On September 1, 2025, the Future 500 Forum will debut at the IEDC – Bled School of Management, convening top European policymakers, investors, unicorn founders, and innovators to kick off a long-term mission: scaling Europe’s most promising companies into global leaders.
Co-led by the Atlantic Council and IEDC – Bled School of Management, and launched in collaboration with the Bled Strategic Forum, Podim, as the proud Startup Ecosystem Partner, and ISR – Institute for Strategic Solutions, the Future 500 initiative will identify and accelerate 500 high-potential scale-ups from Central, Eastern, Southeastern Europe and the broader EU — bridging the gap between bold entrepreneurial talent and the capital, partners, and policies they need to grow.
The launch event will feature high level discussions between visionary entrepreneurs, European Commissioners, prime ministers, finance ministers, and top tier investors. It will unveil the first cohort of Europe’s scale up leaders and set the stage for a long term initiative that bridges business, capital, and policy.
Confirmed speakers include Jozef Síkela, European Commissioner for International Partnerships; Edi Rama, Prime Minister of Albania; Mariya Gabriel, President of the Robert Schuman Foundation and former EU Commissioner for Innovation; Rafał Brzoska, founder of InPost; Mark Pleško, founder of Cosylab; Branko Milutinović, founder of Nordeus; and other top entrepreneurs, policymakers, and investors.
For more information about the event and the Future 500 platform, visit www.future500forum.com.
📄 The full press releases are available here:
SLO: https://iedc.si/docs/default-source/Press-Releases/sporočilo-za-medije---forum-future-500-bo-zagnal-naslednjo-generacijo-evropskih-globalnih-prvakov.docx
CRO: https://iedc.si/docs/default-source/Press-Releases/priopćenje-za-medije---future-500-forum-okupit-će-buduću-generaciju-globalnih-lidera.docx
ENG: https://iedc.si/docs/default-source/Press-Releases/press-release---future-500-forum-set-to-launch-europe-s-next-generation-of-global-champions.docx