How many CEE teams have a technical founder?
Three in four teams have one. 74% of the CEE founding teams who applied to BADideas in 2026 so far included a technical founder, about the same as in 2025. Both kinds of team asked for the same median round, €500,000.
The figures
| CEE applicants, 2026 (to date) | With a technical founder | Without |
|---|---|---|
| Share of teams | 74% | 26% |
| Round asked, median | €500,000 | €500,000 |
| AI at the core of the product | 63% | 42% |
In BADideas application data, teams with a technical founder are far more often AI-first: 63% put AI at the core of the product, against 42% of teams without one.
What is changing
| Quarter | CEE applicants with a technical founder |
|---|---|
| Q2 2025 | 75% |
| Q3 2025 | 71% |
| Q4 2025 | 78% |
| Q1 2026 | 71% |
| Q2 2026 | 74% |
| Q3 2026 | 77% |
Across CEE
CEE founders who applied in 2025 and 2026 so far. We show each country with enough applicants; smaller countries count only in the CEE row.
| Where the founder is based | Technical founder on the team |
|---|---|
| All of CEE | 75% |
| Baltics | 71% |
| Latvia | 63% |
| Estonia | 80% |
| Lithuania | 70% |
| Poland | 74% |
| Ukraine | 83% |
| Romania | 87% |
| Czechia | 76% |
| Bulgaria | 56% |
Technical founder on the team: highest in Romania (87%), lowest in Bulgaria (56%).
What it means for you
- You are expected to have one. Most teams do; without one, show who builds the product, on what terms, and who owns the code.
- Technical does not have to mean CTO on day one. Investors see a senior engineer with equity very differently from an agency.
- Show who owns the code. If an outside team built the product, say who holds the rights and how the work moves in-house after the round.
Related questions
How many startups raising in CEE have no technical founder?
26% of CEE founding teams in 2026 so far. The share has barely moved in six quarters.
How we measured it
- On this page: A technical founder is one the founders describe as building the product: engineering, data or research. This is what teams state about themselves.
- Updated: 27 September 2026.
BADideas.fund, "How many CEE teams have a technical founder?", updated 27 September 2026. https://badideas.fund/answers/technical-cofounder-cee
Read next
- How many CEE startups have a woman founder?
- How big are CEE teams when they raise?
- What backgrounds do CEE founders have?
- Do CEE founders study abroad first?
- How common are solo founders in CEE?
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We are a pre-seed and seed fund for founders in Central and Eastern Europe. We have built and sold companies ourselves, and since 2022 we have backed more than 40.
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Good founders rarely fail on the idea or the product. They fail on selling it. We give your company hands-on help from go-to-market operators who grew Zendesk, Square and Scale AI.