Alex Norstrom

We are proud to partner with BHG Group BHG is one of the Nordic region's largest e-commerce groups, and they're going all-in on AI to transform how millions of people shop online. We're thrilled to be the partner they've chosen to make it happen. Together, we are already delivering; 1/ Digital product advisors, first version already live 2/ AI agents in customer service that scale seamlessly as volumes grow, first agents already live 3/ Smarter internal processes powered by BHG's rich data And a couple more things in the making 😎 As BHG's CEO Gustaf Öhrn puts it, AI is a strategic enabler to drive growth and efficiency. https://lnkd.in/dKpaKXMA Also check out Alexander Ljung's overview of one of these initaitives here: https://lnkd.in/d2kEhAag We are looking forward to what we will achieve together.

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Help me celebrate these two AI gurus! 🚀 This one isn’t about a feature release. It’s about the two tech magicians behind it: Morten and Mathias. Since our public Zuzana AI launch, they’ve shipped: 🌍 Language Mode 📞 Voice 📩 Instagram (DM + Comments) 🧠 A new and improved helpdesk — with AI everywhere Not as disconnected add-ons. But as extensions of the same core system. ⚡️ Language Mode lets teams respond in any language — without hiring locally. ⚡️ Voice brings structured call flows into the same shared AI brain. ⚡️ Instagram pulls DMs into the exact same operational layer as email and chat. 💖 And the helpdesk ties it all together — AI-assisted replies, full context awareness, smarter automation. Now they’re building the next layer: Deeper cross-channel insights. Not just answering tickets — but understanding patterns across them. Where friction happens. Where volume spikes. Where automation creates real leverage. The ambition isn’t “more channels.” It’s one central source of truth. One shared memory. One orchestration layer across everything. AI for repetition. Humans for empathy. Proud is an understatement. 🤩

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This week we held an Extra General Meeting at Lime Technologies related to stock buy-back. During the discussion, our chairman, the entrepreneur, leader and investor Erik Syrén from Monterro was asked about the threat of AI to software companies. His answer stuck with me. Over the years, software has been declared “dead” many times. First the shift from on-premise software to the cloud. Then the rise of SaaS. Then mobile reshaped how software was used. Then platforms and API ecosystems changed how software was built. And now, it’s AI. Erik’s perspective was simple: “In B2B software, about 20% is the technology. The rest is understanding customer problems, building trust, earning distribution, and developing the deep domain expertise and relationships that make customers stay for years.” That’s the part that takes years to build. And the part that’s hardest to disrupt. AI doesn’t change that foundation. What it does create is a massive opportunity for software companies to work smarter, move faster, and deliver even more value. The key is to lean in and adapt it to your product, your ways of working, and your customers. For companies with a proven go-to-market, strong customer relationships, and raving fans, AI is a massive opportunity to create even more value. Not less. This shift won’t replace great software companies. But, it will reward the ones that adapt the fastest and smartest. (image from when me and Erik joined Software Talks a couple of years ago)

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I’m excited to be attending SaaStanak this year. For this year’s founders workshop, I’ll be building on the fundamentals—how to distinguish A-players from B-players, effective interviewing techniques, and more—while shifting the focus toward a key question: How do you hire in the AI era? We’ll cover: - How to assess AI fluency through the right questions, case studies, and benchmarkable metrics - And how to adapt hiring practices as AI reshapes roles and expectations Also really looking forward to catching up with Leonard Eldić, Christopher Gannon, Igor Kranjčec, Faris Sehovic, Andrija S.—and many more. See you in Croatia! SaaStanak

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This is what our customers are increasingly looking for: combinations of full-stack developers, business process specialists, and architects super-powered by fluid use of AI tools. We call them Fullstack Builders. Are you one?

