Hear Daniel Ek Trace Spotify’s Origin Story on the ‘Masters of Scale’ Podcast

Spotify was founded in 2008, and in the decade since, millions of people around the world have joined the music streaming revolution. But where did it all begin? According to our CEO Daniel Ek, Spotify was built on the concept of trust, and that idea has remained core to our beliefs.

“At the end of the day, it’s about trust,” Daniel reveals in the latest episode of the podcast Masters of Scale. “If you say what you’re going to do, and then keep on doing that, you will do pretty well.”

Masters of Scale, hosted by investor, entrepreneur, and cofounder of LinkedIn Reid Hoffman, features reflections on success with prominent CEOs and founders. In this episode, Reid and Daniel share a thoughtful conversation about how Swedish values like transparency and honesty first set Spotify apart.

As Daniel says about Swedish society, “You can’t screw people over, and you have to honor your agreements.” In fact, he says it’s normal behavior to walk on other people’s property–and even set up camp. “This notion of private vs. public just doesn’t exist to the same extent,” Daniel explains.

When Spotify first entered the music landscape, trust within the industry was at an all-time low, but Daniel envisioned a future where artists and fans could believe in each other once again.

“I had this idea of the kind of product I wanted to see in the world,” he says. ”I told my team, ’If we can create the feeling that people have all the world’s music on their hard drives, we will have built something that’s much better than piracy.’"

Listen to Daniel’s full Masters of Scale episode.