About the Entrepreneurship Center
The Entrepreneurship Center was established in 2019 through a partnership between Business and Technology University and the Henley Entrepreneurship Centre, one of the world’s leading entrepreneurship centers.
The Center aims to expand access to entrepreneurship education; create opportunities for startup development and access to finance; conduct research and support the commercialization of research outcomes; contribute to the internationalization of the ecosystem; and provide a space for AI-driven entrepreneurship, innovation, and technology startup development.
To achieve these goals, the Center collaborates with leading technology institutions, organizations, and companies worldwide. In 2021, Business and Technology University became the first higher education institution in the region to join the Martin Trust Center for MIT Entrepreneurship at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). As part of this membership, the following opportunities have been created at BTU:
- BTU students study entrepreneurship and innovation courses based on MIT’s methodology and using resources developed by the Martin Trust Center (MTC);
- A startup support pre-acceleration program has been developed with the involvement of MTC-affiliated experts and is implemented annually;
- MTC resident entrepreneurs share their knowledge and experience with BTU beneficiaries through various educational initiatives and programs;
- BTU students and beneficiary startups have unlimited access to Orbit, the AI-powered entrepreneurship platform developed by MTC.
As part of the partnership and in support of ecosystem development, BTU initiated the Georgian translation and publication of two key entrepreneurship books: Bill Aulet’s Disciplined Entrepreneurship: 24 Steps to a Successful Startup and Brad Feld and Jason Mendelson’s Venture Deals. In addition to its Martin Trust Center membership, BTU became the first regional partner of MIT’s Global Startup Labs (GSL). Through this partnership, BTU hosted a GSL acceleration programme led by MIT students.
Activities of the Center
BTU’s Entrepreneurship Center supports startups, aspiring entrepreneurs, students, innovators and diverse target groups (including children, youth, women, large, small and medium-sized enterprises) across Georgia through free programmes, mentoring, workshops, hackathons, research, and access to finance opportunities.
The Center helps founders develop and scale AI-driven products and businesses through support in ideation, business model development, business planning, AI-enabled digital transformation, product validation, marketing, internationalization, fundraising and investor readiness.
By connecting entrepreneurs, researchers, developers, mentors, investors and technology partners, the Center contributes to the growth of Georgia’s AI and startup ecosystem.
Key Initiatives and programs
- AI Startup Pre-Accelerator – an intensive training and mentoring programme supporting AI-driven startups.
- Annual Demo Day – a platform for presenting beneficiary startups and holding a grant competition.
- AI Hackathons – focused on Generative AI, AI products, AI automation, robotics, and AI agents.
- Women’s Empowerment Projects – developing the AI-related skills of women entrepreneurs.
- Projects for Children and Young People – sharing knowledge and developing skills in artificial intelligence, entrepreneurship, and social innovation.
- Large, Small and Medium-Sized Enterprise Support Projects – supporting digital transformation and the integration of AI tools into business processes.
- Research – developing and publishing research reports on the digital ecosystem, AI economy, and AI transformation.
- Community Events – organizing events that enable knowledge-sharing, networking, and the exchange of news and experience within the AI and startup ecosystem.
PARTNERS
