The European VC: Recent Episodes

The European VC

The European VC is your go-to podcast for insights into European VC. Co-hosted by Andreas Munk Holm and David Cruz e Silva, EUVC will feature some of the most prominent people from the industry. Every week, you'll get a fresh new perspective from a European VC champion.

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In the 100th episode of This Week in European Tech,Mads Jensen and Dan Bowyer of SuperSeed are joined by Lomax Ward of Outsized Ventures and Andrew J. Scott of 7percent Ventures.

Two years after the show began, they reflect on how much the technology and venture landscape has shifted. They compare the surge in AI funding, hyperscaler investment and trillion-dollar technology companies in the US with Europe’s progress in company creation, venture activity and strategic technologies.

The conversation also explores where Europe continues to lag, from pension capital and scale-up funding to energy, defence and access to space, and whether the continent can reduce its reliance on the US while building globally competitive companies.

They then turn to 2028, sharing their views on the next phase of AI, robotics, smart glasses, quantum computing, sovereign technology and the infrastructure needed to support them.

Key highlights

How European venture has evolved over the past two years
Why Europe is creating more unicorns and decacorns while its global funding share remains under pressure
The increasing concentration of capital around AI and the largest US technology companies
Whether Europe can unlock more pension and institutional capital for venture
Why every AI strategy is increasingly becoming an energy strategy
Europe’s position in defence, sovereign technology and space infrastructure
The next wave of robotics, autonomous vehicles and physical AI
Predictions for AGI, quantum computing, smart glasses and the companies that could shape 2028

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Love Tomorrow Summit - July 23, 2026, Tomorrowland, Belgium

The Impact Circle Investor Lounge - July 24, 2026

EUVC is curating the investment stage.

Register ⁠here⁠.

AI is giving attackers cheaper, faster ways to target organisations at scale. On the defensive side, security teams are starting to replace rigid playbooks with AI systems that can investigate incidents, adapt to new attack paths and support faster response.

In this episode, Andreas Munk Holm speaks with Ahmed Achchak, Co-founder and CEO of Qevlar AI, and Réza Malekzadeh, General Partner at Partech, an investor in Qevlar AI.

They discuss how Ahmed and his co-founder approached cybersecurity without coming from traditional security backgrounds, why that outsider perspective helped them rethink static playbooks and how Qevlar AI is moving security teams beyond manual triage.

The conversation also covers why organisations should assume breach, how automated remediation can be governed without turning the system into a black box, how young startups earn trust with major enterprise customers, Europe’s cybersecurity opportunity and why founders need to build security into their products from day one.

Highlights

How AI is reshaping cyberattacks and cyber defence
Why static security playbooks are falling behind
How an outsider perspective shaped Qevlar AI
How Qevlar AI investigates and responds to incidents
Why organisations should assume breach
How startups build trust with enterprise customers
Europe’s opportunity to build global cybersecurity leaders
Why security must be built in from day one

Learn more about the Love Tomorrow Summit and the programmes EUVC is curating, and secure your tickets here.

Timestamps

(02:00) Introduction to Qevlar AI and Partech
(03:00) How AI is changing cybersecurity
(05:00) From cloud security to the AI shift
(07:20) Why small businesses are increasingly exposed
(09:00) Building Qevlar AI without a traditional security background
(12:00) Why outsider founders can rethink established industries
(14:20) How Qevlar AI investigates cyber incidents
(18:30) Why organisations should assume breach
(21:30) Governing AI-driven security decisions
(26:00) Winning trust with enterprise customers
(30:30) Europe’s cybersecurity advantage
(34:00) Why European companies still need to think globally
(37:00) Qevlar AI’s long-term vision
(39:00) Why Partech backed the team
(40:30) Why security can no longer be an afterthought
(43:00) Closing thoughts

Europe’s AI position is being tested from every direction: Chinese open-weight models are gaining usage, Nvidia could become even more central to the stack and Europe still has gaps across power, chips, data centres and model capacity.

In the latest episode of This Week in European Tech, Mads Jensen and Dan Bowyer of SuperSeed are joined by Lomax Ward of Outsized Ventures to discuss the AI power shift between China, the US and Europe.

They also cover UK pension capital moving into venture, whether today’s AI market looks like 1999, Anthropic and OpenAI’s IPO pressure, model commoditisation and where Europe may still have an edge.

Highlights

Why China’s AI model usage is becoming harder to ignore
What Chinese model restrictions could mean for Europe
Europe’s AI infrastructure gap across power, chips, data centres and models
Whether UK pension capital is finally moving into venture
Why today’s AI market both does and does not look like 1999
Where Europe may still have a real opportunity in AI

—————

Love Tomorrow Summit - July 23, 2026, Tomorrowland, Belgium

The Impact Circle Investor Lounge - July 24, 2026

EUVC is curating the investment stage.

Register here.

—————

Timestamps

(01:45) Introduction
(03:25) Quick news roundup
(05:30) Tesla, SpaceX, Samsung and the week’s market signals
(08:00) The UK’s fiscal outlook and the OBR warning
(11:10) Government oversight of frontier AI releases
(12:00) China’s rise in AI model usage
(14:30) Could Nvidia benefit if China restricts model access?
(17:00) Europe’s exposure across the AI infrastructure stack
(19:15) OpenAI, Anthropic and the pressure to IPO
(22:45) UK pension capital starts moving into venture
(25:00) Why pension investment matters for the UK ecosystem
(28:00) Where pension capital should be deployed
(30:00) Incentives, coercion and the role of government
(32:45) Is today’s AI market another 1999?
(40:30) The case against the dot-com comparison
(46:30) AI Corner: Anthropic’s Fable and Sonnet strategy
(48:30) Lisbon’s earthquake history and engineering response
(54:15) Lisbon’s tech ecosystem
(56:30) Europe’s opportunity, deals of the week and what to watch next

Corporate venturing works best when investing is only one part of the model. To drive real transformation, corporates need to build, partner and invest in ways that reinforce each other.

In this episode, Andreas Munk Holm speaks with Alex Manson, CEO at SC Ventures by Standard Chartered and author of Nothing Ventured, Nothing Gained, alongside Jeppe Høier, EUVC’s in-house corporate expert.

Together, they explore why SC Ventures was built to operate both inside and outside the bank, how corporates can build independent but institutionally backed ventures and why corporate ventures need to prove themselves through the market.

The conversation also covers venture clienting, corporate-startup partnerships, when corporates should invest, why SC Ventures only backs partners it actually works with and why financial returns remain non-negotiable.

Highlights

Why corporate venturing is more than traditional CVC
The role of build, partner and invest in corporate transformation
Why SC Ventures builds outside the bank but at bank-grade
Why corporate ventures must prove themselves in the market
How to balance strategic value with financial returns

Timestamps

(01:15) Introduction to Alex Manson and SC Ventures
(02:05) Why Standard Chartered created SC Ventures
(05:40) Building ventures inside and outside the bank
(09:20) Governance, risk and compliance in corporate ventures
(17:45) Why corporate ventures must prove themselves in the market
(24:40) Moving from build to partner
(27:15) Why SC Ventures is not a traditional CVC
(29:10) Why SC Ventures only invests in partners it works with
(35:35) Real partnerships versus innovation theatre
(38:35) Strategic value versus financial returns
(43:35) Why Alex wrote Nothing Ventured, Nothing Gained

Learn more about Nothing Ventured, Nothing Gained by Alex Manson, CEO at SC Ventures, here.

What happens when a society becomes too afraid to take risks?

In the latest episode of This Week in European Tech, Mads Jensen and Dan Bowyer of SuperSeed are joined by Lomax Ward of Outsized Ventures to discuss whether the West's growing aversion to risk is holding back innovation, capital allocation and long-term competitiveness.

Together, they explore UK technology policy, AI infrastructure, trade tensions, enterprise AI adoption and defence investing, alongside a broader discussion about capital allocation, competitiveness and where the next generation of technology winners will come from.

Highlights

Is the West becoming too risk-averse?
What a new UK government could mean for technology
Why AI is becoming a geopolitical asset
The next phase of enterprise AI adoption
How trade tensions are reshaping technology markets
Why the biggest venture winners are rarely obvious early
What Quantum Systems says about investing ahead of the market

—————

Love Tomorrow Summit - July 23, 2026, Tomorrowland, Belgium

The Impact Circle Investor Lounge - July 24, 2026

EUVC is curating the investment stage.

Register here.

—————

Timestamps

(00:00) Introduction
(01:00) News roundup
(05:00) Burnham's Britain and the future of UK growth
(10:00) Has the West become too risk-averse?
(21:00) AI, governments and strategic control
(35:00) AI markets: rotation, not collapse
(43:00) Trade tensions, tariffs and Europe's dilemma
(55:00) Why AI still needs humans
(01:01:00) Deal of the week: Quantum Systems
(01:04:00) Deal of the week: EquiLibre
(01:05:30) What to watch next week

Great consumer teams still start with the customer. AI is changing the speed, tools and team structures around them, but the fundamentals of building enduring consumer companies remain remarkably consistent.

