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 179 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.
VTT Holding (VTT Ventures)
Investment vehicle of VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland, a state-owned research organisation. VTT transfers its technology as an in-kind investment in exchange for preferred shares. VTT Holding also co-invests in venture rounds. VTT Ventures is the older name, and VTT LaunchPad incubates spin-offs before incorporation.
VTT Ventures
VTT Ventures is the venture company of VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland, founded in 2010 to invest in spin-offs built on VTT technology. Its legacy portfolio is managed by Voima Ventures, and since 2019 VTT makes its technology investments through VTT Holding and the VTT LaunchPad incubator.
Christian Klibo
Christian Klibo is a Danish business angel and Lead Angel with DanBAN, the Danish Business Angels network, focused on HealthTech, MedTech, PropTech, data and governance. He and Berit Klibo have taken lead investor roles in several medtech deals, including Cystotech, a Danish medtech company developing an AI based diagnostic support tool that integrates with cystoscopy equipment for bladder cancer detection.
Snö Ventures
SNÖ Ventures is an Oslo-based early-stage VC investing in Nordic founders across software, gaming and consumer tech, with Peter Thiel as a strategic partner in its USD 100 million fund. Its one hardtech position is Nordic Air Defence, a drone interceptor maker it backed in 2024.
Rymdkapital
Rymdkapital is a Stockholm-based venture capital firm founded in 2020, investing in early-stage European spacetech companies from angel to Series A rounds. It also runs the pan-European Expansion Ventures fund together with Audacia and Starburst.
Skåne Ventures
Regional VC initiative boosting startup capital access across southern Sweden.
CNI
Investment company focused on real estate, entrepreneurship, and sustainable business models in the Nordics.
Expansion Ventures
Expansion Ventures is a pan-European VC firm (Paris and Stockholm) launched in 2022, targeting a €300M fund dedicated to Aerospace & Defence startups from pre-seed to Series B, with a Stockholm-based General Partner (Ulf Palmnäs) giving it genuine Nordic roots alongside its French base.
Kvanted Ventures
Early-stage venture capital firm investing in hardware, software and service companies for the industrial value chain, with focus on industrial automation, sustainability and supply chain resilience.
Nea Partners
Stockholm-based investment firm founded in 2017 that takes minority stakes in privately owned Nordic growth companies. Its third fund, NEA III, is SEK 900 million. The portfolio is mostly generalist, with hardtech exposure through Qvantum (heat pumps) and Mellifiq (air and water purification).
Spark Capital
Spark Capital is a US venture capital firm headquartered in Boston, San Francisco and New York, founded in 2005. It invests across stages from seed to growth in consumer, enterprise, fintech, AI and frontier tech, with holdings spanning software platforms as well as hardware, robotics and aerospace companies.
Christoffer Melchior
Christoffer Melchior is a Copenhagen-based business angel and DanBAN lead angel focused on medtech and healthtech startups. He personally invested in NDURE, a Danish wearable continuous lactate tracker for athletes.
The ecosystem
ALL 1248 COMPANIES →Who builds, supplies and enables hardtech across the Nordics, from garage startups to industrial giants. Browse by role, phase and vertical.
Copenhagen Atomics
Copenhagen Atomics is building molten salt reactors powered by thorium, the cheapest, cleanest scalable nuclear energy.
Saft
Saft designs and manufactures high-tech batteries for industry, transportation, and defense applications.
Aira
Aira offers clean energy solutions for homes, including intelligent heat pumps and solar panels, aiming to reduce carbon emissions and energy costs.
Norrköping Science Park
Supports innovation and entrepreneurship by providing infrastructure, networks, and services to startups and tech companies.
Mimbly
Develops water-saving and microfiber-filtering solutions for laundry systems, promoting sustainable water usage.
Comrod
Norwegian manufacturer of tactical antennas, antenna systems, telescopic/composite masts, power supplies and battery chargers for defence, maritime and commercial communication markets, headquartered in Stavanger/Tau with production also in France, Sweden, Hungary and the US.
Radtonics
Develops private 5G networks tailored for industrial applications, enhancing connectivity and security.
D-Orbit
Provides space logistics and transportation services, including satellite deployment and in-orbit servicing.
Gränges
Global leader in rolled aluminum materials and recycling, offering sustainable aluminum solutions.
RFR Solutions
RFR Solutions develops, manufactures and sells first-rate stainless steel solutions, offering the whole chain from design and prototyping to production, assembly and verification.
Sunroof
Develops integrated solar roofs combining roofing material with photovoltaic technology.
NeckCare
NeckCare makes the NeckCare System, a wearable sensor and web-based software platform that gives clinicians objective measurements of neck range of motion, proprioception and sensorimotor control.
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 podcast
ALL 37 EPISODES →Conversations with the founders and funders of Nordic hardtech.
