10 community meetups, 7 hands-on workshops and masterclasses, and communities from a wide range of fields, all in one place. On the second day of Innovate Split, the focus shifts from the big stages to people, networking, sharing experience and practical work.
The first day of Innovate Split brings international speakers, four stages and conversations about technology, capital, startups, business and innovation ecosystems.
On the second day, the rules change.
On 11 September, Split Technology Park becomes a meeting place for a variety of professional, technology and business communities. Through 10 community meetups and 7 hands-on workshops, the traditional distance between speakers and audience disappears, with the emphasis placed on conversation, sharing experience, practical work and networking.
In one hall the talk will be about artificial intelligence, in another about startups, and a few metres further on about blockchain, Web3, quantum computing or industrial 3D printing. At the same time, some will be working on their own sales approach, others on their brand or LinkedIn strategy, while others will use AI tools to try to turn their own idea into a working application.
But the value of Open Community Day lies not only in the number of sessions.
The idea is to create a space where people and communities active in different fields throughout the year can meet, share experience and open the door to new contacts, collaborations, projects and business opportunities.
10 meetups – find your community
Open Community Day brings together communities from different fields and opens up topics that show just how broad the innovation landscape is today.
CroAI brings together the Croatian AI community and opens a conversation about what artificial intelligence already means for business in concrete terms today. CroStartup connects the local startup scene with international ecosystems and people from Amsterdam, Budapest and Asia, raising the question of how a startup from a local environment can connect with new markets, partners, customers and investors.
UBIK and Alice in Blockchains will discuss what is happening with blockchain and Web3 after the first big wave of hype, and where these technologies have real business applications today. UNIT Croatia opens the topic of quantum computing and post-quantum security, while Web3 Innovation Hub connects science and decentralised technologies through a DeSci meetup.
The programme also goes beyond traditional technology topics.
The meetup “Innovation Signed by Women Entrepreneurs”, with Jelena Majić Nosić of Poetica Distillery and Dragica Jerkov, founder of Woolee, will show how innovation also emerges in manufacturing, agriculture, sustainability and traditional industries – when someone recognises a new business opportunity in an existing problem.
The Foreign Business Owners Association brings together international entrepreneurs who have chosen Croatia as a place to live and do business, and raises the question of how international talent, experience and business connections can be more closely linked with the local community.
The programme also covers battery systems and energy, as well as industrial 3D printing and its increasingly wide use in real-world manufacturing.
You don’t need to be a member of any of these communities already. Quite the opposite – Community Day is your chance to get to know them.
7 workshops – less theory, more practice
While the meetups create space for conversation and networking, the other part of the programme focuses on concrete business skills and hands-on work.
The seven workshops tackle questions that entrepreneurs, founders and professionals face every day:
How do you clearly explain the value of what you sell?
In Fix Your Value Proposition or Fail, Zoltan Vardy works on one of the fundamental questions of any business – does the customer understand what you offer, what problem you solve and why they should choose you.
Do you know what in your business is worth protecting?
In his workshop on intellectual property, Vedran Đidara presents patents, trademarks, industrial designs, copyright and trade secrets as business assets rather than merely a legal topic.
How do you build a brand people remember? How do you attract and retain good people? How do you sell?
Žana Soče leads a hands-on workshop on branding and visual identity, Michael Kubiena on the Employee Value Proposition, and Oliver Travaš on sales and developing your own sales approach.
How do you turn LinkedIn into a real business tool?
In the LinkedIn Masterclass, Dragan Petric explores the concrete mechanics of reach, creating content for a relevant business audience, and using LinkedIn to build reputation, contacts and new business opportunities.
And at the end of the day – come with an idea, leave with an app.
Antonio Vidaković, Cursor Ambassador, leads a hands-on workshop where the goal is to turn your own idea into a working application with the help of AI tools. All you need is a laptop and an idea. No previous programming experience is required.
More than a programme – a place to meet
Open Community Day starts from a simple idea: the value of a conference does not end with the last talk.
Innovation and entrepreneurial ecosystems are also built in the conversation where you meet a future business partner, at the meetup where a developer meets a future co-founder, in an encounter between a researcher and a company, or at the workshop where an entrepreneur finally finds the solution to a problem that has been holding them back for a long time.
That is why Open Community Day is not just a continuation of the first day of Innovate Split.
It is a day dedicated to the community – to people who want to meet others, share knowledge, try something new and perhaps start a collaboration that did not exist the day before.
On the first day, ideas, experience, technology and capital come to Split. On the second day, the community takes over.
Innovate Open Community Day takes place on 11 September at Split Technology Park.
Participation in Open Community Day is open and free of charge to everyone interested. Due to limited places, the hands-on workshops and masterclasses require separate registration via the Luma link for each workshop, with priority given to participants holding an Innovate Split ticket. You may register for more than one workshop.
Choose your topics. Meet your community. And come and make something new.