Carsten Brinkschulte is the co-founder and CEO of Dryad Networks, an impact tech startup revolutionizing wildfire detection with a large-scale IoT network aimed at preserving the world’s forests and combating climate change. With over 20 years of experience in mobile network infrastructure, Carsten has a proven track record as a serial entrepreneur and telecoms tech veteran, known for his deep technical expertise, strategic acumen, and successful leadership in marketing and sales.
Carsten’s impressive career includes three notable exits: Core Network Dynamics, Movirtu, and Synchronica. As CEO of Core Network Dynamics, he repositioned and scaled the company, securing 13 OEM agreements and doubling revenue within a year before its acquisition by Twilio for $13.2 million. At Movirtu, Carsten orchestrated a turnaround, focusing on enterprise BYOD solutions for operators and building a $12 million pipeline within six months, culminating in the sale to BlackBerry for $32.5 million, delivering a 3x return for investors. His tenure at Synchronica saw him restructure and refinance the public company, growing it to $30 million in revenue, securing 90 operator and 10 device manufacturer customers, and leading four strategic acquisitions.
Carsten’s entrepreneurial journey began with Weblicon, where he raised €1.5 million in seed funding and developed market-leading mobile email and synchronization software, winning key customers like KPN Mobile and E-Plus. Throughout his career, Carsten has demonstrated an exceptional ability to build, restructure, and scale companies from inception to international market leadership, managing teams of up to 380 employees and achieving a turnover of $30 million.
An articulate communicator with an extensive network of decision-makers in the international mobile industry, Carsten has also successfully navigated multiple fundraisings in private and public markets, coupled with significant M&A experience on both the seller and buyer sides. As the visionary driving Dryad Networks, Carsten is dedicated to leveraging technology to create a sustainable future and address global environmental challenges.
Company: Dryad Networks
We are thrilled to have you join us today, welcome to ValiantCEO Magazine’s exclusive interview! Let’s start off with a little introduction. Tell our readers a bit about yourself and your company
Carsten Brinkschulte: My background is software engineering and telecommunications. I have spent 25 years in the telecoms industry starting and running three companies in the messaging and network infrastructure field with exits to Blackberry and Twilio. Dryad is my first hardware startup and my first “impact for profit” company, applying telecommunications and IoT technology to protect the natural ecosystems.
With our technology, we aim to prevent wildfires. Successfully preventing wildfires with our cloud technology could have a profound impact, especially in the context of climate change and biodiversity loss.
Wildfires are emitting 6-8bn metric tons and contribute to up to 20% of global CO2 emissions, equal to the emissions from all traffic annually. By mitigating wildfires, Dryad’s aim is to substantially reduce carbon emissions, but we can also safeguard biodiversity and minimize financial losses, which range from £180 billion to £900 billion annually.
While bolstering our firefighting workforce is crucial, we must move beyond focusing solely on response and invest in proactive solutions to safeguard against increasingly complex wildfires. Ultra-early detection technologies, like our network of AI-enabled, solar-powered sensors, can identify fires before they become devastating, allowing for faster containment to reduce the strain on personnel and resources, protect vital ecosystems and save precious lives.
If you were in an elevator with Warren Buffett, how would you describe your company, your services or products? What makes your company different from others? What is your company’s biggest strength?
Carsten Brinkschulte: Dryad is revolutionizing wildfire detection and prevention. We’re addressing a massive problem: the increasing frequency and severity of wildfires, particularly in the wildland urban interface.
Our unique solution combines advanced sensor technology with AI-driven analytics to detect fires at their earliest stages, even before smoke columns are visible from afar. This rapid detection is crucial for saving lives, protecting property, and minimizing environmental damage.
Unlike satellite or camera-based systems that rely on visual cues, our sensors can detect fires when they’re still small, often hours before other methods. This early warning gives firefighters a critical advantage and greatly reduces the risk of devastating megafires.
