Vice President of Rakuten Viber: Riding the wave of high tech with lessons from the past

Atanas Raikov describes himself as a technology enthusiast and is among the Innovators at the Economic.bg business forum – ALL IN – on September 19. He is part of the senior management of Rakuten Viber, the company behind one of the world's most popular communication apps, Viber. In early 2024, Atanas took over the company's global marketing and business development. Before joining the global company, he gained 10 years of experience at Vivacom.

Mr. Raikov, imagine that Musk has made a major breakthrough for humanity and you are going on a year-long trip to Mars. Which three famous people (living or dead) would you like to spend it with?

Steve Jobs (of course), Kai-Fu Lee, Ronald Reagan.

You are entitled to one working day with a company CEO (living or dead). Who would you choose and why?

Warren Buffett—because of his unique ability for long-term thinking, focus, and business wisdom.

Imagine you are shipwrecked on a desert island, but all your basic human needs—such as food, water, and shelter—are met. What two other things would you like to have with you and why?

A library/ebook reader with the 1,000 best books of all time – sounds like the perfect situation to catch up on my reading list.
My diary – the situation is ideal for self-reflection, which it will help a lot with.
If you could give only one book for the rest of your life, which one would it be?
"Thinking Fast & Slow" by Daniel Kahneman.

You are a time traveler. You have the opportunity to move forward into the future or back into the past. Where would you want to travel to and why?

Around 150 BC, during the height of the Roman Republic, to understand what we could learn from the experience of such an ancient society in creating a functioning and stable democracy that survived and prospered for centuries.

You have the opportunity to acquire a superpower (any skill you can think of), but only for one day. What would it be and why?

Time travel, because we can learn a lot from the lessons of the past.

Identify the biggest threat/challenge for your company over the next five years.

The monopolization of technology by a few (super) large companies that can use non-market methods of competition.

In which area does Bulgaria have the greatest potential to become a leader on the European map?

IT products with high added value.

There is a lot of talk about AI, but what is the most neglected issue that is important to discuss?

Smart regulation and mitigating actions that do not reduce the potential of technology to help create value, but still ensure protection from the main risks to society.

Which of your job responsibilities/activities would you never want to transfer to a robot?

Strategic business planning and decisions.

Which is more important: talent or hard work?

Hard work is what develops the talent that each of us has within us.

Which is more important: education or experience?

Education is the foundation on which we build our experience—without it, our experience would not be complete or of high quality.

What are the three things without which success is not possible?

Perseverance, adaptability, and long-term thinking.

What fascinates you these days?

Seeing the beautiful world around us through my children's eyes.

What is the best advice you have ever received?

No matter how busy my schedule is, to take the time to look at the bigger picture to make sure I'm moving in the right direction.

What is the hardest lesson you have learned?

That you have to make the most of quiet times with fewer immediate tasks, rather than letting your guard down and "taking it easy at the office."

What is the biggest challenge you have overcome?

The forced need to grow up quickly during a major family crisis when I was a teenager.

When was the last time you said to yourself, "This is my best day at work"? What was the occasion?

We recently launched a new feature that was very well received, and I started getting positive feedback from hundreds of acquaintances from different countries.

What is your greatest passion – something you are ALL IN on?

Protecting/restoring the environment and striving to minimize the negative impact of my actions on the climate.

Translated with DeepL.