The Nordic hardtech community
For everyone building hard things in the Nordics.
Hardtech is innovative, complex and physical. Nordic Hardtech exists so the people who build it, fund it and enable it can find each other.
The funding map
ALL 175 INVESTORS →Every Nordic investor with documented hardtech investments, plus the grants and public instruments that fund the other half of the road from lab to factory, with their deadlines.
Linnea Capital
A seed fund co-founded by Uppsala Innovation Centre, investing in early-stage tech and life science startups.
Hede Capital Partners
Direct investment firm based in Kungsbacka, Sweden, taking active co-ownership stakes in growth companies including recent participation in a defense-tech funding round.
Superangel
Tallinn-based early-stage investor and company builder backing bold tech founders in the Baltics and Nordics.
Vinnova
Vinnova is Sweden's government innovation agency, funding research and innovation projects that strengthen sustainable growth and competitiveness. It runs continuous, sector-agnostic calls for proposals, including a recurring deeptech acceleration programme, but does not publish a company-level portfolio list.
Katalysen Ventures
Stockholm-listed venture developer founded in 2016 that puts knowledge, hands-on support and capital into early-stage owner-led companies, often through its Venture Targeter turnaround framework, in exchange for equity and warrants. Core holdings span bioanalytics, diagnostics, event tech and digital asset compliance, with a wider portfolio of roughly 20 smaller stakes across the Nordics, DACH and beyond.
E14 Invest
E14 Invest is a Swedish co-investment company based in Åre, founded in 2017, that pools capital from roughly 30 private shareholders to back scalable growth companies primarily along the European route E14 corridor (Sundsvall–Trondheim) and the wider Norrland region, though it also invests opportunistically outside the area. It has made around 20-27 investments to date across sectors including healthtech, materials/energy, and software, typically at seed to Series A stage alongside co-investors like Almi Invest, Chalmers Ventures and Industrifonden.
I Love Lund
I Love Lund is a publicly listed (Spotlight Stock Market, ticker LOVE B) local investment company founded in 2017 and headquartered in Lund, investing broadly across sectors with a focus on pre-seed, seed and Series A rounds in early-stage, mostly unlisted companies with a strong Lund connection. Its portfolio today comprises roughly 50 holdings spanning fintech, medtech, femtech, IoT sensors, defense/dual-use, materials and life science, alongside shareholder network and mentoring activities.
Fiftyfive Capital
Danish VC investing in growth-stage companies in lifestyle, software, and hardware across Europe and the U.S. Formerly Nordic Eye.
Fairpoint Capital
Fairpoint Capital is a Stockholm-based early-stage venture capital firm, spun out of SEB Venture Capital's technology team, that makes minority investments (late seed to Series B) in Nordic B2B technology companies; it closed its second fund at $60M in 2024 and remains backed primarily by SEB.
Northzone
Northzone is a multi-stage venture capital firm founded in 1996 in Oslo, now headquartered in London with offices across the Nordics, Amsterdam and New York, investing from seed through growth stage across Europe and the US. Its portfolio includes Spotify, Klarna, Einride and Black Forest Labs, and it has backed companies through more than 250 investments to date.
Volvo Cars Tech Fund
Volvo Cars Tech Fund is Volvo Cars' corporate venture arm, based in Sweden and active since 2018. It makes minority investments in early stage mobility and automotive technology companies, covering electrification, autonomous driving, digital mobility services and manufacturing or supply chain efficiency, giving Volvo Cars strategic access to the technology it backs.
Heartcore
Heartcore Capital (formerly Sunstone Capital, founded 2007) is an early-stage venture capital firm headquartered in Copenhagen with additional offices in Stockholm, Berlin and Paris, investing from pre-seed to Series A across Europe. While historically known as a consumer-tech investor, it has recently expanded into deep tech, defence, quantum computing, space and synthetic biology alongside its core AI, fintech, travel and web3 bets.
The ecosystem
ALL 1192 COMPANIES →Who builds, supplies and enables hardtech across the Nordics, from garage startups to industrial giants. Browse by role, phase and vertical.
Innoventum
Develops renewable energy solutions combining design and sustainability for urban environments.
Gapwaves
Designs mmWave antennas for automotive radar and 5G applications using waveguide technology.
Mersol
Offers design and manufacturing of displays, fixtures, and plastic extrusions, serving various retail and industrial clients.
Kalmar Science Park
Supports startups and companies in Kalmar with incubation and business development services.
Fastlane Devs
Provides software development services, specializing in web and mobile applications.
Hexagon Composites
World's largest producer of high-pressure composite cylinders for storage and transportation of alternative fuels including hydrogen, CNG and RNG.
Urban ICT Arena
Provides a testbed and co-creation arena in Kista Science City for developing and showcasing smart city solutions.
Image Systems
Provides motion analysis software and systems for non-contact measurement technologies.
LimeArc Process
LimeArc Process develops electrically generated plasma technology to reburn lime mud in seconds instead of hours, in a compact reactor without moving parts, eliminating fossil fuel use in pulp and paper mills.
