History
High Tech Engineering Center
Founded in 2008 in Belgrade, Serbia
Origin story
In 2008, HTEC’s future was set in motion when founders Aleksandar Čabrilo and Dušan Kosić turned down an offer from a major global tech company. Rather than pursue personal career advancement, they envisioned creating opportunities for many by bridging the gap between Southeast Europe’s top talent and international industry market leaders.
Driven by this ambitious vision, Aleksandar and Dušan focused on two key goals: building a team with a shared purpose and creating meaningful opportunities. Their efforts quickly paid off, with HTEC’s initial engineering team expanding to include notable figures like Darko Todorović, who became VP of Engineering & Delivery, and Srđan Jovanović, who took on the role of VP of People. This strategic decision to prioritize collective growth over individual success laid the foundation for HTEC’s powerful journey as a conduit for exceptional talent on the global stage.
Founded on
trust
From inception, HTEC’s foundation has been built on trust and strong relationships across all levels – internally and externally. Every team member is empowered to make decisions and grow, fostering an environment of confidence and mutual respect. This ethos extends to our choice of projects and clients, where we’ve taken a principled stand.
We’ve declined substantial opportunities that didn’t align with our core value of creating a better future. Our commitment to societal and environmental well-being guides us to develop products that benefit humanity, rather than those that may cause harm.
In our opinion, what we want to do equally defines the values we stand for, and one of the main ones is to create a better future through engineering. We don’t want to direct the intellectual and creative capacity we possess toward the development of products that cause harm to people, society, and the environment. We have turned down engagements we thought would not create ‘a better future’.
Dušan Kosić
Co-Founder and President
A legacy of growth
HTEC’s culture was shaped entirely by technology experts and engineers, which is reflected in its name: High Tech Engineering Center. In 2018, despite having over 150 employees, HTEC operated without HR or communications departments. To safeguard its culture and ensure sustainable growth, seven volunteer engineers formed working groups to oversee key areas. These groups made crucial decisions on company values, career paths, performance evaluations, educational initiatives, employee benefits, and employer branding—aligning decisions with their vision of the ideal workplace. These foundational efforts became the bedrock for all future growth and development at HTEC.
Explore HTEC’s journey and key milestones, along with our significant engagements that have shaped who we are today.
2024
HTEC acquires SYRMIA to expand its AI, machine learning and embedded software engineering capabilities and further strengthen its engineering base in Southeast Europe.
2023
HTEC starts forming an advisory board of Fortune 500 executives and cross-industry experts to support its global expansion strategy and reinforce the company brand. The company’s US and UK teams scale up to help achieve strategic goals in two key markets – the US and EU.
2022
HTEC Group acquires Mistral Technologies and Way 7, thus becoming the largest tech company in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Overall, the company exceeds 2000 team members across 20 cities in 8 countries.
2021
HTEC Group acquires the renowned Momentum Design Lab agency, further enhancing its product consulting expertise and fortifying its presence in the US and the UK.
The company also expands its engineering capabilities across multiple locations in Romania and Hungary and establishes a presence in Ljubljana (Slovenia). HTEC’s growth trajectory is acknowledged with a $140 million investment from Brighton Park Capital.
2020
HTEC establishes a presence in Minneapolis (US). The company expands its services to product consulting through the acquisition of the Konstrukt company.
2019
HTEC Group acquires Execom, one of the largest tech companies in Serbia. The team grows to include more than 500 members.
2018
HTEC establishes a presence in London (UK) and opens a development center in Banja Luka (BiH) – the first development center outside of Serbia
2017
HTEC establishes a presence in Sweden.
2016
The company headquarters move from Belgrade to San Francisco. The company reaches 200 team members and establishes its product design practice.
2014
HTEC Novi Sad office is established. The company reaches 100 team members across 3 cities in Serbia.
2012
HTEC office in Niš is established. The company expands its services to include software development, mobile applications, and platform engineering.
2011
The company establishes and further strengthens a substantial expertise in areas such as embedded engineering, signal processing, computed vision, and IoT.
2008
The company started from a modest top-floor office of the Business Incubator of the Faculty of Technical Sciences in Belgrade.
A vision for the future
HTEC has evolved from a humble beginning into a powerhouse technology firm through strategic acquisitions, significant talent growth, and geographic expansion. Focusing on core technology development and revenue-generating products, we have earned the title of trusted technology partner with over 170 clients that range from world’s largest brands to innovative startups. Despite the rapid growth, HTEC has preserved its spirit of shared values, building trustworthy relationships and prioritizing superior quality. As it continues to expand, HTEC’s vision for the future is grounded in the belief that innovation, strategic partnerships, and a commitment to excellence will open new opportunities and drive further success.
From the beginning, our commitment to delivering excellence to our customers and creating the best work environment for our people has been central to our growth journey. I am deeply grateful for our team’s dedication to professional excellence and relentless pursuit of learning. We’ll continue to work hard and make strategic investments to stay at the forefront of technological innovation, ensuring we deliver cutting-edge digital products.
Aleksandar Čabrilo
Co-Founder and CEO
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