AirForestry develops autonomous drones for sustainable forestry and is already seeing strong global demand. By replacing heavy forestry machinery with airborne systems, the company enables precise and gentle thinning without ground damage and with significantly reduced emissions. Now, Caroline Walerud steps in as CEO to scale the technology.
The forestry industry is one of Sweden’s most important base industries and plays a key role in exports and the transition to a bio-based economy. AirForestry positions itself as a key player in making forestry more sustainable and technology-driven.
Caroline Walerud is a serial entrepreneur, investor, and a well-known profile within Swedish deeptech. She has co-founded and scaled several technology companies from early stage to international growth. She is also a co-founder of AirForestry and stepped in as CEO in December.
The company, founded in Uppsala in 2020, has participated in several of UIC’s business development programs – from Bootcamp to UIC Build, UIC Accelerate and Swedish Scaleups – and is now in an expansive phase.
Leadership, motivation and the next step
1. Caroline Walerud, what do you see as the company’s greatest strength?
It’s the team; they are the reason I joined the company. I want to work with these people every day.
But I also have to add that I’ve never seen a company with such strong demand and willingness to pay from customers – it’s an exciting position to be in. This is something that is often missing at such an early stage, and it’s a luxury because now we can focus on other things.
There are forest owners all over the world who want this!
2. What is the biggest challenge as you scale the company?
There are always challenges. This is a startup that is now scaling.
3. You are one of the founders and have also invested heavily in the company. What drives you?
Personally, I love working with brilliant engineers. They are my favorite people to work with.
And I love solving real problems. In a startup, you are very close to the customer and reality. There’s less fluff and more focus.
In larger companies, there are often resources to focus on other things. But in a startup, there is less politics and more focus on what really matters.
4. What advice would you give to someone thinking about starting a company?
My advice is to find a problem that truly matters.
If you don’t have your own idea, you can look at lists of new technologies such as IVA’s 100 list, Ny Teknik’s 33 list, or contact university innovation offices. You might be able to help one of the many brilliant researchers commercialize their ideas.
If you have an idea with patent protection and support a brilliant researcher, you don’t need the biggest marketing budget. You have greater opportunities.
There are so many important problems to solve in areas such as environment, climate, and defense – more people are needed who want to contribute.
5. What question do you get most often about AirForestry?
Most questions I get are about the product and its potential.
Forests store large amounts of carbon, so if we can help make the climate and local forest ecosystem more sustainable, it makes a real difference.
A common question is also where we see ourselves in 10 years. My answer is that we will make a difference worldwide.
We will start in Sweden and already have customers in Norway, but the ambition is to scale and reach as many markets as possible.
For more information:
Linnéa Skogh, Head of marketing
AirForestry
Mobil: 0720-84 02 78
E-post: linnea.skogh@airforestry.com
Vedrana Ilic, Communicationsmanager
UIC
Mobil: 0708-519704
E-post: vedrana.ilic@uic.se