The latest international rankings confirm that the Community of Madrid is the first national hub and one of the main European hubs for the development and growth of startups with results that have been presented this week at the tenth edition of Startup Olé 2023.
Madrid's 5th European position in the "Large European cities of the future" ranking after London, Amsterdam, Dublin and Paris is supported by multiple indicators from international studies such as Financial Times - fDi "European Regions and Cities of the Future 2023", European Innovation Scoreboard 2023, Dealroom 2023, Startup Heatmap 2023, Startup Genome Ecosystem 2023 or Deep Ecosystems Q2.
Innovation and access to talent
Access to talent for startups is also more favorable in those places that offer higher concentrations of technology jobs and a higher level of innovative activity. The Deputy Director General of Society and Digital Economy of the Community of Madrid, Pedro Jesús Rodríguez, highlighted in Startup Olé the strengths in the digital field of the region, which ranks 3rd in Europe in terms of connectivity (Financial Times - fDi and 5th in Europe in availability of developers and talent for startups (Startup Heatmap 2023), for example in the area of Artificial intelligence (see article in Sifted). The Community of Madrid maintains its position as "Strong Innovator", according to the European Innovation Scoreboard 2023 and together with Miami, stands out as the main bridge for startups and talent between Latin America and Europe.
Economic potential
As highlighted by the Internationalization One-Stop-Shop, Madrid is a vibrant ecosystem with great internationalization capabilities in which the growth and consolidation of startups benefits from the possibility of establishing relationships with scaleups, companies and corporations. Madrid, an international hub for operations in multiple sectors, ranks first in Spain and, at European level, 5th for number of offices opened by startups from other countries (Dealroom, 2023), 2nd in number of offices opened by unicorns (Startup Heatmap 2023), 6th in terms of business friendliness and 10th for its global economic potential (Financial Times - fDi).
Investment attractiveness
International investment in startups is closely related to the success of recent divestments and the strength of local early-stage investment. Madrid also ranks first nationally and is the 5th European city for investment attractiveness (Financial Times - fDi) and the region rose in 2022 to the 5th European position in total amount of exits and to the 4th position in number of high-growth startups and exits of more than €100 million (Dealroom, 2023). On the other hand, Madrid is experiencing in 2023 a 24 % increase in the number of early stage investment rounds and a 12 % increase in the investment raised (Startup Genome Ecosystem 2023).
The startup support environment
The Community of Madrid concentrates the largest number of agents in the country that successfully facilitate the most innovative entrepreneurship, including public or private accelerators, especially corporate ones. Madrid is also the 4th European hub in number of support entities after London, Paris, Berlin and Amsterdam (Dealroom, 2023) and in number of participants in acceleration programs. By number and percentage of accelerated startups raising funds Madrid ranks 6th and 8th in Europe, respectively (Startup Heatmap 2023), closely related to its 5th position in number of startup Kickstarter campaigns or its 3rd position in number of startup events on Eventbrite (Deep Ecosystems Q2 2023).
Specific regulation and taxation for startups, quality of life and attractiveness for entrepreneurs from elsewhere
The "Startups Law" approved in Spain in 2022, a breakthrough for the Madrid ecosystem the Community of Madrid offers additional benefits for startups and for investors investing in the Community of Madrid, as highlighted from Invest in Madrid.
The cultural, leisure and gastronomic offer, being one of the safest capitals and having public and private services with high quality standards are added to the establishment costs, which are highly competitive when compared to the main international hubs. The Community of Madrid ranks 2nd in Europe for its lifestyle and human capital (Financial Times - fDi) and Madrid is also the 4th city in the world in terms of quality of life and safety, according to the Mori Memorial Foundation.
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