Meet the imec.istart Belgium Autumn 2026 cohort

Dentists, football scouts and restaurant owners don’t usually share a headline. This autumn, they do!

Selected from a record 169 applications, the nine startups in our imec.istart Belgium Autumn 2026 cohort are tackling everything from dental practice admin to player recruitment and restaurant margins. Let’s meet them!
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Meet the startups!

‍GOODSHIFT (HRTech): connects talent with organisations in the impact economy, helping people find opportunities to contribute to positive change.

HOMY (PropTech): takes over repetitive back-office and prospecting work for residential real estate agencies, freeing teams to focus on clients and properties.

HUMANS IN THE LOOP (Business Services): automates repetitive workflows inside the tools SMEs already use, powered by AI agents but always keeping people in control.

GAFFER (SportsTech): turns match footage into positional and behavioural insights for better team decisions in elite sports.

PUNCHLISTER (Construction): automates project administration for contractors, capturing site decisions from voice notes, meetings and emails and linking them to the signed contract.

RESTOBOOST (FoodTech): analyses restaurant data to identify where margins are being lost and helps restaurant owners to improve profitability.

PERMIPRO (PropTech): supports architects and housing developers to navigate building requirements and turns regulations and geodata into faster building permit approvals.

STUNTPONY (Business Services): gives sales teams relevant insights during sales calls, helping them navigate the conversation while there is still time to influence its outcome.

TIVTAV (HealthTech): automates back-office operations for dental practices, helping teams manage documents, inventory, equipment and suppliers.

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Trends & Observations

What connects this autumn’s nine teams? A focus on practical problems, better-timed decisions and technology that earns its place in the working day. Here’s what caught our eye.

Traction talks

This cohort leans towards applied AI and software, with less emphasis on developing new deep tech. Homy takes on repetitive work for real estate agencies, Humans In The Loop brings AI agents into existing business tools, and RestoBoost helps restaurant operators uncover where their margins are slipping.

With AI evolving so quickly, a promising prototype only gets you so far. Stronger evidence comes from customers who use the product, pay for it and keep coming back.

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Property's paper problem

Three of the nine startups tackle friction in property and construction. Homy takes on admin and prospecting for residential agencies, PermiPro helps navigate permit requirements, and Punchlister keeps site decisions connected to contracts.

There is plenty of ambition to reinvent how we buy and build. These teams are tackling the paperwork holding those ambitions back.

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Timing is everything

A useful insight shouldn’t arrive just in time for hindsight. Stuntpony supports sellers during the call, RestoBoost helps restaurant operators spot margin leaks, and Gaffer turns match footage into insights about player behaviour. Goodshift brings that focus on informed choices to careers, helping people discover relevant opportunities in the impact economy.

The common thread: helping people turn information into their next move.

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Serious tools for everyday businesses

Our Summer cohort already took aim at the daily tasks that keep businesses busy. That focus continues this autumn, with TivTav tackling dental practice administration, Homy supporting real estate agencies and RestoBoost helping restaurants improve their margins. Goodshift tackles another business essential: connecting organisations in the impact economy with talent.

The practical payoff: more time and the right people for the work these businesses do best.

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Looking ahead 

Over the coming 12 months, these nine teams will work with imec.istart to sharpen their products, refine their go-to-market strategies and grow their businesses. As imec.istart expands across Europe, they can also tap into a growing network to help them scale beyond Belgium.

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Think your startup belongs in the next cohort?

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Get €100K through a Convertible Loan Agreement (CLA), with no equity taken upfront. Join imec.istart Belgium for expert coaching, access to imec’s technology and international network, and a community of founders who understand the journey.

→ Explore our program and find out how to apply.

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