Barcelona New Economy Week 2026 gives awards to eight start-ups, one per sector

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The Barcelona New Economy Week, organised by the Consorci de la Zona Franca de Barcelona (CZFB), closed its seventh edition by giving awards to eight start-ups, one for each of its verticals. More than 100 companies applied through the BNEW Startup Innovation Hub, and a jury narrowed them to 40 finalists on industrial impact, team and technology. The ceremony was held at DFactory Barcelona, the CZFB's industry 4.0 hub, led by mayor Jaume Collboni, CZFB president Pere Navarro and director general Blanca Sorigué.

The week added five verticals this year (artificial intelligence, agrofood, science, video games and energy) to the existing aviation and space, talent and health. Most of the prizes therefore went to categories that did not exist at the previous edition, which is one way to spread the honours around.

The winners: POTS (agrofood) collects, washes, checks and recirculates containers, and says it has reused over 400,000. Timbal AI (AI) lets companies build and govern AI applications in one place. Torch (energy) is a solar-powered AI device that works without the grid or internet. NoctuRNA Therapeutics (science), a Universitat Pompeu Fabra spin-off, develops circular RNA therapies for rare diseases. Altum Sequencing (health) pairs DNA sequencing with AI to find tumour signals in blood. UVNÉ (talent) offers training guidance to Latin American immigrant professionals in Spain. H2 Dron Energy (aviation and space) builds hydrogen propulsion giving professional drones up to three hours aloft. Alongside (gaming) turns medical procedures into missions for children in cancer treatment.