From Idea to Global PropTech Startup
Co-founding and scaling a proptech startup from Sweden to Saudi Arabia, securing top-tier accelerator backing, government innovation funding, enterprise clients, and winning global innovation competitions.
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problem
The construction and real estate industry is one of the largest contributors to global emissions, one way to tackle this challenge is to certify real estate projects with greeen building certifications. However, the sustainability certification processes remain manual, fragmented, and inefficient. Developers, contractors, and consultants spend thousands of hours navigating complex requirements, documentation, and compliance workflows, most of which are still managed through spreadsheets, emails, and disconnected tools. We saw an opportunity to build an AI-native platform that simplifies and automates sustainability and green building certification, making compliance more accessible, scalable, and manageable for the built environment.
solution
Net Zero Build is an AI-native platform designed to modernize how sustainability and green building certifications are managed across the built environment. The platform consists of two core products tailored to different stakeholders: Compliance Monitoring Platform for Real Estate Developers – Enables sustainability and project delivery teams to monitor certification progress across portfolios, identify risks early, and take proactive action before compliance issues impact timelines and budgets. Project Management Platform for Contractors & Consultants – Helps project teams manage day-to-day certification work by guiding users through requirements, structuring documentation, and tracking progress across teams and projects. The platform replaces fragmented Excel-based workflows with a shared, structured system.
responsibility
As Co-Founder and CPO, I led product vision, strategy, and execution from day one. My responsibilities spanned problem discovery, product design, MVP development, customer validation, and go-to-market strategy. I worked closely with early customers, partners, and government stakeholders to translate an ambitious climate tech vision into a tangible product and global business, operating at the intersection of product, enterprise delivery, and strategic partnerships.
Net Zero Build began as a mission to simplify sustainability certification through technology, but quickly evolved into a global venture journey spanning product development, customer validation, fundraising, and international expansion.
From building the MVP in Sweden, being selected to the join Norrsken Accelerator (0,7% acceptance rate) and signing early large scale real estate customers, to relocating to Saudi Arabia and embedding within NEOM’s project environment, the journey required continuous adaptation across markets, cultures, regulations, and enterprise expectations.
As a founder and product leader, I operated at the intersection of product design, customer discovery, enterprise delivery, and strategic partnerships. The experience reshaped how I think about product-market fit: it’s not just about features, but about understanding workflows, personal agendas, incentives, procurement realities, and cultural context at every level.
Expansion, Enterprise Readiness & Market Repositioning
After receiving investment from NEOM, we relocated our operations to Saudi Arabia which for us as founders was a completely new market and culture. Beyond product adaptation, we had to quickly understand how business, partnerships, and enterprise procurement operate in the MENA region.
We spent two months embedded in NEOM, working daily with project teams through shadowing, workshops, and stakeholder meetings. At the same time, we navigated the complexity of becoming enterprise-ready as a two-person early-stage startup, aligning on procurement, security, compliance, and delivery expectations.
This on-the-ground collaboration enabled us to deeply understand client workflows and redefine our product positioning and offering to better match real enterprise needs.
Results of Market Immersion
Our work with NEOM led to a refined product-market fit and a stronger enterprise value proposition. This resulted in NEOM formally requesting a $1.1M Proof of Concept (PoC) to implement and validate the platform within their sustainability and certification processes.
Scaling Presence in Saudi Arabia
Following this validation, we continued building the company on the ground in Riyadh, engaging directly with some of the world’s largest real estate developers and construction firms.
We established relationships and partnerships supported by key government stakeholders, including the Ministry of Investment, the Ministry of Environment, and the Research, Development & Innovation Authority (RDIA).
As part of our global ecosystem engagement, we represented the company across international innovation hubs including Boston, Osaka, Dubai, and Silicon Valley, building strategic visibility and partnerships.
A major milestone was signing a strategic partnership with the Ministry of Housing’s National Housing Company (NHC) to enable their sustainability certification framework to be adopted and digitized through our platform.
Results & Impact
Accepted into the Norrsken Accelerator (0.7% acceptance rate)
Secured non-dilutive government innovation funding
Signed some of Sweden’s largest real estate developers as early customers
Won a global proptech competition and investment from The Public Investment Fund & NEOM
Relocated and expanded operations to Saudi Arabia to serve giga-projects
Embedded on-site with NEOM, leading to a $1.1M PoC
Established partnerships with key entities including the Ministry of Investment, Ministry of Environment, RDIA, and National Housing Company (NHC)
Positioned Net Zero Build as a digital infrastructure partner for sustainability compliance in one of the world’s largest construction markets
Why This Case Matters
This journey reflects how I approach building products: start with a real problem, validate with real users, adapt to context, and stay close to the people you’re building for, even when that means crossing industries and continents.
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