A team of Cypriot university students behind agritech startup LIVIA has won the European Innovation of the Year award at Gen-E 2026, Europe’s largest entrepreneurship festival, after representing Cyprus in Riga, Latvia.
The team had qualified for the European finals after winning the JA Cyprus Company of the Year competition in April. Alongside the innovation award, LIVIA also received the FedEx Access Signature Award, recognising its international growth potential.
LIVIA is an agritech startup developed by Altair Astronomy & Space and founded by university student Christos Charalambous. The company uses artificial intelligence, autonomous drones, satellite imagery and Earth observation technologies to help farmers monitor crop health more efficiently and sustainably.
Currently participating in the IDEA Innovation Center accelerator programme, the startup is developing an autonomous precision agriculture platform designed to help farmers monitor irrigation needs, detect crop diseases and improve overall field management while reducing costs.
The team comprises Christos Charalambous, co-founder and chief executive officer, Theofanis Orfanou, co-founder and chief technology officer, Ariadni Pashouli, biology lead, and Antreas Leonidou, machine learning and artificial intelligence lead.
Together, the team combines expertise in aerospace, computer science, artificial intelligence, biology, and engineering to develop technologies that apply innovations from the space sector to one of the world’s most important industries, agriculture.
The team is now focused on completing its product, launching pilot projects with local agricultural partners and expanding internationally.
JA Cyprus chief executive Antigoni Komodiki said the award was “a proud moment” not only for the team but for Cyprus.
“Their achievement shows that young people from our country have the talent, ambition and ability to compete and lead at the highest European level. This first-place award is also a recognition of the growing entrepreneurship and innovation ecosystem in Cyprus, and a powerful reminder of what can be achieved when young people are given the right opportunities, support and trust,” she told the Cyprus Mail.
LIVIA chief executive Christos Charalambous said the team’s success came from demonstrating that the project had progressed beyond the concept stage.
“What made the difference was our ability to move beyond just having an idea and demonstrate real progress towards a product that can create measurable impact,” he told the Cyprus Mail.
“We invested a great deal of time in understanding the market, validating the problem and building a solution around real customer needs. We were able to communicate our progress and ambition clearly throughout both the pitches and the jury interviews.”
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