According to Sifted, Sweden’s AI-native startups have raised over €454 million across 28 deals so far in 2024, which is a massive jump from the €124 million they raised across 16 deals last year. The biggest drivers were multiple funding rounds from vibe coding leader Lovable, which secured $15 million in January and another $200 million in July, and legal tech startup Legora, which raised $80 million in May followed by $150 million in October. Project Europe, an accelerator backed by top European founders, has been actively investing in Swedish startups like Zellify and recently co-hosted a 20-hour hackathon in Stockholm with Lovable. Other notable fundraisers include AI research lab Tzafon with a $9.7 million pre-seed round in July and the “Chrome killer” browser Strawberry, which just raised $6 million from General Catalyst and EQT Ventures.
Sponsored content — provided for informational and promotional purposes.
The culture shift is real
Here’s the thing that really stands out: Sweden’s entrepreneurial culture has fundamentally transformed. Project Europe’s chief of staff Jade Yarrow notes there’s now a very big culture for young people to build great things, with role models proving you can build brilliant AI companies from within Europe. And she’s not wrong – we’re talking about a country that already produced Spotify, Klarna, and Voi. But the new generation isn’t just riding those coattails – they’re creating hacker houses where 19-year-olds can immerse themselves, and engineers from companies like Lovable might just pop in. That kind of informal mentorship and access is something Yarrow says you don’t really have in the same way in London.
What’s actually driving this boom?
Look, it’s not just about the money flowing in. Swedish AI companies took three of the top five spots on Sifted’s list of Europe’s fastest-growing agentic startups by headcount. Lovable, Legora, and knowledge platform Sana are all seeing staff numbers shoot up as funds and revenue continue to flow. The ecosystem has matured dramatically – Sara Landfors, CEO of AI agents startup Normain, compared it to her time at Stanford a decade ago and noted how much things have changed. Basically, Sweden has created this perfect storm: proven success stories, accessible role models, and a culture that encourages young people to skip traditional career paths and go straight into founding companies.
What this means for everyone else
So should the rest of Europe be worried? Maybe a little. Sweden is demonstrating that you don’t need to be in Silicon Valley to build world-changing AI companies. The fact that former Google DeepMind and Palantir employees are choosing to join small Swedish startups like Tzafon speaks volumes about the talent migration happening. And with Project Europe actively hunting for more Swedish investments, the funding pipeline shows no signs of slowing down. The real question is whether other European ecosystems can replicate this combination of youthful energy, proven success, and accessible mentorship. For now though, Sweden’s AI scene is basically the one to watch.
