-11 Nov 2018
Curiosity Live is a celebration of current research and innovation happening around Glasgow and Scotland. It's a chance for visitors to Glasgow Science Centre to interact with specialists who are changing the world with their work, right here on our doorstep. Curiosity Live is filled with researchers and entrepreneurial innovators from a variety of specialisms; you can interact with their work, contribute to their findings and be a part of inspirational science and innovation that's happening right now in Scotland. On the first day, 9th November, we will be hosting the grand final of VentureJam - a nail-biting dragon’s den style session with 2 teams of young people from across Scotland pitching their game-changing ideas to tackle plastics waste management for the SSE Hydro! Winners will showcase their ideas at the BBCs Blue Planet II Live in the SSE Hydro in March 2019!
9-11 Nov 2018
31 October 2018
Recognised over the last seven years as one of the UK’s leading entrepreneurship events, Startup Summit provides a true immersion into the world of business and beyond. In the centre of one of the world’s most innovative cities, we invite the next generation of entrepreneurs to engage with experts, build a network and gain valuable tools for long-term success.
1,000 attendees | 30+ world class speakers | 3 stages | 30 exhibitors | 9 workshops
31 October 2018
Feeder Events
Watch this space for our exciting programme of Scotland-wide, VentureFest feeder events
Host a VentureFest Event
If you’d like your company, network or organisation to be part of the VentureFest festival you can attend one of our events or nominate yourself as feeder or headline event host by contacting the VentureFest team here!
