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About
Niklas Zennström co-founded Skype and then built Atomico into one of Europe's largest venture firms, backing companies like Klarna, Supercell and Stripe from its London base. The Swedish entrepreneur remains Atomico's CEO and founding partner, and has spent two decades arguing that Europe can produce technology companies of global scale.
Contact· self-published, not guessed
Invests in
AI & Machine LearningConsumerEnterprise SoftwareFintechHealthtech
Beyond investing
- Founded
- Zennström co-founded the file-sharing service Kazaa with Janus Friis. Zennström co-founded the internet telephony provider Skype with Janus Friis. Zennström founded and was CEO of Joltid, a software company that developed traffic optimization technologies.
- Education
- Studied at Uppsala University (BSc, Business Administration) Studied at Uppsala University (MSc, Engineering Physics) Studied at University of Michigan
- Boards
- Zennström sits on the international advisory board of the Stockholm Resilience Centre. Zennström is a member of the Human Rights Watch committee in Sweden.
- Charities
- In 2007 Zennström and his wife Catherine established Zennström Philanthropies, a foundation focused on climate change and human rights. Zennström founded Race for the Baltic, a non-profit focused on environmental restoration of the Baltic Sea. In 2013 Zennström funded a visiting professorship in climate change leadership at Uppsala University.
- Awards
- Zennström was named one of Time magazine's 100 most influential people in 2006. He received the European Business Leaders Award for Entrepreneur of the Year, The Economist's Innovation Award, and Business Leader of the Year by European Voice in 2006. He was awarded the KTH Great Prize by the Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm in 2009. He received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Oxford Internet Institute in 2011. He was awarded H. M. The King's Medal by King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden in 2013. He was inducted into the Swedish Startup Hall of Fame in 2014. He was named Alumnus of the Year by Uppsala University in 2015. He received the Order of the Cross of Terra Mariana, 3rd Class.
- Hobbies
- Zennström is an avid sailor and owns the racing yacht Rán, with his team winning the Rolex Fastnet Race in 2009 and 2011 and TP52 class world championships.
- Family
- Zennström is married to Catherine Zennström.
Mentioned above: the Uppsala University mafia →
From published sources — common ground for a warm intro.
Founder & CEO at Skype
Intro paths
In turn, Niklas can intro founders to Skype's investors below.
Skype's investors · 11
Co-founders at Skype
Investments
Per curated public sources.
Podcasts & interviews
featuring Niklas ZennströmAtomico Presents: Coffee with OpenFX’s Prabhakar Reddy & Atomico’s Niklas Zennström
Atomico
Europe’s future GDP growth needs tech: Niklas Zennström, CEO at Atomico
Scaling-Europe
Niklas Zennström & James Anderson - Italian tech Week 2025
Italian Tech Week
Skype Founder Niklas Zennström on Founder Success Stories
TorontoStarts
Niklas Zennström on stage with Ilkka Paananen & Victoria van Lennep at London Tech Week 2025
Atomico
Niklas Zennström and Sebastian Siemiatkowski fireside chat at SXSW London 2025
Atomico
6 more appearances
- How to invest in your personal legacy | Niklas Zennström | TEDxWarwick2024-04-29
- Tech Reset: A Stronger Europe - (Atomico) Niklas Zennström | Slush 20222022-11-22
- 5 Niklas Zennström on Skype2019-10-18
- 11 Niklas Zennström – creator of Skype – on super powers2019-10-18
- 1 Niklas Zennström – creator of Skype – on youth entrepreneurship2019-10-18
- 10 Niklas Zennström – creator of Skype – on the good life2019-10-18
Colleagues at Atomico
Frequently asked questions
- Who is Niklas Zennström?
- Niklas Zennström co-founded Skype and then built Atomico into one of Europe's largest venture firms, backing companies like Klarna, Supercell and Stripe from its London base. The Swedish entrepreneur remains Atomico's CEO and founding partner, and has spent two decades arguing that Europe can produce technology companies of global scale.
- Where does Niklas Zennström work?
- Niklas Zennström is Founder & CEO of Skype and CEO & Founding Partner at Atomico.
- What does Niklas Zennström invest in?
- Niklas Zennström invests in AI & Machine Learning, Consumer, Enterprise Software, Fintech, Healthtech.
- What check size does Niklas Zennström write?
- Niklas Zennström typically writes checks of $5M – $15M.
- What companies did Niklas Zennström found?
- Niklas Zennström founded Skype.
- What companies has Niklas Zennström invested in?
- Investments tracked here include Andercore, Aries Global, Audos, Automile, Beekeeper, Cleo, DeepL, Eastnine, Farmdrop, Fon, Isometric, Jolicloud, and 20 more.
- What awards has Niklas Zennström received?
- Zennström was named one of Time magazine's 100 most influential people in 2006. He received the European Business Leaders Award for Entrepreneur of the Year, The Economist's Innovation Award, and Business Leader of the Year by European Voice in 2006. He was awarded the KTH Great Prize by the Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm in 2009. He received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Oxford Internet Institute in 2011. He was awarded H. M. The King's Medal by King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden in 2013. He was inducted into the Swedish Startup Hall of Fame in 2014.
- What podcasts and interviews feature Niklas Zennström?
- Tracked appearances include "Atomico Presents: Coffee with OpenFX’s Prabhakar Reddy & Atomico’s Niklas Zennström", "Europe’s future GDP growth needs tech: Niklas Zennström, CEO at Atomico", "Niklas Zennström & James Anderson - Italian tech Week 2025", and 9 more.
Founder mafias
Uppsala University mafia58
Also came through, then founded or led a company.
Atomico mafia16
Also came through, then founded or led a company.
About this profile. Compiled from public sources — Atomico's own website, press coverage and public professional profiles — and summarised by Fundraising Fox; every fact is kept with where it came from. Spotted an error, or would rather not be listed? Email privacy@fundraisingfox.com · How we build profiles · Your rights