Six months ago, Cyprus marked a significant milestone by hosting its first-ever Startup World Cup Cyprus Finals. This global competition brings together the most promising startups from around the world. Globally organized by Pegasus Tech Ventures, the event serves as a launchpad for innovative companies, offering them the opportunity to compete for funding and global exposure.
The Cyprus regional finals attracted a diverse range of startups, each vying for a chance to advance to the Grand Finale in San Francisco—a stage where they would compete against the best from 100 countries and cities. Ultimately, two standout startups—Fincom and DISPL—earned the honor of representing Cyprus on the world stage.
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Among them, Fincom achieved a remarkable feat, securing 4th place overall, a testament to the strength of innovation emerging from the region.
But what happens after the competition ends? The Startup World Cup is not just about the pitch—it’s about what comes next. Now, six months later, we take a closer look at how some of them have progressed. Have they secured funding? Expanded their operations? Launched new products? Here’s what has unfolded since the finals.
1. DISPL: Advancing AI-Powered Audience Analytics
DISPL, the winner of the Startup World Cup Nicosia Finals 2024, is a platform that helps traditional retail stores better understand customer behavior in physical spaces. Using artificial intelligence, DISPL enables businesses to offer more personalized experiences, leading to higher customer satisfaction and increased sales.
With 90% of retail sales still happening in physical stores and the retail media market accounting for $530 billion in trade marketing budgets, the demand for advanced tools that digitize offline operations has never been greater. DISPL’s platform, fully compliant with global data protection standards such as GDPR, LGPD, and CCPA, provides businesses with actionable insights to optimize their strategies, bridging the data gap in traditional retail environments.
The past six months have been a turning point for them. The company has made groundbreaking advancements in its core AI technology, particularly in audience analytics and foot traffic measurement.
Key Achievements
DISPL has made significant strides in enhancing its AI capabilities. The company upgraded its Face Attribute Detection Model, making it three times faster and considerably more accurate. In addition to this, DISPL introduced the Body Shape AI Model, which adds a new layer of audience analysis. This new model allows the system to track not only faces but also full-body presence, providing a comprehensive overview of foot traffic, engagement levels, and conversion potential.
Alongside these advancements, DISPL launched its DISPL Kit 3.0, the latest generation of its hardware. This update optimizes performance by reducing the CPU load by 40%, making AI-powered analytics more efficient and accessible for users.
Looking ahead, DISPL is preparing for the official launch of the Body Shape AI Model on May 2nd, coinciding with the company’s anniversary.
DISPL has achieved significant milestones in 2024, driving both commercial growth and revenue expansion. The company reached 203 paying platforms and over 5,000 active locations, with daily audience impressions surpassing 1 million. This strong performance also led to an expanded customer base, with 3 large, 10 medium, and 16 small new clients onboarded. DISPL further strengthened its partner network, now comprising 94 active value-added resellers and tech integrators.
In terms of financial performance, DISPL achieved a remarkable 3.7x increase in revenue compared to 2023, showcasing its continued growth and market impact.
Geographically, DISPL expanded its reach by registering its trademark across the US, EU, Asia, and Latin America, reinforcing its global presence and positioning the company for future success.
Challenges & Solutions
One of the biggest hurdles was training the Body Shape AI Model for real-world conditions. During initial tests, the system mistakenly identified individuals wearing black t-shirts as the same person. The team resolved this by expanding the dataset and fine-tuning detection parameters, ensuring accurate differentiation in diverse environments.
Next Steps For The Coming Six Months
- Full rollout of the Body Shape AI Model.
- Development of Object and Automobile Traffic Detection for Q4 2025, enabling new use cases such as vehicle counting, mobile phone detection, and even tracking coffee cup usage in cafés.
- Introduction of AI Agent by DISPL, an intelligent assistant within the platform, designed to analyze performance, flag anomalies, and recommend actions for improving key metrics.
2. Heroes Made: Scaling For Impact In EdTech
One of the standout participants is Heroes Made.
Heroes Made is an innovative platform dedicated to enhancing social-emotional learning (SEL) in elementary schools. By integrating technology with education, it offers over 200 customizable, ready-to-use lessons that require zero preparation from teachers, making SEL both accessible and engaging. The platform also includes tools like real-time emotional tracking and actionable assessments, enabling educators to monitor and support students’ emotional well-being effectively.
Heroes Made has made significant strides in the past six months, particularly in aligning its platform with major educational standards and expanding its reach. Maria Lavithi Hovard, CEO of Heroes Made, shared insights into the company’s recent milestones and future ambitions.
Key Achievements
- Educational Integration: The platform now fully aligns with Common Core (ELA), British Columbia Standards, CASEL, and Dale Carnegie Principles, making it adaptable across various educational systems.
- International Expansion: The first school in Poland has onboarded Heroes Made, marking its entrance into the European market.
- Commercialization Strategy: The company is actively raising funds to fuel its commercial rollout, with all necessary groundwork completed and plans in place for rapid scaling.
- Strategic Partnerships: Heroes Made has secured a spot in a groundbreaking initiative by Coursera and GG4L, which will promote the platform to thousands of teachers, increasing visibility and adoption.
Challenges & Solutions
A major challenge has been breaking into established EdTech purchasing channels that schools rely on. While organic growth and partnerships have been key, unlocking these channels is essential for scalability. To address this, Heroes Made is focusing on raising funds that will enable them to access established distribution networks and accelerate adoption.
Next Steps For The Coming Six Months
- Finalizing Fundraising: Securing investment to unlock large-scale distribution.
- Maximizing Partnerships: Leveraging collaborations with Coursera and GG4L to drive teacher engagement.
