Speaker Contest

Unleash the power of your voice and inspire thousands! In partnership with the European Capital of Culture Tartu 2024, sTARTUp Day is organizing a Speaker Contest titled "Arts of Survival" to discover new inspiring stories and storytellers to present on stage in front of thousands of attendees. You can be the next speaker hero!

Application Process

1. Fill out the self-introduction form.
2. Add a five-minute unlisted YouTube video link to the form, introducing your presentation's topic and discussing its significance and benefits for the sTARTUp Day attendees.
3. The top three candidates proceed to the second round, where they will submit their full-length presentations.
4. We'll announce the winner who will take the stage at sTARTUp Day 2024 on January 25!


Speech Info

Embracing Tartu's designation as the European Capital of Culture in 2024, the extensive year-long program unfolding in Tartu and Southern Estonia chronicles the narrative of the "Arts of Survival". But what does it mean? It means the knowledge, skills, and values that will help us lead a good life in the future. In this case, every story that inspires, teaches, and helps us become better (leaders) is an "Arts of Survival" story.

Speech's length on stage: 20 minutes

Slides are not mandatory but are recommended.


Prizes
 

⚡️ For the winner:
  • A 20-minute slot on the sTARTUp Day 2024 stage
  • One sTARTUp Day Speaker Pass (gives special speaker perks like access to the speakers' lounge and the VIP Reception) and one Visitor Pass
  • Double-room accommodation provided by Tartu 2024 during the festival week from January 23–27
  • Two VIP passes to the Tartu 2024 events
  • Assistance with presentation preparation (one-on-one coaching session with Louis Zezeran)

⚡️ For the second and third-place winners:
  • Two Visitor Passes to sTARTUp Day 2024
  • Tartu 2024 merchandise


All applicants receive a 50% discount on the sTARTUp Day 2024 pass!


Speaker Contest Timeline

November 13: Applications open

December 4: Applications close

December 6: Contacting the TOP 3

December 11: Deadline for the second round

December 21: Announcing the winner

January 25: The winner takes the stage at sTARTUp Day 2024


Any questions? Don't hesitate to get in touch with the Project Lead at liisbet.paklinski@startupday.ee


Tickets from €139

Tickets

Find your perfect ticket type! All ticket types grant access to all three festival days. 

Venue access
Ϟ Day 0: Side Events on January 29
Ϟ Day 1 on January 30
Ϟ Day 2 on January 31
Matchmaking
This is where the magic happens. Through our matchmaking app, you can schedule 20-minute meetings with participants and meet them at our matchmaking area. General access to the matchmaking app will be available at the beginning of the festival week.
Stage program
There will be three stages at sTARTUp Day 2025 – Starlight Stage, Insight Stage, and Pitching Stage – with speakers and presenters who cover a variety of topics for every taste.
Demo Area access
This is the Mecca of Entrepreneurship! Explore the latest innovations and discover new products, services, friends, opportunities and perhaps, your new career challenge.
sTARTUp Night
The legendary sTARTUp Night wraps up the first conference day on January 30. The afterparty is bringing together the coolest festival visitors, good music, and lots of surprises!
Seminars
Practical seminars to sharpen & level up your skills.
Side events
Vibrant side events take place all over Tartu before and during the official festival.
Early access to matchmaking app
With early access, you’ll gain access to our matchmaking app two weeks earlier than most people. Use the opportunity to get a head start and request meetings with the hottest participants before all their slots are full.
VIP Reception
Celebrate the beginning of sTARTUp Day in style! The VIP Reception brings together speakers, investors & executives for an unforgettable night.
VIP Lounge access
Escape to your lounge where you can kick back and relax, get some work done, or prep for the next meeting.
Investor Day
Investor Day on January 29 is an exclusive investors' meetup to share experiences, learn from each other, and create meaningful contacts. Structured in a way you'd feel both elevated by and busy with new ideas while leaving enough room for networking.
Executive Day
Executive Day on January 29 is about taking the time to listen, talk, and network with other leaders. This is the place to bounce your thoughts and learn about challenges and solutions across different industries.
List of attending investors
Startups will see the participating investors' list (investor's name + investment fund's name) which enables them to request meetings with the right investors through our matchmaking app.
List of attending startups
There are over 300 unique startups at sTARTUp Day, which can be quite overwhelming at times. We'll send you a database of all of the participating startups so you can browse through them all and select the ones you want to meet beforehand.
Personalised startup matches
With the help of our good friends from Dealum, we will find the most relevant startup matches based on each investor’s profile. This means that investors will get a list of hand-selected startups that meet their requirements, making it even easier to meet the right startup.
Visibility at sTARTUp Day website
All validated startups and the biggest VC funds will be featured on the sTARTUp Day website.

