Speaking at 0100 Emerging Europe 2025, László Bodis, Deputy State Secretary for Innovation and CEO of the Hungarian Innovation Agency, emphasized Hungary’s ambition to evolve from a promising startup scene into a true innovation powerhouse. The country already boasts a strong scientific foundation — ranking 11th globally in Nobel laureates per capita — but struggles to turn research into scalable ventures.
According to Bodis, four pillars are key to accelerating the ecosystem: education, institutional structures for tech transfer, tax and regulatory reform, and improved access to capital. One of Hungary’s flagship initiatives is the Hungarian Startup University Program, which has introduced over 20,000 students to entrepreneurship and innovation in just five years.
Still, capital remains the biggest bottleneck. “Only 5% of global venture capital is raised in the EU, compared to 52% in the U.S. and 40% in China,” Bodis noted. He argued that Europe must reform its regulations to allow institutional investors — such as pension funds — to allocate more to high-risk VC assets.
To help scale-ups expand globally, the Hungarian Innovation Agency is running the XPAND program, supporting entry into markets like the U.S., South Korea, China, and Germany. “Our vision,” Bodis concluded, “is not just to be an innovation hub — but a regional innovation powerhouse.”
Ahead of her appearance at 0100 DACH in February, Daisy Cai, General Partner at B Capital, reflects on deep tech beyond the label—and where frontier innovation becomes enduring value.
AI is no longer a fringe technology—it is rapidly reshaping entire industries, from climate and energy to industrial operations and enterprise software. Yet as competition intensifies and barriers to entry fall, the question facing venture investors is no longer whether to invest in AI, but how to identify companies capable of generating durable, long-term value. In this interview, Jeremy Brown, Principal & Head of Climate at Anthemis, shares his perspective on evaluating AI businesses beyond the hype, drawing on his experience at the intersection of AI, climate, and complex industrial markets, and setting the stage for a broader discussion with fellow investors on where real opportunity—and real risk—now lies in AI venture capita
he third edition of 0100 International — organized by Zero One Hundred Conferences in partnership with the Milan City Council’s Department of Economic Development and Milano&Partners — brought together the global private markets community for a high-signal, execution-focused gathering held from October 27–29.
