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Updated May 2026 · Asunción · Creative Tech & Founders

Paraguay for creators. Free programs, real funding, a scene that's actually shipping.

EXPYLAB scholarships hit US$ 2,800 in 2026. KOGA, Paraguay's first B Corp, runs the country's flagship accelerator. Venture-capital investment doubled in 2024 to US$ 2.15M. Below: programs, money, venues, dates, all verified to May 2026.

Immersive tech & arts

EXPYLAB — the free intensive Paraguay actually shows up for.

EXPYLAB (Laboratorio de Experiencias Inmersivas Paraguay) is a free intensive for artists, developers, and designers working in VR, AR, XR, 360° video, AI, animation, and interactive design. EXPY EAS runs it in coproduction with Alianza Francesa de Asunción, backed by the French Embassy.

  • Sixth edition — 2026

    Applications for the 6th edition opened in 2026 and close 31 May 2026. The program runs 17–29 August 2026 at Alianza Francesa de Asunción. Each scholarship is fully funded and valued at US$ 2,800, covering masterclasses, mentoring, materials, plus travel and lodging for participants from outside Asunción. *(ABC Color, 8 May 2026.)*

  • Now extended across Iberoamérica

    For the first time, the 2026 call extends officially across Iberoamérica with up to 8 international scholarships open to citizens of the 22 Ibermedia member states. International fellows get flights and lodging. *(ABC Color, 8 May 2026.)*

  • US$ 2,000 in 2025; expanded to US$ 2,800 in 2026

    The 5th edition (2025) ran 27 October – 8 November 2025 in Asunción with US$ 2,000 scholarships and ~20 participants. The 2026 expansion bumped scholarship value, doubled the program length, and added post-program residencies in Germany and Colombia. *(Independiente, 11 Jul 2025; ABC Color, 8 May 2026.)*

  • Recognized by Meta + IDB Lab

    In 2023, EXPYLAB was named one of 10 communities in Latin America and the Caribbean using AR/VR/metaverse tech to create social and economic value, selected from 370 proposals across 22 countries in the IDB Lab + Meta Metaverse Communities Challenge. Winners received a US$ 10,000 community fund, a one-week residency at Meta's São Paulo HQ (24–28 April 2023), and personalized coaching. *(IDB / Meta press release, March 2023.)*

  • EXPYFEST — where the work goes public

    EXPYFEST 2025 (2nd edition) ran 7–8 November 2025 at Alianza Francesa de Asunción. Over two days: VR/AR installations, immersive dome, 360° sound, video games, videomapping, performances, DJ and VJ sets, plus an international competition with works from 9 countries (Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, France, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay). *(Diario HOY, Nov 2025; Alianza Francesa.)*

  • Eligible disciplines

    Direction, screenwriting, production, sound design, programming, visual arts, illustration, performing arts. The orientation is *immersive narrative*: the program rewards proposals that combine technology with storytelling, not technical demos for their own sake.

If immersive media is your space, this is a strong free entry point in South America. The 2026 deadline (31 May) is tight relative to most relocation timelines: apply first, move second.

Startup ecosystem

Three pillars: KOGA, InnovandoPy, and a record VC year.

Paraguay's startup scene is small but compounding fast. The accelerator, government grant program, and venture-capital channel each work and reinforce each other.

  • KOGA — 10-year anniversary, first Paraguayan B Corp

    KOGA is Paraguay's first Certified B Corporation (B Lab Global directory, KOGA S.A.) and the country's flagship impact accelerator. Founded 2012 as Koga Impact Lab, it celebrated 10 years in operation in 2022 and continues running incubation, acceleration, mentoring, and corporate-innovation programs. Mission: empower entrepreneurs and companies to be the best for the world. *(B Lab Global; koga.com.py.)*

  • InnovandoPy — government seed grants

    Run by MITIC with support from MIC, InnovandoPy awarded US$ 140,000 at the 9th-edition DemoDay in August 2025: US$ 20,000 each to seven startups. Winners spanned river logistics (Bitanav, Paraguay-Paraná waterway optimization), real estate (HomeBridge), property-management AI (HappyLiving Lat), veterinary services (Vetscate), STEAM ed-tech (Meik), home services (Pimer), and inclusive VR education (Tiflo Maze). *(Agencia IP, 28 Aug 2025.)*

  • Record venture-capital year (2024)

    Venture-capital investment in Paraguayan startups hit US$ 2.15 million between 2023 and 2024, about double the US$ 1.1 million accumulated across the previous nine years (2014–2022). Notable: Autograph (Paraguayan founders) closed a pre-seed round above US$ 2 million from three Silicon Valley funds. *(MarketData Paraguay; Parcapy.)*

Arrive with a working prototype, KOGA is the first door. With an MVP and a Paraguayan legal entity, InnovandoPy's annual call is the closest thing to a non-dilutive grant in the region. At pre-seed, Parcapy is the local syndicate to know.

Where work actually happens

Coworking — IWG arrived in 2025; the rest is local.

Until 2025, Asunción coworking was small and mostly Paraguayan-owned. That changed last May. Combined with cafés that have hosted weekly expat meetups for years, the daily working geography is now reasonable to walk into without a network.

