#WeArePlay
Discover the stories of people from all over Europe building apps and games businesses on Google Play.
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Meet Tessa and Saasha from the UK, best friends and founders of Olio. The app helps millions fight waste by giving-away, sharing or selling food and household items.
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Meet Marian, Simon, Lucia and Filip from Bratislava, Slovakia. Their company Pixel Federation Games has become one of the most pioneering game studios in the country.
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Meet Valentin from Innsbruck, Austria. He co-founded Gronda to bring the world’s culinary knowledge into the pocket of foodies everywhere.
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Meet Katrin and Nora from Berlin, Germany. They created Selfapy to make it easier for everyone to access mental health treatment.
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Discover more stories from around the world
Explore now
Co-founders
Tessa Clarke
Saasha Celestial-One
Company
Olio
Location
London, UK
Downloads
5,600,000+
# of employees
99
Tessa and Saasha met when studying business. Both ex-consultants, they are passionate about the environment and recycling. The idea for Olio came when Tessa was moving: she could not pack leftover food in air-freight, and could not find anyone to take it. The app began helping people give away (and get) spare food in their neighborhood, but they recently launched a feature for lending and borrowing household items too. It is now used in 62 countries, and Olio also partners with supermarkets and restaurants with their volunteers collecting and redistributing surplus food – an estimated 1 million meals per week.
"We have so many stories of people who have been feeling depressed or like they are lacking a sense of purpose. And through our volunteering, they are getting to give back to the community and connect with others"
Co-founders
Marian Fridrich
Simon Sicko
Lucia Sickova
Filip Fischer
Company
Pixel Federation Games
Location
Bratislava, Slovakia
Downloads
111,248,800+
# of employees
270
Marian, Simon, Lucia and Filip scrimped and scraped every penny to build their business from nothing. They took a leap of faith quitting their jobs at the same gaming company to start designing the creative titles they really wanted to. Their courage paid off and they've become one of the pioneers of the Slovak gaming industry with over 111 million downloads across their portfolio, which includes simulation and puzzle adventure games. Simon and Lucia also had a baby as they built the business. Together with Marian and Filip, they have a new game in the making and want to invest in more transport simulation titles.
"We started with nothing but we were committed to our business, and we were determined to succeed"
Co-founders
Valentin Schütz
Juan Vicci
Tobias Zetzsche
Company
Gronda
Location
Innsbruck, Austria
Downloads
853,000+
# of employees
31
With hotelier and restaurateur parents, Valentin grew up learning about the challenges of the hospitality sector. As he was a better programmer than a cook, he decided to not join the industry. But at 22 - whilst successfully working abroad - he felt his life was lacking purpose. Valentin went back to his hometown and, after hearing his parents had troubles with hiring, created a hospitality recruitment app with co-founders Tobias and Juan. When Covid hit however, Gronda transformed into a platform for chefs to share and monetize their recipes, inspiring other culinary lovers. Next, Gronda wants to help ambitious chefs worldwide unleash their full potential.
"We create value, helping people learn something new and lifting their passion - that's amazing. I mean, what more can you wish for?"
Co-founders
Katrin Bermbach
Nora Blum
Company
Selfapy
Location
Berlin, Germany
Downloads
16,800+
# of employees
65
Katrin and Nora met when they were psychology students. They bonded over their frustration with treatment waiting times for mental health patients and vowed to do something about it. Despite having no tech background, the pair realized an app would have the reach they aimed for. So they built Selfapy to offer online therapy. It’s one of a few apps in Germany treated as a pharmaceutical product, which means people can get the cost of it reimbursed from insurers. They are now developing new therapy programs for people with eating disorders, and continue to fine tune Selfapy, so each patient has a personalized, tailored plan.
"We wanted to ensure easier access to mental health treatment for people suffering from depression, anxiety or panic disorders"
Founder
Theodhor Pandeli
Company
CubicApps
City
Tirana
Downloads
85,000+
# of employees
2
For Theodhor, learning the basics of coding at a young age was like entering a whole new world - one that inspired him to become a software developer team leader. But he missed actively coding himself in this job, which is why he created CubicApps as a side project. His most popular app, Whiteboard, is a simple blank board for quickly sketching ideas that can be fine-tuned later on. It was inspired by his desire to have somewhere to brainstorm his own projects. In the future, Theodhor wants to introduce some new colors onto the board and switch up its design while still maintaining its essential simplicity.
"I haven't done any advertising, so I've been really pleased with the amount of downloads the app received organically through Google Play"
Co-founders
Evi Dedja
Mikaela Pinari
Company
ToGo Express
City
Tirana
Downloads
3,000+
# of Employees
14
Having traveled all over Europe, colleagues and fellow foodies Evi and Mikaela wanted to create a food delivery app for Albania. With Evi handling the tech and Mikaela on the financial side of things, it didn't take the pair long to launch the Tirana-based ToGo. What sets their app apart is its promotion and empowerment of local businesses serving traditional dishes, favoring quality local cuisine over fast-food chains. Group and multiple orders are features currently in the works, as is future expansion into Kosovo, Montenegro and North Macedonia.
"Local restaurants are so happy that, thanks to the app, they are becoming known around the city and getting more customers coming in"
Founder
Ervin Kalemi
Company
Kalemi Code
City
Tirana
Downloads
5,200+
# of employees
15
Ervin always had a taste for the visual, designing covers for his video games as a kid. So it was only natural that he would combine this talent with programming and become a developer. When his brother started a travel agency and wanted to automate and schedule his company's social media posts, Ervin got the idea for his first solo project: Publer. On the app, people can easily schedule and share posts across multiple social networks at once. In the future, Ervin hopes that he can inspire other talented young people to stay in Albania and help foster a local community of startups.