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We benchmarked our own transcription tool against Fathom on Swedish technical interviews. Here's the result. Full disclosure: we build Kretsia. So take this with the skepticism it deserves, and then go run the test yourself (more on that at the end). We picked Swedish technical interviews because they're a stress test most AI notetakers fail quietly. Swedish IT pros code-switch constantly, a sentence about incident response will mix Swedish grammar with English terms like KQL, base64, Defender for Endpoint, traceroute, and Advanced Hunting. If a notetaker can't handle that, recruiters end up grading candidates from transcripts that don't reflect what was said. We measured exact-match accuracy on 21 critical IT terms across the same audio. → Fathom: 15% → Kretsia: 85% A few things stood out beyond the headline number: Fathom phoneticized English technical terms into Swedish nonsense. Kretsia kept them intact. In one segment, Fathom replaced an entire sentence about security awareness training with "tillbaka tillbaka tillbaka tillbaka tillbaka." Kretsia didn't fabricate anything in the sample. Domain-term error rate dropped from 86% to 19% — roughly an 80% reduction. Where we wouldn't pitch Kretsia: if you're running English-only interviews, Fathom is a polished, fast tool and probably the right choice. Our claim is narrower: for Swedish interviews, the accuracy gap matters enough to change hiring outcomes. A recruiter grading a candidate from a transcript that invented sentences is a problem we think the industry hasn't taken seriously enough. If you want the full results, methodology, the 21 terms, the raw transcripts, let us know and we'll send them over. And if you'd rather skip our word for it: visit kretsia.com to run your own benchmark against whatever transcription tool you currently use. That's the test that actually matters.

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Great work by the team at Tradera 🚀 We are opening up for anyone to come up with innovate solutions within circular commerce, accelerating the shift towards more sustainable shopping 🌏

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YES!!! Marcus Persson and Nils Nygren Liljenstrand are the archetype of founders we love to back at Connect: ultra-focused on value and customer needs, seeking unsolved problems in large markets, high-velocity, product-obsessed. And, yes, AI native 😇 Zellify is tackling an underserved problem at the intersection of consumer subscriptions and performance marketing: the data and infrastructure layer that tells you whether your marketing actually works. Kudos to my partner Sitar Teli for building high conviction and move fast in a high pace round dynamics. Also very cool doing this with Kieran Hill Project Europe

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I ordered these 2 must-have new books on programmatic M&A I can’t wait to read: - 'The Compounders', by Oddbjørn Dybvad, Kjetil Nyland, Adnan Hadziefendic. The trio works at REQ, a Norwegian investment firm which already authored one of the main pieces of research on public serial acquirers. The book focuses on the outlier companies, mostly Swedish, that grow by M&A, play with a decentralized structure, and apply capital discipline to generate mind-blowing returns. Spoilers: Bergman & Beving has compounded 7,500× and HEICO 1,100×! - 'How to Make a Billion in 9 Steps'. The title reminds me of 'How to Make a Few Billion Dollars', published last year by the American rollup master Brad Jacobs, but this time it collects the wisdom of Richard Harpin. Harpin co-founded HomeServe UK in England in the 90s, one of the biggest success cases of trades rollup, that grew not only by acquisitions but also by changing the rules of the game: from one-off pipe-leaking repairs to becoming an insurance broker. The company was recently taken private by Brookfield in a deal worth £4.1B! Both models, the Swedish compounders and trades rollups like HomeServe, are a big inspiration for what’s cooking on my side. Stay tuned and enjoy the read! (Book links in the comments)

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🚀 This is the most impressive AI video model we’ve tested yet We’ve been exploring Veo 3 at Flickbloom, and the results so far are nothing short of incredible, for fast prototyping, storytelling, and visual ideation. 💡 Why it matters to us at Flickbloom At Flickbloom, we’re building a content creation platform designed for fast-moving creative teams where short-form video, motion, and visual storytelling come together. Our mission is to make the creative process smoother, faster, and more collaborative. To help creators prototype ideas and bring concepts to life quickly, we have integrated Veo 3 directly into our platform. This allows users to generate high-quality video drafts from text prompts within minutes, streamlining ideation and accelerating the creative workflow without needing expensive or time-consuming production. It’s not about replacing human creativity. It’s about accelerating it. 🎬 One of the first prompts we tried was: “A lone traveler walks through a neon-lit city at night, rain reflecting vibrant lights on the street. The camera follows with a slow dolly-in as the traveler stops to look up at a massive digital billboard showing a countdown. Cinematic, Blade Runner-inspired visuals.” Within minutes, we had a short clip that looked like it belonged in a sci-fi trailer. It was moody, atmospheric, and visually polished. It’s incredible how quickly a simple idea can be brought to life with the right tools. 🎨 What we loved: Stunning visual fidelity and motion Natural camera movement The ability to translate abstract ideas into visual drafts within minutes A clear step forward from previous video models 🤔 What we’re thinking ahead: Veo 3 might not be ready to fully replace high-end production just yet. But it’s already changing the way we brainstorm and pitch. The future of creative workflows is hybrid. AI like Veo is making it faster, more accessible, and surprisingly intuitive. If you work in content creation, design, or media, this is definitely something worth keeping an eye on. 🙏 Special thanks to Vibha Kurpad, Earnest McDaniel and the Veo 3 team for approving us onto the allowlist. This opportunity has been invaluable for us to experiment and push the boundaries of what’s possible with generative video AI. 📖 Read the full article here: https://lnkd.in/gXK6-aNW #AI #Veo3 #ContentCreation #Flickbloom #VideoAI #GenerativeAI #Creativity

