A strong work ethic helped Mads succeed as an entrepreneur. But over time, he has also learned to stop and enjoy the journey

With a strong technical foundation and a well-developed entrepreneurial gene, Mads Troelsgaard from Aarhus has created the company SynergyXR with two colleagues. While studying to become an electronics and IT engineer, Mads made an important decision to combine his technical knowledge with a commercial approach. This led him to pursue a Master’s degree in Business from the Business School, which became crucial for his future direction as an entrepreneur.

As a student, Mads started his first business with a friend. Although the project was not successful, he learned the basic entrepreneurial skills of sales, marketing and administration. His entrepreneurial journey continued as he continued to be involved in startup projects and built a solid network in the Aarhus startup community.

After working his way up as Business Development Manager and later CEO at Unity Studios, he bought in as co-owner. In 2018, Mads took the plunge and co-founded SynergyXR with two colleagues. The vision was clear: to create a platform that allowed companies to work in a no-code environment within XR technology. Launching in 2020 during the coronavirus pandemic was the breakthrough for the startup, which still has big ambitions for the future.

When did you know you wanted to be an entrepreneur?

I knew already in elementary school that I had a fascination with entrepreneurship. It started when a friend and I borrowed books about how big brands like Coca-Cola and Nike were founded. We were really captivated by the stories of entrepreneurs and their journey. At the same time, I had an uncle who ran his own business and that made a big impression on me.

Although my parents were not entrepreneurs, I was inspired by him. I loved visiting his business and seeing how he ran things. It seemed like he had it really good – a bigger house, a cool car – and that made it all the more fascinating. It made me believe that building something myself could be the way forward. Even then, I started playing around with ideas for business concepts. They weren’t just dreams, but small experiments that later became more concrete experiments as I got older.

What has been the wildest moment in your entrepreneurial journey?

There have been many wild moments on the entrepreneurial journey, but one of them was without a doubt our first investment with SynergyXR. It was a huge milestone where everything came together. The strategy we had laid out was realized and it felt like a confirmation of all the hard work we had put into the project.

Another great moment was when we launched our first product and experienced the overwhelmingly positive reception. It gave us the drive to develop further, and most recently we added a no-code tool to our platform that has truly revolutionized how our customers can work and develop AR and VR solutions. It has opened new doors and brought us closer to our vision.

What is the most important thing you’ve learned about yourself?

The most important thing I’ve learned about myself is to find a balance between working hard and remembering to breathe. I’ve always had a strong work ethic and an ability to keep going even when things are pressured, but I’ve also learned how important it is to stop and enjoy the journey. It’s about taking the time to notice, prioritize exercise and create small breaks in your everyday life.

A game changer for me has been to find peace in nature – especially after we bought a holiday home near Ebeltoft. Being able to take a break from city life in Aarhus and get out into Mols Bjerge, get fresh air and just be present has been invaluable. It has helped me to prevent stress and rediscover the joy of the small moments. I’ve learned that self-care is not a luxury – it’s a necessity.

Where will you be on your entrepreneurial journey in 5 years?

Five years from now, I will still be part of SynergyXR and we will have reached many new milestones. We have positioned ourselves as a leading global platform used by companies around the world for everything from onboarding and training, to optimizing business-critical processes, collaboration and new business models. I see us as one of the key players in XR technology, where our no-code tools enable customers and partners to create customized solutions directly on our platform without being tech wizards.

Our focus will continue to be on helping industrial companies, but we will also have created an ecosystem of partners building their own businesses on top of SynergyXR. This will be our engine for global scaling and into other industries.

With strong partnerships with players like Meta, Apple and Maersk can accelerate our growth. I don’t know exactly where I am in the company at that point, but I know that I still want to be part of the journey towards something bigger.

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