13 Stockholm Innovators To Watch Closely in 2025

Douglas Stark

If you're in Stockholm’s startup scene, you already know the name Douglas Stark. Known as the "Brain Man" (he even has a 3D-printed model of his own brain), Douglas Stark is the founder of Helsa, a startup working to develop tools aimed at early detection and prevention of cognitive decline and dementia. A graduate of the Stockholm School of Economics and co-founder of Voi Technology, Stark is no stranger to building high-growth companies. With Helsa gaining momentum, he is one of the most compelling figures to watch in 2025.

Charles Maddock

Charles Maddock is a serial founder with a sharp focus on building functional, user-driven products. As co-founder of Strawberry, a browser with built-in AI assistants that work alongside you on any website, Maddock has steadily grown a following through consistent development updates and product videos that continue to impress. Just three weeks ago, Strawberry was named Product of the Day on Product Hunt. Maddock is also a skilled communicator. At SIME 2025, moments before his segmment, he called on attendees who were snacking at the café to return to the auditorium: "People, I'm going up onto stage soon, you have to help me convince people to go into the auditorium!" Nearly 100 people followed him back in. Maddock’s mix of technical skill, instinctive showmanship and pure genius makes him one of the most watchable figures in Stockholm’s startup scene this year.

Helle Jeppsson

Helle Jeppson splits her time between Mexico City and Stockholm, a dual base that reflects the cross-continental scope of her work. She is the founder and CEO of Scape, Latin America’s leading on-demand wellness app. Scape allows users to book professional treatments like massages or facials directly to their homes within hours, it's no wonder why they're nicknamed as the "Uber of spas." The platform uses a tailored matching system to connect clients with vetted experts, streamlining a service that was previously fragmented and inconsistent. Scape has already secured 1.3 million dollars in funding from 12 investors across just one round. Jeppson brings Stockholm tech standards into one of the fastest-growing consumer markets in the world, and the results clearly speak for themselves.

Sebastian Thunman

Sebastian Thunman taught himself to code at 16 and launched his first tech startup before finishing high school. He later dropped out entirely to focus on his own projects, a decision that quickly proved right. He co-founded Catcher Games AB, which ran for nearly seven years and attracted more than 20,000 paying users across Europe and the US. He also earned a spot at the SSE Business Lab, joining a selective group of early-stage founders backed by one of Stockholm’s top institutions. Today, Thunman is co-founder and COO of Strawberry, the AI browser built with Charles Maddock. Given his track record and deep involvement in product and operations, it’s no surprise that Thunman is going to knock it out of the park in 2025.

Sara Boras

If there’s someone who understands how Stockholm’s startup ecosystem connects, it’s Sara Boras. She’s a member of Nova, the global invite-only network for top talent, and the co-founder of Creo, a platform that supports female founders through education, networking, and community; with a bachelor degree from both Lund University School of Economics and Management and studying an MSc at the Stockholm School of Economics, what Boras provides is the crème de la crème of knowledge. She’s also the brand and community manager of Founders House, arguably the most active Gen Z meeting point for emerging AI startups fostering unicorns. As young people shape the next wave of innovation in Sweden, Boras is positioned firmly at the center. Her influence is growing fast, and 2025 is likely to be a breakout year.

Fredrik Hjelm

Fredrik Hjelm began his career as a consultant at BCG but quickly realised the startup world was where he belonged. He’s now the founder of two of Stockholm’s biggest tech startups. As co-founder and CEO of Voi Technology, he’s led the electric scooter company to near ubiquity in Stockholm: if someone’s zipping by on a scooter, it’s likely Voi. The company continues to expand rapidly with a mission to make urban transport both more affordable and more sustainable. If this pace holds, it’s not far-fetched to imagine Voi becoming the standard in major cities worldwide. At the same time, Hjelm is also the founder and chairman of Guestit, a tech-driven hospitality management platform that reported over 200 million SEK in revenue in 2024. Managing one high-growth startup is a challenge. Running two, with this level of success, is something else entirely. Hjelm’s track record suggests that whatever comes next will be worth paying attention to. Watch this space.

Philip Andersson

Philip Andersson’s background reads like a blueprint for a modern technical founder. He studied Computer Science and Mathematics at Uppsala University and was a standout at Viaplay’s Hack Days, earning a reputation early on as an engineering prodigy. With industry experience going back to 2010, it wasn’t until January 2024 that he co-founded his first startup: skyffel, a control panel designed to streamline software delivery for engineering teams. The startup bug stuck. Andersson is now the CEO and co-founder of Bluebook, an AI accounting platform building intelligent agents for finance teams. Backed by EQT Ventures, Y Combinator, and high-profile investors from OpenAI, Eleven Labs, and Affirm, Bluebook has gathered serious momentum in just its first year. Philip Andersson already has over 6,000 followers on LinkedIn, and with the groundwork already laid, 2025 looks set to be a breakout year for Andersson.

