About the Startup Nations Summit

The Startup Nations Summit is an invitation-only meeting of GEN's community of public sector officials and policy advisors from around the world, focused on unearthing the most effective ways that local and national governments can empower entrepreneurs in their economies and increase rates of new-firm formation. It serves as a platform for governments setting new global standards for regulatory policies and programs to enable entrepreneurship and innovation.

BACKGROUND + HISTORY 

Startup Nations is part of the Global Entrepreneurship Network (GEN). GEN typically co-hosts the Startup Nations Summit in November each year as a centerpiece of the Global Entrepreneurship Week celebrations. The Summit has been hosted in the following previous locations:

• 2023: Melbourne, Australia
• 2022: Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
• 2019: Surabaya, Indonesia
• 2018: Tallinn, Estonia
• 2017: Cork, Ireland
• 2016: Monterrey, Mexico
• 2015: Seoul, South Korea
• 2014: Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
• 2013: Toronto, Canada

Highlights

• Startup Nations Summits have convened over 1,100 officials, advisors, experts and researchers from over 115 countries.
• Delegates have heard from globally-recognized founders including Brendan Iribe (Oculus), Joe Lonsdale (Palantir), Uri Levine (Waze), Brian Kim (Kakao), and Taavet Hinrikus (Wise).
• While primarily comprised of officials and advisors, Startup Nations Summits have also had participation from senior government leaders including Maria Contreras-Sweet (Small Business Administrator, United States), Ildefonso Guajardo (Secretary of Economy, Mexico), Kyungwhan Choi (Deputy Prime Minister, South Korea), Pichet Durongkaveroj (Minister of Science and Technology, Thailand), Urve Palo (Minister for Entrepreneurship and ICT, Estonia), Lindiwe Zulu (Minister of Small Business Development, South Africa), Mariano Mayer (Secretary of Entrepreneurs and SMEs, Argentina), and Don Dang Huy (Deputy Minister of Planning and Investment, Vietnam).

Impact

When hosted as part of Global Entrepreneurship Congress Melbourne in 2023, Startup Nations Summit delegates were more likely to report higher immediate outcomes – across all measures – from their participation than delegates who did not attend these sessions. SNS participants reported greater realized outcomes including: the promotion and advocacy of their region; collaboration with others on shared projects; new customers or markets; new funds or investment; learning practical skills; connecting with people in their field of interest; sharing knowledge to benefit others; and gaining new information and knowledge.

Startup Nations Summits and the wider network have also served as a proving ground for promising policymakers, with several members using the insights and connections gained through the network to accelerate their impact and work towards senior leadership roles. Examples include:

• Isabella Guzman, United States: Izabella participated in Startup Nations meetings in 2015 as Chief of Staff to then-Small Business Administrator Maria Contreras-Sweet. She went on to be appointed as Small Business Administrator under President Biden and chaired a Startup Nations Ministerial in Puerto Rico in July 2024.
• Mariano Mayer, Argentina: Mariano was a regular SNS participant in his capacity as Director of Entrepreneurship for the City of Buenos Aires. Mariano went on to be appointed Secretary of Entrepreneurs for the Government of Argentina, serving in the role from 2015 to 2019.
• Viljar Lubli, Estonia: Viljar hosted SNS 2017 in Tallinn in his capacity as Deputy Secretary General of the Estonian Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communications. He went on to become Estonian Ambassador to the United Kingdom, and now France.
• Salima Bah, Sierra Leone: Salima first engaged with SNS as State Counsel to the Sierra Leonan Directorate of Science, Technology and Innovation. In 2023, she was appointed as the inaugural Minister of Communication, Technology and Innovation, making her the country’s youngest cabinet minister at 32.