ZICER

What ZICER does

ZICER (Zagrebački inovacijski centar d.o.o.) is a Zagreb-based private limited company that functions as Croatia's largest publicly-backed startup innovation center, founded in 1995 and headquartered at Avenija Dubrovnik 15, Zagreb. Under a single roof it operates an incubator, four accelerator programs (Startup Factory for early-stage validation, Growth for 1-3 year-old startups, Global for internationalization, and Deep Tech for scientific commercialization), ZICERLab development centers for prototyping and R&D, a tech coworking space, and an education program covering more than 200 topics. Its core technology offering is physical and program-based innovation infrastructure rather than a software platform; ZICERLab provides equipped laboratories accessible to startups, academia, and the business community, while the broader stack combines in-person mentorship, structured curriculum, and selective admissions through the moj.zicer.hr portal. The business model is primarily public-grant funded: the City of Zagreb provides a 300,000 EUR non-dilutive monetary fund for accelerator cycles, with the EU European Regional Development Fund co-financing operational infrastructure. Additional revenue streams include coworking rental, education services, and incubation fees, none publicly priced. ZICER serves technology-oriented startups, university researchers commercializing deep tech, and tech freelancers, with portfolio companies (X-LOGIC, Refinanciraj.eu, AIR-RMLD, Sarmenta) spanning IoT, fintech, drone inspection, and health. The organization is led by CEO Frane Šesnić.

Name

ZICER

Legal name

Zagrebački inovacijski centar d.o.o.

Website

https://zicer.hr

Company type

Private

Founded year

1995

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

ZICER is a Zagreb-based, publicly-backed innovation center that runs an incubator, four accelerator programs, prototyping labs, coworking, and education services for Croatian technology startups, primarily funded by the City of Zagreb with EU co-financing.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Startup Incubation and Acceleration Services

NAICS

Business Schools and Computer and Management Training (6114)

SIC

Services-Management Consulting Services (8742)

akta.pro primary industry

Youth Business Incubators & Accelerators (EDAMAHAC)

akta.pro secondary industry

Innovation & Design Thinking Programs (EDAMAHAD)

Keywords

• Startup incubation services
• Business acceleration programs
• Entrepreneurship mentoring
• Tech coworking spaces
• Prototype development labs

Headquarters

HQ city

Zagreb

HQ country

Croatia

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Accelerator Program Funding: ZICER's accelerator programs provide financial support (300,000 EUR fund) and in-kind support to startups and teams, without taking equity in the startups. The funding is provided by the City of Zagreb.
2. Coworking and Tech Space Rental: Flexible tech coworking spaces available to tech freelancers, integrating them into Croatia's largest startup community.
3. Incubation Services: Comprehensive incubation support including education, consulting, development centers, mentoring, and event networking services for startups and entrepreneurs.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

ZICER (Zagrebački inovacijski centar d.o.o.) is a Zagreb-based innovation center that provides comprehensive support to technology startups and entrepreneurs through an incubator, four accelerator programs (Startup Factory, Growth, Global, Deep Tech), ZICERLab prototyping and R&D development centers, tech coworking spaces, education on 200+ topics, mentoring, and non-dilutive financing (300,000 EUR fund provided by the City of Zagreb). All programs are delivered under one roof from its facility at Avenija Dubrovnik 15, Zagreb, targeting Croatian startups from early-stage validation through international scaling.

Product overview

ZICER (Zagrebački inovacijski centar) is a comprehensive innovation center offering a unified ecosystem of startup support services under one roof. The organization provides four accelerator programs (Startup Factory for early-stage validation, Growth for 1-3 year-old startups, Global for international market expansion, and Deep Tech for scientific/commercialization projects), an incubator for product development and company building, ZICERLab development centers for prototyping and R&D, Zagreb Connect for internationalization support, Tech Coworking spaces for freelancers, educational programs covering 200+ topics, and financing services through convertible loans and pre-seed investment. The combined financial fund across accelerator programs amounts to 300,000 EUR. The center supports startups across high technology, electronics, ICT, green technologies, energy, logistics, AI, robotics, healthcare, and tourism sectors.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Startup Factory: Acceleration program that accelerates development of technology-oriented teams and startups, helping with validation and first market access, first customers and investors.
• Growth
• Global
• Deep Tech
• ZICERLab

