Investor relations & product innovation updates from TasteForge

Startuplab invests - funding received

We’re thrilled to announce Startuplab’s investment of 3 MNOK in TasteForge. Term sheet was signed Nov 27th and funds has arrived. Grateful for the support and ready to accelerate product, pilots and investor-readiness alongside the Startuplab cohort.

SkatteFUNN R&D tax incentive approved

TasteForge’s SkatteFUNN application was approved, providing significant reimbursement for R&D costs and extending our technical runway.

Showcased TasteForge at Smart Innovation partner conference

TasteForge was invited to present at Smart Innovation Norway’s annual partner conference where we framed our work as a practical Applied-AI case for FMCG innovation. Smart Innovation Norway is a leading, non-profit research and innovation organisation in Norway focused on applied AI. Their partner conference is a convening point for industry, research and public sector actors.

See the conference write-up here:

--> Partnerkonferansen 2025

--> Linkedin

We were invited to present TasteForge in an Applied AI context, at the Smart Innovation Norway’s annual partner conference. Smart Innovation Norway is a non-profit research and innovation company that supports businesses and the public sector. The organization is recognized as one of Norway’s leading research environments in applied AI.

Applied AI — highlights

• Explainable workflows
  We convert trend feeds, POS, consumer research and experiments into Insight Cards and scenario simulations that teams use in micro-decision for an innovation or strategic decision meetings.
• Repeatable method
  We showcased the Signal → Opportunity → Concept → Decision flow, scoring with uncertainty bands, and Insight Cards that include constraints and next steps; we will publish short playbooks.
• Applied-AI position
  The talk and linked video brought to life TasteForge as an applied-AI tool for data-driven innovation management and decision infrastructure in food & beverage, giving a concrete industry example of our Signal → Opportunity → Concept → Decision flow, where our evaluation lab provides early, measurable evidence that expert human-innovators can make decisions on.

--> See the video (2 min 37 sec)

Selected for Startuplab Accelerator — 1 of 8 from 280 applicants

We’re honoured to have been chosen as one of eight companies for Startuplab’s fall 2025 Accelerator cohort — selected from roughly 280 applicants. Big thanks to Jørgen Veiby, the Startuplab team and everyone who’s helped us get here. We’re excited to work closely with the cohort and Startuplab’s mentors to sharpen product, GTM and investor readiness.

See coverage in Shifter:
Åtte slapp gjennom nåløyet til høstens akselerator — Shifter (11.11.2025)

Accelerator — highlights

• Competitive selection
  Chosen as 1 of 8 teams from ~280 applicants for Startuplab’s fall 2025 Accelerator, a strong signal of external recognition for our product and team.

• Focused support & network
  The program provides three months of cohort-driven mentorship, curated investor and partner access (Startuplab’s partners include DNB and Vipps), and practical support to accelerate product and commercial readiness.

• Practical next steps
  During the program we’ll prioritise milestones around pilot delivery, GTM playbooks, and measurable evaluation — using the accelerator’s resources to sharpen our decision-infrastructure and product narratives for investors and partners.

Opened seed funding round NOK 10M

We are in the process of raising 10MNOK in strategic and soft capital to back a strong momentum to continue developing TasteForge, supported by solid investor and client traction

Improvements

• Funding for AI, GTM, and team expansion
• Supports enterprise onboarding and commercial rollout
• Product module development runway will be extended with 12 months

Signed first two paying customers

TasteForge secured its first two paying clients in the Norwegian FMCG market, marking an important early milestone in our commercial validation.

Improvements

• Confirmed product-market fit with real contracts
• Activated pilot-to-enterprise onboarding workflows
• Strengthens investor and partner confidence

Innovation Norway grant approved

We received FoU approval and grant financing from Innovation Norway, covering nearly half of our R&D activities moving forward.

Improvements

• Reduces capital risk for new investors
• Validates national innovation value
• Accelerates module development and scoring engine

Platform blueprint mapped out and validated

Together with strong tech partner and co-investor, aligned with domain experts and market insight and validation, a complete platform with user journeys and business logic, ready for enterprise grade build.

Alpha platform released to pilot clients

TasteForge’s alpha version was released to pilot users with full idea validation, scoring, and dashboard functionality.

Improvements

• Core innovation flow active from intake to scoring
• First telemetry gathered on live concept testing
• Enabled internal teams to work cross-functionally in one tool

Discovery sprint and market validation

We ran structured interviews and insight sessions with FMCG leads across R&D, brand, and innovation teams to scope the product.

Improvements

• Identified consistent friction in concept validation
• Prioritized MVP features based on stakeholder needs
• Uncovered clear whitespace for predictive workflows

Received NOK 500K in angel funding

TasteForge raised an initial angel round to build the MVP, validate the concept, and prepare the first pilot pitches.

Improvements

• Enabled early dev and scoring prototype
• Funded founder runway and expert collaboration
• Positioned for grants and follow-on capital

Core team and equity structure finalized

Our founding team retains 85% equity. Advisors and key contributors formalized. A 10% ESOP pool is in place for post-seed growth hires.