Building Global Innovators
Building Global Innovators (BGI) is a Lisbon-based, EU-funded startup accelerator and venture builder that runs deep-tech acceleration, education, and open-innovation programs in agrifood, mobility, health, and climate, serving startups, researchers, and corporates across 70 countries via EIT and EIC partnerships.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2013
- HeadquartersLisbon, Portugal
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
Building Global Innovators firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Building Global Innovators
- Legal name
- BGI S.A.
- Website
- https://bgi.pt
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2013
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Building Global Innovators (BGI) is a Lisbon-based, EU-funded startup accelerator and venture builder that runs deep-tech acceleration, education, and open-innovation programs in agrifood, mobility, health, and climate, serving startups, researchers, and corporates across 70 countries via EIT and EIC partnerships.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Building Global Innovators industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Startup Acceleration and Venture Building Services
- akta.pro primary industry
- Accelerators & Incubators (Investor-Operated) (FSANAAAM)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Marketing, Branding & Sales Skills (EDAMAHAG)
Keywords
Where Building Global Innovators is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Lisbon
- HQ country
- Portugal
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices1 record
Markets served
Building Global Innovators business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Accelerator and Program Services: BGI operates as a non-profit accelerator providing programs funded by EU institutions (EIT, EIC), corporate partners, and government bodies. Revenue is generated through program management fees, grants, and co-funding arrangements rather than direct client fees.
- Grant and Public Funding: BGI operates as an elected member of EIC Ecosystem Partnerships and Co-Investment Support Program, coordinating EIT Urban Mobility and EIT Food initiatives in Portugal, accessing European funding mechanisms for innovation acceleration.
- Capacity Building and Training Programs: Some programs like Regulatory Affairs for Medical Devices (Pack 1: €1,229.02, Pack 2: €1,976.37) and Digitalizing Mobility course (€800/€600 with discounts) generate direct revenue through participant fees.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | Regulatory Affairs for Medical Devices - Pack 1 |
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | Regulatory Affairs for Medical Devices - Pack 2 (includes IVD) |
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | Digitalizing Mobility Professional Course - Standard |
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | Digitalizing Mobility - NGO/Public/Non-profit/Ex-Alumni |
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | Digitalizing Mobility - SME/Individual Professional |
| Other | Pay-as-you-go | EWA - Empowering Women in Agrifood |
| Subscription | Pay-as-you-go | HealthySoil4Life Summer School 2026 - Online Only |
| Subscription | Pay-as-you-go | HealthySoil4Life Summer School 2026 - Full Program |
| Freemium | Pay-as-you-go | Urban Mobility Disruptor |
| Freemium | Pay-as-you-go | EIT Food Seedbed Incubator |
| Freemium | Pay-as-you-go | Blue Economy Acceleration Program |
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels7 records
Marketing channels12 records
Building Global Innovators product offering
Product offeringCore offering
BGI operates as a startup accelerator and venture builder, delivering venture acceleration programs, open innovation initiatives, an innovation academy, venture investment, and ecosystem insights to deep-tech startups, researchers, SMEs, and corporate partners. The portfolio includes EIC Services for EIC beneficiaries, sector-specific disruptor programs (Agrifood, Urban Mobility), the Boston Global Immersion US soft-landing bootcamp, the AmpliAqua pre-commercial aquaculture R&D facility, and the RegenAg-X federated data space for regenerative agriculture, funded primarily through EIT/EIC grants, corporate partnerships, and government co-funding.
Product overview
BGI (Building Global Innovators) operates as a multi-program startup accelerator and venture powerhouse offering a portfolio of acceleration programs, education initiatives, and R&D facilities. The core offerings include EIC Services (fundraising acceleration, US soft landing, pilot development), Tech4RegenAg (regenerative agriculture acceleration with RegenAg-X data space), Urban Mobility Disruptor and Agrifood Disruptor (research-to-market programs), Blue Economy Acceleration (blue bioeconomy ventures), Boston Global Immersion (US market entry), and AmpliAqua (pre-commercial aquaculture R&D facility). Supporting services include Sustainable Foods TestBeds, EWA women empowerment program, EIT Food Seedbed Incubator, HealthySoil4Life, CircularAgriFood School, Mobility Hackathon, Regulatory Affairs training, Digitalizing Mobility course, ecosystem reports, and various matchmaking/networking events. Programs operate across agrifood, urban mobility, health, climate, digital, blue economy, and manufacturing sectors, with most offerings free or equity-free funded through EIT/EIC partnerships.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- EIC Services A comprehensive suite of services for EIC beneficiaries including fundraising acceleration, US market soft landing programs, and pilot/use-case development support, delivered as customized programs targeting TRL3-9 ventures in health, biotechnology, and food sectors.
- Tech4RegenAg A European-wide initiative accelerating regenerative agriculture adoption through data-driven insights, on-farm pilots, education, and innovation partnerships, featuring the RegenAg-X federated data space for secure agrifood data sharing.
- Urban Mobility Disruptor A 4-month online acceleration program empowering researchers, academics, and early-stage innovators to translate urban mobility ideas into market-ready solutions, with applications at TRL 3-6 targeting European mobility innovation.