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Marketing Danish Games? This is for you! 🙌 Together with some talented marketing professionals, we’ve launched a new network dedicated to the Danish game industry: Infinite Hype! ✨ Providing a professional platform for game marketers to connect, share knowledge, and develop talent is crucial for our industry. Better marketing not only strengthens our local community but also helps Danish games thrive internationally. I can’t wait to see the impact this will have. One of Games Denmark’s core missions is building "Networks of Disciplines" -professionalizing and elevating the many crafts within game development. We are incredibly proud to help make this network a reality.

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So much has happened in so little time and lots of positive and sentimental thoughts. We organised a mini-conference to give back to local game development community in our home town in cooperation with Business Oulu and IGDA Finland Oulu hub. And it was a smashing success. 92/100 when the average using the same portal for feedback average at 82/100 (and the only neutral feedback dropping the average also left a note: "I could not arrive due sudden schedule change on my side."). There, and in the Investor Event last week, we've opened 5 new talks with investors helping boost our growth. So after Labour Day it feels great to go towards a new work week. Future has been in my mind beyond my own company as I also participated in discussions of the future of Finnish game industry in Helsinki for two days. Those two events brought also sadness to my mind as my home town used to have answers to what seems to be most lacking in Finland at the moment. The award-winning incubator model that run in Oulu 2012-2020 did exactly what were seen as biggest shortages by Finnish Game Educators Meetup and Neogames workshop for boosting Finnish game industry. Now companies operating here need to have plans how to grow elsewhere, because Oulu went from having a great answer for future growth and a incubator model that was selected as best in the world back in 2017, to having no solutions for growth.

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🇸🇪 Stockholm-based AI startup Agaton has raised $10m in seed funding to scale its agentic AI platform that transforms customer conversations into revenue intelligence for sales and service teams. Co-led by Inception Fund and Alstin Capital, the round included participation from seed + speed Ventures and Foundry ventures. Angel investors joined as well, including Silo AI CEO Peter Sarlin and HubSpot CMO Kieran Flanagan, who invested as a Sequoia scout. Founded in 2024 by CEO Andreas Kullberg and co-founder John Kristensen, Agaton analyses customer interactions in real time to detect buying intent, sentiment shifts, and churn risk, translating these signals into recommended next actions for frontline teams. The company has already signed millions in ARR within its first year. 🚀 Platform analyses customer conversations in real time to detect buying intent and churn risk 🚀 Co-led by Inception Fund and Alstin Capital, with participation from Seed+speed Ventures and Foundry Ventures 🚀 Angel investors include Silo AI CEO Peter Sarlin and HubSpot CMO Kieran Flanagan 🚀 Capital will fund AI capability expansion, go-to-market acceleration, and international growth 🚀 Company has signed millions in ARR within one year of founding Erik Lindblad at Inception Fund and Benjamin Kleinschnitz at Alstin Capital both highlighted the immediate, measurable impact of Agaton's platform on enterprise revenue and retention. – 👀 Follow aulium for more insights and interviews on Innovation & Private Capital ☄️ aulium is made possible thanks to Influences LoanTube (FT1000 2026 Laureate) #ai #agentic #seed #funding #venturecapital #sales #revenueoperations #stockholm #sweden