In Episode 3 of the Consumer Tech Napkin series, produced in partnership with True Global, ⁠Andreas Munk Holm⁠ speaks with ⁠Rishabh Kaul⁠ (Venture Partner at ⁠Hoxton Ventures⁠), ⁠Mike Martin⁠ (Director, Investment at ⁠True Global⁠) and ⁠Camilla Dolan⁠ (General Partner at ⁠Eka Ventures⁠).

Together, they discuss the DNA of successful consumer teams, what investors look for in founders, how AI is reshaping product development, hiring and experimentation, and why customer obsession, distribution and execution continue to separate the best consumer companies from the rest.

The conversation also explores defensibility in the AI era, whether consumer investing has truly changed and which consumer categories excite investors most.

Highlights

What great consumer teams have in common
Why customer obsession still matters most
How AI is changing product development
Distribution as a consumer startup superpower
What investors look for in consumer founders
How to build AI-native teams
The biggest red flags in consumer investing

Learn more about the Love Tomorrow Summit and the programmes EUVC is curating, and secure your tickets ⁠here⁠.

Timestamps

(00:00) Introduction
(02:00) What makes a great consumer team?
(07:45) Customer obsession vs. distribution as competitive advantages
(13:10) Building teams that can scale with the company
(21:10) How AI is changing consumer founders and products
(26:00) Can AI-native teams stay lean?
(31:10) Why experimentation is becoming a competitive advantage
(35:00) Hiring in the AI era: curiosity, expertise and learning velocity
(39:50) The biggest red flags in consumer founders
(44:00) Founder intensity, disagreement and closing thoughts

The next chapter for UK technology may depend as much on capital markets as company building.

In this episode of This Week in European Tech, Dan Bowyer and Mads Jensen of SuperSeed are joined by Neil Shah, Director, Tech Sector Specialist at London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG).

They discuss what it will take to unlock more capital for UK technology, from pension reform and IPOs to public markets and founder liquidity.

The conversation also explores what Micron's latest results reveal about AI infrastructure demand, Europe's defence investment boom, the rise of sovereign AI and where value is likely to be created as AI adoption accelerates.

Highlights

Can the UK mobilise more capital for technology?
Why pension reform matters for innovation
The outlook for UK IPOs and public markets
How PISCES could reshape private market liquidity
What Micron's results reveal about AI demand
Europe's defence technology investment boom
Why sovereign AI is becoming a strategic priority
Where the next wave of AI value is likely to be created

Learn more about the Love Tomorrow Summit and the programmes EUVC is curating, and secure your tickets here.

Timestamps

(00:00) Introduction
(02:00) This week's topics and guest introduction
(03:00) The outlook for UK tech IPOs
(05:00) Markets, AI and the IPO landscape
(08:00) Why Micron matters for AI
(13:00) Can the UK unlock more capital?
(17:00) Capital markets, PISCES and IPO reform
(23:00) Europe's defence technology boom
(31:00) The AI economy and where value will be created
(37:00) Sovereign AI and Europe's strategy
(43:00) Predictions, deals of the week and what's next

Most innovation programmes start with reasonable assumptions. The challenge is that reality often proves them wrong.

In this episode, Andreas Munk Holm and Jeppe Høier speak with Cynthia Hansen, Managing Director of The Innovation Foundation, empowered by the Adecco Group, about four lessons learned from building and scaling employment solutions for people often excluded from the labour market.

Cynthia shares how her team moved from designing programmes around demographics to designing around trends, why technology became central rather than supportive and what it takes to build venture teams capable of creating scalable social impact inside a large organisation.

The conversation also explores the evolution of the Foundation's Scan, Build, Scale methodology, the challenge of finding people who can operate across business and social impact and how Foundry is helping create the next generation of innovation talent.

Highlights

Why designing around demographics led to repeating patterns
How trend-based innovation changed the team's approach
The evolution of the Scan, Build, Scale framework
Why technology became essential to scaling impact
The challenge of finding the right venture builders
How Foundry is creating a pipeline of innovation talent
What corporate innovators can learn about designing for scale
Why scale should be built into a solution from day one

Timestamps

(00:00) Introduction
(02:00) What The Innovation Foundation does and why Adecco created it
(03:00) Learning 1: Why demographics were the wrong place to start
(08:00) Moving from audiences to trends
(10:00) How the team identifies emerging labour market shifts
(14:00) Learning 2: The Scan, Build, Scale framework
(18:00) The challenge of finding the right venture builders
(20:00) Introducing Foundry
(23:00) Learning 3: Why technology became central
(26:00) Technology, scale and the digital divide
(29:00) Measuring impact beyond reach and job placement
(31:00) The flywheel behind scaling social innovation
(35:00) Learning 4: Building the right teams
(38:00) What entrepreneurs can learn about working with corporates
(39:00) Closing thoughts

Subscribe to EUVC, the home of European tech, for more insights.

Europe's best founders are no longer building for Europe first and the US later. They're building global companies from day one.

In this episode, Andreas Munk Holm speaks with Seedcamp Principal Will Bennett as Seedcamp announces a new $320 million fund, split between a $220 million Core fund and a $100 million Select fund.

Will explains why Seedcamp is expanding its US presence, how its transatlantic bridge helps founders access customers, talent and capital earlier and why the firm's conviction remains centred on backing exceptional founders before the company or category is obvious.

The conversation also explores how AI is intersecting with science and the physical world, what excites Seedcamp about the next generation of startups and how venture is evolving after nearly two decades of investing.

Disclosure: EUVC is a small LP in Seedcamp's latest fund and has also invested in previous Seedcamp funds.

Key highlights

Why Europe's best founders are building global companies from day one
The strategy behind Seedcamp's $320 million fund raise
How the transatlantic bridge helps founders access customers, talent and capital earlier
Why Seedcamp backs founders before the company or category is obvious
How AI is intersecting with science and the physical world

Timestamps

(00:00) Introduction and Seedcamp's $320 million fund raise
(01:00) Why Seedcamp launched a dedicated Select fund
(03:00) Supporting founders beyond the first cheque
(05:00) Venture's next frontier
(06:00) AI, science and the physical world
(11:00) Valuations, competition and the current market
(17:00) Why Seedcamp is building a transatlantic bridge
(18:00) Helping European founders win in the US
(19:00) Building global companies from day one
(21:00) Why pre-seed investors should avoid rigid theses
(24:00) Closing thoughts

Subscribe to EUVC, the home of European tech, for more insights.

Europe already produces world-class technology companies. The mistake is assuming future winners will look obvious before they become winners.

In this episode of This Week in European Tech, Dan Bowyer and Mads Jensen of SuperSeed speak with Joe Schorge, Founder and Managing Partner at Isomer Capital, about why the best investors focus less on predicting outliers and more on building exposure to exceptional founders, technologies and ecosystems.

Joe shares why Europe's next trillion-dollar company is probably already operating today, what Amazon and Google teach us about identifying future winners and why diversification remains one of the most powerful tools in venture capital.

The conversation also covers AI sovereignty, Anthropic's model shutdown, DeepSeek's $7 billion round, Mistral's latest raise and Europe's position in the global AI race.

Key highlights:

Why Europe's next trillion-dollar company probably already exists
Why future winners rarely look obvious early on
The LP case for backing ecosystems instead of chasing predictions
Lessons from Amazon and Google
Why Europe already produces world-class technology companies
Why tech sovereignty depends on world-class products
DeepSeek, Mistral and the future of AI infrastructure
Whether Europe can compete with the US and China in frontier technology

Timestamps

(00:00) Introduction
(05:00) Why Accenture matters for the future of AI adoption
(12:00) Anthropic's model shutdown and AI sovereignty
(15:00) Why tech sovereignty is creating opportunities for European startups
(20:00) AI alliances, geopolitics and Europe's position
(26:00) DeepSeek's $7 billion funding round
(31:00) Mistral's next chapter and Europe's AI ambitions
(35:00) Can Europe build a trillion-dollar technology company?
(38:00) Why future winners rarely look obvious
(40:00) Europe's world-class technology companies
(41:00) Isar Aerospace and European winners
(42:00) European tech deal of the week
(43:00) The week ahead in AI and venture

Learn more about the Love Tomorrow Summit and the programmes EUVC is curating, and secure your tickets here.

The next generation of great founders will be scientists and engineers.

That's the argument of ⁠Ramzi Rizk⁠, General Partner at ⁠WIP Capital⁠, a €10 million solo-GP fund backing scientists and engineers at the intersection of bio, neuro and foundational AI.

In this episode, ⁠Andreas Munk Holm⁠ speaks with Ramzi about why the biggest opportunities in venture are moving beyond SaaS, how AI is accelerating scientific discovery and why founders with deep technical expertise may have an advantage in building the next generation of category-defining companies.

The conversation explores Ramzi's recent visit to the Asilomar neurotechnology conference, Europe's opportunity in deep science, the idea that the natural world is becoming computable and the lessons he's learned from building companies, making more than 60 angel investments and launching WIP Capital.

