On the heels of the historic 20th anniversary of Infoshare, the largest technology and startup festival in Central and Eastern Europe, regional leaders and ecosystem architects have officially announced the launch of Gdańsk Bay Tech. The landmark initiative aims to unite Pomerania’s rapidly growing startup community, bridging the gap between Western venture capital and the authentic, practical engineering talent of the region.
 

The announcement comes at a pivotal moment for the European tech landscape. As traditional Western tech hubs grapple with soaring operational costs and oversaturated job markets, the Central and Eastern European (CEE) region, led by Gdańsk, is emerging as a highly agile, cost-effective, and sophisticated alternative for IT development, tech, and hardware innovation.

From Academic Meetup to International Tech Gateway

Infoshare’s milestone 2026 edition underscored this regional shift. What began in 2007 as a practical tech meetup for 200 students at the Gdańsk University of Technology has transformed into a massive cross-border gateway. This year’s festival at AmberExpo drew over 6,000 attendees, 160+ global speakers, and hosted more than 2,100 targeted networking meetings across seven thematic stages, highlighted by dedicated Innovation and Marketing Villages.

What is Gdańsk Bay Tech?

Rather than focusing solely on public institutions or market hype, Gdańsk Bay Tech is an ecosystem built entirely around people. It creates a unified identity and voice for Pomerania's tech visionaries, engineers, and founders, providing them with a frictionless environment to build, scale, and collaborate.

“Gdańsk Bay Tech is an initiative, that we waited for a long time.”  Said Michał Glaser, Chairman of Board of Gdańsk-Gdynia-Sopot Metropolitan Area (OMGGS). “The Gdańsk-Gdynia-Sopot Metropolitan Area proudly took part in the process of its creation, because since the beginning we believed that out region has the potential to compete with the best innovation ecosystems in Europe. In this initiative we see a natural partner in our efforts towards a coherent, metropolitan approach to economic development. We believe that, when the Metropolitan Association becomes reality, we will be able to play an even bigger role in this ecosystem – because innovations, similar to metropolitanism, don’t know municipal administrative boundaries.” 

The framework focuses heavily on sectors where Pomerania already holds a distinct competitive edge, including offshore infrastructure, maritime logistics, quantum computing, and space tech.
Once integrated into the Gdańsk Bay Tech ecosystem, startups gain immediate access to three core pillars designed to eliminate market fragmentation. First, the Ecosystem Map provides a comprehensive digital catalogue of regional resources, services, and contacts that facilitates seamless peer-to-peer and B2B cooperation. This is complemented by the One-Stop Shop, a streamlined entry point where founders can instantly diagnose their scaling needs and connect with relevant ambassadors, global corporate partners, or investors. Finally, the initiative fosters the next generation of innovation through Future Founders, a dedicated launchpad that helps students and young entrepreneurs transition from academia to industry through hands-on prototype challenges, mentorship, and micro-grants.

"We are entering this race with our own identity and on our own rules," said Aleksandra Dulkiewicz, Mayor of Gdańsk. "Gdańsk and Pomerania have a strong technological infrastructure, unique people, and a culture of ambition. We know where we are and what our qualities are, and now, we are turning them into a specific advantage."

A Year of Ecosystem Collaboration

Gdańsk Bay Tech is the culmination of over a year of development by a 50-person coalition. Coordinated by STARTER Gdańsk and backed by InvestGDA, the initiative brings together three major regional universities, the Pomeranian Science and Technology Park Gdynia, the Gdańsk Science and Technology Park, local enterprises, and global tech corporations.

The project is further empowered by the Pomeranian Development Agency, Invest in Pomerania, and the Gdańsk-Gdynia-Sopot Metropolitan Area (OMGGS), with dedicated local leadership from Piotr Grzelak (Deputy President of Gdańsk) and Oktawia Gorzeńska (Vice-President of Gdynia). Key architecture and operational structure were driven by Magdalena Wojtowicz and Dariusz Słodkowski (Starter Gdańsk), alongside Paweł Orłowski (InvestGDA).

By building international bridges from day one, Gdańsk Bay Tech shifts the paradigm of commercialization from a distant milestone to an immediate, borderless reality for Pomeranian startups.