1. STARTUP SWEDEN HOW SWEDEN BECAME A STARTUP STAR
Slide 1 – Startup Sweden – How Sweden became a startup star
Message: A new business landscape is evolving in Sweden.
Sweden is one of the most competitive, innovative and globalised nations in the world. It’s a country of open skies and open minds, producing world-leading businesses across a large number of industries and sectors. With a small domestic market, Swedish companies with an ambition to grow need to export to customers around the world. This has fostered a global mindset and made Sweden an early player on the globalised market, with multinational companies such as IKEA, ABB, Ericsson and H&M.
Today we see a new business landscape evolving in Sweden and I would like to take a few minutes to give you some insights on how Sweden became a hub for startups.

2. A world-class start-up scene
Stockholm #2
Stockholm #2
Stockholm #2
City in Europe for startups
and scale-ups
City in Europe for startups
and scale-ups
Unicorns produced
per capita
SparkLabs Global Ventures
EDCi – European Digital City Index 2016
Slide 2 – A world-class start-up scene
Message: Sweden (Stockholm) is in the top in global rankings for startups.
During the past decades Sweden has developed a world-class start-up scene, creating a vast amount of attention from entrepreneurs, investors and talents. After Silicon Valley, the Swedish capital – Stockholm - produces the highest number of so-called ‘unicorns’ (or billion-dollar tech companies) per capita than any other city.
South Korea-based accelerator SparkLabs, recently ranked Stockholm second in terms of the most supportive environment for startups, after Silicon Valley. But before mega cities such as New York, LA, and Beijing. This strong position is confirmed by the European Digital City Index (2016), ranking Stockholm second both in terms of ecosystem for startups and scale-ups.
A number of factors have created an environment that has fostered over 22,000 tech businesses – in Stockholm alone.  
More info/source
Image: Björn Olin/Folio/imagebank.sweden.se

3. ICT, gaming, fintech, musictech, cleantech…
Slide 3 – ICT, gaming, fintech, musictech, cleantech…
Message: A nation where technology runs deep.
Sweden is a country of tech, and technology is successfully combined with gaming, finance, music, food and environment creating new types of flourishing companies in ICT, IoT, gaming, fintech, musictech, cleantech, foodtech, edtech, medtech, lifescience…
You might have heard of companies such as Skype (ICT), Spotify (music tech), Klarna (fintech), Bambora (fintech), iZettle (fintech), Episerver (digital platform for CSM and e-commerce), Mojang (gaming - Minecraft) and King (gaming - Candy Crush Saga). They all started their journey as startups in Sweden a few years back, with a mindset to go global. All of them have become unicorns.

4. Europe’s most highly valued tech company
Success breeds success
Spotify
Europe’s most highly valued tech company
Slide 4 – Success breeds success
Message: The Swedish unicorns contribute to the eco-system and to Swedish business in many ways beyond revenue.
In just ten years Spotify has become one of the world’s most famous companies. (Spotify was launched in 2008). It is by far Europe’s most highly valued tech company and the most valuable music streaming service on the planet. Today Spotify provides more than 40 million songs and as of June 2018, it had more than 180 million monthly active users and more than 83 million paying subscribers.
Unicorns such as Spotify and their founders (on the image Daniel Ek) have played a crucial role in creating an attractive startup scene in Sweden:
They have contributed to a shift in mindset: With a large number of well established, global companies, working at a large enterprise has been a natural career path for many Swedes. In the past it was very common that you started your employment at one of these multinational companies and stayed there until you retired. The rising number of successful startups with strong leaders, have contributed to a shift in mindset. They have proven it possible to build your own success and inspire others to believe in their idea. In other words, success and rolemodels breed new success.
They also contribute with talent: Companies like Spotify, Klarna, and iZettle create a lot of talent that new companies can draw upon – talent that have competence, experience & big ambitions.
Las but not least, they contribute by giving back to the community: There is a pronounced willingness to give back to the startup community. Not only are many founders of today’s unicorns actively investing in new startups, there are also examples of pay-it-forward in a greater context. One example is Niklas Adalberth, co-founder of billion-dollar Swedish fin-tech company Klarna, and his launch of the Norrsken Foundation, an investment fund that backs entrepreneurs using technology to solve the world’s most pressing challenges. He calls it ”an impact unicorn” – ”instead of a company to the valuation of a billion, they want it to have a positive influence on one billion people.
Source/more info:
Image: Spotify media kit