"In Albania, many of our brilliant minds go abroad. That's why I'm extra motivated to leave a legacy behind, to inspire others to come back to Albania and build their dreams here"
Stories from Albania
Co-founders
David Grigoryan
Arman Manukyan
Hayk Grigoryan
Company
Zoomerang
City
Yerevan
Downloads
16,215,100+
# of employees
20
As a child, David's mother always told him he'd become a programmer. And he did, but it was his other passion, music, that led to Zoomerang. After uploading his music online, David got limited views because his video editing wasn't engaging. So, along with co-founders Arman and Hayk, he created a platform where content creators could get editing templates for their videos, allowing thousands to grow their brand and vivify their content. Now, they want to become the number one video template marketplace and a major social media platform.
"I always wanted to design a product that would encourage millions of people to excel in a creative way. To help them feel better, be more inventive, and able to express themselves"
Founder
Gevorg Safaryan
Company
Earlyone
City
Yerevan
Downloads
377,600+
# of employees
25
Gevorg has always been keen to get the most out of his time and never had patience for lines. In fact, he developed Earlyone to avoid standing in lines. It's an online waiting system that allows people to schedule appointments at banks or healthcare services without having to actually be there – freeing up time for more fun activities. After succeeding in Armenia, Gevorg has expanded to five other countries, and he plans to target new industries such as beauty salons and restaurants.
"Google Play gives us a great opportunity to distribute what we have created and hopefully expand our business to other markets"
Founder
Petros Kirakosyan
Company
Next Epic
City
Yerevan
Downloads
1,200,000+
# of employees
12
When Petros showed his wife an excerpt of his new game, she screamed. A positive reaction, despite appearances. The Hotel Project is a spooky take on home renovation. Petros has a passion for compelling storylines and his gaming projects all feature mystical undertones, twists, turns and zany characters. Petros is planning to release more games in the same genre with equally gripping stories, all with the support of a dedicated team and his wife, who is not only his "player zero", but also one of the visual artists behind the games' unique and captivating look.
"Every member of our team puts something into the game, whether that's the art, the mechanics or the story. And as a result, the whole team genuinely loves the game"
Stories from Armenia
Co-founders
Valentin Schütz
Juan Vicci
Tobias Zetzsche
Company
Gronda
City
Innsbruck
Downloads
853,000+
# of employees
31
With hotelier and restaurateur parents, Valentin grew up learning about the challenges of the hospitality sector. As he was a better programmer than a cook, he decided to not join the industry. But at 22 - whilst successfully working abroad - he felt his life was lacking purpose. Valentin went back to his hometown and, after hearing his parents had troubles with hiring, created a hospitality recruitment app with co-founders Tobias and Juan. However, when Covid hit, Gronda transformed into a platform for chefs to share and monetize their recipes, inspiring other culinary lovers. Next, Gronda wants to help ambitious chefs worldwide unleash their full potential.
"You can't just work for working, you need a purpose. If a company can't give me that, then I'll create my own"
Co-founders
David Jöch
Daria Travnytska
Company
Mindvoll
City
Waidhofen an der Thaya
Downloads
1,270,000+
# of employees
2
Couple David and Daria share a deep interest in self-improvement. With David's programming skills, as well as Daria's background in psychology and talent for illustration, they had the right skills to create their first project: Avocation. The app helps people form healthy habits as they grow a virtual plant by completing daily routines and goals. Recently, they added more data insight options so people can see their progress more clearly. They're also releasing another app, Moodmonk, which is a guided journal app for inspiration and reflection.
"Google Play was really pushing us in the beginning and helping us grow. It was great for us to get that kind of support"
Founder
Markus Hohenwarter
Company
GeoGebra
City
Linz
Downloads
31,000,000+
# of employees
45
During his doctoral computer science and math studies, Markus set out to improve and revolutionize mathematics teaching. This led him to create GeoGebra, an interactive, cross-platform math teaching tool. Being free, the software has helped level the playing field in education, as kids from all backgrounds have access. It also centers around community, allowing teachers to upload and share their resources. They recently added an illustrative curriculum feature, and a virtual classroom function, allowing teachers to host remote classes. Next, they're adding augmented reality to help students visualize geometry in 3D.
"GeoGebra's reach has enabled us to help level the mathematics educational playing field without concern for location or context"
Stories from Austria
Co-founders
Amiraslan Bakhshili
Orkhan Alikhanov
Company
Oxuyan
City
Baku
Downloads
65,000+
# of employees
6
Top students Amiraslan and Orkhan met when they spontaneously teamed up at their university programming competition — and won. A series of tandem hackathons and coding all-nighters later and the pair launched Oxuyan ("scholar" in Azerbaijani), a platform for publishing exams and testing knowledge. Education had been a ticket to so much opportunity for Amiraslan, including studying abroad and traveling Europe, so his motivation was to make learning accessible to everyone. With new students joining every day, sharing their scores on social media and a chat interface in the works, more and more young people are getting the access to the education they deserve.
"It's an honor for us to bring knowledge into people's lives, especially in parts of Azerbaijan where technology and resources are limited"
Co-founders
Mia Omarova
Bakir Omarov
Company
Cool Bears
City
Baku
Downloads
8,000,000+
# of employees
7
When Mia and Bakir set up their first gaming studio they were one of a few in Azerbaijan. There was no tech network, no one to ask for advice, and Bakir had learned to code by watching online tutorials. They went bankrupt, but the couple refused to give up. They got a loan and built a new studio, creating their game Boxing Physics. Their aim now is to build a supportive tech community in Azerbaijan, to share experiences and help startups find their way.
"Google Play has a good community and forums, where you can ask a question about technical details, and someone will help you. It's like a big, friendly family of Google Play developers"
Co-founders
Huseyn Aliyev
Orkhan Jafarov
Company
Tokhum
City
Ganja
Downloads
200+
# of employees
2
Huseyn and Orkhan, now teenagers, have been friends since they were children. They shared a common dream – to make apps and create a startup. Huseyn, who learned to code when he was 12, is now the CTO, and Orkhan, an agriculture student, manages the business side of things. Their app Tokhum.agro is a place for farmers to connect and share knowledge. The friends are working on bringing professional consultants on board, and they hope to help modernize farming in developing countries.
