Nilovate secured 2nd place in the startup ideas category at the InnovNation Competition Serbia finals — a national innovation competition that drew 211 submissions from across Serbia and Republika Srpska. Out of 37 finalists who pitched on stage, only 11 startups received awards, and we were one of them.
The Competition
The InnovNation Competition Serbia is a national innovation competition organized by the Scientific-Technological Park Belgrade with support from the Ministry of Science, Technological Development and Innovation. The competition aimed to map and encourage innovative ideas from young people across Serbia.
The numbers tell the story of just how competitive this was:
- 211 total submissions from Serbia and Republika Srpska
- 37 startup teams presented pitch presentations in the finals
- 11 startups received financial awards
- Judged by industry leaders from Reputeo, TC Ventures, Silver Bell Group, and Softech Solution
What We Presented
Our founder Danilo Babic presented Nilovate's vision for AI-powered e-commerce automation. As he described it: "Our solution is a smart beauty seller based on artificial intelligence, which is implemented in Shopify stores with one click."
Lumosofy, our flagship product, is an autonomous AI sales agent designed for Shopify stores. It handles customer inquiries, recommends products, recovers abandoned carts, and closes sales automatically — 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
The Jury
Our pitch was evaluated by a distinguished panel of industry experts:
- Ivan Kadic — Founder & CEO of Reputeo
- Davor Sakac — TC Ventures Fund
- Marko Dubocanin — Founder & CEO of Silver Bell Group
- Ognjen Lukic — Founder of Softech Solution
- Prof. Dr Aleksandra Ilic — Faculty of Medicine, University of Pristina
AI Nation Mentorship
Beyond the financial award, Nilovate has been selected for the AI Nation initiative powered by Reputeo, which provides three months of mentorship, strategic guidance, and product development assistance. This support will help accelerate Lumosofy's development as we prepare for launch.
What's Next
This recognition validates our belief that AI-powered e-commerce is the future. With the mentorship from AI Nation and the momentum from InnovNation, we're pushing hard toward Lumosofy's public launch.
If you're a Shopify store owner looking to automate your sales and customer support, join the Lumosofy waitlist to be among the first to experience what an AI sales agent can do for your business.
Thank you to the organizers, judges, and all the incredible teams we competed alongside. Serbia's startup ecosystem is thriving, and we're proud to be part of it.