I studied molecular science because I wanted to understand how things work. I built a strong knowledge of molecular processes, but the turning point came when my mother was diagnosed with melanoma. I could explain the disease in detail, but I couldn’t change its course. That loss shifted my focus from curiosity alone to curiosity with consequence. I wanted research to make a difference for patients.
This is why we created Icosagen. We built a company that can turn ideas into technologies, and technologies into medicines and tools that solve real problems.
Estonia may be small, but our ambitions are not. We invested all our profits into building a very capable company to tackle any problems that occur on biologic drug development. And it has lead to a creation of our own technology platforms for production, and discovery as there was nothing with such required capabilities existing. Platforms speed up timelines, reduce risks, and help teams take on very difficult proteins. By creating comprehensive capabilities here at home, we avoid unnecessary handoffs, improve accountability, and learn faster.
People sometimes ask me about the “secret” to innovation. There is no secret. Innovation comes from persistence, not theatrics. It starts by asking “why.” Why is this problem important? Why does it need to be solved? When you know that, you have the motivation to keep going. I also hold onto an old Estonian saying: “Vähem möla, pikem samm!“ (“Less fuss, longer steps.”) To me, it means focusing your energy on the action that truly moves the work forward. Good ideas often appear after effort and reflection, when the mind connects things in new ways. Then we test, improve, and scale. And sometimes, ideas don’t hold up—but even then, we learn.
We are building Estonia’s capabilities in drug development step by step. The long term goal is not only to develop but also to manufacture new medicines created here in Estonia. This belief keeps us moving forward, with fewer words and longer steps—from Estonia, for the world.