Anton Osika

Anton Osika is no stranger to building. After a start in particle physics at CERN, he became the first engineer at Sana Labs, helping the company reach millions of learners and raise over $80 million. He then co-founded Depict.ai, where he scaled product recommendations to billions and secured $20 million in backing from top-tier investors. But it’s his latest venture, Lovable, that feels like the breakout moment: a platform that lets users build websites and apps by chatting with AI, an idea that hit the market at exactly the right time. In just six months, the company hit $50 million in ARR, yet the team barely mentioned it, focused instead on building the product they believe in. Osika calls it the perfect alignment of team, timing, and vision. As a founder, he’s known for spotting potential in both people and ideas, often before others do. With Lovable’s momentum and Osika’s track record, it gives you butterflies to imagine where they'll be at the end of 2025. When people talk about the city’s next generation of global leaders, Anton Osika’s name will be top of mind.

Elliot Evertsson Norrevik

When this publication launched, one of the first messages we received came from Elliot Evertsson Norrevik who works across engineering and growth at Lovable, asking if we were building the site with Lovable. He's 16. That moment captured exactly who he is: restless, curious, and already embedded in Stockholm’s startup scene. Having recently dropped out of high school, Norrevik is choosing to learn by building. He’s already exploring machine learning research, chasing technical rabbit holes that most don’t touch until university. But this isn’t new for him. At just 14, he launched his first startup Roster AI, a company which received national recognition for building custom AI chatbots for e-retailers. Since then, he’s built Finna, a solo project that proves serious competition with tools built by well-funded teams with decades of experience. For young founders looking for proof that age is just a number, Norrevik is it. He’s already shaping the next wave of Stockholm Valley and if his momentum continues, it’s not a question of if he’ll found his own unicorn, it’s when.

Andreas Åfeldt Franke

Andreas Åfeldt Franke is one of those rare founders whose resume reads like a checklist for high-impact leadership. He graduated top of his class at WHU doing an MBA, the German business school renowned for producing unicorn founders; and also holds an MSc in Management from the Stockholm School of Economics, another institution known for fostering startups. But his journey didn’t begin in business, it started in the Swedish Armed Forces, where he served as Quartermaster Lieutenant, managing 150 personnel and becoming the highest-ranking conscript during his 2006–2007 service. That early discipline and command experience set the tone and is evident across a career that spans multiple industries, leadership roles, and ambitious projects. Now, he’s channeling all of that into his latest venture: Telgea, a global connectivity startup launched in 2025. As Founder and CEO, Franke is building a service that provides business mobile plans for companies operating across borders, keeping international teams connected in over 190 countries, whether they’re early-stage startups or major multinationals. Telgea may have just launched, but with Franke at the helm, it won’t fly under the radar for long. Expect to see his name regularly from 2025 onwards.

Herman Båverud Olsson

It is rare to come across such a dedicated and talented leader as Herman Båverud Olsson. With a background in finance and a résumé that sets the bar high, he is a name that continues to carry weight in Stockholm’s fintech and insurtech circles. A graduate of the Stockholm School of Economics, his early career included time at Nordea and Morgan Stanley, where he developed a deep focus on insurance, a thread that would become central to his future work such as his a key role on the management team at Lassie, the world’s first preventive pet insurance and wellness companion. Under his leadership, the company scaled to over 150,000 customers, raised €37 million, and earned recognition as the 6th fastest growing fintech in Europe. With a track record like this, the obvious question is what’s next? Olsson appears to be working in stealth and is yet to reveal his next move, but whatever it is, 2025 is likely to be another defining year for him.

Daniel Alestrand

Still only 19, Daniel Alestrand has been making his presence felt in global startup corridors long before graduation. Recognised as the top business student regionally 2023 and serving as head boy, Alestrand stood out not just in the classroom but through an early academic routine that included weekly travel to attend seminars at Cambridge, Oxford, and LSE, as well as bimonthly visits to Stockholm School of Economics. At 18, he became the youngest person in Europe to deliver a university seminar, and now regularly guest lectures for SSE Executive Education in Campus Kämpasten. His startup journey began unusually early. At 12, he founded his first startup, a venture that still generates revenue. At 15, he reverse-engineered Instagram’s algorithm and published a dissertation that helped users reach an average of 1 million views per post and 30 million impressions monthly. Now working in stealth on a MedTech startup he co-founded, he’s entering the next phase of his entrepreneurial path with international experience, a track record of self-starting, and an eye on impact. Alestrand has also explored creative approaches to sustainability. One project, an exhibition rethinking the role of weeds in society, was picked up by the Royal Horticultural Society and featured at the Hampton Court Garden Festival. With business school on the horizon this autumn, Alestrand is just getting started.

Harry Stamatoukos

With a CV anchored in serious technical experience, Harry Stamatoukos is exactly where he belongs in the heart of Stockholm Valley. He’s already begun making a name for himself in the city’s growing tech circuit, last year guest lecturing at IHM Business School on the subject of data science. In September 2024, Stamatoukos co-founded Pancake AI, where he now serves as CEO. The startup builds AI agents that help companies extract real meaning from their customer feedback, processing thousands of user comments every month both qualitatively and quantitatively, to uncover insights more efficiently and effectively. Pancake AI has already raised over $150,000 in funding and continues to scale steadily backed by Antler and Almi. Beyond the product, Stamatoukos is known for putting in the work to expand his network. Just last month, he spent two days in Oslo doing just that, and is now headed to San Francisco to connect with other founders and AI innovators. Still early in his founder journey, Stamatoukos is clearly building momentum. His trajectory in 2025 is one to watch closely.