Birk Jernström: Helping Developers Build One-Person Unicorns

The Rise of One-Person Billion-Dollar Companies

A wager among tech industry leaders, including Sam Altman, centers on predicting when the first company valued at over a billion dollars, operated by a single individual, will emerge.

The possibility of a solo founder achieving such a valuation was previously considered improbable. However, the proliferation of AI-driven businesses is changing this landscape, and Polar, a monetization platform, aims to facilitate their success.

Polar: Empowering Solo Entrepreneurs

Polar, led by CEO Birk Jernström, is designed to empower developers building “one-person unicorn” businesses. The platform distinguishes itself by concentrating on the specific requirements of developers.

By acting as a “Merchant of Record,” Polar handles billing and tax compliance, enabling businesses to offer online products and SaaS subscriptions globally from the outset.

Seed Funding and a Familiar Founder

The simplicity of Polar’s implementation – requiring only a few lines of code – attracted the attention of Accel, who spearheaded a $10 million seed funding round.

Accel partner Andrei Brasoveanu noted the emergence of a new generation of AI-focused, early-stage companies seeking growth without operational burdens.

Jernström’s prior experience also played a role; his previous venture, Tictail, was acquired by Shopify in 2018 for $17 million in an all-cash transaction.

He and his co-founders initially created Tictail with the goal of simplifying online store creation, mirroring the ease of starting a blog.

From Tictail to Shopify and Back

Launched in 2012, Tictail rapidly gained traction, eventually hosting over 100,000 merchants, primarily those operating in niche markets, as Jernström explained.

Recognizing the need for increased visibility, Tictail introduced a marketplace, which ultimately attracted the interest of Shopify.

Shopify, having expanded its merchant base, saw value in Tictail’s team and their expertise in the consumer-facing aspects of e-commerce.

Jernström and key team members subsequently joined Shopify’s Shop team, contributing to the development and scaling of the Shop app and Shop Pay ecosystem.

A New Venture: Polar

In 2021, facing a personal turning point as he prepared for fatherhood, Jernström engaged in a period of introspection.

This led to his departure from Shopify and the founding of Polar.

The transition was amicable, with Shopify CEO Tobias Lütke and president Harley Finkelstein becoming angel investors in Polar.

Jernström adopted a “merchant-obsessed” approach, influenced by the culture at Shopify.

Customer Focus and Rapid Growth

“I personally respond to over 50 or 60 support requests daily,” Jernström stated. “I strive to understand each customer’s goals and how Polar can best support their journey.”

Polar’s commitment to understanding its user base and its open-source nature have fueled its growth. Since its September 2024 launch, the startup has acquired 18,000 customers, predominantly developers monetizing software.

Backed by Industry Leaders

The company’s investor base includes founders of prominent developer tools, such as Framer, Raycast, Dub, Nuxt, Resend, Supabase, Vercel, WorkOS, and Lovable.

These investors share Jernström’s vision of simplifying the process of building and scaling a software-based business, comparable to the ease offered by platforms like Supabase and Vercel.

This momentum aligns with the growing opportunities for indie hackers and professional developers driven by advancements in AI.

A Lifelong Passion for Entrepreneurship

Jernström’s journey reflects his upbringing with an entrepreneurial mother, his early passion for software development, and the lessons learned from Tictail’s mission to support small businesses.

“My ambition for Polar is akin to Shopify’s: to empower developers to pursue their passions, build software independently, and establish thriving businesses around their creations,” he concluded.