Jeremy Downward the Cyprus Seeds Chairman, was the Board Chairman and Executive Officer of Aristaeus Financial Services Ltd, a fully regulated asset management firm in Cyprus, until his retirement in April 2023. For over 20 years, Jeremy worked as the Chief Investment Officer, managing the investments of a number of trusts and foundations of a prominent European family. He remains on the board. Jeremy was also a founding partner and board member of Greece’s first private sector investment bank, Alpha Finance, from 1989 to 2001. 

Jeremy, Cyprus Seeds has been a catalyst for change in the local ecosystem for 7 years now. Looking back at the journey to this year's "Out of the Lab" Showcase, what is the one achievement that makes you most proud?

When we started, there was no culture of entrepreneurship within Cypriot Universities and Research Institutes, let a long a deep-tech spinoff ecosystem. I would like to think that Cyprus Seeds helped create that ecosystem. Over 4 Cycles, we received over 140 applications, supported 24 teams, of which 6 made the jump to create spinoff companies, and 2 licensed their innovations. This would have been unthinkable just a decade ago. 

You often speak about moving scientific discovery "out of the lab" and into the market. Why is this transition specifically critical for Cyprus’s economic future right now?

Moving science out of the lab and into the market is not just an economic strategy for Cyprus — it's an existential imperative. At Cyprus Seeds, we see this transition as critical for several interconnected reasons:

• Cyprus is losing its most valuable asset: its talent. Cyprus has one of the most educated populations in Europe, with lots of talented graduates, but it is too small to employ all of them within an academic environment. As a result, many talented young researchers are tempted to try their luck abroad. Offering them an opportunity to take their research from the lab to the market helps to reverse the "brain drain" in Cyprus. Thus, commercialization creates the conditions that make staying worthwhile. 
• Cyprus's research output isn't translating into economic value, yet. Cyprus is doing very well in terms of scientific research, but despite recent progress, Cyprus still ranks below the global average in technology transfer. This is attributed to several factors, including a small entrepreneurial ecosystem, limited incentives, a complex legal framework for university spin-offs (although an improved version has recently been adopted), a small industrial base, a lack of experienced local mentors, and the academic community's tendency to prioritize research and publications over commercialization. The knowledge is being generated, it's simply not being converted into jobs and wealth. Cyprus Seeds offers solutions to all of those challenges. 
• Economic diversification is urgent. Cyprus has historically relied on tourism, financial services, and real estate for its economic development, but the 2013 banking crisis and the 2026 conflict in the Eastern Mediterranean and Middle East Region necessitate a paradigm shift. Deep-tech spin-offs represent a fundamentally different kind of economy, a knowledge economy built on IP, global scalability, and high-value talent. One of our goals is to change the mindset of researchers and students in Cypriot academia to explore, develop, and commercialize their innovations, thus contributing to the growth of the knowledge-based economy in Cyprus and creating opportunities for employment and wider socio-economic impact.
• The window of opportunity is open, but not indefinitely. The achievements of our teams underscore the growing strength of Cyprus's research commercialization ecosystem and the determination of our teams to transform academic innovation into real-world impact. Teams are now filing international patents, pursuing European Innovation Council (EIC) funding, and attracting interest from global corporations and international investors (as exemplified by our investor’s hour event at the DOERS summit this month). Cyprus is beginning to prove itself on the world stage, but momentum must be sustained and scaled. Cyprus Seeds is there to make the necessary connections to enable this. 

In short, from Cyprus Seeds' perspective: the science exists, the talent exists, and the global market appetite exists. What's been missing is the bridge — and that's precisely what we're building, right now, when it matters most. 

What can attendees expect from the teams pitching on May 22nd? Are there any specific sectors (like Biotech or Green Energy) that are particularly strong this cycle?

The attendees, who represent investors from Cyprus, Europe and the Eastern Mediterranean region, can expect short, sharp, high-quality pitches from a set of impressive deep-tech and science-based startups across a range of sectors: medtech has always been a strong vertical in Cyprus, but we also have companies representing innovation in the pharma value chain, food tech, as well as agricultural and environmental applications. This reflects the growing diversification of the Cypriot deep tech sector. 

This year features significant international participation, including names from MIT and global VCs. How does bringing these global experts to Limassol help a local researcher who might be nervous about their first pitch?

Well, having supported most of the pitching startups through their entrepreneurship journey, we are glad to say that our teams have already been transformed a long time ago from nervous researchers into seasoned alumni who are confident pitching their products to major investors. In fact, we expect our investors, by validating the concepts presented, to give our teams a further confidence boost (as well, potentially, as potential investments!). 

If someone is on the fence about attending the Showcase at the Kolla Factory, what is your "elevator pitch" to them? Why is May 22nd a date they cannot miss?

There really is no alternative to the DOERS summit in Cyprus, so miss May 22nd and you might have to wait another year for an opportunity like this. Cyprus Seeds has managed to bring to the table an impressive group of local and international investors, and this is the one chance to impress them. Beyond that, it is also a fantastic networking opportunity.