High Speed Train Chase Across Russia with Elena Levine, Managing Partner at Forcoda Ventures

Elena Levine has spent the last 12 years building technology companies, helping founders bring products to market, and now raising a venture fund focused on AI and fintech. But one of the biggest lessons that shaped her leadership came during a Christmas trip home to Russia.After missing an overnight train to see her family, Elena found herself stranded in St. Petersburg exhausted, without cash, and convinced the trip was over. Then a ticket agent предложed (see what I did there, haha) an unexpected solution: board a high-speed train to Moscow, race ahead of her original train, and intercept it several hours later. Against all odds, it worked.That story became a metaphor for how Elena approaches entrepreneurship. Missing one opportunity doesn't mean the journey is over. Sometimes the fastest path forward is the one you never planned.