Topics covered

Why the next generation of founders will be scientists and engineers
Why the alpha is in sci-fi, not SaaS
Lessons from the Asilomar neurotechnology conference
Europe's opportunity in deep science and research
Why the natural world is becoming computable
How AI is accelerating scientific discovery
What Ramzi looks for in technical founders
Building WIP Capital as a solo GP

Timestamps

(02:00) Introduction and Ramzi Rizk's background
(04:00) Inside the Asilomar neurotechnology conference
(09:00) Europe's opportunity in deep science
(11:00) Why Ramzi backs scientists and engineers
(16:00) What makes a great technical founder
(19:00) Commercialising scientific research
(23:00) Why the natural world is becoming computable
(25:00) Bio, neuro and the next wave of AI innovation
(27:00) Why the best investors follow patterns, not sectors
(29:00) Building WIP Capital as a solo GP
(31:00) Why deep tech may move faster than investors think
(33:00) The future Ramzi wants to help build

Learn more about the Love Tomorrow Summit and the programmes EUVC is curating, and secure your tickets here.

Europe's challenge isn't a lack of entrepreneurs. It's making sure enough capital reaches them.

In this episode, David Cruz e Silva speaks with Jaap Vriesendorp, Managing Partner at Marktlink Capital, one of Europe's most active LPs in venture capital, about why backing European innovation matters, how to build a resilient venture portfolio and what separates the best fund managers from the rest.

Jaap shares the thinking behind Marktlink's venture strategy, from vintage diversification and secondaries to manager selection and portfolio construction.

He also explains why scale matters in private markets, how the firm uses data science and AI in its investment process and why many LPs make the mistake of running out of capital for their best-performing managers.

The conversation also covers emerging managers, long-term capital formation and why Europe deserves more credit as a venture ecosystem.

Key highlights:

Why European entrepreneurs should back European entrepreneurs
How one of Europe's most active VC LPs approaches venture investing
The role of primaries, secondaries and vintage diversification
What Jaap looks for in emerging managers
Why scale matters in private markets
How data science and AI support investment decisions
The biggest mistakes fund-of-funds investors make
Why long-term capital is critical to venture success

Timestamps:

(00:00) Why Europe needs more capital flowing into innovation
(02:00) Introduction and Jaap Vriesendorp's background
(05:00) From McKinsey to launching a venture fund-of-funds
(08:00) The merger that created Marktlink Capital
(10:00) Building a platform backed by entrepreneurs
(14:00) Why scale matters in private markets
(17:00) Product strategy across venture, private equity, co-investments and private credit
(23:00) How Marktlink uses data science and AI in investing
(29:00) Marktlink's venture investment strategy
(30:00) Vintage diversification, primaries and secondaries
(33:00) Why annual funds help secure long-term LP capital
(37:00) What Marktlink looks for in emerging venture managers
(40:00) Why Europe deserves more credit as a venture ecosystem

Further listening:

⁠⁠⁠E347: The $26B CIO Who Turned Superforecasting Into Alpha - How I Invest with David Weisburd⁠⁠⁠

Learn more about the Love Tomorrow Summit and the programmes EUVC is curating, and secure your tickets here.

Quantum computing has spent decades being "just around the corner".

Now quantum companies are raising record rounds, heading to public markets and moving closer to commercial adoption.

In the latest episode of This Week in European Tech, Mads Jensen of SuperSeed is joined by Andrew J. Scott, Managing Partner at 7percent Ventures, and Callum Stewart, Principal at BullhoundCapital, to discuss why quantum may finally be reaching an inflection point.

The conversation explores BullhoundCapital's investment in Oxford Quantum Circuits (OQC), when quantum advantage could become commercially meaningful, why quantum sensing may arrive before large-scale quantum computing and what Europe's position could be in the next wave of deep tech.

They also discuss sovereign AI, Anthropic's latest model release, AI infrastructure, Britain's technology strategy and the biggest stories shaping European tech this week.

Topics covered

Why quantum may be closer to commercial adoption than many investors think
The investment thesis behind OQC
Quantum computing versus quantum sensing
Europe's opportunity in quantum and deep tech
Sovereign AI and frontier models
Anthropic's latest release and the future of AI infrastructure
The UK's approach to AI chips, compute and technology sovereignty

Timestamps

(00:00) Introduction and today's agenda
(03:00) SpaceX's IPO and the impact on venture
(08:00) OpenAI, Anthropic and the AI race
(16:00) Why quantum is reaching an inflection point
(18:00) The investment case for Oxford Quantum Circuits
(20:00) When quantum computing becomes commercially useful
(25:00) Quantum sensing and the next wave of applications
(31:00) Anthropic's new model and AI safety
(41:00) Europe's AI regulation dilemma
(46:00) Britain's sovereign AI ambitions
(54:00) The UK's AI infrastructure strategy
(01:05:00) European tech deals of the week
(01:08:00) The week ahead in European tech

Learn more about the Love Tomorrow Summit and the programmes EUVC is curating, and secure your tickets here.

Most companies have access to AI tools. Far fewer have figured out how to drive adoption across an entire organisation.

In this episode, Andreas Munk Holm and Jeppe Høier are joined by Nils Wagner, CEO of REHAU New Ventures, the corporate venturing unit of the REHAU Group, and a third-generation member of the Wagner family behind REHAU.

Nils shares how REHAU built a secure AI platform, launched an AI Academy and AI Factory, reached 10% adoption within months and is targeting 50% by year-end. He also explains why the company moved from venture building to venture clienting and what other corporates can learn from the experience.

Key topics

Scaling AI adoption across a large industrial organisation
Building a secure platform with access to multiple LLMs and company data
The AI Academy and AI Factory model
Real-world AI use cases, including a touchless invoice workflow with 94% automation rates
Why most corporates struggle with AI implementation
Lessons from REHAU's shift from venture building to venture clienting

Timestamps

(00:00) Why corporates struggle with AI adoption
(02:00) Introducing Nils Wagner and REHAU New Ventures
(06:00) Why REHAU started with venture building
(15:00) The move to venture clienting
(18:00) What makes venture clienting work
(25:00) Why REHAU prioritised AI
(27:00) Building REHAU's AI platform
(28:00) The AI Academy approach
(30:00) The AI Factory and workflow automation
(31:00) AI use cases across REHAU
(31:30) The touchless invoice project
(33:00) Lessons for corporates implementing AI
(34:00) The future of enterprise AI

Subscribe to EUVC, the home of European tech, for more insights.

Europe wants AI sovereignty. But can it reduce its dependence on foreign technology without sacrificing innovation, capability and competitiveness?

In this episode of This Week in European Tech, Dan Bowyer and Mads Jensen of SuperSeed are joined by Matt Russell, Managing Director (Head of Secondaries) at VenCap International, to discuss Europe's growing sovereignty push, the debate around Palantir, the future of venture secondaries, enterprise AI adoption and the latest developments from Anthropic, SpaceX and OpenAI.

The conversation explores why venture secondaries may be entering a new phase of growth, why some of the best-performing secondary investments are bought at premiums rather than discounts and what Europe's path to sovereign AI infrastructure could look like.

Topics covered:

Europe's AI and cloud sovereignty challenge
The Palantir debate and the risks of vendor lock-in
Why venture secondaries could become a much larger market
The biggest misconceptions about secondary investing
Enterprise AI adoption and the challenge of measuring ROI
Anthropic, SpaceX and the next generation of AI mega-companies
OpenAI and the future of AI regulation
Whether Europe can build sovereign AI infrastructure
Why AI may ultimately be a productivity and margin story

Timestamps

(00:00) Introduction and the rise of venture secondaries
(01:00) Why liquidity is becoming venture capital’s biggest theme
(05:00) Europe’s sovereignty push and the Cloud & AI Development Act
(12:00) Sovereign cloud, AI infrastructure and the search for European champions
(18:00) The Palantir debate: dependency, lock-in and strategic control
(24:00) Enterprise AI adoption, experimentation and proving ROI
(31:00) Anthropic, SpaceX and the next wave of mega-cap technology companies
(38:00) AI regulation, liability and the OpenAI lawsuit
(42:00) Predictions: Europe’s two-tier AI future
(47:00) Deal of the week: defence tech, Gigaton and autonomous systems
(50:00) What’s next: Apple, the ECB and the SpaceX IPO
(55:00) Closing remarks

Subscribe to EUVC, the home of European tech, for more insights: https://www.eu.vc/subscribe

Tomorrowland is one of Europe's best-known festivals.

Less known is that it quietly helped create one of Europe's most interesting corporate-startup matchmaking platforms.

In this episode, Andreas Munk Holm speaks with Joris Beckers, Co-Founder of Love Tomorrow, and Mats Raes, Event Director of Love Tomorrow and The Impact Circle, about how a sustainability initiative evolved into an open innovation platform connecting startups, corporates, investors and public institutions.

The conversation starts with a simple idea: Tomorrowland is not just a festival. It is a temporary city of more than 75,000 people per day, facing many of the same challenges as any major city, from energy and water to waste, mobility and logistics.

That insight led to Love Tomorrow, Tomorrowland's official sustainability and innovation platform. As startups, corporates and public institutions increasingly began using the festival as a real-world testing ground for innovation, one challenge remained: connecting promising technologies with customers, deployment partners and smart capital.

