DNA test developer DNA ERA is one five Slovak companies ranked in the latest Companies to Watch category for younger firms with high growth rates, as composed by Deloitte in Slovakia. (source: Courtesy of DNA ERA)
While Slovakia has placed poorly in previous international rankings for innovation capacity, it is still home to a range of innovators developing groundbreaking solutions and startups addressing global challenges. Some of them are attracting international attention.
It may not be too long, in fact, before Slovakia becomes home to a ‘unicorn’ – a private startup with a valuation of over one billion US dollars.
“Slovakia boasts several notable innovations in various fields, such as e-mobility, waste management and social innovations” Iva Kleinová, director of the strategies department at the government’s Research and Innovation Authority (VAIA), told The Slovak Spectator.
At the Slovak branch of global consultancy firm Deloitte, managers regularly meet with technology companies as part of a programme that recognises and profiles fast-growing technology companies in the region.
“We at Deloitte believe there is a period ahead of us that will bring a significant number of noteworthy innovations,” Milan Šustek, senior manager at the department of tax consultancy at Deloitte in Slovakia, said, adding that a Slovak unicorn might in future be far from a fairytale.
Waste and health
One innovation startup mentioned by Artur Bobovnický, director of the innovation section of the Slovak Innovation and Energy Agency (SIEA), part of the Economy Ministry, is EcoButt which uses cigarette butts in the production of asphalt.