We’ve developed a low-cost, scalable network infrastructure that allows us to deploy thousands of sensors across vast areas, making our solution highly effective and affordable. Our focus on high-risk, high-value areas and in particular the wildland urban interface, makes us uniquely positioned to address the greatest risk and value.
We’re already working with private forestry, municipalities, and utilities to protect their assets and communities. Our technology not only prevents fires but also provides valuable data for predictive modeling and resource allocation.
Quiet quitting, The Great Resignation, is an ongoing trend causing many businesses to struggle to keep talent engaged and motivated. Most are leaving because of their boss or their company culture. 82% of people feel unheard, undervalued, and misunderstood in the workplace. In your experience, what keeps employees happy? And how are you adapting to the current shift we see?
Carsten Brinkschulte: As an impact-for-profit company, a key motivation to work for Dryad is to contribute in the fight against climate change. While not everybody working at Dryad may see this as the primary motivation, I believe that many joined and stay at the company for this motivation. We are also aiming to keep employees motivated and engaged by providing an equity scheme where we have allocated 10-15% of the company shares for employees. Last but not least, we have Thursday free beers – after all, we are a German company.
Online business keeps on surging higher than ever, B2B, B2C, online shopping, virtual meetings, remote work, Zoom medical consultations, what are your expectations for the year to come and how are you capitalizing on the tidal wave?
Carsten Brinkschulte: Online business is here to stay and will continue to expand and disrupt brick-and-mortar businesses. Digitalization is affecting all businesses and will transform many. We have a foot in both worlds – Dryad provides physical network infrastructure but also the online platform for managing and operating the network. Our vision is to become the digital backbone of the forest and enable digitalization of the timber industry as well as provide a range of products and services related to safety (wildfire) but also health and growth monitoring, gunshot detection and other applications which are enabled by the infrastructure.
Business is all about overcoming obstacles and creating opportunities for growth. What do you see as THE real challenge right now?
Carsten Brinkschulte: The IoT industry, while bursting with potential, raises some critical concerns. Security is paramount, as the proliferation of connected devices creates a larger target for cyberattacks. Many devices lack robust defenses, making them vulnerable to hacking. Manufacturers must prioritize security from the get-go, implementing measures like encryption, updates, and strong authentication.
Another major hurdle is interoperability. The market is flooded with devices and platforms using different standards, causing compatibility issues. A cohesive ecosystem requires industry-wide standards and collaboration. Open-source frameworks and standardized communication protocols can help bridge this gap.
Data privacy is also a significant issue. IoT devices gather massive amounts of personal data, and users often lack control over how it’s used. Companies must be transparent, comply with regulations like GDPR in Europe, and give users clear consent mechanisms and control over their data. Building trust through responsible data handling is essential.
In your experience, what tends to be the most underestimated part of running a company? Can you share an example?
Carsten Brinkschulte: I believe (also thinking of myself here) that establishing and maintaining a positive corporate culture is completely underestimated as it is a key source of motivation and commitment of employees. While the immediate benefits are not measurable, I think over time the investment in initiatives that drive motivation and commitment will pay dividends.
On a lighter note, if you had the ability to pick any business superpower, what would it be and how would you put it into practice?
Carsten Brinkschulte: I would pick the ability to predict where competitors are moving next and would preempt their every move with product, marketing and patents.
What does “success” in 2024 mean to you? It could be on a personal or business level, please share your vision
Carsten Brinkschulte: In 2024, Dryad’s success will be determined by achieving multiple important milestones.
Impact on the environment: Creating a tangible change in minimizing wildfire impact and conserving our communities. This involves working with the government, research institutions, and other stakeholders to promote the widespread use of early fire detection systems.
Market penetration: Diversifying and scaling our customer base in various areas such as private forestry, municipalities, utilities, and rail. This includes obtaining important agreements and showing the practical benefits of our solution in stopping wildfires and safeguarding communities.
Advancement in technology: Enhancing sensor technology and AI algorithms to improve accuracy and speed in fire detection.
Financial stability: This will require increasing our operational efficiency and investigating new ways to generate revenue, such as data analysis and forest monitoring.
