Gustav Söderström
About Gustav Söderström
Gustav Söderström is Co-Chief Executive Officer of Spotify and has been a member of its board since January 1, 2026. Before that he was Co-President and Chief Product & Technology Officer, overseeing product, design, data and engineering. His LinkedIn lists him as Chief Product Officer from March 2011 and Chief R&D Officer from April 2017 to January 2026.
Before Spotify he was Director of Product and Business Development at Yahoo! Mobile. He co-founded and ran Kenet Works as CEO. He also founded 13th Lab, which was acquired by Facebook's Oculus. He holds an MS in electrical engineering from KTH Royal Institute of Technology and a business administration degree from Södertörn University.
He is based in Stockholm. On LinkedIn he says he has a passion for startups and early stage company building.
Söderström describes himself as a startup seed investor. Masters of Scale notes he has served on the board of Tictail since 2013. PitchBook lists 12 investments, and Crunchbase lists 8. Dated entries run from Tictail (2013) to Eigen (2026).
Most of his earlier backing went to Swedish companies, including Albacross (2015), DigiExam (2015 and 2016), Werlabs (2016) and Left or Right (2016). Later entries are Vay (2021) and This One (2022). Tracxn lists $399K for Albacross's 2015 angel round and $3.5M for DigiExam's 2016 round. These are total round sizes and co-investor data, not his own check sizes.
His AI round on the Lounge deals desk is Eigen's $15M seed, announced in April 2026. Eigen is a San Francisco startup building what it calls a "mutual friend", an AI meant to support human connection and collaboration. Benchmark led the round. Other angels named in the announcement include Ben Silbermann, David Singleton, Akshay Kothari and Will Wu. Paul Scherer is CEO.
Crunchbase also lists a seed round in Nozomio under his personal investments. It gives no further public detail in the sources reviewed.
Public databases show early-stage angel and seed rounds, mostly in Sweden, with some in Germany, the UK and the US. Sectors listed include software, education technology, automotive, health services and, most recently, AI. His check size is not public, and he has not published a statement on what he looks for in founders.
- Eigen: AI startup building a "mutual friend" for human connection; $15M seed led by Benchmark, announced April 2026.
- Nozomio: listed on Crunchbase as a seed round; no further public detail found.
- Vay: automotive company; angel round, 2021.
- DigiExam: education software; invested 2015 and 2016.
- Albacross: business software; angel round, 2015.
- Tictail: e-commerce platform; seed investor and board member since 2013.
- investors.spotify.com/governance/board-of-directors/person-details/def
- se.linkedin.com/in/gustavsoderstrom
- crunchbase.com/person/gustav-sderstrm
- pitchbook.com/profiles/investor/155573-02
- tracxn.com/d/people/gustav-sderstrm/__aIW2C0_uH6TnRVLne1t9RkZhViosQVRs
- finsmes.com/2026/04/eigen-raises-15m-in-seed-funding.html
- pulse2.com/eigen-15-million-seed-funding-raised-to-build-mutual-friend
- mastersofscale.com/people/gustav-soderstrom
Investing activity
Gustav Söderström appears in 1 AI deal tracked by the Lounge deals desk, rounds totalling $15M. The rounds are mostly Seed, with a median round size of $15M. The most recent is Eigen (Seed, $15M, Apr 2026).
Gustav Söderström most often invests alongside Benchmark, Peter Sellis, Terrence Rohan and K5 Global, and the companies they back on Lounge are mostly in AI.
Deals
Frequently asked questions about Gustav Söderström
Does Gustav Söderström invest in AI startups?
Yes. He is listed as an angel in Eigen's $15M seed round, announced in April 2026, and Crunchbase also lists a seed investment in Nozomio. Most of his earlier investments were not AI companies.
What is Gustav Söderström's angel check size?
It is not public. Round totals appear in databases, but they are not his own check sizes.
What stage does Gustav Söderström invest in?
Public records show angel and seed rounds, with a few later rounds listed in some databases. Eigen was a $15M seed round led by Benchmark.
Who is Gustav Söderström?
He is Co-CEO of Spotify, a role he has held since January 2026. Before that he was Spotify's Chief Product and Technology Officer. He also founded 13th Lab, which was acquired by Facebook's Oculus.
Which Eigen round did Gustav Söderström join?
He joined Eigen's $15M seed round, announced in April 2026. Benchmark led it, and the other angels included Ben Silbermann and David Singleton.
Where is Gustav Söderström based?
He is based in Stockholm, Sweden. His earlier angel investments were mostly in Swedish companies.
Is Gustav Söderström an angel investor?
Yes. Gustav Söderström invests personally as an angel.
What AI companies has Gustav Söderström invested in?
Gustav Söderström's AI investments include Eigen. The 1 round on Lounge are listed on this page with amounts, dates and co-investors.
What stage does Gustav Söderström invest at?
In the rounds tracked on Lounge, Gustav Söderström has invested at Seed, with a median round of $15M.
Who does Gustav Söderström co-invest with?
Gustav Söderström's most frequent co-investors on Lounge are Benchmark (1 deal), Peter Sellis (1 deal), Terrence Rohan (1 deal), K5 Global (1 deal) and Akshay Kothari (1 deal).