The result was The Impact Circle, Europe's exclusive innovation network for impactful entrepreneurship. Through challenge-led collaboration, curated startup selection and partnerships including the European Innovation Council's Corporate Partnership Programme, The Impact Circle brings together startups, corporates, investors and public institutions around shared innovation challenges.

Joris and Mats explain how Tomorrowland became a stress test for innovation, why corporates increasingly engage as deployment partners rather than sponsors, and how The Impact Circle helps move innovation from pilot projects to real-world adoption.

Key highlights

Why Tomorrowland describes itself as a "hyper-compressed city"
How Love Tomorrow evolved from a sustainability initiative into an open innovation platform
Why startups need real-world testing environments
How innovation is stress-tested in real-world conditions
Why corporates increasingly act as deployment partners
The role of venture clienting in startup growth
Why "smart capital" led to the creation of The Impact Circle
The Impact Circle's partnership with the European Innovation Council
How curated ecosystems improve innovation adoption
What investors, founders and corporates can expect from Love Tomorrow Summit and The Impact Circle

Timestamps

(00:00) Introduction(01:00) From Tomorrowland to Love Tomorrow
(06:40) The "hyper-compressed city" thesis(11:00) Why startups need real-world testing environments
(13:20) Why The Impact Circle was created
(16:40) How The Impact Circle works
(20:30) Venture clienting, corporates and startup deployment(23:20) Love Tomorrow Summit vs The Impact Circle
(24:00) What makes Tomorrowland different from traditional conferences
(26:20) Who should attend and why
(28:30) Final thoughts

More information

Love Tomorrow Summit takes place on 23 July 2026 at Tomorrowland's iconic grounds in Boom, Belgium. The Summit unites the brightest minds — thinkers, entrepreneurs, music artists and leaders — to explore the future of intelligence, and what it asks of humans, organisations and society.

With 80+ speakers and artists, the programme combines keynotes, networking, music, entertainment and a magical evening show.

On July 23, EUVC is curating the investment stage at Love Tomorrow Summit, including 90 minutes of investor-focused keynotes on the Rose Garden Stage. On July 24, EUVC will host a dedicated investor programme at The Impact Circle Investor Lounge.

Get your tickets here.

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What if the strongest moats in the AI era aren't algorithms, but the data those algorithms depend on?

In the second episode of the Consumer Tech Napkin series, Andreas Munk Holm speakes with Renato Circi and Rafaël Michali, Co-Founders at Sava, and Joe Seager-Dupuy, Director, Investment at True, to discuss how founders should think about defensibility when technology is becoming easier to build.

SAVA is developing advanced biosensing technology designed to access bodily information in a painless, real-time and affordable way.

Their core belief is that while AI may accelerate software development, the hardest problems and the most valuable companies will be built around scarce data, difficult infrastructure and bottlenecks that cannot easily be replicated.

Together, they explore what separates static moats from dynamic ones, why patents and regulatory approvals are often just the starting point and how the best companies create advantages that strengthen as they scale.

Topics covered

Why the best moats are often non-consensus
Static versus dynamic moats
Why patents and regulation are not enough
Identifying bottlenecks that create lasting value
AI, proprietary data and defensibility
Building platforms instead of products
Why user experience can be a moat
Europe's advantage in deep tech

Timestamps

(00:00) Why moats matter in consumer technology
(02:00) Introducing Sava and the future of health monitoring
(06:00) What a moat actually is
(09:00) The Apple Watch question and non-invasive sensing
(12:00) Consumer experience versus incumbent medical devices
(15:00) How great companies sequence moats
(18:00) From patents to platforms
(22:00) Bundling, ecosystems and long-term defensibility
(24:00) Static versus dynamic moats
(27:00) Why patents only buy time
(29:00) Owning bottlenecks in health data
(31:00) Why AI increases the value of proprietary data
(36:00) Europe's deep tech advantage
(40:00) The biggest misconceptions about moats
(43:00) Why the best moats are often non-consensus

Consumer Tech Napkin is brought to you in partnership with True.

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Everyone says AI is taking jobs. The data says something more complicated.

In this episode of This Week in European Tech, Dan Bowyer and Mads Jensen of SuperSeed unpack the growing panic around AI-driven job losses, why junior hiring is falling across many industries and whether AI is actually the culprit.

They explore new research suggesting remote work may be having a bigger impact on entry-level employment than AI, discuss the UK's record number of young people not in employment, education or training and examine what the data really shows about automation and labour markets.

They also cover Anthropic's latest model release, the rise of AI application-layer companies, Europe's sovereignty debate, the economics of AI infrastructure and a zero-employee AI company that just raised $30 million.

Topics covered

Is AI really replacing workers?
Why junior hiring is falling
What the data says about AI and employment
Anthropic's rise and Opus 4.8
Why the AI application layer is winning
Europe's tech sovereignty dilemma
The zero-employee AI company phenomenon
AI infrastructure beyond GPUs

Timestamps

(00:00) The rise of the zero-employee AI company
(04:50) Why AI applications are becoming more valuable
(09:00) AI infrastructure moves beyond GPUs
(16:00) Snowflake, Salesforce and enterprise AI adoption
(24:00) Anthropic's latest model and valuation surge
(27:00) Europe's sovereignty dilemma
(33:00) The $30 million zero-employee AI startup
(35:45) Is AI actually taking jobs?
(38:00) What the data says about junior hiring
(41:00) Why AI may not be the main cause
(46:00) Predictions: which AI unicorn could fail next?
(48:00) Deal of the week: Cognition and Devin

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Most VCs think corporate venture capital is slower, more conflicted and structurally weaker than traditional venture firms.

Marc Thom, Corporate Vice President and Head of Henkel Ventures, argues the opposite and explains why the best CVCs may actually outperform traditional VCs over time.

In this episode, Marc joins Andreas Munk Holm and Jeppe Høier to discuss how Henkel built one of Europe’s leading corporate venture platforms, why most startup-corporate partnerships fail and how corporates can create both strategic and financial advantage through venture investing.

Topics covered

Why the best CVCs can outperform VCs
How Henkel structures venture investing and partnerships
The “holy bible” behind startup collaboration inside corporates
Why most startup partnerships fail internally
The role corporates should play on startup cap tables
How AI is reshaping industrial R&D and materials science

Timestamps

(00:00) Why CVCs can outperform traditional VCs
(04:00) How Henkel structures startup sourcing and partnerships
(11:00) The use case framework behind Henkel Ventures
(16:00) The “Role of Henkel” in startup investing
(23:00) Why Henkel invested in ResearchGate
(27:40) AI, chemistry and the future of industrial R&D
(30:20) Why Marc believes CVCs can outperform VCs
(36:00) How Henkel built internal alignment for venture investing

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AI is no longer just a technology story. It is reshaping capital markets, infrastructure and industrial policy.

In the latest episode of This Week in European Tech, Mads Jensen and Dan Bowyer of SuperSeed break down NVIDIA’s dominance of the AI economy, the return of the IPO market through OpenAI, Anthropic and SpaceX, and Europe’s push to build sovereign technology capabilities.

Highlights

NVIDIA and the economics of AI infrastructure
OpenAI, Anthropic and the IPO market reopening
Europe’s sovereign AI push
AI backlash and political risk in the US
Unitree and the rise of humanoid robotics
Isomorphic Labs and AI-driven drug discovery

Timestamps

(03:00) NVIDIA is swallowing the AI economy
(06:20) The IPO market is reopening through OpenAI, Anthropic and SpaceX
(08:40) Why SpaceX is really an AI infrastructure story
(11:40) OpenAI’s IPO could expose the real economics of AI
(13:40) Why Unitree and humanoid robotics matter for Europe
(20:10) Europe’s sovereign AI push through Mistral, EQT and Quantexa
(27:40) Americans are turning against AI
(36:10) Isomorphic Labs and Europe’s biggest AI biotech opportunity

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Demis Hassabis, Co-Founder and CEO of Google DeepMind, refused to leave London, challenged Google on AI safety and helped lead DeepMind back into the AI race.

Sebastian Mallaby, author of The Infinity Machine and The Power Law, joins Andreas Munk Holm to discuss the founder psychology of Demis, the story behind DeepMind and why Europe may be entering a new era in technology.

The conversation explores DeepMind’s fundraising journey, the Google acquisition, the merger with Google Brain, AI safety, sovereign technology and why Demis remains sceptical of parts of Silicon Valley culture despite operating at the centre of it.

Timestamps

(00:00) Why Demis Hassabis matters
(01:12) Why DeepMind could not raise from European VCs
(07:35) The Peter Thiel chess story
(11:00) What DeepMind reveals about European venture
(14:42) Why Europe’s tech ecosystem is accelerating
(18:20) European sovereignty, defence tech and AI
(21:20) DeepMind’s sale to Google and tensions over AI safety
(29:40) The founder psychology of Demis
(41:35) Google’s ChatGPT moment and Gemini’s comeback
(45:05) Demis’ critique of Silicon Valley
(50:45) Europe’s AI sovereignty problem
(54:05) Final thoughts and Sebastian’s new book

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The Power Law: Venture Capital and the Making of the New Future

Batteries do not just power products anymore. They shape what products can be built.

