Unveiling the Visionary: An Exclusive Interview with the YSC 2023 Winner Mariia Alipatova

Today, we're thrilled to take you behind the scenes of the 2023 Young Startup Competition (YSC), that not only celebrates innovation but propels young entrepreneurs into the spotlight. The windy atmosphere at the SME Assembly in Bilbao reached its pinnacle for our finalists of the YSC on Wednesday, November 15, as the audience awaited the announcement of this year's winner.

The winner of this edition is Mariia Alipatova!

Mariia’s Solar Optic is a deep-tech system designed to revolutionize building illumination. Solar Optic is significantly more efficient than conventional photovoltaic panels and it has the potential to reduce electricity consumption for lighting by up to 80%, cut carbon emissions, and contribute to the well-being of workers who lack access to natural sunlight. Her groundbreaking ideas and entrepreneurial spirit stood out in a field of impressive contenders. We had the opportunity to sit down with the winner for an interview. Get ready to be inspired as we explore the winner's journey, insights, and aspirations that led to this remarkable triumph at the 2023 SME Assembly. Let's dive in!

What made you enter the YSC? 

I came across the YSC through newsletters, particularly the Erasmus for Young Entrepreneurs, I spotted information about the Youth Startup Competition there. It perfectly fits in what I am doing and I want to spread information about Solar Optic in Europe.

What is the problem your company aims to solve?

Europe is trying to be more sustainable and to boost green technologies.  Solar Optic is one of these technologies: we are aiming to reduce electricity consumption which comes from non-sustainable power grids, reduce carbon emissions and save the money as well.

What was it like to be announced as a winner of the Youth Startup Competition?

At first, I was shocked; I did not expect that. But then I felt the responsibility and the honour of that, and this motivates me to move forward and to not stop developing the technology of the company further.

What are the main takeaways you got from the 2023 SME assembly?

It is important to raise awareness of entrepreneurship in the young generations, it is important to help the businesses to grow. Here I discovered that there are a lot of organizations that support entrepreneurs.

Youth entrepreneurs often face unique challenges: What is the main obstacle for you?

The biggest challenge is of course the financial aspect. We need to find investments to build the prototype but we also need to find where we can produce the pilot project. Not many companies allow young startups to do pilot project in their site.

When asked one final comment about the day Mariia said "Youth Startup Competition rocks!"

See who were the other two finalists of this year’s Youth Startup Competition and read more about the Day 1 and Day 2 of the 2023 SME Assembly.

Finally, we invite you to stay updated on the event on the Promoting enterprise news portal and also via Twitter, Facebook, Instagram.  LinkedIn so stay tuned. It is possible to check the photos from the event also on Promoting Enterprise | Flickr.