An outstanding CTO: Who is Johanna Björklund?
We are thrilled to present you with an inside look into tech’s most cryptic role: the role of a Chief Technology Officer. The following interview is conducted as part of our participation in the Gothenburg Tech Week 2021. By interviewing Sweden’s top female CTOs, we are honored to highlight outstanding professionals - the norm breakers and trailblazers in the field.
Johanna Björklund is the Co-founder and CTO of Adlede and Codemill. She is also an Associate Professor of Computer Science at Umeå University. Her passions in life are algorithms, running, and to-do lists. You are most likely to meet her in front of her computer with her face close to the screen. Let’s get to know her even better.
“My journey into tech started when I was about eight, on a day when I followed my father to his work.”
Tell us about yourself, Johanna!
I'm a computer scientist from Umeå and the Co-founder of two university spin-offs in media tech companies called Codemill and Adlede. In my research, I develop algorithms that translate multimodal data into semantic representations. That is when algorithms that use text, video, audio and output representations are better suited for machine learning.
At Adlede, we offer relevant advertising without cookies by using AI to match ads with media. At Codemill, we use AI to automate labour intensive workflows in media production, such as quality checking audio.
Tell us about your journey into tech.
My journey into tech started when I was about eight, on a day when I followed my father to his work. At that point of his career, he was a computer programmer. He showed me the mainframe computers and gave me a bunch of leftover printouts to draw on. As hard as I tried, I couldn't see how computers could understand what was asked of them. I think my fascination for this problem shaped how I myself ended up as a programmer. I still don't know the answer, but it's satisfying to be part of an ongoing heated debate - what it means for a machine to understand something.
“For the future I hope to see an industry that is more diverse and inclusive, and that works towards the emission goals set out in the Paris Agreement.”
What is a mistake, personal or professional, that you learned a lot from?
The one mistake that I keep making is saying yes too often. I still struggle with this, but my colleague Lena Kallin Westin wisely told me that when I'm saying yes to one thing, I'm implicitly saying no to other things that I won't have time for. So now I try to think hard before. However I eventually end up saying yes anyway.
Please share your dreams for yourself and the industry in the future.
I hope to see the industry that is more diverse and inclusive, and that works towards the emission goals set out in the Paris Agreement. For myself, I'd like to be part of discovering new knowledge and dreaming up nice new things that have never been seen before, while staying close to my friends, family and my own values.