SNRGY
Creates smart lamps with customizable LED animations and smart home integration.
Rolls-Royce SMR
Rolls-Royce SMR designs, develops and deploys factory-built small modular nuclear reactors, delivering a modular, standardised pressurised water reactor solution for clean baseload power.
ABB
ABB is a technology leader in electrification and automation, producing industrial robots and automation solutions, with a major robotics manufacturing and R&D campus in Västerås, Sweden.
One sharp email, every two weeks.
Hardtech news from the Nordics and beyond, new raises, events worth travelling for, and the deadlines you should not miss.
Open raises
SEE WHO IS RAISING →Raising for something innovative, complex and physical? Apply in five minutes. We curate, and your round reaches the readers of the newsletter, including the investors on the map. The list is open for the first entries.
The podcast
ALL 37 EPISODES →Conversations with the founders and funders of Nordic hardtech.
EP 13 Giovanni Fili från Exeger: att bygga ett imperium cell för cell [SWE]
#25. Att bygga ett imperium cell för cell Giovanni Fili , grundare och vd för Exeger , gästar podden och berättar hur bolaget tagit fram en helt ny typ av solcell – och byggt en fabrik runt visionen. Det här är berättelsen om hur svensk deeptech trotsar oddsen: från egenutvecklade nanopartiklar och patenterade elektroder till en fullt automatiserad fabrik mitt i Stockholm. Powerfoyle, Exegers ljus
LISTEN →
EP 37 Lisa Eriksson (KTH Innovation) – Building Europe’s Deeptech Pipeline
37. Building Europe’s Deeptech Pipeline Lisa Eriksson , Head of KTH Innovation and CEO of KTH Ventures , joins the Nordic Hardtech Podcast to discuss what it takes to turn world-class research into venture-backed companies. KTH Innovation supports hundreds of founders, researchers and students every year, helping transform ideas into startups across fields such as AI, energy, semiconductors, life
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EP 12 Dora Palfi and imagi: From Neuroscience to Neon Pixels
Episode #12: From Neuroscience to Neon Pixels with imagi Dora Palfi , co-founder and CEO of edtech company imagi , joins the podcast to talk about building tools that make tech education more accessible, playful — and empowering, especially for girls. With a background in both neuroscience and computer science, Dora shares her journey from research to entrepreneurship, and how imagi is redefining
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EP 6 Karin Ebbinghaus – Från bilbana till elväg: så elektrifierar Elonroad transportsektorn [SWE]
#6. Från bilbana till elväg: så elektrifierar Elonroad transportsektorn Karin Ebbinghaus , vd på Elonroad , gästar podden och berättar om hur bolaget transformerar sättet vi laddar elfordon – från stationär laddning till dynamiska elskenor som ger energi medan fordonet rullar. Det är en berättelse om hur ett experiment i Lego blev ett bolag med CE-märkta produkter, internationella kunder och ambit
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EP 10 Kurt Högnelid och Waybler: Laddlogik för nästa elbilsvåg [SWE]
#10. Laddlogik för nästa elbilsvåg Kurt Högnelid , VD och medgrundare av Waybler , gästar podden och berättar hur bolaget bygger ett laddsystem för lägenheter och kontor – med smart styrning, lokal produktion och ett eget moln i ryggen. Kurt har grundat sju bolag inom medtech, IT och energi, och varit entreprenör i över 20 år. Med Waybler bygger han nu för tillväxt på en marknad som både boomat oc
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EP 29 Johan Outinen – Elvy & the Energy Subscription Play: 15 Years of Heat, Trust and Risk [ENG]
#29. Elvy & the Energy Subscription Play: 15 Years of Heat, Trust and Risk Johan Outinen , CEO and co-founder of Elvy Energy , joins the pod to explain why households should lock in their energy for the next 15 years, and how simplicity can unlock the transition. Elvy Energy is rewriting the rules of home energy with flat-rate subscriptions that cover installation, insurance, maintenance, and even
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EP 11 Staffan Stymne och T.Loop: Spillvirke för AI-eran
#11. Spillvirke för för AI-eran Staffan Stymne , vd och medgrundare av T.Loop gästar podden och berättar hur de bygger datacenter som både driver AI och balanserar elnätet – med återbruk, överskottsenergi och smart lokalisering som kärna. Med 30 års erfarenhet från energisektorn tog Staffan steget in i tech för att visa att datakraft inte behöver kosta klimatet. I dag bygger T.Loop för den nya era
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EP 28 Dominic Davies – Lightbringer & the Patent Reboot: From Legal Grind to Founder Speed [ENG]
Episode 28: From Legal Grind to Founder Speed Dominic Davies , co-founder of Lightbringer , joins the pod to talk patents, automation and founder-first IP. With a background in both software and patent law, he’s now building a system that aims to replace the traditional patent firm entirely — starting with the needs of deeptech startups. From knowledge graphs to GPT-3, Lightbringer was born out of
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EP 16 Anders Hässel och Nenda: Streamingrevolutionen för företag [SWE]
