Nerding Out With Viktor

In this episode of Nerding Out with Viktor, host Viktor Petersson sits down with David Pollak, founder of Spice Labs and creator of the Lift web framework, to unpack post-quantum cryptography and why the migration window is shorter than most teams realize. Google now estimates elliptic curve encryption could be breakable by quantum computers in 2029, putting the trust layer behind every bank trans...

In this episode of Nerding Out with Viktor, host Viktor Petersson sits down with Alex Zenla, Founder and CTO of Edera, to unpack why container security has been built on a flawed assumption from the start. The conversation traces Alex's journey from working in deeply insecure IoT and industrial systems to building Edera, a company focused on rethinking isolation at the runtime level. Along the way...

In this episode of Nerding Out with Viktor, host Viktor Petersson sits down with Olle Johansson and Anthony Harrison to explore the intersection of Software Bills of Materials (SBOMs) and the EU Cyber Resilience Act (CRA). Together, they unpack what CRA compliance looks like in practice and why SBOMs are becoming a critical piece of the regulatory puzzle. Olle and Anthony share their hands-on expe...

In this episode of "Nerding Out with Viktor," host Viktor Petersson sits down with Marcelo Garcia, a telecom infrastructure veteran turned extreme biohacker, to explore what biohacking looks like when approached through systems thinking and data. Marcelo recently completed a 50-day water-only fast while hiking nearly 1,000 kilometers, tracking everything from DEXA scans and VO2 max to HRV and meta...

In this episode of "Nerding Out with Viktor," host Viktor Petersson sits down with Sarah Fluchs, CTO and OT cybersecurity expert, to unpack the EU's Cyber Resilience Act and what it means for anyone building connected devices. Sarah shares her journey from engineering into the world of OT security, and explains her involvement in the CRA expert group that's shaping how the regulation gets implemen...

In this episode of "Nerding Out with Viktor," host Viktor Petersson sits down with James Baker, Policy and Campaigns Manager at Open Rights Group, to explore the real-world impact of the UK Online Safety Act and proposed Digital ID systems. Together, they unpack how the UK's approach to digital identity is raising concerns about centralization, privacy, and long-term control over personal data. Ja...

In this episode of "Nerding Out with Viktor," host Viktor Petersson sits down with Nick Selby, a security leader and advocate for practical security culture, to explore the reality behind software security compliance and why so many teams treat it as a checkbox rather than a mindset. The discussion unpacks how frameworks like SOC 2 and ISO 27001 often provide structure but not necessarily safety,...

In this episode of "Nerding Out with Viktor," host Viktor Petersson sits down with Patrick Walker, former YouTube and Facebook executive and now founder of the conscious tech platform Uptime, to explore the quiet discipline of digital minimalism. Patrick shares his journey from building global video platforms to stepping away from Big Tech, reflecting on the ethical and personal tradeoffs of alway...

In this episode of "Nerding Out with Viktor," Viktor Petersson is joined by Sean Rhodes from Star Labs for a deep dive into coreboot and Linux hardware. The discussion explores how Star Labs builds Linux-first laptops and mini PCs that prioritize open firmware, long-term support, and user trust. Sean shares the company's journey from its early days as a small team wanting a reliable Linux laptop,...

In this episode of Nerding Out with Viktor, host Viktor Petersson sits down with Marcus Taylor, co-founder at Planet Computers and veteran of IBM, Logica, and the GSM Association. Marcus brings decades of experience across telecom, hardware, and secure systems. The conversation traces his early work on natural language systems at IBM, his role in pioneering mobile commerce and ticketless travel in...

In this crossover episode, Viktor Petersson sits down with Sean Martin, co-founder of ITSPmagazine, to unpack how software supply chain security is evolving under regulatory pressure, real-world incidents, and a fast-changing tooling landscape. They explore how SBOMs are moving from static artifacts to operational assets, why transparency beats blanket claims of being "secure," and how teams can b...

In this episode, Viktor Petersson sits down with Niklas Düster, co-lead of OWASP DependencyTrack and contributor to CycloneDX, to explore the realities of managing software bill of materials (SBOMs) at scale. Drawing on real-world experience, Niklas explains how DependencyTrack helps engineering teams analyze, monitor, and act on risks buried deep in their dependency trees. The conversation covers...

