For the first time, Wayra, Telefónica's open innovation hub, and Lanzadera, the business accelerator driven by Juan Roig, two key players and drivers at the national level, are joining forces to boost the entrepreneurial ecosystem in Valencia.
The agreement, signed this morning, establishes that Lanzadera and Wayra will be able to propose startups from their portfolios to each other that could benefit from a collaboration with the other party, sharing their deal flow. This morning, the first working session was held at Marina de Empresas, in which several Lanzadera startups presented their projects to Wayra representatives in order to receive investment or to work with Telefónica business units. Lanzadera and Wayra will also share their workspaces to carry out activities and host, either permanently or temporarily, their staff or their respective startups. Wayra will make its Madrid and Barcelona hubs available to Lanzadera, and Lanzadera will provide its facilities at Marina de Empresas within its Lanzadera Space initiative, whose mission is to host companies that add value to its ecosystem. All facilities can be used for events related to training, innovation, and entrepreneurship. With a strong focus on the Valencian entrepreneurial sector, both parties will jointly organize activities, calls for proposals, and events in the Valencian Community to energize the ecosystem and generate more opportunities for startups. Entrepreneur training, a fundamental area for both, can also be organized jointly, with workshops, courses, or informational sessions from one to the other, or in joint programs. As a result of the agreement, the Group Telefónica becomes the strategic partner for the services that Lanzadera startups need in areas such as connectivity, cloud computing, and cybersecurity, among others. Advisors and experts from the multinational telecommunications company will help entrepreneurs make decisions, recommending the best solution. This alliance comes at a challenging time for the entrepreneurial sector in Spain, which, nevertheless, has demonstrated an immense capacity for reinvention and flexibility in recent months. With this agreement, both Lanzadera and Wayra reinforce their commitment to supporting the entrepreneurial sector and investing in it more than ever, as they have been doing since their creation (Wayra in 2011 and Lanzadera in 2013). “Wayra and Lanzadera, two leading initiatives in Spain, confirm with this agreement how collaboration is key to taking innovation to a global scale. Valencia is already a key entrepreneurship hub in Europe, and from today, Wayra and Telefónica will help expand its great potential for talent and the creation of disruptive startups,” explains Miguel Arias, Global Director of Entrepreneurship at Telefónica. For his part, Javier Jiménez, CEO of Lanzadera, stated: “We are very proud of this agreement with Wayra; that the Telefónica Group’s open innovation hub will energize the Valencian entrepreneurial ecosystem.” “From Lanzadera, this is very good news for everyone. We are confident that Wayra will contribute its knowledge and technology to the growth of companies.” “The agreement will have an enormously positive impact on the startups in both portfolios and will help boost the entrepreneurial ecosystem in Valencia. At Wayra, we are delighted to join forces with Lanzadera, a key player in the sector,” concludes Marta Antúnez, Wayra's director for the Mediterranean region.