5. An ecosystem for success
Successful entrepreneurs & unicorns
Arenas to meet and accelerate
Private capital & investors
Education & competence
Public support & investments
Slide 5 – An ecosystem for success
Message: Sweden has a solid ecosystem with different actors and arenas supporting startups.
These successful entrepreneurs and unicorns are part of a flourishing ecosystem for startups in Sweden. Today a strong ecosystem for startups have evolved ensuring access to capital, competence and customers. The eceosystem includes:
Private capital and investors : There is a large number of venture capital firms, business angels and corporatations investing in startups in Sweden. Acquisitions, IPOs (Initial public offering- the first time when a company sells its shares to the public) and exits have triggered a positive spiral in terms of private capital and investors.
Education and competence: Sweden has a long tradition of being a country of engineers. The recent report on Brain Business Jobs, listed Sweden as number one in Europe in terms of skills, and Stockholm as number 2 (after Bratislava). Approximately 17% of all people in Stockholm are involved in Brian Business Jobs (in Sweden in total 8,7%, the closest competitor Denmark reach 7,9%) Source:
Public support & investments: Sweden invests heavily in R&D, and has a strong public support system to stimulate commercialisation of research and the growth of startups (including VINNOVA, Tillväxtverket and Almi).
Arenas to meet and accelerate: There has been a rapid increase of arenas, hubs and tech meetups in Sweden over the past years, facilitating the opportunity to meet, co-create and development ideas. There is a nationwide network of incubators and science parks, research institutes and testbeds.
Image: Melker Dahlstrand/imagebank.sweden.se

6. Evaluate 4000 business ideas anually
Nationwide support
Evaluate 4000 business ideas anually
43 incubators
From Malmö
to Luleå
Slide 6 – Nationwide support
Message: It not just in Stockholm – startups are growing all over Sweden.
Swedish Incubators & Science Parks (SISP) is Sweden’s national association for business incubators and science parks, with coverage from Malmö in the south to Luleå in the north. SISP’s 65 members (43 business incubators and 33 science parks) focus on stimulating growth in knowledge-based companies, and currently encompass 5000 companies with more than employees.
One of the members is Sting, the leading accelerator and incubator in the Nordics. Since 2002, they have worked with over 240 companies, 70 percent of which are still active and growing. They support with coaching from people who have built successful companies, raised venture capital, and sold companies. They help startups create the best conditions possible for raising capital and they support by giving them access to a large network of business contacts, both Swedish and international.
Other world leading incubators among the members are:
Uppsala Innovation in Uppsala
Chalmers Venture in Gothenburg
GU Holding and Karolinska Development - lifescience
Spaceport Sweden and Actic Business Incubator – space science
Gothia Science Park – game development
Borås Incubator – circular business models within textile
LEAD in Linköping – digitalization
SISP‘s members operate creative environments, offer business development, work with clusters, industrial project development arenas, seed capital funds, accelerators and more - effective collaboration with industry, public sector, universities and institutes. Every year SISP members evaluate 4000 business ideas.
Supporting information:
What is a business incubator: Incubators assist entrepreneurs with active and appropriate management, technical, commercial and financial network as well as a creative growth environment. The process of incubators aims to provide knowledge companies with innovative approaches to economic development that in turn accelerate business growth. An incubator provides effective tools for new companies in tomorrow’s industry.

What is a science park: Science parks are research and technology parks. They tend to be large-scale projects that house everything from corporate, government or university labs to very small companies. Most research and technology parks do not offer business assistance services, which are the hallmark of a business incubation program. However, many research and technology parks house incubation programs.
In 2017 the nationwide initiative Ignite Sweden was set up by SISP and some of its members, with the goal of enabling new business collaborations. With a qualified matchmaking programme, Ignite Sweden organises meetings where start-ups with innovations that match the needs of big business are given the opportunity to sell their innovative solutions to the right company. Ignite Sweden have arranged more than 650 tailored meetings since their inception (by juny 2018). The initiative is a win-win for big companies and new ones. While big companies tend to crave new solutions and ideas, start-ups often have their eyes on strategic collaborations and customers. When they interact, both the driving force and the speed of innovation increase.
Image: John Manly

7. Industry and startup collaboration
Slide 7: Industry and startup collaboration
Message: Several successful initatives stimulating large enterprise and startup collaboration
Over the past years several successful initiatives stimulating collaboration between large enterprises and startups have been launched in Sweden.
One of them is the national initiative Ignite Sweden focusing on speeding up digitalisation through tailored matchmaking between large, international companies and fastmoving, creative startups. Ignite Sweden was set up in 2017 with the goal of enabling new business collaborations. While big companies tend to crave new solutions and ideas, start-ups often have their eyes on strategic collaborations and customers. When they interact, both the driving force and the speed of innovation increase. With a qualified matchmaking programme, Ignite Sweden organises meetings where start-ups with innovations that match the needs of big business are given the opportunity to sell their innovative solutions to the right company.
Another example is SynerLeap initiated by ABB. SynerLeap is an innovation growth hub located in the heart of the ABB Corporate Research Center in Västerås Sweden. The purpose is to create an ecosystem where ABB can utilize and enable small technology companies to grow and expand on a global market in any of these three areas: industrial automation, robotics and energy. The vision is to reach shorter innovation cycles, decreased time to market and together strengthen the competitiveness. This is made possible by sharing the same innovation environment.
Astrazeneca BioHUB is yet another private initiative stimulating industry and startup collaboration to accelerate innovation and growth.
Image: Simon Paulin/imagebank.sweden.se

