The Mayor of Madrid, José Luis Martínez-Almeida, attended the inauguration by King Felipe VI of the XIV edition of South Summit on Wednesday. This event is a key gathering for the entrepreneurial ecosystem in Southern Europe. The event, which brings together over 18,000 attendees at the municipal innovation center La Nave, kicked off today and will run until Friday with three intense days where startups, entrepreneurs, investors, and companies come together, creating business opportunities and connecting Madrid’s innovative ecosystem with the world.
The City Council is participating in this event with a stand where 85 startups from different acceleration and incubation programs of Madrid Innovation and Madrid Emprende will have the opportunity to build new relationships and connect with investors and other players in the innovation ecosystem.
A significant part of this ecosystem is showcased in the traditional startup competition held during South Summit, the Startup Competition South Summit’25, where seven startups from La Nave and International Lab, innovation centers of the City Council, have emerged as finalists: Dost, Full and Fast, Hoop Car Pool, Miogas, Solaris Vita, Wealth Reader, and Envita.
Each of them will compete in different verticals and, if successful, will advance to the grand final on Friday, coinciding with the closing of South Summit. Additionally, the City Council will present on that day, as part of the event, the Madrid Sandbox ordinance, approved in January by the municipal council, which will allow hosting the first tests of projects and prototypes in controlled urban environments by the end of the year.
Madrid solidifies its role as a talent bridge with Latin America
The entrepreneurial ecosystem in Spain has shown clear territorial expansion over the past year, with Madrid standing out as the home to 28% of the country’s startups and 34% of investors. According to the National Report on Technology Companies 2025, the city not only leads in the number of startups and tech companies nationwide but also tops the list of emerging startup ecosystems globally in the Global Startup Ecosystem Report.
This growth has also been reflected in the boost of ecosystems like Latin America, where investment volume grew by 8% between 2023 and 2024, as highlighted in the ‘Socioeconomic Impact of South Summit in Spain 2025’ report. This afternoon, during a panel on the potential of the capital as a gateway for Latin American talent, attended by ambassadors of the ‘Puentes de Talento’ program, an initiative of the City Council to introduce young entrepreneurs from Latin America and the Caribbean into the city’s innovation ecosystem, currently in its fifth edition, Innovation and Entrepreneurship delegate councilor Ángel Niño noted.
55 young people from 12 Latin American countries have already participated in this program, supported by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), with the aim of making their mark in Europe using Madrid as their entry point.
Support for the innovative ecosystem
For ten consecutive years, the City Council has supported the celebration of South Summit in Madrid through a collaboration agreement, providing 800,000 euros to solidify the city’s position as a strategic partner in one of Southern Europe’s most important innovation and entrepreneurship events. This support helps emerging companies enhance their international presence and attract foreign investment.
Madrid alone captures 81% of the total international investment in the region, more than half of the investment received in Spain. This year, the new edition of South Summit is expected to generate over 39 million euros in economic impact, a 13% increase from 2024, with an average spending of 1,900 euros per visitor in the city. /c