In this episode, Andreas Munk Holm speaks with Michael Brehm and Mohamed Foulser from Redstone alongside Moritz H. Futscher, CEO and Co-Founder of BTRY, about why the next wave of battery innovation is not about bigger battery packs but entirely new form factors.

BTRY is a Swiss battery startup developing an ultra-thin, foldable solid-state battery designed for IoT, medtech and consumer electronics.

Founded in 2023 as an Empa and ETH Zürich spin-off, the company is building a new category of batteries aimed at enabling products that previously were not possible.

The discussion covers Europe’s industrial opportunity in batteries, the importance of scalable manufacturing, overlooked opportunities in embedded electronics and why the future of hardware may make batteries effectively disappear.

Key highlights

Why battery innovation is shifting from chemistry to product design and manufacturing
How BTRY is creating a new category of ultra-thin batteries
Why scalability matters more than lab breakthroughs in deep tech
Europe’s opportunity to build globally competitive battery companies
What embedded batteries could unlock across wearables, sensors and medtech

Timestamps

(00:00) Why batteries still limit innovation
(04:10) The overlooked opportunity in sub-1Ah batteries
(07:25) Rebuilding battery manufacturing from scratch
(10:00) What foldable batteries could enable
(14:00) Smart labels, sensors and embedded devices
(18:00) Why scaling production is the real challenge
(24:30) Can Europe compete in batteries?
(34:00) The future of ultra-thin battery-powered products

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What changes when AI agents can transact on their own?

Andreas Munk Holm speaks with Viggo Stenseth, CEO and Co-Founder of SolvaPay, alongside Redstone General Partners Samuli Sirén and Mickaël Bellaïche, about building payment infrastructure for the agentic economy.

The conversation explores agent-to-agent transactions, usage-based billing, protocol interoperability, regulatory moats and why existing payment rails may not be designed for AI-native commerce.

Key highlights

Why AI agents need payment infrastructure built for agentic commerce
How businesses can monetise APIs, datasets and digital services used by agents
Why SolvaPay plugs into existing financial rails rather than bypassing them
The “battle of protocols” across agent marketplaces and ecosystems
Why regulation, licensing and identity matter in agentic payments

Timestamps

(00:00) Why payments are blocking the agentic economy
(02:00) What SolvaPay is building
(05:10) Why customers already want agent-to-agent transactions
(06:30) Existing financial rails versus crypto-native approaches
(08:10) The “battle of protocols” and AI marketplaces
(12:00) Redstone on why agentic payments are real
(17:20) Why Redstone invested before traction existed
(27:00) Can SolvaPay become the Stripe for AI agents?
(32:00) Why incumbents may struggle to adapt
(36:10) Building long term versus building for exit
(41:00) Does the world need an agentic bank?

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Most corporates struggle to move fast enough for AI and robotics. Toyota’s answer is corporate venture.

In this episode, Andreas Munk Holm and Jeppe Høier speak with Ro Gupta, CEO and Managing Director of Woven Capital, Toyota’s growth-stage venture fund focused on mobility, AI, automation and climate technology.

They discuss how Toyota uses CVC to identify frontier technologies, work with startups and think decades ahead.

Ro shares how Woven Capital functions as agile “speedboats” around Toyota’s industrial “supertanker”, scanning for strategic opportunities across AI, robotics, mobility, manufacturing and infrastructure.

Highlights

Why Toyota invests through both “inside-out” and “outside-in” models
How Woven evaluates AI, robotics and the future of labour
Why strategic engagement matters more than passive investing
How Toyota balances long-term thinking with venture-speed execution
Why Europe is becoming increasingly important for Toyota’s innovation strategy

Timestamps

(00:00) Ro Gupta’s founder background and move into Toyota
(04:00) Startup operators vs corporate insiders in CVC
(10:00) Toyota’s multi-fund venture strategy
(15:00) The “supertanker and speedboats” framework
(18:00) AI hype cycles and long-term industrial strategy
(23:00) AI, robotics and advanced manufacturing themes
(27:00) What Woven Capital looks for in startups
(30:00) What founders expect from CVC investors
(33:00) How Woven collaborates with traditional VCs
(35:00) Europe’s role in Toyota’s future strategy
(39:00) Toyota’s next 100-year opportunity
(44:00) The “build, move and connect” framework

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What actually gets a consumer company funded in Europe? Fewer things than most founders think.

This is one of the questions the first episode of Consumer Tech Napkin explores, with Andreas Munk Holm joined by Sameer Singh (Partner with Speedinvest's Marketplaces and Consumer team), Susan Lin (Partner and Investor at Felix Capital) and Joe Seager-Dupuy (Director, Investment at True).

The conversation covers engagement as the real leading indicator, why a decade of cheap capital let weak products hide behind paid acquisition, what behavioural signals actually move investors and why AI is not the defensibility play most founders assume it is.

If you're building consumer, this one's worth your time.

Key highlights

Engagement is the strongest signal in consumer software, not monetisation
Growth can hide weak businesses when retention and organic acquisition are missing
AI alone is not a moat and thin wrappers are easy to replicate
Consumer is underfunded in Europe despite producing many of its biggest outcomes
Blitzscaling only works when companies already have defensibility

Timestamps

(00:00)⁠ What actually gets a consumer company funded in Europe?⁠
(02:40)⁠ Why AI is not a platform shift
⁠(04:15)⁠ Thin AI wrappers and defensibility in consumer software
⁠(07:30) AI-enabled consumer opportunities in health, therapy and financial services
⁠(10:00)⁠ What investors actually look for in consumer startups
⁠(11:20)⁠ Why engagement is the strongest signal that something is working
⁠(15:10)⁠ Why behaviour matters more than surveys or narratives
⁠(19:00)⁠ Why consumer remains underweight in European venture
⁠(27:00)⁠ Marginal costs, pricing power and scalable business models
⁠(34:30)⁠ Why blitzscaling only works when companies already have a moat
⁠(39:00)⁠ Paid acquisition, defensibility and sustainable growth
⁠(41:30)⁠ Felix Capital’s consumer investing scorecard

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This week on This Week in European Tech, Mads Jensen of SuperSeed, Lomax Ward of Outsized Ventures and Andrew J Scott of 7percent Ventures discuss Arm’s AI pivot, Spotify earnings and Anthropic’s explosive growth.

The conversation also covers the EU’s clash with Meta, ASML’s semiconductor moat, UK fusion ambitions and SAP’s €1 billion acquisition of Prior Labs.

Key highlights

Why AI may be shifting demand back towards CPUs
Anthropic’s explosive growth, cloud spending and IPO speculation
The debate around AI safety, regulation and national security
ASML’s semiconductor dominance and China’s AI workarounds
Why energy infrastructure and industrial policy matter for AI

Timestamps

(00:00) Intro and this week’s themes
(02:00) Arm and Spotify earnings reactions
(05:00) Arm’s shift from licensing to AI CPUs
(09:00) Agentic AI and rising CPU demand
(11:00) Anthropic growth, cloud spending and valuation speculation
(16:00) Enterprise AI implementation and PE-backed AI services
(23:00) AI safety, regulation and national security debates
(31:00) The EU’s clash with Meta over AI access in WhatsApp
(39:00) ASML, semiconductor infrastructure and China’s catch-up efforts
(46:00) UK fusion ambitions and strategic industrial policy
(55:00) SAP acquires Prior Labs for €1 billion

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Europe isn’t a collection of isolated hubs. It’s an interconnected system where talent, capital and industry come together to build deep tech.

That's the perspective Julien Fredonie⁠, Program Lead for Europe and Africa at ⁠Honda Xcelerator Ventures⁠, shared on our latest episode hosted by Andreas Munk Holm and Jeppe Høier.

They spoke about why Europe’s deep tech moment is real, how the pipeline of founders is improving and why corporates are key to scaling hardware innovation.

They also explore the rise of specialised investors and where CVCs still get team evaluation wrong.

Key highlights

Europe’s deep tech moment is structural, not hype
Global investors have shifted from doubt to active allocation
Founder quality is rising through education and support systems
CVCs are critical to scaling deep tech companies
CVCs miss critical signals when evaluating deep tech teams

Timestamps

(00:00) Europe as a deep tech “mesh”, not fragmented

(04:00) Julien’s role and investment scope at Honda Xcelerator Ventures

(08:00) Why Europe’s deep tech moment is happening now

(12:00) Education strength and rise of deep tech founders

(16:00) Team composition: diversity and complementarity

(20:00) New generation of deep tech GPs and hardware expertise

(26:00) The role of CVCs in scaling deep tech

(34:00) Team blind spots and founder evolution over 10+ years

Subscribe to EUVC, the home of European tech, for more insights: https://www.eu.vc/subscribe

AI demand is surging, but infrastructure is the constraint, with memory now the key bottleneck.

In this episode of This Week in European Tech, Dan Bowyer and Mads Jensen of SuperSeed explore a range of topics such as AI constraints, Big Tech earnings, monetisation, geopolitics, Europe’s position, and what capital flows into AI labs and SpaceX signal about what comes next.

