Midwest Meets Europe: Global Entrepreneurship Week
What?
Midwest Meets Europe is the first event in the GEW Midwest series, taking place within Global Entrepreneurship Week — a global initiative spanning over 200 countries. Designed to bridge the American Midwest and European startup ecosystems, the event will unite institutional ecosystem leaders from Michigan with counterparts from Finland, Poland, France, Spain and the Netherlands to unlock Midwest market potential, catalyze co-investments, and establish durable EU–Midwest partnerships. The program also features pitches from seven promising European startups seeking growth opportunities in the U.S. market. In time, GEW Midwest has potential to grow into a consortium of organizations committed to opening the American Midwest to the international innovation scene.
For whom:
Midwest Meets Europe is designed for senior, decision-making representatives and practitioner teams that can create concrete cross-border pathways — with startups welcome as attendees.
Key audiences:
Venture capital firms & angel networks (MID & EU)
Accelerators, incubators & startup programs
Corporate innovation, procurement & pilot leads
Economic development agencies & municipal/state governments
University tech-transfer & R&D commercialization offices
Service providers & enablers (legal, HR, market-entry, scaling ops)
Founders and teams interested in the U.S./Midwest expansion; note that pitch slots are curated and by invitation but all startups are welcome to attend, learn, and engage in matchmaking.
Agenda:
11:00 AM – 11:15 AM EST (16:00 – 16:15 UTC) Warming up & Presentation
Opening remarks and a concise market case: The American Midwest as an attractive, pragmatic growth region for European scale-ups.
11:15 AM – 11:35 AM EST (16:15 – 16:35 UTC) Reverse Pitches — MID & EU ecosystem counterparts
Rapid 90-second reverse pitches from accelerators, VCs, corporate pilot leads, economic development agencies and university tech-transfer offices.
11:35 AM – 12:15 PM EST (16:35 – 17:15 UTC) Startup Pitches
Selected startups from Europe present 3-minute showcases followed by short ecosystem feedback and matchmaking signals.
12:15 PM – 12:30 PM EST (17:15 – 17:30 UTC) Initiating GEW Midwest: Round Table of Opinions
Why are we doing that?
Midwest Meets Europe is designed to move beyond introductions and marketing: we convene the institutions that can turn interest into action. By bringing together decision-makers from both regions, the event seeks to create repeatable, institution-led pathways for European founders and Midwest partners — so market access, pilots, investment and talent flows happen reliably and at scale.
What will you get from the event?
Open insights on Midwest ecosystem strengths.
Targeted connections & partnerships between Midwest and EU organisations able to commit to pilots, co-investments, or program exchanges.
Meet promising startups.
Access to valuable ecosystem players in the USA and EU.
Actionable next steps.
About Imaguru
Imaguru is an international community and ecosystem builder dedicated to accelerating founders, delivering practical education, and investing in early-stage startups. With physical hubs in Spain and Poland, we connect European founders to strategic partners and market opportunities — including expansion pathways into the American Midwest. Over the years we have supported companies that scaled to global success, such as PandaDoc (now a unicorn), MSQRD (acquired by Meta), TrackDuck (acquired by InVision), and FriendlyData (acquired by ServiceNow). Our story was recently featured in TechCrunch.
About Mindwest Meets Europe
Midwest Meets Europe brings together VCs, accelerators, corporate pilot leads, economic development agencies, universities and service providers from the U.S. Midwest and Europe to design and deliver institution-led pathways for startup growth. Launched during Global Entrepreneurship Week, the initiative moves beyond introductions to secure pilot commitments, co-investment opportunities, and program exchanges that scale transatlantic innovation.
Midwest Meets Europe mission is to open the American Midwest to international innovation by building a durable, institution-led consortium that converts interest into pilots, collaborations, co-investment and long-term partnerships.