A unique December evening in Zagreb, built for one purpose: bringing Croatian medicine and science together with the international community, so that talent and ideas move both ways.
A unique December evening that brings Croatia’s biomedical leaders, physicians, scientists, business leaders and policymakers together with international leaders in science and medicine, all in one room, to build lasting bridges between Croatian and international science and medicine.
The evening is built around networking: the introductions over dinner, the exchanges between courses, and the collaborations that begin here and outlast the night. Partnerships, fellowships and trials have all started at this evening.
Four leaders of the world’s foremost universities and hospitals join the Gala in person, as keynote speakers and voices in the panels and fireside chats.
Confirmed keynote
Chancellor
University of Cambridge
Chancellor of the University of Cambridge and a British public figure who served as UK Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport. He presides over one of the world’s oldest and most renowned universities.
Confirmed keynote
President & CEO
UCLA Health
President of UCLA Health and CEO of the UCLA Hospital System, leading one of the foremost academic health systems in the United States across its hospitals and clinical enterprise.
Confirmed keynote
President
Massachusetts General Hospital
President of Massachusetts General Hospital, the original and largest teaching hospital of Harvard Medical School, and a practising gynecologic oncologist.
Confirmed keynote
President & CEO
University Health Network
President and CEO of University Health Network in Toronto, one of the largest and most research-intensive hospital networks in North America.
The night is carried by live music from two of Croatia’s most loved performers, on stage through the evening and between the segments.
A beloved Croatian-American singer, and the voice of the unforgettable “Hajde da ludujemo” from Eurovision 1990 in Zagreb.
One of Croatia’s foremost jazz guitarists and arrangers, who has played Carnegie Hall and worked with Oliver Dragojević and Arsen Dedić.
Planned for the 2026 evening in Zagreb.
The Gala unfolds as one continuous evening: a welcome reception, a three-course dinner with paired wines, the keynotes and panels, the Med&X annual award for contributions to Croatian biomedicine, and live music that carries the night. General timings below; we confirm the final run of show with every guest.
Networking drinks in front of the Emerald Ballroom as guests arrive and the first introductions of the night begin.
Dinner is served with paired wines, the setting for the conversations the evening is built around.
Keynote addresses, panels and fireside chats between courses, and the Med&X annual award for contributions to Croatian biomedicine.
Music from Tajči and Ante Gelo continues, on stage and between the segments of the evening.
The night winds down around midnight, after the introductions that so often outlast it.
All proceeds fund Accelerator fellowships — clinical or research internships for young Croatian physicians, scientists and students at leading institutions worldwide.
See the Med&X Accelerator
All Gala proceeds fund Accelerator fellowships: clinical or research internships for young Croatian physicians, scientists and students at leading institutions worldwide, who then bring the experience home and keep building bridges.
How we govern and report on funds →Sponsoring the Plexus Gala is a partnership, not a transaction. Your support puts a young researcher in a world-leading lab or clinic, and puts your name in front of the people shaping the future of medicine in Croatia and beyond.
Your name in front of 150+ biomedical professionals across one focused evening: the leaders of Croatian and world biomedicine, rarely in one room on any other night.
An evening among the heads of the world’s foremost hospitals and universities, and Croatia’s own leaders, with the introductions and conversations that follow.
Your support directly accelerates the development of Croatian biomedicine and its connection to the world, funding clinical or research internships abroad.
Moments from past Plexus evenings: the room, the conversations, and the people who make the night what it is.
