The Recursive Podcast

Can companies really stay safe in a world where attackers only need to be right once? In this episode of The Recursive Podcast, we sit down with Miroslav Naydenov, a cybersecurity expert at Amatas, who has spent years on the front lines of digital crisis management — restoring breached systems, outsmarting attackers, and preparing businesses for threats they don’t even know exist.We talk about why most companies misunderstand their risk, how attackers operate like sophisticated businesses, and why AI and deepfakes are about to trigger an identity crisis unlike anything the digital world has seen.What you’ll learn: 🛡️ Why preparation decides everything, and why companies still wait for regulations before taking security seriously. 👥 The real weakest link: people — how employee behavior, misconfigurations, and remote access open the door to attackers long before any technical vulnerability does. 🤖 How AI and deepfakes are rewriting cybercrime — and why distinguishing real from fake will become one of the next decade’s biggest challenges. 🔗 The silent danger of supply chain attacks — why trusted partners can become your biggest vulnerability overnight.🧠 This episode is a must-watch for founders, operators, IT leaders, and anyone building a digital-first business, especially those navigating remote work, sensitive data, or regulated industries.Timestamps: 0:00–1:00 – Introduction1:00–2:30 – Explaining cybersecurity simply & overview of AMATAS role2:30–5:22 – Cybersecurity landscape in Bulgaria and the region5:22–8:23 – Talent shortages and early education8:23–11:14 – Incident patterns, importance of preparation11:14–16:00 – Why companies get breached16:00–20:21 – Cybercriminals operating as businesses20:21–23:02 – How companies should start with cybersecurity23:02–30:00 – Human factor, deepfakes, and phishing evolution30:00–36:04 – Most frequent and damaging attacks36:04–39:05 – High-impact cases39:05–45:03 – Biggest misconceptions45:03–48:30 – Final advice

Can founders really scale without letting go? In this episode of The Recursive Podcast, we sit down with Boyan Stoyanov, an entrepreneur and operations strategist with a decade of experience building and running teams across Europe & Southeast Asia. After leading recruitment and people operations for digital-first companies, Boyan now helps organizations scale sustainably under the VEDA brand — uniting operational design with accounting, payroll, and financial strategy to help founders move from working in the business to working on the business. We talk about his journey from Asia back to Bulgaria, why most companies get stuck small, and how VEDA’s merger with Hireworks is designed to solve the scaling problem end to end.What you’ll learn:🏗️ The hardest founder shift: delegating not just tasks but decision-making, and how to build the infrastructure to do it safely.🏝️ How Southeast Asian business culture compares to Eastern Europe: trust-first relationships, indirect “no,” negotiation norms, and why you need boots on the ground.📈 Why hiring can hurt capacity in the short term, and how onboarding, process, and performance loops must improve across the whole funnel to truly scale.⚖️ The case for fractional operational leadership vs. a full-time hire, common mistakes with consultants, and how VEDA’s integrated ops + finance approach accelerates growth.This episode is a must-watch for first-time founders, scaling operators, and leaders eyeing international expansion, especially those considering fractional services as a smarter path to senior expertise.CHAPTERS00:00 Introduction01:39 Boyan's Journey to Startup Founding04:29 The Crossroads of Employment vs. Entrepreneurship05:07 Business Culture: East vs. West vs. Southeast Asia09:49 Hard-Learned Lessons in Asia15:11 Operational Shift: Moving from Asia to Bulgaria19:27 The VEDA Merger25:37 Market Focus and Complementary Networks26:33 The Future of VEDA and Bulgarian Brands28:10 Scaling a Company and the Core Team31:01 Advice for First-Time Founders and the Value of Fractional Services39:27 Common Mistakes When Using External ServicesSubscribe to The Recursive for more founder stories and practical playbooks from the CEE tech ecosystem!Learn more about VEDA and Boyan:https://www.veda.works/https://www.linkedin.com/company/veda-works/https://www.linkedin.com/in/boyan-stoyanov/

