Diana Ballart Cerdán (1990, Barcelona)

CEO and co-founder of The Smart Lollipop, the smart candy-based medical device that collects saliva samples and analyzes them ‘in situ’ through an optical reader.

“I love creativity in all its forms and I am interested in any creative expression that conveys a message with impact. As a PhD student, I focus my research on digital communication for pre-seed technology-based startups. And, in my spare time, I ride horses; from up there, the world is even better.”

TB: What is the purpose of your project?

DB: The Smart Lollipop was born to make easy what in pediatric health is difficult, creating a paradigm shift in non-invasive medical testing. Our mission is to facilitate early diagnosis and monitoring of chronic pathologies in a non-invasive way and 100% adapted to the pediatric patient experience.

TB: A good idea you’ve had.

DB: Detecting diseases with a smart candy.

TB: A bad professional experience.

DB: Giving 100% of myself while only valuing a quarter. The problem is not in the people who didn’t value me, but in the time I lost by not leaving sooner. Time is money!

TB: Best advice you’ve ever been given.

DB: Take advantage of the outbursts of courage, they pass.

TB: An inspiration.

DB: The stories of people who fight to achieve their dreams or to overcome difficulties; those people who push themselves, even if the challenges are difficult. I want to thank you for doing that. Thank you!

TB: What do you worry about?

DB: The patterns. I worry that we fall into them without realizing it, while society applauds actions that are repeated only because “they are fashionable”, leaving no room for authenticity, for critical thinking, for trying something different.

TB: A startup (that’s not yours).

DB: Julia G Escribà, sustainable fashion startup that designs thermo-regulated clothing following a technology patented by NASA. 

TB: A book to recommend.

DB: “Start with why” by Simon Sinek. If you read it, don’t pick up a bookmark because you’ll end up underlining the whole book.

TB: A series or movie or song that defines your life moment.

DB: “Ain’t no mountain high enough!” has been my favorite song throughout my life.

TB: A recipe, a meal, a restaurant.

DB: Cheese and wine.

TB: A city, a trip.

DB: Northern Morocco with my mother, and in particular I would highlight the city of Chefchaouen. It’s fairytale! I would also say the trip to California, walking around Palo Alto with a friend who is now part of The Smart Lollipop. At that time, we still didn’t know all that was to come.

TB: Where would you invest 100k?

DB: In some healthcare startup with a ‘Point of Care’ solution. The rapid diagnostic device market is booming worldwide and fits perfectly with the pillars of future medicine. I would solve a problem – if the diagnosis is right – and invest in innovation, which is what drives me.

TB: And a million euros?

DB: In a startup, led by women, that empowers women living in developing countries.

TB: If you weren’t an entrepreneur…

DB: I would have tried to be a TV reporter, the kind that goes out on the street and tells what’s happening live.

TB: What does Tech Barcelona mean to you?

DB: It’s the ecosystem of startups and corporates that want to build an entrepreneurial, innovative and truly collaborative Barcelona.

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Nelly Torras (Barcelona, 1963) Economist, consultant and coach.

As founder of Coaching, Training & Consulting, she specializes in ‘Change Management’, providing actions that assess individual and team impact through the establishment of clear, measurable and achievable objectives, and the empowerment of project management and executive leadership skills. “My objective? To bring added value to organizations and provide the necessary tools to achieve their goals focused on digitization and Artificial Intelligence”.

TB: What’s the purpose of your project?

NT: Being part of a generation that is committed to a more sustainable and balanced world, giving greater added value to organizations from business analysis, collaboration and project management, to digital transformation and change management. It makes me feel alive and gives meaning to what I do, to what I am passionate about.

TB: A good idea you have had.

NT: Betting on a shifting world for the better. Believe that it is possible, act and achieve small goals to go further.

TB: A bad professional experience.

NT: Working for someone who does not value the opportunities that life provides.

TB: The best advice you’ve been given. 

NT: People change with time. 

TB: An inspiration. 

NT: “Whatever your Mind Can Conceive and Believe, It Can Achieve.”

TB: A book that you recommend.

NT: “The alchemist”, by Paolo Coelho. 

TB: A series or movie or song that defines your moment in life.

NT: “Gladiator”, for the strength, perseverance and consistency it exudes.

TB: A recipe, a meal, a restaurant.

NT: Pizza.

TB: A city, a trip. 

NT: New York.

TB: Where would you invest 100k?

NT: In learning and knowledge for organizations. It’s vital.

TB: ¿And a million euros?

NT: In an integral services startup whose mission was to bring well-being to people and organizations, from their personal to their professional growth. 

TB: If you were not an entrepreneur…

NT: It would make no sense to evolve, set goals, achieve them, and grow. Without growth there is no evolution.

