13 Dec 2021

DIGITALEUROPE unveils 17 European scale-ups nominated for its Future Unicorn Award

Today, DIGITALEUROPE unveiled its shortlist of nominees for the DIGITALEUROPE Future Unicorn Award, which every year showcases Europe’s most promising scale-ups.

The 17 nominees – which include innovative young companies in digital health, smart mobility, e-learning, aerospace and more – hail from 14 countries and show the diversity of the European innovation landscape.

The winner will be announced by Mariya Gabriel, European Commissioner for Innovation, Research, Culture, Education and Youth, at DIGITALEUROPE’s flagship annual conference Masters of Digital on 3 February 2022.

Cecilia Bonefeld-Dahl, Director-General of DIGITALEUROPE, said:

“This year’s impressive shortlist of the most brilliant scale-ups across Europe clearly shows that our continent has the potential to lead on digital innovation. Yet we know that scaling up remains hard in Europe, and that this drives our best talents and companies to leave Europe. Fostering one European market and eliminating regulatory fragmentation is key to help these great innovators to grow in Europe. It is our only way to reverse this trend.”


About the Future Unicorn Award

The Future Unicorn Award is a collaboration between DIGITALEUROPE and its national trade association members. Each national association nominates one scale-up from their country that has the potential to become Europe’s next digital leader. The Award is now being held for the fifth year in a row and is a testimony of the vital importance of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Europe and the wider digital economy.

The winner will be announced at Masters of Digital during a ceremony on 3 February 2022. This year’s edition has already top EU leaders as confirmed speakers, including President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen, Executive Vice President Margrethe Vestager, and Italian Minister for Digitalisation Vittorio Colao.

Scale-ups – tech companies with more than $1 million funding raised – are essential to Europe’s prosperity. More than just an engine for innovation, scale-ups are businesses that keep on hiring highly skilled workers, raise Europe’s productivity, and champion European values across the world.

Supporting scale-ups is not only Europe’s best chance at producing home-grown tech giants, but it is also a smart choice for economic prosperity. This may be truer than ever in the context of the recovery from the pandemic, where traditional companies have struggled and younger, high tech companies have adapted quicker.

Past Future Unicorn Award winners are a great example of this and highlight Europe’s growth in innovative sectors such as digital health. Both 2021 winner Oncompass Medicine (Hungary) and 2020 winner Corti AI (Denmark) have developed artificial intelligence solutions, respectively for targeted cancer therapy and for emergency health services.


The 17 scale-ups nominated for the 2022 Future Unicorn Award

  • Contractbook, IT-Branchen, Denmark | Collaborative contract automation tool for businesses to manage contracts in a single streamlined repository.
  • Comodule, ITL, Estonia | IoT solutions connecting e-bikes and scooters to the internet for smarter and safer micro-mobility.
  • SYADEM, Numeum, France | Tools for health institutions, professionals, and citizens to represent, share and interpret their vaccination history.
  • IWrobotX, ECID, Turkey| Autonomous technologies for the marine industry like sea cleaning vehicles and robots; like Tesla for the sea.
  • Belgian Mobile ID, Agoria, Belgium | Digital Identity solution enabling identification, authentication, data transaction and electronic signature.
  • cBrain, DI Digital, Denmark | Standardised software for governmental institutions to help them digitise by replacing traditional custom-built solutions.
  • Mega Italia Media, Anitec-Assinform, Italy | eLearning platform for corporate training that allows creating and delivering online courses.
  • SkyLabs, GZS, Slovenia | Aerospace technology-oriented company providing miniaturised satellite platforms to space engineering.
  • PROCESIO, ANIS, Romania | Platform-as-a-Service to integrate applications, automate workflows, and process data 5x faster than classic coding.
  • YourAnastomosis, IVZS, Hungary | Complex digital twins of cardiovascular surgical procedures to train, monitor and improve surgical procedural outcomes.
  • Circulor, TechUK, United Kingdom | Enabling industries to track materials used in manufacturing and recycling chains for responsible sourcing and sustainability.
  • Citify, Infobalt, Lithuania | An online platform for tracking current and future real estate projects, providing important contacts and key project metrics.
  • Fagura, ATIC, Moldova | P2P lending marketplace, aiming to become a community-based digital bank for people to borrow, invest or transfer money instantly.
  • Fazla Gida, DTP, Turkey | Management system with A.I. and machine-learning technologies for donating, recycling, and reselling Food Surplus.
  • Dawn Health, Dansk Erhverv, Denmark | Developing software as medical device (SaMD) and digital therapeutics (DTx) for enhanced healthcare services.
  • Zenjob, Bitkom, Germany | A fast-moving digital disruptor that automatically connects businesses and workers on its proprietary digital platform, like Netflix but for jobs.
  • CameraMatics, Technology Ireland, Ireland | CameraMatics is for driver and vehicle safety what a Fitbit is for personal fitness.

DIGITALEUROPE does not intervene in the nomination process. It is the responsibility of the nominating National Trade Association to ensure that there is no conflict of interest with the nominee.
For more information, please contact:
Samia Fitouri
Senior Communications Manager
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