Latitude59 is back for its 14th edition (21-22 May at the beloved Kultuurikatel in Tallinn), and once again their team has put together a program that reflects exactly why Estonia keeps punching well above its weight. For a country of 1.3 million people, the unicorn (and funding) density is absurd. No wonder Tallinn is able to gather the New Nordics startup, investor and policy crowd in one place for two days! Latitude remains one of the our go-to fixtures on the European calendar. This year’s theme, The Global Village Experiment, frames cross-border collaboration as the question that actually matters in a fragmented world.
This one is special for BUPR! Both JJ and Mauro at BUPR will be there for both days, and JJ is also MCing the Future Stage on Day 1. On Day 2, we’re recording a live episode of The Runway Podcast on the Podcast Stage powered by SEB.
We’ve gone through both days and picked the sessions we’re most looking forward to. Here’s what’s on our list.
Day 1
In the Engine Room: Founding and Scaling Global Giants from Europe
May 21, 10:25 | Bold Stage | Fireside
A fitting opener for the conference. Taavet Hinrikus (Wise co-founder) and Pierre-Dimitri Gore-Coty (formerly Uber’s SVP for Delivery, now a Plural partner alongside Taavet) have between them built and operated two of the most consequential European tech companies of the last decade. Plural’s bet is that the next generation of European giants will be founded by operators who have already done it once, and this session promises a candid look at what that thesis looks like up close. Cate Lawrence from Tech.eu, one of the sharpest interviewers in European tech media, is moderating. If you want the tone for the rest of the conference, this is where to set it.
Speakers: Taavet Hinrikus (Partner, Plural), Pierre-Dimitri Gore-Coty (Partner, Plural)
Moderator: Cate Lawrence (Senior Writer, Tech.eu)
From Estonia to the Frontline: Building on NATO’s Eastern Flank
May 21, 10:45 | Bold Stage | Fireside
You could probably argue that no country in Europe has had to think harder about defence tech over the last three years than Estonia, and few people personify that shift better than Kusti Salm, the former Permanent Secretary of the Estonian Ministry of Defence. He is now building Frankenburg Technologies. Sten Tamkivi (Plural, Skype, Topia) brings the operator and investor lens to the conversation should make for a session that goes well beyond the usual defence tech talking points. The geographic reality of building on NATO’s eastern flank gives every word a weight that defence sessions in other parts of Europe simply don’t carry.
Speakers: Sten Tamkivi (Partner, Plural), Kusti Salm (CEO, Frankenburg Technologies)
Next in Defencetech in 2026
May 21, 11:05 | Bold Stage | Panel
Following on directly from the Salm conversation, this panel zooms out to the wider European defence tech picture. Kadri Tammai represents NATO DIANA, the alliance’s deep-tech accelerator backing dual-use companies across member states. Siim Maivel brings the founder perspective from Lendurai. Leslie Hitchcock at Resilience Media has been one of the most consistent voices covering the European defence tech beat. Together this is one of the most current and well-positioned defence panels we’ve seen on a European stage this year. Our tip: stay in your seat after the previous session and you’ll get the full picture.
Speakers: Siim Maivel (Co-Founder & CEO, Lendurai), Kadri Tammai (Regional Director, NATO DIANA)
Moderator: Leslie Hitchcock (Co-Founder & Publisher, Resilience Media)
AI Panel: What to Automate, What to Keep Human
May 21, 12:00 | Future Stage | Panel
Every founder, leadership team and ops lead is making this decision right now, often without much of a framework. What’s the right thing to hand over to AI, and what would you be foolish to give up? Karl Maaroos (Sera), Taivo Pungas (Pactum) and Roberta Pukė (Hostinger) bring three very different vantage points: an early-stage CTO, a CTO at one of the most established Estonian AI scaleups, and a chief of staff role at a hosting unicorn navigating these questions at scale. Expect the conversation to be grounded in the people and team implications, rather than just the tech.
Speakers: Karl Maaroos (Co-Founder & CTO, Sera), Taivo Pungas (CTO, Pactum), Roberta Pukė (Chief of Staff, Hostinger)
Moderator: Käthe-Riin Tull (Co-Founder, TalentHub)
The Startup Blender Podcast (Live)
May 21, 12:00 | Podcast Stage powered by SEB | Live Podcast
Ucha Vekua, Creative Director at Startup Adventures, has built Startup Blender into one of the most consistent founder-story podcasts in the region, and this live episode pairs Kaspar Tiri (founder of Ready Player Me, one of Estonia’s standout consumer tech stories) with Maria Piotrowska, Senior Associate at Venture Friends in Athens. We’re looking forward to this founder-meets-investor format.