- Blue Economy Acceleration A 3-stage online innovation program for early-stage entrepreneurs and researchers transforming blue bio-based technologies into market-ready ventures, including capacity building, acceleration, incubation, and access to the AmpliAqua R&D facility.
- Boston Global Immersion An exclusive 5-day program in Boston for vetted global tech-based startups seeking to scale in the USA through investment and new clients, offering 50+ hours of mentoring, networking events, and connections with 90+ investors.
- AmpliAqua A pre-commercial R&D facility dedicated to land-based aquaculture innovation and sustainability, spanning 1,000m2 with Recirculating Aquaculture System (RAS), hydroponics, and microalgae production, serving as a testbed for agrifood startup challenges.
- Agrifood Disruptor An acceleration program turning research into market-ready innovation in the agrifood sector, connecting innovators with top agrifood leaders to scale sustainable food system solutions.
- Sustainable Foods TestBeds Test bed services for digital innovators in agri-food, supporting TRL upgrade from 4 to 7-9 with up to 50% co-funding, covering digital technologies including AI, IoT, robotics, and data analytics for soil and soilless food production.
- EWA - Empowering Women in Agrifood A 6-month program by EIT Food empowering women entrepreneurs in agrifood with training, mentoring, networking, and funding opportunities, with grants of €10,000 and €5,000 available to participants.
- EIT Food Seedbed Incubator A 4-6 month incubator program transforming science and technology-based innovations into market-validated businesses with up to €7,000 equity-free funding and access to 100+ customers and stakeholders in the agrifood industry.
- EIT Food Inspire - CircularAgriFood School A 3-week immersive program (2 weeks online + 1 week in-person in Setúbal, Portugal) providing comprehensive understanding of circularity principles and cutting-edge technologies within agrifood systems.
- Regulatory Affairs for Medical Devices An online course for Health Tech startups and research groups navigating FDA regulatory requirements for medical devices in the US market, featuring expert-led sessions and personalized mentoring.
- Digitalizing Mobility Professional Course A certified professional course (2 ECTS from TU Berlin) for mobility professionals covering digitalization trends, digital twins, AI in transport systems, MaaS, and CCAM, combining online learning with in-person sessions in Braga, Portugal.
- Mobility Hackathon A collaborative competition where students, professionals, and innovators use real urban mobility data to design solutions for challenges presented by leading mobility operators, with prizes up to €500 and opportunities to develop projects with transport operators.
- Innov4Mobility Education program connecting mobility professionals with learning opportunities in innovation and entrepreneurship, supporting cities and transport operators to integrate sustainable urban mobility solutions.
- Mobility Solutions Matchmaking Day A hybrid networking and matchmaking event connecting startups and entrepreneurs with industry leaders to collaboratively address real-world urban mobility challenges through reverse pitches and mentoring.
Quantifiable outcome
- $660 million capital raised by supported startups
- +7 more outcomes
Companies that use Building Global Innovators
Customer profileNamed customers19 records
Segments5 records
Ideal customer profiles5 records
Building Global Innovators technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
AI capability5 records
Feature3 records
Building Global Innovators partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
15 partnerships are on record, tiered core and supporting.
- MIT PortugalcoreBGI originated from MIT Portugal Entrepreneurship and Innovation Initiative launched in 2010. Partnership includes MIT Portugal Venture Competition with €6.8M fund from Caixa Capital. BGI maintains historical connection to MIT innovation ecosystem.
- European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT)coreBGI partners with EIT through EIT Food and EIT Urban Mobility. BGI serves as EIT Urban Mobility country representative in Portugal and EIT Food hub, coordinating innovation programs, education initiatives, and ecosystem development across agrifood and mobility sectors. Partnership began in 2016.
- European Innovation Council (EIC)coreBGI is an elected member of EIC Ecosystem Partnerships and Co-Investment Support Program, providing specialized acceleration services to EIC beneficiaries including fundraising support, US soft landing, and pilot development. TRL range supported: TRL3 to TRL9.
- Food4Sustainability CoLABcoreBGI collaborates with Food4Sustainability CoLAB, opening the Food4Sustainability CoLAB in 2020. Partnership supports agrifood innovation, sustainable food systems research, and the AmpliAqua facility operations.
- Unicorn Factory LisboasupportingBGI partners with Unicorn Factory Lisboa for Agrifood Open Day 2025 event organization, providing venue at Unicorn Factory Lisboa for startup pitches and networking.
- Transportes Metropolitanos de Lisboa (TML)coreBGI co-organizes Mobility Data Hackathon with TML, providing real datasets from Portuguese mobility operators for participants to develop data-driven urban mobility solutions. TML presents real-world challenges.
- STCP ServiçoscoreBGI organizes STCP Mobility Hackathon 2026 connecting STCP Serviços (managing 18,000+ parking spaces and intermodal terminals) with European startups for pilot proposals on intelligent parking, traffic management, and ecological footprint.