  • HQ Asunción (IWG)

    Opened May 2025 at Edificio Automotor Center on Avenida Artigas, the first IWG location in Paraguay, operated locally by Steromar. Thirty private offices (8–50 m², 2–12 workstations), hot-desks, meeting rooms, parking, café. Pricing starts at US$ 179/month. IWG operates 4,000+ locations across 120 countries. *(Forbes Paraguay, 28 May 2025; Elinmobiliario, 28 May 2025; La Nación, 24 May 2025.)*

  • Local options

    Urban Station, Nido Coworking, and Impact Hub Asunción are the long-standing Paraguayan-owned spaces: smaller, more community-driven, often the hosts of meetups and pitch nights. Pricing is in Gs.; expect rough parity with HQ at the entry tier and meaningful discounts on the larger plans.

  • Café meetups

    Independent weekly coworking meetups gather expats, remote workers, and local founders at central cafés, often around the Café West Coffee circle. The composition skews North American and European but Paraguayan tech founders show up regularly. *(Asunción Times.)*

The full coworking and café map is worth two weeks of testing before signing a contract: the spread of vibe between Villa Morra, Centro, and Las Mercedes is significant.

Music scene

Paraguayan urban music is having its breakout window.

Paraguay isn't the loudest export in Latin music yet, but the scene has stopped being parochial. Streaming has flattened the distance from Asunción to Buenos Aires, and the local infrastructure (labels, festivals, cycles) is consolidating fast.

  • Joaquinoloco — Paraguayan urban, on MMG

    Joaquinoloco (Joaquín Mauricio Aquino González) is a visible face of the new Paraguayan urban genre, signed to Uruguayan label Montevideo Music Group (MMG) alongside Elías GLZ and Didac Torres. 2025 releases include "Panti" and the collaboration "Aguará" (Propya Awards nominee, Best Urban Song). *(La Nación, 15 May 2025.)*

  • Pop Bruto — alt-music festival, 2nd edition just ran

    Pop Bruto is an independent alternative-music festival. The 2nd edition ran 2 May 2026 at Vöudevil (Mcal. Estigarribia 1017, Asunción) with Argentine headliners Odd Mami and ill quentin (both connected to RIPGANG), plus El Culto Casero, 411Y, Mi Sueño Póstumo, Cassette, and Pachu. Mission per organizers: a platform to surface and strengthen young, emerging Latin American music. The 1st edition ran 20 September 2025. *(Prensa Mercosur, 2 May 2026.)*

  • Ñande Rap — the hip-hop cycle since 2022

    Ñande Rap is a musical cycle started in 2022 by producer Mateo Fretes. It has grown into a cultural movement that opens stages to emerging and established artists across rap, indie rock, reggae, and other urban styles, including a recurring Open Mic format. Featured talents: Oudi, Ruxtaap, Yik, Abraham Avalos, and others. The collective is reportedly preparing to record its first album. *(Unicanal.)*

If you make music or run a label, the practical entry is one of the Open Mic nights: cheapest way to read the room before booking a venue. Pop Bruto cycles annually; the 3rd edition is implied for 2027.

City culture & sport

Two events that put Asunción on a global map.

Major sporting events do two useful things for a city: build infrastructure that outlasts them, and prove the venue can host crowds at international scale. Asunción is now one for two, and going for two for two in October.

  • World Skate Games 2026 — 2–18 October 2026, Asunción

    The fifth edition of the World Skate Games comes to Asunción 2–18 October 2026, the first time the event lands in South America. Expected: 10,000+ athletes, team officials, and staff from 100+ countries, competing in 12 roller sports plus one e-sport, across 23 World Championships. Venues span the Comité Olímpico Paraguayo, the Secretaría Nacional de Deportes, the Port of Asunción, the Asunción Costanera, San Bernardino, and Altos. Previous editions: Nanjing (2017), Barcelona (2019), Buenos Aires (2022), Italy (2024). *(worldskate.org; World Skate America.)*

  • ASU2025 — Junior Pan American Games (already happened)

    Paraguay hosted the 2nd Junior Pan American Games from 9–23 August 2025, the first time any Pan American Games (senior or junior) ran in the country. 41 countries, 3,975 athletes, 28 sports, 42 disciplines, contested across Asunción, Luque, Encarnación, and Ypacaraí. The 2025 edition added six disciplines: open-water swimming, BMX freestyle, water skiing, golf, field hockey, and rugby sevens. Mascots Tito and Tika, plus 3,500 volunteers. *(Panam Sports; Inside the Games.)*

ASU2025 left venue capacity behind; World Skate Games will inherit and extend it. If you arrive in 2026 expecting a sleepy capital, you'll find an October that looks more like Barcelona than Asunción usually does.

Sources

Verify with official sources

Every fact on this page links to a Paraguayan government authority or accepted third-party data source.

If you're moving

Programs verified. The next question is your visa.

The creative ecosystem above is one of three independent reasons people move here. The others are tax (territorial system, 0% on foreign income) and cost (Asunción runs around US$ 900–1,100/month for a single person). The residency framework you'd use to stay long enough to apply to EXPYLAB, pitch InnovandoPy, or play Pop Bruto runs through Decreto 4122/2025, typically the standard track or, for founders with capital, the Investor Pass. Start with the quiz to see which track maps to your situation.

Plan your residency Read the full guide

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