Big businesses tend to have well-oiled lobbying machines, accustomed to swaying policymakers in their favour. Startups — comparatively time-poor and with smaller teams — have typically presented less slick operations
But things are ramping up, and individuals with key government experience are choosing to take a punt and join a startup.
European startups’ policy wins include a bill allowing autonomous vehicles onto UK roads — without which, self-driving car startups would have no route to market — and a package to remove hidden fees from currency conversions, making it easier for fintechs to provide cross-border transfers.
Here are some of the movers and shakers making it happen.
This is a non-exhaustive list: if you know someone you think should be on our radar, get in touch: freya@sifted.eu and tommatsuda@sifted.eu
Flora Coleman — Klarna
Flora Coleman joined Klarna in 2021 as its head of global policy and government relations, where she works on topics including fintech regulation, AI, competition and privacy.
Klarna is not Coleman’s first rodeo: she previously headed up government relations for payments app Wise, where she pushed for CBPR2, an EU regulation aimed at improving transparency in cross-border payments.
Prior to joining the tech world, Coleman had worked as a special advisor in the UK’s House of Lords.
Clem Cowton — Octopus Energy
Greg Jackson, CEO of UK energy supplier Octopus, is frequently pictured cosying up to some of the country’s top politicians.
Jackson met Rachel Reeves, the UK’s new Chancellor, within days of her entering office. Energy minister Ed Miliband warmly described him as “his friend” when the two shared a stage last November, Politico reports.
Jackson may well be the face, but the brains behind the slick operation is said to be Clem Cowton, Octopus’ director of external affairs. She’s been at Octopus for seven years and led its campaign for an energy price cap. Cowton previously worked in political consultancy.
Charlotte Weil von der Ahe — Helsing
After graduating from the University of Oxford with a PhD in geography and the environment in 2016, Charlotte Von der Ahe took on a variety of roles with Germany’s liberal Free Democratic Party.
She joined Helsing in 2021 as a communications director, eventually being promoted last year to senior group director of government affairs. During that time, Helsing has worked with governments across Europe on new defence initiatives, while striking new partnerships with companies like French AI darling Mistral and aerospace giant Airbus.
Sarah Gates — Wayve
UK autonomous vehicles startup Wayve saw its lobbying efforts pay off in 2023 when the country passed its Autonomous Vehicles Bill. Without the legislation — which paves the way for self-driving vehicles on UK roads — Wayve’s tech would have had no route to market.
Wayve’s lobbying lead is Sarah Gates, who has been at the company for the last three years. She’s also part of the Self-Driving Vehicles Working Group and lectures at IE Business School on autonomous vehicles policy.
Previous to Wayve, Gates worked in the UK’s civil service as a senior policy advisor.
Antoine Jouteau — European Tech Alliance
Antoine Jouteau has been a president of the European Tech Alliance since the start of 2024, a job he juggles alongside his role as CEO of French classified ads platform Leboncoin.
The EUTA represents 33 leading tech companies from 33 European countries, including ride-hailing app Bolt, food delivery company Just Eat, French AI startup Mirakl and secondhand clothing marketplace Vinted.
In a statement on the company’s website, Jouteau says: “In order to thrive, European tech companies need to be able to compete on a global scale. That is why the EUTA focuses on encouraging policies that level the playing field, and regulation that fosters growth and innovation.”
Lucie-Aimee Kaffee – Hugging Face
Lucie-Aimee Kaffee joined French startup Hugging Face in April 2024 as the company’s EU policy lead. She has a PhD in computer science, which was focused on tech solutions to problems in online communities. Kaffee’s work focuses on advocating for the open source AI developer community, she told Sifted. She’s also working on pushing for greater transparency around training data and clearer labelling of AI-generated content, as part of the EU AI Act.
Audrey Herblin-Stoop — Mistral
February’s AI Summit in France crystalised Mistral’s position as the poster child of the country’s tech scene. Cofounder Arthur Mensch enjoys strong connections to president Emmanuel Macron and has become the voice for AI companies’ concerns over incoming regulations.
Mistral’s lobbying tsar is Audrey Herblin-Stoop, who joined the company at the start of 2024. Herblin-Stoop previously did a seven-year stint at Twitter, where she was the public policy director for France and Russia.
