Today, Lithuania’s startup ecosystem is one of the fastest-growing in the region, and on September 17, its participants and international partners will meet at the “Startup Fair 2026” in Vilnius.
In January, Lithuania’s unicorn ranks were joined by “Cast AI”. The cloud infrastructure automation and cost optimization company announced a strategic investment from “Pacific Alliance Ventures” – the corporate venture capital arm of the “Shinsegae Group” in the USA. After the deal, “Cast AI” was valued at over 1 billion USD, becoming Lithuania’s fifth unicorn. The investment amount was not disclosed.
In July, just six months later, the Vilnius-based internet data collection tools developer “Oxylabs” became a unicorn. The company, which had grown for more than a decade without external investments, attracted 130 million USD from “Warburg Pincus” and was valued at 3.6 billion USD. The company reports having more than 350 million USD in annual recurring revenue and over 350,000 customers worldwide.
In total, Lithuania currently has six unicorns – “Vinted”, “Nord Security”, “Baltic Classifieds Group”, “Flo Health”, “Cast AI”, and “Oxylabs”. “Vinted” achieved unicorn status in 2019, “Nord Security” in 2022.
“Lithuania’s startup ecosystem today no longer creates isolated success stories – we see a recurring ability to grow global-scale technology businesses. Two new unicorns in half a year signal that our ecosystem has become mature enough for companies to grow to billion-dollar valuations from Lithuania. Behind these results lie not only capital but also talent, experience, and the ability to create for the global market,” says Lina Žemaitytė-Kirkman, head of the startup center “Rockit Vilnius”.
Vilnius strengthens its position as a technology hub
The value of Lithuanian startup ecosystem companies reached 16.4 billion euros in 2025, growing 5.9 times since 2020 – the fastest growth in the Central and Eastern European region. In the same year, Lithuanian companies attracted 220 million euros in venture capital, compared to 131 million euros in 2024.
As the ecosystem grows, more companies remain in Lithuania and build their main technology and talent base here. More than 90% of Lithuania’s startup value is concentrated in Vilnius, and the city was recognized as the fastest-growing technology city in Europe in 2025.
“Unicorn stories are important not only because of their value. They create the second wave of the ecosystem – experienced founders, employees, and investors emerge who pass on their knowledge, capital, and connections to other companies. This strengthens the entire ecosystem and helps the new generation create and grow global-scale businesses,” says L. Žemaitytė-Kirkman.
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According to “Unicorns Lithuania” forecasts, by 2030 Lithuania’s startup ecosystem could triple – to 3,000 startups employing about 40,000 highly qualified specialists. The association identifies artificial intelligence development as one of the key growth drivers.
The entire ecosystem will meet at “Startup Fair 2026”
It is this strengthening ecosystem that will be showcased on September 17 at “Startup Fair 2026”, held at the Vilnius Exhibition and Congress Center “LITEXPO”. The event, organized for the 14th time, will gather more than 2,000 participants, 450 startups, and 430 investors from over 60 countries worldwide.
This year’s event theme is “Future Belongs to Builders”. Nearly 100 speakers on three stages will talk about people creating future technologies, businesses, and new markets. Among them are “Financial Times” technology editor Elaine Moore, “WIRED” co-founder and editor-in-chief David Rowan, “Dry Boots” founder Theis Søndergaard, “Oxylabs” CEO Vytautas Savickas, “Cast AI” co-founder Einaras von Gravrock, and other technology leaders from Lithuania and Europe.
One of the main highlights of the event will be the “Pitch Battle” – the largest startup idea competition in Lithuania. Participants will compete for a funding package exceeding 1 million euros, with the total event investment fund reaching 1.4 million euros.
The day before the main event, on September 16, the fifth “Investor Camp” will take place at the Energy and Technology Museum – an event for investors that will bring together the venture capital community.
“Startup Fair” is organized by the national startup ecosystem facilitator “Startup Lithuania” together with the innovation platform “ROCKIT”.
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