"Farmers in developing countries like Azerbaijan don't necessarily have a lot of resources, so city people can't reach organic products easily, which makes them more expensive. Our app can help with all of that"
Stories from Azerbaijan
Founder
Stéphane Dupont
Company
Binary Guilt Software
City
Liège
Downloads
3,041,000+
# of employees
1
Stéphane's earliest memories were of his dad playing guitar, instilling a lifelong love of music and a subsequent career as a guitar teacher. But he also had a background in computer science and, keen to merge his two passions, decided to create Complete Trainer - a set of musical training apps. The platform helps budding musicians train their ears, develop rhythm and learn to read music. Next, Stéphane wants to improve the way teachers build custom content on the apps and even create virtual classrooms.
"Google Play is a great support for small niche apps with no marketing budgets. And if people like it, Google's algorithm starts to suggest it to others and it grows organically"
Founder
Bart Bonte
Company
Bart Bonte
City
Aalter
Downloads
12,000,000+
# of employees
1
Bart started out making old-school flash games in the early 2000s and, decades later, still captures this retro charm in his zany mobile puzzle games. Take his color series, for instance. Here, players have to use logic to get their screen to turn a certain color. But with the yellow game, he set out to recreate the magic of using a touchscreen for the first time and became a runner up of Google Play's Indie Games Festival. Bart’s goal is always to make players feel accomplished and relaxed, and his fans say they find his games meditative. His 20th mobile game, orange, has been recently launched and the next one is already in the making.
"I get a lot of feedback from people telling me that one of my games helped them in some way, that it gave them a boost when they felt low or it put a smile on their face"
Founder
Geert Houben
Company
Cubigo
City
Hasselt
Downloads
20,000+
# of employees
50
Geert's grandmother inspired Cubigo Community. When she moved into a nursing home, managing her care felt overwhelming, so he used his experience from working in tech to create his app. It is aimed at elderly people - they can use it to book taxis, days out, order food, schedule appointments and message friends. But it can also be used by family and nursing staff, so they know what’s happening and when. It's about giving elderly people independence, and Geert hopes Cubigo will become a global player in senior care.
"Instead of relying on other people, older people can use the app to control everything themselves. That's a big step forward in empowerment and independence"
Stories from Belgium
Co-founders
Enver Suljić
Mersad Husić
Company
Stage Coding
City
Travnik
Downloads
90,000+
# of employees
7
Self-taught coders Enver and Mersad first met at an Android programming event in Travnik. From there, they began a professional partnership developing a range of apps as freelancers. The pair wanted to create something useful for readers and started their own independent project, Speed Reading, an app that helps people read at a quicker pace. Recently, a redesign introduced more customization options allowing readers to choose their own font, text size and color scheme. Next, they're working on their new task management app, Time Tracker.
"At first we didn't focus too much on Speed Reading, but when we got positive feedback and saw people needed this kind of app, we worked on improving it"
Founder
Bilal Drndo
Company
SOFTLINE
City
Ilidža
Downloads
5,900+
# of employees
1
At age 11, Bilal was a programming prodigy. By age 14 he was already developing off-the-wall apps, like a calculator with a hidden chat function. It was while observing the lack of connection felt by Balkan immigrants in Germany that he got the idea for a Balkan dating app. Disby connects Balkan people to their roots and community. Bilal hopes to use the app to start his own love story soon, but in the meantime plans to add social networking features like posts, photos and threads.
"The Google Play analytics tools are awesome. They go hand in hand with Firebase and this integration and ease of use empowers me as an entrepreneur to build better products. That’s why I like Google Play"
Co-founders
Armin Subasic
Muhamed Bećirović
Company
MonadGames
City
Sarajevo
Downloads
80,000+
# of employees
4
From a young age, Armin loved making games as he could build new worlds from his imagination. Through sharing his projects on social media, he met Muhamed, a passionate coder and gamer. With so much in common, the pair decided to combine their respective artistic and programming skills and collaborate making games. Their most well-known title, Gigycube, is a puzzle which involves building bold, colored blocks that resemble jelly cubes. Next, they're releasing an equally wacky running game where characters balance on top of barrels and avoid obstacles to complete the course. They also hope to invigorate the gaming industry in Bosnia and Herzegovina by offering training to young people.
"Our goal is to boost game development here in Bosnia and Herzegovina by teaching young people how to program and build games. We want to show people it's possible and give them the knowledge to do it"
Stories from Bosnia and Herzegovina
Founder
Deyan Vitanov
Company
LAN GAMES
City
Sofia
Downloads
25,000,000+
# of employees
2
Deyan is a board game lover, with a passion for strategy and a home full of family games. So it's no surprise that after working as a developer for a large gaming company, he set out to create his own platform, LAN GAMES, exclusively for multiplayer board games. With a focus on the social element, the game Rento, where players can trade lands and build houses, has options for playing in teams and tournaments. Deyan now wants to introduce a new word-assembling game, Happy Words.
"Google Analytics is priceless. Also, the plug-in on Google Play Console is so advanced - I can test my game with different icons, see how players react, and see how many clicks there are"
Co-founders
Jane Dimitrova
Velin Kerkov
Company
FoodOBox
City
Sofia
Downloads
12,300+
# of employees
6
After finishing her Master's in Business in Italy, Jane returned to Bulgaria, intent on setting up an anti-food waste company. She was put in touch with app developer, Velin, via a mutual friend and the pair hit it off - both professionally and romantically. Together they launched Foodobox: a platform for businesses to sell leftover food at a discount. The app has changed perceptions around food waste and saved over 2000 KG of CO2 so far. Now, they plan on spreading Foodobox across Eastern Europe.
"When you buy a Foodobox, you don't buy new food. So you reduce the amount of food that's produced. This saves resources and energy as well as prevents waste, helping the environment"
Co-founder
Rossen Varbanov
Company
Sirma Medical Systems
City
Sofia
Downloads
1,000,000+
# of employees
5
When Rossen was diagnosed with diabetes at 24, he quickly realized he needed more resources to keep on top of his condition. When he couldn't find software that met his needs, he decided to make his own and launched Diabetes:M - Blood Sugar Management Diary. The app, which has a medical advisory board, allows people to log their blood sugar levels, calculate insulin doses and track food intake. Due to demand in different countries, it's been translated into 19 languages. Next, Rossen hopes to connect more clinicians to track their patients on the app.
