launching at the superbowl, nscale raises ā¬148M + co-founders part ways š
*TGI(m)F. edition125 iām kay, and this is your weekly round-up of curated startup news from the nordics, delivered to your screen for easy reading every sunday š
š„ got news?
i love to crowdsource updates from the people on the ground, so hereās the:
š mondayfriday news drop. share the details by saturday for a potential sunday feature!
i honestly thought there wouldnāt be that much news this week b/c of holiday season, but the nordics impressed once again. apologies for the extended length in your emails recently, but you guys are clearly v busy out there.
āoh yeah, the exit tax! Well, I believe that value created in Norway should be taxed in Norway.ā
~ Cecilie Myrseth (Norwegian Minister of Trade + Industry) quoted.
š©š° Denmark
Ex-Trendsales + Voi operators/co-founders launched Kiku in summer (an AI-driven recruitment platform) and have now raised ā¬500.000 from a series of angel investors.
Tempty Foods, the startup developing foods of the future based on mycelium, receives an Innobooster grant from Innovation Fund Denmark
The couple that took over Park Bio, a soon-to-be 100 year old cinema last year. in the last 12 months they saw: 100+ events including Heartcore Capital's Annual Investor Day + an 80% increase in movie ticket sales.
Clean Carbon, the company transforming wastewater treatment, have won the Heyfunding grant (powered by Antler) worth ā¬3.300
Monterro, the leading Nordic B2B software investor, opens a newly office and team in Copenhagen.
Read about the three key policy recommendations established by Charlotte Langer and Danske Erhverv in pushing for a stronger political focus on womenās health (+ the DKK 30 billion potential impact on the danish economy). report is here (in danish).
Ageras, the startup helping small businesses simplify their administration, has officially acquired french company, Shine, after receiving approval from regulators.
SOWA, the professional speakers company, are expanding further into the Benelux region, Switzerland + Germany.
Dennis Green-Lieber, the Director of Product & Engineering at Neurons is stepping out of his role after 3.5 years with the team.
Kin, the personal AI companion for your private life, has secured ā¬2.9 million in a seed funding round led by Cyber.fund and Seier Capital.
Werner Vogels (CTO of Amazon) mentions proem in his 2025 tech predictions.
Robot safety startup targeting the agricultural sector, AgriRobot, announces a ā¬2.5 million fundraise led by NORMINAL Venture Finance.
Famly, the platform for early education providers, is continuing to expand as they partner with Busy Bees Nurseries, the largest nursery group in the UK.
Rheia Medical, the medtech company for pelvic surgery, has received ā¬87.000 in funding from an Innobooster Grant.
The Danish Centre for AI Innovation appoints Sune Aggergaard Mortensen to the role of Chief Information Security Officer
Seb Haugeto + Sid Mudgal on on their recent āsplitā as co-founders of Dealflow.
Christiane VejlĆø has been appointed to DRās board from January 2025. See full board here.
The Danish Conservative Party (Det Konservative Folkeparti) wants to lift the ban on nuclear power. Follow the linkedin debate here.
Biotech company, SNIPR Biome, will be getting up to ā¬20 million in venture debt from the European Investment Bank.
2D, the startup making graphene affordable and accessible to everyone named a Deep Tech Pioneer by Hello Tomorrow.
The pension fund, Sampension invests in Home.Earth - a real-estate company tackling socio-environmental issues associated with urban development.
Raaman Bales joins Alice.Tech as their Founders Associate.
unihelper.io, the SaaS platform for university group work, secures pre-seed funding and joins the ASU ScaleU Accelerator at Arizona State University.
Flimmer App, makes it to Top 10 on the app store.
aioss, the all-in-one supplement solution raises ā¬400k from a group of business angels.
endless food co, the company developing an alternative to traditional chocolate raises ā¬1 million in pre-seed funding led by Nordic Foodtech VC.
šøšŖ Sweden
āThe "Stockholm Premium" ā does it exist?ā the idea that tech companies in their scale-up stage are valued higher if HQād in Stockholm, than their counterparts elsewhere in Sweden.
Pettersson & Munthe AB, the Sparkling Tea startup, and, Hidden in Grains, the innovative grains company, both served their products at the 2024 Nobel Prize Banquet.
Novatron Fusion Group AB, the company revolutionising the field of nuclear fusion, receives ā¬3 million in funding from the EIC Pathfinder Program.
Digital solution designed to manage rheumatic conditions, Elsa Science, files for bankruptcy.
Siros Foundation launches, a nonprofit collaborative effort led by global identity experts, to curb the cost of global cybercrime.
Breakitās list of āSweden's hottest fast-growers in 2024ā (paywall). Includes: Bryntum, Briqpay, Caia Cosmetics + more.
Mingla, the gamified networking event app, will be launching in the US at one of the most important events of the year; the Super Bowl.
Mynt, a leading provider of corporate credit cards, secures ā¬22 million in funding, led by Vor Capital.
Fundrella, the matchmaking platform for ESG-conscious investing, raises an additional ā¬434k led by Gorilla Capital , Radcap and VNTRS.
Spintop Ventures have hired Catharina Schrƶder to be their newest Head of Investor Relations.
Norrsken share recent promotions in their team; Beata + Christian become Investment Managers, Tyko is now a Senior Controller.
The after-school activity platform for kids, After Class, announce the onboarding of Roger Risdal as their latest Board Member and Business Adviser.
Leadership in question: Matilda Djerf & Rasmus Johansson(Djerf Avenue) for work culture issues + Northvolt with their selective bonus scheme.
Influencer Alice Stenlƶf, becomes a co-owner of hĆppi, the prebiotic soda company aimed at improving gut health.