EP 17 Alexander Osika om Glorb, SNRGY och att kickstarta hårdvara på riktigt [SWE]
#17.Om Glorb, SNRGY och att kickstarta hårdvara på riktigt Alexander Osika , vd och medgrundare av SNRGY Studios , gästar podden och berättar hur teamet tog Glorb – ett smart ljuskonstverk – från idé till marknad. Med bakgrund från Plejd och Einride, och med en passion för produktdesign, har Alexander blivit en av Sveriges mest spännande hårdvarubyggare. Här delar han resan bakom Glorb – från prot
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EP 34 Max Villman – From Cockpit to Cap Table: Inside Nordic Defense Tech
#34. From Cockpit to Cap Table: Inside Nordic Defense Tech Max Villman , former Swedish fighter pilot and now defense tech investor at Gungnir , joins the Nordic Hardtech Podcast for a grounded conversation on what really matters in modern defense innovation. With first-hand experience from the cockpit and deep exposure to today’s European and Ukrainian defense tech ecosystems, Max shares what fou
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EP 22 Christoffer Johnsson: Från stock till kod – hur Taigatech transformerar en miljardindustri [SWE]
Det här avsnittet görs i samarbete med The Yard – en coworkingmiljö och verkstad för hardtech-startups i Göteborg. En kreativ plats med industriell känsla för dig som bygger fysiska produkter. Avsnitt 22. Från stock till kod – hur Taigatech transformerar en miljardindustri Christoffer Johnsson , vd på Taigatech, gästar podden och berättar hur bolaget kombinerar AI och industriell automation för at
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EP 25 Joacim Westlund Prändel – Less is More: How Flic Pushed the Button on Scalable Hardware [ENG]
🤝 This episode is produced in collaboration with Lightbringer – the patent service helping founders move faster. With AI at its core and senior attorneys in-house, they streamline the patent process and set a new standard for how growth-stage teams secure what’s theirs. Episode #25 Less is More: How Flic Pushed the Button on Scalable Hardware What if turning off a light or flipping a music sheet c
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EP 33 Leo Ballesteros – Atonemo & When to Ignore the Market (At First)
#33: When to Ignore the Market (At First) Leo Ballesteros , founder of Atonemo , joins the podcast to share a brutally honest take on what it actually takes to build a consumer hardware company from scratch. From feature overload to ruthless simplification, this episode is about learning by doing. Every single day. Atonemo is building consumer electronics at the intersection of hardware, software
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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 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 18 Stina Lantz och SISP: Så bygger vi ett starkare innovationssystem
#18.Så bygger vi ett starkare innovationssystem Stina Lantz , VD på SISP (Swedish Incubators and Science Parks), gästar podden och berättar om inkubatorernas och science parks roll i det svenska innovationssystemet. Med bakgrund som entreprenör, affärsutvecklare och programledare för Ignite Sweden har Stina jobbat med över 1300 startups. I dag leder hon SISP – en medlemsorganisation som samlar 63
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EP 20 Ted Elvhage: Rymdkapital & Expansion Ventures – The Nordic Case for Space [ENG]
Episode 20 – The Nordic Case for Space Ted Elvhage , founder of Rymdkapital and Expansion Ventures , joins us to talk spacetech, hardtech investing, and why Europe needs to catch up. From early bets like Pythom Space to advice for angel investors—this is a fast, sharp dive into one of hardtech’s most complex frontiers. Rymdkapital is a Sweden-based investment firm focused on early-stage spacetech
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EP 4 James Campion och TERASi: In i hjärtat av svensk deeptech
#4. In i hjärtat av svensk deeptech James Campion , grundare av TERASi, gästar podden och berättar hur det är att bygga ett deeptech-bolag i Sverige – med rötterna i forskning, blicken mot 6G och finansieringsgapet ständigt närvarande. Vi pratar om teknik, produkt, kapital och politik. Om att utveckla kommunikationssystem för nästa generations nätverk, och varför det ibland känns som att förklara
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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 21 Madelene Näslund: Business Region Gothenburg – Live from The Yard [ENG]
🤝 This episode is produced in collaboration with The Yard — a combined coworking space and machine hall for startups in Gothenburg. A unique workspace with industrial feeling. Check out their memberships or take a tour . Episode 21 – Gothenburg Rising: Where Legacy Meets Innovation Madelene Näslund from Business Region Gothenburg joins us to explore why the city is emerging as a leading Nordic har
LISTEN →Insights
ALL INSIGHTS →What we have learned about building, scaling and funding hard things in the Nordics.
INSIGHT The Hardtech Christmas List: What Nordic Founders Really Want
A December reflection on the unglamorous but essential conditions Nordic hardtech founders actually need to keep building.
READ →Print, Charge, Scale: Then Go Again
How Exeger's Giovanni Fili built a flexible solar cell platform and factory from scratch against the odds.
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.
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INSIGHT Now Launching: Nordic Hardtech
READ →
INSIGHT Norway Isn’t Loud. That Might Be Its Advantage.
A guest essay on why Norway's understated hardtech ecosystem in defence, robotics and energy is becoming strategically important.
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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 Building Before You Ask for Permission
Atonemo's founder explains how reduction, timing and restraint shape consumer hardware development.
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INSIGHT The Unscalable Edge: why hardtech wins by starting slow
Argues that hardtech's early, unscalable phase builds the real-world knowledge that later makes scale possible.
READ →
INSIGHT When policy becomes a product constraint
Industrial policy now shapes hardtech product decisions early, forcing founders to decide how much strategic control to trade for public support.
READ →Less is More: How Flic Pushed the Button on Scalable Hardware
How Flic turned a simple Bluetooth button into a profitable, VC-free global hardware business.
READ →Gothenburg Rising: where legacy meets innovation
An analysis of how Gothenburg's industrial legacy and collaborative culture are fueling its rise as a Nordic hardtech hub.
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 →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.