4YFN Awards 2024: Spanish startup Qilimanjaro Quantum Tech crowned winner; receives a €20K cash prize

|

|

Last update:

Barcelona-based Qilimanjaro Quantum Tech, a deep-tech Quantum ASIC (QASIC) provider, has been announced as a winner of the annual 4YFN Awards during a ceremony hosted on Wednesday, February 28, at the Banco Sabadell Stage.

Last year, Qilimanjaro Quantum Tech has also been selected for Intel Ignite Spring ’23 Europe Cohort

Consequently, the Spanish company receives a €20,000 cash prize from GSMA Foundry, a startup exhibition pod, and a speaking opportunity at 4YFN MWC Barcelona 2025.

Qilimanjaro Quantum Tech competed against another finalist, including 

  • Bitsensing (South Korea)
  • Mica AI Medical (Israel) 
  • Ocean Econstructures (Spain)
  •  Whispp (the Netherlands) 

The top 5 finalists were shortlisted from the 4YFN Top 50 Startups list based on criteria including the innovation of the startup’s proposition, its impact, its future potential, and more.

Qilimanjaro Quantum Tech was selected as the winner after an on-stage pitching competition judged by a panel of experts made up of 

  • Kate Cornell, General Partner at All Iron Ventures; 
  • Hendrik Brandis, Co-founder & Partner at Earlybird Venture Capital; 
  • Shesh S, Sr Director – CVC at SK Telecom; 
  • Nicole Leblanc, Partner at Woven Capital; 
  • Sébastien Lefebvre, Partner at Elaia Partners

Pere Duran, Director at 4YFN, says, “Congratulations to Qilimanjaro Quantum Tech for winning the 10th-anniversary edition of the 4YFN Awards, and to each of the four finalists that took to the stage this evening – I’ve been continuously amazed at the level of innovation and entrepreneurial spirit we’ve seen on the 4YFN stages over the past decade. The future is bright for the global startup ecosystem, and we look forward to the next 10 years of connecting founders with investors and shining a light on the planet’s best digital startups.”

4YFN: Celebrating 10th year

4YFN, celebrating its tenth anniversary, is the startup and innovation platform at MWC Barcelona. 

As a part of the celebration, the platform featured seven stages, four networking spaces, and several programmes dedicated to key topics such as Digital Health, Green Tech, Fintech, and more. 

The platform also launched the Founders programme, as well as the University & Spin-off Hub, which celebrates academic innovation.

Day four of 4YFN will feature a partner programme from AWS focused on investment and technology trends for startups to consider in 2024. 

In addition, there will be a full day of panel sessions, fireside chats, and pitching competitions. 

Since its inception, 4YFN has connected over 9,200 founders with 5,400 investors, and this year’s show has welcomed over 900 exhibitors, 400 speakers, and over 1,000 investors with collective funds totalling €50 billion.

Topics:

Follow us:

Vigneshwar Ravichandran

Vigneshwar has been a News Reporter at Silicon Canals since 2018. A seasoned technology journalist with almost a decade of experience, he covers the European startup ecosystem, from AI and Web3 to clean energy and health tech. Previously, he was a content producer and consumer product reviewer for leading Indian digital media, including NDTV, GizBot, and FoneArena. He graduated with a Bachelor's degree in Electronics and Instrumentation in Chennai and a Diploma in Broadcasting Journalism in New Delhi.

Partner eventsMore events

Current Month

12dec4:00 pm9:30 pmAI in ActionPractical Insights for Digital Transformation

28jan4:00 pm10:00 pmUnlocking operational efficiency with AIInsights for your future

Share to...