Marek Kiisa
Managing partner
“I am here helping companies to make it possible for humanity to move people and goods around with a minimal carbon footprint, with machines and AI performing all the boring and unhealthy tasks automatically.”
The Driving Force is the best term to describe Marek’s professional journey. Racing for Team Formula Estonia across Europe in his youth; designing neural network-based performance controllers for Saab engines; building tech businesses as an entrepreneur and angel investor – Marek has been chasing the next big thing for nearly 30 years.
Having successfully co-founded Superangel, a founder-led seed fund in Estonia, Marek and his partners at BaltCap joined forces with Japan Bank for International Cooperation to establish NordicNinja, a Japanese VC fund focused on Nordic and Baltic startups building digital infrastructure for sustainable transformation and deeptech for a better society.
Although Marek’s racing days are behind him, he is still a member of the FIA Single Seater Commission, and his drive to compete and win still inspires founders to build better-performing businesses. As a Kauffman Fellow, his wealth of experience is sought for by founders and co-investors alike, making him a valuable partner.
Having transitioned from combustion engines to electric motors, Marek is also an active proponent of continuous learning. In 2019, he co-founded Kood – a free programming school for adults in Estonia, which opened its doors to students in September 2021.
Automation
Why we invested in Pactum: Removing the Pain of Enterprise Negotiation
The five main points rocketing the negotiation technology pioneer – by Marek Kiisa
autonomous
Investing in Annotell: Making safe perception possible for self-driving cars
We are proud to be backing Annotell in their Series A round of $24 million to speed up the development and validation of autonomous vehicles’ perception systems. Find closer details in the article.
The Fund
The story of NordicNinja
Since our launch in 2019, we have answered many times “why NordicNinja was established to the Nordics”. Here we’ve gathered our experiences so far.
mobility
For more liveable cities – Our investment into VOI
Why we invested in VOI technology, the pan-European micro-mobility leader making cities more liveable.
ai
Your remote identity verification – Our investment into Veriff
Why we invested in Veriff, the world’s leading identity verification platform.
mobility
Self-driving software for all weather conditions – Our investment into Sensible 4
Sensible 4 has developed one of the world’s leading software making self-driving vehicles of all types operate smoothly and safely in changing conditions.
fund
Launching NordicNinja VC – Interview with FVCA
Finnish Venture Capital Association’s interview about the launch of our fund in the Nordic-Baltics.
mobility
Our journey towards autonomous and clean transportation – Investment into Einride
Why we invested in Einride, the World’s first autonomous, all-electric truck to operate a commercial flow with a permit on public roads.
mobility
The Future of Transport – Our investment into Bolt
Bolt is one of the fastest-growing companies in Europe and NordicNinja is thrilled to be part of this journey. Read more about our investment from the announcement.
Audio
The new level of feeling the sound – Our investment into Flexound
Personal soundsphere takes you inside the sound originally developed with health benefits in mind. Read more about Flexounds solution from our investment announcement.
mobility
World’s first mobility as a service – Our Investment into MaaS Global
Our first investment in the Nordic-Baltics and we start with those who coined the term MaaS (Mobility as a Service)! 🚀