Visitor

149 €
BUY NOW
Venue access
Ϟ Day 0: Side Events on January 29
Ϟ Day 1 on January 30
Ϟ Day 2 on January 31
Matchmaking
This is where the magic happens. Through our matchmaking app, you can schedule 20-minute meetings with participants and meet them at our matchmaking area. General access to the matchmaking app will be available at the beginning of the festival week.
Stage program
There will be three stages at sTARTUp Day 2025 – Starlight Stage, Insight Stage, and Pitching Stage – with speakers and presenters who cover a variety of topics for every taste.
Demo Area access
This is the Mecca of Entrepreneurship! Explore the latest innovations and discover new products, services, friends, opportunities and perhaps, your new career challenge.
sTARTUp Night
The legendary sTARTUp Night wraps up the first conference day on January 30. The afterparty is bringing together the coolest festival visitors, good music, and lots of surprises!
Seminars
Practical seminars to sharpen & level up your skills.
Side events
Vibrant side events take place all over Tartu before and during the official festival.
Early access to matchmaking app
With early access, you’ll gain access to our matchmaking app two weeks earlier than most people. Use the opportunity to get a head start and request meetings with the hottest participants before all their slots are full.
VIP Reception
Celebrate the beginning of sTARTUp Day in style! The VIP Reception brings together speakers, investors & executives for an unforgettable night.
VIP Lounge access
Escape to your lounge where you can kick back and relax, get some work done, or prep for the next meeting.
Investor Day
Investor Day on January 29 is an exclusive investors' meetup to share experiences, learn from each other, and create meaningful contacts. Structured in a way you'd feel both elevated by and busy with new ideas while leaving enough room for networking.
Executive Day
Executive Day on January 29 is about taking the time to listen, talk, and network with other leaders. This is the place to bounce your thoughts and learn about challenges and solutions across different industries.
List of attending investors
Startups will see the participating investors' list (investor's name + investment fund's name) which enables them to request meetings with the right investors through our matchmaking app.
List of attending startups
There are over 300 unique startups at sTARTUp Day, which can be quite overwhelming at times. We'll send you a database of all of the participating startups so you can browse through them all and select the ones you want to meet beforehand.
Personalised startup matches
With the help of our good friends from Dealum, we will find the most relevant startup matches based on each investor’s profile. This means that investors will get a list of hand-selected startups that meet their requirements, making it even easier to meet the right startup.
Visibility at sTARTUp Day website
All validated startups and the biggest VC funds will be featured on the sTARTUp Day website.

Startup

139 €
BUY NOW
Venue access
Ϟ Day 0: Side Events on January 29
Ϟ Day 1 on January 30
Ϟ Day 2 on January 31
Matchmaking
This is where the magic happens. Through our matchmaking app, you can schedule 20-minute meetings with participants and meet them at our matchmaking area. General access to the matchmaking app will be available at the beginning of the festival week.
Stage program
There will be three stages at sTARTUp Day 2025 – Starlight Stage, Insight Stage, and Pitching Stage – with speakers and presenters who cover a variety of topics for every taste.
Demo Area access
This is the Mecca of Entrepreneurship! Explore the latest innovations and discover new products, services, friends, opportunities and perhaps, your new career challenge.
sTARTUp Night
The legendary sTARTUp Night wraps up the first conference day on January 30. The afterparty is bringing together the coolest festival visitors, good music, and lots of surprises!
Seminars
Practical seminars to sharpen & level up your skills.
Side events
Vibrant side events take place all over Tartu before and during the official festival.
Early access to matchmaking app
With early access, you’ll gain access to our matchmaking app two weeks earlier than most people. Use the opportunity to get a head start and request meetings with the hottest participants before all their slots are full.
VIP Reception
Celebrate the beginning of sTARTUp Day in style! The VIP Reception brings together speakers, investors & executives for an unforgettable night.
VIP Lounge access
Escape to your lounge where you can kick back and relax, get some work done, or prep for the next meeting.
Investor Day
Investor Day on January 29 is an exclusive investors' meetup to share experiences, learn from each other, and create meaningful contacts. Structured in a way you'd feel both elevated by and busy with new ideas while leaving enough room for networking.
Executive Day
Executive Day on January 29 is about taking the time to listen, talk, and network with other leaders. This is the place to bounce your thoughts and learn about challenges and solutions across different industries.
List of attending investors
Startups will see the participating investors' list (investor's name + investment fund's name) which enables them to request meetings with the right investors through our matchmaking app.
List of attending startups
There are over 300 unique startups at sTARTUp Day, which can be quite overwhelming at times. We'll send you a database of all of the participating startups so you can browse through them all and select the ones you want to meet beforehand.
Personalised startup matches
With the help of our good friends from Dealum, we will find the most relevant startup matches based on each investor’s profile. This means that investors will get a list of hand-selected startups that meet their requirements, making it even easier to meet the right startup.
Visibility at sTARTUp Day website
All validated startups and the biggest VC funds will be featured on the sTARTUp Day website.

