🌍 What if moving countries was as easy as a quiz?

Meet RELOC8, a Cyprus-born 🇨🇾 startup using AI to match you with your ideal tax residency — no stress, just smart answers.

🏆 Winner of the Audience Favorite at #SWC2025 Cyprus Finals!

https://thefuturemedia.eu/reloc8-online-is-automating-international-tax-relocation-with-just-a-few-clicks/

🚨 As wildfires devastate Limassol, Cyprus responds with unity.

🆘 From shelters and first aid to vet clinics and donation hubs — this is your full emergency relief guide.

Read the full article: https://thefuturemedia.eu/wildfire-aid-centres-shelters-limassol-district-wildfire/

Fashion, reimagined by AI 👗🧠

Meet Aiuta, the Cyprus-based startup helping billion-dollar brands ditch photo studios and slash returns — led by ex-Farfetch, Amazon & LVMH execs Maísa Benatti (CEO) & Sergey Akimov (CTO).

Read the full story: https://thefuturemedia.eu/aiuta-is-using-ai-to-help-fashion-brands-scale-content-cut-costs-and-lower-returns/

🚀 Waze co-founder Uri Levine took the stage at #SWC2025 Cyprus with one message:

“Fall in love with the problem — not your product.”

He shared his $1B startup formula:
💡 Solve real pain
💥 Fail fast
📈 Go big or go home

Full article: https://thefuturemedia.eu/waze-co-founder-uri-levine-shares-his-billion-dollar-startup-formula-at-cyprus-world-cup-finals/

🇨🇾 Can Cyprus become a true startup hub—or is it still a playground for the privileged?

At #SWC2025, leaders from BrainRocket, Crowdbase, Panis.News & Invest Cyprus tackled tough truths:
⚠️ Bureaucracy
📉 Talent drain
🌍 Small market thinking

Their call? Build global, act fast. Full story: https://thefuturemedia.eu/made-in-cyprus-startup-ecosystem-leaders-tackle-whats-holding-the-island-back-and-whats-pushing-it-forward/

🔥 After the deadly Limassol wildfires, local founders launched Cyprus Fire Watch — a crowdsourced web app for real-time wildfire tracking across the island.

Built in days by the team behind Formulaw.ai, it’s free, fast, and made for moments when every second matters.

Read the full story: https://thefuturemedia.eu/community-steps-up-cyprus-fire-watch-app-helps-residents-track-wildfires-in-real-time/

Is Cyprus the next big player in AI?

At #StartupWorldCup2025, experts from 33East VC, Mellow, and Cybergizer agreed: the island has the talent, speed, and investor momentum.

But can it go from adoption to AI creation?

Full panel recap: https://thefuturemedia.eu/funding-the-future-ai-edition-explores-whether-cyprus-can-claim-a-place-in-the-global-ai-economy/

What if your mindset was your startup’s greatest asset?
At #SWC2025 Cyprus, 4 powerhouse women shared bold lessons on growth, resilience & real leadership 👇

Read full takeaways: https://thefuturemedia.eu/empowering-women-entrepreneurs-panel-focuses-on-mindset-boundaries-and-bold-business-decisions/

Who showed up when Limassol needed it most?
We want to talk to them.

At The Future Media, we’re collecting stories from people who were on the ground during and after the wildfires.

Not just first responders, but the people who took action when it was needed.

A neighbor who opened their home.
Someone who organized relief through a group chat.
A volunteer who showed up without being asked.

We’re working on a feature to document how the community came together, and we want these stories to reach beyond Cyprus. They’ll be published locally and included in a global Forbes article.

This initiative is supported by DREAM PLAY, who are committed to giving these voices the space and visibility they deserve.

If you were part of the response or know someone whose story should be heard, please get in touch.

DM us here or by email forbes@aivitam.vc

Offline retail has a data problem.
Cyprus-based Realytics solves it — with AI that tracks in-store behavior, pricing impact & sentiment.

Backed by L’Oréal & PepsiCo, they showcased more than just tech at the Startup World Cup Cyprus Finals 2025 — they highlighted a rising Cypriot ecosystem.

https://thefuturemedia.eu/realytics-bringing-real-time-competitive-intelligence-to-brick-and-mortar-retail/

🌍 She taped a quote in Tuvan to her fridge — and AI couldn’t translate it.