In this episode of The Recursive Roundtable, three practitioners unpack where AI truly adds value — and where it doesn’t. They focus on practical implementation, human judgment, and the guardrails needed to keep quality high.We examine how to start with AI the right way (individual productivity tools vs. team-wide process changes vs. building ML products, and why not every problem is a fit), how to protect human intent and quality in content and decision-making (avoiding generative sameness, using clear context and strong first drafts), and what AI can and can’t do in product design/UX.GUESTSZamina Ahmad, AI & ML Product Leader, CEO @ shades&contrastIoana Teleanu, Founder & Design Consultant, ex-Miro & UiPath @ AI-R Design Studio, ex-MiroAndrew Mende, Senior Product Manager Machine Learning @ Booking.comCHAPTERS00:00 Meet the Guests!03:07 AI's Role in Content Creation04:27 Navigating Role Changes with AI08:28 AI Implementation for Companies10:50 Is AI a Good Fit for Every Problem?11:34 The Hybrid Approach to Content Generation14:28 Addressing AI Slop17:16 AI-Generated Designs in the Industry20:55 Utilizing AI Assistants24:56 Thoughts on AGI30:07 The Critical Need for AI Literacy and Education in Companies32:45 Navigating AI: Regulations, Critical Thinking, and Human Uniqueness35:29 The Power of Intuition and Metacognition in the Age of AI

Fibank’s Chief Digital Officer Vladimir Ikonomov talks about the bank’s digital‑only expansion into Greece and the innovative services it’s bringing to customers. Learn how a traditional bank is positioning itself alongside fintechs and what the future of banking looks like.☑️ 24/7 localized customer support with native Greek speakers☑️ Real‑time payments, instant loan approvals and AI‑driven hyper‑personalization☑️ MyFibank app perks: permanent 1% interest on current accounts, up to 2% on term deposits, and cashback on card transactions☑️ Competitive strategy against fintechs and plans for further regional growth☑️ Vision for the next 5‑6 years: voice‑command assistants, instant product issuance, and the evolving role of physical branches00:00:00 Intro00:01:47  Vladimir’s role, background and experience at Fibank.00:03:09  Traditional Banking Embraces Digital00:04:38  Current Digital‑Banking Trends00:08:15  24/7 Live Support as a Competitive Edge00:10:24  Expansion Into Greece00:12:05  Creating a Local Value Proposition & Competing with Fintechs00:14:58 FinTech‑Style Benefits from a Traditional Bank00:16:21  The Critical Role of Localization 00:18:07  Targeting Greek Millennials00:19:34  Debunking the “Traditional Banks Are Slow” Myth00:20:21  Addressing Money‑Anxiety00:21:16  Lesson from Western Europe00:22:13  AI & Data Science in Practice00:23:25  Future Outlook: Voice‑Activated Banking & Instant Products

In the first episode of The Recursive Roundtable series we celebrate the 10‑year anniversary of Endeavor Bulgaria!Dilyana Haralanova, COO of The Recursive, was joined by Jack Thorogood (CEO of Serbian scale-up Native Teams, Milena Milić (Manager of startup community Garaza), and Max Gurvits (VC investor and partner at Vitosha Ventures) to discuss how the Balkan startup scene has evolved and where it’s headed.What you’ll learn:⭐ The biggest hurdles CEE founders faced 10 years ago vs. today⭐ How EU membership and early government‑backed funds jump‑started regional ecosystems⭐ The role of diaspora talent and returning emigrants in accelerating growth across the Balkans⭐ Success stories shaping the region – from early unicorns to emerging AI‑driven scale‑ups⭐ Future outlook: regional collaboration, emerging specialisations, and the surge of new venture capital funds

From selling mangoes in Venezuela as a kid to building a video agency in Vienna — and now moving to Plovdiv to start a training company, Juan Guerra’s entrepreneurial journey is anything but conventional.In this episode, we sit down with Juan Guerra, a seasoned agency founder turned scaling mentor. As the founder and CEO of Scaleyard, Juan helps service-based entrepreneurs grow their monthly revenue, systematize their delivery, and build teams that run without them. After nearly a decade of running his own video agency and experimenting with business models, Juan now focuses full-time on helping others scale to $30K+/mo while removing themselves from client fulfillment.In this episode with Juan Guerra, Irina Obushtarova explores:✅ How burnout reshaped his business and his definition of success✅ Why focus beats flexibility when scaling a service business✅ What it really takes to productize your service and sell it repeatedly✅ How personal values and family priorities shape sustainable entrepreneurship✅ The power of being an “outsider” and building from a global perspectiveThis conversation is for anyone navigating growth, burnout, clarity, and purpose in their business journey.👉 Whether you're a service founder, coach, or creative entrepreneur—Juan's insights will challenge the way you think about focus, scale, and lifestyle design.______________________📍 Recorded during ViennaUp Festival in Vienna, Austria.🔔 Subscribe to The Recursive for more founder and investor stories at the intersection of tech, sustainability, and systems change.

