Finland sparked Tai Tran’s passion for the startup world

Tai Tran’s passion for developing the Finnish startup ecosystem and supporting entrepreneurship is infectious. When we visited his office at Aalto Startup Center, Tai had just wrapped up two days of hosting a stage at Slush, one of the world’s largest startup events, and was still buzzing with excitement. It’s another feather in the cap for Tai, who, since moving to Lahti, Finland, in 2017 to study international business, has helped to take Junction hackathons global and co-founded Slush’d Tirana.

Yet, the startup world wasn’t an obvious path for Tai. His family had encouraged him to pursue a career in government. However, in Vietnam, such a career often comes with travel restrictions, and Tai was eager to see the world. He applied to study in Europe and received scholarships from two universities, one in the Netherlands and one in Lahti. Although he barely knew Finland existed, he chose Lahti University of Applied Sciences (nowadays LAB University of Applied sciences) based on what he read online and the promise of tuition-free education.

The beginning wasn’t easy. Tai arrived in Lahti on a cold January day to find a city that felt almost empty compared to the hustle and bustle of Vietnam. However, he soon got involved with the LAMK Entrepreneurship Society, moved to Helsinki and discovered his passion for working in the startup ecosystem. Today, Tai is a Finnish citizen and his day-to-day mission is to map and connect the startup ecosystem at Aalto University. In 2023, Tai was even named as a candidate for the Forbes 30 Under 30 Europe list in the Social Impact category.

The Finnish education style is… much more relaxed [than in Vietnam]. That doesn’t mean the quality isn’t good, it’s much higher than in my country. There, I would study from 6 am to 10 pm, including official and non-official studying. Summer break was three days, and then you would start summer school. In Finland, you get a proper summer break.

Also, when I was studying in Lahti, higher education was still free [for non-EU/EAA citizens]. Studying in Vietnam costs a lot and many private schools are trying to maximise their profit. It’s super cool that it’s not like that in Finland. I did my degree in Lahti but also took courses at Metropolia and Haaga-Helia universities of applied sciences. Here, the quality of education is the same regardless of the school, while in Vietnam, it can be very different depending on where you are studying. 

Studying is also more practical here. You aren’t forced to study unnecessary things, but you can choose which courses you want to take based on your interests. 

The one weakness of the education system is… that it hasn’t been able to mix international and local people. If you take a course or get a degree in English, you are kind of isolated in your international group and the Finnish people usually hang in their own groups. 

So, it can be pretty divided. In particular, if you don’t speak Finnish; it’s a difficult language. Now, I can understand about 80 per cent of conversations, but it still takes me time to respond. 

Finns are generally quite introverted, but I now have a good network of Finnish friends who are close to me. Finns can be hard to make friends with, but once you’re friends, it’s like a lifetime friendship guarantee.

My connection with entrepreneurship… started in Lahti, the LAMK Entrepreneurship Society. I first volunteered there for a few months, then ended up as a board member and ran the board for two years. I made good connections through the society, also in other regions than Lahti. 

Most students, when it comes to doing an internship, find a company and do the internship there. I don’t often share this, but my story was different. I decided I was going to start my own company instead, as I wanted to understand the challenges that foreigners face when they establish a company in Finland. I went through all the paperwork, which was a lot of stress and headache because it was all in Finnish back then. Today there is a lot of information available in English.

I went through learning about sales, marketing and business development and then wrote a report for my head tutor. That is how I started to get a good picture of what entrepreneurship is like for a foreigner in Finland. Then, I closed the company.

It took me some time to find work… after graduation. I attended several startup networking events and eventually met one of the founders of a startup where I started to work as a marketing assistant. That helped me to realise that I don’t actually like working in a startup. I felt a strong desire to be on the ecosystem-building side and return to that. 

But it took me a bit of time to realise that, so I first became a general operations manager for one of the restaurants in the NoHo group. I did that for a year, but it wasn’t what I studied for or the field where I wanted to be.

I then explored other opportunities and ultimately took on the role of head of global operations at Junction. That’s when I got back into the startup ecosystem. It wasn’t supporting entrepreneurship directly, but I helped to build Junctions [hackathons] that act like an ignition programme where people get the time and resources to go crazy with their ideas for a weekend. Some people continue working on their ideas and become founders.  

My main task was to scale Junction abroad, and by the end of last year, I had scaled it from a mostly Finnish project to 12 locations globally. That was a successful year for me, and I got to work with more than 10 000 hackers worldwide. We were in Africa, Asia and a lot in Europe. I was travelling a lot last year. 

I was so satisfied with the results. I was even one of the candidates for the Forbes 30 Under 30 Europe listing in the social impact category. 

Being in the startup ecosystem and experiencing… through the eyes of a foreigner has made me see this is one of the most unique startup ecosystems in the world. There isn’t another one like it. It’s mostly non-profit, it’s student-driven and the government or politicians don’t interfere. There is a sort of a feeling that everyone can do anything. Maybe it’s because Finland is a trust-based society. Everyone trusts each other, and that drives the ecosystem forward.

Also, universities, government organisations and student organisations don’t compete with each other except in a positive sense where they want to support a common goal, which is to produce more crazy ideas and unicorns. Of course, startup founders have to do 99 per cent of the work themselves, but at least the ecosystem supports them and cheers them on. 

I have seen many other ecosystems, especially the ones in Asia, and most of them are for profit. They don’t do it for the entrepreneurs’ sake but to maximise their profit. 

I was hired for my current role… to be the person who helps everyone fully understand the startup ecosystem at Aalto. Whether you're an investor, student or founder looking to get involved, I'll make sure you find your way in.

This is the first time this position has been created, and I’ve been given the freedom to shape it as I see fit. I really enjoy it, though it can be challenging at times. Fortunately, I have a strong steering group that provides great support.

My main tip for international people… and for Finnish people as well, looking to join the startup ecosystem is to network and be open-minded. That is the key. Go to networking events, be open to talk to people and make connections. That is how you drive your network and development forward. It’s also one of the fastest ways to integrate into the Finnish society.

Finnish founders, and foreigners too, can be too focused on their products and sometimes rely heavily on the government, like. They have amazing funding schemes, but people can have a mindset where they can base their success on Business Finland funding. Being open to talk to people can bring really good connections and opportunities for your business. 

Finnish founders, and foreigners too, can be too focused on their products and sometimes rely heavily on the government, like Business Finland. They have amazing funding schemes, but their funding and services should be seen as a supporting tool for startups to succeed, not the ultimate goal or definition of a successful startup story. Founders should actively seek out other sources of funding, such as additional grants, VCs, investors and more.

The second important thing is to dare to speak up. This society was built for you to speak up and ask questions. I was raised in a way that we weren’t allowed to ask questions. Every time we asked something, we were made to feel that it was a stupid question. But in Finland, no one is going to judge you even if you ask a crazy question. If you feel the need to know something, ask. If you don’t get an answer from one person, keep asking until you get answers. This was a really hard thing for me to learn. 

Also, it’s a low-hierarchy culture here. I can always talk to my supervisor or almost everyone. In Vietnam, you can’t do that, you can’t talk to the higher level. Here, everyone is equally treated. 

I’ve recently joined… the Finnish population. I have dual citizenship now, and Finland has started to feel like home. It’s also becoming increasingly international, and I feel more accepted in that sense. There are more opportunities, although many still need to be brought to the surface. 

I enjoy attending startup events… and think of that as my hobby. I do some running and go to the gym with friends, too, but going to events recharges my battery. I love being part of it, and I enjoy being with people who have a similar mindset.