CEO
Tobias has extensive experience of establishing, scaling, leading and supporting a range of companies. With a background in several CEO positions and other management roles, and 20 years in business and operational development, he knows what it really takes to run a business. His background spans several industries, including fintech, construction and logistics, property development, 3D and XR technology, manufacturing, renewable energy, IT, SaaS and AI.
COO
Jonas has run his own company since 2013 and has extensive experience of building and testing business ideas from scratch. He has worked in the IT industry for more than 18 years, as a consultant for several large clients and as an in-house IT technician at a global company in clinical drug trials. He then spent nine years at the largest language services company in the Nordics, focusing on machine translation, in other words AI for language, long before most people had heard of it. After years abroad, including in Cyprus and London, Jonas brings an international perspective to SHANGRI-LAB.
CTO
Shayer has more than 15 years of experience in Swedish tech as a CEO, CTO and project manager, and has worked in the industry since 2009. He started in IT support and IT operations at companies including Visma and Atlas Copco, worked in e-commerce for Nordic retail, was managing director of ASYST from 2019 to 2020 and CTO of Fortimus, a new e-commerce venture, from 2020 to 2023. Today he is CTO and co-founder of SHANGRI-LAB, co-founder and product owner at EnrichNode and Lead AI Architect at Articulate IT, working with AI and systems architecture.
Giving back to society matters to us, and we are committed to social sustainability. For example, Tobias has volunteered for Stadsmissionen for many years. When he launched AI Uppsala and AI Västerås, one purpose of the events was to use the platform to help young people into work, in cooperation with Stadsmissionen’s youth department. We also envision the AI hub helping young people into working life, for example through events at the hub where companies and young job seekers can meet.
We are also committed to environmental sustainability through Tiny House Factory Sverige, in which SHANGRI-LAB is a substantial shareholder. The company sells Attefall houses built from organic materials such as hemp, clay and wood fibre, without synthetic insulation. Offering sustainable homes with care for both people and the environment is the very core of the business.
SHANGRI-LAB is a steady bridge between groundbreaking technical innovation and concrete business value. We are not content with only guiding others through their digital transformation - we build the solutions of tomorrow from the ground up. Through our startup lab, we plan to combine advanced AI technology with our deep business understanding to build the next generation of tech companies. Our ambition is to be a leading player in Swedish AI development. We aim to deliver strong AI products and autonomous solutions for a global market, with Europe as our main focus.
Our vision, however, extends beyond our own corporate structure. We are driven by a strong desire to give back to the local community and to help shape tomorrow’s business community where we operate. That is why we are building a physical and dynamic ecosystem: a dedicated AI hub in Uppsala, with the aim of eventually rolling out the concept in Västerås as well. By creating a thriving space for innovation, we want not only to boost local technological development but also to build a place so attractive that startups and talent choose to stay and grow. We want SHANGRI-LAB to be the natural hub where curiosity, innovation and entrepreneurial spirit meet and turn into international success stories.
Jonas and Shayer have been in business together since 2024. In spring 2026 they reached a turning point, when they were about to wind down one business and were considering starting something new in AI. Around the same time, Tobias launched the AI Uppsala initiative, which suddenly put him on both their radars.
Without knowing what the other was thinking, Jonas and Shayer had each begun to see Tobias as a potential partner for their new venture. Tobias, for his part, had no idea that his old friends even knew each other. He had not been in touch with Shayer for five years, and more than a decade had passed since he last spoke to Jonas. Interestingly, Tobias had been thinking of both Jonas and Shayer shortly before Jonas decided to reach out to him after all those years.
When they finally met, things moved quickly. Five minutes into the conversation, it was clear that they would build something together. Tobias was the crucial piece of the puzzle that Jonas and Shayer had been missing, and through his new partners Tobias found exactly the platform he had envisioned. It felt like a “match made in heaven”, as it became clear how well the three founders’ skills complement each other. Shortly afterwards the name SHANGRI-LAB was born, a perfect reflection of the idea of being both an AI lab and a startup lab.