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Uruguay becomes better positioned every day on the LATAM startup ecosystem map

Setting up a business in Uruguay means giving life to your business idea in an ecosystem of incubators, accelerators, universities, innovation centers, public organizations at the service of entrepreneurs, collaborative workspaces, and highly qualified talent.

The country, with just over 3.5 million inhabitants, is still at an early stage. However, it has the conditions necessary to become a reference in Latin America. With less than 500 startups in the country and with its first unicorn in 2020, Uruguay ranks 8th among Latin American countries in terms of startup ecosystems and 66th worldwide, while Montevideo is ranked at number 275 with the most cohesive startup ecosystem according to Startupblink.

With government organizations such as ANII and ANDE boosting the sector and foreign accelerators such as 500 Startups, the country is set to play an important role in launching startups that are innovative, open to the world, sustainable, stable and at the forefront of innovation, while standing out for its inclusive, environmentally friendly and sustainable values.

The city of Montevideo, capital of the country, is the epicenter of the ecosystem, where the main startups are based, as well as investors, public-private support initiatives and other ecosystem agents. Qualified by MIT experts as the most collaborative entrepreneurship ecosystem in the region, Montevideo extends its experience of articulated and networked work to the entire territory.

“The city of Montevideo has a solid foundation to be recognized as an innovation-based entrepreneurial ecosystem, a reference in Latin America.”

Source: GED & MIT D-LAB (August 2020)

Through the Uruguay Emprendedor Network, the ecosystem has national coverage. Different institutions that support entrepreneurship in its different stages are part of the Network to articulate actions, bring together available resources and improve opportunities for entrepreneurship in any part of Uruguay. Having the support of one of these institutions ensures the support of the entire ecosystem.

DeIn this context of global pandemic, Uruguay has been strengthened, not only because it has been able to withstand the effects of COVID-19, but also because it has a strong ecosystem capable of responding to entrepreneurs. In this context, inter-institutional coordination and having a web platform to make the available support instruments visible was fundamental. The Uruguay Emprendedor portal, the web platform of the Uruguayan entrepreneurial ecosystem, created and nurtured by the Network’s institutions, enables the articulation of the different existing actions and networks, enhancing the ecosystem and providing those who want to become entrepreneurs with all the available resources focused on generating impact at a global level.

DevSetting up a business in Uruguay means giving life to your business idea in an ecosystem of incubators, accelerators, universities, innovation centers, public organizations at the service of entrepreneurs, collaborative workspaces, and highly qualified talent.

Ana Luiza Beraba - Partner & Founder Weplot

“In 2019, we came to Montevideo for the first time and Uruguay XXI organized a strategic agenda for our decision. We learned about the tax and logistical variables for setting up the company, we got to know the ANII and the Proyecta Uruguay program, to which we applied and were selected from among over 300 startups. Since then, WePlot has been Uruguayan, with partners from Brazil and Colombia, and with great potential to scale from Uruguay. None of this would have been possible without the support and guidance of Uruguay XXI.”