Products and services

• ZICER Akcelerator - Startup Factory Accelerator program for early-stage technology-oriented teams and startups focused on idea validation, first market access, first customers, and first investors. The latest 2026 cycle selected 20 startups from a record 110 applicants.
• ZICER Akcelerator - Growth Acceleration program for startups that are 1-3 years old and need a renewed push for commercial growth and scaling.
• ZICER Akcelerator - Global Acceleration program helping startups enter new international markets and connect with international investors.
• ZICER Akcelerator - Deep Tech Acceleration program for scientists and university staff who want to commercialize their research projects, with a focus on deep technology ventures.
• ZICER Inkubator Incubator program where startups focus on product development and company building, with support spanning all phases of technological product development from prototype to market scaling, targeting solutions based on high technologies that can grow into stable, long-term sustainable companies.
• ZICERLab Top-tier equipped development centers for prototyping and R&D, available to startups, the academic community, and the business sector, offering cutting-edge technology and facilities to support technology development.
• Zagreb Connect Program that supports internationalization of business and connections with potential investors for startups, helping Croatian startups reach global markets.
• Tech Coworking Flexible coworking space providing an inspirational work environment for tech freelancers, integrating them into Croatia's largest startup community.
• Edukacija (Education) Education programs where top experts transfer practical knowledge from the business world across more than 200 topics, building entrepreneurial competencies and confidence.
• Financiranje (Financing) Innovative financing services including convertible loans, pre-seed investment, support for internationalization and innovation grant applications, and investor connections for startups from idea through growth and scaling stages.
• Mentori (Mentors) Mentoring services connecting startups with experienced mentors to provide guidance throughout their entrepreneurial journey.

Named customers4 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered major.

• Hanfa and Ministry of Finance (Croatia)majorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 27 May 2026Hanfa (Croatian Financial Services Supervisory Agency) and the Ministry of Finance launched the free educational-simulatory program 'PutNaTržište' (Sandbox PutNaTržište) through ZICER. The program provides free, confidential, and non-binding assessment of entrepreneurs' readiness for capital market financing.
• ViennaUP / Road to Global Tech Summit Vienna 2026majorGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 May 2026ZICER participated in Road to Global Tech Summit Vienna 2026 and ViennaUP, one of the leading startup festivals in Europe, promoting the Croatian startup scene internationally. This demonstrates active international ecosystem participation.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Techstars: Global accelerator network running cohort-based programs with mentorship and demo days for early-stage startups. Highly comparable as a multi-track, sector-and-stage agnostic accelerator model that ZICER mimics with Startup Factory, Growth, Global and Deep Tech.
• Plug and Play Tech Center: Large global startup accelerator and ecosystem builder with corporate partnerships, vertical programs and coworking. Comparable to ZICER's combination of accelerator programs, prototyping/ZICERLab facilities, and corporate/community events.
• Startupbootcamp: Global accelerator with vertical-specific cohorts, mentor networks, and demo days. Directly comparable to ZICER's vertically-themed tracks (Deep Tech, Global) and equity-or-non-equity program structures.
• Founder Institute: Global pre-seed accelerator and entrepreneur education program with structured curricula and mentorship, equity-aligned but founder-education focused. Highly comparable to ZICER's combination of education on 200+ topics, mentorship, and Startup Factory-style pre-seed acceleration.
• EIT Digital Accelerator: EU publicly-backed digital deep-tech accelerator supporting European scaleups with funding, customers, and growth support. Closest comparable in mission and public-backer underwriting to ZICER's Deep Tech track and EU/regional funding base.
• European Innovation Council (EIC): EU's flagship innovation funding and acceleration program for breakthrough and deep-tech ventures. Comparable as a public-backer source of funding and acceleration for the same deep-tech and scientific-commercialization projects ZICER's Deep Tech track targets.

Regional players

• Sofia Tech Park: Bulgarian public-backed technology park offering lab facilities, incubation, and accelerator support for tech startups. Comparable as a CEE public-mission innovation center with labs, incubation, and acceleration under one roof.
• Impact Hub Zagreb: Local Zagreb coworking and incubator community for impact-oriented startups, providing workspace, mentorship and programming. Comparable in coworking and community-building functions that complement ZICER's Tech Coworking and education layer.

Broad incumbents

• Y Combinator: Largest global startup accelerator, providing seed funding and large-scale cohort programming. Comparable as the dominant benchmark in the accelerator model, though at vastly larger scale and equity-based economics.

Others

• European Business Innovation Centre (BIC) Network / EBN: EU-wide network of business and innovation centers offering incubation, acceleration and innovation services to SMEs and startups. Comparable as the umbrella ecosystem of public-backed BICs that ZICER functionally belongs to as a Zagreb-based innovation center.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCNDT0jIs_YgvYiCmb57Fk8w
• Facebookfacebook.com/zicer.hr
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/zagreb-innovation-centre
• Instagraminstagram.com/zicer.hr

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about ZICER