The Minister of Universities, Industry and Innovation, Áslaug Arna Sigurbjörnsdóttir and Ásta Sóllilja Guðmundsdóttir, CEO of KLAK - Icelandic Startups, recently signed a three-year contract for the continued support of HVIN to KLAK in the interest of entrepreneurs and start-ups in Iceland.
According to the agreement, the ministry specifically supports several key aspects of KLAK's activities. In this way, HVIN will support the entrepreneurial competition Gulleggið, which KLAK has held annually since 2008, and which is for innovative ideas in the early stages. The agreement also includes support for KLAK's international work due to, among other things, the participation of Icelandic startups in the business accelerator TINC, which is run at the Nordic Innovation House in Palo Alto. In addition, the ministry supports the newly established mentoring service KLAK, KLAK-VMS, which is modeled after the MIT University in the United States, but today almost 130 mentors contribute to KLAK-VMS and provide start-up companies with invaluable advice and guidance.
According to the Minister of Universities, Industry and Innovation, Áslaugu Örna Sigurbjörnsdóttir: "Investment in human capital, innovation and knowledge results in increased economic growth for the future. The environment and the infrastructure we build are very important, not least for entrepreneurs with big ideas. And it is very important that there are people in this country who are willing to take risks. The ideas of individuals are the prerequisites for progress"
"For nearly three decades, KLAK-Icelandic Startups has supported start-ups in Iceland and helped them grow domestically and abroad with joy as a guiding light. All KLAK assistance is free of charge to entrepreneurs, and we rely on sponsors to finance the work. For years, HVIN has been one of our most important sponsors, and therefore it is particularly pleasing to finalize an agreement on continued support for core aspects of the company's activities," says Ásta Sóllilja Guðmundsdóttir, managing director of KLAK-Icelandic Startups.
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