A small Baltic nation is doing something quietly bold. Lithuania is not waiting for its next generation to graduate before teaching them how to build a business. It is pulling teenagers into real startup rooms, putting them in front of real investors, and letting them fail and grow on live television. And that is just the beginning.
A TV Show That Puts Students Inside Real Startups
At the centre of this shift is MVP, short for Moksleivių vienaragių paieška, which translates to “Student Unicorn Hunt.” It is a national TV show where students aged 14 to 19 build and pitch real startups, working under actual startup conditions, testing ideas, refining products, and presenting them to experienced founders in front of a live audience.1
This is not a classroom roleplay. It is the real thing.
The name MVP actually carries three meanings at once: Moksleivių Vienaragių Paieška, Most Valuable Player in sports terms, and Minimum Viable Product in business language.2 That layered identity says a lot about what the show is trying to do.
The project is initiated by the association Unicorns Lithuania, SEB bank, and the TV3 media group.3 It brings together unicorn founders, startup leaders, and business and education leaders who help young people aged 14 to 19 build business ideas, experiment, and find their path in the business world.4
The structure of the show is deliberately high-pressure. Once students step onto the stage, they are on their own. They get just three minutes to convince today’s business leaders of their idea’s brilliance. The judges then vote, assessing each team’s business model, idea, and presentation.5
The ideas coming from these teenagers are genuinely surprising people in the business world. One episode featured 16-year-old students from Kaunas who built an app to detect fake news and AI-generated content online. Another team of four 16-year-old girls from Marijampolė created effervescent sports drinks with freeze-dried fruits and electrolytes because they were tired of bad-tasting protein supplements.
Lithuania student entrepreneurship education startup pitch program
The Brains Behind the Mission
Marius Burgaila is a venture builder, early-stage investor, CEO of Lost Astronaut, and co-creator of the MVP show. He has been direct about what this initiative is actually trying to solve.
“For Vilnius, this is part of a broader strategy to deepen its position as a tech hub. The city already attracts talent and investment, but long-term growth depends on creating more builders, people who start companies rather than wait to join them,” he says.1
As Lithuania rapidly adopts AI, progress depends on builders who can combine technical skills with product thinking, experimentation, and speed. “Ultimately, the goal is not to turn every student into a founder, but to give every student encouragement to think, try, and take ownership. When education systems create that kind of environment, initiatives like these stop being exceptions and start becoming a natural part of how schools work,” Burgaila adds.1
The mentorship structure is equally serious. All remaining mentors work with students in teams, help them sharpen their ideas, assess competition, and understand who really needs their solution. They also help students prepare for the big performance in the TV3 studio, while also becoming the judges of all student ideas.6
Here is a quick look at what students gain through the MVP programme:
- Real startup experience before turning 20
- One-on-one mentorship from Lithuania’s top founders
- A live pitch in front of a national audience
- Business feedback from leaders at companies like Hostinger, Wix, and Baltic Classifieds Group
- Scholarships, mentorship, an MVP trophy, and unique experience in the business world2
Lithuania’s Startup Ecosystem Is Ready to Absorb New Founders
Lithuania’s push to build young founders is not happening in a vacuum. The country already has one of the most dynamic startup ecosystems in Central and Eastern Europe.
The Lithuanian startup ecosystem is one of the fastest-growing in Central Eastern Europe. The total value of Lithuanian startups increased by almost 7.1 times between 2018 and 2023, compared to the CEE average growth of 3.6 times, with Lithuanian startups now valued at around 13.7 billion euros.7
After four batches accelerating over 40 startups, helping 18 secure funding, and taking 12 companies to Silicon Valley through the Plug and Play Global Overseas Acceleration and Learning programme, the Startup Lithuania Accelerator has made a significant mark.8
The country’s entrepreneurship education programme was developed in partnership with Milda Mitkutė, co-founder of the billion-dollar Lithuanian startup Vinted, along with the hugely successful Tesonet, startup accelerators 70 Ventures and Startup Wise Guys, and Practica Capital venture capital firm.9
The pipeline from school to startup is becoming increasingly deliberate and structured.
AI Education Is Now a National Priority
Entrepreneurship is only one half of Lithuania’s strategy. The other is artificial intelligence.
The workforce is shifting from a traditional pyramid to what educators are calling a “diamond,” with fewer entry-level roles and more demand for adaptable, skilled specialists. Lithuania is betting on people, aiming to equip up to 90 percent of its workforce with basic AI skills and half with more advanced capabilities through coordinated national efforts spanning education, employment, and business policy.1
The share of all Lithuanian companies using AI technologies increased from 4.9 percent in 2023 to 8.8 percent in 2024. Among large Lithuanian companies, AI adoption jumped from 21.3 percent in 2023 to 31.2 percent in 2024.10
Throughout the strategy, Lithuania emphasises the importance of economic development and future changes in the job market. A three-point system based on education reform, higher education adaptation, and vocational training has been proposed. Schools need to revise their curriculum to prioritise technical skills essential for a future intertwined with AI.11
“The technology changes faster than a university can print a new syllabus. That’s why entrepreneurship, data literacy, and AI skills need to start in school, not after graduation.” — Melita Tornau, Head of Marketing, Turing College
Lithuania is paying particular attention to the education system, with a major overhaul of primary and secondary school curricula to strengthen digital competences, while also actively promoting digital entrepreneurship among students.12
Vilnius Is Building the Physical Infrastructure to Match
The ambition is not just curriculum-deep. It is also bricks and mortar.
Starting September 1, 2027, a unique educational model, the first of its kind in Europe, will be launched in Vilnius. Students of the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme in grades 11 and 12 at Erudito Lyceum will move to Tech Zity Vilnius, the largest technology and creative industries campus in Europe.13
At Tech Zity Vilnius, students will be surrounded by globally recognised technology companies including Ovoko, Omnisend, Plug and Play, and others. This environment will give students a chance to observe up close how global businesses grow and which competencies are most valued in today’s market.13
The total investment in the project will amount to 100 million euros.14 This is the first of three phases of Tech Zity Vilnius, which will bring 5,000 jobs to the city by 2027.15
Businesses based at Tech Zity Vilnius plan to provide scholarships for top-performing Erudito Lyceum students, aiming not only to encourage academic achievement but also to involve young people in the tech world as early as possible, helping them discover their professional path.13
Lithuania’s story is a reminder that the future of work will not be shaped by those who memorised the most textbooks. It will be shaped by those who were given the courage to try something before they were ready. That is exactly what this country is betting on, and if the teenagers pitching fake-news detection apps and sports drinks on national television are any indication, the bet may already be paying off. What do you think? Can classroom-based entrepreneurship really create the next generation of founders? Share your thoughts below.
