Eleven Ventures

📢 Did you hear the news? #Oneof11 NitroPack has been acquired by WP Engine! Through the acquisition, NitroPack’s site optimization technology will reach a broader range of WordPress sites, helping more users enhance site performance and deliver superior online experiences to their visitors. The founders, Mihail Stoychev and Georgi Petrov will stay true to their vision for a faster web and embark on a new journey dedicated to user optimization, business results, and AI. Congrats to the whole team! We are looking forward to what’s coming next. 👀 🚀 Read more on The Recursive - https://lnkd.in/d8c4dVCw. #Oneof11 

🫣 Feeling "fear of missing out" every time you read about a company implementing #AI in its business? Don’t worry, we all do. Whenever you spend more time than you think is needed on a certain task, you instinctively say to yourself “This should be easier. There has to be an AI software that does this.” And there most likely is. But it’s usually not as easy as finding the software and starting to use it effectively. AI adoption comes with numerous factors to consider, such as the cost of implementing it, the benefits it will bring, the training that will have to be conducted, the time commitment, and so on. In order not to be overwhelmed by all those factors, you need to have a strategy. But don’t try to make it perfect. Start small. 1️⃣ Start with a simple plan - it will get more elaborate. 2️⃣ Start with a one-sentence policy - it will evolve. 3️⃣ Start with a small budget - it will grow over time. 4️⃣ Start with a few ambassadors - more will follow. 5️⃣ Start with a single tool - the toolbox will expand. 6️⃣ Start with a simple analysis - consultants will be found. And just like with everything else, the most important thing is to start. The iterations will take care of the issues over time. ✔️ #InsideAIWithEleven - - - If you want to closely follow AI’s development, follow Petar Petrov and SuperPractical.AI to get more AI news, tips, and tricks.

Dear early-stage founders, If you’re looking to find a community of like-minded people, as well as mentorship and support with your #AI business, we have news! 🗞 Our friends from BIRD Incubator have officially opened the applications for their new incubation program. It is a free 6-month in-person program in Zagreb, intended for early-stage startups with an AI component. With workshops, extracurricular events, mentorship, and individual support, startup teams will make their products or services market-ready. 👀 Interested? Check out the whole program and apply here - https://lnkd.in/def-xqsQ.

What will happen to the job market? Where is AI now and where can it get in the very near future? Does AI have a consciousness and a subconscious? 🤯 Those are just some of the questions that our Chief AI officer Petar Petrov raised during his first open event last week - “Artificial Intelligence: Soul & Silicon.” It was an event of informing and predicting. What is already happening (even if we’re not fully aware of it) and what might the future hold. Those questions made us seriously rethink our current ways. 📘 Apart from the event itself, we managed to be the first people to see and get Petar’s book "Artificial Intelligence: Soul and Silicon," which examines the upcoming changes in society as a result of AI. If you want to learn more about AI every day, you can follow Petar Petrov and SuperPractical.AI. And stay tuned for our next #InsideAIwithEleven post coming up on Thursday. 🤩

Another week, another podcast episode with one of our partners 🎧 Svetozar Georgiev was a guest at Капитал's "Zero to Unicorn" podcast, where he told the story of Telerik and its acquisition. Together with Mary Ivanova, they touched upon topics like: ✅ The importance of choosing the right acquirer;  🔮 The outcomes that you can never predict;  3️⃣ Qualities of a successful entrepreneur, and many more. If you аre curious about what an acquisition process looks like, listen to Zarko here 👉 https://lnkd.in/d48jCmFs.

🦄 Did you already report the missing unicorn head to the appropriate institutions? If yes, thank you! If you have no idea what we’re talking about, check out BESCO’s missing ‘person’ post (find the link in the comments).  You can tell by the turn of events that we had an unconventional night at the BESCO - The Bulgarian Entrepreneurial Association x Eleven Policy in the bar. Putting the crime scene aside, we had a blast! Networking, meeting old friends, delicious cocktails (we learned that you shouldn’t use a straw with you Aperol), getting to know new startups, and so much more. Bye for now, see you at the next event after summer break! 👋

AI is not the future. It’s the present. Our mission to help founders create a better today and tomorrow inspired us to kick off a new weekly rubric dedicated to #AI. 👀 For this, we joined forces with our Chief AI Officer Petar Petrov. Petar is currently supporting our portfolio companies to incorporate AI into their businesses and just published his book about artificial intelligence and its potential to transform industries.🤫 So stay tuned for our upcoming posts that you’ll find here every Thursday under the hashtag #InsideAIwithEleven 🤖

Attracting and retaining top talent while conserving cash. Combined with aligning employee interests with the success of your startup… It often seems like a mission impossible, doesn’t it? Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP) comes to the rescue. 🦸♂️ We teamed up with Stoil Vasilev, Venture Partner at Eleven Ventures, and Vice President of Corporate Development at SumUp. He has been responsible for SumUp’s ESOP for the past 8 years and is now sharing his tips on creating and managing a successful ESOP strategy.  👉 Let’s dive into it - https://lnkd.in/dxSQTmFD. 👀 Want to receive the full playbook? Sign up for our Founders Blend newsletter. Landing into your inbox on the last Sunday of this month -  https://lnkd.in/dYTfa9Vf.

✔️ In-person meeting > Online meeting ✔️ Genuine conversation > “Hope you’re doing well” email ✔️ Informal event > Fancy, formal event ✔️ Cocktail > No cocktail If you see things like we do, come to our joint event with BESCO - The Bulgarian Entrepreneurial Association where all the boxes will be ticked. 🗓️ July 10th, Wednesday 🕖 7:00 PM - 10:00 PM 📍 Bar Soda Don't forget to register - https://lu.ma/b2nfrd9y. See you there! 👋

Robots delivering your food, NVIDIA’s virtual space allowing robots to learn 1000 times faster than humans, pizzas prepared by robots becoming cheaper, while those made by humans getting more expensive 🧐 Last week, our Chief AI Officer Petar Petrov was a guest at Bloomberg TV Bulgaria and covered all those topics together with: 📌 The shifts in the labor market 📌 What robotics can achieve together with LLMs 📌 The countries with the most developed humanoid robots 📌 The importance of teaching and learning AI 👉 Watch the whole interview to hear all insights that Petar shared → https://lnkd.in/dbCdiARt. 📢 And don't forget to check out his upcoming event on July 11th → https://lnkd.in/dTMmWhCc.