So Aira Mongush built Algebras AI, an engine for emotionally fluent translation in underrepresented languages.

At the Startup World Cup Cyprus Finals, she proved one thing: AI doesn’t have to speak English first.

Full story: https://thefuturemedia.eu/algebras-ai-began-with-a-fridge-quote-no-one-could-translate/

AI’s energy crisis needs a rethink.
At the Startup World Cup Cyprus Finals, Speslab pitched a 20-watt chip that can run AI inference on the edge — no GPU farms, no cooling, no cloud.

“We don’t store data. We extract meaning — like the human brain.”
Can this chip challenge the AI status quo?

Read the full article: https://thefuturemedia.eu/startup-world-cup-cyprus-finalist-speslab-tackles-ai-hardwares-energy-crisis-with-20-watt-solution/

🚀 Cyprus is backing its future founders.
RIF just launched the Future Founders Academy, offering up to €25K to help recent grads turn tech ideas into startups.

Includes free training, mentoring & support — with no company registration required.
Apply by Oct 8 or until budget runs out.

More info: https://thefuturemedia.eu/rif-launches-future-founders-academy-e25000-in-funding-for-aspiring-innovators-in-cyprus/

🌱 The Null Project is turning catastrophe into action — restoring 5.8 hectares of Cyprus forest and developing a 3D monitoring app to track fires and support recovery. Soon to be a nonprofit.

🔥 Wildfire Aid is our new initiative on The Future platform — created with the support of Dream Play. The project shares real stories, expert guidance, and solutions to prevent wildfires.

Read more: https://thefuturemedia.eu/restoring-cypruss-forests-how-the-null-project-is-pairing-reforestation-with-fire-resilient-technology/

ATHENS 🇬🇷 | Greece enters the global startup arena.

📢 The #StartupWorldCup Greece Finals land Sept 10 at SuiHub Europe, hosted by Aivitam Ventures and Panis News.

10 top startups. 70+ VCs & leaders. 1 shot at $1M in SF.

Details 👇
https://thefuturemedia.eu/startup-world-cup-greece-2025-launches-in-athens/

On Aug 7, 2025, UCLan Cyprus hosted the debut of Fearless Future, a podcast by Demetris Skourides, Chief Scientist of Cyprus & Chair of the National AI Taskforce.

Guests: Philippos Soseilos (CEO & Chair, PwC Cyprus) & Nicoletta Papakyprianou (Global Workforce Transformation Advisor.

Discover the insights: https://thefuturemedia.eu/fearless-future-cyprus-leaders-map-new-ai-workplace/

Y Combinator’s Fall 2025 wishlist reveals the next wave of ideas it wants to fund — from AI-native enterprise tools to generative video.

For Cyprus, these trends point to real startup opportunities.

Full breakdown: https://thefuturemedia.eu/what-y-combinators-fall-2025-startup-wishlist-means-for-cyprus/

Corporate compassion, Cyprus-style.
When wildfires hit Limassol, business leaders acted fast:

💶 XM €5M | GDEV & Rostro €100K each | Remedica €75K | Capital.com €50K | SALVUS Funds 1,000 pine trees.

TechIsland united 50+ firms from Wargaming to Parimatch. Relief went beyond money — housing, transport, volunteers.

Full story: https://thefuturemedia.eu/corporate-compassion-limassol-wildfires-part-1/

🚀 From Apple & UBS to reforesting 750 acres in India, Deepak Chandani drives global impact. Now with Vision 2035, he’s set to train 100 Chief Digital & AI Officers, transform healthcare, and build Cyprus’s “living lab.”

Full story: https://thefuturemedia.eu/bridging-continents-building-talent-deepak-chandani-bets-on-cypruss-tech-future/

🎨 From Belarus to NYC: Alisa Gannota defied 70% visa rejection odds to join global agency JDO.

Her path — via a Parsons scholarship, relentless portfolio building, & strategic thinking — is a masterclass in breaking into New York’s design scene.

https://thefuturemedia.eu/what-it-takes-to-start-a-design-career-in-new-york-as-an-international-student-alisa-gannotas-journey/