While many international media today celebrate Poland as the new European economic miracle, another surprise protagonist emerges, equally placed in the heart of central Europe: the Czech Republic, from the fuchs of the digital revolution: the Czech Republic is no longer only the land of breweries, Gothic castles and mechanical industries, but a creative and hyper -year laboratory, in which technological innovation has taken hold with a surprising force and speed. To testify to this, a record investment: last year, the American multinational on half -domestor announced an expansion of two billion dollars of its Roznov Pod Radostem plant, marking the largest foreign investment directed in the history of the country. A challenge won against the United States and South Korea, thanks to the quality of Czech human capital, university cooperation and a well -calibrated political strategy.
The origin of this revolution dates back to the time of the iron curtain. He ran 1988 when the computer science Pavel Baudis received a disk infected with the Vienna virus. In his office of the research institute for Mathematical machines in Prague, with a single PC available
A M24 Olivetti analyzed and neutralized the malware. With his colleague Eduard Kucera he founded a software cooperative, Alwil, who then became Avast. After the fall of the regime, the company exploded and in 2018 landed on the stock exchange in London with an evaluation of 2.5 billion pounds. From that first virus the first Czech unicorn was born, and with it the myth of a country capable of transforming obstacles into opportunities.
Today, the Tech Czech ecosystem is an expanding mosaic. In Brno, Kiwi.com was born, online travel agency that uses artificial intelligence and big data. In Prague, Rohlik has become one of the main online supermarkets in Europe, expanding in Germany with the Knuspr.de brand. According to the Smart Market Report, the IT and startup sector contributes to 5% to GDP and uses over 200,000 people. In the Deloitte ranking of the 50 most quickly growing technological companies in central-eastern Europe, 15 are Czech.
To support this development is also the long academic tradition of the country: in 2023, over 25,000 students were enrolled in computer science courses and communication technology, the highest number in the region. Prague and Brno host renowned technical universities, real talents of talents for businesses. Even if the wages remain lower than the EU average 18.20 euros per hour against 33.50 the quality of the
life, judged high by the inhabitants themselves, continues to attract investments. Global companies such as Amazon, Microsoft and Sap have chosen to settle permanently in the Czech Republic.
The government supported this trajectory with targeted measures. The 2019-2030 innovation strategy aims to increase the shopping in research and development up to 3% of GDP. The Onsemi case, which already produces ten million chips a day in Roznov, is emblematic: not only expands the local industry, but could attract an entire high-tech induced, transforming the region into a central Europe Silicon Valley.
The Czech Republic is no longer limited to following innovation: the guide.
Discreet but determined, he built a model based on skills, pragmatism and long -term vision. From Prague to Brno, from Ostrava to the semiconductor valleys, the former Eastern country is proposed today as a technological power in all respects. And Europe would do well to take this into account.