8. ”Broadband to everyone”
The reforms behind the success
PC subsidies + + =
”Broadband to everyone”
Tech savvy
population
Slide 8 – The reforms behind the success
Message: Progressive government planning has led to a tech savvy population
So, how has Sweden been able to create such a strong ecosystem and a leading position as a startup scene? I’ll give you some of the critical success factors.
Swedes are known to be early adopters and tech savvy. This is not a coincidence. Progressive government planning for decades have paved the way.
The Swedish success in the digitalised economy can partly be explained by strong investments in digital infrastructure. Sweden was early to offer a world-class broadband network, and the population’s internet usage is among the highest in the world (nearly 95% of Sweden’s population use the internet, compared to just 84% in the US). But the government is not satisfied yet –in % of the population will have fast interntet access at home and at work.
Apart from extensive broadband investments (fixed and mobile), the Swedish government offered a tax break for residents to buy personal computers back in the 1990s. This led to a huge influx of computers in homes and has created a tech-savvy population with an openness to and demand for new technology. Many families benefit from this, among them 10-year-old Sebastian Siemiatkowski whos family at the time could not afford a computer. Twenty some years later he started one of Sweden’s most successful fintech companies Klarna, an e-commerce firm that provides online payment services (story from an internview in The Independent).
More info/source:
Internet pentetration:
Image: Melker Dahlstrand/imagebank.sweden.se

9. Free higher education, encouraging…
Critical
thinking
Creativity
Collaboration
Slide 9 – Free higher education
Message: The population is highly educated thanks to free education
Sweden has a long and proud history of academic excellence and despite its relatively small population, it’s home to some of the world’s best universities. In Sweden attending a higher degree education is free of charge, financed largely by tax revenue. This has resultated in a highly educated population and a large talent pool for startups.
As a student in Sweden, you’re encouraged to think independently, creatively and critically from pre-school to University. You’re expected to question the status quo by assessing information, seeking new perspectives and coming up with well-informed opinions. The informal and non-hierarchical nature of Swedish society, where everyone is encouraged to contribute ideas and opinions, opens up for creativity.
Equality and diversity are central to Swedish society. The belief that everyone is of equal value contributes to Sweden’s consensus approach to getting things done, where everyone takes part in the decision-making process. Swedes learn how to balance different interests, needs and ideas to bring out the best in everyone and solve complex issues as a team – these are vital skills in a global career, where collaboration across cultures is the norm.
Image: Sofia Sabel/imagebank.sweden.se

10. Time for family and career
Slide 10 – Time for reflection
Message: A strong belief in equality and worklife balance as a foundation for new ideas
Sweden has unlocked the potential of the whole population and have the highest female and maternal employment rates in Europe.
In Sweden work-life balance is integrated into the culture, making it possible to combine a family life with a career. The welfare system has been created to offer a high quality of life and to enable men and women equal opportunities. Day care costs are subsidised by the government, making it extremely affordable. The welfare system creates a safety net for individuals, making it possible to try an alternative career or develop a business idea.
A full-time employee gets a minimum of five weeks of paid vacation, extensive parental leave (480 days) and the right to work part-time (75 per cent until the youngest child is eight years of age or has finished the first year at school). Not seldomly, it is during these breaks, when people have time to reflect, that new ideas pop up and grow.
Image: Karin Enge Vivar/Folio/imagebank.sweden.se

11. A flourishing tech scene and ecosystem
Slide 11 – A flourishing tech scene and ecosystem
Message: Looking for a vibrant startup scene – Welcome to Sweden!
All in all Sweden has a flourishing tech scene and ecosystem built to stimulate future growth.
With a strong digital infrastructure, social and political stability, a sophisticated private sector (a presence of large and established organisations, as well as a strong startup scene) and extensive investments in R&D, Sweden has created a world-class ecosystem for startups, where ideas are given the best conditions to grow. Today, innovative startups are a key part of the overall innovation strategy for Swedish competitiveness and growth.
Looking for a vibrant startup scene? Welcome to Sweden!
Image: Melker Dahlstrand/imagebank.sweden.se

12. Thank you!