Mike Arbuzov, an Estonian software engineer educated at the prestigious Tallinn University of Technology (TalTech), has actively participated in the rise and consolidation of Estonia’s startup ecosystem. This ecosystem has become a unique success story, boasting the highest number of unicorns, startups, and VC investments per capita in Europe, with its startups valued at twice the country’s GDP.
Early in his career, Arbuzov was part of the Skype team, as one of their first employees, contributing to the development of a communication system so innovative at the time that it turned the company into Estonia’s first unicorn, valued at $1 billion. Arbuzov was with Skype when it was acquired by eBay for $2.6 billion in 2005.
Mike Arbuzov is one of the former Skype employees who has helped Estonia transform into a haven for startups and entrepreneurs and a “unicorn factory” since that spectacular exit. In fact, after his time at Skype, Arbuzov joined Gelato in 2007, which in 2020 became Estonia’s eighth unicorn (and Norway’s ninth). As a founding team member and CTO, Arbuzov developed the core technology that has made Gelato the largest global platform for print-on-demand services.
In March 2024, Mike Arbuzov left Gelato to focus on his promising startup, EcoTracer, which provides AI-powered solutions to measure, report, and improve manufacturers’ environmental impact.