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Podim 2025 — Wrapping Up. Here Are My Honest Takeaways.

3 days. 30+ meetings. A lot of conversations that made me think.

This year's Podim felt a bit lighter than last year, fewer startups with booths, less overall buzz on the floor. But the quality of individual conversations more than made up for it.

Here are some of the most interesting things I picked out for myself:

Slovenia's startup ecosystem is quietly strong. The government support here is real grants for early-stage startups are actively helping founders get off the ground. Not without strings attached, but still a meaningful signal.

European infrastructure is having a moment. I kept hearing the same theme I noticed at TechArena, Europe is actively moving away from dependency on AWS, Google, and the big US cloud players. Met a great team from Serbia running their own servers out of Frankfurt. They said demand is through the roof right now. This trend is only accelerating.

VCs are still investing — and AI is no longer the differentiator. I asked investors directly: does it matter if your product is fully AI-generated? The answer was clear: it doesn't matter anymore. What matters is users. Traction. Real retention. The bar has shifted.

Most interesting startup I saw: An AI token-sharing platform that lets companies pool their API subscriptions across teams, one account, shared access, shared cost. Smart positioning for SMBs. Still has questions around security and context management, but the problem they're solving is real.

One industry shift worth noting: Advisors are now telling startups to stop calling themselves "SaaS." The word apparently lowers your perceived valuation. Call it a "subscription business" instead. Honestly not sure how much that changes, but the sentiment is interesting.

Overall, Podim still feels like a solid place to understand where the startup ecosystem in CEE is moving.

Will I be back at Podim next year? Not sure yet. But if you're curious about where the startup world is heading and want real, unfiltered conversations, it's worth the trip.

What trends are you seeing in your market right now?

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