Podcast
Scaling Europe
Hosted by Sebastian Johnson · ENGLISH
Every week Seb Johnson sits down with 5 of Europe's best builders and investors to talk about what's going on in European Tech.
Prior guests include the founders of Lovable, Cleo, Voi an Zilch, as well as top VCs from 20VC, Index, Balderton and Creandum.
230episodes
Episodes
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Srdjan Kovacevic, CEO & Co-Founder of Orqa: Building leading drone hardware in Europe
3d ago00:23:59Tap to summarizeOrqa is a Croatian company that designs and manufactures drones, components and ground stations entirely in Europe, a rare setup in an industry that mostly relies on China. Orqa now builds primarily for defence customers across NATO and the West, and shipped 250,000 products last year, a number it's on track to double in 2026.Srdjan Kovacevic is CEO and Co-Founder of Orqa. He believes most Western militaries aren't ready for drone warfare yet, and that needs to change fast.The Scaling Europe show is presented by Deel. Check them out here: https://get.deel.com/ruynb7o4lfjkSponsors:Chargebee: https://www.chargebee.com/events/beelieve/london/2026SurrealDB: https://surrealdb.com/Airwallex: https://www.airwallex.com/uk?utm_source=other&utm_medium=partner_referral&utm_campaign=v01_emea_multi_ib_dg_prtmk_mofu_scalingeuropeLovable: https://lovable.dev/Timestamps:0:00 - Introduction0:15 - What Orqa builds1:07 - Why Orqa set out to build Europe's answer to Chinese drone brands2:36 - Why Orqa builds everything in Europe5:03 - Orqa's current production scale6:41 - How the war in Ukraine pulled Orqa into defence8:05 - Why Orqa builds for NATO's future needs, not Ukraine's immediate ones10:19 - Orqa's production numbers: 250,000 products shipped last year13:16 - Orqa's biggest supply chain bottleneck15:40 - Why the AI boom is causing a new chip shortage for Orqa19:10 - Ukraine's drone warfare numbers20:36 - How drone warfare has transformed the battlefield
Transcribe →Shahriar Tajbakhsh, Co-founder & CTO of Metaview: BREAKING: Metaview acquired Reval
6d ago00:20:55Tap to summarizeMetaview just acquired Reval, a recruiting agency built to run entirely on AI. The deal brings more talent and technology into Fillmore, Metaview's AI recruiting co-worker. Metaview's platform is already used by more than 5,000 companies, and Fillmore works by researching, sourcing and reaching out to candidates without any human involvement.Shahriar Tajbakhsh is Co-founder and CTO of Metaview. He expects Metaview to become the single platform for end-to-end hiring within a year, handling everything from a company opening a role to someone being hired.The Scaling Europe show is presented by Deel. Check them out here: https://get.deel.com/ruynb7o4lfjkSponsors:Chargebee: https://www.chargebee.com/events/beelieve/london/2026SurrealDB: https://surrealdb.com/Airwallex: https://www.airwallex.com/uk?utm_source=other&utm_medium=partner_referral&utm_campaign=v01_emea_multi_ib_dg_prtmk_mofu_scalingeuropeLovable: https://lovable.dev/Timestamps:0:00 - Introduction0:12 - Metaview's AI-first approach to recruiting1:07 - Metaview's traction across more than 5,000 companies2:10 - What Fillmore is and how it works6:22 - Why Metaview built Fillmore as a co-worker, not an agent8:08 - Fillmore's early results since its soft launch12:24 - Why Metaview acquired Reval14:14 - How the Reval and Metaview teams came together15:39 - How mission-aligned teams speed up Metaview's hiring20:02 - What success looks like for the Reval acquisition
Transcribe →Ameera Patel, CEO at TidalSense: TidalSense diagnoses lung disease in under 4 minutes
1w ago00:16:47Tap to summarizeTidalSense has built a handheld device that diagnoses COPD, a common lung disease, in under four minutes. It's already used across the NHS and has drawn interest from more than 60 countries since launching last year. The Cambridge-based company just raised $19m to expand into new markets.Ameera Patel is CEO of TidalSense. She believes what matters most to healthcare providers is a better patient experience and more efficient care.The Scaling Europe show is presented by Deel. Check them out here: https://get.deel.com/ruynb7o4lfjkSponsors:Chargebee: https://www.chargebee.com/events/beelieve/london/2026SurrealDB: https://surrealdb.com/Airwallex: https://www.airwallex.com/uk?utm_source=other&utm_medium=partner_referral&utm_campaign=v01_emea_multi_ib_dg_prtmk_mofu_scalingeuropeLovable: https://lovable.dev/Timestamps:0:00 - Introduction0:19 - TidalSense's $19m round and what problem it solves1:08 - Why the standard diagnostic test hasn't changed since the 1800s2:44 - What TidalSense has built3:35 - TidalSense's rollout across the NHS4:21 - The demand TidalSense has seen since launching5:16 - Ameera's personal journey to founding TidalSense9:48 - Inside TidalSense's $19m round and its lead investor12:02 - TidalSense's plans to expand into the US and China14:47 - TidalSense's biggest bottleneck right now15:59 - What's needed for TidalSense's next raise
