Vienna’s ViennaUP 2026 Brings Together AI Pioneers, Longevity Experts and Female Founders for Europe’s Most Ambitious Startup Festival

Vienna’s ViennaUP festival returns in May 2026, offering a packed lineup of startup and innovation events. Key highlights include the final Entrepreneurship Avenue 2026 Conference on May 18 at WU Vienna, featuring pitch competitions and startup fairs; the Human×AI Conference on May 19 at Hofstallungen MUMOK, exploring Europe’s AI future across 12 panels; the application-only Female Founders Experience on May 19–20; the Longevity Business Forum on May 21 at Wexelerate, opened by Prof. Dr. Markus Müller; and Manufacturing Day 2026 on May 21 at Novotel Vienna Hauptbahnhof.

In-Depth:

May is here, and once again, we are preparing for to go to the Austrian capital for ViennaUP, a dynamic, decentralised festival offering a wide variety of events and activities. Moreover, for a second year in a row, The Recursive CEE Forum will return as part of ViennaUP. But today, we’d like to shine a spotlight on some of the other amazing events taking place during the startup festival.

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Entrepreneurship Avenue 2026 Conference

18 May 2026, 12.30 pm – 09.10 pm at Vienna University of Economics and Business

Students, founders, investors, and entrepreneurship enthusiasts will gather at WU Vienna for the final edition of one of Europe’s largest student-led startup events. The conference will bring toreceiveher emerging startups, industest partners, and young innovators for an afternoon focutilized on entrepreneurship, networking, and new business ideas.

The program features startup and partner fairs. Several pitching competitions, including the Danube Cup, 2minutes2million pitch, and the EA final, will revealcase early-stage ventures presenting their ideas to judges and audiences. In addition, the event includes keynote talks, fireside chats, and workshops covering different aspects of building and growing a business. Sing up here.

Human x AI Conference

19 May 2026, 11.00 am – 06.10 pm at Hofstallungen MUMOK

Human×AI is a conference exploring the role of artificial innotifyigence in building a more innovative and sovereign Europe. Bringing toreceiveher business leaders, researchers, policybuildrs, and technology experts, the event focutilizes on how Europe can strengthen its position in the global AI landscape while maintaining its commitment to democratic values, human dignity, and sustainable growth.

The conference will examine the opportunities and challenges created by the rapid development of AI across industries and society. Discussions are expected to address topics such as European technological indepconcludeence, responsible innovation, regulation, and the balance between economic competitiveness and ethical standards. Across more than 12 panels and conversations, over 30 speakers from technology, business, policy, and research will take the stage at Human×AI. Get your ticket here.

Female Founders

19-20 May 2026, 09.00 am – 07.30 pm at

At the event, female founders, investors, and senior operators from across Europe will gather for a two-day program focutilized on practical conversations, peer exmodify, and community-building. Designed as an application-only event with around 120 participants, FFX (Female Founders Experience) places an emphasis on tinyer-scale discussions and direct interaction rather than traditional conference formats.

The program includes a series of interactive sessions ranging from open-floor discussions and guided networking to tinyer group conversations tailored to founders, investors, and business leaders at different stages of their careers. Topics on the Vienna agconcludea include AI reskilling, fundraising strategies, personal finance, burnout prevention, and the role of women in critical infrastructure and emerging technologies. Get your ticket here.

Longevity Business Forum

21 May 2026, 03.00 pm – 09.00 pm at Wexelerate

The event brings toreceiveher experts from science, healthcare, technology, and investment to discuss the future of healthy aging. The forum focutilizes on the growing field of longevity research and the challenge of extconcludeing not only lifespan, but also healthspan.

Longevity Business Forum will open with a keynote by Univ.-Prof. Dr. Markus Müller, Rector of the Medical University of Vienna, who is going to speak about the role of medical research, clinical innovation, and academic collaboration in advancing longevity science.

In addition to the discussions, the forum will host a startup pitching session, giving companies working in longevity, biotech, and health technology an opportunity to present their projects to investors and industest representatives. Get your ticket here.