The state of Product in Europe vs US

Elias Lieberich, Founder of Product Matters and formerly a PM at Google and YouTube, makes the case that the real gap between European and Silicon Valley product practice is in its culture. He identifies three recurring patterns in European companies: process obsession, a limited appetite for validation, and an underappreciation of engineering and design. Drawing on work with German Mittelstand businesses, deep tech startups, and large enterprises, Elias explains how to introduce product thinking without triggering resistance, through small, visible wins rather than wholesale transformation.

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Chapters
00:56 – Elias's background: Google, YouTube, and Google X
04:08 – European vs. Silicon Valley product culture
07:43 – Three gaps: process obsession, lack of validation, undervaluing engineers
12:04 – What European companies actually want — and the copy-paste trap
13:34 – Show, don't tell: finding immediate value
15:37 – Bringing the whole organisation on the journey
25:02 – Roadmaps, frameworks, and meeting companies where they are
26:35 – Building trust through small, compounding wins
29:29 – Change aversion as a bell curve
31:02 – What European companies do well — and what's worth exporting
33:13 – Working with deep tech startups in Europe
36:44 – The killer question: who is this for?
40:25 – Practical advice: start with what's within your control
42:53 – Wrap-up


Key Takeaways
— European companies tend to exhibit three structural gaps relative to modern tech companies: a preference for locked-down processes, limited appetite for market validation, and undervaluation of engineers and designers as strategic contributors.
— The instinct to copy-paste Google or Amazon is counterproductive. Sustainable change comes from incremental improvement, not wholesale transformation.
— "Show, don't tell" is the operating principle. Find one real user interaction that surfaces a genuine problem, demonstrate it in front of the team, and build credibility from there.
— PMs earn influence through relationships and results — not organisational authority. Before any transformation work begins, Elias starts every engagement with a listening tour across functions.
— Change aversion follows a bell curve. A small group will embrace anything new; a small group will resist everything. Transformation strategy should target the majority in the middle with steady, visible progress.
— For deep tech startups, the most important early question is "who is this for?" Without a defined customer, strong IP remains a technology — not a product.
— In a study of deep tech founders who didn't succeed, 70% cited product as the primary reason for failure — ahead of financing, team, and regulation.
— Even without direct customer access, indirect research (community forums, Reddit threads, public discussions) can surface immediately actionable insight.

Featured Links
— Elias Lieberich: Product Matters: https://productmatters.io/
— Elias on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lieberich/