Speakers: Kaspar Tiri (Founder, ReadyPlayerMe), Maria Piotrowska (Senior Associate, Venture Friends)
Moderator: Ucha Vekua (Creative Director, Startup Adventures)
Tech.eu Podcast (Live) with Project Europe Founders
May 21, 14:30 | Podcast Stage powered by SEB | Live Podcast
Project Europe has had a remarkable year, and the Cate Lawrence has been one of the journalists tracking the story right from the start. Kitty Mayo (CEO) and Jade Yarrow (Chief of Staff) get a full hour to talk about how the initiative actually evolved on the ground, where it’s heading, and what comes next. The Project Europe story is one of the more interesting things happening in European founder community-building right now, and we’d rather hear it from the people running it than read about it in third-party coverage.
Speakers: Kitty Mayo (CEO, Project Europe), Jade Yarrow (Chief of Staff, Project Europe)
Moderator: Cate Lawrence (Senior Writer, Tech.eu)
Who Can You Trust? Digital Identity, EUDI Wallets, KYC & AML, and AI-Era Fraud
May 21, 14:30 | Future Stage | Panel
This one clashes with the Tech.eu podcast (it’s the only real timing conflict on our list), but it’s a panel we can’t ignore either. The EUDI Wallet rollout, and the upcoming digital identity regulation changes, are two of the most significant pieces of European digital infrastructure being built right now. The panel brings together perspectives from across the stack: Olha Mykytyshyn from Salv on financial crime, Georg Hauer with the venture builder view, Nikolai Suhharnikov from Sumsub on the technical onboarding side, and Alibi Makhatov from Revolut representing one of the biggest consumer fintech use cases.
Speakers: Olha Mykytyshyn (Strategic Account Executive, Salv), Georg Hauer (Advisor & Fintech Venture Builder, Hauer Fintech Advisory), Nikolai Suhharnikov (Head of Technical Pre-Sales, Sumsub), Alibi Makhatov (Product Manager, Revolut)
Moderator: Joao Rei (Co-Founder, EID)
Day 2
Building Europe’s AI Infrastructure
May 22, 10:05 | Bold Stage | Fireside
Of all the conversations Europe needs to be having about AI right now, the infrastructure one is probably the most under-discussed in proportion to its importance. The framing is sharp and clear: if Europe wants AI under its own governance and aligned with European values, it needs a shared infrastructure that can handle training, inference and fine-tuning at scale, running on clean and reliable power. Nokia brings the secure connectivity side, Skeleton Technologies the high-power energy storage piece (already used by US hyperscalers in their AI data centres).
Speakers: Pasi Toivanen (SVP Strategic Government & Industry Initiatives, Nokia), Arnaud Castaignet (Senior VP, Skeleton Technologies)
Bliq: Is Europe Ready for Driverless Cars?
May 22, 10:55 | Bold Stage | Fireside
A fresh story, and one many weren’t sure would finally arrive to Europe. Bliq is building a service where private individuals can book driverless cars, and they’ve chosen Estonia as their first market. Julian Glaab is going to have to make the case for why Europe (and Estonia specifically) is ready for this, what the regulatory and technical realities actually look like on the ground, and what it takes to build a driverless mobility company with a small lean team (rather than the giant US war chests that dominate the headlines). This is THE mobility session.
Speaker: Julian Glaab (CEO & Co-Founder, Bliq)
Moderator: Fiona Alston (Journalist, Resilience Media)
What the Baltics Can Learn from the Nordics
May 22, 11:00 | Future Stage | Panel
The Baltic startup funding scene has had a genuinely stellar run over the past couple of years, with Tier 1 VCs flying in regularly and round sizes getting bigger. The Baltics have produced more than their fair share of unicorns relative to population, but the question of how to keep the momentum and turn it into the next wave is open. Can the Baltics learn their next tricks from the Nordics? Ugne Musneckyte (Byfounders), Andra Bagdonaitė (Firstpick) and Rebecka Löthman Rydå (Norrsken Evolve) bring three VC perspectives on what’s actually transferable and what’s not.
