Nicosia, Cyprus. Cyprus’ startup ecosystem is entering a period of growing maturity, but challenges around founder quality, access to capital and international scaling remain, according to Dionysis Partsinevelos of 33East and G4 Ventures.
In an interview with the Cyprus Mail, Partsinevelos said the coming decade will be critical for Cyprus as it seeks to build a self-sustaining startup ecosystem, while identifying applied artificial intelligence, DeepTech, PropTech and hospitality technology as sectors with strong momentum in 2026.
Founder quality and ecosystem development
Partsinevelos said Cyprus’ innovation landscape has evolved, but argued that the country needs more founders willing to take risks and pursue their ventures full time. He said founder quality will be a key factor in determining whether the ecosystem can sustain long-term growth.
People over numbers in early-stage investing
Drawing on his experience as an economist, Certified Valuation Analyst and startup founder, Partsinevelos said early-stage investing is centred more on people than on financial metrics. He said that, at the earliest stages, valuation has little to do with revenue, cash flow or comparable companies, and instead depends largely on the founding team, its ability to execute and the credibility of its story.
Experience as a founder and investor
Partsinevelos said he had long been interested in startups and problem-solving, and described moving from Cyprus to Germany without a secure position before co-founding an AI startup in 2021. He said the experience reinforced the importance of execution over ideas and shaped his approach to venture capital.
He added that his background in valuation provided an analytical foundation, while his experience as a founder helped him understand the human factors behind startup investing. According to Partsinevelos, the strongest investors are not only skilled with numbers but also effective at assessing founders.