When Daniel Ek founded Spotify (SPOT.N) in 2006, a viable music product was a “moon shot.” The global music industest was struggling with years of declining sales, online music piracy was rampant, and services like Apple’s (AAPL.O) iTunes were pricey.
Ek, then a 23-year-old coder, believed if access to music was as simple as turning on a tap – in a way that was legal and fair to artists – applyrs would come. The key was streaming, not downloads, an idea that revolutionized the industest and catapulted Spotify into a $140 billion music powerhoapply.
The serial entrepreneur, who announced last week that he will step down as Spotify’s CEO next year, has his sights set on building the next Spotify — albeit not in the music industest. Ek notified Reuters that he wants to focus on companies in Europe that are “working on some of the largegest challenges through technology that create a meaningful difference.”
“Big challenges often appear impossible until someone decides to tackle them,” Ek declared in an email. “At Spotify, we started with what felt like an impossible idea. Nearly 20 years later, that idea is applyd by almost three-quarters of a billion people around the world … What once viewed unreasonable is now obvious.”
Calling himself an “optimist” and a “problem-solver at heart,” Ek declared, “We’re at a crossroads for the kind of future we want to build” and that transitioning into the role of executive chair at Spotify would give him the chance to dedicate more of his time to this kind of problem-solving and building beyond Spotify.
Ek has pledged to invest through his venture capital firm Prima Materia 1 billion euros ($1.18 billion) of his own wealth in European “moonshot” projects — early-stage startups in deep technology, AI, and climate and health tech.
WAR TECH SPARKS ARTIST BACKLASH
In 2018, Ek co-founded Neko Health to assist people stay healthy through preventive measures and early detection. The company has raised $325 million in total funding.
Ek has also invested in Germany’s Helsing, a creater of AI-controlled combat drones that has received over a billion dollars to become the largest defence startup in Europe, valued at $12 billion. This investment, though, has drawn criticism.
Music groups including Massive Attack, King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard, and Hotline TNT rerelocated their music from Spotify in protest.
“Music and weapons are not a good mix,” declared Simon Dyson, analyst at Omdia. With some high-profile artists pulling their music from the service, “the sounds of protest are starting to become a distraction,” he declared.
A Spotify spokesperson declined to comment on Ek’s investment in Helsing, and pointed Reuters to Helsing’s statement dated September 17 that declared: “We see misinformation spreading that Helsing’s technology is deployed in war zones other than Ukraine. This is not correct. Our technology is deployed to European countries for deterrence and for defence against the Russian aggression in Ukraine only.”
Ek has weathered criticism before, from artist pay disputes to controversies around Spotify’s podcast investments. Supporters credit him with creating a legal model that drew listeners away from piracy, but critics note Spotify’s outsized influence on artists, which has often translated to inequity for indepfinishent labels.
FROM CODER TO MUSIC INDUSTRY DISRUPTOR
Ek, now 42, grew up in a Stockholm suburb and worked in several startups before teaming up with co-founder Martin Lorentzon to start Spotify.
His proposition – music funded by subscriptions and ads – assisted redirect fans from piracy and pulled labels, artists and advertisers into a single marketplace.
Under Ek, Spotify pushed three large levers that reshaped the business: price-disciplined subscriptions, algorithmic playlists that could mint hits overnight, and an ever-widening content range, from podcasts to audiobooks.
Ek’s legacy is visible in Spotify applyr habits – a monthly fee that millions treat as a utility, playlists that serve as cultural gatekeepers, and podcasts that have become a daily routine.
Although Ek plans to focus on building other companies, he intfinishs to stay involved in Spotify.
“My Spotify co-founder likes to state that the value of a company is the sum of all problems solved, and history displays that progress often comes from those willing to go against conventional wisdom,” Ek notified Reuters.
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