Teenage Engineering's (left-right) Emil Kullanger, Anders Halvarsson, Jesper Kouthoofd, David Eriksson and Pontus Winnberg Nick Wilson

Once the quirky, innovative outsider of startup hubs, Stockholm is now an established base. It was declared the sixth best pole for ICT excellence in Europe by the European Commission -- ahead of Berlin and one point behind Cambridge. Stockholm is also ramping up in financial tech: in the wake of Klarna and iZettle, keep an eye on Tink, Vaulted, Bellhop, mCASH and Safello. Coworking spaces such as SUP46, Knackeriet and Entreprenörs Kyrkan are hosting scores of new companies. And although the hub has some particular strengths, Swedish startups will try their hand at anything, making it arguably more diverse than London or Berlin. The one thing that unifies them? "We are early adopters of movements," says Teenage Engineering CEO Jesper Kouthoofd. "What Sweden's doing now, so will everyone else in a couple of years."

Behaviosec Nick Wilson


Teenage Engineering

Katarina Bangata 71, 116 42 Stockholm

Teenage Engineering makes the OP-1, a portable synthesiser, sampler and controller that came out in 2011 to universal acclaim (Beck and Depeche Mode are fans). It was the product of a simple design philosophy: "We design and build products that we need ourselves," says cofounder Jesper Kouthoofd. "Never speculate on what people might want or need." Likewise, the startup's offices cater to the specific needs of its 17 engineers: behind a garage door off a quiet street lies a den filled with electric vehicles, 3D printers, CNC machines, turntables, arcade machines and all sorts of prototypes for future products. One of those is the OD-11, a beautiful, retro-looking speaker (it's based on a 1974 design from Sweden) that incorporates a Wi-Fi connection. The speakers connect with each other automatically and as they're (sort of) smart, Kouthoofd says it will open up new ways to listen to music.

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They are also working on a range of accessories.

Unomaly


Regeringsgatan 29, 111 53 Stockholm

Software always fails, eventually. Founded in 2010, Unomaly is a machine-learning tool that monitors IT systems in real time, searching for any anomaly that could indicate a fault - including new issues, not just historic ones.

13th Lab

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Pilgatan 3, 112 23 Stockholm


The computer-vision startup has been around a while, taking Nasa's 3D mapping technology for unknown environments on to everyday smartphones. The apps it's now releasing feature seamless 2D and 3D image recognition and tracking. Its ultimate application? A "user interface for reality".

People People

Fredmansgatan 4, 118 47 Stockholm

Like Teenage Engineering, People People develops smart hacks for the physical world. Projects include the Envelope Phone - a smartphone concept that incorporates pre-paid postage into its body: when you're done with the phone, drop it in a postbox and it will go back to the manufacturer for recycling - and the Memoto life-logging camera. All products are delivered as beautiful, restrained Scandinavian designs.

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MAG Interactive

Drottninggatan 71C, 111 36 Stockholm

Another Scandi gaming startup with extraordinary growth: based on MAG's own revenues data, The Next Web calculated that its revenues grew 5,740 per cent over the last year. Founded in 2011, it makes mobile games including Ruzzle, and it claims 50 million iOS players.

BehavioSec

Jakobs Torg 3, SE-11152 Stockholm

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It's time for the password to die. BehavioSec hopes to land the killer blow. "The traditional model for authentication made the legitimate user the one who was being inconvenienced," explains Olov Renberg, COO. Renberg (pictured right, centre) and his cofounders Kristofer Nygren (left of frame) and Hans Peterson (right) wondered if it would be possible instead to "continuously verify" users on a website, without them even noticing.

BehavioSec detects the unique way people interact with a device -- typing patterns, mouse clicks and the programs you use -- to create a signature. So if someone else has your password and logs on, BehavioSec will flag it up. The technique is known as "behavioural biometrics". Although statistical modelling approaches have been around for a while, this startup thinks its transparent methods coupled with machine-learning algorithms constitute a secret sauce.

Convenience might play well to consumers, but what about security freaks? Turns out they're first in line: the quasi sci-fi military research organisation Darpa and several high-profile financial institutions -- including Danske Bank -- have already signed up. The company has $2 million (£1.2m) in funding and Renberg says he wants "to [get] inside every device", working with all applications, if everything goes to plan, within the next 12 months.

Truecaller

Kungsgatan 15, 111 43 Stockholm

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Truecaller is a phone book (remember those?) for the mobile age.

Its database of verified mobile phone numbers makes it easier to get in touch with businesses and individuals, and also acts as a spam blocker to avoid PPI calls and the like. The company, founded in 2009, is adding 2.4 million users in India every month. In February it raised $18.8 million in a round led by Sequoia India.

Vint

Baggensgatan 16, 111 31 Stockholm

Even if the world is your gym, you might still want an instructor.

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Vint is a peer-to-peer marketplace for personal training, hooking up individuals and groups with certified instructors via iPhones.

The founders come from Spotify, Wrapp and Hoa's Tool Shop, and the company recently raised $1.8 million in a round led by Creandum, aimed at funding US expansion.

Safello

Regeringsgatan 29, 111 53 Stockholm

The spectacular, possibly criminal collapse of bitcoin exchange Mt. Gox might make some users of the cryptocurrency wary, but Safello sees an opportunity. It's pitching itself as a pan-European exchange, transferring bitcoins to customers' wallets without holding any BTC itself. In December 2013, it installed Sweden's first bitcoin cash machine and it now accepts payments from 87 European banks in 11 countries.

Lifesum


Klarabergs-viadukten 90, 111 64 Stockholm

Appropriately for a company dedicated to getting in shape, Lifesum is buffing up for a tilt at global success: it changed its name from ShapeUp Club, raised $6.7 million last April, and has now launched in the UK. Its app lets users track the food and calories they consume, via a barcode scanner. There's a library of exercises and it integrates with other apps such as RunKeeper. CEO Henrik Torstensson is a Spotify veteran.

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