- TU BerlincoreBGI partners with TU Berlin for Digitalizing Mobility professional course. Dr. Massimo Moraglio coordinates academic aspects. Course offers TU Berlin Professional Education Certificate (2 ECTS).
- Instituto Politécnico do Cávado e do Ave (IPCA)supportingIPCA (Polo de Braga) serves as venue for in-person sessions of Digitalizing Mobility course.
- IAPMEIsupportingIAPMEI (Agência para a Competitividade e Inovação) partners with BGI Blue Economy Acceleration program.
- BLUEBIOsupportingBLUEBIO partners with BGI Blue Economy Acceleration program.
- EIT FoodcoreBGI serves as EIT Food hub representative, running programs including Seedbed Incubator, EWA (Empowering Women in Agrifood), Sustainable Foods Test Bed, and agrifood education programs. Access to world's largest food innovation network with 160+ industry partners in 26+ countries.
- Boston & Cambridge Innovation Ecosystem (USA)coreBGI's Boston Global Immersion provides 5-day bootcamp in Boston & Cambridge, USA, connecting European startups with US mentors, partners, and investors for soft landing and market entry.
- FarkLabssupportingPartner in Urban Mobility Disruptor program, contributing to innovation ecosystem building.
- Tomorrow Mobility World CongresssupportingTop 2 teams from Urban Mobility Disruptor receive free passes to Tomorrow Mobility World Congress for pitching opportunities.
Scale indicators17 records
Recent moves10 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Building Global Innovators competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Techstars: Techstars is a global accelerator network running industry-specific programs worldwide. Comparable as a startup accelerator with mentor-driven programs, equity participation, and alumni network, but operates at much larger scale across more geographies.
- Wayra (Telefónica): Wayra is Telefónica's global corporate accelerator operating hubs across Europe and Latin America. Comparable as a corporate-backed startup accelerator targeting early-stage ventures, though at much larger scale and with direct corporate distribution leverage.
Direct peers
- Rockstart: Rockstart is a Netherlands-based accelerator running domain-specific programs in agrifood, energy, and emerging tech. Comparable as a European vertical-focused accelerator with co-investment support programs.
- Impact Hub Network: Impact Hub is a global network of innovation hubs and incubators supporting impact-driven startups. Comparable as a community-led accelerator model with physical infrastructure and programming for early-stage entrepreneurs, particularly in sustainability verticals overlapping with BGI.
- Beta-i: Beta-i is a Lisbon-based non-profit startup accelerator and innovation hub running Web Summit, Corporate Venture programs, and startup academies. Directly comparable as a Portuguese-headquartered innovation operator serving startups across sectors.
- Startup Lisboa: Startup Lisboa is a Lisbon-based startup incubator founded as a public-private partnership. Directly comparable as a Portuguese startup accelerator with municipal and corporate backing targeting early-stage founders.
Emerging players
- EIT Digital Accelerator: EIT Digital runs a European accelerator program focused on deep-tech digital scaleups with pan-European EIT network access. Comparable as an EU-funded accelerator providing international scaling support and access to corporate partners, though more focused on later-stage scaleups than BGI.
- Seedstars: Seedstars is a Swiss-based emerging markets accelerator and venture firm. Comparable as a global accelerator running programs in agrifood and emerging tech with regional hubs, though focused more on emerging markets than Europe.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat6 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Building Global Innovators social profiles
Digital presenceBuilding Global Innovators financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Building Global Innovators leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles5 records
Building Global Innovators subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries2 records
Building Global Innovators funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Building Global Innovators M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments1 record
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Building Global Innovators
What does Building Global Innovators do?
BGI operates as a startup accelerator and venture builder, delivering venture acceleration programs, open innovation initiatives, an innovation academy, venture investment, and ecosystem insights to deep-tech startups, researchers, SMEs, and corporate partners. The portfolio includes EIC Services for EIC beneficiaries, sector-specific disruptor programs (Agrifood, Urban Mobility), the Boston Global Immersion US soft-landing bootcamp, the AmpliAqua pre-commercial aquaculture R&D facility, and the RegenAg-X federated data space for regenerative agriculture, funded primarily through EIT/EIC grants, corporate partnerships, and government co-funding.
Is Building Global Innovators a public or private company?
Building Global Innovators is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Building Global Innovators founded?
Building Global Innovators was founded in 2013. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Building Global Innovators based?
Building Global Innovators is headquartered in Lisbon, Portugal, in the Europe region.
How does Building Global Innovators make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Accelerator and Program Services are the primary driver. The others are grant and Public Funding and capacity Building and Training Programs.
Who are Building Global Innovators's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Techstars and Wayra (Telefónica). Direct peers are Rockstart, Impact Hub Network, Beta-i and Startup Lisboa. Emerging players are EIT Digital Accelerator and Seedstars.
Does Building Global Innovators have an API?
No public API is recorded for Building Global Innovators.
What industry is Building Global Innovators in?
Building Global Innovators's product category is Startup Acceleration and Venture Building Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is FSANAAAM, Accelerators & Incubators (Investor-Operated), with a secondary code of EDAMAHAG, Marketing, Branding & Sales Skills.