At the presentation ceremony of South Summit Madrid 2023, held today in Madrid, María Benjumea stated that "from the very beginning of South Summit, our idea was to change mentalities in order to go global. The world has no borders, and our commitment has always been collaboration and innovation in a global context. We are convinced that there is nothing better than connecting regions and taking innovation from Spain to new places".

Benjumea also emphasised during the event that "South Summit will always be the place where we find business opportunities for all the players in the entrepreneurial ecosystem, but always from a human and global point of view". She referred to ‘Today 2030’, the slogan that will open the next edition of South Summit Madrid 2023, as "taking care of the planet is fundamental and we have many challenges ahead of us to achieve it, but there are also many opportunities that the objectives of the 2030 Agenda bring".

The president and founder of South Summit also wanted to applaud the consensus with which the Startups Law has been approved, a regulation that "is already becoming an international benchmark. A catalyst for companies, a great mechanism for attracting talent and investment".

With these objectives, South Summit reaffirms itself as a global benchmark for startups, investors, and other players in the entrepreneurial ecosystem. While the value of the global entrepreneurial ecosystem as a whole has decreased by 2.3% in 2022, the Spanish ecosystem has not only resisted but has increased its value by 8.6%, reaching 93,000 million dollars in 2022, as explained by Alberto Tornero and Jordi Esteve, partners at PwC Spain in the presentation of their report 'The socio-economic contribution of South Summit in Spain'.

The good figures for Spanish startups are also reflected in their number and employability. Specifically, in 2022 the entrepreneurial ecosystem in our country was made up of 12,041 startups (8% more than in 2021), which employ nearly 160,000 people (+14%). With all this, Spain remains the fourth European country with the highest number of startups, only surpassed by the United Kingdom, France, and Germany.

The Vice President of IE University, Juan José Güemes, insisted that "South Summit 2023 will generate economic activity of around 30 million euros. The data from the study shows us the opportunity for growth of the entrepreneurial ecosystem in its quest to attract talent and generate wealth and employment.”

Madrid, one of Europe's leading hubs

Madrid consolidates its position as one of the main European innovation hubs according to the PwC report, with an ecosystem made up of approximately 2,500 startups that generated around 37,000 jobs during 2022 and raised around €1.28 billion. It is also the fourth European city in terms of the number of exits above 100 million euros and the fifth in terms of the number of venture capital investment rounds.

In light of these figures, the Mayor of Madrid, José Luis Martínez-Almeida, who presided over the presentation of the new edition of South Summit, stressed that "the City Council will continue to support this global event and thank María Benjumea for everything she has done for this city and for being the true accelerator of entrepreneurship. 2012, the year of its first edition, marked a before and after for Madrid, which is already in the TOP5 in Europe".

Carme Artigas, Secretary of State for Digitalisation and Artificial Intelligence, also thanked María Benjumea for her insistence and her work to promote the approval of the Startups Law and to bring the entire entrepreneurial ecosystem together to achieve this goal. Artigas has publicly proposed to María Benjumea that, "taking advantage of the next ESNA (European Startup Nations Alliance) meeting, South Summit should play a leading role and present what is being done in Spain, while strengthening links with Europe and Latin America".

Furthermore, Javier Fernández-Lasquetty, Minister of Economy, Finance and Employment of the Community of Madrid, stressed that "we are in a more vibrant time than ever and it is going to grow. The contribution of value made by South Summit, and especially María Benjumea, is absolutely decisive. The figures tell us so. When the review and the documentary is made on ‘how the entrepreneurial ecosystem grew within the Community of Madrid’, South Summit will certainly be there".

South Summit Madrid: catalyst for economic growth and employability

How has South Summit Madrid contributed to the consolidation of the Spanish entrepreneurial ecosystem, even in the midst of economic uncertainty? The report prepared by PwC Spain and presented today reveals that the most positive impact has been felt among the Spanish startups finalists of the different editions of South Summit, which saw their turnover multiply by 13.9 times since they participated in the event, reaching around €7.64 billion in turnover. In terms of job creation, these same startups saw their number of employees grow 3.8 times, to almost 36,000 people.

Between the ten editions of South Summit held from 2012 to 2022, the finalist startups of all the meetings have generated a total investment of 10.17 billion dollars, of which around 75% belong to Spanish startups. If we take into account all the South Summits held worldwide, the investment amounts to 10.61 billion dollars.

South Summit Madrid 2023, ‘Today 2030’

South Summit Madrid 2023 will be held at La Nave de Madrid from the 7th to the 9th of June under the slogan 'Today 2030' which will bring attendees closer to the future to learn about, and analyse all the innovations to be implemented in order to achieve the sustainability goals of the 2030 agenda.

South Summit Madrid 2023 will have the institutional support of Spain Up Nation, the Community of Madrid and Madrid City Council, as well as Mutua Madrileña, Google for Startups, BBVA Spark, Endesa, Wayra - Telefónica Innovation and BStartup of Banco Sabadell as Global Partners, joined by Toptal this year.

The content of the eleventh edition of this global gathering will be divided into eight verticals: Connectivity & Data, Consumer Trends, Education, Fintech & Insurtech, Health, Industry 5.0, Mobility & Smart Cities, BizDev Tech, Enterprise, and Sustainability & ESG, the latter three being new.

South Summit Madrid 2023 will feature major international and national speakers to discuss key issues in the world of innovation. Among them are Pablo Isla, President of the International Board of Trustees of IE University, and sports stars such as Pau Gasol, an important representative of the new Sportstech trend, which applies innovation and entrepreneurship to the world of sport and wellness. Also present will be internationally renowned personalities in the world of entrepreneurship such as Andrew Winston, manager of Winston Eco-Strategies, and Jenny Fielding, co-founder of The Fund VC.

The organisation's forecasts indicate that South Summit Madrid 2023 will break all attendance records and generate an economic activity of around 28 million euros in the city of Madrid alone, according to the PwC report, which would imply a growth of 37% compared to the economic impact registered in the 2022 edition.