26 November 2025
Bilbao Campus
The University of Deusto hosted the 4th Deusto-Santander Entrepreneurship Gala on 26 November, an event that brought together around 200 attendees in the Ceremonial Hall. Among them were students from both the Bilbao and San Sebastian campuses, facilitators, speakers, and representatives of startups who had taken part in various activities throughout the 2024–25 academic year.
The event recognised the participation of more than 190 people in programmes, initiatives and learning processes in innovation and entrepreneurship, promoted by Deusto Emprende - Innovation and Entrepreneurship Unit - with the support of Banco Santander through Santander Universities. The Gala highlighted the effort, collaboration and entrepreneurial talent generated during the last academic year.
The event began with a welcome from Garbiñe Henry, Director of Innovation and Entrepreneurship, who set the context for the occasion and emphasised the importance of the transversal skills of entrepreneurship, innovation, and creativity in the university education of Deusto students. He also gave key data on the impact generated in the five learning processes that took place during the last academic year: creaction!, DeustoSTART I and DeustoSTART II, DeustoSIP - Social Innovation Program and Practicum Emprende.
Next, Borja Cembrero, co-founder and CEO of Naiz Fit -a company incubated in the Innogune start-up centre- and CGO of Mysize Inc. connected with the audience through the talk "The road was not straight". In his speech, he recalled his beginnings as a student at Deusto and how, thanks to "the training he received, to believing in himself and daring to promote small projects that did not prosper", he has been able to get to where he is today. She emphasised the importance of honesty and curiosity in enjoying one’s professional journey, noting that entrepreneurship is never easy but, when driven by genuine passion, becomes one of life’s greatest adventures, marked by continuous learning that arises from both mistakes and successes.
The Gala continued with the presentation of the Santander X Awards for the best entrepreneurial projects developed during the 2024–25 academic year’s learning activities:
● Creaction Award!: Awarded to the Deusto International Club project, developed by Camilo Borrero, Nuray Donés, Jugatx Jiashang Larrakoetxea, Alex Macías and Asier Montes. The award was presented by Juan José Etxeberria, Rector of the University of Deusto.
● DeustoSTART I Award: It recognised the EPI project by Lucía Fernández, Naia Soto, Eneko Lorenzo, Laia Molina and Lucía García. Alexandra Hernández, manager of Santander X at Santander Universities Spain, presented the award to the promoter team.
● DeustoSTART II Award: Awarded to the PREVEX project, led by Diego Amieva. The award was presented by Marijo Aranguren, Vice-Rector for the San Sebastian campus and Institutional Relations at the University of Deusto.
● DeustoSIP Award - Social Innovation Program: Awarded to the A terpetika project developed by Santi Martínez. Miriam Gil, Director of Agreements and Institutional Relations with Universities at Santander Universities and coordinator of Entrepreneurship, presented this award.
● INNOVANDIS Award: It recognised the Air2Water project, carried out by María Anitua, Iñaki Berrueta and Aratz Guridi. The award was presented by Elene Susperregi Telletxea, Innovation and Entrepreneurship Officer at the University of Deusto and coordinator of training processes at Deusto Emprende.
The Santander X Awards also had a second call for entries for the best university startup, and in this case, the winning project was ASIMOB. Startup receiving support in project development through DeustoKabi, one of the two business incubators managed and run by the Deusto Emprende team.
This was followed by a discussion moderated by Garbiñe Henry, featuring participants from the various learning activities mentioned above: Nuray Donés, Diego Amieva, Santi Martínez and Ibon Arechalde founder and CEO of ASIMOB. During the discussion, they shared their experiences and reflected on how innovation and entrepreneurship are key drivers of their personal and professional growth.
Afterwards, Carlos Prieto, Santander’s Regional Director for the Basque Country, spoke, highlighting the institution’s commitment to developing innovative and entrepreneurial skills and its dedication to supporting initiatives that equip students and entrepreneurs with the tools needed to launch impactful projects.
The Rector, Juan José Etxeberria, closed the event by emphasising that one of the cornerstones of the University of Deusto's Strategic Plan is the promotion of entrepreneurship. In addition to recognising the 195 people who received training in these areas during the past academic year, he thanked and acknowledged the commitment of all the organisations, professionals, and startups involved in the various training programmes, as well as Santander’s ongoing support through Santander Universities. He stressed that this network of partnerships is essential to further strengthen an entrepreneurial ecosystem that prepares students to successfully face current and future challenges.
The Gala concluded with a performance by Sara Aguado, a versatile, disciplined dancer in constant creative pursuit.
