#57: Risto Siilasmaa – lessons from dot-com bubble, transforming Nokia, and investing in unicorns

Listen to this episode from The Growth Pod on Spotify. Risto Siilasmaa co-founded F-Secure in 1988 at just 22, and later became Finland’s richest person during the dot-com bubble. As chairman of Nokia, he led the transformation of the company from a struggling handset maker to a global leader in network infrastructure. He has one of the best startup investment track records, with multiple unicorns in this portfolio. In this episode, Risto shares 30+ years of insights on entrepreneurship, leadership, and tech. Learn more: https://generogrowth.com/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/siilasmaa/ (0:00) Introduction (0:55) Starting F-Secure: early challenges and IPO (8:50) The dot-com bubble and how money changes people (24:50) Tough decisions and building resilience (34:20) Nokia: crisis, disruption, and transformation (58:53) Investing in unicorns and how to spot great founders (1:12:35) Future tech trends: AI, quantum computing and clean energy