PJSC Sberbank : Sber and Russian society Znanie agree to cooperate on developing and popularizing youth entrepreneurship

Sber's youth accelerators (SberZ for high school and vocational school students and SberStudent for undergraduates, postgraduates, and research fellows) and the Russian Znanie Society have come to an agreement on a long-term partnership with a view to popularizing youth entrepreneurship and supporting school and university student startup projects.

The partners will implement a set of initiatives. They will design a join track in the framework of the SberZ and SberStudent accelerators in order to select youth startup projects aimed at raising awareness about and resolving social issues in Znanie's priority areas: science and technology, natural sciences, medicine, education, social issues, culture, and art. They will also hold regular live broadcasts with well-known entrepreneurs and organize both online and offline open classes and lectures on youth entrepreneurship and tech trends.

The SberZ and SberStudent accelerators consist of three phases. The first stage involves an online lecture course on the basics of entrepreneurship and the creation of digital products. During the second stage, the participants form teams and work on a minimum viable product (MVP), taking their projects to the business results stage with guidance from professional mentors. The third phase entails a demo day with the best teams presenting their projects to Sber and Znanie Society executives, investors, tech corporations, youth organizations, and rectors of Russian universities. The winning teams will receive a cash prize from Sber. Teams made up of school students will receive additional points toward the Unified State Exam when applying to university. University teams will receive grants from Moscow Seed Fund.

In addition to the basic program, speakers from Znanie will give lectures to joint track participants on topics including science and technology, natural sciences, medicine, education, social issues, culture, and art. They will mentor project teams during the second stage. Based on accelerator results, the best teams with startups aimed at raising awareness of and popularizing the sciences, developing educational infrastructure, and involving socially-oriented projects will receive support from Znanie.

Participation is free and applications are being accepted until March 1. Participants do not need a prepared business project upon application, they will receive help coming up with an idea during the program.

Lev Khasis, first deputy chairman of the executive board, Sberbank:

"Youth entrepreneurship is an extremely important objective that will have an impact on the Russian economy over the next decade. For young people to be more likely to choose this career path, comprehensive efforts are needed, including: improving economic literacy, making tools to create and develop startups accessible, popularizing entrepreneurship by showcasing success stories, and supporting budding business projects. Collaborating with the Znanie Society will enable Sber to multiply the impact of our efforts at all levels."

Maxim Dreval, CEO, Znanie:

"The Russian Znanie Society strives for the emergence of more educational projects and the growth of the education industry. Youth accelerators serve as an environment where innovative products related to technology, science, and the social sector are born, raising awareness and sharing knowledge among a wide range of people. We have high hopes for this project: I am certain it will not only be a valuable experience, but also an opportunity to promote the values of education starting at school."

Sber and the Znanie Society already have a long history of cooperation in the field of education on a variety of topics, with Sber ecosystem executives serving as guest speakers at events organized by the society on a regular basis. In 2021, the SberZ and SberStudent youth accelerators were nominated for the Znanie Educational Prize in the category "Contribution to Business Education." Maxim Dreval was on the committee of experts that determined the winning projects at the SberZ and SberStudent demo day.