Andy Yen - From CERN to 100 Million Users with Proton Mail | Alan Frei Podcast | A3F 2026

This episode is a special fireside chat recorded live at A3F 2026 in Zurich with Andy Yen, founder and CEO of Proton.What started as a project by scientists and engineers from CERN has grown into one of the world's leading privacy-first technology companies, serving more than 100 million users globally across email, VPN, cloud storage and security products.In this conversation, Andy shares the remarkable story behind Proton, why almost no investors believed in the company in the early days, and how a crowdfunding campaign helped turn an ambitious vision into reality. He also reveals how Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak became an early supporter — and why all he received in return was a Proton t-shirt.We also discuss why raising capital has become easier today, whether that is actually beneficial for founders, and why companies had to become much stronger when venture capital was harder to access.Other topics include:The early days of Proton and building from CERNFrom crowdfunding to 100 million usersWhy talent is the most important ingredient for scaling a companyHiring globally and building world-class teamsWhy Switzerland is great for startups but often difficult for scale-upsTrust, privacy and the future of AIWhy technology increasingly competes on trustWhat needs to change in Switzerland's startup ecosystem and politicsBuilding globally from SwitzerlandOne of the most inspiring conversations from A3F 2026 about ambition, trust, technology and what it takes to build a category-defining company.