- Expanding Content: Adding new lessons to maintain platform relevance and appeal.
- Growing the Network: Strengthening relationships with schools, districts, and educational institutions.
As Heroes Made continues to evolve, CEO Maria Lavithi Hovard remains open to conversations with investors and partners who share their vision of transforming education through technology.
3. PickTheBank: Launching A New Savings Platform
Founded in 2022, PickTheBank is a financial services platform designed to enhance transparency and accessibility in the European savings market. By aggregating offerings from over 1,000 banks across 25 EU countries, it enables users to efficiently compare and select banking products that best suit their needs
For PickTheBank, the past six months have been transformative. Following the SWC, the company successfully launched its long-awaited savings platform, marking a major milestone in its development.
- Going Live: The platform, developed to help users access the best financial products, is now operational.
- Partnership with Lidion Bank: Customers across Europe can now access savings products ranging from six months to five years, provided through PickTheBank’s partnership with Lidion Bank.
- Scaling Growth: With the product life, the company is now focusing on expanding its reach and attracting more users.
CEO Alexander Gromov describes this launch as a pivotal moment, validating the company’s vision and paving the way for future expansion. Explore the platform here.
4. eTOLLs EU: Expanding Smart Mobility Across Europe
eTOLLs EU is a Ukrainian startup that has developed a mobile application aimed at streamlining the process of paying tolls and purchasing vignettes for drivers traveling across European countries. The app allows users to plan routes, receive real-time alerts about toll prices, and make electronic payments, thereby avoiding cash lanes and reducing travel hassles. It supports toll payments in multiple countries, including Austria, Germany, Czechia, Hungary, Slovakia, Slovenia, Romania, and Switzerland
eTOLLs EU has been on an impressive growth trajectory, making travel smoother and smarter for users across multiple countries.
Major Milestones
eTOLLs EU has achieved significant milestones, making road travel more seamless and efficient for its users. The introduction of guest mode has driven a 15% increase in registered accounts, lowering the entry barrier and making it easier for new users to get started. Navigation has also become smarter with an AI-powered assistant that offers real-time toll predictions, personalized stop recommendations, and travel insights tailored to user preferences and local regulations.
In response to growing demand, eTOLLs EU has expanded its services to 14 countries, now including the Netherlands and Ireland alongside Switzerland, Czechia, Hungary, and Sweden. To further enhance accessibility, the app now supports 12 languages, with Turkish, Swedish, and Italian recently added. Ukrainian drivers also benefit from a dedicated Green Card tool that simplifies international vehicle insurance management.
Beyond simplifying toll payments, eTOLLs EU is enhancing the travel experience. An integration with GetYourGuide allows users to discover and book guided tours and activities directly within the app, turning road trips into more immersive adventures. Meanwhile, new advanced push notifications remind users to complete their purchases, reducing cart abandonment and increasing conversions.
On the business front, eTOLLs EU has strengthened its B2B presence by onboarding two major partners through API and widget integrations, further expanding its distribution network.
Overcoming Challenges
With no budget for paid user acquisition, eTOLLs EU has had to rely on organic growth and retention strategies. Despite these constraints, they’ve built a sustainable model and are now preparing to introduce a subscription service to ensure long-term financial stability.
What’s Next?
- Expanding B2B partnerships and affiliate networks.
- Launching and testing a premium subscription model.
- Entering 2–3 new countries.
- Enhancing AI-based recommendations for even more personalized navigation.
“We’re excited about what lies ahead and grateful to be part of this journey,” says Denys Dmytrov, Co-Founder of eTOLLs EU.
5. Formulaw: Revolutionizing Legal Services With AI-Powered Contract Review
In the rapidly evolving legal tech landscape, Formulaw has emerged as a transformative force by harnessing artificial intelligence to simplify and enhance contract management for small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs). The Cyprus-based startup offers an AI-powered contract review tool designed to make legal services more accessible and efficient.
Key Milestones
Since its pivot from an AI-powered marketplace connecting clients to lawyers to focusing on contract review, Formulaw has achieved significant milestones.
In January 2025, Formulaw officially launched its AI-powered contract review solution, providing businesses with a tool that analyzes documents, highlights potential risks, and offers actionable suggestions in real-time. The company has successfully onboarded clients in Cyprus and the UAE, showcasing the tool’s versatility and appeal across different markets. Formulaw is currently in the early stages of finalizing a funding round aimed at scaling operations and enhancing product offerings
Overcoming Challenges
One of the biggest challenges the startup has faced is building trust in AI-powered legal solutions. Many professionals were initially hesitant to rely on AI for contract analysis. To address this, Formulaw focused on:
- User Experience: Designing a clean, intuitive interface that promotes transparency and user control.
- Clear Explanations: Ensuring that legal insights provided by the AI are straightforward and contextually relevant.
- Robust Security: Implementing strong encryption and maintaining GDPR compliance to assure users of data privacy and security. citeturn0search9
Future Focus
Looking ahead, Formulaw is set to enhance its platform with new features aimed at streamlining legal processes. The company plans to introduce a contract playbook feature and a contract drafting tool, providing users with more comprehensive support for managing legal documents efficiently.
At the same time, Formulaw is actively working on expanding its client base across the MENA region and the European Union, tapping into new markets where demand for AI-powered legal solutions is growing. To support this expansion and further product development, the company is finalizing its current funding round, which will enable team growth and the continuous refinement of its technology.
Formulaw’s journey reflects a commitment to innovation and a deep understanding of the evolving needs within the legal industry. By integrating AI into contract review, the company is not only enhancing efficiency but also making legal services more accessible to businesses worldwide.