#16. Streamingrevolutionen för företag Anders Hässel , vd och grundare av Nenda , gästar podden och berättar hur bolaget utvecklar en modern streamingplattform för företag – med hårdvara, molntjänster och affärsmodeller anpassade för B2B-marknaden. Målet: att ersätta föråldrade TV‑lösningar med smart, skalbar teknik. Nenda grundades med en tydlig idé: att förändra hur företag inom hotell, vård och
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EP 3 Ulrika Tornerefelt och Stella Futura: Från grön vision till laddad expansion [SWE]
#3. Från grön vision till laddad expansion Ulrika Tornerefelt , grundare av Stella Futura , gästar podden och berättar om resan från hållbarhetsrådgivning till att bygga ett snabbväxande energibolag. Från Västafrika till svenska stödtjänstmarknaden, och från idé till skalbar affärsmodell inom “battery as a service”. Vi pratar om lönsam expansion, affärsmodellering, finansieringsstrategier och hur
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EP 35 Tomas Becklin – Teaching Infrastructure to Speak Animal with Flox
#35. Teaching Infrastructure to Speak Animal with Flox Tomas Becklin , CTO and co-founder of Flox , joins our podcast to explain how AI, acoustics and edge computing can reduce conflicts between wildlife and critical infrastructure. Flox builds systems that identify animals in real time and play sounds they instinctively understand, guiding behavior without fences, barriers or harm. In this conver
LISTEN →
EP 2 Pär Hedberg och Sting: Startupmaskinen som aldrig stannar
#2. Startupmaskinen som aldrig stannar Pär Hedberg , grundare av inkubatorn Sting , gästar podden och delar insikter från 20 år i svensk startupfront. Vi pratar om varför deeptech kräver en annan sorts investerare, hur man skapar tillväxtbolag i serie och varför varje team behöver någon som gillar fakturering. Sting har sedan starten 2001 blivit en av Europas mest respekterade inkubatorer, med röt
LISTEN →Insights
ALL INSIGHTS →What we have learned about building, scaling and funding hard things in the Nordics.
INSIGHT Emilia Brandt on Why Growth Needs More Than Grit: and How Recuro Delivers
Recuro's new CEO explains why smart structure, not brute force, is what actually drives hardtech growth.
READ →
INSIGHT Congrats Lovable – A Cautionary Tale for Deeptech?
Lovable just became Europe’s latest unicorn – and it’s a win for Swedish innovation. But deeptech founders, take note: speed isn’t everything. If capital keeps chasing AI hype, critical climate and resilience tech may get left behind.
READ →
INSIGHT Betting the House on 15-Year Subscriptions
Elvy Energy's CEO explains why flat-rate 15-year energy subscriptions could become the future default for households.
READ →
INSIGHT The game beneath the game
Elite football's technology stack, from smart balls to computer vision, shows how Nordic hardtech is proving itself on the pitch.
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INSIGHT Built to Endure: How Nordic Hardtech Turns Fear into Function
Explores how fear, war, and geopolitical uncertainty are reshaping Nordic hardtech into a driver of resilience and dual-use innovation.
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INSIGHT Livepodd i Göteborg på Evertiq-mässan
Torsdag den 19 september besöker podden Evertiq-mässan i Göteborg för att intervjua två intressanta bolag live på scenen: Airolit och Frontside. Jag (Jonas) står även på mässgolvet för samtal.
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INSIGHT Human-in-the-Loop: The Economics of Staying in Control
Argues Nordic automation succeeds by keeping humans in the loop, turning oversight into a strategic economic advantage over full autonomy.
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INSIGHT Snart nytt år – vem ska jag prata med?
Hårdvarupodden ångar vidare in i 2025 och stora nyheter utlovas i Q1. Samtidigt söker vi fler som vill intervjuas i podden. Vem ska jag prata med i 2025?
READ →When infrastructure thinks like nature
Flox's CTO explains how edge hardware, acoustics and AI guide wildlife away from roads, railways and airports.
READ →
INSIGHT The Validation Economy
Donut Lab's battery claims show how independent validation itself becomes strategic currency in deep hardware.
READ →Karoly Szipka on Making Machines Talk: and Building a Business Around It
IPercept's founder explains how CNC diagnostics and machine data could save Europe's aging industrial expertise.
READ →Beta-perioden är över - vad nu?
Under våren har vi spelat in fem avsnitt av Hårdvarupodden för att testa konceptet.
READ →Partners keep this open
The funding map, the podcast, the events and the newsletter are free for the whole ecosystem, made possible by partners who build Nordic hardtech with us.
AI-driven patent filing for tech companies. Protect what you invent, at software speed.
OFFER: Free intro call with Lightbringer's patent team → LIGHTBRINGER.COM ↗Swedish Incubators and Science Parks, the national infrastructure for innovation environments.
SISP.SE ↗Kept accurate by the community
Anyone can suggest an investor, flag an error, or submit an event, a job or a raise. Every suggestion is checked and prepared before it goes live. Nothing publishes unreviewed.
One sharp email, every two weeks.
Hardtech news from the Nordics and beyond, new raises, events worth travelling for, and the deadlines you should not miss.