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In a startup world obsessed with blitzscaling and billion-dollar valuations, Henrik Werdelin's new venture, Audos, takes a different path - one that might be quieter, but no less ambitious. Rather than chase a few unicorns, Audos aims to help everyday people build hundreds of thousands of AI-enabled, revenue-generating businesses that may never raise venture capital, never IPO, and never appear on a leaderboard. Annndddd yet...they might do something more meaningful: change the economic trajectory of the people building them. Audos is offering infrastructure:tools, guidance, distribution, and early capital - all shaped by AI, but built on a very human insight. Their model is clear: no equity, no cap tables, no pitching. Instead, a 15% ongoing revenue share — a cut that mirrors app store fees, and that some might question over the long haul but for others, it’s a bridge where no other funding exists. Is it perfect? No. Is it repeatable? Possibly. Is it timely? Absolutely. In a year where the labor market is shifting, AI tools are proliferating, and people are increasingly asking, “What else could I build?” — Audos offers a compelling, if unconventional, answer. It may not create the next Google. But it might help create the next generation of self-sustaining, AI-augmented small businesses. And in 2025, that might be the more radical idea. #smes #SmallBusiness #venturecapital #Startup #AI #ProductThinking #tech #Donkeycorns #funding LinkedIn News

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What makes the Stockholm tech ecosystem strong? Diversity and Collision. Of thought, ideas, challenges, people and technologies. As we cheer on our fellow entrepreneurs and celebrate funding rounds, I want to shine a light on other changemakers and trailblazers who are changing the world forever. Today at Epicenter Stockholm we’re having one of the most incredible experiences at Immersive North. People have flown in from all over the world and we’re going on a hands-on journey with the next generation of AI, XR and Immersive Technologies. I’m blown away! 🔥 With speakers from Meta Ericsson, UnitedXR Europe, 3D Interactive STHLM AB, SKUGGA Technology AB, Spherical , Helsingborgs stad, GöteborgsOperan AB , Gleechi Technology Mimer AI Factory Globalyx , Epicz lab PICO XR - to mention a few. Well done Albert Bengtson and Immersive Sweden for making this possible! 🇸🇪 🇪🇺

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📣 We've backed Zellify to lead their €3.1M seed round. 🚀 Marcus Persson and Nils Nygren Liljenstrand are exactly the type of founders we back at Connect: high-velocity, product-obsessed, and relentlessly focused on their customers. Only 20 years old, they're childhood best friends who've been building together since their early teens. Last summer, they launched Zellify and have already turned a €200K investment into close to $10M in GMV, with customers like Lifesum, Opal, Blinkist, and Teknasyon. Zellify is building the data network that powers the next wave of consumer growth, starting with an initial product that gives consumer app developers full attribution and a route around Apple and Google's app store fees, no engineering resources required. We're excited to back Marcus and Nils alongside our friends Project Europe Dreamcraft Ventures, Inovia Capital,FJ Labs, Ventures Together, Chris Mairs CBE, Sebastian Knutsson, Fredrik Hjelm, Jaroslav Beck, Johannes Schildt, and others. Full story here👇 https://lnkd.in/e6VaAVYm

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Is Legora the fastest growing YC company of all time? From Seed to Series C in 18 months 🚀 Legora is a prime example of what we're seeing in the Nordics right now: Companies that package the capabilities of AI and solve real problems for very specific customers. We're in the era of AI application. And it's just getting started.

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A few stats on Swedish startup/scaleup equity funding in 2025, based on data I track through my database (data includes selected unannounced rounds). • Total 2025 equity funding raised was SEK32.3B (€3B, $3.5B), slightly beating 2024 (SEK31B) • 50 rounds were SEK100M or larger, representing 6.4% of the total amount, down from 59 in 2024 • Energy was the top sector again, totaling SEK5.4B in funding raised – down from SEK9.2B in 2024 • 28.4% of the total funding in 2025 went to AI-native startups – up from 3.4% in 2024 • The share of funding raised by tech startups with at least one female founder dropped to only 9.6%, down from 23.3% in 2024. However, the share of individual funding rounds only decreased slightly year-over-year, from 22.5% in 2024 to 19.5% in 2025. The relatively high 2024 share in terms of total amount was mostly due to a few startups with female founders raising relatively large amounts. • 60 rounds raised in 2025 were labeled pre-seed and 34 seed, vs 48 pre-seed and 41 seed in 2024. I will post a few charts in tomorrow's Swedish Tech Weekly newsletter; Swedish Tech News PRO subscribers have year-round access to updated statistics and charts. Disclaimer: while I try my best, there's no guarantee for accuracy, and figures may differ from other data providers (though mine are probably more often than not based on more complete data, since I spend many hours daily curating this, manually, fully focused on Sweden only).

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