It’s another edition of the best/most unusual/can’t-quite-put-our-finger-on-it-odd founder photos in Europe.
These are pictures from a parallel dimension that’s about 7% stranger than our own. As always, there’s no science here: it’s all snap judgement (FYI: the classes of 2024, 2023, 2022 and 2021).
I’m here to poke fun but I also don’t want to discourage founders from taking inventive pics (god knows, we need diversions wherever we can get them). So this is also a celebration of the mould-breakers.
This year’s vintage:
Renow, e-commerce startup, Finland

I feel for the guy in the denim shirt, who probably made a last second decision to throw his arm around his buddy. But he doesn't quite reach far enough, with his hand doomed to rest in an uncertain hinterland until the photo is over.
Multiverse Computing, AI startup, Spain

Suit, white trainers and a blue pocket square? Well, if there really is a multiverse, it’s definitely a killer look somewhere.
Desk.ly, hybrid work management software, Germany

Unsettling symmetries.
Sintra, AI startup, Lithuania

Everyone looks like they’re never waved before. And there’s a Christmas tree.
Miss Moneypenny Technologies, payments startup, Germany

Well, yes. The hats. It’s almost like they knew they’d be on this list at some point.
RepScan, legaltech startup, Spain

A nice little salesman’s flourish from the guy on the right, like a magician after sawing his assistant in half.
Volare, biotech startup, Finland

A photo that answers “no” to the question: “Is there a natural way to clutch a great industrial pipe?”