Mistral’s government connections are likely to become increasingly important as the company moves into defence: it’s currently pursuing contracts with countries across Europe.
Adam Gagen — Revolut
Adam Gagen joined Revolut in June 2022 to act as the financial superapp’s global head of government affairs. Gagen began his policy career at the European Commission where he was the economic and trade officer for Taiwan. After holding public affairs roles at beverages company Pernod Ricard and the World Federation of Advertisers, Gagen landed his first finance-focused role in 2017 as American Express’ VP for EMEA government affairs before taking up his current role at Revolut.
In his role at Revolut, Gagen engages with policymakers and central banks globally to lobby for pro-fintech regulation. He’s also overseen Revolut at a time of heavy regulatory scrutiny for the neobank, including the drawn-out decision over its application for a UK banking licence, probes into its financial crime controls and delayed filing of its annual financial accounts.
Ariane Vickman — Starling
Ariane Vickman joined Starling in July 2023 to lead the UK neobank’s public affairs department. A former advisor to deputy prime minister Dominic Raab, Vickman previously worked as a researcher for the Conservative government, focusing on international human rights, financial services, education and the European Union. She joined Starling from industry body UK Finance, where she acted as principal of public affairs and public policy.
Boniface de Champris — CCIA Europe
Boniface de Champris joined CCIA (Computer & Communications Industry Association) Europe in 2023 and was promoted to senior policy manager shortly thereafter. An outspoken voice in the ongoing debate around the EU’s sweeping AI Act, he has warned Brussels lawmakers against limiting tech companies’ flexibility through onerous legislation. CCIA members include startups like speedy delivery company Deliveroo and Norwegian web browser Opera, as well as Big Tech companies like Apple, Google and Meta.
Dom Hallas — Startup Coalition
Dom Hallas has run policy group Startup Coalition for the last seven years, campaigning for policies to benefit the UK’s startups. Key issues the group works on include visa rules to help startups access talent, and pushing for regulation that allows companies to innovate.
Previous roles held by Hallas include working on diplomatic strategy for the UK government and a role at Bloomberg Philanthropies, working on government innovation.
Nick Pickles — Tools for Humanity
Nick Pickles, a former music photographer from Yorkshire, was one of the most influential executives at X before joining Tools for Humanity, the organisation which builds the technology for Sam Altman’s crypto biometrics project World Network (formerly Worldcoin), last year. During his tenure at X, Pickles was considered CEO Linda Yaccarino’s “right-hand man”, and in 2021, he appeared before British MPs to be questioned over X’s policy on hate content.
At Tools for Humanity, Pickles is tasked with educating regulators and policymakers about a project which has come under considerable regulatory scrutiny since launch.
Yedidia Levy-Zauberman — Owkin
Yedidia Levy-Zauberman joined Paris-based AI biotech Owkin in 2022 as its senior VP of public affairs. Levy-Zauberman brought with him a wealth of government experience: he was special advisor to France’s minister for European affairs; chief of staff to the Paris deputy mayor; and a diplomatic advisor to France’s higher education department.
Marianne Tordeux-Bitker — France Digitale
France Digitale is an association for startups: it runs industry events and policy campaigns to boost the voice of its members. Marianne Tordeux-Bitker is the group’s director of public affairs, a role which involves advising EU and French policymakers on how best to work with startups.
Tordeux-Bitker also works as a counselor to France’s Economic, Social and Environmental Council, where she’s currently drafting a report on AI in French society.
Aurélien Pozzana — Bolt
Aurélien Pozzana joined mobility company Bolt in 2018 to head up its policy efforts across Europe. Prior to that, Pozzana was director of public affairs at lobbying and communications firm Affaires Publiques Consultants (APc).
At Bolt, Pozzana regularly interacts with digital, transport and labour public policymakers and has previously spoken out against the Platform Work Directive — the EU’s gig worker legislation. Along with Uber and Free Now, Bolt is part of Move EU, a lobbying group that celebrated the rejection of the directive in the European Parliament last year.
Read the orginal article: https://sifted.eu/articles/european-tech-startups-lobbyists/
