“ABC gave me the chance to see how founders think and what makes the Silicon Valley mindset unique.”
Can you introduce yourself? Tell us your name, where you’re from, and a bit about your background.
I’m Viktor from Croatia, and my background is in software engineering and product design.
You work as a Software Engineer at Bugatti Rimac. What attracted you to join the ABC Silicon Valley program?
What attracted me the most was the opportunity to meet like-minded people and hear real stories from founders who have gone through the process of pitching ideas and building their companies.
Since you are working remotely for a Silicon Valley–based company, how is the ABC Silicon Valley program helping you? What’s the difference between the U.S. and European mindset?
Working for a Silicon Valley company remotely, I gained valuable insights into how they think about business. Since I didn’t have formal education in innovation, it was really interesting to see how the CO-STAR method helps you develop an idea from start to finish and pitch it to investors. Compared to Europe, the mindset here is very fast-paced: you move quickly, experiment, and “break things,” rather than spending months analyzing every regulation.
You organized the SheepAI hackathon, the first AI innovation event of its kind in Croatia. What inspired you to take on this project?
SheepAI is an initiative we started in Croatia after competing in a hackathon at MIT in Boston. The goal is to bring the AI mindset to Europe and allow anyone, even non-technical people, to build an idea in just one day. At ABC Silicon Valley, we gained valuable contacts that will help us grow the project further.
What’s your favorite thing about ABC Silicon Valley?
Definitely the people and the company visits!