In this episode, Viktor Petersson sits down with Thorbjørn Rønje, founder of Bifrost Studios, to unpack the venture studio model and why he believes it’s a smarter, faster way to build startups. Thorbjørn explains how Bifrost applies a playbook-driven approach to validate product ideas quickly, reduce risk, and bring businesses to life without wasting time or capital. He shares how they’ve used fr...

In this episode of Nerding Out with Viktor, Viktor Petersson sits down with Carl Richell, founder and CEO of System76, to unpack how a small Linux-focused hardware company grew into a full-stack open source innovator. They explore System76's journey from shipping Ubuntu laptops to designing open firmware, building a factory, and launching their own desktop environment, Cosmic. Carl shares hard-ear...

In this episode of Nerding Out with Viktor, host Viktor Petersson welcomes back Jon Seager, VP of Engineering at Canonical, for a candid conversation about managing remote teams. They explore how Canonical structures its fully distributed engineering org, why hybrid meetings rarely work, and how to build systems that support clarity, autonomy, and actual output. With Jon's experience scaling teams...

In this episode of Nerding Out with Viktor, host Viktor Petersson sits down with Vlad Trifa, founder of Zimt and co-founder of EVRYTHNG, to explore why Web3, crypto, and blockchain often fail to deliver on their promises in the real world. Drawing from Vlad's extensive background in IoT, supply chain traceability, and decentralized systems, they dive into the cultural and technical challenges that...

In this episode of Nerding Out with Viktor, host Viktor Petersson speaks with Joshua Watt of Garmin and Ross Burton of ARM to explore how the Yocto Project is evolving to meet the growing demands of software supply chain security, embedded Linux customization, and long-term product maintenance. As two long-time contributors to Yocto and OpenEmbedded, Joshua and Ross share hard-earned insights on h...

In this episode of Nerding Out with Viktor, host Viktor Petersson is joined by Kevin Henrikson, an experienced engineering leader who's worked with Zimbra, Microsoft, and Instacart, to share real startup founder lessons on how to scale engineering teams, build resilient systems, and manage growth through acquisitions. Kevin explains what founders often get wrong when scaling, why a simple weekly s...

In this episode of "Nerding Out with Viktor," host Viktor Petersson is joined by Vlad A Ionescu, founder and CEO of Earthly, to explore the realities of modern CI/CD pipelines, why developer experience remains fragmented, and how platform and security teams can work more effectively across organizations. Vlad outlines the origins of Earthly and how their open-source build automation tool enables c...

In this episode of "Nerding Out with Viktor," I'm joined by Johan Christenson, founder of Cleura, to dig into one of the most critical questions facing European tech today: how do we build a sovereign cloud that can actually compete? Johan brings decades of experience in open infrastructure and a front-row seat to the evolution of cloud computing. We talk about why Europe still leans so heavily on...

In this episode of "Nerding Out with Viktor," Warren Houghton returns to pull back the curtain on the covert world of physical penetration testing. As a seasoned security expert from Pentest Partners, Warren shares his extensive experience in breaching physical security measures, offering listeners a rare glimpse into the methodologies and techniques used by professional security testers. Viktor a...

Join host Viktor Petersson as he sits down with Marc Pous of Balena to explore the ever-evolving world of IoT, from remote management and fleet updates to security legislation and software bills of materials (SBOMs). Marc reveals how Balena pioneered container-based deployments on devices like Raspberry Pi, explains why over-the-air (OTA) updates are critical for any hardware project, and offers i...

In this episode of Nerding Out with Viktor , host Viktor Petersson sits down with Dustin Kirkland from Chainguard for an illuminating discussion on modern supply chain security and container hardening. Drawing from his rich experience across tech giants like IBM, Red Hat, Canonical, and Google, Dustin shares invaluable insights into the evolution of container security and the critical importance o...

In this episode of "Nerding Out with Viktor," Warren Houghton from Pentest Partners joins Viktor to explore the fascinating world of professional penetration testing. As they delve into the intricacies of "legal hacking," Warren shares invaluable insights into the methodologies, tools, and best practices that define ethical hacking in today's cybersecurity landscape. The conversation covers crucia...

In this episode of "Nerding Out with Viktor," Kate Stewart from the Linux Foundation and Gary O'Neall, a long-time SPDX contributor, join Viktor to explore the evolution and impact of SPDX (Systems Package Data Exchange) in software transparency. The conversation traces SPDX's journey from its origins in license compliance to its current pivotal role in security and vulnerability tracking, reveali...