24hrs in Helsinki, Finland
From the flight to Day 1 at Slush, Europe’s largest tech conference
I landed back in NYC at 5am Monday morning from Irvine. That night at 10:45pm, I was already back on another plane—this time headed to Helsinki, Finland. According to my Whoop, I got 4.5 hours of sleep, and after a sleepless red-eye the night before…I felt refreshed!
I landed at 2:15pm local time yesterday. On the plane, I messaged an Airbnb experience host named George who runs tours of Helsinki. He didn’t have availability. I messaged anyway. He replied:
“I can do 4:30pm. Meet me at Oodi Library.”
At 3:30pm I checked into my hotel. At 4:30pm I was standing in front of the most majestic library I’ve ever seen in my life.
Oodi Library isn’t just a library. It’s a third place in the truest sense of the word. Inside, there are several floors of community areas where you can rent a guitar, 3D print anything, and even iron your clothes. The word “library” doesn’t explain it. It’s more like a public operating system for creativity.
Oodi felt like Finland had asked, “What do citizens need to build, learn, and create?”—then built it.
George arrived shortly after, and for the next 3.5 hours we walked through Helsinki, its history, culture, food, saunas, and small quirks. Within hours of landing in a country I’d never been to, I was immersed in it alongside a local expert. I felt energized, grateful, and that rare form of overwhelm that only comes from rapid learning.
Some unexpected food discoveries:
Cloudberry — a berry I’d never heard of. Tastes like mango met apricot.
Pine syrup — less sweet than maple syrup, but somehow better.
Finnish tap water — apparently the cleanest in the world.
15k steps later, I was back at my hotel. Jet lagged. Awake. Alive. Thank you, George.
Day 1 at Slush — Europe’s largest tech conference
Slush feels like the definition of being a big fish in a small pond. Hosting Europe’s largest tech conference in Helsinki isn’t about size—it’s about focus.
There were 20–25 Slush staff members immediately past passport control at the airport helping attendees. The city seems designed to absorb the conference. It felt like everyone in Helsinki knew Slush was in town. That rarely, if ever, happens in NYC (yes, if ever feels right!) Attendance was easily north of 30,000.
Our booth opens tomorrow and I can’t wait to continue to meet founders from all over the world.
The Real Lesson
Helsinki is not the obvious choice for Europe’s largest tech conference.
And maybe that’s exactly the point.
It isn’t trying to be London or Paris. Instead, it built its own current — and let the world swim toward it. That feels like an entrepreneurial lesson:
You don’t need to be where everyone is.
You need to be where what you’re building actually matters.
There’s something powerful about being a big fish on purpose — not by accident.
Slush begins again tomorrow, but I’m already seeing the pattern:
The best ecosystems aren’t found. They’re built. Kudos to the Slush team. The entire experience so far seems very well curated.
P.S. Here is a picture of a cloudberry!
Super cool!