Something I want to start doing more of: making room for other voices in this newsletter.

I met Marie-Line Deleye in Vilnius back in January, during a trip that reminded me just how much is happening in parts of the world that don't always make the headlines. She is a Lithuanian-French writer covering the Baltic startup ecosystem with the kind of specificity and texture that only comes from actually being embedded in it.

I just got back from speaking at Baltic Fintech Days in Riga, and I have a lot of my own takeaways to share later this week. But first, I wanted to hand the floor to someone whose perspective on this region I genuinely trust. Her piece below is a sharp, grounded look at where the Baltics stand right now and why it matters well beyond the region's borders.

Read it. You'll be glad you did.

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By Marie-Line Deleyethan the "performance tracker" category it launched into. The lesson for investors: sometimes the best PMF is found, not planned.

I spent a long time thinking about how to start this article.

 How can you present an overview of the Baltics’ early-stage ecosystem market map, when only a few know about these three tiny European countries? Even in continental Europe, we still remain no-names. And that hurts.

Apparently, it hurt so damn hard that the Baltics decided to do anything and everything to step up their game: make a name for themselves, gain recognition, and ultimately shake off the burden of a Soviet past that had held them back for so long.

 Tech and innovation have played a key role in making this happen.

Three countries, roughly 5.9 million inhabitants, and startup funding reaching €607 million in 2025 (up from €505 million in 2024) – as it turns out, one of the clearest signals that things have already (or finally) changed.

 As a matter of fact, 2025 was a turning point for the Baltic startup ecosystem, officially proving its structural maturity.

 Investors prioritized quality over volume, with more capital being directed toward experienced founders, and a rising participation of tier-one international VCs[MD1] , as reflected by Lithuania’s Cast AI (€98 million Series A led by G2), Latvia’s Aerones (€53.1 million round with Activate Capital), and Estonia’s agentic AI platform Pactum (securing a €47.3 million Series A round).

 Average round sizes also grew significantly, reflecting stronger investor conviction across the region. Among the notable deals were Lithuania’s Sort A Brick raising €1.5 million in a pre-seed round, Latvia’s AI platform Trace.Space securing €4 million in seed funding, and Estonia’s defense tech startup Wayren closing a €7.9 million seed round. At the same time, the number of exits in 2025 doubled, largely fueled by Lithuanian startups.

 The numbers speak for themselves: maturity and growing confidence are now powering an ecosystem that, just a few years ago, was still thirsty for success and legitimacy, only daring to dream about it.

Without much surprise, AI emerged as the leading investment sector in the Baltics in 2025, accounting for 46% of all capital raised, compared to 35.5% across Europe and 65.4% in the US. Other important sectors drawing investment were hardware at 21%, cloud at 10%, fintech at 9%, energy at 7%, and defense at 5%.

 Let’s be honest: for those unfamiliar, the three Baltic states are quite different – from language and culture to their tech landscape and key sectors. Even while calling each other brothers or sisters, competition can sometimes be intense, which is why each country’s market has evolved in its own way, developing a distinct role within the regional setup.  

 Every one of them – Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia – is putting something different on the table, and that is precisely why “stronger together” should just become the Baltics’ new motto.

 Estonia brings startup density and leads in growth-stage activity, whilst Lithuania is strengthening its position in AI talent and adoption. Latvia, meanwhile, has seen meaningful structural improvements following the launch of three new domestic early-stage funds. It is also responding to growing demand for AI data centers, highlighted by the EU North Riga LV DC1, a 10 MW data center designed for AI and HPC and launched in April 2026.

 As for the standout startups to keep an eye on, here are a few examples by country. Let’s get acquainted with them.

 Meet Ovoko, a marketplace aggregating millions of used auto parts from hundreds of European suppliers, enabling fast cross-border sourcing and EU-wide delivery.

 Considered a future unicorn, Ovoko secured €20 million in Series B funding in 2024 from the U.S. VC Smash Capital, marking Lithuania’s largest startup investment of 2024. The company has already established its presence in more than 17 countries and attracts millions of visitors to its platform.

Birdy Chat is a professional messaging platform that separates work from personal communication while integrating WhatsApp contacts in a secure, encrypted environment for team collaboration.

Founded in 2025, the startup raised €1.7 million. As of May 2026, Birdy Chat has emerged as one of the first home-grown messaging apps aligned with the European Union’s Digital Markets Act (DMA), enabling direct, encrypted communication with WhatsApp users.

Tallinn-based Sera is a B2B sales automation platform that uses AI to streamline outreach and engagement, helping teams generate and convert leads more efficiently through data-driven workflows.

In September 2025, it secured a €1.5 million seed round to support its international expansion, whilst already being trusted by leading tech names such as Bolt, Ready Player Me, and Montonio.

 So, what’s the inner strength of the Baltics? The secret may finally be out: community-driven growth and incredibly motivated, almost obsessively driven talent.

The rise of “hacker houses” across the three capital cities – such as Ruum in Tallinn, Basedspace in Vilnius, and Shipyard in Riga – has enabled these peer-driven, adrenaline-fueled environments to launch more than 70 startups, with eight securing their first investments during the “blessed” year of 2025.

 Cruising through the countless hackathons and community gatherings of the Baltic tech scene, I do feel an unmatched energy here that I rarely feel elsewhere.

 I still remember the time when founders used to hide – or at least avoid highlighting – that their products were created, designed, or built in Lithuania, Latvia, or Estonia. Today, “built in the Baltics” has become synonymous with quality and know-how.

 Ultimately, it all circles back to a never-ending thirst for progress: the pride (or complex) of being born in a small country shaped by a difficult history, and the will to do better.

And something consistent emerges across all three: freedom as the driving force behind everything they create.

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