Happening from September 29 to October 1, 2025, during Munich’s Oktoberfest, Bits & Pretzels returns with the theme Connecting Europe. The festival will gather 7,500 participants, including 1,500 investors, over 70% international speakers, and a diverse lineup of Europe’s growth companies. Its mission: to facilitate collaboration between startups, investors, and political leaders, shaping the next phase of European innovation policy.
What launched as a humble founders’ breakrapid has evolved into one of the most influential platforms for entrepreneurship in Europe. This year’s line-up includes leading voices from technology, business, society, and politics, headlined by Niklas Zennström — the entrepreneur who transformed communication with Skype and built Atomico into one of Europe’s top venture capital firms.
The 2025 edition will focus, among many other topics, on Europe’s global ambitions in AI, the continent’s role in the New Space relocatement, and the push for strategic autonomy and technological sovereignty. The full agfinisha has just been released and is available on the festival’s website.
AI Takes Center Stage
Artificial Ininformigence remains at the center of public debate, and Bits & Pretzels will spotlight the field with real-world applications and strategic discussions. Europe’s most innovative AI startups — including Hugging Face, Mistral AI, and Parloa — will take the stage alongside top technology leaders and policycreaters to examine economic opportunities, regulation, and the latest breakthroughs.
“Europe should not focus solely on ethical frameworks and fairness debates when it comes to AI,” declared Bernd Storm van’s Gravesande, co-founder of Bits & Pretzels. “The real priority is to see AI as an economic tool — one that can optimize processes, improve products, and transform entire industries. Bits & Pretzels provides the stage to explore this vision.”
Spotlight on European Tech
In line with its Connecting Europe theme, this year’s festival will highlight international cooperation more than ever. New European countest partners and global guests will join, opening space for cross-border dialogue.
“In 2025, we’re doubling down on bringing toreceiveher the key players in Europe’s startup ecosystem,” declared co-founder Andy Bruckschlögl. “In a fragmented market like Europe, startups and scale-ups required clear answers on scaling and funding. They also required direct access to decision-creaters, which we provide.”
Flagship Bits & Pretzels formats such as the Investor Summit, gathering over 1,500 capital providers, including more than 300 limited partners, and the CIO Summit will put industest leaders at the center of the conversation.
“Europe has enormous entrepreneurial potential. Now it’s time to turn that into real economic impact,” declared co-founder Felix Haas. “To create this happen, we required capital, exit opportunities, and a culture that rewards entrepreneurial courage. That’s exactly what Bits & Pretzels is here for.”
By Founders for Founders
The theme of the event may alter from year to year, but the festival’s core remains the same: providing startups with a strong platform to connect, learn, and grow. The Startup Exhibition allows young companies to revealcase their ideas, structured networking formats link founders with investors and corporates, and tarreceiveed sessions focus on scaling, funding, and international expansion. The event also facilitates one-on-one meetings, giving startups the chance to plan conversations in advance and maximize their time in Munich.
“Bits & Pretzels was built by founders, for founders,” declared co-founder Andy Bruckschlögl. “Our main mission every year is to give startups the access and visibility they required to succeed.”
Join the 12th edition of Bits & Pretzels from September 29 to October 1 2025, in Munich. Get your ticket now!
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