4YFN celebrates its fourth and most international edition

• Netflix, Deutsche Bank, WPP Group and Draper Associates are the first companies to join the conference programme in the fourth edition of 4YFN
• The event will host Demo Days for Startupbootcamp IoT & Data, NUMA Barcelona, Global Mobile Challenge, Telefónica Open Future_, KPMG Best British Mobile Startup Competition and Hack_D_Gap Global Challenge, among others

December 1, 2016

4 Years From Now (4YFN), the Mobile World Capital Barcelona global business platform for the growing community of technology startups, launches the fourth edition of its most international event. 4YFN 2017, organised in partnership with GSMA Mobile World Congress, will take place in Barcelona between 27 February and 1 March 2017.

The fourth edition of 4YFN Barcelona will count with representatives from more than 160 countries and completes the event’s first cycle of activities with special emphasis on the global scope. In line with the startup growth pattern – which marks a four-year period for the launch, growth, consolidation and maturity of a project – 4YFN has reached this point having established itself as the event of reference for digital entrepreneurs and startups within the framework of the GSMA Mobile World Congress.

4YFN maintains its distinctive model and structures its programme along 3 central themes: Disrupted by Mobile, The Internet of Things and Digital Media. In only 3 days, 4YFN will host more than 100 talks, with over 270 speakers such as Michael Spiegelman, Director of Product Innovation for Growth & Acquisition at Netflix; JP Rangaswami, Chief Data Officer of Deutsche Bank; Sir Martin Sorrell, CEO of WPP Group, one of the major international advertising groups; and Fernando Fanton, Chief Product & Technology Officer of JUST EAT, the world’s leading digital marketplace for takeaway food delivery. This edition will also benefit from the presence of Tim Draper, Founder of Draper Associates, a venture capital company specialising in seed-stage and early stage companies, as well as Andy Shannon, Head of Startupbootcamp, Europe’s leading business accelerator and one of the largest worldwide, among others.

Driving entrepreneurial talent

The fourth edition of the 4YFN Awards 2017 will also give recognition to the most innovative digital entrepreneurial talent. The registration period for the competition, which awards prizes in three categories, will be open until 4 January 2017. The finalist startups will be announced on Wednesday 25 January.

With the aim of supporting startups and encouraging networking, 4YFN 2017 will again hold its Innovation Market, an 18,000 m² exhibition area that will host more than 600 exhibitors. Moreover, 4YFN 2017 will also host Demo Days for Startupbootcamp IoT & Data and NUMA Barcelona, both of which are mVenturesBcn acceleration programmes, a MWCapital initiative that promotes the creation and growth of startups in the digital and mobile industries. Also, the programme will include the following competitions: Global Mobile Challenge, Telefónica Open Future_, KPMG Best British Startup Competition and Hack_D_Gap Global Challenge, designed to generate innovative solutions, products or services that drive gender diversity and equality in the tech industry.

The rise of a programme by and for startups

Since its first edition, 4YFN has seen an exponential leap in its development both in terms of the event itself and of its organisation. The initial project, which was conceived as a parallel event to the GSMA Mobile World Congress, has become one of the largest international platforms for digital entrepreneurship.

With activities throughout the year, 4YFN has transcended the main event in Barcelona and responds to the needs of the entrepreneurial ecosystem. In this regard, the platform has multiplied its activity both on a national and international level, and now hosts a constant programme of activities throughout the year.

In 2016, 4YFN has been for the first time in the GSMA Mobile World Congress Shanghai and has held its own space in the DLD Innovation Festival of Tel Aviv, the biggest digital congress in Israel.

Consolidating the model

The progression of the second and third editions of 4YFN allowed the event to consolidate itself as a space tailored to entrepreneurs. This saw an increase in visitors from 2,300 in the first edition to 12,500 in the third, with the congregation of more than 500 startups with highly innovative projects – 48.8% of which are international – and 500 investors from all over the world. The event’s growth is also reflected in the increase in floor space, which reached its maximum in 2016 at 18,000 m².