Introduction

Kristiana Kuneva is the Chief Business Development Officer at The Recursive and The Recursive Studio, an independent, community-born online tech media focused on the emerging innovation and startup ecosystems in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE), where she drives and oversees growth, market expansion, and strategic partnerships. Before working for The Recursive, she worked for the UN, the Council of Europe, and UNICEF. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Politics from King’s College and a master's degree in Human Rights from the London School of Economics. Kristiana speaks Bulgarian and English fluently.

From the UN to CEE's Startups

Question: Kristiana, you describe yourself as believing in "technology as a catalyst for positive change" and you have extensive experience working on projects with a high social impact. Now you stand at the center of CEE’s technology and innovation ecosystem, an area which is fundamentally different. When did you decide to connect these two and why?

Answer: That is a very interesting question, and I have the answer for that because I have been thinking about it for the past few years since the transition happened. Yes, I have always been inspired and driven by the impact I wanted to bring about in the world. Of course, politics, international relations, diplomacy, they are all strong on social impact, but when COVID-19 came, there was this shift and - even in practical terms - I stayed at home, I needed a remote job, and I moved back from London to Bulgaria. So, I founded this storytelling academy that I wanted to do so I could learn a new skill, and meanwhile, I found this job in a human rights startup that was protecting the human rights of displaced people through technology and training. I thought: "Why not? This combines both technology, which is the future, and human rights, which is my passion." So, I started doing work for them. At the same time, I started the digital storytelling academy, and then, things just clicked. I was thinking to myself, "OK, I believe technology is the future in many aspects; it does not matter whether it is AI, and it does not matter whether it is another technology that we will see in the future. I still think technology is the future and human rights are always present on the agenda – how to protect the human species and guide its development ahead." So, when things became natural and I combined both, I discovered the world of technology, and then The Recursive came. I got access to this vibrant ecosystem of Eastern Europe and Southern Europe, both together, and actually things became very interesting for me to dig deeper in this field.

Question: So, it was basically COVID-19 that drew you back?

Answer: Yes, it was COVID-19, like with many other things, but I am thankful, and you never know what life will bring, so you must accept the changes.

Column "Post-Dream" and Experience in New York

Question: In your column "Post-Dream" – in which you interviewed Eliza Prendzov, the founder and CEO of Prend Capital, as well as the American Balkan Chamber of Commerce – you described New York beautifully, saying that "the city is a stage, not a destination, and reality shapes ambition here". What is your connection to New York, and what do you like about the city?

Answer: This is actually another good question that I had a session on yesterday, comparing the U.S. and CEE in terms of tech. New York is a very interesting example of how – in my opinion – one city can give you all types of experiences in life that you want to be close to. I have always thought that New York would be great for visiting, so I visited a few years ago. I was super impressed, and I wanted to go back. Now I travel there often: for tourism, to see my friends, and also to go to several conferences to meet new people and expand the network. Every time I go and spend a bit of time there, it just adds another layer of access – of possibility to whatever you can think of. This makes me come back every time. Now that I have spent a few months there, I decided to start a column and bring this perspective of how New York and the U.S. are different in terms of tech and the startup ecosystem back to CEE and The Recursive, so that there exists this exchange of information and best practices that we can all learn from.

Data and Differences between the U.S. and Europe

Question: Besides the cosmopolitan atmosphere – because you are used to living in a city of such a scale, not only by population but also in terms of access to different types of experiences – you have made connections there and, in a smart way, connected it to your current position. What is the feedback that you get, not only from founders, but also from readers? Is there some data from The Recursive that you could share?

Answer: About data from The Recursive, I can say that most of the data we gather is still concentrated on CEE. Off the top of my head, I can say that in 2026, the CEE tech ecosystem surpassed – in enterprise value – €270bn, and for the past 10 years it grew more than 15 times, which is more than twice the European average. Of course, the startup ecosystem is developing and this flywheel effect is already in motion, because founders are becoming investors, employees who worked for big companies are now becoming founders, building with global ambition, and the capital – which is still not that abundant – is slowly coming and staying locally, which is very important. So, the ecosystem is growing indeed, but – again – the difference from what I saw, comparing how a founder pitches or builds his idea, the mindset it still different in many aspects. This is of course a very long topic, but just to point out a few elements – we still lack confidence here. The more we outperform, the more experience we get, we are becoming better, but we still are lacking some conviction, confidence in ourselves. It may be due to our history, to a large extent, but things are changing now. We have a reason to change as well. Another thing is that the U.S. market is much more risk-taking than the European – not just CEE, Europe in general, in my opinion at least.