ZICER Zagreb Innovation Centre — city-backed equity-free startup accelerator

ZICER (Zagrebački inovacijski centar / Zagreb Innovation Centre) was founded in 2002 by the City of Zagreb as an equity-free, no-fee startup accelerator and innovation hub. The city funds approximately €800,000 of ZICER's annual budget of roughly €1.3 million; the remainder comes from EU project grants. ZICER employs 27 people and supports 80+ startups on-site.

Programmes: Startup Factory (early-stage validation, market entry; 80+ companies launched since inception); Global Growth (internationalisation; in 2023: 6 startups received €120,000 in non-repayable grants); Deep Tech (research commercialisation); Tech Transfer (university spin-offs). All programmes are equity-free and fee-free — an explicit policy choice to reduce barriers for early-stage founders.

Sectors range from healthcare AI (3dtech, ophthalmology and cardiology) to employment apps (DING.jobs, 30,000+ users in Croatia, expanding internationally) and agri-tech to SaaS. ZICER is a member of IASP (International Association of Science Parks) and won the 2022 Corporate Vision Small Business Award.

Why it is a good practice: ZICER demonstrates how a mid-sized city (Zagreb, ~800,000 inhabitants) can sustain a multi-programme, equity-free innovation hub on a modest public budget, providing a replicable model for Central and Eastern European capitals with limited VC markets.

Read the full analysis: https://www.zicer.hr/?lang=en