Kista Deeptech Day showcases tech shaping Europe’s future

On the 8 of October 250 people, collectively building the backbone of European tech resilience, gathered in the Electrum building for Kista Deeptech Day. The event was organized by Impact Loop and Kista Limitless. It brought together people from across the deeptech ecosystem for discussions, networking, and technology demonstrations. And of course a private tour of the Electrum Laboratory.  

Across Europe, a new generation of deeptech companies is building the continent’s technological sovereignty and resilience. From AI infrastructure and advanced materials to medtech and next-generation connectivity.

As governments push to strengthen supply chains, the landscape is shifting fast, raising key questions for investors and founders. Where does Europe’s deeptech opportunity lie now, and what are the biggest hurdles? 

One key theme in discussions during the day was the importance of physical infrastructure in turning advanced ideas into real-world technologies and globally competitive companies. Another was funding solutions specifically tailored to the realities of building a deeptech company. 

The participants of the first discussion on stage was Giovanni Filli, CEO and founder of Exeger, and Edvard Kälvesten, CEO and founder of Silex Microsystems. For them, the importance of physical infrastructure was clear and undeniable.

“If it wasn’t for the Electrum Laboratory, Silex simply wouldn’t exist.” — Edvard Kälvesten, CEO and founder of Silex Microsystems.

Silex Microsystems began in the Kista-based Electrum laboratory, run through a collaboration between by KTH and RISE. For Exeger, whose production facilities are based in Kista, Fili recently highlighted the importance of this establishment in this article.

Tailored funding solutions and revenue-generating partnerships

Karin Edström, Founding Partner at Turbine Capital, Lena Sundquist, CEO of Kista-based Climeon, and Alex Basu, Manager of Wallenberg Investments took the stage next. They discussed the fact that deeptech needs years and significant capital before it can even be tested in the real world. Yet both are judged with the same capital models and timelines.

In dialogue with Sofia Persson Björk, site manager at Qamcom in Kista, Mala Valroy, with previous experience from Ericsson ONE and Industrifonden, predicted microfunds becoming an increasingly popular option for Swedish entrepreneurs operating in narrow niches.  

“The microfund’s strategy is super specialized, fast and agile. They are often better than larger competitors in offering their portfolio company the right type of support to progress.” — Mala Valroy, founder at Thursday VC.  

The participants also highlighted the value of bringing companies together to create new partnerships. Petter Bedoire, CTO of Saab, which already has an established collaboration with Kista based OHB Sweden, pointed to new opportunities discovered during the event.  

“I have met several interesting companies today that could be potential partners for Saab. It is clear that Kista has a lot going on.” — Petter Bedoire, CTO of Saab.

How places like Kista enable European technological sovereignty

From semiconductors to space technology, developing tomorrow’s critical technologies requires more than software ideas. It takes specialized physical infrastructure, technical expertise, and an ecosystem where research and industry can work together. As Europe looks to strengthen its technological capabilities, Kista has an important role to play.

“Investing in places like Kista is essential to ensuring Sweden can develop the solutions of tomorrow. We cannot vibecode satellites, semiconductors or other advanced technology. To build these systems we need physical infrastructure and environments where research can be turned into real-world applications.” — Elin Hammarberg, Marketing manager at Kista Limitless.

The people gathered at Electrumhuset demonstrated the value of bringing these perspectives together. Kista Deeptech Day connected established technology companies, emerging innovators and potential partners. This highlighted the foundations already in place to help turn advanced research into the technologies society will depend on tomorrow.