Opening doors to industry - perspectives from Volvo Group
How can an industry-leading corporation create opportunities for startups? Volvo Group’s Vishnu Rajanikanth, Kajsa Karlsson, and Claes Nordenberg share how they work with innovation.
Since 2022, KTH Innovation has been working to create closer collaboration between startups and industry. The latest actor to visit KTH to share how they work with innovation, meet startups, and explore research environments was Volvo Group, and their startup innovation hub, CampX.
Volvo Group is a global transport and infrastructure company headquartered in Gothenburg, Sweden. They operate across a wide range of areas, from trucks and buses to construction equipment, power solutions for marine and industrial applications, financing and services that increase their customers’ uptime and productivity.
Vishnu Rajanikanth, Head of CampX, Kajsa Karlsson, Senior Innovation Manager at CampX, and Claes Nordenberg, Senior Innovation & Early Phase Manager, Emerging Technology Purchasing talked to KTH Innovation’s Marcus Dahllöf, Director of the startup-industry program.
Why did you want to visit KTH?
Vishnu Rajanikanth: KTH is a startup factory—especially within research and deep tech. You've shown that research can be converted into business. Given the challenges we’re working on at Volvo Group, and our focus on engaging with startups and scaleups, it’s quite natural for us to connect with you and explore opportunities.
How has Volvo Group contributed to innovation and bringing new solutions to the market?
Kajsa Karlsson: There’s a strong legacy at Volvo Group, starting with seatbelts.
Vishnu Rajanikanth: More recently, we were early with a fully electric heavy-duty truck and have really pushed to bring it to market. We also already have autonomous Volvo trucks running between Texas and California using a hub-to-hub model, in partnership with others. We’re making progress in simulation and applying AI in our processes.
What do you see as the most interesting areas for innovation in sustainable mobility?
Vishnu Rajanikanth: Our ambition is to be 100% safe, 100% fossil-free, and 100% more productive. That goes beyond zero-emission vehicles. It includes the materials we use, our production processes, and supply chains—it's a transformation of not just the product, but the entire machinery and services around it.
100% safe builds on our legacy—like seatbelts but asks: what does safety mean in the new age? Think of autonomous driving, site safety, and driver assistance.
Claes Nordenberg: Cybersecurity is also a major area.
Vishnu Rajanikanth: Yes, and when we talk about 100% productive, it’s about making our customers more productive. We're in the B2B business—our customers use our products to earn money. The better we support utilization and efficiency, the more successful they are. That also applies to how productive we are internally, in development, manufacturing, and responding faster to change.
How does CampX by Volvo Group support startups?
Kajsa Karlsson: We engage with both early-stage startups and scaleups through two main programs. One is the Incubator, focused on early-stage companies. The other is Venture Client, where we collaborate with startups to solve real internal challenges.
How can you help startups access the industry?
Kajsa Karlsson: Breaking into industry is tricky. We help by opening doors, connecting startups with the right people, and navigating the corporate language.
Claes Nordenberg: You can listen to pitches, but until you actually do a project together, you can’t really see the value. That’s central to what we want to achieve.
Marcus Dahllöf: From our side, helping startups get to the right person at the right time is crucial. KTH Innovation can make warm introductions to actors like you and speed up the process for everyone.
How do you see this partnership evolving?
Vishnu Rajanikanth: Startups and talent from research institutions like KTH are critical to solving tough challenges. There’s a lot we can learn—about how startups grow, what drives them, and how we can complement that with what we offer as an industry partner.
Kajsa Karlsson: We have part of the offering, KTH has another, and there are other players involved too. It's truly an ecosystem. Innovation takes a village.
Vishnu Rajanikanth: Stockholm is a strong innovation hub, and KTH is a key ecosystem player. Working with academia and industry to strengthen Sweden is also a big part of this. Also, if startups bring talent, we benefit too.
Text: Lisa Bäckman