KTH Innovation & KTH Ventures
KTH Innovation · Slush 2026
Science
to startup
Join KTH deep tech founders at Slush in Helsinki.
Applications open 2–18 October
The opportunity
Two spots.
One bigger horizon.
KTH Innovation & KTH Ventures are bringing a delegation of KTH deep tech spinouts to Slush, an event gathering 12,000 founders, investors and other key players in tech in Helsinki.
Two spots are reserved for KTH PhD students ready to build on their research.
Join a curious and ambitious group for a few days of new perspectives, connections and conversations about what it takes to turn advanced technology into something bigger.
What you get.
Slush ticket
Access to one of the world’s leading startup and tech events.
The KTH delegation
Experience Slush alongside founders and others from the KTH startup community.
Coaching
Work with KTH Innovation to explore the potential of your research and what your next steps could be.
Resources & networks
Tap into KTH Innovation’s resources and networks, during the trip and beyond.
Your research
Ready to go beyond the lab?
We’re looking for researchers developing advanced technology with the potential to become a product, a startup or a new solution to a problem worth solving.
Your research could be in AI, autonomous systems, robotics, quantum, semiconductors, advanced computing, biotech, energy, advanced materials, manufacturing, or another deep tech field.
PhD research
You’re building something new.
Real-world potential
It could matter beyond academia.
Curiosity
You want to find out where it could go.
From advanced research to real-world impact.
KTH has a track record of turning breakthrough research into companies with global ambitions, across energy, materials, AI, health and beyond.
KTH Innovation and KTH Ventures have backed these journeys from early research to startup and investment. Together, companies from our ecosystem have gone on to raise more than $800 million in funding.
Your journey could be next.
Eligibility
Who can apply?
This challenge is open to PhD students currently enrolled at KTH who are ready to explore the startup potential of their research. The research or idea you apply with should not already be an active KTH Innovation project.
No company required
No pitch deck required
Selection
What we look for
Potential
Could this research create meaningful value beyond academia?
Innovation
What is genuinely new or distinctive about the technology?
You
Are you curious and motivated to explore where it could go?
Selected applicants may be invited to a short interview with KTH Innovation as part of the selection process.