Six Unicorns in Seven Years: Lithuania’s Startup Ecosystem Has Set New Records

In 2026, Lithuania’s startup ecosystem reached a new stage of maturity – in just six months, two new unicorns emerged in the country, and the total value of the startup ecosystem reached 16.4 billion euros. To celebrate the ecosystem’s growth, business leaders, investors, and founders will gather at Startup Fair 2026 in Vilnius on September 17.

Lithuania’s startup ecosystem has had a record-breaking last couple of years. Two new unicorns, Cast AI and Oxylabs, emerged in the country in just six months in 2026. Also, the value of Lithuania’s startup ecosystem reached 16.4 billion euros, while in 2025, the country’s companies attracted 220 million euros in venture capital, 1.7 times more than the previous year. 

To celebrate the ecosystem’s achievements, business leaders, entrepreneurs, and international partners will meet at the annual Startup Fair 2026, hosted in Vilnius on September 17. 

Today, Lithuania’s startup ecosystem is one of the region’s fastest-growing, with more and more companies reaching unicorn status. In January, Cast AI joined the ranks of Lithuanian unicorns. The cloud infrastructure automation and cost optimization company announced a strategic investment from Pacific Alliance Ventures, the U.S. corporate venture capital arm of the Shinsegae Group. After the deal, Cast AI’s valuation surpassed $1 billion, making it Lithuania’s fifth unicorn. 

In July, just six months later, Oxylabs, a Vilnius-based developer of web data collection tools, also became a unicorn. The company, which had grown for more than a decade without external investment, raised $130 million from Warburg Pincus and was valued at $3.6 billion. The company reports having more than $350 million in annual recurring revenue and more than 350,000 customers worldwide.

Currently, Lithuania has six unicorns: Vinted, Nord Security, Baltic Classifieds Group, Flo Health, Cast AI, and Oxylabs. Vinted achieved unicorn status in 2019, and Nord Security in 2022.

“Lithuania’s startup ecosystem is no longer just producing isolated success stories. We are seeing a consistent ability to grow global-scale technology businesses. Two new unicorns in half a year is a sign that our ecosystem has matured enough for companies to grow from Lithuania into billion-dollar businesses. Behind these results lies not only capital, but also talent, experience, and the ability to build for the global market,” says Lina Žemaitytė-Kirkman, Head of ROCKIT.

Vilnius strengthens its position as a technology hub

The value of companies in Lithuania’s startup ecosystem reached 16.4 billion euros in 2025, having grown 5.9-fold since 2020, which is the fastest growth in the Central and Eastern European region. In the same year, Lithuanian companies attracted 220 million euros in venture capital, compared to 131 million euros in 2024.

As the ecosystem grows, more and more companies are staying in Lithuania and establishing their primary technology and talent base here. More than 90 percent of the value of Lithuanian startups is concentrated in Vilnius, and in 2025, the city was recognized as Europe’s fastest-growing tech city.

“The stories of unicorns are important not only because of their value. They are creating a second wave of the ecosystem as experienced founders, employees, and investors emerge and pass on their knowledge, capital, and connections to other companies. This strengthens the entire ecosystem and helps a new generation build and grow global-scale businesses,” says Žemaitytė-Kirkman.

According to Unicorns Lithuania projections, by 2030, Lithuania’s startup ecosystem could triple in size and reach 3,000 startups employing approximately 40,000 highly qualified specialists. The association identifies the development of artificial intelligence as one of the most important drivers of growth.

The entire ecosystem will gather at Startup Fair 2026

This growing ecosystem will be on display on September 17 at Startup Fair 2026, hosted at the LITEXPO Exhibition and Congress Center in Vilnius. Now in its 14th year, the event will bring together more than 2,000 participants, 450 startups, and 430 investors from over 60 countries around the world.

The theme of this year’s event is Future Belongs to Builders. Nearly 100 speakers across three stages will discuss the people shaping the technologies, businesses, and new markets of the future. Among them are Elaine Moore, technology editor at the Financial Times; David Rowan, co-founder and editor-in-chief of WIRED; Theis Søndergaard, founder of Dry Boots; Vytautas Savickas, CEO of Oxylabs; Einar von Gravrock, co-founder of Cast AI, and other technology leaders from Lithuania and Europe.

One of the event’s main highlights will be the Pitch Battle, Lithuania’s largest startup idea competition. Participants will compete for a funding package totaling more than 1 million euros, and the event’s total investment fund will amount to 1.4 million euros.

The day before the main event, on September 16, the fifth Investor Camp, an event for investors designed to bring together the venture capital community, will take place at the Energy and Technology Museum.

Startup Fair is organized by Startup Lithuania, the national facilitator of the startup ecosystem, in collaboration with ROCKIT.