"I still use the app to track my diabetes, and for my 9 year old son who recently developed the condition. It's really helpful to see it from the viewpoint of a parent"
Stories from Bulgaria
Co-founders
Anica Kačan
Kristijan Kačan
Company
Dub Studio Productions
City
Preko
Downloads
131,275,700+
# of employees
2
Anica and Kristijan love music and dance, and first met at a club where Kristijan was DJing. Music has always been an important part of their lives and Kristijan wanted to get the best sound quality on mobile. He put his coding skills to use and created Music Volume EQ. The app gives people control over the music on their phone with an equalizer, bass booster, and 3D virtualizer to simulate different acoustic environments. Dub Studio Productions is a family business. The parents' passion for music and technology inspired one of their sons, who is now a budding musician and game developer.
"We enjoy what we do, and our way of life. Google Play helped us to develop all of this from where we are."
Co-founders
Tomislav Podhraški
Boris Barbir
Vladimir Koščica
Company
Pine Studio
City
Samobor
Downloads
531,800+
# of employees
17
In college, friends Tomislav, Boris and Vladimir had a dream to one day own a games studio. Fast-forward 10 years and they're now the proud founders of Pine Studio. Their game, Cats in Time – a puzzle where players need to find and save cats – was the first title they independently published. For every 100,000 cats saved in the game, 10kg of cat food are donated to shelters in Zagreb. They took part in Google Play's Indie Games Festival and Indie Games Accelerator in 2021. Next, they plan to release more levels and a new game, Escape Simulator.
"We won Google Play's Indie Games Festival and it brought more players to the game. Google Play is our most popular platform"
Co-founders
Ivan Bešlić
Zlatko Hrkać
Company
Sofascore
City
Zagreb
Downloads
50,000,000+
# of employees
201
Ivan and Zlatko grew up playing sports together in the local parks of Croatia. As they got older, they developed a shared passion for coding and apps, but their friendship and love of sport remained. Sofascore started life as a simple sports forum. Today it's the last word on ratings, stats and results for over 23 million fans. With a team of 200+, the friends have the ambitious goal of covering every single sporting event, including smaller local clubs. And they are well on the way, currently covering 23 sports with mixed martial arts (MMA) coming next.
"We've been friends since the first day of primary school. We grew up together as new technologies developed. And we're still together, sitting in the same office. It really is a successful story"
Stories from Croatia
Founder
Olga Dynyak
Company
Mediartis
City
Nicosia
Downloads
100,000+
# of employees
5
Olga, a mother of two, graduated from medical school but swapped a career as a doctor for the tech world to create IQsha, a popular educational games platform. Motivated by a strong desire to help children learn in an engaging way, Olga wants to translate the app into multiple languages and increase the number of games to reach more children worldwide. She loves hearing how kids are using her fun learning app to improve their literacy and math skills, and her own children are fans too.
"Google Play is great at supporting small developers - it has saved us money and it's been very helpful. I'm very thankful for this"
Co-founders
George Iacovou
Antonis Neocleous
Demos Pavlou
Kyriakos Stavrou
Company
11 Pets
City
Nicosia
Downloads
576,000+
# of employees
8
As pet owners and animal lovers themselves, George, Antonis, Demos and Kyriakos all wanted to use their tech know-how to help the pet community. When Kyriakos' dog became poorly, it sparked the idea for 11Pets: a digital platform for logging the medical history and care schedule for furry - or scaly - companions. As well as individual pet owners, the app is used by around 165 animal shelters globally. Their ultimate goal is to provide equal resources and tools for animals as there are for humans. To do this, they're introducing scores of new features, including telehealth and 24h vet support.
"We believe the pet industry still lacks the tools and technology to provide the same care a person gets. Our vision is to change that by providing pets with a service equal to what people receive"
Founder
Constantinos Samuel
Company
BLEND
City
Nicosia
Downloads
10,000+
# of employee
6
When Constantinos was helping a restauranteur friend to run his business, he saw first-hand the complications of managing staff rotas. Pen and paper timetables, instant messages and spreadsheets – Constantinos had spent years working for startups, so this manual approach had to go. He built Employee Scheduling by BLEND so people like his friend could organize staffing shifts from their mobiles. No need to open a computer, and definitely no need to pick up a pen. He's now working on task management and clock-in, clock-out features, which he hopes to launch soon.
"We imagined people using our app to plan their weekly schedule from the beach, or the commute, or while sitting on the couch late at night. It's about convenience"
Stories from Cyprus
Founder
Petr Nálevka
Company
Urbandroid
City
Prague
Downloads
42,800,000+
# of employees
1
As a self-confessed health obsessive, Petr developed his smart alarm to optimize his own life. But 40 million downloads later, it really caught on. By tracking sleep cycles, it wakes people within a set time window as they enter their lightest stage of sleep - cue a better, and more energized day. Petr, who created his first computer game aged six, is now developing technology so that people can measure sleep cycles, breathing and heart rate without having to have a device beside their bed, or even in the same room.
"I do very minimal marketing, so it's all based on organic growth, and Google Play is the source of that"
Co-founders
Jiří Mlavec
Hana Mlavcová
Company
Asamm Software
City
Prague
Downloads
5,000,000+
# of employees
10
Married couple Jiří and Hana are ecological enthusiasts and wanted to create an app that encouraged people to reconnect with nature and their community. The hiker and biker navigation app, Locus Map - which started out life on a small but dedicated internet forum - was the result. Today, despite the app's huge success, its community origins remain integral, with a focus on feedback and input from outdoor enthusiasts. Looking forward, Jiří and Hana want to offer hikers more customization options and build an even bigger community presence.
