In its eleventh edition, the Universidad Industrial de Santander’s Entrepreneurship Summit fostered the exchange of experiences in innovation, scientific research, technology, and business development. The event was held online and free of charge, with its broadcast originating from a television studio set up for the occasion at Guatiguará Technology Park.
On Wednesday, October 28, the Universidad Industrial de Santander (UIS) held the eleventh edition of Eureka 2026, Santander’s largest Entrepreneurship Summit, a space for learning and sharing experiences that recorded 1,962 registrations and explored topics such as entrepreneurship, innovation, technology, and business development.
Organized by the Office of the Vice President for Research and Extension through the UIS Emprende program, the event was held online and free of charge. Production and broadcasting took place from a space set up as a television studio at Guatiguará Technology Park. Throughout the event, entrepreneurs, business leaders, researchers, and experts shared their experiences and knowledge to help turn ideas into projects and identify opportunities for growth through innovation.
According to Vanessa Quiroga Arciniegas, Director of Knowledge Transfer at the Office of the Vice President for Research and Extension, Eureka provides an opportunity to connect new generations with entrepreneurship, strengthen their skills, and encourage knowledge exchange among experts whose areas of expertise complement one another. She explained that, over more than a decade, the event has helped foster an entrepreneurial spirit and bring technical knowledge to the community.
This year’s edition also highlighted the connection between personal experiences, identifying needs, and developing solutions, drawing on the stories of people who have transformed their initiatives into business ventures. “Rather than falling in love with the problem, you have to fall in love with the solution,” Quiroga emphasized, referring to one of the key ideas shared by entrepreneurs who have followed this path.
The program included the “Healtech and Agrotech” panel discussion, featuring Andrés Anaya Isaza, co-founder of Indigo Holding and Chief Research Scientist; Santiago Hernández Villamizar, Scientific Director of Science and Technology at Fagos, Sciphage S.A.S.; and María Alexandra Artunduaga, CEO and founder of Samay. The discussion explored how technology, scientific research, and innovation can be applied to develop solutions in the healthcare and agriculture sectors.
The “Tech Entrepreneurs” panel brought together Natalia Jiménez Aristizábal, founder and CEO of Xaia Lab and a former member of Lulo Bank’s founding team; Esteban Hernández Dugand, Chief Commercial Officer and co-founder of Superfüds; and Natalia Salcedo Franco, CEO and founder of Pitz. Their professional journeys offered insights into the creation and management of technology-driven businesses.
Funding and creative thinking also featured prominently on the agenda. Santiago Rojas Montoya, co-founder of Cube Capital and General Partner at Meridian 75, delivered the keynote “How to Raise Capital,” focusing on strategies for securing funding to support startup growth. Luis Felipe Barrientos, known as Barry, an international speaker, professional storyteller, and consultant, presented “Problem-Solving: The Path of Creative Thinking,” exploring creativity as a tool for addressing challenges and finding solutions.
The event also featured Felipe Saruma, founder and manager of Vertical Cinema Estudios, who shared his professional journey in a talk titled “Professionally Empirical,” focused on learning through practice and developing creative projects.
As part of the institutional agenda, UIS Emprende presented its program and the Entrepreneurial Platform, initiatives designed to support and guide business ventures. The event also showcased Industrial Property for Entrepreneurs (PI-e), an initiative highlighting the relationship between industrial property and business development, alongside results achieved by UIS entrepreneurs. The panel discussions were moderated by Silvia Marcela Rojas Ardila and engineer Vanessa Quiroga Arciniegas.
The experiences shared at Eureka 2026 underscored the importance of identifying opportunities, applying knowledge, and developing solutions that address real-world needs. In sectors such as healthcare and agriculture, these initiatives can help improve access to products and services, from more timely diagnoses to new opportunities for bringing organic products to wider markets.
With this eleventh edition, UIS reaffirms its commitment to promoting entrepreneurship and knowledge transfer through initiatives that connect ideas, experiences, and capabilities, contributing to the development of new business ventures beyond regional boundaries.