Sweden Startup Nation launches; a knowledge hub + ā gathering of forces to strengthen Sweden's startups and scaleupsā.
The winners of the Fƶr-orten 2024 awards; Nexilink (AI-powered recruitment platform), Hestia (automatic fire extinguisher) + Fix It (kids party planner for parents).
Vetnio, the AI co-pilot for vets, raises ā¬1 million in pre-seed funding from Peak and YZR.
Nora Bavey, General Partner at Unconventional Ventures, wins 17ās Trailblazer of the Year 2024 award.
š³š“ Norway
Helene Grini and Sharanan K are the latest hires in Sensoritaās growing team thatās doubling in size.
Nscale, the Hyperscaler engineered for AI, raises a ā¬148 million Series A round led by Sandton Capital Partners.
Emilie Ć sberg, the co-founder + CEO of Havguard wins E24.noās, āNorwegian Young Leadership Awardā. See full list of winners here.
If you havenāt followed already, Cecilie Skjong from Skyfall Ventures is highlighting 24 female tech entrepreneurs for each day leading up to Xmas.
Atlas Accelerator launches to invest in early-stage Norwegian startups (up to roughly ā¬13.000 NOK ticket sizes).
NynsĆø invests in Flocean, a water technology company addressing the fresh water scarcity issue.
š«š® Finland
Space42 and ICEYE announce a joint venture to manufacture SAR satellites in the UAE.
Aisti, the startup building acoustic solutions for modern construction fibres, have just announced a ā¬29 million Series A funding round led by Voima Ventures, Maki.vc, and the Valve Ventures.
Sponsor Capital, the fund targeting small and medium-sized companies, raises ā¬231 million in itās first and final closing for their sixth fund.
Nordic Angels, the nordic angel network, is expanding into Finland with Kustaa Valtonen and Peter Vesterbacka as founding members of this new chapter.
Finlands problematic stock option programs according to Index Venturesā Martin Mignot (paywall) + Annina SalvĆ©n.
ElFys, Inc the startup making extra effective, and sensitive light sensors, is one of 75 companies selected to join the NATO DIANA Accelerator Program. See the rest of the cohort.
Orijin, the startup ādigitising the first mile of food supply chainsā, partners with BioTara AG.
Arctic Instruments, the company making quantum-limited parametric amplifiers raises ā¬2.4 million in a round led by Lifeline Ventures.
š®šø Iceland
Hringvarmi, the a circular Agtech startup are awarded 2 grants; one from RannĆs - The Icelandic Centre for Research, and one from Ćslandsbanki.
Investment fund, VEX ehf, and their 3 new team hires.
š extras, opinions + resources
listen: Anton Osika (lovable) āidea to app in secondsā¦ā w / Calin Fabri.
āDenmark Mandates Dairy Farmers to use Feed Additives from January 2025 to Battle Global Warmingā - read from Volta Greentech.
watch: female investās Anna-Sophie Hartvigsen speaking at the European Parliament.
āCash is king!" and āNo, it is not taboo to talk about exitsā - Maria Lindholm + Jessica Rameau. read.
read: āFrom 7+ Years as a Digital Nomad to Farm Life: 5 Things I Learned About the Future of Workā - Sofie Lindman
see: winners of the first-ever Nordic Listed Leaders Awards.
read: ā5 Takeaways from the Soulfuls Summitā - Vogue Scandinavia
read: āInternationals are more highly educated than Danesā
this weeks wildcard: in the project "Norway in red, white and grey", journalists at NRK, as well as researchers from the Norwegian Institute for Nature Research (NINA), mapped environmental degradation in Norway between the years 2017 - 2022, using over 41,000 satellite images. the project has won the Innovation Award from the Research Council of Norway, and the page itself has seen over 1 million views.
š§« 21st.BIO are hiring for 2 finance roles (DK)
šø Antler are hiring an Associate, Platform & Community (FI)
š§ Meela are hiring a Product Manager (SE)
š” Nico Blier-Silvestriās Monday Spotlight (reach out to Nico to learn more about the personās profile!): A seasoned leader with over 10 years of experience in B2B SaaS across industries like medtech and e-commerce, ready to take on the next big challenge. With a background as COO and CFO, she has a proven track record of taking companies from pre-seed to Series A, driving international expansion, and raising multiple investment rounds to support sustainable growth.
ā Brent Hoberman (Co-founder of Founders Forum) wants to know which European VCs to follow on linkedin, specifically, which āScandiā voices he should know about. drop your suggestions in the link.
ā Be a part of the Spring edition of Feminvest Magazine NĀŗ3, in collaboration with ELLE Magazine. The next edition will be highlighting companies run by women. Email Ulrika StĆ„lne at ulrika@feminvest.se to learn more.
ā Join boardway, the worldās largest platform for board talent developed by Stine Colding Alstrup, CEO & Founder Intentional.
ā Apply for the Strive Fellowship: a summer internship for 1st and 2nd-year university students in Finland, aimed at developing entrepreneurial skills. Deadline 22nd of Dec!!
ā Alex Steninge Jacobsen wants to know: āhow can we make the cybersecurity community in Denmark stronger?ā contribute here.
ā Applications for TINC Spring 2025 are open: a 5-week program helping Nordic startups to break into the U.S. market and beyond.
ā ReBloom are hosting their first ever online event on Thursday Dec 19, 17:00 CET to talk about the Secondaries market.
Thanks for tuning in! iām always on the hunt for newsworthy content to bring to the mondayfriday audience. and, if you ask me, the best place is from the community itself. so, please drop your updates HERE and fill me in on any startup related news in the nordics āØ
yours weekly,
kay
* thank god it's (monday)friday
