Invest or Die!
Europe has the research, the talent and the industrial base. So why is scaling still so hard? Invest or Die! brings start-ups, industry, investors and public actors together around Industrial AI, growth capital and talent — and how Upper Austria moves technology from development to industrial use and international scale.
The question
Upper Austria has strong industry, research, technical talent and a growing startup ecosystem. But having the ingredients is not the same as having a system that works.
Can startups move from pilot to production? Can industry become a better first customer? Can companies scale globally from Europe? And when a startup succeeds or exits, does that success strengthen the ecosystem for the next generation?
379 people registered.
European & international recognition
Invest or Die! is part of the European Commission's European AI Innovation Month, listed on the Apply AI Alliance event calendar and selected as a Road to Geneva pre-event for the Geneva AI Summit 2027.
Opening perspectives
Ana Zuljevic (City of Linz), Alexander Kainzinger (TeamViewer), Lukas Keplinger (tech2b) and Dino Osmanagić (Young AI Leaders Linz) open the evening from the perspectives of the city, industry, the startup ecosystem and the next generation.
International perspectives
Fabian Paischer (Mistral AI) brings the perspective of building and scaling AI technology, while Tommaso Fontirossi (Plug and Play) connects the discussion to international startup, investment and corporate innovation ecosystems.
Panel · Industrial Intelligence: Built Here. Scaled Globally.
Christoph Knogler (KEBA Group & IV AI Task Force), Martin Flechl (Dynatrace), Clemens Wasner (enliteAI & AI Austria) and Kambis Kohansal Vajargah (Austrian Federal Economic Chamber) discuss what it takes to move from talent and research to industrial deployment and global scale.
The focus: pilots vs. production, industry as first customer, growth capital, talent, and whether success feeds back into the next generation of companies.
Startup Pitch Market
Six startups. One expert jury. An audience investing virtual capital.
Ümit Bas (iono Robotics), Andrei I. Cursaru (NGAI), Christoph Ferrari (prognotix), Friedrich Mairhofer (OPAIRS systems), Dalibor Mitic (Predsense) and Mateo Primorac (scopri.ai) pitch before the jury and the wider room.
The jury: Mathias Fink (Startups Upper Austria), Lukas Keplinger (tech2b), Andrei Podlesnyi (Hansmann Family Office) and Olivia Rimek (120 Ventures). Participants then allocate virtual capital through the live Pitch Market.
Where would you invest today if you wanted Europe to remain industrially competitive tomorrow?
379 registrations
Press release · Linz, 18 October 2026Linz brings Europe's industrial AI competitiveness debate to the stage with "Invest or Die!"Read the release · quotes included
KEBA, Dynatrace, Mistral AI, Plug and Play, startups and investors meet at Tabakfabrik Linz on 19 October. The Young AI Leaders Linz event is part of European AI Innovation Month and the Road to Geneva ahead of the Geneva AI Summit 2027.
Europe has research, talent and a strong industrial base. The harder question is whether it can turn these strengths into industrial adoption, globally competitive companies and lasting economic value.
That is the focus of Invest or Die!, taking place on 19 October at Tabakfabrik Linz. Organized by Young AI Leaders Linz, the event brings together startups, industrial companies, investors and public-sector actors to examine what needs to happen between a promising technology and a company that can scale internationally from Europe.
The event is part of the European AI Innovation Month, is listed on the European Commission's Apply AI Alliance calendar, and has been selected as an official Road to Geneva pre-event for the Geneva AI Summit 2027.
From strong ingredients to a system that works
Upper Austria combines global industrial companies, universities, technical talent and a growing startup ecosystem. New developments around Industrial Intelligence, the arrival of Plug and Play in Linz and increasing links between local technology companies and international AI players have added momentum. The central question of the evening is therefore not whether the region has the ingredients, but whether they work together.
“We have strong universities, global industrial companies, talented people and increasingly ambitious startups. The interesting question is what happens between those pieces: who becomes the first customer, who provides the capital to scale, whether the talent can build its future here and whether one success makes the next one easier.”
The panel "What Does It Take to Stop Resting on Success?" brings together Christoph Knogler (KEBA Group and IV AI Task Force), Martin Flechl (Dynatrace), Clemens Wasner (enliteAI and AI Austria) and Kambis Kohansal Vajargah (Austrian Federal Economic Chamber). Their discussion will look at the path from research and talent to industrial deployment and scale: why promising technologies remain stuck in pilots, what makes established companies effective first customers, what European startups need to grow internationally, and when an acquisition strengthens a regional ecosystem rather than moving its value elsewhere.
From discussion to investment
The discussion is followed by a Startup Pitch Market in which six companies put that question into practice. Ümit Bas (IONO Robotics), Andrei Cursaru (NGAI), Christoph Ferrari (prognotix), Friedrich Mairhofer (OPAIRS systems), Dalibor Mitic (Predsense) and Mateo Primorac (scopri.ai) pitch their companies before an expert jury and the audience. The jury consists of Mathias Fink (Startups Upper Austria), Lukas Keplinger (tech2b), Andrei Podlesnyi (Hansmann Family Office) and Olivia Rimek (120 Ventures).
But the jury does not make the only investment decision. Every participant receives virtual capital and can invest directly in the startups through the event's Pitch Market. The expert assessment and the collective investment decision of the audience are then compared.
“Instead of ending the conversation with the conclusion that Europe simply needs to invest more, we want to make the question tangible: if these are the companies in front of you, where would you actually put your money?”
Mistral AI and Plug and Play bring international perspectives to Linz
The programme also includes Fabian Paischer (Mistral AI), who will provide a perspective on building and scaling AI technology following Mistral AI's acquisition of Linz-based Emmi AI, and Tommaso Fontirossi (Plug and Play) on international startup and investment ecosystems. Ana Zuljevic (City of Linz), Lukas Keplinger (tech2b) and Alexander Kainzinger (TeamViewer) open the programme from the perspectives of the city, startup ecosystem and industry. The evening concludes with networking and dedicated matchmaking supported by Austria Wirtschaftsservice (aws).
European question, Upper Austrian test case
Invest or Die! connects directly to a broader European debate about AI adoption and competitiveness, but uses Upper Austria as a concrete test case. Can startups move faster from research to industrial deployment? Can established companies become better customers for emerging technologies? Can Europe provide the capital, skills and market conditions needed to scale? And when companies succeed, does their expertise, capital and experience feed back into the next generation?
The event is supported by partners including main partner TeamViewer, with Digital Mile Linz, Tabakfabrik Linz, factory300, Austria Wirtschaftsservice (aws), tech2b, Startups Upper Austria, EWOR, Plug and Play, AI Austria, City of Linz, invest.austria, JKU Alumni Club & Karrierecenter.
Invest or Die! takes place on Monday, 19 October 2026, at Tabakfabrik Linz. Arrival and networking begin at 16:00, with the main programme starting at 17:00. Participation is free.