Interview with Filip Victor, Founder of MetaMap – on Entering and Succeeding in Latin America

Melania Stankiewicz: Was being an entrepreneur always your dream?

Filip Victor: No, as a child i wanted to be a scientist

MW: What motivates you to embark on an entrepreneurship journey?

FV: Working on what I wanted to work on, rather than someone else’s goals and objectives. 

MW: What inspired you to start a business in Mexico?

FV: High inequality, high willingness to try new things, and an overall ripe market ready for disruption. 

MW: Why did you choose Latin America? What challenges did you identify there? And how does the Latin American market differ from the European market?

FV: LatAm is not the most populous region in the world, as compared to SEA or Africa, however it had the right ingredients to allow a new entrant in the market to grow fast. Startups did exist, despite the large incumbents and the right regulations were being prepared at the time (fintech mexico) which would allow more startups to flourish.  

MW: As a Polish Founder, do you believe your family roots have contributed to your passion, resilience, and success?

FV: Yes and No. Each person in my family does something completely different from science. However, neither of my parents has ever been employed by someone other than themselves, so that probably had some influence. 

MW: What Polish Founders could learn from Mexican Entrepreneurs? 

FV: Mexicans are betting at selling themselves, and trying many things quickly. Polish people tend to be too humble. I think there’s much merit in learning pitching and selling early. 

MW: What were some of the challenges you faced along the way? Were there moments when you considered giving up, and how did you persevere?

FV: Too many to list. I almost went bankrupt a few times, and struggled fundraising at the beginning. As a solo founder my difficulties were somewhat amplified too. I never considered quitting though, as it was clear to me founding and running technology companies is going to be a life long pursuit for me, regardless of how many times I’d fail. 

MW: What has had the greatest influence on your success?

FV: Probably my scientists’ heroes. I grew up wanting to be a scientist so I read many biographies. They have many extreme sometimes opposing qualities. Their monk-like disinterest in money, would often be contrasted by their extreme ambition.

Their independence was inspiring, sometimes toiling on an idea for years without any signs of success, but at the same time they’d organize themselves into conferences, institutions and organizations to succeed. Many of them ended up creating companies or entire industries (think Edison, Edwin Land, Tesla, Robert Swanson, Robert Noyce, Mullis, Whitesides).

They were my biggest influence.

MW: To wrap up this conversation, can we take a peek at your plans for the near future?

FV: My plans for the future have been consistently the same – to quantify human potential in merits, and help the service industry better evaluate people in their pipeline. My long term goal is really the main mile stone I remain fixated on.