Nordic Leaders Unite to Drive Innovation: A Call for Action

In this open letter, voices from leading Nordic companies – from Voi, Kry, Lovable, Klarna, and Sana to Amazon, EQT, Nasdaq, Accel, Creandum, Balderton, and Founders House – converge. Together, we have identified three crucial building blocks to ensure that the Nordic region not only keeps pace with development but leads it.

The three building blocks are: reduced bureaucracy, improved opportunities to retain and attract talent, and strengthened access to capital and leading technology. This will be presented at the Summer Mingle, an event gathering leaders from business, politics, culture, and sports. This year’s theme is Nordic exceptionalism – not to boast about our achievements, but to take responsibility for what lies ahead. A strong Nordic region means a stronger and more competitive Europe.

1. Reduce Bureaucracy to Enable Innovation

Smart regulation creates opportunities; unnecessary bureaucracy hinders them. In the age of artificial intelligence, access to data is crucial, yet European companies must navigate 27 different regulatory frameworks – covering everything from accounting to technology and compliance – to collect data.

The EU offers significant advantages. However, anyone who has tried to open a bank account in another EU country knows how outdated the bureaucracy can be, often requiring a flight to the country just to have a signature witnessed. This is neither sustainable nor conducive to competition. To reduce fragmentation, Sweden and the Nordic region must ensure that the EU’s internal market truly functions. This means simpler regulations, clearer rules of the game, and proportionate requirements. If implemented, we can give startups room to grow and innovators the green light to build the solutions of the future here in Europe, not elsewhere.

2. Invest in Talent from the Start, or Risk Losing It

Today’s startups are tomorrow’s major corporations. For them to succeed and grow, they need courageous entrepreneurs, capital, and access to world-class talent. The Nordic countries account for four percent of Europe’s population but a full 17 percent of the companies that exceeded a billion dollars in valuation between 2013 and 2023. It is no coincidence that these 70+ companies started here.

The Nordic region has the right conditions. Denmark, Finland, and Sweden all rank high on the EU’s digital index. But we must not rest on our laurels; we must continue to invest in our own capabilities. Everyone – from students and teachers to researchers, civil servants, and civil society – needs access to advanced AI tools to remain competitive. We need to update school curricula, provide opportunities for skills development mid-career, and create a culture where learning never stops and no one is left behind.

3. Without the Best Tools, the Nordic Region Will Fall Behind

To become a world leader in innovation, the Nordic region must be the best place to both start and finance companies. This means more risk and growth capital. Here, Sweden is a leader with its strong and reliable capital market. The rest of Europe needs to be inspired, learn, and follow suit.

Nordic founders have already built companies worth billions. Now it’s time to take it to the next level. The business community is already playing an active role: providing entrepreneurs with funding, technology, and support. The state also plays a vital role in supporting the private sector. This can be through long-term partnerships, incubators, and simplified applications for research grants. But also through co-investments in strategic technology sectors – and by giving founders greater opportunities to decide how and when they want to grow and develop – or sell – their companies.

In parallel, the Nordic region needs to remain open to the world. We are a small region with a great need for future technologies, and most AI technologies are developed in other parts of the world. This should not be seen as an obstacle. Instead, we should learn from how we reacted when the internet and smartphones were launched – namely by leading the development of applications, as we showed then through companies like Spotify, Skype, Klarna, King, and many others.

We will do it again, provided we have access to the best tools – in AI, quantum computers, and clean and reliable energy sources. This is our opportunity to pave the way for innovation, support those who are building the next generation of technological solutions, and scale new ideas to a global level.

For the future is not something we inherit. It is something we build.

Fredrik Hjelm, CEO and Founder, Voi
Johannes Schildt, Chairman and Founder, Kry
Joel Hellermark, CEO and Founder, Sana Labs
Sebastian Siemiatkowski, CEO, Klarna
Anton Osika, CEO and Founder, Lovable
Elis Hodzic, CEO and Founder, Founders House
Ludvig Bartholdsson, CEO and Founder, TelefonID
Arba Kokalari, Member of the European Parliament
Sandra Malmberg, Partner, EQT
Kitty Mayo, Project Europe
Johan Brenner, Partner, Creandum
Matt Robinson, Partner, Accel
Gulfem Toygar, Country Manager, Amazon
Adam Kostyal, CEO, Nasdaq Stockholm
Daniel Waterhouse, Partner, Balderton