Sabadell’s Startup Ecosystem Shines at Impulsa Startup Demo Day

On January 22nd, the Cambra de Comerç de Sabadell, in collaboration with Conector Startup Accelerator, hosted the Demo Day for the 1st edition of the Impulsa Startup – Phase II Despega program. Held at the Cambra de Comerç Sabadell, the event brought together eight promising startups, eager to showcase their innovative projects to an expert jury and a room full of investors, mentors, and ecosystem players. The evening featured startup pitches, valuable insights from Carlos Blanco, and, of course, a lively networking session to wrap it all up.

The winners

After an exciting pitch session, the jury selected Dawa and NeurekaLAB as the top two startups of the event, recognizing their impressive market traction and solid business models.

Meet the startups

Here’s a quick rundown of the eight participating startups and what they’re bringing to the table:

• 🏠 Atendea (pitch by Marc Rue) – AI-powered chatbot for real estate agents, helping them streamline communication via WhatsApp to boost efficiency and lead generation.
• ♻️ Dawa (pitch by Javier Dolcet) – Enabling e-commerce brands to embrace the circular economy by offering a tech platform to provide trade-in and resale programs, making sustainability seamless and profitable.
• 🏥 Doqia (pitch by Catalina Candia) – A marketplace for on-demand medical services delivered to homes, making healthcare more accessible and convenient.
• 📱 Jalea (pitch by Iris Vidal) – AI-driven content creation platform that helps businesses and creators develop personalized social media plans with ease.
• 🏋️ Keepon.tv (pitch by Germán Utz) – An online fitness platform that connects personal trainers with clients, offering a freemium subscription model to users and allowing trainers to grow their personal brand.
• 🧠 NeurekaLAB (pitch by Sergi Grau) – AI-powered early detection and intervention solutions for learning difficulties at schools, supporting educational institutions in providing personalized learning experiences.
• ✈️ Redo (pitch by Sergi Puig) – AI-powered travel planning platform that acts as a personal concierge, helping users organize every detail of their trips effortlessly and in one platform.
• 📊 Synopsia (pitch by Gaspar Montoliu) – A platform that organizes and structures data, like transcribing and processing meeting notes using AI, providing actionable insights for better decision-making.

Key takeaways from the event

The projects showcased at the event spanned different industries and stages, with a noticeable trend: the most mature startups with established revenue streams took home the awards, which isn’t surprising. It highlights the importance of market validation and revenue traction when seeking investor interest.

Another common theme was AI, with nearly every startup incorporating it into their pitch in some way. However, while some had genuine AI-driven solutions, others seemed to include it more to align with the ongoing hype — a trend we’re seeing not just in startups, but across major tech players as well.

Why collaboration matters

Sabadell’s Chamber of Commerce made a smart move by teaming up with Conector, leveraging their experience to deliver a high-quality program. It’s encouraging to see regional initiatives like this, but it’s essential they remain realistic about their strengths and weaknesses. Bringing in expert support, if it is not available in-house (which, let’s face it, is rarely present in public institutions outside of the major capitals like Barcelona and Madrid) ensures these programs create meaningful impact rather than becoming mere checkboxes on a to-do list ordered by people higher up.

A bright future for startups outside of Barcelona: Sabadell & beyond

With such a successful event, it’s clear that Sabadell is stepping up as an emerging player in Catalonia’s startup ecosystem. This demo day also served as a great reminder that entrepreneurship in Catalonia is not confined to Barcelona. While the city remains the clear epicenter, Sabadell and other regions are nurturing exciting ventures, proving that innovation thrives beyond the capital.

That’s exactly why SBD Startup Hub was launched by Marina Teixidor, Alfred Coma, and Clemens Rychlik – to serve as the go-to community for entrepreneurs and startups in Sabadell and the Vallès region.

Their first event is coming up on March 27 at 18:30, featuring a panel discussion and networking session. Stay tuned for more details and follow them on LinkedIn if you want to support their mission.