Andrew Parish, Connect Ireland, Martin Corkery, Enterprise Ireland, Joanna Murphy, ConnectIreland, Siobhan Finn, Project Director of Cork Innovates & and the Global Startup Gathering 2016 and David Merriman, Head of Enterprise Development, Bank of Ireland. Photo: Darragh Kane
The city of Cork will be the first location in Europe to host the international Startup Nations Summit, which will take place during the 2016 Global Start-up Gathering in November.
The 2016 Global Start-up Gathering (GSG2016) will take place between 18 and 20 November. It aims to attract hundreds of international and national business people and would-be entrepreneurs in areas stretching from biotech to food, manufacturing, e-health, nutrition and technology.
The Global Entrepreneurship Network (GEN) Startup Nations Summit 2016 will take place on Saturday 19 November as part of the Global Gathering and will bring together the leaders of national entrepreneurship initiatives from over 80 countries.
‘The start-up spotlight will certainly be focused on Ireland, and particularly Cork, in November 2016’
– MINISTER DARA MURPHY
This will be the first year that the Start-up Nations Summit will be held in Europe.
Gathering the entrepreneurial clans
The 2016 Start-up Gathering, which will be sponsored by Bank of Ireland, was officially launched today (12 July) by the Minister for European Affairs, Dara Murphy, TD.
“The 2016 Gathering will build on the success of Ireland’s national celebration, Startup Gathering 2015, which engaged more than 18,000 individuals across 22 countries in five days,” Minister Murphy said.
“In addition, Cork is the first location in Europe to host the international Start-up Nations Summit, which brings together policy makers, influencers and leaders in the start-up arena. The start-up spotlight will certainly be focused on Ireland, and particularly Cork, in November 2016.”
Speaking about Bank of Ireland’s sponsorship of the Global Start-up Gathering, David Merriman, head of Enterprise Development at the bank, said that the Startup Gathering, now in its second year, has evolved at an incredible pace.
“The start-up community is a strong priority for the bank and we are very committed to supporting new and emerging entrepreneurs as they grow and develop,” Merriman said.
“Bank of Ireland recognises how important it is for entrepreneurs to have opportunities to connect and learn from one another and GSG2016 offers an ideal platform for Ireland’s innovators to engage with peers and industry experts from across the globe.”
Siobhán Finn, project director of Cork Innovates and the Global Start-up Gathering 2016, said that the programme of events will include debate, discussions, pitches, workshops, immersion labs, networking and mentorship.
The ultimate aim, she said, will be to showcase Ireland’s start-up sector to a global audience.
