{"id":5654,"date":"2026-02-02T09:57:22","date_gmt":"2026-02-02T08:57:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mia.gov.me\/call-for-expressions-of-interest-aim-innovation-week\/"},"modified":"2026-02-02T10:33:21","modified_gmt":"2026-02-02T09:33:21","slug":"call-for-expressions-of-interest-aim-innovation-week","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mia.gov.me\/en\/call-for-expressions-of-interest-aim-innovation-week\/","title":{"rendered":"Call for Expressions of Interest \u2013 AIM Innovation Week"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><strong>AIM Innovation Week<\/strong> is a high-level international forum focused on learning, exchange, and ecosystem development around Montenegro\u2019s emerging innovation landscape, with a particular emphasis on sustainability, digital transformation, and priority growth sectors.<\/p>\n\n<p>Hosted by the Science and Technology Park of Montenegro on 30 March and 1 April and framed within Montenegro\u2019s EU accession pathway, the event is designed as a <strong>platform for exploration, knowledge-sharing, and early connection<\/strong>, bringing together startups, experts, corporates, and investors to collectively map opportunities, challenges, and future collaboration pathways.<\/p>\n\n<p>We invite expressions of interest from the following groups:<\/p>\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">1. Startups<\/h3>\n\n<p>Innovative startups from Montenegro, the Western Balkans, and selected international ecosystems are encouraged to apply to:<\/p>\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Present solutions, products, and early-stage projects in curated showcase sessions<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Participate in thematic workshops across key sectors (ICT, agribusiness, finance, energy, logistics)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Learn from peers, experts, and ecosystem builders while building visibility within the regional innovation community<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n<p>The focus is on <strong>learning, feedback, and exposure<\/strong>, helping startups refine their models, understand market dynamics, and connect with relevant stakeholders as the ecosystem continues to evolve.<\/p>\n\n<p>\n          <strong>2. Investors and Corporate Representatives<\/strong>\n        <\/p>\n\n<p>Venture capital funds, corporate innovation teams, and international financial institutions are invited to participate in AIM Innovation Week as:<\/p>\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Ecosystem observers and opportunity scouts<\/strong>, gaining early insight into emerging startups and sectoral trends<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Contributors to discussions on what investors and corporates look for at later stages of growth<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Participants in dialogue on how investment-readiness and pipelines can be developed over time<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n<p>This stage of engagement is<strong> exploratory and discovery-oriented<\/strong>, supporting longer-term relationship building rather than immediate transaction activity.<\/p>\n\n<p>\n          <strong>3. Experts from International Organizations and Academia<\/strong>\n        <\/p>\n\n<p>Experts, researchers, and practitioners from international organizations, development institutions, think tanks, and academia are invited to:<\/p>\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Share international experience, research, and best practices in innovation, sustainability, and sectoral transformation<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Contribute to workshops and discussions focused on capacity-building and ecosystem design<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Engage with startups and policy-makers to strengthen knowledge exchange and learning<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n<p>Their contribution will help anchor the event in <strong>substance, expertise, and long-term perspective<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n<p>Participation in AIM Innovation Week is limited. Interested startups, investors, and experts are invited to submit an expression of interest by <a href=\"https:\/\/forms.office.com\/e\/zAD2nBA9VV\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">clicking here<\/a> by the submission deadline of 13 March 2026 &#8211; 23:00CET. <\/p>\n\n<p>For further information, please contact <strong><a href=\"mailto:contact@AimInnovationWeek.org\">contact@AimInnovationWeek.org.<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n<p>We look forward to welcoming you to a collaborative and forward-looking week dedicated to learning, exchange, and the foundations of future innovation-driven growth in Montenegro.<\/p>\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What to expect?<\/h3>\n\n<p>AIM Innovation Week capacity building, sector matchmaking, and investment pipeline creation under the AIM initiative.<\/p>\n\n<p>The week will open with a <strong>half-day entrepreneur training bootcamp<\/strong>, strengthening pitching, negotiation, and investor readiness skills. It will be followed <strong>by thematic sector sessions<\/strong> (ICT &amp; AI, agribusiness &amp; retail, Finance &amp; fintech, renewable energy &amp; green tech, and transport &amp; logistics), each structured around innovation trends, corporate challenges, startup\u2013corporate collaboration opportunities, mentorship, and concrete action points. <\/p>\n\n<p>A dedicated <strong>Funding &amp; Investment session<\/strong> will bring together IFIs, venture capital funds, business angels, and public institutions to present financing instruments, launch the present the Montenegro Innovation Fund, and facilitate dealflow matchmaking.<\/p>\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Who can participate?<\/h3>\n\n<p>Applications are welcome from all actors with a relevant role in the implementation of Montenegro\u2019s emerging innovation landscape such as startups, experts, corporates, and investors active in key sectors (ICT, agribusiness, finance, energy, logistics).<\/p>\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Evaluation of the outcomes of the expression of interest<\/h3>\n\n<p>Every application will be reviewed by two people from the AIM (Accelerating Investment in Montenegro) based on the following criteria:<\/p>\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The applicant&#8217;s experience in sustainability, digital transformation, and priority growth sectors (ICT, agribusiness, finance, energy, logistics).<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The quality and engagement demonstrated in the submitted motivation text.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>AIM Innovation Week is a high-level international forum focused on learning, exchange, and ecosystem development around Montenegro\u2019s emerging innovation landscape, with a particular emphasis on sustainability, digital transformation, and priority growth sectors. Hosted by the Science and Technology Park of Montenegro on 30 March and 1 April and framed within Montenegro\u2019s EU accession pathway, the [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":5636,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"none","_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5654","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mia.gov.me\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5654","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mia.gov.me\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mia.gov.me\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mia.gov.me\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mia.gov.me\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5654"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/mia.gov.me\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5654\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5655,"href":"https:\/\/mia.gov.me\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5654\/revisions\/5655"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mia.gov.me\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5636"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mia.gov.me\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5654"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mia.gov.me\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5654"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mia.gov.me\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5654"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}