A lot of the world isn’t paying shut consideration to Greece proper now. That could be a mistake. Finest recognized for its beautiful islands, sun-soaked cities, and deep historic roots, Greece has been quietly laying the muse for one thing far much less anticipated: a contemporary, resilient tech financial system.
Whereas the worldwide highlight typically misses it, one thing actual is going on on the bottom, as this editor found this week throughout dozens of conversations in Athens. The nation that when stood on the precipice of financial collapse hasn’t merely rebranded itself as an “Innovation Nation.” It’s turning intelligent advertising into actuality, with coverage shifts, investor curiosity, and a renewed sense of goal round expertise and entrepreneurship.
Certainly, in a sit-down Thursday night time with Greece Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, he made the case that Greece is not only catching up, however poised to leap forward. “There may be vital room to develop,” he stated, however he believes one thing very actual is going on in his nation. “The celebrities are aligned.”
Greece, Mitsotakis defined, made a “acutely aware resolution” a number of years in the past to develop past its conventional financial pillars like tourism and hospitality. “Tech may very well be 10% of our financial system. That is completely doable,” he stated, citing rising startup formation, elevated capital flows, and an intangible however unmistakable “buzz” within the ecosystem. Drawing from his personal background in enterprise capital—he based Greece’s first incubator in 2001—he spoke with a fluency not typically heard from heads of state.
Whereas Greece could also be arriving late to Europe’s tech occasion, that timing might truly show to be a bonus. As a result of it didn’t have the capital to make unhealthy bets, Greece has sidestepped a number of the inflated valuations and failed ventures which have weighed down extra mature ecosystems. With a comparatively clear slate, the nation is transferring shortly to place itself on the forefront of rising applied sciences – notably synthetic intelligence.
In AI, the Prime Minister sees an opportunity not simply to catch up, however to skip forward. “We wish to use expertise to leapfrog,” he stated. “Not simply to catch up, however to really do higher than many European international locations.” He pointed to Greece’s success in digitizing public providers – saying it had far exceeded even Germany in some respects – and to pilot packages like a Microsoft-backed AI system that slashed authorities contract assessment instances from hours to minutes.
That twin technique of nurturing startups whereas modernizing authorities kinds the spine of Greece’s AI ambitions. Mitsotakis envisions Greece as a laboratory for accountable innovation, notably in areas like well being, civil safety, and protection. “We’re not simply speaking about what the startup neighborhood is doing. We’re the purchasers of the applied sciences. And we wish to have extra of a startup mentality as a authorities.”
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A serious pillar of this transformation is expertise. Greece is working to reverse the mind drain that noticed 1000’s of expert staff go away in the course of the monetary disaster. “The tax breaks are there – a 50% low cost on earnings tax for seven years,” he stated, but in addition acknowledged that “individuals are not going to return again only for a tax break. They’ll come again if they’ve a very good job alternative, in the event that they really feel they’ll do one thing rewarding, and that they’ll truly develop their enterprise in Greece.”
To that finish, we touched on two new packages launched final yr designed to carry expert international staff and entrepreneurs into the nation. Whereas the initiatives are nonetheless within the pipeline, they replicate a broader dedication to openness. “It is a international conflict for expertise,” Mitsotakis stated. “We have to make it straightforward for both Greek expertise to return or for individuals who can stay wherever to decide on to work right here.”
Mitsotakis additionally emphasised the significance of increasing tech past Athens, with hubs rising in Thessaloniki, Heraklion, and different college cities. “This also needs to be a narrative about regional growth.”
Nonetheless, the Prime Minister acknowledged ongoing challenges, together with the tempo of authorized reform, the necessity for extra late-stage capital, and the complexities of doing enterprise throughout the European market. However what he believes Greece now affords, in contrast to in the course of the depths of the disaster, is predictability, stability, and momentum. “Is that this nation transferring in the best course?” he requested rhetorically. “The reply is sure.”
For Mitsotakis, the last word aim is to make Greece’s progress “irreversible.” Whereas legacy constructing isn’t his focus, he stated, each Mitsotakis and the roughly 300 traders and founders who gathered for our sit-down – a few of whom have fortunately moved again to Greece from the Bay Space, London and elsewhere – clearly wish to be sure that the nation’s progress continues apace.
“We will’t [perform] miracles,” says Mitsotakis. “We will’t make up misplaced floor in a few years. However I believe we’ve damaged out of the vicious cycle of the previous, and I do see expertise as an ideal alternative, each for the non-public sector and for the federal government.”
You possibly can catch our full interview with Mitsotakis under.