The High-Tech Business Center Ltd (fully owned by Sofia University „St Kliment Ohridski“”) and the Faculty of Economics and Business Administration (FEBA) through its Center for China Economy and Politics are organizing the Bulgarian chapter of the 14th Dongsheng Cup for international start-ups.

I. About the Competition

The 14th Dongsheng Cup International Entrepreneurship Competition is open to the world for free. We are comprehensively recruiting eligible international college/university students as well as outstanding entrepreneurs from other countries and regions. The competition aims to discover innovative projects with a global vision and build an international platform for exchange and integrated development. All students, alumni, and entrepreneurial teams are highly encouraged to participate.

II. Competition Sectors

This competition focuses on recruiting scientific and technological innovation projects in the following three major industries:

1. Life Sciences

• Biomedicine: Cell therapy, small nucleic acid drug therapy, mRNA-related therapies, biomanufacturing, etc.
• High-end Medical Devices: Surgical robots, endoscopes, cardiac electrophysiology, rehabilitation medicine, brain-computer interfaces, etc.
• Digital Healthcare: Digital therapeutics, digital marketing in healthcare, etc.

2. Digital Economy

• Artificial Intelligence: AI hardware and robots, machine learning, computer vision, technology-driven general AI application scenarios, AI chips, etc.
• Embodied Intelligence: Perception and interaction, motion control, task planning and decision-making, integration of large and small brain models, etc.
• Large Models: Deep learning, natural language understanding, large model training, large model applications, etc.
• Big Data and Digital Twins, etc.: Data security technologies, the Internet of Things (IoT), quantum technology, 6th Generation Mobile Communications (6G), innovative digital twin technologies and their application implementation, etc.

3. New Energy / New Materials

• Hydrogen Energy and Nuclear Fusion Energy: Hydrogen production, hydrogen transportation, hydrogen utilization, core components, etc.
• New Materials: High-performance composite materials, inorganic non-metallic materials, etc.
• Semiconductors: Semiconductor basic/foundational materials, powders, substrates, metallization, devices, modules, systems, etc.

III. Eligibility Criteria

Applicant projects shall qualify as small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) projects or college/university student startup projects that meet the national classification standards, and must meet the following criteria:

1. Leadership: The founder must be the team leader or the enterprise legal person.
2. Establishment Time: If the project has been registered as a company, the establishment time must be after January 1, 2018.
3. Team Size: The core team members shall not be less than 3, and the participants must be the founders or core members of the participating team.
4. Business Clarity: Be able to clearly and completely explain the characteristics of the product or service, the mode of production or operation, and the attractiveness of the product or service to customers.
5. Financing & Valuation: The enterprise has a demand for equity financing, and the financing valuation does not exceed 1 billion RMB (projects that have already implemented application scenarios can be appropriately relaxed after approval by the competition organizing committee).

IV. How to Apply & Contact Information

• Registration Fee: Free registration
• Application Link:
• Application Deadline: October 5, 2026
• Contact Person: Lingling Ma, lma@uni-sofia.bg
• Pitch date: October 9, 2026, 6 pm.

Application form link: https://forms.gle/kYSMisYngwxwdfZp8