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Did you know that the greatest crowdsourcing story ever told was from the mining industry? And that NASA is crowdsourcing Jupiter?  Read on to find out the possibilities of crowdsourcing to accelerate innumerable processes. Crowdsourcing a gold mine In 1990, Rob McEwen took over a mining company called Gold Corp, which was failing to yield profit, despite his geologists telling …

Getting a high valuation for your startup is not the measure of success many founders believe it to be. Below, the different elements behind getting a good valuation are deconstructed. Books and lawyers can help entrepreneurs learn the art of negotiation, but when it comes to valuing a company, negotiation is only part of the equation. Many founders want a …

The World Economic Forum released its report on the Future of Jobs earlier this week, and several industries were highlighted as big winners in net job growth.  Artificial Intelligence was singled out as one of these future change drivers. The gist?  Artificial Intelligence (AI) is not the hydra-headed beast that demolishes jobs as it tramples on the global economy.  Nor …

Denmark has just been named the best place to start a business Europe. However, funnily enough the startup environment here is quite disconnected from the rest of Europe. Danish companies tend to expand either to other Nordic countries or go big and enter the US market. Why not enter other European countries? Even though Danish startup scene seems international, majority …

Investing in startups is not an easy job. As an investor, you are not only betting on a specific startup and team, but often on a market that doesn’t exist yet. Even the best team in the world is doomed to fail if it undertakes the wrong market.  The opposite is not always true. One of the biggest mistakes venture …

I am an organizer for Women in Technology International (WITI) in Sweden, a networking and support group for women working in all sectors of technology. Recently, while hosting a lunch for WITISweden it suddenly struck me: All the brilliant women that I continuously meet online and offline on a daily basis are smart, well educated and have an extensive CV …

Mike Hearn, one of the core developers of Bitcoin, recently wrote a Medium post in which he publicly announced that he will no longer be taking part in Bitcoin development and that “the bitcoin experiment has failed.” A New York Times article soon followed, and then countless other journalists joined in, echoing Hearn’s remarks without attempting to explain the highly …

Sean Percival,  serial entrepreneur and investor, has been in Norway for his project 500 Startups.  Through a $15 million Nordic fund, growth marketing programs, and an accelerator, 500 plans to bring Silicon Valley’s best practices to the Nordic region. Like it’s Nordic neighbors, Norway is famous for Janteloven.  Janteloven, or the Law of Jante, describes a set of social norms …

Crowdfunding is fun and exciting, but it also requires hard work and a bold attitude to go the extra mile. It cannot be overemphasized how important it is always to try new things, fail quickly, and learn from the mistakes so we can turn them into opportunities. Cautious optimism is an indispensable attitude when launching an equity crowdfunding campaign. Below …

If you’re following the Nordic startup ecosystem, then you’ll have heard of Startup Sauna, one of the regions top accelerators for promising early startups. But if you want to be one of the lucky chosen startups, here are 6 things you definitely need to avoid. Accelerators and incubators are often key players in helping startups prepare for their next steps …

Kristin Skogen Lund, director of the NHO, Norway’s leading business lobby, thinks Norwegians have been in the comfort zone for far too long, and that change in the workplace is necessary. “There are a lot of changes we are now facing, and everything is dependent on how we choose to tackle them.  We are in this epoch of change, and …

The Internet of Things (IoT) will change everything. Existing businesses will be disrupted and their business models will be changed forever. Here’s why. Put yourself in the shoes of Philips, consumer products manufacturer. Philips makes dishwashers. One day, they’re going to throw a sensor and wifi chip into the newest dishwasher model and call it a “smart” appliance. We’ll have …

2015 has seen an explosion in funding, interest in, and new product development around Artificial Intelligence. Facebook delivered M, Amazon gave us Echo, and Google launched TensorFlow, its open source machine learning library. A whole host of startups have also emerged, including x.ai, HyperScience, and Vicarious. There’s an interesting parallel to the web, circa 1998. At that time, tens of …

Leaders and politicians are constantly touting the need for more innovation.  But is more innovation really what we need? Innovation moves us forward – as individuals, groups, businesses, and perhaps as a nation and civilization. At the same time – innovation is not mundane. Innovation is or leads to change. Major innovations such as the steam engine and the mobile …

While many consider innovation to be the province of Silicon Valley and other high-tech centers in developed markets around the world, the reality is very different.  A look at where intellectual property is being created gives us some indication that we have to broaden our horizons when we look at new innovations. By Ajay Krishnan, Roger Edgley, and Laura Geritz …

Nicolaj Højer Nielsen has an impressive track record as both a serial entrepreneur and an investor in Denmark.  He has co-founded, among other businesses, CodeSealer and Sepior, and invested in many Danish startups, such as Penneo.  Read his crash course on how to get financing for your business in Denmark. I am often asked by both the Danish entrepreneurs and …

Entrepreneurship, Startup founding and investing in Startups is the best way to inject yourself with a steroid for meta-learning and self discovery. If you want to learn about yourself then you should definitely become an entrepreneur. Entrepreneurship and Startup Founding is a truth game. It shows what you are made of with all the warts and all. I am constantly …

Serial entrepreneur Paavo Beckman started his first company at 23, and has since come a long way.  15 years and 6 entertainment and tech companies later, Paavo has evolved into something of a specialist in his field. In mid December,Paavo gave advice for boostrapped marketing and other marketing and business hacks at an event held by Business Angels Copenhagen  and …

With the holiday season in full swing, crowdfunding campaigns can be great sources of gifts for the technology fanatics in our lives.  Here are 5 ongoing campaigns that make great holiday gifts. 1.Tiny Arcade Tiny Arcade makes the perfect gift for both the fan of vintage video game or the person with an interest in computer engineering. The arcade will come …

Atomico and Slush released a study,“The State of European Tech”, at Slush 2015. The study is the most comprehensive review to date carried out on the European tech community, its tech talent, capital flow, entrepreneurial mindset, and success stories. Niklas Zennström, CEO and co-founder of the investment firm Atomico, co-writers of the report,  spoke at Slush about the big changes …