"The simplification of distribution with Google Play, as well as the option to sell the app with a billing subscription, has been an amazing help for us"
Founder
Michal Jakob
Company
Umotional
City
Prague
Downloads
711,000+
# of employees
11
Michal was researching sustainable mobility at university when he decided to step out of the lab and create his app Cyclers to promote cycling. It helps pros and newbie cyclists have a great time on their bikes by suggesting safe and enjoyable routes. Today it's the official cycling app in multiple cities across the world, with some even using its data to adapt their cycling infrastructure. As a keen cyclist himself, Michal uses the app to go on bike rides with his wife and two kids. Next, he plans to improve the features to make the navigation even more user-friendly.
"Our goal was to create a digital tool that would bring people together, promote cycling and promote sustainable means of transport"
Stories from Czech Republic
Co-founders
Christian Munter
Johannes Beyer
Company
TwoScape
City
Copenhagen
Downloads
259,300+
# of employees
2
Software engineers Christian and Johannes are long time ski buddies. Sportler is their passion project, created initially so they could share their love of skiing with family and track their young children on the slopes. It measures runs, speeds, and altitude, as well as supporting the social side of skiing - helping people meet for lunch on the slopes or share a drink in the nearest ice bar. They plan to expand on this interactive element over the next year.
"Because we love skiing so much, we had to make this app, no matter what. We get a lot of energy from doing this"
Co-founders
Christine Hebert
Nima Tisdall
Company
Blue Lobster
City
Copenhagen
Downloads
5,000+
# of employees
3
When Christine first moved to Denmark, she was surprised by the lack of fresh fish options. After visiting the harbors, she discovered why: the fishing industry was inefficient and favored industrial methods, harmful to the ocean. So Christine, along with friend and activist Nima, created an app for connecting sustainable fishermen directly with buyers. And it's sparked a local drive towards sustainable fishing, with 32 Danish restaurants so far pledging to never buy unsustainable langoustines again. Now expanding into Germany and Sweden, Blue Lobster is a revolutionary force for the fishing industry.
"Google Play has been great for distribution, getting feedback, and it will be an effective way to attract more people now that we are expanding to new regions"
Co-founders
Oliver Whimster Martinsen
Oskar Dahl Hansen
Company
Climaider
City
Copenhagen
Downloads
21,800+
# of employees
7
High school friends Oliver and Oskar were inspired to do something about climate change while traveling and working on ecological farms across South America. So when they returned to Denmark, they created Climaider: an app which helps people reduce their carbon footprint by altering their lifestyle habits and offsetting their footprint through donating to NGOs. They recently introduced energy consumption integration, allowing people more insight into their environmental impact. In the future, they want to work on improving the carbon calculator and adding more country-specific data.
"We've had an impact in educating people on their carbon footprint and how you, as an individual, can change your habits to live a more sustainable lifestyle"
Stories from Denmark
Co-founders
Kelly Lilles
Mikk Lilles
Madde Rebane
Reimo Meier
Company
ALPA Kids
City
Tallinn
Downloads
875,000+
# of employees
7
Kelly loves studying languages, and Mikk is super into tech. While living abroad, they wanted to find a way to keep their sons connected to their Estonian heritage. They combined their passions, and along with relatives Madde and Reimo, created ALPA Kids - a mobile language game for Estonian children. After receiving several awards, they've now expanded to include the languages of Ukraine and India, with the ultimate goal of including as many languages as possible. They have also recently received funds to invest in artificial intelligence, to develop customized games based on each child's individual skills and ability.
"Our games are used by families and also by schools and preschools. It has had a huge impact for language preservation and language learning in early childhood education"
Co-founder
Aune Aunapuu
Company
Yaga
City
Tallinn
Downloads
386,500+
# of employees
17
When environmental consultant Aune was on maternity leave, she would sell her kids' outgrown clothes online. But she was left wanting more - something that would encourage people to enjoy fashion sustainably, allow them to make money, and do it in a simple way. So, she created Yaga with the goal of making person-to-person buying and selling preloved clothes online easy and safe. Focusing on South Africa, Kenya and India, Yaga has enabled the sale of over 1.5 million secondhand fashion items so far.
"I feel proud to be a woman in the technology sector and to be doing it successfully. I love that I have created a product that supports other women"
Co-founders
Alari Aho
Krister Haav
Ahti Aho
Company
Toggl
City
Tallinn
Download
1,500,000+
# of employees
127
While running his own software consultancy company, self-taught developer Alari noticed that it was often difficult to negotiate fair prices that reflected the amount of time he and his team put into projects. So, along with colleague Krister and brother Ahti, he got the idea for Toggl: a time tracking tool where freelancers, consultants and employees can accurately log the amount of time they spend working. The trio aim for simplicity with the app, with a straightforward and accessible tracker, calendar and earnings calculator to provide people with clear insight into their workflow.
"Distributing on Google Play gave us visibility in the marketplace and provides a platform for us to interact with our audience"
Stories from Estonia
Founder
Jutta Haaramo
Company
Happy Bob
City
Espoo
Downloads
11,000+
# of employees
6
When Jutta's son was diagnosed with diabetes aged six, she found the data involved in his care overwhelming. So using her experience from working in games, she created Happy Bob, to make it more fun. People can link Happy Bob with their Continuous Glucose Monitor and connect with others to share their real-time glucose values and get some encouragement. Jutta's son drew funny pictures to describe how he felt as his blood sugar fluctuated, and these inspired the tone of the app – she says he's her co-creator. She plans to expand further into Europe and has launched a 'rewards' feature to celebrate achievements.
"I wanted to combine humor, gamification and community to help people with diabetes to feel like human beings, rather than patients"
Co-founders
Mikko Kaipainen
Christoph Thür
Company
Yousician
City
Helsinki
Downloads
150,000,000+
# of employees
120
We've all been there - the feeling of being inspired to learn a new instrument but quickly losing motivation and giving up. That's why Mikko and Christoph, who became friends after winning a university competition, got the idea for Yousician: an app that keeps you enthusiastic and on track while learning piano, guitar or ukulele. And they have partnerships with huge musical artists, so that budding musicians can learn from the best. Next, Christoph wants to add collaboration options, so that people can play together and maybe even form their own bands.
