The story of the NORDICS startup shows that an idea which begins in Košice can grow into a project with global ambitions. From Incubator TUKE the team made it into the TOP 50 startups of the prestigious Slush 100 competition, won the Startup Awards Slovakia and gathered further experience in Silicon Valley itself.
NORDICS was founded with the idea of changing the way companies search for, compare and choose suppliers of IT services. Step by step it built a technology platform using artificial intelligence and data that helps companies simplify the choice of suppliers and make better decisions when buying external IT services.
At the beginning of its journey NORDICS was part of Incubator TUKE at USP TECHNICOM. Connecting startups with the expertise, contacts and opportunities of the university is one of the aims of the incubator: to create a space in which a promising idea can gradually turn into a viable business.
From Košice into the TOP 50 at Slush
One of the first notable international successes of the team was taking part in Slush 100 in Helsinki. Among more than a thousand startups that entered, NORDICS made it into the TOP 50. Slush is one of the major European startup and technology events and every year it brings together startups, investors and technology companies from all over the world.
For NORDICS it was a chance to present its solution to an international audience and at the same time a confirmation that a product created in Košice can hold its own in global startup competition.
Winner of Startup Awards Slovakia 2024
Another important success came in 2024, when NORDICS won the DIGITAL category of the Startup Awards Slovakia 2024.
The award also opened further doors for the team. One of the main opportunities that came with it was a trip to Silicon Valley, one of the most important technology and startup ecosystems in the world.
During an intensive week in California the team, together with other Slovak startups, met experts in technology, artificial intelligence, investment and business. The program included workshops on the expansion and growth of startups, a visit to the University of California, Berkeley and to the Google headquarters, and many chances to network.
For NORDICS the trip also meant a new view of the further growth of the company. After coming back, the founder Lukáš Řezanina described the shift from thinking of NORDICS as a European startup to the ambition of building a global company.
The next chapter: Definic
The story did not end with the Startup Awards or the trip to Silicon Valley.
In 2026 NORDICS entered the next stage of its growth under the new name Definic. The rebranding came together with a significant investment. The startup closed a seed round of 2.9 million USD, led by J&T Ventures with the participation of Seed Starter ČS and Slovak Investment Holding.
The new capital is to support further product development and expansion into international markets, including the DACH region, the United Kingdom and the United States.
A project that developed its startup story at TUKE as well is step by step becoming a technology company with global ambitions.
NORDICS, today Definic, is an example that the road from Košice can lead among the most interesting European startups, to Silicon Valley and to the global market. These are exactly the stories we want to help grow at Startup center TUKE.