Speakers: Ugne Musneckyte (Investor, Byfounders), Andra Bagdonaitė (General Partner, Firstpick), Rebecka Löthman Rydå (General Partner, Norrsken Evolve)
Exit Is Not the Finish Line: What Founders Must Unlearn
May 22, 11:30 | Future Stage | Keynote
A topic that usually doesn’t get nearly enough airtime. Most founder content is about the journey to exit. Andrey Afanasyev, CFO at Raison, will talk about what happens after, and specifically about how the operating model that gets you there can break down. Founders build companies on speed, personal judgment, and high control. After exit, personal capital starts behaving like a complex system: multi-asset, multi-jurisdiction, multi-provider, and far too many decisions to exist in one person’s head. The promise of the session is that exit is not the finish line but a change of operating system. For anyone in the room who’s already had a liquidity event, or planning for one, this should land.
Speaker: Andrey Afanasyev (CFO, Raison)
The Runway Podcast: Marketing & Comms in VC: The Karma Method (Live)
May 22, 12:00 | Podcast Stage powered by SEB | Live Podcast
Obvious bias here, since this is our session, but we’re genuinely excited. The Runway Podcast is going live on the Podcast Stage with Sten Õitspuu, Head of Marketing at Karma Ventures. Karma is one of the most known VC names in the region, omnipresent at events, and now going for a unique marketing approach. Sten has been at the heart of that. We’re going to dig into what marketing at a VC fund actually means, the role of events, and a few experiments that did and didn’t work along the way. After all, Sten comes from a mix of experiences that contrast significantly with the VC world. Expect the usual mix of personal background story, insights and fun. We’re waiting for you at the podcast stage!
Speaker: Sten Õitspuu (Head of Marketing, Karma VC)
Hosts: Julija (JJ) Jegorova and Mauro Battellini (Co-Founders, Black Unicorn PR)
Pitch Confidential with Gleb Maltsev and Yrjö Ojasaar
May 22, 12:30 | Future Stage | Panel
If you want the unvarnished version of what investors actually think when they’re sitting across from you in a pitch meeting, this is the panel. Gleb Maltsev and Yrjö Ojasaar have assembled a stacked lineup: Rainer Sternfeld from NordicNinja, Kara Conway from Bootstrap Europe, Rando Rannus from Siena Secondary Fund, Raimonds Kulbergs from badideas.fund, and Ralfas Romeika from Superhero Capital. Five investors, two moderators, an hour, and a format designed to actually get past the polite version of investor feedback. For founders preparing to fundraise in 2026, this is one of the more efficient uses of an hour you’ll find at the conference.
Speakers: Rainer Sternfeld (General Partner, NordicNinja), Kara Conway (Vice President, Bootstrap Europe), Rando Rannus (General Partner, Siena Secondary Fund), Raimonds Kulbergs (Founder, badideas.fund), Ralfas Romeika (Associate, Superhero Capital)
Moderators: Gleb Maltsev (Data-Driven Pitch Coach, Stoneful), Yrjö Ojasaar (Founder & Partner, Change Ventures)
Picking Your People Matters More Than Ever: The Starship Story
May 22, 13:30 | Bold Stage | Keynote
You don’t need much pitching on this one. Ahti Heinla is one of the original co-founders of Skype and the co-founder of Starship Technologies, which has by now delivered over ten million autonomous robot deliveries across the world. His keynote is on team-building, which is one of those topics that gets discussed endlessly but rarely with the credibility of someone who has actually built two category-defining companies from Estonia. If you’re in the room for one keynote on Day 2, this is probably the one. Closing out our list on a high.
Speaker: Ahti Heinla (Co-Founder, Starship Technologies)
See you in Tallinn!
That’s our list! JJ and Mauro from our team will both be at Kultuurikatel for both days (including JJ on stage MCing the Future Stage on Day 1, plus co-hosting Runway on Day 2). Hit us up or find us at the corridors, the meeting areas, the cafes and food spots nearby.
If you’re looking for side events, here’s your place.
If you’re heading to Latitude59, ping us on LinkedIn or email and say hello (but please don’t send us an app message offering lead services! 😅).
Not registered yet? Tickets are STILL available on the Latitude59 website.
See you there!