Key highlights

AI growth is constrained by memory and infrastructure
Monetisation is accelerating as models use more tokens and cost more
AI is a geopolitical battleground, with control over talent and IP
Europe shows momentum, but regulation could hold companies back
Performance gains are increasingly driven by application scaffolding

Timestamps

(00:00) Introduction and opening headlines

(04:20) Big Tech earnings, cloud growth and AI demand

(07:30) Memory as the emerging AI bottleneck

(11:40) Frontier labs, Musk vs Altman and Manus

(14:00) US–China dynamics and export controls

(17:10) Ineffable, Recursive and Europe’s AI push

(20:00) Frontier model releases and AI monetisation

(25:00) SpaceX IPO, valuation and space compute

(30:00) EU AI Act and UK AI strategy

(34:30) Energy and infrastructure constraints

(41:00) Predictions and deals of the week

Subscribe to EUVC, the home of European tech, for more insights: https://www.eu.vc/subscribe

AI is impressive, but not yet world-changing. The real shift comes next with quantum computing.

In this EUVC episode, ⁠Andreas Munk Holm⁠ speaks with ⁠Andy Leaver⁠, CEO of ⁠Arqit⁠ and Operating Partner at ⁠Notion Capital⁠.

They discuss why many European startups struggle to scale beyond €10 million to €30 million, why enterprise AI adoption remains experimental rather than immediate, and how quantum computing is set to redefine security and infrastructure.

The conversation also covers data sovereignty and the growing risk of “harvest now, decrypt later”.

Key highlights

Most startups fail scaling from €10M to €30M
AI is impressive, but not yet world-changing
Enterprises are slow to adopt AI despite the hype
Quantum could break current encryption
The real breakthrough is AI + quantum combined

Timestamps

(00:00) Intro and Andy Leaver’s background

(05:30) Scaling lessons and the €10M to €30M challenge

(08:45) AI and SaaS: are the rules really changing?

(11:30) Enterprise AI adoption and experimental phase

(14:00) Shadow AI and enterprise risk

(17:00) Security, data sovereignty, and quantum threats

(26:30) AI today vs AI + quantum future

(35:30) Investing in quantum and the one-person billion-dollar company idea

Subscribe to EUVC, the home of European tech, for more insights: ⁠⁠https://www.eu.vc/subscribe⁠

Models are converging. Chinese open source models are catching up. Applications are becoming the moat.

In this episode of This Week in European Tech, Dan Bowyer and Mads Jensen of SuperSeed examine the shifts shaping AI, markets and Europe’s role.

From DeepSeek’s progress to the EU AI Act, the focus is on where the real competitive edge is forming, alongside cyber incidents, the race between frontier labs, and why coding is central to how AI systems improve and are used, before closing on pressure in private credit and what it could mean for SaaS.

Key highlights

Chinese open-source AI is rapidly closing the gap with US leaders
The EU is considering revisions to its AI Act, including scope and timeline changes
Cyber incidents reveal systemic data management failures
Frontier labs are moving up the stack into applications, with coding central to progress
Private credit exposure to SaaS could lead to repricing

Timestamps

(00:00) Intro and overview of key topics

(05:45) DeepSeek V4 and model competition

(11:30) EU AI Act discussions

(16:45) Cyber breaches and data governance issues

(21:30) Digital ID systems and Estonia’s model

(26:30) Sergey Brin, DeepMind and AI coding race

(32:00) SpaceX, Cursor and AI distribution strategy

(39:30) Private credit, space sovereignty, predictions and week ahead

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In climate hardware, the capital stack shapes everything. This is according to Jarna Hyvönen, Co-Founder and CEO of Volare.

She joins Andreas Munk Holm and co-host Carmel Rafaeli, Founding Partner at The Table, in this episode of Leaders Shaping a Resilient Planet to break down what it takes to finance and scale industrial climate companies.

Volare is building a circular platform using black soldier flies to turn food industry side streams into protein, oils and fertilisers.

Jarna explains how they structured a mix of equity, debt, mezzanine and grants to fund their first industrial facility, and what it takes to align these instruments in practice.

Key topics

Multi-instrument funding from day one
Interdependent capital and fundraising complexity
The importance of early financial capability
De-risking through proven systems
When unit economics become visible at scale

Timestamps

(00:00) Climate tech funding gap
(03:00) From research to industrial scale
(06:00) Inside the mixed capital stack
(10:00) Interdependent financing
(14:00) Financial strategy and CFO role
(18:00) De-risking and innovation
(22:00) Market shift to viability
(26:00) Scaling and unit economics

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Anthropic is moving beyond models and into building full products.

In this episode of This Week in European Tech, Dan Bowyer and Mads Jensen from SuperSeed cover the key forces shaping European tech right now, from political shifts and capital flows to AI competition, small high-output teams and rising compute demand.

Key Highlights

Hungary’s leadership change and potential EU funding unlocks
Anthropic expanding beyond models into product and applications
Mythos vs GPT Cyber and what different benchmarks actually measure
The rise of very small teams building large businesses with AI
Compute demand continuing to accelerate across the market

Timestamps

(00:00) Intro
(01:00) Hungary and EU implications
(08:30) Anthropic strategy shift
(13:30) AI model comparison
(20:30) Small teams and AI businesses
(26:30) Compute scarcity
(31:30) Musk’s Terafab
(36:30) Predictions, deals, closing

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Deep tech is not about complexity. It is about compounding R&D that builds defensibility and demands a different approach to investing. This is the lens Sasha Vidiborskiy, Partner at Atomico, applies to backing frontier technologies.

In this episode, Andreas Munk Holm speaks with Sasha, a quantum physicist turned VC investing in complex products and deep tech.

They explore what defines deep tech, how to assess founders, and how Atomico underwrites and invests in technically complex companies, from diligence to timelines and risk.

Key highlights

Why deep tech is driven by compounding R&D, not complexity
Why timelines are hard to predict, especially in areas like quantum computing
What sets great deep tech founders apart
How Atomico evaluates and underwrites deep tech opportunities
Why Europe is gaining ground in deep tech
Why deep tech requires a different investment approach

Timestamps

(00:00) Intro & Sasha’s background
(03:00) From quantum physics to venture capital
(07:30) Quantum computing timelines
(12:00) What defines deep tech
(18:30) Founder traits
(26:00) Evaluating deep tech investments
(34:00) Atomico’s investment framework
(42:00) Europe’s deep tech moment

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Why do most corporate venture arms fail within four years, and what are the three principles that make them last?

In this episode, Andreas Munk Holm and Jeppe Høier speak with Oliver Schmäschke, Managing Partner at T.Capital, the €2.3 billion investment arm of Deutsche Telekom.

Oliver shares practical insights on what actually works in corporate venture capital, built around three core principles that shape how corporates invest, operate and create long-term impact.

Key highlights

Strategic vs financial investing
Access and value creation as competitive edge
Governance and decision-making speed
Why most CVCs fail
Hiring and retaining top talent

Timestamps

(00:00) Introduction and guest background

(02:00) Oliver’s journey and T.Capital overview

(04:00) Strategic vs financial investing

(07:00) Core principles of CVC

(12:00) Talent and hiring in CVC

(16:00) Corporate edge vs traditional VCs

(23:00) Structuring a CVC and value creation

(29:00) State of CVC in Europe and closing

For more European VC thought leadership, visit our website.

Learn more about T.Capital here.

Anthropic has overtaken OpenAI in revenue and Europe is emerging as a key AI battleground.

In this episode of This Week in European Tech, Dan Bowyer (SuperSeed) and Lomax Ward (Outsized Ventures) break down a week shaped by AI momentum, capital concentration and macro uncertainty. They cover Anthropic’s rise, its enterprise focus and latest model, and whether current growth can justify the scale of AI investment.

They also explore the coming wave of mega IPOs and what it means for liquidity, alongside JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon’s shareholder letter on inflation, interest rates and private credit. The episode closes with climate investing’s shift towards energy security and the move to faster, software-led defence systems.

Key topics

Anthropic vs OpenAI: revenue growth, enterprise dominance and Europe expansion
Mega IPO wave: SpaceX, OpenAI, Anthropic and capital market strain
Jamie Dimon’s warning: inflation, rates and private credit risks
Climate investing shift: from ESG to energy security and resilience
Defence transformation: from legacy procurement to agile, software-led warfare

Timestamps

(00:00) Intro and macro setup

(05:00) Anthropic growth, Mythos and AI competition

(12:30) Positioning, ethics and enterprise adoption in AI

(22:00) Jamie Dimon letter: inflation and private credit

(29:00) IPO pipeline and capital constraints

(36:00) Climate and energy security shift

(42:00) Germany defence spend and modern warfare

(46:30) OpenAI moves, predictions and deals

Has crypto quietly crossed the line from hype to real financial infrastructure?

Tune into this episode of the EUVC podcast, hosted by Andreas Munk Holm, as he is joined by Simone Maini, CEO of Elliptic, and Jay Wilson, Partner at AlbionVC, to unpack crypto’s next phase.

They break down the shift from uncertainty to quantifiable risk, how institutions assess on-chain transactions and why supporting infrastructure is now critical to the venture case, alongside stablecoins and global regulatory momentum.

