What Allied for Startups does

Allied for Startups is a Brussels-headquartered, Belgian-registered non-profit association (ASBL) founded in 2014 that operates as a global coalition of more than 50 national and regional startup associations spanning Europe and selected non-European jurisdictions including Brazil, Canada, Chile, Ghana, Iceland, Malaysia, and Ukraine. The organization's functional purpose is policy advocacy: it publishes position papers, joint statements, and reports on EU legislative files relevant to startups — including EU Inc., the 28th Regime, the Digital Networks Act, the European Innovation Act, and the AI Act — and convenes events such as the Hacktivate AI policy hackathon (co-hosted with OpenAI in September 2025) to shape legislation affecting early-stage and growth-stage companies in the European Single Market.

Its core deliverables are non-commercial: policy advocacy services, published insights and reports, a member community network, events (hackathons, summits), and the "Stay or Go" campaign advocating for conditions that retain European startups. There is no proprietary software product, SaaS platform, or technology stack — the offering is fundamentally relational and informational rather than technical.

Revenue is generated through membership fees paid by member startup associations, with pricing not publicly disclosed. The organization is lean (1-10 employees), led by Director-General Serena Borbotti-Frison and Communication Manager Natalia Oledzka, with Melissa Blaustein listed as Founder. It does not publish revenue, has not disclosed funding rounds, and operates without a parent company. Recent strategic activity includes a June 2026 partnership with SeedBlink to advocate jointly for the EU-Inc. regulation and strengthen Europe's investment ecosystem.

Name

Allied for Startups

Legal name

Allied For Startups ASBL

Website

https://alliedforstartups.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2014

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Allied for Startups is a Brussels-based non-profit coalition of 50+ national startup associations that advocates for EU policies supporting startup growth, including EU Inc., the AI Act, and the European Innovation Act, while publishing position papers and convening policy events.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Startup Policy Advocacy

NAICS

Business Associations (813910), Business, Professional, Labor, Political, and Similar Organizations (8139)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

SME & Entrepreneurship Development (Trade-Linked) (BPADAMAE)

Keywords

• Policy advocacy services
• Startup ecosystem network
• EU startup policy
• Industry coalition building
• Policy research publications

Headquarters

HQ city

Brussels

HQ country

Belgium

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership Fees: Allied for Startups generates revenue through membership fees, offering organizational membership to startup associations and related entities that wish to support and benefit from the network's policy advocacy efforts and ecosystem connections.

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Allied for Startups is a membership-based policy advocacy coalition that represents 50+ national and regional startup associations to EU institutions. It sells organizational membership to startup associations in exchange for participation in EU policy advocacy, access to coalition-built policy positions, and inclusion in joint statements and policy events that influence European legislation affecting startups and scaleups.

Product overview

Allied for Startups is a global network of startup associations unified to empower innovation and support startup growth. The organization operates as a policy advocacy coalition rather than a commercial product company. Its offerings consist of advocacy services, published insights and policy reports (covering EU Inc., Digital Networks Act, AI Act, 28th Regime, European Innovation Act), a member community network spanning dozens of European startup associations, event organization including policy hackathons, and the Stay or Go campaign focused on retaining European startups. There is no commercial software product or SaaS platform.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Stay. Go. A campaign by Allied for Startups focused on startup ecosystem policy

Products and services

• Policy Advocacy Services Core paid service offered to member startup associations: representation of their interests to EU institutions, drafting and promotion of policy positions, and participation in coalition advocacy on EU legislative files affecting startups.
• Community Network Membership Paid organizational membership in a global network of 50+ national and regional startup associations, granting members access to EU policy insights, joint statements, coalition advocacy, and cross-border ecosystem connections.

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• SeedBlinkcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 18 June 2026SeedBlink, a European integrated venture deal execution platform founded in 2020, has partnered with Allied for Startups to strengthen Europe's innovation ecosystem. The partnership aims to support startup-friendly policies such as the EU-Inc. regulation, strengthen Europe's investment ecosystem, and contribute to initiatives that help founders and investors navigate cross-border growth opportunities. SeedBlink brings expertise in fundraising, syndication, equity management, secondaries, and venture legal services, with over 200 deals facilitated across multiple European jurisdictions and over €80 million in capital invested through its platform.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves4 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Regional players

• Startup Canada: Canada's national startup advocacy organization and an AFS member. Comparable membership-based startup policy advocacy model, but operating in North American geography rather than EU policy arena.
• Startup Coalition: The UK's leading startup advocacy organization and an AFS member. Highly comparable in advocacy mission and policy themes but operating primarily in UK/Anglo markets rather than EU institutional arena.

Broad incumbents

• TechUK: The UK's leading technology trade association. Comparable as a membership-based industry advocacy voice, but covering broader tech industry (not startup-specific) and operating primarily in UK policy arena.
• DigitalEurope: The largest Brussels-based digital industry trade association representing major tech corporates. Comparable as an EU-level advocacy voice on overlapping files (AI Act, digital networks, data), but broader portfolio and larger budget than AFS.
• Eurochambres: The European Association of Chambers of Commerce, representing 20M+ businesses through national chambers. Comparable as a Brussels-based business advocacy voice on EU regulation, but with broader SME focus rather than startup-specific.

Direct peers

• France Digitale: France's leading startup and investor association and an AFS member. Highly comparable in membership model, advocacy focus (startup policy, capital, talent), and policy output, though operating primarily at national level.
• Bundesverband Deutsche Startups: Germany's leading startup association and an AFS member. Directly comparable as a membership-based national startup advocacy organization with significant policy influence, complementing AFS at EU level.
• Allied for AI: A Brussels-based advocacy coalition focused specifically on AI policy. Highly comparable to Allied for Startups in mission, structure (membership-based policy advocacy), geography (Brussels), and operating model.
• European Startup Network: A Brussels-based pan-European network advocating for the startup ecosystem; explicit AFS coalition partner (joint statements, shared EU policy campaigns). Directly comparable in mission, membership model, and target policymakers.

Others

• Public Affairs Council: Global professional association for public affairs practitioners. Comparable only at the professional-practice level (advocacy as a discipline) rather than as a direct competitor on EU startup policy substance.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/allied-for-startups
• Xx.com/Allied4Startups
• Facebookfacebook.com/alliedforstartups

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

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 Allied for Startups