Karl Liapunov joins EXPresso for a conversation about growing up between the US and Norway, taking a one-way ticket to Oslo, working with Nordic founders through StartupLab, and launching Starting Cold - a new video series focused on Nordic founders, operators, athletes and outliers building at an international level.
Karl Liapunov grew up in the US with a strong Norwegian connection, Norwegian spoken at home, and summers spent in Norway. After starting his career in investment banking in Houston, he decided to leave the safe path behind, buy a one-way ticket to Oslo, and build a new chapter in Norway.
That decision eventually led him to StartupLab, where he spent several years working closely with Norwegian and Nordic founders, particularly around energy, climate tech, internationalization and the bridge between the Nordics and global markets.
Now Karl is based in New York and has launched Starting Cold — a new video series and platform built around Nordic founders, operators, athletes and outliers who are building at an international level.
In this episode, we talk about what it means to grow up between two cultures, the difference between Norway and the US, why Norway is an incredible place to come from but sometimes a difficult place to stand out, and why Nordic companies often become very good at building but not always as good at telling the world what they have built.
We also get into cold outreach, taking risk, moving countries without a perfect plan, StartupLab, energy and climate tech, media, venture, and why storytelling may become one of the most important tools for the next generation of Nordic founders.
Topics we cover:
- Growing up between the US and Norway
- Norwegian identity, language and culture from the outside
- The difference between American and Norwegian ambition
- Leaving investment banking and moving to Oslo without a clear plan
- Building a network from scratch in a new country
- StartupLab and the Norwegian startup ecosystem
- Energy, climate tech and Norway’s international advantage
- Why Nordic founders need stronger global storytelling
- The role of media in venture, fundraising and ecosystem-building
- Starting Cold and Karl’s mission to highlight Nordic outliers
- Why cold outreach can change the direction of your life
- What Norway can learn from the US — and what it should not copy
Song credit via riverside.fm
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