Key highlights:

The shift from uncertainty to quantifiable risk
How institutions assess risk in on-chain transactions
Why infrastructure is critical to the venture case
Stablecoins enabling faster, cheaper global payments
Regulatory clarity across Europe, the US, Singapore and the UAE

Timestamps:

(00:00) Crypto meets traditional finance

(01:00) What Elliptic does in digital assets

(02:00) The venture case for crypto

(04:00) Where global crypto activity is shifting

(07:00) Regulation, risk and market maturity

(10:00) Europe, MiCA and the race to lead

(18:00) Founder–investor dynamics in volatile markets

(33:00) Stablecoins and the future of payments

(37:00) AI, agentic transactions and what’s next

(42:00) Final thoughts on crypto’s second act

Explore more on European tech thought leadership at: https://eu.vc

We can’t reach 1.5°C with emissions cuts alone. Carbon removal must scale alongside decarbonisation.

In this episode, Andreas and co-host Carmel Rafaeli, Founding Partner at The Table, sit down with Henrietta Moon, Founder & CEO of Carboculture to unpack what it actually takes to build carbon removal infrastructure.

Carbo Culture is scaling biochar into industrial systems that lock carbon away for centuries — while generating revenue across agriculture, energy, and materials.

We cover:
• How biochar works and why it’s scalable
• Why carbon removal alone isn’t a business
• The shift to regulated carbon markets
• Financing capital-intensive climate infrastructure
• Scaling from innovation to repetition

Timestamps:
(00:00) Intro & funding gap
(02:00) Biochar explained
(03:00) EU regulation
(05:00) Business model
(08:00) Revenue strategy
(17:00) Offtake & demand
(22:00) Project finance
(36:00) Founder journey

Europe wants to lead in AI, defence, and infrastructure. The question is whether it can actually execute.

In this episode of Upside, Dan Bowyer (SuperSeed) and Lomax Ward (Outsized Ventures), joined by Andrew J Scott (7percent Ventures), unpack a week where ambition and reality are starting to diverge.

Mistral raises $830M to build sovereign AI infrastructure. Poolside’s $2B round collapses after losing compute access. And UK defence tech founders are leaving—not for lack of ideas, but for lack of contracts.

Across all of this, one pattern emerges:
Europe isn’t short on capability. It’s short on systems that work.

Key topics:

Why Europe’s capital problem starts earlier than growth
Mistral’s infrastructure bet and what it signals
Poolside, CoreWeave, and the fragility of compute access
The UK defence tech bottleneck: funding vs procurement
Palantir, trust, and the case for sovereign software

If you’re building in AI, defence, or deep tech, this is where the constraints actually are.

Timestamps

00:00 Intro and the week’s themes

03:00 News roundup: space, IPOs and market signals

08:00 Mistral’s $830M raise and sovereign AI infrastructure

15:00 Poolside, CoreWeave and compute dependency risk

23:00 Palantir, the NHS and the trust gap

31:00 UK defence tech and founder flight

40:00 Procurement vs capital: where companies stall

42:00 Predictions: local AI vs hyperscalers

50:00 Deals of the week

For decades, Europe built around efficiency — global supply chains, outsourced infrastructure, and distributed value creation. That model is now breaking down.

In this episode, Cameron McLain (Co-Founder & Managing Partner at Giant Ventures) argues that the next era isn’t about startups — it’s about control.

Who owns the infrastructure determines who captures the value.

We discuss why venture is moving from convenience to systems, why “purpose-driven founders” outperform, and what it actually means to build a European stack across energy, manufacturing, and financial rails.

Timestamps
00:00 – Introduction: From impact to sovereignty02:00 – Why purpose-driven founders build enduring companies05:00 – Giant Ventures and the transatlantic perspective07:30 – The shift from efficiency to resilience10:00 – Why infrastructure is the new venture frontier12:00 – What the “European stack” actually means15:00 – Can Europe compete with hyperscalers?18:00 – The role of government: builder vs buyer23:00 – Why energy, manufacturing, and financial rails matter30:00 – AI, labour disruption, and the future of work34:00 – Europe’s biggest bottleneck: exits and capital markets

Most corporate venture capital models were built for a world that no longer exists.

They were designed for software cycles and optional innovation. Today, venture is shaped by deep tech, supply chains and industrial scale.

In this EU CVC episode, Jessica Persson (Scania) joins our hosts Jeppe Høier and Andreas Munk Holm (EUVC Corporate) to explain why corporate venture must evolve from a side activity into a core strategic capability.

Scania’s approach reframes venture entirely: not as access to startups, but as a way to position the company inside a changing system.

In this episode:

00:00 Why most CVC models are outdated

04:30 From outsourced to embedded venture

12:10 Deep tech changes everything

20:45 The cap table as a system

28:30 Strategic returns = financial returns

35:00 Preparing for multiple futures

Welcome back to Upside, where Dan Bowyer of SuperSeed and Lomax Ward of Outsized Ventures, joined by Harry Destecroix, MBE, of SCVC unpack the forces shaping European venture, deep tech and capital.

This week’s conversation reflects a system shifting: Europe is writing bigger checks, physical AI is moving into focus, and the economics of AI are starting to change.

The question is no longer where innovation happens.
It is where value accrues.

The stack isn’t just scaling. It is being contested.

What's covered:

00:00 Intro and the week’s themes
02:00 Europe’s €15B fund-of-funds and the capital gap
08:00 Seed vs growth: where Europe is actually underfunded
14:00 Bezos’ $100B physical AI strategy
20:00 Roll-ups vs rebuilds in the industrial economy
25:00 China’s token model and the cost collapse of AI
31:00 Security, sovereignty and model choice
36:00 Innovate UK and founder-led policy
41:00 Capex vs revenue: the emerging imbalance
47:00 Predictions and market direction
52:00 Deals of the week

Comms isn’t PR anymore. It’s becoming infrastructure and most founders haven’t caught up.

In this episode, Cathy White (Founder, CEW Communications) joins our co-founder David Cruz e Silva to break down how the media landscape is changing—and what founders are still getting wrong.

From the collapse of traditional gatekeepers to the rise of creators, newsletters, and AI-driven discovery, credibility today is no longer built through one big headline. It’s earned through consistent visibility, clear storytelling, and strong founder presence.

They also unpack a key gap in European tech: we’re great at building, but often poor at explaining.

Key topics:

Why the “one big media hit” no longer works
Comms as infrastructure, not a luxury
How AI is reshaping discovery
Why storytelling is a competitive advantage
How founders can build distribution

Timestamps:

00:00 – Intro & why comms = infrastructure
03:00 – Why most AI storytelling is boring
07:00 – The end of media gatekeepers
09:00 – The myth of the “one big hit”
10:00 – Substack vs traditional media
12:00 – Europe vs US media dynamics
16:00 – How journalists actually work today
21:00 – How founders should build visibility
26:00 – Is media biased? (spicy take)
32:00 – AI, search & your company narrative
39:00 – What founders get wrong about comms
42:00 – Final takeaways: Europe’s storytelling gap

Most people think their options are simple: climb the corporate ladder or start something from scratch.

But there’s a third way.

Together with Will Maunder-Taylor, we’re excited to bring Unsungto life — a podcast exploring one of the most important (and overlooked) opportunities in Europe today: entrepreneurship through acquisition.

Instead of starting from zero, what if you could buy and grow a small business that already works?

In the first episode, Will sits down with Peppa Wise, sales leader at Multiverse, to unpack what actually drives performance — in startups, scaleups, and the kinds of businesses most people overlook.

This episode goes deep on:

Why talent and drive often beat experience
How the best companies build true meritocracies
What separates high performers from everyone else
Why sales is one of the fastest ways to change your trajectory
How to hire, develop, and scale great teams

Peppa’s story — from leading teams in her early 20s to helping scale one of Europe’s top sales organisations — shows what happens when companies bet on potential, not just CVs.

Whether you’re building a startup, thinking about buying a business, or just questioning your path — this episode gives you a practical lens on what actually matters.

Follow Unsung for more stories on building through acquisition.

Timestamps

(00:00) Introduction to Unsung and the guest

(03:00) Peppa Wise’s early career & Darktrace

(05:00) Talent vs experience

(15:00) Hiring frameworks & what actually matters

(25:00) Building high-performance sales teams

(35:00) Pipeline, metrics & operating cadence

(45:00) Advice for founders and early-career operators

Europe’s industrial future will be defined not by ambition, but by execution.

In this episode, Marta Sjögren (Co-Founder & Co-CEO, Paebbl) joins Carmel Rafaeli (Founding Partner, The Table) and Andreas Munk Holm to explore what it really takes to build and scale deep tech companies in Europe.

Paebbl is turning captured CO₂ into permanent mineral form—replacing emissions-intensive materials like cement while removing carbon from the atmosphere. But as Marta explains, the real challenge isn’t just scientific. It’s aligning capital, timing, and conviction.

They discuss:
– Why deep tech companies fail (and it’s rarely the tech)
– Fundraising as a system of signals, not storytelling
– How to evaluate investors beyond capital
– Designing capital stacks for industrial scale
– Why rounds stall—and how to build real momentum
– The role of co-CEO leadership in complex companies

The conversation also highlights the structural funding gap for women-led climate ventures—and how The Table is working to change it.

