Yannis Bratakos: We are turning innovation into business activity and export momentum

With an eye toward the future of Greek entrepreneurship, the Athens Chamber of Commerce and Industry, together with the Athens Startup Incubator – TH.E.A. are wrapping up their dynamic presence today at Southeast Europe’s leading technology exhibition, BEYOND EXPO 2026, which is taking place June 17–19 at the Metropolitan Expo.

As a co-organizer, through a packed program of events at its booth, the Chamber highlighted the prospects of Artificial Intelligence, Biotechnology, and international collaborations, offering Greek businesses and the startup ecosystem practical tools for the new digital era.

The events kicked off on Wednesday, June 17, with an opening address by the President of the Athens Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Mr. Yannis Bratakos, who emphasized: “The country’s next phase of development will be determined by our ability to transform knowledge into products, technologies into business activity, and innovative ideas into export momentum. This year, we have chosen to place special emphasis on Biotechnology and Health Sciences, a sector that combines scientific excellence with the creation of strong added value. It embodies all the characteristics required by the country’s new production model: innovation, outward orientation, high specialization, and the creation of strong added value.”

This was followed by the event “The Biotechnology and Life Sciences Ecosystem in Greece and Its Dynamics,” co-organized with Enterprise Greece and Bioinnovation Greece, and moderated by Mr. Fani Matsopoulos, Head of Business Advisory Support and Member of the Executive Board of the Athens Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ACCI). During the first panel, moderated by Ms. Sofia Kounenaki Efremoglou, First Vice President of the Athens Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ACCI) and President of Lavipharm, the role of Artificial Intelligence in pharmaceutical development was analyzed, while the second panel focused on sustainability and the transfer of research from the laboratory to the market. The session concluded with the Biohealth-Biotech Competition, where the industry’s most innovative ideas were highlighted and awarded.

In the afternoon, international outreach took center stage with the GREECE-SLOVAKIA Business Forum, co-organized by Enterprise Greece and the Slovak Investment and Trade Development Agency (SARIO), with the support of EEN Hellas, and moderated by Mr. Karolos Kostopoulos, a Member of the Board of Directors of the Athens Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ACCI). In his speech, Mr. Bratakos emphasized the need to move from diplomacy to action: “Bilateral trade still falls short of our true potential. For the Athens Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ACCI), these initiatives have a very specific purpose: to transform diplomacy into corporate relationships and meetings into trade agreements, with a focus on direct B2B contacts.” The forum was also welcomed by the CEO of Enterprise Greece, Dr. Marinos Giannopoulos, and the Slovak Ambassador, Ms. Marcela Hanusová, while the keynote speakers were the Greek Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr. Haris Theocharis, and Slovakia’s Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr. Rastislav Chovanec. The event concluded with presentations, pitches by Slovak companies, and targeted B2B meetings.

The second day, Thursday, June 18, 2026, began with the Open Innovation Challenge, a joint initiative of the Athens Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ACCI) and the Ministry of Digital Governance. The launch and evaluation of the top ideas were welcomed by the President of the Athens Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ACCI), Mr. Yannis Bratakos, and the Minister of Digital Governance and Artificial Intelligence, Mr. Dimitris Papastergiou. At the launch of the competition, the President of the Athens Chamber of Commerce and Industry emphasized the importance of public-private partnerships: “No organization or business can now tackle the complex challenges of our time on its own. In the digital transformation, it is not enough to simply digitize yesterday’s processes; we must design solutions for tomorrow. “We need a government that paves the way and a market that creates solutions.”

The session on the “Greece-Turkey Positive Agenda,” which highlighted the role of the Athens Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ACCI) and the Thessaloniki Chamber of Commerce and Industry (TCCI) in strengthening entrepreneurship and innovation between the two countries. Participants in the discussion included Mr. Yannis Bratakos, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Mr. Haris Theocharis, H.E. the Ambassador of Turkey to Greece, Mr. Çağatay Erciyes, and the Secretary General of the Ministry of Digital Governance, Mr. Konstantinos Karantzalos. Highlighting the new dimension of economic diplomacy, Mr. Bratakos noted: “Economic diplomacy through innovation is now taking on particular significance, as partnerships are built not only in official offices but within incubators, startups, and technology communities. Initiatives such as the Greece-Turkey Hackathon go beyond the scope of a simple event. They serve as platforms for collaboration and the exchange of know-how with long-term results. Most importantly, they are not limited to the duration of a competition, but create the conditions for continuity, building relationships of trust among the young people who are shaping the future of the economy.” In this context, Ms. Eleni Foti, Director of International Trade Relations at the Athens Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ACCI), and Mr. Petros Podaras then presented the upcoming Greece-Turkey 2026, which this year has “Artificial Intelligence” as its central theme. The day concluded with presentations on financing tools by EY, a presentation of TH.E.A.’s services, and the festive EBEA Open Party.

EBEA’s activities conclude today, Friday, June 19, with the Ready 4 Invest workshop: Investment Readiness Toolkit (EEN2EIC) led by Ms. Eleni Foti and Ms. Katerina Sakellariou, EEN Advisor, as well as the event “Strategies for the Internationalization of Technology Startups and SMEs,” co-organized with Enterprise Greece, at which Mr. Andreas Leousis, Head of GEMI and Business Services, Executive Board of the Athens Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ACCI).

At the same time, throughout the three-day event, the public and exhibition visitors had the opportunity to get to know 10 innovative startups up close, which are hosted and supported by the Athens Startup Incubator (THEA) of the Athens Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ACCI): EmAIRging, Brainfood Intelligent Media Cloud, Papertrail, Wocap, Oinovation, Synergy Accounting Intelligence Network, CloudSignals, HORECA360, Run4More, KORI.

Overall coordination of the events was handled by Ms. Eleni Foti, Director of International Trade Relations at the Athens Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ACCI) and Head of TH.E.A.