MIT entrepreneurship framework trainers: Estonian deep tech companies are technically strong, but true success comes from understanding the market

Estonian deep tech companies have a solid scientific and technical foundation, but to grow truly global, they need a strategic approach and the ability to learn from the market.

This is exactly what the Disciplined Entrepreneurship Bootcamp – based on a methodology developed at MIT – teaches. The program will be brought to Estonia in February 2026 by international trainers, including Vassilis Papakonstantinou, Vimala Palaniswamy, Marius Ursache, Erdin Beshimov, Vlad Bodi, and Iman Urooj.

You can’t solve all problems at once

Venture capitalist and technology entrepreneur Vassilis Papakonstantinou, who has led investments in several deep tech startups and is a technology partner at Blue Dome Capital, identifies one clear challenge for deep tech founders: “Many deep tech founders believe they have a “hammer that can hit many nails.” They spread themselves thin across multiple potential applications instead of focusing on the most promising market opportunity.”

According to him, the desire to keep all options open often delays true market validation and the creation of customer relationships – along with the company’s real growth.

Papakonstantinou emphasizes that European, including Estonian, deep tech companies must understand that scientific excellence does not equal market success.

“Most European deep tech startups still think in terms of technology or research development rather than product development. They often chase perfection instead of progress – refining the science rather than engaging users,” he stresses.

The grant mindset must be left behind

Papakonstantinou adds that entrepreneurs must abandon the so-called “grant mindset” – the expectation that innovation is driven by projects and grants rather than by market pressure and customer feedback.

According to him the companies must embrace true experimentation: building, testing, and iterating quickly based on market feedback, not theoretical assumptions.

This shift in mindset is at the heart of the Disciplined Entrepreneurship Bootcamp. Based on MIT’s startup ecosystem, the program is designed to help science-based companies move from the lab to the market – step by step and methodically, without losing focus or momentum.

A leap forward in just five days

Former head and lecturer of MIT Bootcamps Vimala Palaniswamy has trained hundreds of entrepreneurs worldwide and has seen how the Disciplined Entrepreneurship methodology transforms teams’ mindsets.

According to Palaniswamy, one the biggest mistake deep tech companies tend to make when trying to commercialize their innovation, is that in the early stages, they fall in love with the technology rather than the problem they are trying to solve.

“Understand the market. Focus research on speaking to people and finding opportunities for where and how their technology can solve a meaningful challenge that systems, organizations, or individuals are facing. Customers care less about the technology than whether it solves their problem effectively,” Palaniswamy advises.

Entrepreneur and trainer Marius Ursache says the Bootcamp’s strength lies not only in knowledge but also in mindset and team development: “The biggest transformation is not educational, after all, the methodology can be accessed by reading the book. It comes from learning the mindset behind it, how to apply it in real-life situations, and this becomes a foundation for anything you build in the future. The other transformation comes at a human level. Building a startup is often like jumping from an airplane and having to build a parachute on your way down, said Steve Blank. When you have these stakes and when you do it at this level of intensity, the human component (your team) is more important than anything, and this is where the transformation comes – learning how to deal with different personalities, behaviours, how to trust others fully, and how to work most efficiently.”

World-class mentors, global network

The Disciplined Entrepreneurship Bootcamp is rooted in the practices of MIT’s startup ecosystem, which has produced over 15,000 companies generating more than 2 billion dollars in revenue. Participants gain access to a global network of mentors and a framework used by the world’s leading deep tech startups.

The Disciplined Entrepreneurship Bootcamp will take place from 2–6 February 2026 at Tehnopol. The program is open to deep tech and science-based companies registered in Estonia that are aiming for international growth. Applications are open until 31 October 2025.

More information and application: eis.ee/en/events/disciplined-entrepreneurship-bootcamp/

The program is brought to Estonia by Enterprise Estonia (EAS), Tehnopol, BDA Consulting, and Performikon, and is co-funded by the European Regional Development Fund