PRESS RELEASE
Latitude59’s opening event “Thinking in Billions” will open a discussion on how to overcome legal barriers to testing and bringing novel technologies to market, drawing on experiences from Estonia, Canada and Japan.
Minister of Economic Affairs & Industry of Estonia Erkki Keldo said Estonia wants to be a place where bold new ideas can be tested safely and quickly. “The next generation of billion-scale companies will be born where technology develops faster than legislation, and where the state dares to say ‘yes’ while others are still hesitating. Estonia does not want to be a place where innovation gets stuck in permits and bureaucracy. We want to be a country where the world can test what still seems impossible elsewhere. Our strength lies in the courage to make fast decisions, offer new technologies a safe testing ground, and turn regulation into a competitive advantage,” said Keldo.
Liisi Org, CEO of Latitude59, said this year’s “Thinking in Billions” addresses questions that are high on the agenda around the world. “The rapid development of technology is creating entirely new challenges for countries and governments, and calls for fast adaptation. Estonia is in a strong position today because, as a small country, we are used to being quick and flexible. We have a lot to share with the world, but also a lot to learn. Latitude59’s opening event will be a place to discuss approaches that work and share practical experience,” Org emphasised.
The event will be opened by Estonia’s Minister of Economic Affairs and Industry, Erkki Keldo. Keynote speakers include Canadian Minister of Foreign Affairs Anita Anand and Takeshi Kito, co-founder & CEO, GFTN Japan. Estonia’s perspective will be presented by Sigrid Rajalo, Deputy Secretary General for Economy and Innovation. Rajalo and Kito will then discuss the Estonian and Japanese approaches in a panel moderated by Olari Püvi, CEO of Accelerate Estonia.
The programme continues with a discussion by Bolt and Wolt, where the two companies will draw on practical case studies to explain what drives decisions to enter highly regulated markets and how they approach the process. The panel will bring together Irina Kuzina from Wolt and Triin Toimetaja from Bolt, and will be moderated by journalist Tarmo Virki.
A panel of startups and investors will explore why unregulated or still-emerging markets matter for both investors and companies. The discussion will feature Leo Ringer, founding partner of Form Ventures; Julian Glaab, founder and CEO of Bliq; and Doron Appelboim, co-founder and CTO of Aerolane. The panel will be moderated by Ben Brabyn, Director at Amitypath.
The day concludes with a public sector panel asking how to overcome one of the biggest practical barriers to implementing innovation in government: ensuring that public sector leaders do not avoid making necessary decisions simply out of fear for their careers. The discussion will feature Sandor Liive, co-founder of Gridio, and Takeshi Kito. The discussion will be moderated by Erkki Karo, who has studied “innovation bureaucracy”.
Thinking in Billions is the official opening event of Latitude59. It highlights the measures that innovation-minded policymakers are testing in cooperation with the private sector. The event will take place on 20 May at Kultuurikatel and is organised by Latitude59 in partnership with the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communications and Accelerate Estonia.
Latitude59 2026 will take place from 20–22 May in Tallinn, at Kultuurikatel, bringing together startups, investors and startup ecosystem builders from more than 70 countries.
