Norrsken starts in Tallinn with key hires
"That’s the team I want to work with.”
Siim Teller joined the Norrsken Evolve team in Tallinn as a venture partner, and Merit Vislapu as a platform and operations associate.
Sweden’s Norrsken Evolve is a pre-seed fund investing in startups that are redefining ‘how we generate energy, rebuild manufacturing, move goods, construct buildings, produce food, treat our sick, secure our information, protect democracy, and safeguard our societies from climate disruption’.
Aside from the €250K equity investment, it also provides founders with an in-person sprint and support through its vast network.
Teller, who will continue to run his investment firm Lemonade Stand independently, spoke to FOMO.Observer about the Norrsken move.
“I didn’t have to join Norrsken, I wanted to,” he explains. “I’ve known Rebecka Löthman Rydå, one of the partners, for years now, and I got to know the other partners during the last year.”
“It’s just the combination of the mission of both the Norrsken Foundation and Norrsken Evolve, in terms of the impact, and impact they want to invest into - I feel like the stuff I can learn from everybody was the reason to say yes - that’s the team I want to work with.”
Norrsken currently has one Estonian company in its portfolio, Jälle Technologies. The startup is transforming used batteries into reusable and sustainable metals and graphene-like materials.
“My goal is to make sure that’s not the last one,” says Teller, “but rather we make three new investments in Estonia in a year. And by being the face of Norrsken in Estonia and in the Baltics, I also hope to inspire new founders to take the leap.”
“The lack of new founders, not just in impact, but everywhere, has been a challenge [for our ecosystems]. Showing that there’s one more specialised, dedicated fund - I hope it inspires more people to take the risk and start something new, and solve a problem that matters for sustainability or resilience,” he adds.
With no fixed abode for now, future plans include Norrsken being a mainstay in the Kasvuhoone — the dedicated space for startups, co-working, and the Norrsken Accelerator — being built in the Krulli neighbourhood in North Tallinn.