Ingvar Helgason
Co-founder and CEO of Stratis Intelligence. First venture was fashion brand Ostwald Helgason (2006), scaled to 23 countries; co-founded World On A Hanger (WOAH), a cloud platform for apparel companies, sold in 2017; then co-founded VitroLabs, a lab-grown-leather biomanufacturing company (ceased operations 2025), before co-founding Stratis.
Helgason trained as a fashion designer in Copenhagen and Paris before co-founding the London fashion label Ostwald Helgason (2006-2015). He also co-founded World On A Hanger ('WOAH'), a cloud ERP platform for apparel companies, in 2009, stepping down as a director in 2012; the business, later Stitchex.com, sold to a private equity firm in 2017. He then pivoted into biotech, co-founding VitroLabs with stem-cell scientist Dr. Dusko Ilic in 2016, a Bay Area company that grew lab-cultivated leather from animal cells and attracted investors including Kering and Khosla Ventures before ceasing operations in May 2025, its patents acquired by France's Faircraft. He then co-founded Stratis Intelligence with Smári McCarthy to let European governments query the data they already hold -- a privacy-preserving, air-gapped 'Palantir for Europe' for defense and intelligence customers.
Overview
- Role
- Co-Founder & CEO, Stratis Intelligence
- Based in
- Reykjavik, Iceland
- Prior experience
- Ostwald Helgason (fashion; co-founder; 2006-2015), World On A Hanger / WOAH (apparel SaaS; co-founder; 2009-2012; sold 2017 as Stitchex.com), VitroLabs (biomanufacturing; co-founder with Dr. Dusko Ilic; ceased operations May 2025)
Affiliated funds0
No linked records yet.
Frequently asked
- Who is Ingvar Helgason?
- Helgason trained as a fashion designer in Copenhagen and Paris before co-founding the London fashion label Ostwald Helgason (2006-2015). He also co-founded World On A Hanger ('WOAH'), a cloud ERP platform for apparel companies, in 2009, stepping down as a director in 2012; the business, later Stitchex.com, sold to a private equity firm in 2017. He then pivoted into biotech, co-founding VitroLabs with stem-cell scientist Dr. Dusko Ilic in 2016, a Bay Area company that grew lab-cultivated leather from animal cells and attracted investors including Kering and Khosla Ventures before ceasing operations in May 2025, its patents acquired by France's Faircraft. He then co-founded Stratis Intelligence with Smári McCarthy to let European governments query the data they already hold -- a privacy-preserving, air-gapped 'Palantir for Europe' for defense and intelligence customers.
- What is Ingvar Helgason's role?
- Ingvar Helgason is Co-Founder & CEO, Stratis Intelligence, based in Reykjavik, Iceland.
- Where did Ingvar Helgason work before?
- Ingvar Helgason's prior roles include Ostwald Helgason (fashion; co-founder; 2006-2015), World On A Hanger / WOAH (apparel SaaS; co-founder; 2009-2012; sold 2017 as Stitchex.com), VitroLabs (biomanufacturing; co-founder with Dr. Dusko Ilic; ceased operations May 2025).
Sources & citations5
Each claim links to its underlying source. Confidence reflects how directly the source supports the claim.
- 1
Ingvar Helgason, previously founder of biomanufacturing company VitroLabs, co-founded Stratis Intelligence with Smári McCarthy
Resilience Media: Stratis, a mysterious Icelandic startup, emerges from stealth to build a 'Palantir for Europe'Verified2025-09-01 - 2
VitroLabs launched 2016 by Ingvar Helgason and Dr. Dusko Ilic; Helgason trained as a fashion designer, launched a London fashion company in 2006, closed it in 2015, then founded VitroLabs
Forbes: Making Lab-Grown Leather From Cow Cells-And Inching Toward ProductionVerified2022-05-05 - 3
Ostwald Helgason Limited (UK company 05779683) incorporated 12 April 2006, dissolved 2 Feb 2017
UK Companies House: OSTWALD HELGASON LIMITED — filing historyVerified2026-08-09 - 4
World On A Hanger Limited (UK company 06826667) incorporated 23 Feb 2009; Ingvar Helgason director 2009-2012
UK Companies House: WORLD ON A HANGER LIMITED — officersVerified2026-08-09 - 5
France's Faircraft acquired VitroLabs' patent portfolio in an asset-only deal on 6 May 2025 as Kering-backed VitroLabs ceased operations
WWD: French Start-up Faircraft Acquires IP, Patents as Kering-backed VitroLabs Shuts DownVerified2025-05-06