Transcribe →Zaya Kadyrova, Co-Founder and Managing Partner at Aspire11: Unlocking Europe's pension money for tech growth
2w ago00:22:37Tap to summarizeAspire11 invests European pension money into some of the world's biggest private tech companies, unlocking capital that's historically stayed on the sidelines. Its first fund raised €500m, and backs both early-stage VC funds and late-stage tech companies such as Revolut, Databricks, ElevenLabs and Vinted.Zaya Kadyrova is Co-Founder and Managing Partner at Aspire11. She believes much of the value created by Europe's biggest tech companies currently goes to US pension funds, and is trying to change that by putting pension money directly into companies at that scale.The Scaling Europe show is presented by Deel. Check them out here: https://get.deel.com/ruynb7o4lfjkSponsors:Chargebee: https://www.chargebee.com/events/beelieve/london/2026SurrealDB: https://surrealdb.com/Airwallex: https://www.airwallex.com/uk?utm_source=other&utm_medium=partner_referral&utm_campaign=v01_emea_multi_ib_dg_prtmk_mofu_scalingeuropeLovable: https://lovable.dev/Timestamps:0:00 - Introduction0:20 - What Aspire11 does1:31 - Why pension funds matter for venture4:37 - Why Europe's pensions have stayed on the sidelines8:51 - Tribes: backing the next generation of fund managers12:07 - Why Aspire11 backed Revolut, Vinted and Eleven Labs15:14 - The case for investing in Databricks18:22 - How the fund is driving demand from young savers19:35 - How Aspire11 wins access to the best deals
Transcribe →Jan Oberhauser, Founder & CEO at n8n: Freeing employees from repetitive boring tasks
2w ago00:51:13Tap to summarizen8n is a workflow automation platform that frees employees from repetitive, boring tasks. SAP recently made a strategic investment in the company, valuing it at €5.2bn, more than double what it was worth seven months ago.Jan Oberhauser is Founder and CEO of n8n. He believes the real value isn't the time saved, but the chance to give employees more meaningful work instead of repetitive tasks.The Scaling Europe show is presented by Deel. Check them out here: https://get.deel.com/ruynb7o4lfjkSponsors:Chargebee: https://www.chargebee.com/events/beelieve/london/2026SurrealDB: https://surrealdb.com/Airwallex: https://www.airwallex.com/uk?utm_source=other&utm_medium=partner_referral&utm_campaign=v01_emea_multi_ib_dg_prtmk_mofu_scalingeuropeLovable: https://lovable.dev/Timestamps:0:00 - Introduction0:41 - n8n's €5.2bn strategic investment from SAP2:41 - How valuable the SAP partnership could be4:04 - What drove the valuation jump in seven months5:03 - The real value customers get from n8n11:38 - Balancing community users with enterprise customers14:23 - How n8n's community has evolved18:19 - How Jan's role has changed as CEO22:44 - What Jan is seeing across the AI ecosystem28:20 - What n8n looks for when hiring
Transcribe →Patrick Murphy, Partner at Tapestry VC: Backing the repeat founders behind Europe's unicorns
3w ago00:26:35Tap to summarizeTapestry VC backs repeat founders who are already building their second or third company. Around 60% of Europe's new unicorns in the past couple of years have come from exactly that group, and Tapestry just closed an $80m third fund to keep backing them.Patrick Murphy is a Partner at Tapestry VC. Seven of the roughly 70 investments he's made in his career have grown into $100m+ revenue companies, a track record few investors can match.The Scaling Europe show is presented by Deel. Check them out here: https://get.deel.com/ruynb7o4lfjkSponsors:Chargebee: https://www.chargebee.com/events/beelieve/london/2026SurrealDB: https://surrealdb.com/Airwallex: https://www.airwallex.com/uk?utm_source=other&utm_medium=partner_referral&utm_campaign=v01_emea_multi_ib_dg_prtmk_mofu_scalingeuropeLovable: https://lovable.dev/Timestamps:0:00 - Introduction0:04 - Tapestry VC's new $80m third fund0:24 - Why Tapestry backs repeat founders2:01 - Inside Tapestry's portfolio6:44 - Patrick's move back to London9:02 - The psychology of investing in repeat founders12:45 - What Patrick's most successful investments have in common15:38 - British Business Bank as Tapestry's anchor investor17:48 - Competition among European VCs20:44 - Why US LPs are reshaping European venture23:07 - Europe's growing exit market
Transcribe →Dan Lifshits & Ilia Drozdov, Co-founders of Dwelly: BREAKING: Dwelly raised $170m Series B
