Investment up to 50 million crowns regardless of location, mentoring from internationally successful entrepreneurs and investors, help with the pilot project, prizes and services worth millions of crowns, media attention and attention from potential partners, customers or employees. All this is up for grabs for start-ups and innovators taking part in the 18th Idea of the Year competition. Applications can be submitted until 10 May at www.napadroku.cz.
The oldest startup competition in the Czech Republic has so far seen more than 2,500 projects pass through and has facilitated investments worth nearly half a billion crowns. Over the past 17 years, it has helped a number of innovative Czech companies on their way to success, which today have customers all over the world and work with the biggest global brands – for example Apify, Cloudtalk, Daytrip, Kiwi.com, Monitora, Carebot, Kardi AI Sense Arena, Skinners or SprayVision.
“The idea of the year has come of age this year and so has the Czech startup ecosystem. It already employs more than 160,000 people, generates well above average salaries and helps build the reputation of the Czech Republic in the world. I am extremely curious to see what interesting founders and ideas we will get to know thanks to this year’s edition,” says Martin Kešner, the founder of the competition.
Small companies with big impact
According to the Smart Market Report 2025 study, prepared by Nápad roku together with the StartupJobs career portal and J&T Bank, startups in the Czech Republic already employ twice as many people as the entire financial sector, including banks and insurance companies. Last year, they paid approximately CZK 130 billion in wages, more than 5% of all wages in the Czech economy. Between 2018 and 2023, the number of startups grew by half to 4,200 companies, the number of their workers by two-fifths, and the average wage surpassed the national median by almost CZK 30,000 per month.
“For me, being part of the Idea of the Year competition means keeping my finger on the pulse of the times and having insight into the latest trends in many different fields. This is clearly the most prestigious competition for young innovators and budding entrepreneurs in the Czech Republic,” said Kamil Vacek, angel investor and director of TCCM. The latter represents the successful creative brand Nothing in the CEE region, which is conquering the world of phones and headphones with its playful minimalist design and is the new main partner of the competition.
Supporting strong brands
All teams entered in the Idea of the Year have the chance to receive an investment of up to 50 million crowns, regardless of the final ranking. The top 30 projects will receive feedback from experienced entrepreneurs and investors during personal presentations, while the final ten will have access to dozens of experts in marketing, business and law as part of mentoring. Finally, the best projects will be presented to the public at a gala evening on 16 September. In addition to the overall winners, a number of sub-categories will also be announced by the competition partners.
“Innovation drives every industry and domestic startups have the potential to improve the everyday lives of all of us. This is what Kooperativa as an insurance company is trying to do, so we will award the best startup prevention projects in the Safety has the Green Light category, just like every year. Because the least worrying thing is the damage that doesn’t happen,” explains Jindřich Skrip, Director of Marketing and Communications at Kooperativa Insurance.
Škoda Auto, on the other hand, will allow the selected ideas to test their concept in practice with a joint pilot project and thus gain experience and professional feedback. Microsoft will provide free consultations focused on business collaboration, credits for services including Azure AI in the amount of up to hundreds of thousands of dollars and as a special prize also a lunch with Michal Stachnik, CEO of Microsoft Czech Republic. A new community partner is GreenTable, a sustainable multifunctional space that combines a vegetarian bistro with a design event space with a focus on sustainability.
The main partners are Kooperativa, J&T Bank and Nothing. Partners are FTMO, Microsoft, Peterka & Partners. The main media partners are Hospodářské noviny, Ekonom weekly and CzechCrunch. The competition is also supported by CzechInvest, Vienna Business Agency, Prague Innovation Institute, Škoda Auto and Czech Founders.
About the Idea of the Year
The Idea of the Year competition is the oldest startup competition in the Czech Republic and Slovakia. Since 2007, it has served as a financial and creative injection for new projects and brilliant ideas of promising entrepreneurs. Any company whose product or service has been on the market for more than two years can participate. The aim is not only to discover the next revolutionary products, but also to educate, motivate and help young entrepreneurs to launch and then expand through investment and mentoring. Read more about the competition here.
Source: Idea of the Year
