As we soon close the chapter on 2024, we wanted to take a moment to reflect on another incredible year at Wave.

From backing the most exceptional young founders to expanding into Estonia to hosting inspiring events for the community, 2024 has truly been one for the books. Here are some highlights from one of our most active years yet:

#1 One of the most active VCs in the Nordics

This year, we were proud to welcome 12 new teams to our portfolio, including companies like Vetnio, Calectra, Andon Labs (formerly Vectorview) and Daze. These exceptional teams represent the ambitious next generation of Nordic and Baltic entrepreneurship, and we're honored to back them on their journey.

(And we're not done yet! Some exciting investment announcements are still under wraps, so stay tuned and follow us on LinkedIn for the big reveals).

#2 Portfolio Success

In 2024, our portfolio companies reached significant funding milestones!

Despite the challenging funding environment, we helped our founders to secure more funding after or with us from exceptional VCs and angels from the Nordics and Europe. Over the past year, in total of eight teams from Wave II secured additional funding rounds.

It’s amazing to see the growing excitement towards these young teams not just in the Nordics and Baltics but also globally. We’re extremely proud of our portfolio and their progress so far!

#3 Expansion to Estonia and team growth

In April, we strengthened our presence in the Baltics by welcoming Tiffany Tuisk as our new investor in Estonia. At the same time, we bid a bittersweet farewell to Erik Kymäläinen, Lauri Lahtinen, and Aleksi Päkkilä, whose contributions helped make Wave into what it is today.

Our current team spans three countries and includes seven incredible members:

Antonia Eneh, Zechen Ma, Joona Puuro, and Emma Kettunen in Finland
Bror Nordström and Elis Hodzic in Sweden
Tiffany Tuisk in Estonia

#4 Welcoming Antonia Eneh as our new CEO

2024 also marked a new chapter as Antonia took the helm as CEO of Wave Ventures, after Erik moved on to new challenges. Get to know her better and read more about her plans in our earlier blog post here.

*Erik Kymäläinen, former CEO of Wave Ventures (left), and newly appointed CEO, Antonia Eneh (right).*

#5 A year full of inspiring events

From mingles to major conferences, our collaboration with founders, investors and other ecosystem players reached new levels this year.

Here are some highlights of the events we hosted:

Young Entrepreneurs Mingle in Stockholm with Nova & Cherry Ventures
YC Demo Day – Stream & Mingle in Stockholm with Maki.vc
Young Entrepreneurs Afterwork in Helsinki with Silta & Maki.vc

During Slush Week, we also hosted the second “Young Founders x Funders Breakfast” with General Catalyst to bring together the most promising young Nordic founders and leading global VCs. On Slush’s Investor Day, we also partnered with ByFounders to host a relaxed Investor Rooftop Lounge at the Cable Factory.

Thanks to all co-organizers and participants for making these events a success - we can’t wait to do it all again next year!

#6 Ecosystem Activity

This year, we’ve also been an active player in the startup ecosystem at home and abroad!

In January, our team visited South Korea and Japan to share insights on what and (who) is coming next from the Nordics. During the trip, we met with over 40 local VCs and key ecosystem players. The visit was an important step in strengthening our network in Asia and showcasing Nordic innovation on a global stage.

In November, Elis from our team co-organized the Velocity Fellows 2024 trip, helping Sweden's top young entrepreneurs spend a game-changing week in Silicon Valley and connect with global leaders.

We also made an appearance on the international stage and participated in many exciting conferences:

Erik participated in a panel at SushiTech Tokyo in Japan
Elis took the stage at Slush’D Busan in Korea
Joona shared insights about Wave at the EU-LAC Innovation Conference in Bogotá and attended the Columbia Tech Week
Tiffany hosted stages at the WVC:E Summit in Paris
Zechen attended the WISE Conference in Geneva, hosted by the World Federation of United Nations Associations (WFUNA)
Closer to home, Tiffany, Emma, Elis, and Zechen represented Wave at the Tech BBQ in Copenhagen
The entire team came together for Slush in Helsinki

*Zechen at the WISE Conference in Geneva.*

*Joona at the EU-LAC Innovation Conference in Bogotá.*

#7 Wave & the portfolio in media

2024 has been a year in the spotlight for Wave and our portfolio!

In November, Kauppalehti wrote an exciting piece about our CEO Antonia and her vision for Wave (read the article here). Antonia also made a primetime appearance on YLE TV1's Arto Nyberg Show during Slush Week (watch it here).

Our portfolio companies also kept the momentum going:

Vetnio was recently featured in Breakit
Synergi was featured in Kauppalehti and Talouselämä
Paebbl’s latest funding round was highlighted in Helsingin Sanomat. In addition, the company was mentioned on WIRED’s “Top 10 Hottest Startups in Helsinki”
Volta Greentech featured in Dagens Industri
Ambio earned a spot on Sifted’s list of “Nordic early-stage startups to watch - according to investors”
Helsingin Sanomat and YLE interviewed Robes Rental’s CEO Anna Sillanpää
Inven and Synergi featured among the “10 Promising startups you must keep an eye on in 2024” by EU-Startups

As we wrap up a busy year, the absolute highlight has been the privilege of working with some of the most amazing builders fearlessly tackling the challenges of our time.

A huge thank you to everyone who has been part of our journey this year! 2025 will be even more exciting, so be sure to follow us on LinkedIn, Instagram, and X to stay in the loop!

2024 Year in Review