"Every step of the way, we want to optimize the app and make it better for people. The tools Google Play provides are a fantastic way of doing that"
Co-founders
Evgeny Lomtev
Iaroslav Kovshikov
Company
SwimUp
City
Helsinki
Downloads
88,600+
# of employees
5
Evgeny is an ex-competitive swimmer on a mission to make expert training available to everyone. Fresh from the Junior European Swimming Championships, he met finance student Iaroslav at university. The pair swiftly partnered up and dived in to launch SwimUp: an aquatic app to help motivated swimmers improve their form, technique and fitness. The platform has coaching plans and tips for honing your technique and perfecting your strokes, from beginner all the way up to triathlon hopefuls. Next, Evgeny wants the app to be as effective as a real-life coach.
"Our goal is to help people master the technically challenging sport of swimming, achieve better health and reduce drowning rates in countries where swimming isn't taught in schools"
Stories from Finland
Founder
Arnaud Megret
Company
Elokence
City
Chartres
Downloads
650,000,000+
# of employees
11
Arnaud is a computer scientist with a passion for artificial intelligence. He originally created Akinator as a side project to experiment with AI tools. Now, it's his company's most popular game - featuring a genius who 'reads people's minds' and accurately guesses the name of a celebrity, character or historical figure. Launching only in French, it's now available in 16 languages. Arnaud believes the popularity of the game is due to audience collaboration, as people can add their own data. The company is now working on an app that will recommend movies based on people's answers and preferences.
"Akinator was a personal project. I was not aiming to change my job for this, but it became a huge success"
Co-founders
Maxence Henneron
Oxana Ivanchenko
Company
Appsent
City
Lyon
Downloads
1,600,000+
# of employees
2
Maxence and Oxana struggled to keep their house clean when they were both working from home. Sweepy is their solution – it's a smart home cleaning schedule that assigns household tasks on particular days and for particular people. The couple are really proud that their app has been downloaded by lots of people with autism and ADHD, who tell them that it helps them to manage their homes. They are now developing a points and rewards feature, to try to encourage children to get involved in the housework too.
"Sweepy had success almost immediately after we published, we could see people buying it and that gave us a lot of motivation"
Founder
Maija Airas-Ceri
Company
Gotta Yoga
City
Charbonnières-les-Bains
Downloads
363,000+
# of employees
2
Maija first took up yoga when she was pregnant and her midwife showed her some poses. Fast forward, and she is now a yoga teacher and the brains behind Gotta Yoga. Maija has a knack for creating routines of varying lengths (some are just five minutes) and clearly explain postures that could otherwise be complicated. She is now hoping to use artificial intelligence to help create a more intuitive approach to guide each person on their yogic journey.
"Google Play is a great tool - we have a lot of interaction with people through feedback and reviews"
Stories from France
Co-founders
George Tsiramua
Tornike Tsiramua
Company
Biliki
City
Tbilisi
Downloads
29,700+
# of employees
4
Biliki, meaning 'trail' in Georgian, was created by brothers George and Tornike. After years working for big companies, they joined forces to create the app to inspire people to explore Georgia's dramatic landscapes. Their passion for hiking comes from their father, who they still travel with now. He gave them the inspiration and energy to build the company. Biliki is a marketplace for self-guided tours and allows people to follow trails at their own pace, contributing to more sustainable travel. The brothers have expanded to eleven other countries and hope to move into parts of Asia and Africa too.
"We wanted Georgia to be visible not just as a wine and music country, but also as a technological and touristic country, to introduce its rich history, cultural and natural heritage to the world"
Co-founders
Anano Dolaberidze
Giorgi Chugoshvili
Company
Phubber
City
Tbilisi
Downloads
64,900+
# of employees
42
Anano was a hot shot in the fashion industry while Giorgi — also godfather to Anano's daughter — had a software background. Natural business partners, the pair combined their experience and talents to create the marketplace app Phubber. Their focus is on changing the mindset in Georgia around buying secondhand and boosting sustainability. They also value having a strong social network component and emphasise direct communication between users. Recent updates include a bargaining feature and discounts for multiple purchases. Already present in Ukraine, Azerbaijan and Armenia, they hope to launch in a further four Eastern European countries.
"We are proud to have a positive impact on the environment. We've saved around 30 million liters of water by reselling items that could have been bought new"
Co-founders
Josuah Rechtsteiner
Irakli Shalamberidze
David Gobronidze
Company
Kroudi
City
Tbilisi
Downloads
5,000+
# of employees
4
While looking at e-scooters online, Josuah realized how much cheaper it is to buy multiple units directly from the producer. This gave him the idea for the group purchasing platform, Kroudi, where people can team up to bulk buy goods directly from the manufacturer. This has the double benefit of saving people's money and reducing waste. To bring his idea to life, Josuah partnered with developers Irakli and David. After making a splash in the Georgian market, the trio now have their eyes set on the USA.
"I think Kroudi has come at the right time. People want to consume more responsibly while still having plenty of choices when it comes to what they buy"
Stories from Georgia
Co-founders
Jonas Lüthke
Ina Wortmann
Company
Ori App Studio
City
Berlin
Downloads
513,300+
# of employees
2
Couple Jonas and Ina met at university - both have computer science backgrounds and love to travel. In 2016, while planning a 6-month trip through Southeast Asia, they needed a way to make their money last but couldn't find the right tool to help. So, as Jonas had experience in developing apps, they decided to create TravelSpend. It helps people travel on a budget by tracking expenses, sharing and syncing budgets, and showing spend in local currencies automatically converted. Their passion for exploring also inspired them to launch Roadie, a route planner app for campers and roadtrippers.
"When people see that someone's traveling through Mexico and only spending €500 for a month, they're inspired to go traveling themselves"
Co-founders
Sebastian Gaede
Philipp Legge
Julian Weddige
Company
MyTherapy
City
Munich
Downloads
6,800,000+
# of employees
91
When economist Sebastian discovered how many people don't take their medicine correctly, and how many premature deaths this leads to, he was shocked and decided to do something to help. He enlisted former colleagues Philipp and Julian and set up MyTherapy. The app reminds people to take the right pills at the right time and has information about using each medicine correctly – for example with the right food or drink. They now plan to add a symptom tracker and a drug database to help people live safely and for longer.
