• The opening session featured a discussion between Valenciaport President Mar Chao and Valenciaport Foundation Director Antonio Torregrosa.
• The fourth edition of the International Port Entrepreneurship Congress kicks off as a global meeting point for innovation and entrepreneurship in the port sector.
• The Port Authority of Valencia and the Valenciaport Foundation are fostering international networks and collaboration with startups to accelerate open innovation and enhance the sector’s competitiveness.

 The 2026 International Port Entrepreneurship Congress (PEIC’26) has kicked off its latest edition, highlighting the growing international interest in port entrepreneurship. Mar Chao, President of the Port Authority of Valencia , emphasised the importance of innovation as “an essential requirement to continue growing and remain competitive, sustainable and resilient.

In this context, the President highlighted several initiatives launched by the Port Authority of Valencia that reflect its commitment to applied innovation, particularly the Valenciaport Sandbox. “The Sandbox was created with a simple objective: to enable innovative solutions to be tested in a real-world port environment,” she explained. She also expressed her hope that projects such as this would make “the journey from innovation to implementation faster, more efficient and more valuable for everyone involved.”

Mar Chao ha sido la encargada de inaugurar la jornada, junto al director general de la Fundación Valenciaport (FV), Antonio Torregrosa, con sendas intervenciones en las que han puesto en valor un encuentro que reúne a representantes de puertos, startups, corporaciones logísticas e inversores de todo el mundo y se ha convertido en punto de encuentro internacional para la innovación y el emprendimiento portuario.

For his part, Antonio Torregrosa highlighted the strong interest shown by ports, major companies, investors and innovation leaders in taking part in the event. In his view, this demonstrates the emergence of an increasingly large international community that sees open innovation “as a key driver of the future of the maritime and logistics sectors.”

More than 45 startups from 12 different countries

The discussion, entitled “Opening Perspectives: Enabling Port Innovation and Entrepreneurship”, marked the start of the fourth edition of the congress, bringing together startups from 12 countries in Valencia to showcase their technologies to the port community.

Over the course of the two-day event, a total of 20 startups are expected to take to the stage, alongside five selected to compete in the VDS pitch competition, others showcasing their technologies in the new demonstration area at the lake of the City of Arts and Sciences, and 13 taking part in the PEIC Resilience Forum. In total, more than 45 selected startups have gathered in Valencia to share their innovations.

The congress, now in its fourth edition at the City of Arts and Sciences, introduces several major new features, including “PEIC Demo on the Lake” and the new, larger Agora Stage. These additions build on the spirit of previous editions: connecting startups, international port companies and institutions, and specialised venture capital investors.

PEIC has firmly established itself as a must-attend event on the port innovation calendar. Over the course of the event, Valenciaport serves as a meeting point for ports from Spain and around the world to share common challenges, discover innovative solutions and connect directly with the companies developing them.

“That is why events like this are so important. They bring together those who understand the operational challenges facing the sector and those working to address them. This is where partnerships are forged and, in many cases, turn into innovations that deliver tangible impact,” concluded the President of Valenciaport.