Investor

209 €
BUY NOW
Venue access
Ϟ Day 0: Side Events on January 29
Ϟ Day 1 on January 30
Ϟ Day 2 on January 31
Matchmaking
This is where the magic happens. Through our matchmaking app, you can schedule 20-minute meetings with participants and meet them at our matchmaking area. General access to the matchmaking app will be available at the beginning of the festival week.
Stage program
There will be three stages at sTARTUp Day 2025 – Starlight Stage, Insight Stage, and Pitching Stage – with speakers and presenters who cover a variety of topics for every taste.
Demo Area access
This is the Mecca of Entrepreneurship! Explore the latest innovations and discover new products, services, friends, opportunities and perhaps, your new career challenge.
sTARTUp Night
The legendary sTARTUp Night wraps up the first conference day on January 30. The afterparty is bringing together the coolest festival visitors, good music, and lots of surprises!
Seminars
Practical seminars to sharpen & level up your skills.
Side events
Vibrant side events take place all over Tartu before and during the official festival.
Early access to matchmaking app
With early access, you’ll gain access to our matchmaking app two weeks earlier than most people. Use the opportunity to get a head start and request meetings with the hottest participants before all their slots are full.
VIP Reception
Celebrate the beginning of sTARTUp Day in style! The VIP Reception brings together speakers, investors & executives for an unforgettable night.
VIP Lounge access
Escape to your lounge where you can kick back and relax, get some work done, or prep for the next meeting.
Investor Day
Investor Day on January 29 is an exclusive investors' meetup to share experiences, learn from each other, and create meaningful contacts. Structured in a way you'd feel both elevated by and busy with new ideas while leaving enough room for networking.
Executive Day
Executive Day on January 29 is about taking the time to listen, talk, and network with other leaders. This is the place to bounce your thoughts and learn about challenges and solutions across different industries.
List of attending investors
Startups will see the participating investors' list (investor's name + investment fund's name) which enables them to request meetings with the right investors through our matchmaking app.
List of attending startups
There are over 300 unique startups at sTARTUp Day, which can be quite overwhelming at times. We'll send you a database of all of the participating startups so you can browse through them all and select the ones you want to meet beforehand.
Personalised startup matches
With the help of our good friends from Dealum, we will find the most relevant startup matches based on each investor’s profile. This means that investors will get a list of hand-selected startups that meet their requirements, making it even easier to meet the right startup.
Visibility at sTARTUp Day website
All validated startups and the biggest VC funds will be featured on the sTARTUp Day website.

Executive

209 €
BUY NOW
Venue access
Ϟ Day 0: Side Events on January 29
Ϟ Day 1 on January 30
Ϟ Day 2 on January 31
Matchmaking
This is where the magic happens. Through our matchmaking app, you can schedule 20-minute meetings with participants and meet them at our matchmaking area. General access to the matchmaking app will be available at the beginning of the festival week.
Stage program
There will be three stages at sTARTUp Day 2025 – Starlight Stage, Insight Stage, and Pitching Stage – with speakers and presenters who cover a variety of topics for every taste.
Demo Area access
This is the Mecca of Entrepreneurship! Explore the latest innovations and discover new products, services, friends, opportunities and perhaps, your new career challenge.
sTARTUp Night
The legendary sTARTUp Night wraps up the first conference day on January 30. The afterparty is bringing together the coolest festival visitors, good music, and lots of surprises!
Seminars
Practical seminars to sharpen & level up your skills.
Side events
Vibrant side events take place all over Tartu before and during the official festival.
Early access to matchmaking app
With early access, you’ll gain access to our matchmaking app two weeks earlier than most people. Use the opportunity to get a head start and request meetings with the hottest participants before all their slots are full.
VIP Reception
Celebrate the beginning of sTARTUp Day in style! The VIP Reception brings together speakers, investors & executives for an unforgettable night.
VIP Lounge access
Escape to your lounge where you can kick back and relax, get some work done, or prep for the next meeting.
Investor Day
Investor Day on January 29 is an exclusive investors' meetup to share experiences, learn from each other, and create meaningful contacts. Structured in a way you'd feel both elevated by and busy with new ideas while leaving enough room for networking.
Executive Day
Executive Day on January 29 is about taking the time to listen, talk, and network with other leaders. This is the place to bounce your thoughts and learn about challenges and solutions across different industries.
List of attending investors
Startups will see the participating investors' list (investor's name + investment fund's name) which enables them to request meetings with the right investors through our matchmaking app.
List of attending startups
There are over 300 unique startups at sTARTUp Day, which can be quite overwhelming at times. We'll send you a database of all of the participating startups so you can browse through them all and select the ones you want to meet beforehand.
Personalised startup matches
With the help of our good friends from Dealum, we will find the most relevant startup matches based on each investor’s profile. This means that investors will get a list of hand-selected startups that meet their requirements, making it even easier to meet the right startup.
Visibility at sTARTUp Day website
All validated startups and the biggest VC funds will be featured on the sTARTUp Day website.