Niklas Adalberth, Norrsken: Going From Klarna to Impact and Redefining Venture for Good

In this episode, August Soliv, author of Impact Supporters, and Douglas Sloan, Managing Director at Better Society Capital, talk with Niklas Adalberth, co-founder of Klarna and the visionary behind the Norrsken Foundation.

Niklas shares his journey, how building a billion-dollar fintech led him to an unexpected crisis of meaning and a new path dedicated to solving global challenges. From a hotel room epiphany in Las Vegas to donating half his wealth to launch Norrsken, Niklas talks candidly about the moments that reshaped his values and fueled his mission to prove that business and impact can go hand in hand.

Here’s what’s covered:

• 02:14 Niklas' Personal Journey and Realizations

• 06:45 The Birth of Norrsken Foundation

• 11:30 Norsken's Global Expansion and Impact

• 13:35 Balancing Commercial Success and Impact

• 25:07 The Role of AI in Impact Investing

• 39:50 Building a Mission-Driven Team

• 43:04 Future of Impact VC and Norrsken's Vision

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✍️ A few thoughts and notes from Niklas

A look at the person behind - who is Niklas Adalberth?

I co-founded Klarna, a European fintech unicorn, and through it, experienced the inside of rapidly scaling a tech unicorn. At its peak in 2021, Klarna was valued at nearly 50BN EUR.

For me, a pivotal moment came during a sudden breakdown in Las Vegas. It prompted deep reflection on whether my work was really contributing positively to the world, or if I was part of the problem. This led to the establishment of Norrsken, a non-profit foundation aimed at empowering impactful businesses.

Norrsken has since grown into a global impact ecosystem comprising more than 3000 members at our hubs, 166 portfolio companies, three Norrsken House hubs, and 750mEur+ under management through five impact-focused funds.

The relationship between impact and commercial success.

Commercial success is a means, not an end. The real goal for any company should be to positively impact people and the planet. Norrsken only backs companies where impact is integrated into the core of the business model, and where revenue growth is directly tied to positive outcomes.

How did you choose where to start? Why?

Norrskens’ vision is a world where every dollar is invested for the good of people and the planet. Each part of the Norrsken ecosystem is designed to help further progress towards this end goal.

Norrsken’s physical hubs are designed to create environments that foster connections, collaboration, and access to essential resources for impact-driven founders and investors.

Our funds exist to help bridge the financing gap and bring more capital to the solutions that matter. Only 1% of global capital flows into impact. That figure should really be 100%. We back scalable solutions with a view towards making impact investing mainstream.

Initiatives like the Impact/100 and Norrsken Mind are designed to showcase impactful ideas and people, inspiring others to pursue ventures that benefit the world, and to help shift cultural and economic norms towards a more sustainable future.

AI & Impact - advantages & challenges

AI has the potential to revolutionize sectors like climate research and medical advancements by enhancing human capacity for action and innovation.

But like any technology, AI is just a tool. Like all tools, how it’s wielded will dictate outcomes. As long as our society is wired to maximize growth and profit above all else, AI will most likely exacerbate existing negative and unsustainable structures and processes, rather than help overturn them.

Advice for emerging managers in the impact field?

Embed purpose deeply into operations, and create a structure that reinforces a commitment to impact. This will help build trust and authenticity, and help you attract top talent.

Further reading - Norrskens’ entire operating model is open source, and all key documents are freely available on our website.

Tips & tricks for generalist VC investors about impact.

In a world that is crossing six out of nine planetary boundaries, and is on-track for 3 degrees global warming before our grandchildren grow up, I find the notion of anyone continuing with “business as usual” to be utterly insane.

Virtually every industry in the world - every part of the human economy, from manufacturing to shipping to agriculture to energy to construction, is completely incompatible with the biosphere. And yet, it all depends on the biosphere. It will all have to be reinvented - or be wiped out within a lifetime.

It’s our moral and ethical imperative to focus all our efforts and attention on resolving the situation we’ve created for ourselves, to ensure a livable planet for generations to come.