Software Engineer Miguel may be Spanish, but he was hired from the small Estonian town of Viljandi. It was initially love that brought Miguel to Estonia. What he wishes most at the moment is to meet his team in person because the first months have flown by remotely. 

What made you join Brainbase?

I was looking for new opportunities, and as luck would have it, a recruiter approached me with Brainbase's offer. 

Did the licensing industry speak to you?

My former experience is in the ed-tech industry, but I am fascinated by what Brainbase does - modernizing the intellectual property industry. 

How do you think Brainbase is changing the licensing industry?

I think it is a true game-changer - there are other companies approaching the subject but none of them as broadly as we. From the beginning of an idea, IP, cross-border IP licensing. You have a one-stop-shop basically for anything licensing-related - it doesn't matter if you are a startup or an artist, etc. 

You've been only five months at the company. Is it still the honeymoon phase?

 Well, from the beginning I started working on core platform functionalities. My first mission was challenging, I struggled initially, but I also learned a lot. Since I'm still new in the company my colleagues have been very helpful and constantly learning a lot from them.

Is that what keeps you motivated - cause it is so challenging?

Yes, exactly. I keep learning a lot, solving new problems constantly. From the beginning, I had to start learning a new framework and work on a crucial part of the system. At first, it was a bit confusing but I took it as a challenge and tried to learn as much as I could.

What does a typical workday look like for you? 

I am a morning person. Around 6-6.30 am, I go for a quick walk, which helps me wake up. Then I make coffee - I cannot miss that! Then I jump into my emails and Slack. Later I can focus on engineering and coding. I need to keep myself from being distracted - phone on the night mode and the PC, too. I put music on and go about it - I have no specific genre that I prefer; I listen to all kinds of stuff. Around 1-2 pm, I have lunch. Then I continue to work - meetings, etc. Around 5 pm, I do a little review so that everything is under control. Then it is time for cycling. Later at night, I learn something - new skills. Sometimes I do some hobby coding, sometimes I learn about business development and entrepreneurship. I go to sleep pretty early - at 8-9 PM. I keep my schedule constant from Monday to Friday.

Favorite place to eat, have a drink, or enjoy some culture in Tallinn? 

Currently, I work remotely from Viljandi, one of my favorite places to go to is Sushi City and every time I go to Tallinn, Kaja Pizza, I must have it! I am a pizza-lover; I have a Neapolitan pizza oven at home.

Do you have any after-work hobbies/activities? 

Traveling - Always looking for new places to discover. I have traveled to over 45 countries so far. My passion for pizza-making, also I like to go for walks and think. If I have something on my mind, I go to sort it out during long walks. 

Why would you recommend someone to apply to Brainbase?

I think what we do - simplifying something very complex and making it accessible, is impressive. That makes ME excited. So I think that should make other people excited, too. The company has enormous potential, in my opinion. 

Unicorn-potential? 

I would say so, yes.