Sebrae Startups

Assessment of São Paulo’s Startup Ecosystem

by Startup Genome

Study Highlights

Quick insights
01

MATURITY HIGHLIGHT

São Paulo’s startup ecosystem is currently in the Advanced Globalization phase of the lifecycle, characterized by multiple exits above US$100 million and a base of more than 2,000 startups in the region. The next leap depends on increasing the number of scaleups and exits above US$1 billion.

02

COMMUNITY HIGHLIGHT

São Paulo shows a strong density of relationships among founders, with the number of connections between founders above the average of comparable ecosystems. These networks foster knowledge exchange and peer support, forming the foundation of the local sense of community.

03

ATTRACTIVENESS HIGHLIGHT

The city has established itself as the main hub for technology entrepreneurship in Brazil and Latin America, attracting founders from different regions of the country and maintaining high startup retention due to proximity to customers, investors, and large corporations — concentrating around 30% of the national GDP.

04

GLOBALIZATION AS A CHALLENGE

Despite the ecosystem’s scale, startup internationalization remains limited, with the share of foreign customers significantly below the average of global ecosystems and a low proportion of startups born with a global strategy.

05

TALENT HIGHLIGHT

The ecosystem has relevant access to talent with startup experience, but still presents gaps in practices typical of mature ecosystems, such as offering stock options for teams and advisors.

CHECK OUT THE REPORT AND LEARN MORE ABOUT SÃO PAULO’S ECOSYSTEM

Overview of the startup ecosystem maturity stage

Key strengths

Main challenges for further evolution

Profile of entrepreneurs and sectors

... and much more!

Research conducted based on data collected until December 2025.

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