"Google Play is really willing to give us access to experts, and that's something that we always appreciated a lot"
Co-founders
Katrin Bermbach
Nora Blum
Company
Selfapy
City
Berlin
Downloads
16,800+
# of employees
65
Katrin and Nora met when they were psychology students. They bonded over their frustration with treatment waiting times for mental health patients and vowed to do something about it. Despite having no tech background, the pair realized an app would have the reach they aimed for. So they built Selfapy to offer online therapy. It's one of a few apps in Germany treated as a pharmaceutical product, which means people can get the cost of it reimbursed from insurers. They are now developing new therapy programs for people with eating disorders, and continue to fine tune Selfapy, so each patient has a personalized, tailored plan.
"We wanted to ensure easier access to mental health treatment for people suffering from depression, anxiety or panic disorders"
Stories from Germany
Co-founders
Vagelis Antonopoulos
Nick Konstantoglou
Company
KickBack
City
Larissa
Downloads
75,000+
# of employees
2
Cousins Vagelis and Nick spent a lot of time playing computer games together as kids, so creating their own game as adults felt like a natural step. Lost Echo is a science fiction mystery adventure. The visuals are full of dramatic dark shadows and shards of light, which were inspired by Nick's previous job creating graphic lighting effects on architects' designs. He says he could visualize the game right from the outset. The sequel, Lost Echo Resonance, is underway, and the cousins are honing the final details of the story.
"We get a lot of nice feedback and that really makes our day. Everyone wants to know when our next game is out, and that's what keeps us going"
Co-founders
Yiannis Nikolopoulos
Daphne Tsevreni
Andreas Fatouros
Company
Clio Muse
City
Athens
Downloads
60,000+
# of employees
27
Software engineer Yiannis met his co-founders Daphne and Andreas at a weekend long hackathon for tech enthusiasts. Keen to satisfy their combined entrepreneurial spirit, they tapped into Andreas' background as an antiquities expert to build Clio Muse Tours. The app guides people around over 500 tours in 25 countries, and includes museums, landmarks, historic sites and city walks, taking in well-known spots as well as some off the beaten track. Their mission to promote a great experience for cultural heritage visitors has won the trio numerous awards for sustainable practices. Next, the team aims to incorporate personalized and augmented reality experiences into the tours.
"Our tours are designed by local professionals. We find local talent, like geologists, historians and tourist guides, because we want to tell stories that make an impact"
Founder
Nikos Sklavounos
Company
UniStudents Team
City
Athens
Downloads
158,000+
# of employees
7
Nikos was frustrated by his university's grade tracking system, so while working at his family's hotel in Lesbos over the summer, he began working on an app — hiding his drawings from his uncle who thought he was slacking off. Once the beta version was up on Google Play, it quickly spread by word of mouth and, after going public, it snowballed. On UniStudents, students can track their grades and keep up with news and course announcements. Timetabling, deadlines, exam dates and goal setting are features in the works — as is expansion into Cyprus.
"We went from 1,000 downloads to 150,000 downloads on Google Play through organic growth — with no ads, nothing. You can see from the start, it really helped to bring the app to more people"
Stories from Greece
Co-founders
Nóra Németh
Torkel Fagrell
Ildikó Németh
Company
PregHello
City
Budapest
Downloads
150,000+
# of employees
3
When Nóra was pregnant she found the amount of different advice online overwhelming. She decided that if there was just one place to turn to, where all the information was checked by healthcare professionals, then that could make life easier for all pregnant women – so she created it alongside her husband Torkel and sister Ildikó. PregHello has weight trackers, blood pressure and sugar monitors, and tips on what foods to eat (and what to avoid). Next step is a second app to help families through those first few months with their little ones.
"Basically, every second pregnant woman in Hungary uses our app, which gives me goosebumps, because we really didn't expect this result"
Co-founders
Dorka Horváth
Dani Karanyi
Company
BOOKR Kids
City
Budapest
Downloads
525,700+
# of employees
36
Dorka is on a mission to make children love reading. The interactive stories on BOOKR are designed to keep the ethos of books while making stories modern and engaging. She developed the concept whilst studying for her PhD in Education, and BOOKR has been found to improve children's ability to learn. She built the business with her husband Dani and within two years their app was available in 70 different countries. Dorka's goal is to digitize 10 million books in 27 languages, from global classics to regional stories and folk tales.
"If I think about how far we've come, then I feel really proud. I have a great team and with their help I can really make all my dreams come true"
Co-founders
Zsolt Czigler
Enikő Czigler
Adrián Gaál
Alex Dósa
Company
VIMAGE
City
Pécs
Downloads
12,700,000+
# of employees
8
Zsolt is an entrepreneur with a head brimming with ideas. When he created a tool for animating images through moving photo effects, he knew he was onto something. Teaming up with his sister, Enikő, fellow co-founders Adrián and Alex, and three other friends, they created VIMAGE: a cinemagraph app for jazzing up photos with presets, filters and GIF templates. The platform has helped make graphic design, artsy editing and animation available to everyone, with just a tap. The team have recently been developing a feature to convert text into images, and are next hoping to make the app even more automated.
"Thanks in part to our organic growth through Google Play, we've reached over 12 million downloads. With these numbers, we can develop this company, build new features, new products and do what we want to do"
Stories from Hungary
Co-founders
David Orn
Asgeir Visir
Company
Smitten
City
Reykjavík
Downloads
261,000+
# of employees
22
In 2013, David and Asgeir packed their bags and moved from Iceland to San Francisco in pursuit of creating a successful startup. Following an entrepreneurial roller coaster - with hits, misses and many lessons - the duo landed major success back in their home country with Smitten: a dating app that prioritizes entertainment and fun. It even has questionnaire games, like Guessary, and a fun facts feature. They recently made the platform all-gender inclusive and became one of the most popular dating apps in their country. Next, they're expanding into Sweden and the UK, and have global ambitions beyond that.