🎙️ #TheRecursivePodcast takes a different turn this time, driven by a pressing question: Who is protecting Europe’s future?How can we face and overcome today’s growing threats?Which companies are shaping the future of cybersecurity and defense tech in Central and Eastern Europe?🛡️ Over the past five years, Europe’s resilience has been tested like never before. And until now, the story of security innovation in the region has been fragmented.Our latest report on the state of defense and cybersecurity tech in CEE brings those pieces together, offering the first integrated view of a complex and fast-evolving ecosystem. 📥 Download it here: https://report.therecursive.com To dive deeper into these questions, we’re joined by Ruslan Trad, a Bulgarian journalist and security researcher specializing in hybrid warfare and disinformation. He’s a non-resident fellow at the Atlantic Council’s Digital Forensic Research Lab, with a focus on Eurasia, Syria, and mercenary groups. 🌍Trad has reported from the Middle East and co-founded De Re Militari, a conflict analysis journal. He is the author of books on the Syrian civil war and Russian private military companies, and his work has appeared in outlets like BBC and Al Jazeera.____________🙏 Special thanks to Mad Stories for the shooting location: https://madstories.eu/en/home/

Can Games Fix Our Broken Education? 📚 In this powerful episode of The Recursive Podcast, recorded at ViennaUp Festival, we sit down with Yane Frenski, former United Nations innovation expert turned EdTech entrepreneur. Yane is the founder of Vizipedia, a startup using AI and game-based learning to transform how students learn critical skills for the future.🎮 What you’ll learn:* Why traditional education systems are failing in the digital age;* How immersive, game-based learning can improve attention and outcomes;* What it’s like working on innovation inside the UN for over 14 years;* How to design education tools for underserved global communities;* The difference between gamification and 'serious games' in learning;🧠 This episode is a must-watch for educators, edtech innovators, and anyone worried about the skills gap of future generations.📍 Recorded during ViennaUp Festival in Vienna, Austria.🔔 Subscribe to The Recursive for more founder and investor stories at the intersection of tech, sustainability, and systems change.

In this special ViennaUp Festival edition of The Recursive Podcast, we sit down with Edward Feltmann, Investment and Deal Sourcing Manager at VERBUND X Ventures, to explore how sustainability, energy innovation, and venture capital intersect in the race toward a net-zero future.Edward Feltmann is a strategic investment leader with a focus on sustainable energy innovation. At VERBUND X Ventures, he leads investments in early-stage European climate tech startups. He also serves as a Board Observer at NECTURE, supporting teams driving technology and impact.In this episode, Edward shares:🔹 How sustainability became his personal and professional mission🔹 Why energy storage is key to both AI and energy transition🔹 Lessons from building an in-house corporate accelerator and CVC arm🔹 Opportunities and challenges in CEE’s energy innovation landscape🔹 What it really takes to make impact-driven investments📍 Recorded during ViennaUp Festival in Vienna, Austria.🔔 Subscribe to The Recursive for more founder and investor stories at the intersection of tech, sustainability, and systems change.Let's dive into what it means to build sustainable systems that are both scalable and socially responsible.

How do you turn a slow-moving, traditional economy into a thriving innovation hub? 🇦🇹 In this special ViennaUp Festival edition of The Recursive Podcast, we sit down with Awi Lifshitz, CEO of weXelerate – Austria’s largest innovation ecosystem – to explore how bold vision, strategic partnerships, and startup thinking can reshape entire economies.In this episode, Avi shares:🔹 Why Austria lagged in innovation—and how it's catching up🔹 Lessons from working with 30+ corporates to drive digital transformation🔹 The birth of Venture Cake, a co-owned accelerator redefining startup support🔹 The cultural clash between startups and corporates—and how to bridge it🔹 How Vienna positions itself as a gateway between Eastern and Western EuropeFrom personal insights to macro-strategy, this is a must-watch for founders, corporate innovators, and policymakers alike.📍 Recorded during ViennaUp Festival in the heart of Europe.🔔 Subscribe to The Recursive for more interviews from the forefront of innovation in CEE.