Startups & Corporates

I’ve been following the Scale Up Now initiative from Startup Portugal. Their ambition is clear and aligned with what our ecosystem needs: a bigger and more powerful presence in the USA. On day one, one of the topics on the table was Startups & Corporates — a partnership still undervalued, in my opinion. Some of the insights shared by Ana Simões (Brisa) and Pedro Santos (Sonae) led me to this week’s topic.

In every mature tech ecosystem, startups and corporates don’t just coexist, they need each other. And when they finally realise it, everyone wins. In Portugal, we’re getting better, but we’re still far from unlocking its full potential. Too often, corporates see startups as “interesting” instead of “strategic,” and startups see corporates as “slow” instead of “scalable.” Both are missing the point.

Startups are R&D engines. Corporates are distribution machines. Together, they compress time.

What Corporates Gain:

• Speed: Startups move fast because they must. Corporates move fast when they partner with them

• Talent proximity: the best founders don’t apply for jobs; they build companies. Corporates that collaborate early stay close to the next generation of problem‑solvers

• New revenue lines: not “innovation labs,” not “hackathons,” but real pilots that turn into real contracts

• Cultural oxygen: nothing shakes up internal teams like seeing a three‑person startup out‑execute a big organisation

What Startups Gain:

• Credibility: a corporate logo on your deck is a cheat code for trust

• Distribution: one corporate deal can equal large number of SME clients

• Data & domain expertise: Startups bring the agility; corporates bring the context

• A path to scale: not every startup needs VC. Some just need a corporate that believes in them

When these two worlds collaborate with intention, ecosystems accelerate.

You get: faster adoption of new technologies; more competitive industries; stronger local talent pipelines; culture where innovation is a behaviour

This is how countries move from “emerging ecosystem” to “innovation leader”, through partnerships that actually ship.

This matters because Portugal is at an inflection point

• We have founders building relevant companies.

• We have corporates hungry for transformation.

What we lack is structured collaboration, repeatable, scalable, mutually beneficial. More Corporates with the vision already materialized by Brisa, Sonae, Fidelidade, Galp, Semapa, Delta, Microsoft, to name a few of the most active.

When one Startup x Corporate partnership works, it becomes a story, and stories spread faster than funding rounds; other Founders hear about it and think, “Maybe this is possible.”; other Corporates hear about it and think, “Maybe we should try this too.” Investors hear about it and think, “Maybe this ecosystem is maturing.”

And once the flywheel starts turning, everything accelerates: Startups stop building in isolation and start building with real market insight; Corporates stop fearing change and start shaping it; talent stops leaving and starts believing; and, policymakers stop reacting and start enabling. This is how momentum forms.

• 💡 LandingJobs The Tech Talent Trends 2026 is ON! the study made by the tech community for the tech community is counting on you again!

• 💡 Scale Up Now Demo Day by Startup Portugal, this Friday

• 💡 Calling all MSc, Ph.D., and Postdoc students in STEM areas or fields of study! Are you ready to turn your innovative ideas into the next big thing? Join Faber's exclusive Entrepreneurship Program (deadline Mar 01) and learn from the real-life experiences of successful entrepreneurs who have turned their dreams into thriving businesses

• 💡 Founder Institute Portugal Demo Day on Jan 29

Keep following Adamastor to stay up to date with our ecosystem.

See you at the next event.

✍ Quote of the week

“Speed is a leadership decision. Faster is better than perfect”

Andy Jassy

Highlights of the week

• 🔷 LisboaUX just launched a brand new job board. A growing list of Design Jobs already live; take the chance to join the WhatsApp channel and the Slack Community.

• 🔷 Are you a student entrepreneur from NOVA? The Starters Academy is the right opportunity. Apply until Jan 26.

Congrats

• 👏 Chrono Health has raised 2.7M.

• 👏 Ana Martins (MELLA Supply), Daniela Hernández (Equivalence), Inês Freire de Andrade (No Bully Portugal), and Tiago Fortuna (Access Lab) awarded by the European Commission.

Something to read, listen and watch

• 📚 As startups portuguesas têm de saber quando vir para os EUA with Miguel Aguiar.

• 📚 A Founder’s Guide to Building a Team by Sedef Şahin, Founder Talent Based.

• 📚 Viewpoint: The missing pillar of EU’s start-up strategy is risk by Paulo Andrez.

• 📚 Be Palmer Luckey (serial entrepreneur).

• 📚 AI Prompts for JTDB and Persona Research (Product Academy).

• 🎧 Liga dos Inovadores: with Bernardo Seixas, Granter.

• 🎥 Previsões 2026 (Tech, AI, Robots, Negócios): Alvaro Samagaio talk with Humberto Ayres Pereira and Henrique Cruz from Rows.com.

Looking for your next spark of inspiration or connection? Discover what’s happening in the ecosystem—check out the Adamastor Events Calendar and find the perfect event that fits your goals, your vibe, and your stage. From founder meetups to investor talks, there’s something for everyone.