TB: What’s Tech Barcelona for you?

NT: The association driving the digital and technological ecosystem -creative and avant-garde-, which is committed to change from Barcelona and also creates impact worldwide. ‘Making a difference’.

Check out other Members Calling here.

Marta Recasens Alsina (Barcelona, 1969)

CEO and co-founder of vadeCity, a start-up created in 2014 that develops smart urban mobility solutions. Architect and entrepreneur Marta Recasens defines herself as a “technocreative”. “On the one hand, I love technology and, on the other, creativity is in my DNA”.

TB: Why your project?

MR: I want to transform cities through mobility. Make them more sustainable and smarter.

TB: A good idea you have had.

MR: To invent the safest parking for bicycles and scooters, with the possibility of micro-vehicle charging.

TB: A bad professional experience.

MR: Closing a business project as an entrepreneur.

TB: The best advice you’ve ever been given.

MR: A ‘no’ now can become a ‘yes’ later on.

TB: An inspiration.

MR: Urban planning and urban furniture in cities must be modified to respond to more sustainable mobility.

TB: What are your concerns?

MR: Technology requires collaborative approaches, and not everyone is prepared to understand what this means.

TB: A startup.

MR: Red Points, a software developer that fights counterfeiting and piracy.

TB: A book to recommend.

MR: “Reinventing yourself“, by Mario Alonso Puig.

TB: A series, film or song that defines your moment in life.

MR: “The Pursuit of Happyness“, directed by Gabriele Muccino.

TB: A recipe, a meal, a restaurant.

MR: Restaurant La Balsa, in Barcelona. I also love chocolate.

TB: A city, a journey.

MR: The city of Helsinki. Or a trip to Japan.

TB: Where would you invest 100k?

MR: In robotics.

TB: What about one million euros?

MR: Of course, in mobility.

TB: If you weren’t an entrepreneur…

MR: I was born an entrepreneur and I would be one again and again.

TB: What is Tech Barcelona for you?

MR: The ideal innovation ecosystem to generate synergies, networking and talent.

Check out other TB Members Calling here.

Aitor Mier Pons (Maó, 1988)

CEO and founder of Omashu, a start-up created in 2020 and dedicated to consultancy, programming and development of IT solutions for the world of traditional and e-sports.

Graduated in Computer Engineering and Mathematics and MBA, Aitor Mier has worked with blockchain technology at Caelum Labs and Airplane Solutions. “I am so interested in technology that I can’t stop learning. I also go running and cycling to make important decisions”.

TB: Why your project?

AM: We predict the value of eSports athletes, both professional and amateur, through blockchain technology and machine learning, to accredit their correct transfer. In addition, we offer tools for talent discovery and sponsorship recruitment, all of which can be scaled to traditional sport.

TB: A good idea you have had.

AM: Starting to study blockchain in 2016, when it was a totally immature technology. It was a risky bet!

TB: A bad professional experience.

AM: We’ve all had one or two, so we should make the most of them. Now I know what I want and what I don’t want in the company.

TB: The best advice you’ve ever been given.

AM: You know best when to stop, when to go on and when to pivot. Follow your instinct and if you need help, ask for it.

TB: An inspiration.

AM: The strength with which my mother still gets up at six in the morning. If she can do it, so can I.

TB: What are your concerns?

AM: The environment, especially recycling. I still can’t accept the fact that there are landfills where mountains of tons of rubbish accumulate each day.

TB: A startup.

AM: Exheus. They do RNA tests, for different purposes, to analyse the activation of 22,000 genes in the human body. I love analysis backed by numbers..

TB: A book to recommend.

AM: At the age of 12 I got my school to include “The Hobbit” by J.R.R. Tolkien in the compulsory reading programme. Now I would recommend including “Rich Dad, Poor Dad” by Robert Kiyosaki and Sharon Lechter: we lack financial education. Also, one of my favourite books is “Watership Down” by Richard Adams.

TB: A series, film or song that defines your moment in life.

AM: “Moneyball”. In 2001, the Oakland baseball team signed players by analysing their metrics. No doubt this story would also serve as an inspiration.

TB: A recipe, a meal, a restaurant.

AM: I can’t get enough of pizza.

TB: A city, a journey.

AM: The Norwegian fjords, by caravan and bicycle.

TB: ¿Where would you invest 100k?

AM: In a data analysis company. Mathematics do not lie.

TB: What about one million euros?

AM: I would diversify between data analytics and eco-sustainability.

TB: If you weren’t in a digital project…

AM: I would work with wood.

TB: What is Tech Barcelona for you?

AM: For those of us who are just starting out, it is a gateway to Barcelona’s entrepreneurial ecosystem, a hub of opportunities and synergies.

Here you can check other Tech Barcelona Members Calling