With multiple successful exits across the U.S. and Canadian markets and an investment portfolio worth several million dollars, Tihomir Bajić, General Partner at Fifth Quarter Ventures and a member of the unlockit Conference Program Board, has helped more than 30 startups reach unicorn status. In this column for Blic Biznis, he reflects on common founder mistakes, the power of AI-first companies, why local thinking often limits growth, and the key topics that will be explored at the unlockit conference on February 19–20 in Belgrade, organized by the Digital Serbia Initiative.
Why I’m Part of the unlockit Program Board
We have several strong conferences in Serbia that bring together either regional entrepreneurs or global IT experts. What we don’t have is a conference that unites both the regional and international startup scenes in one place, with a clear focus on the growth stage.
In recent years, an increasing number of foreign startups and established IT companies have opened offices in Serbia — a sign that we have the necessary raw talent. However, we still lack programs that give the broader startup community — especially founders leading their own companies — the opportunity to connect with top-tier experts and learn something new.
In a world dominated by remote work and endless online meetings, it’s a rare opportunity to meet a large number of new people and learn from world-class speakers within 24 to 48 hours. On a slightly selfish note, I also try to bring in people I personally want to hear from and learn more from.
Why Is It Important for Investors, Startups, and Corporations to Be in the Same Room?
They can learn from one another. Bringing together people who are not exposed to each other on a daily basis is crucial in an industry evolving faster than ever.
Large companies can learn about the latest technological trends from entrepreneurs, who are often better positioned to experiment with cutting-edge technologies. Entrepreneurs benefit from meeting investors and potential partners or customers for their technologies. And for investors, it’s a great opportunity to discover an entire region in one place — its talent, ecosystem, and investment potential.
What Is Crucial for the Next Generation of Startup Founders?
We are witnessing dramatic changes in knowledge-based work due to the hyper-acceleration of capabilities brought by the latest AI technologies. Skills have never evolved this fast, and the sheer amount of memorized facts or theoretical knowledge matters less than ever.
Creativity in using AI tools is becoming essential — not just for entrepreneurs, but especially for them, because never before has it required a smaller team and fewer resources to test an idea in IT entrepreneurship.
We are facing a paradoxical moment: trade barriers between major powers are re-emerging, but they apply to physical goods — not to IT services. In fact, it has never been easier to launch a startup from anywhere in the world and target a large international market.
As an investor, I’m interested in solutions designed for the largest markets from day one. I often see founders who want to start locally, “learn the ropes,” and then expand to a bigger foreign market. Almost every time I’ve followed that path, it has proven to be a mistake — the business gets operationally stuck in the smaller market.
Why Is It Important to Learn from AI-First Companies?
Companies heavily reliant on knowledge work — essentially most office-based roles — that do not actively invest in AI or mandate its internal use will be outpaced by those that build AI into the core of their operations.
The smaller the market or the more regulated the industry, the longer the illusion may persist that AI won’t fundamentally change it. But that’s a misconception. AI represents a bigger innovation than the introduction of computers or the internet into the workplace — and it’s unfolding much faster, because we already have the global internet and telecom infrastructure connecting us at the speed of light.
What Will Participants Take Away from the unlockit Conference?
They will experience firsthand the speed of innovation and agility that young, growth-stage companies possess. That speed and flexibility are critical advantages — but extremely difficult to achieve. They require a high level of business culture, internal organizational maturity, and the alignment of multiple elements into a winning formula.
