Mika Salmi

Director

Mika is the Managing Partner of the Zurich, Switzerland office of Lakestar Advisors, one of Europe’s largest venture capital firms.

Mika Salmi

Director

Mika is the Managing Partner of the Zurich, Switzerland office of Lakestar Advisors, one of Europe’s largest venture capital firms.

From 2014 to 2019, Mika served as a Senior Advisor to The Raine Group LLC, a global merchant bank focused on technology, media and telecommunications. From 2012 to 2014 Mika served as the CEO of CreativeLive, a San Francisco, California-based online education company specializing in photography, art, design, marketing, business and entrepreneurship classes. Mika founded Mad Races, a mobile, location-based gaming company that was sold to Betaworks in 2010.

In 1998, Mika founded Atom Entertainment Inc., a web site which specialized in short films from independent and novice directors and other user-generated online content. He led the sale of the company in 2006 to Viacom (now ViacomCBS, Inc.). Following the sale, he continued with Viacom, serving as the President, Global Digital Media from 2006 to 2009, where he managed global operations, strategy and led all digital relationships and transactions. He served on the executive committee at Viacom and ran a business with over 1,500 employees, 30 brands, 400 websites and 80 mobile channels.

Mika has served on a number of corporate boards of directors, and currently serves as a member of the Advisory Counsel of INSEAD. Mika earned a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Wisconsin in 1987 and a Master of Business Administration degree from INSEAD in 1992.