How LIFT99 helped foster Estonia’s startup community

For a country with only 1.3 million people, Estonia is shockingly productive when it comes to startups. Indeed, Estonia frequently ranks quite high on lists of the best countries to found a startup in, thanks to its easy company registration policies, an e-residency program for founders from around the world, low tax regime, and a vibrant venture ecosystem. 

Success stories like Wise, Bolt and Skype are proof of the fertile ground Estonia presents for startups, and particularly its community, which fosters a culture of entrepreneurship. Events like Latitude59, an annual tech startup conference, provide a great platform for founders, investors can network and source interesting companies. Estonia also has accelerators and incubators such as Ajujaht, Beamline, and Tehnopol Startup Incubator, which have proven vital for fostering innovation. 

But incubators, events and accelerators are only a part of the building blocks of any startup community — innovation hubs are vital for any founding team to get their ideas off the ground. LIFT99, a startup-themed co-working hub in Tallinn, is one such node that connects founders with mentors, gives them the space and support to build, and helps the wider startup community grow.

Think of it as a place where Tallinn-based entrepreneurs and startup enthusiasts like to hang out. Strong community vibes, comfy environs, and exciting up-and-coming startups are just a few of the elements that set LIFT99 apart. 

Many interesting startups have benefited in some way or other from LIFT99’s Tallinn hub. To pick a couple examples — deeptech startup Glassity is building an all-in-one collaborative FinOps platform to detect online cloud inefficiencies, and Haut AI provides a science-based solution for  AI-powered skin analysis. 

LIFT99 was started in 2016 by Elar Nellis, Elise Sass, Liis Peetermann and Ragnar Sass with the mission of strengthening the community and helping startups succeed by bringing founders together. 

I recently sat down with one of the co-founders, Elise Sass, to talk about the organization’s role in the broader Estonian startup ecosystem. Here are excerpts from our conversation:

Sesamers: What does LIFT99 aim to achieve? 

Elise Sass: The idea of LIFT99 has always been to position the hub as a welcoming point for anyone who wants to sniff their first startup ideas.

We have always taken the initiative to support the community. Our team has worked hard to position this hub as the go-to place for early-stage founders to visit and connect with more experienced founders to grow their network. 

We encourage sharing resources and knowledge within our community to assist individuals reach their startup-related goals faster. 

On top of that, LIFT99 has always welcomed different community leaders around the region and given them the opportunity to host various workshops and events where community members could come and exchange industry-specific knowledge with each other.  

Tell us about the biggest challenges in running a co-working space 

ES: Just like any other company, LIFT99 also has to grow and find new approaches to operate as a business. Running a co-working space for entrepreneurs and startup operators has been a big part of our business, which gave us a great base to build our community. 

It is important to keep the balance between the business side of operations and the initiatives we take to help the local startup community grow. This kind of balance helps us ensure that the team is motivated to contribute to developing an organization further over time. 

What role should the government play in supporting community organisations like yours? 

ES: I think it is crucial that the government takes steps to contribute to the local startup ecosystem growth by providing reliable data, research, statistics, and analysis to keep different players informed and help them achieve valuable goals. 

LIFT99 organizes the Estonian Startup Awards. What is the objective of this event? 

ES: The annual Estonian Startup Awards ceremony is meant to celebrate the achievements of the local startup community and give proper recognition to the most active ecosystem players throughout the year. 

The event is also a great opportunity for the general public to learn more about the types of startup companies that are emerging from Estonia and achieving significant milestones in their respective fields. 

Why is it important for founders to have access to startup communities and innovation hubs? 

ES: Based on our founding team’s previous startup experiences, we know how important it is for founders to have access to the proper infrastructure, connections, and community to grow and thrive in their respective fields.

That’s why, in our community, you will find a mix of startup founders, digital nomads, creatives, and organization representatives to help them come together and connect with each other. This approach not only benefits them, but also has a positive impact on the development of the overall ecosystem.