About GEN in Poland

The Global Entrepreneurship Network’s history of engagement with Poland’s entrepreneurial ecosystem dates back to the country’s participation in Global Entrepreneurship Week in 2009. The campaign was originally led by the Youth Forum of the Polish Confederation of Private Employers (Forum Młodych Lewiatan), an influential voice for young business leaders, which marshalled an impressive national effort from the outset — organizing 1,686 activities and engaging 105,000 participants and over 2,200 partner organizations in its first year.

GEW Poland grew rapidly under Forum Młodych Lewiatan’s leadership, reaching a peak of more than 2,200 partners, 2,200 activities, and 82,000 participants in 2013. The campaign attracted high-level endorsements, with President Bronisław Komorowski publicly supporting GEW in 2012 and Vice Prime Minister Janusz Piechocinski, Minister of Economy, endorsing the campaign in 2013. Around 2015, a GEW Poland Foundation was established that served as the national leader of GEW until 2026. The GEW Poland Foundation and its strategic partners also played a pivotal role in creating the Coalition for Entrepreneurship, a new entity that brought together some of Poland’s most important institutions, NGOs, and companies to advance a shared entrepreneurship agenda.

The GEW campaign in Poland has been recognized repeatedly through GEN Compass Awards, receiving the GEW Campaign of the Year award in 2015. The campaign also received the Champion Catalyzer Award for GEW Partnerships in 2009, 2014, 2015, and 2017 — underscoring the breadth and consistency of Poland’s partner engagement over many years.

Poland has been an active member of GEN’s Startup Nations policymaker community, with the Polish Agency for Enterprise Development (PARP) representing the country’s policy interests in the network. Mrs. Paulina Zadura-Lichota, Director of the Enterprise and Innovation Department at PARP, represented Poland at the Startup Nations Ministerials held at GEC Milan in 2015 and GEC Medellin in 2016. In 2019, H.E. Tadeusz Koscinski, Undersecretary of State at the Ministry of Entrepreneurship and Technology, participated in the Startup Nations Ministerial at GEC Manama. PARP experts, including Sylwia Marczyńska and Sylwia Rink, have been consistent participants in Startup Nations convenings.

Poland’s angel investor community is connected to GEN’s investment ecosystem through Cobin Angels, Poland’s largest professional business angel network. Founded in 2015 and headquartered in Warsaw, Cobin Angels brings together individual investors and business professionals focused on early-stage technology startups in Poland and the Central and Eastern European region. Cobin Angels joined GEN’s Global Business Angels Network (GBAN) during the pandemic, with founder and managing partner Robert Lugowski citing the partnership as a natural extension of the network’s mission to encourage cross-border investment and knowledge sharing among angel communities worldwide.

Several Polish startups have used GEN programs to speed their growth over the years. For example, three Polish startups made their way to the finals of the Entrepreneurship World Cup where they had access to free training resources, mentorship and exposure to potential investors. E-plus Technology (2019), AREYTech AI (2024), and PlayMaker Pro (2025) reached the EWC 100 and pitched for a share of $1 million at the EWC Global Finals in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

GEN maintains relationships with key Polish ecosystem stakeholders, including the Polish Agency for Enterprise Development (PARP), the Ministry of Development and Technology, Startup Poland, TechPL, Youth Business Poland, and Cobin Angels. 

GEN President Jonathan Ortmans has maintained a consistent engagement with Polish visiting ecosystem stakeholders over the years to strengthen Poland’s connection to GEN’s global entrepreneurship infrastructure.