Angels and AI – Slush 2024

On November 20 and 21, startups and investors gathered at the Helsinki Exhibition and Convention Center with their brilliant ideas, looking for projects that were right for them and whose success they could contribute to. Although the main event was in the exhibition center, in reality, events were held in various locations in Helsinki throughout the week, where the aforementioned parties could lobby. In total, over 5,500 startups and 3,500 investors participated this year, plus 1,600 volunteers who helped to run the event smoothly.

Slush is a very old and vibrant event, which started back in 2008, and an interesting fact is that one of its founders is Peter Vesterbacka, one of the creators of the famous Angry Birds game. While the first three years the event was aimed at Finnish entrepreneurs and investors, with its growing popularity and desire to take Finnish ideas to the world, people from all over the world also participated. Until 2015, the event was held in the Helsinki Cable Factory, but these large spaces remained too small for the masses, and then Slush was moved to the large Helsinki Exhibition and Convention Center.

Startups generally do not start successfully alone

Startups are new, often innovation-focused companies that need capital and support to start growing. Since traditional financing, such as bank loans, is difficult for them to access, they often turn to investors, which is why startups and investors form an important cooperation network in the modern business world.

The relationship between a startup and an investor is based on mutual trust and a shared vision, and if the startup’s idea and team are strong, the investors’ contribution can be critical to the company’s success, contributing to both innovation and company growth. In addition to financial contributions, angel investors also help with their valuable contacts, knowledge and management experience, because idea creators often have a good idea, but lack the knowledge to successfully realize it.

In short, this relationship is beneficial for both parties: the startup receives the necessary funding and mentorship, while the angel investor benefits from the company’s potential success and income. Many of today’s well-known companies, such as Skype, Tesla, Facebook, PayPal, and the “newer” Slack, Zoom, and OpenAI, got their kick start thanks to the support of angel investors. During its 25 years of operation, Zone has helped successful startups with its own services, such as Bolt, Scoro, Voog, Fleetguru, Rebelroam, Outfunnel, Saunum, Erply, Multon etc.

We can’t live without AI anymore

Artificial intelligence is already so intertwined with our lives and in the startup world, the vast majority are already using it, whether it’s an energy-saving battery (“powerwall”) for home use or a language learning app that helps you easily learn a new language. The brave half of the Slush program also discussed all kinds of possibilities, advantages and disadvantages of using AI.

In the artificial intelligence landscape, where there are many players, standing out among competitors is a constant challenge, where the use of AI also threatens to reduce innovation, and how can a company create a competitive advantage and offer products that have real value while maintaining its uniqueness in a world where copying is going on 24/7.

The representatives of the old world discussed the topics where Europe faces challenges to stay ahead of the world leaders in the development of artificial intelligence and what is needed to make Europe the next generation AI technology leader?

In addition, various AI-based software solutions for improving customer service and internal company processes were introduced, as well as how to create new applications that bring AI into everyday life.

At Zone, we also use AI to help make our customers’ lives easier, and this is especially true for start-ups who want a simple website for their product/service quickly. This is where our Zone+ WordPress Assistant comes in, where artificial intelligence helps them create a solid website in minutes and they can start promoting their product/service right away.

Scammers are very active in the startup world

Just as we at Zone have to deal with creating various security solutions against fraudsters, Slush also had presentations regarding how fraudsters are evolving rapidly, using new tactics and technologies (incl AI) to exploit cross-border and industry weaknesses. As fraud becomes increasingly sophisticated, it is not only a question of preventing losses, but also of understanding who really benefits from these crimes, who is responsible for preventing fraud and how companies can succeed in this chaos. Thus, those on stage discussed the challenges of cross-border compliance, the impact of new APP (Authorised Push Payment) fraud regulations on startups and the critical role of big technology in protecting against fraud.

Hand in hand towards a better world

As the world has been racing towards a tipping point for decades “thanks to” overconsumption, waste and pollution, Slush has long had the vision that entrepreneurship is the most effective way to change the world on a large scale. Thus, various nature- and energy-saving solutions were represented by many initiatives, as well as various universities located in Helsinki. In the case of the latter, it is worth mentioning that both the University of Helsinki and Aalto University have unusually large and viable startup incubators, and the fair featured the latest inventions of their students that make our planet a better place to live. Also, Aalto teachers and students have been actively participating in organizing Slush for years. In addition to local startups, the event also featured many startups focused on sustainability from the USA, Italy, the Netherlands, Germany, etc., meaning that there were initiatives from almost every continent.

The event itself was also as environmentally friendly as possible, starting with recycable food and drink containers, reusable booth decorations, and ending with the fact that the entire event menu was vegan. In addition, all participants had the opportunity to support the reduction of Slush’s CO2 footprint by making a financial contribution to forest planting and purchasing eco-produced Slush promotional clothing.

Having participated in various fairs around the world for decades and also organized some myself, I recommend going to Slush next year for startups or people who want to test their ideas on a larger audience, get feedback on them and even find an investor, plus gain inspiration, or just “sniff” the startup scene of the big world.