Featured Podcast: Juliette de la Rie on the power of belonging in deep tech
I recently joined Petra Soderling on her podcast Deep Pockets to talk about empathy, belonging, and why inclusion in deep tech is not optional.
Petra is a Finnish-American award-winning innovator, strategist, and thought leader in governments and innovation. Her career has spanned executive roles at Nokia, founding two startups in New York and New Orleans, driving U.S. deep tech investments into Finland for Business Finland, and advising institutions such as the World Bank and the European Investment Bank. Today, she also serves as Head of Government and Consortium Relations at the Quantum Strategy Institute, and is the author of Government and Innovation – the Economic Developer’s Guide (2023).
Most recently, Petra played a central role in shaping Europe’s future quantum landscape: she was invited by the European Commission to take on the main editing task of the EU Quantum Strategy. You can read her reflections on that experience here: Writing EU's new Quantum Strategy.
In our conversation, I shared how my personal journey shaped the way I work today:
From shy to fearless: I wasn’t always outspoken. Overcoming shyness and early judgments as a young mom gave me the drive to prove people wrong—but also taught me to seek a deeper purpose beyond career milestones.
Curiosity as a compass: My fascination with big questions—“Why are we here? What is reality?”—led me to quantum physics, which eventually opened the door to the quantum community where, for the first time, I felt I truly belonged.
Belonging is essential to innovation: Emerging technologies like quantum will impact the entire world. That means we need diverse voices in the room now—not later—because inclusion drives better solutions, stronger organizations, and untapped markets.
Turning values into practice: Concepts like happiness, empathy, and belonging may sound intangible, but they can be baked into everyday processes—from communications and hiring to culture and community-building.
Facing bias as a starting point: Bias is not a personal failure; it’s a signal. In the podcast, we discussed my free Implicit Bias course, which gives leaders practical tools to recognize and prevent bias from shaping decisions.
For me, this was a chance to share how I approach my work with Colorful Matter: helping organizations in quantum and beyond create spaces where people feel seen, valued, and connected. Because technology doesn’t shape the world—people do.
🎧 Listen to the full episode here: Engineering Empathy on Purpose and Quantum
📖 Read Petra’s reflections on the episode here: Engineering Empathy on Purpose and Progress in Tech
Does this suit your organization or any of your projects? (juliette@colorfulmatter.eu)
Curious to learn more? Check out the Colorful Matter learning platform:
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