"We've helped form thousands of relationships, and there's even been several Smitten babies. So we are literally changing people's lives. We are making the world a better place for our audience, which is really fun"
Co-founders
Pidsinee Einarsdottír
Jérémy Barbet
Company
hello aurora
City
Reykjavík
Downloads
71,900+
# of employees
2
Viewing the spirals and rays of the northern lights was a special experience for Pidsinee, who moved to Iceland from Thailand as a child, and Jérémy, who came over 7 years ago for work. They wanted to make sure everyone could experience this brilliant natural light display to the max, so created hello aurora: a community for polar light fans to see the best viewing spots and share their photos of the dazzling phenomenon. The couple is motivated to make it even better with a recently launched pro version.
"I really like Google Play analytics as this gives us insight into where the audience is coming from and provides us with data we can use to improve the app"
Co-founders
Leifur Björn Björnsson
Steinunn Anna Gunnlaugsdóttir
Company
Locatify
City
Borgarnes
Downloads
61,000+
# of employees
9
Leifur always loved how his mom brought things to life through telling stories. His wife, Steinunn, was a teacher determined to make learning fun. Put these two passions together and you get TurfHunt: a platform where creators can publish narrated treasure hunts and tour guides oriented around storytelling. Their app has been used by schools, scout groups and companies for team building activities. Leifur and Steinunn have also partnered with museums, parks and tourist attractions to build apps with interactive maps and themed walking routes. Next, the couple wants to incorporate augmented reality to make tours and hunts even more exciting.
"We wanted to create a fresh way to teach and learn. With our games, you're having fun and learning without even realizing it. That's what motivated us to create treasure hunt games"
Stories from Iceland
Founder
Jeremy Freeley
Company
Kollectiv Studio
City
Dublin
Downloads
16,700+
# of employees
1
When Jeremy stopped doing bar work and finally had weekends off, he found himself getting more and more hooked on Irish national sports, like Gaelic football and Hurling. With a degree in software development, this newfound passion quickly manifested in the creation of the app Gaelsport: a platform for fans to keep up with Irish sports - including the often overlooked female version of Hurling, known as Camogie. It's since taken off, not only in Ireland, but with Irish people all over the world. Plus, thanks to the new My County feature, fans can even tailor their newsfeed to their home county teams.
"Most of our audience is Irish, so you could never truly say that this is an app for the world, but it's an app for the Irish around the world. It helps them keep in touch"
Founder
Fabien Peyaud
Company
Herdwatch
City
Tipperary
Downloads
53,900+
# of employees
33
Fabien may be more at home with tech than with farming, but he's passionate about helping people who work the land with his app Herdwatch + Flockwatch. After realizing many farmers still used pen and paper, he collaborated with a farming co-operative to build a mobile app that helps cattle and sheep farmers manage their business on the go. With little experience of the Irish farming industry, he met the challenge head on and has come to admire the work and passion of farmers. He hopes his apps will help free up millions of farmers from time-consuming paperwork.
"Google Play provides a top-class experience – it offers a great user experience and our farmers can use the app offline. I knew from day one we had to be on Google Play"
Founder
Wendy Oke
Company
TeachKloud
City
Cork
Downloads
18,000+
# of employees
1
Through education, Wendy's grandfather climbed out of poverty — a story which always inspired her to value learning. Later, while pursuing her PhD in early childhood education, she noticed that teachers were so occupied with health and safety forms and compliance checks, they couldn't give all their attention and energy to actually teaching. This gave her the idea for TeachKloud. It allows preschools to streamline operations, providing everything from staff training to enrollment forms. Teachers love that the app frees up their time, allowing them to focus on the kids in their care. Already present in Ireland and the UK, Wendy hopes to launch in the USA soon.
"I always grew up with the belief that if you raise a child up with education, care, emotional and social development, they'll be able to do amazing things as they grow older"
Stories from Ireland
Founder
Andrea Dal Cin
Company
Andrea Dal Cin
City
Milan
Downloads
15,000,000+
# of employees
1
Andrea created his app School Planner while he was still at high school. He saw many of his fellow students struggling with organization, so he made a place to take notes, upload timetables, and track homework and test results. More than 15 million downloads later, he is still a one-man company, balancing the running of the app alongside his PhD studies and a job as a teacher. Andrea plans to build a series of apps that will draw on the social side of school, as well as studying help and advice.
"Google Play provides these great tools that allow me to manage the lifecycle of the app – to improve responsiveness, improve quality, and measure the engagement that people have"
Founder
Massimo Di Cosimo
Company
Max Di Cosimo
City
Rome
Downloads
1,765,500+
# of employees
1
Walking around the monuments, sites and nature of Italy can work up a thirst. That's why Massimo put the country's fountain database into an app — so anyone can easily find the nearest fountain with fresh flowing water. And the impact extends beyond quenching people's thirst, it's helped reduce plastic bottle circulation and revived an interest in Italy's decorative fountains. As a result, local authorities have stepped up their involvement in restoring and maintaining these coveted water sources. Next, he wants to add an icon to differentiate sparkling water fountains for those looking for a little extra fizz.
"Someone wrote to me saying I saved their life in the mid-summer Italian heat. I'm very happy when I hear these kinds of stories"
Co-founders
Valerio Raco
Simone Carcone
Company
PunchLab
City
Rome
Downloads
417,300+
# of employees
6
Valerio grew up in a boisterous family, where the children loved combat sports - that's where he found his passion for boxing. He trained as a neuroscientist, building PunchLab: Home Boxing Workouts in his spare time with his friend Simone. But what started as a personal fitness aid quickly turned into a business. The app measures hits on a punch bag, with interactive routines and coaching. Valerio is especially proud of feedback from people with multiple sclerosis and Parkinson's, who say it's helped them with strength and coordination, and enjoy exercise again. The pair has recently added a leaderboard and plans to offer workouts in more languages to expand globally.
"50 million punches have been thrown on our app in the past few years but it's the individual stories that are the best part of the job, the fact that what we are doing helps people"
