🔥 Good Vibes. Slow BBQ. Classic.
Yesterday I ended up at a startup BBQ hosted by Bird Incubator, Nuqleus, and Feelsgood. Good people, real conversations, cold drinks - and eventually, warm food. As always, it took a while for the grill to catch up with the ambition, but hey, isn’t that the most honest metaphor for the Central European tech scene?
🧑💻 So… Do We Actually Have an Ecosystem?
Short answer? Yes. Long answer? It’s more like scattered islands of great people and cool ideas - occasionally connected by events, but rarely by infrastructure or long-term support. In CEE, being a founder still feels like playing the startup game on hard mode, but with duct tape instead of funding rounds. You learn fast. Mostly because you have to.
🤝 We Need More Collisions
What we’re still missing isn’t ambition - it’s collisions. Serendipity. A place where engineers, operators, investors, and builders can bump into each other on purpose. We need more events like this BBQ. Not for the networking bingo. For the actual shared energy. For the moment when a casual “hey, I’m building this thing” turns into a partnership.
💸 But It’s Better Than It Was
Let’s not be cynical. Things are getting better. The vibe is shifting. Support is growing. Founders are starting to think globally from day one. Some investors are starting to show up before Series A. And events like this one, as small as they seem, are a huge deal. Especially in regions where a decade ago, “startup” meant opening a second café.
🚀 Final Thought
Europe has talent. CEE has resilience. Now we just need a bit more coordination, a few more bets, and way more sausages. Until then, we keep building, keep showing up, and keep making the system better.
