We may be one brick closer to a Clash of Clans LEGO set, as Supercell CEO and co-founder Ilkka Paananen has joined The LEGO Group’s A/S board of directors alongside YouTube Studio’s director of product, Ebi Atawodi.
Paananen was appointed on April 26th, just three days after the Finnish studio’s latest soft launch: Squad Busters.
Everything to play for
Supercell isn’t the only company Paananen’s founded, either; he is also one of the co-founders behind Wondershop and We Foundation. Wondershop is a studio that develops educational games for children and teaches them new skills, while We Foundation offers tools to organisations working with children and families.
And now, taking his work with children even further, Paananen has joined LEGO too.
"Excited to join LEGO board of directors with Ebi Atawodi! My dream is that one day Supercell will be a similar iconic company whose products everyone loves. So this is an opportunity for me to learn from the best!" he posted on LinkedIn.
As for Atawodi, prior to her work at YouTube Studios she was director of product, payments EMEA at Netflix. Her appointment plus Paananen’s - while Eva Berneke has stepped down - brings the board to a total of eight members, five of whom are of independent, non-executive status.
"We are very happy to welcome Ebi and Ilkka to the board of directors. They bring a wealth of relevant experience, which complements and adds value to the board, as we work to reach more children, continue to build the brand, and navigate an evolving digital landscape," said LEGO chair of the A/S board of directors Thomas Kirk Kristiansen.
"With our shared passion for innovation, creativity and learning, and joint commitment to building a more sustainable future for children, we look very much forward to the collaboration."
Quite what the CEO of a gaming giant like Supercell will learn from LEGO remains to be seen, but just in case LEGO characters come to Squad Busters when the game goes global or Clash of Clans’ Barbarian King gets his own LEGO set, we’ll be keeping our eyes peeled.
