Which is why Creative Destruction Lab (CDL) Estonia’s meet and greet event at Tartu College on June 12th was so valuable. It provided guidance and social interactions to demystify that process.
If you are someone with an invention or other marketable idea, it’s vital to meet others who have pursued or are currently pursuing this path, too. To trade notes. To analyze why certain products and services succeed. To compare approaches to obtaining investment and assembling a startup team. This is what CDL Estonia’s event provided.
Estonia is famous for its startup scene, having the highest number of startups per capita in Europe. And as KESKUS project lead Ellen Valter noted at the beginning of the event, Latitude 44 was proof of interest in tech industry cooperation between Estonia and Canada. But now, further interaction between these countries has been instigated. After being founded in Toronto in 2012, Creative Destruction Lab, which scales up science and tech-based companies, expanded to the city of Tartu in 2022.
Thus, they have connected back to Canada by coming to Tartu College in Toronto. Here, Marielle Voksepp, Managing Director of The Narwhal Project, moderated a “fireside chat” with Katheron Intson and Sten Tamkivi. Intson is a Canadian-Estonian and the founder of Varient, a health tech company. Tamkivi, conversely, is a Founding Partner of CDL Estonia and invests in early stage tech companies as a partner of Plural and Taavet+Sten.
As you can see, the event established a productive balance between those seeking investment and those who want to invest. No one was made to feel left behind during the conversation. The conversation was honest. Intson admitted her self-designation as a “reluctant entrepreneur”, committed to research for 10 years before she was encouraged to market her research as a product. In a University of Toronto pitch competition, she won non-dilutive financing (in the form of a grant), which, as she explained, means that no equity was given away and she retained ownership of her company.
Photo gallery
Photos by Peeter Põldre
Intson and Tamkivi informed the audience about the benefits of CDL’s programme, including how it is the “most respectful programme for an entrepreneur’s time”, when the pace of interactions with venture capitalists (VCs) can at times be slow and frustrating. Furthermore, Intson believes that everyone involved is “extremely smart, friendly, and want startups to succeed.”
Context was laid out for those who might have been less familiar with the accomplishments of Estonia’s tech industry. For instance, why is it that Estonia has so many unicorns—startups valued over 1 billion USD? Indeed, being a small, nimble country is part of the answer, but there is even more that could be said about this success, and getting involved in events like these answer many questions one might have.
One intriguing thought that was shared during the chat included Tamkivi’s comment that his time on the board of Vabamu (Museum of Occupations and Freedom) emphasized the importance of the startup scene in protecting Estonia’s freedom. He remarked how startups and their associated networks encourage the very freedoms that were lost during the occupations of Estonia.
In addition, Intson insisted that entrepreneurs need to be resourceful, that they and their startups need to be resilient, like “cockroaches”. With that, Marielle Voksepp reminded the audience that investors invest not in the idea, but the founder.
Finally, Maarika Merirand, a project manager at Tehnopol, announced a few key words that identified the startups and investors in the room and kicked off the second phase of the evening. Lively conversations and networking ensued.
If you missed out on the meet and greet this time around, sign up to Eesti Elu’s newsletter for updates on future events.
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This meet and greet was a collaboration between CDL Estonia, VEMU Estonian Museum Canada, KESKUS, the Estonian Central Council in Canada, the Estonian Embassy in Ottawa, Tehnopol, and Latitude 44.