3w ago00:17:13Tap to summarizeDwelly just raised a $170m Series B led by EQT Growth and General Catalyst, five months after its last round, taking total funding to around $250m. Dwelly acquires traditional letting agencies across the UK and moves them onto a shared AI system. The AI handles compliance and admin work, so staff can focus on landlords and tenants instead.Dan Lifshits and Ilia Drozdov are Co-founders of Dwelly. The company has grown from around 10,000 lettings under management five months ago to more than 15,000 today, already making it one of the UK's ten largest letting agencies.The Scaling Europe show is presented by Deel. Check them out here: https://get.deel.com/ruynb7o4lfjkSponsors:Chargebee: https://www.chargebee.com/events/beelieve/london/2026SurrealDB: https://surrealdb.com/Airwallex: https://www.airwallex.com/uk?utm_source=other&utm_medium=partner_referral&utm_campaign=v01_emea_multi_ib_dg_prtmk_mofu_scalingeuropeLovable: https://lovable.dev/Timestamps:0:00 - Introduction0:21 - Dwelly's new $170m Series B1:07 - Why AI is transforming the services industry1:35 - What Dwelly does and how much it's grown2:25 - Acquiring and integrating letting agencies6:33 - Dwelly's underlying business fundamentals7:12 - The size of the UK market and expanding into Europe9:55 - Dwelly's biggest bottleneck: hiring12:58 - Inside the Series B round16:09 - Dwelly's north star metric
Transcribe →Linus Eriksson Noren and Resat Ozutok, Co-founders of TechCredit Partners: TechCredit Partners helps founders raise debt to scale faster
3w ago00:21:37Tap to summarizeTechCredit Partners helps tech founders raise debt capital to fund growth without giving up more of their company. The firm has raised close to $1 billion for clients across more than 20 countries in the last three years.Linus Eriksson Noren and Resat Ozutok are Co-founders of TechCredit Partners. Most founders don't realize how much of their business, like contracts or equipment, can be used to raise debt instead of equity, which is exactly the gap the two are trying to close.The Scaling Europe show is presented by Deel. Check them out here: https://get.deel.com/ruynb7o4lfjkSponsors:Chargebee: https://www.chargebee.com/events/beelieve/london/2026SurrealDB: https://surrealdb.com/Airwallex: https://www.airwallex.com/uk?utm_source=other&utm_medium=partner_referral&utm_campaign=v01_emea_multi_ib_dg_prtmk_mofu_scalingeuropeLovable: https://lovable.dev/Timestamps:0:00 - Introduction0:21 - What TechCredit Partners does0:53 - The boom in European venture debt1:37 - Why founders turn to debt over equity3:43 - Why more capital-intensive businesses are turning to debt6:24 - How founders know they're ready to raise debt9:21 - The industries TechCredit Partners works in11:01 - How founders should balance debt and equity13:25 - Why Linus and Resat built TechCredit Partners16:46 - Europe's debt landscape and standing out in the market
Transcribe →Oana Jinga, Co-founder of Dexory: Dexory’s robots save warehouses millions
3w ago00:21:31Tap to summarizeDexory builds robots that scan warehouses and track everything inside them in real time. Companies use that data to know exactly what stock they have and where, resulting in massive savings.Oana Jinga is Co-founder of Dexory. The company has scanned over 1.3 billion warehouse locations so far, using real data collected directly from customer sites. Dexory recently raised a $165m Series C to scale up its commercial team, now tripling its growth year after year.The Scaling Europe show is presented by Deel. Check them out here: https://get.deel.com/ruynb7o4lfjkSponsors:Chargebee: https://www.chargebee.com/events/beelieve/london/2026SurrealDB: https://surrealdb.com/Airwallex: https://www.airwallex.com/uk?utm_source=other&utm_medium=partner_referral&utm_campaign=v01_emea_multi_ib_dg_prtmk_mofu_scalingeuropeLovable: https://lovable.dev/Timestamps:0:00 - Introduction0:24 - What Dexory's robots do1:27 - The value Dexory delivers to customers3:04 - Dexory's biggest customers5:41 - How Dexory expands into new countries9:56 - Will warehouses change to be built for robots?12:31 - Dexory's data and the future of physical AI15:20 - Inside Dexory's Series C round19:29 - What's next for Dexory
Transcribe →Issie James, Co-founder at Onstage: BREAKING: Onstage has been acquired by Sifted
4w ago00:18:00Tap to summarizeOnstage has just been acquired by Sifted. The company runs Demo Day, an early-stage pitch event that connects founders with VCs, backed by a network of 350 venture capital partners who select the finalists.Issie James is Co-founder at Onstage. Onstage's strategy has always been to build an audience its founders and VC partners can use to reach more customers, and joining Sifted was the natural next step for that.The Scaling Europe show is presented by Deel. Check them out here: https://get.deel.com/ruynb7o4lfjkSponsors:Chargebee: https://www.chargebee.com/events/beelieve/london/2026SurrealDB: https://surrealdb.com/Airwallex: https://www.airwallex.com/uk?utm_source=other&utm_medium=partner_referral&utm_campaign=v01_emea_multi_ib_dg_prtmk_mofu_scalingeuropeLovable: https://lovable.dev/Timestamps:0:00 - Introduction0:17 - Onstage's acquisition by Sifted1:36 - What changes and what stays the same4:10 - What the acquisition means for Issie6:03 - What happens to Deploy6:52 - Issie's career journey at Onstage11:51 - What makes a great event13:16 - What success looks like after the acquisition14:27 - Lessons from thousands of startup pitches
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