This episode is part of Leaders Shaping a Resilient Planet, spotlighting founders building Europe’s industrial future with discipline, depth, and long-term conviction.

Listen now and follow for more.

This week on Upside, Dan Bowyer and Mads Jensen of SuperSeed and Lomax Ward of Outsized Ventures unpack a moment where AI infrastructure, enterprise adoption and market risk are all moving at once.

Nvidia is laying out a path toward a $1 trillion AI market, driven by major advances in inference performance.

At the same time, hyperscalers are investing at unprecedented levels — with AI capex increasingly supported by debt rather than free cash flow. But the real shift is happening higher up the stack.

The AI race is moving away from pure model performance and toward distribution, enterprise control and monetisation.

This episode explores:

• Nvidia’s roadmap and the scaling of AI infrastructure
• Hyperscaler capex and the return of balance sheet risk
• Why the AI battleground is shifting to enterprise
• OpenAI’s monetisation challenge and strategic positioning
• The growing gap between AI capability and adoption
• Where value actually accrues in the AI stack
• And how hyperscalers are reshaping startup opportunities

This isn’t just another AI cycle.

It’s infrastructure, capital and business models being rewritten at the same time.

Chapters

00:00 Intro02:00 Nvidia GTC and inference leap07:00 The trillion-dollar AI question12:00 Hyperscaler capex and leverage18:00 Models vs distribution23:00 OpenAI’s strategy28:00 Enterprise AI battleground34:00 Market risk and concentration39:00 Capability vs adoption45:00 Where value accrues50:00 Startups vs hyperscalers55:00 Europe policy signals

Upside is a weekly deep dive into the forces shaping European venture, AI, defence and deep tech.

Hosted by:Dan Bowyer (SuperSeed)Mads Jensen (SuperSeed)Lomax Ward (Outsized Ventures)

About Upside

In this episode of Upside, Dan Bowyer, Mads Jensen of SuperSeed and Lomax Ward of Outsized Venturesunpack a week where geopolitics, AI arms races and Europe’s tech momentum took over the headlines.

A new oil shock triggered by tensions around the Strait of Hormuz threatens global energy flows and raises the spectre of another inflation cycle with direct consequences for venture capital and startup funding. At the same time, the economics of modern warfare are shifting rapidly, with cheap drones and fast-iteration defence technology reshaping how conflicts are fought and who builds the tools.

Against that backdrop, Europe delivered a surprisingly strong week for tech: France produced the continent’s first $1B seed “Instacorn”, Revolut finally secured its UK banking licence, and new proposals could finally push Europe closer to unified capital markets.

Meanwhile in AI, the race for chips, coding platforms and infrastructure continues to accelerate, from Nvidia’s looming announcements at GTC to Meta building its own inference silicon and the meteoric rise of AI coding startup Cursor.

This isn’t just a tech news cycle.

It’s energy markets, AI infrastructure, and European innovation ecosystems moving at the same time.

What’s covered

• The Strait of Hormuz oil shock and its ripple effects on venture markets
• Ukraine’s emergence as a real-time defence innovation ecosystem
• The shifting economics of warfare: cheap drones vs expensive missiles
• Europe’s first $1B AI seed round and the rise of frontier labs in Paris
• Yann LeCun’s new “world models” bet and the next frontier in AI
• Capital markets integration and whether Europe can finally unify funding
• Cursor’s $50B trajectory and the future of AI coding platforms
• The AI chip war: Meta’s inference silicon vs Nvidia’s dominance
• AI layoffs and whether productivity narratives are masking pandemic over-hiring

Healthcare startups rarely fail because of bad technology. They fail because the system won’t let them in.

In this episode, Andreas speaks withHelen McShane, who leads the Innovation Lab at Young Lives vs Cancer, and Zoe Peden, Partner at impact venture firm Ananda, about a new experiment in healthcare innovation: a charity investing directly in startups.

After more than 60 years supporting children and families affected by cancer, Young Lives vs Cancer has deep insight into where the system works — and where it doesn’t. Through its Innovation Lab, the charity is now deploying mission capital to support startups building solutions for young cancer patients.

Their first investment: £30,000 into Little Journey, a platform designed to help children prepare for medical procedures.

Helen and Zoe explore how charities can combine institutional knowledge with venture discipline to help startups navigate complex healthcare systems and accelerate adoption where it matters most.

In this episode:

Why healthcare startups struggle with adoption
What “mission capital” means in practice
How charities can support startup innovation
Why credibility and partnerships often matter more than cheque size

Europe’s climate transition is no longer only about emissions.

It is increasingly about sovereignty: control over industrial capacity, critical materials, and resilient supply chains.

In this episode of Leaders Shaping a Resilient Planet, Carmel Rafaeli⁠, Founding Partner at ⁠The Table⁠ and our very own ⁠Andreas Munk Holm⁠, are joined by ⁠Dr Lilian Schwich⁠, Co-Founder & Co-CEO ⁠cylib⁠, a company building one of Europe’s most advanced lithium-ion battery recycling platforms.

Together they unpack one of the least understood gaps in Europe’s battery value chain: refining metallurgy — the step that converts battery scrap into high-purity critical raw materials that gigafactories can actually use.

Dr. Schwich explains why Europe still lags Asia in the battery ecosystem, what it takes to scale an industrial climate company, and why recycling is becoming a foundational capability for Europe’s industrial future.

In this episode

• Why refining metallurgy is Europe’s missing battery capability• How cylib is closing the loop in the battery value chain• Why battery recycling is a sovereignty issue• How to finance industrial climate companies• What makes corporate partnerships actually work

This week on Upside, Dan Bowyer, Mads Jensen (SuperSeed) and Lomax Ward (Outsized Ventures) unpack a moment where energy, AI and geopolitics collide.

The ongoing conflict in the Middle East is threatening one of the world’s most important energy routes.

AI companies are discovering that governments may ultimately control frontier models.

And hyperscalers are committing hundreds of billions to AI infrastructure while venture investors quietly debate whether the cycle is overheating.

The conversation explores:

• Why energy shocks ripple directly into venture markets• How modern warfare is shifting toward startup-speed innovation• The clash between Anthropic and the Pentagon• Whether AI layoffs reflect real productivity gains or pandemic over-hiring• The massive infrastructure bet powering the AI boom• Germany’s productivity wake-up call for Europe• And why Europe is still capable of deep-tech moonshots like fusion

This isn’t just a news cycle.

It’s capital, sovereignty and technology power shifting at the same time.

🎧 Listen if you’re building or investing in AI, defence, deep tech or European venture.

euvc #VC #VentureCapital #Investing #TheEuropeanVC #Podcast #Tech #Startup

This special episode is an inside look at AI music from three very different vantage points: the builder, the investor, and the industry insider.

Andreas is joined by Sundar Arvind, CEO & Co-Founder at Mozart AI, building a collaborative generative audio workstation; Daniel Waterhouse, General Partner at Balderton Capital; and Ash Pournouri, Co-Founder of Belong, entrepreneur, producer, and former manager of Avicii.

Together, they unpack how AI is reshaping music creation, how serious investors underwrite risk in a litigious industry, why “one-click songs” miss the point, and whether AI expands creativity or commoditizes it.

If you want a grounded view of where the real fault lines are — rights, training data, authorship, collaboration, and the psychology of creativity — this is it.

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What’s covered:

00:40 Mozart AI’s vision: a collaborative generative audio workstation
05:10 DAWs, EDM, and why tech has always expanded music creation
06:35 Why “one-prompt songs” optimise for quantity, not craft
09:20 Underwriting AI music: how VCs think about billion-dollar incumbents
13:00 Is this a new instrument or a 100x larger market?
18:45 Are professional artists already using AI tools?
21:00 Copyright, training data, and legal diligence in AI music
25:15 Philosophically: what are “rights” when machines learn from music?
33:40 Diffusion models explained simply: how AI generates sound
36:30 The return of the band? Multiplayer music creation
40:00 Ash Pournouri joins: the industry’s instinct is protection
44:10 “You can’t stop development”: why demand always wins
48:50 Packaging matters: AI as tool vs AI as replacement
51:20 Lowering thresholds and democratization across decades
56:30 Five-year predictions? We’re on the vertical part of the curve
58:10 The “vibe coding” moment for music

Industrial systems are responsible for 75% of global emissions, yet only a quarter of climate-focused VC money flows into them. Not because investors don’t care — but because these systems are hard. They’re interconnected. Capital-intensive. Slow-moving. Technically dense. And deeply under-innovated.

Almanac Ventures is built to change that.

In this episode of the EUVC Podcast, Andreas Munk Holm sits down with Jo Slota-Newson and Marc Sabas, co-founders of Almanac Ventures — a new European seed and pre-seed deep tech fund laser-focused on unlocking decarbonisation in industrial systems through scientific breakthroughs and commercial discipline.

This is a pitch episode — a chance for the EUVC LP & GP community to hear directly what Almanac stands for, how they invest, and why the next decade of industrial innovation will be shaped by specialist deep tech funds with true scientific and financial edge.

Here’s what’s covered:

00:49 | What Almanac Ventures is — a European seed/pre-seed deep-tech fund backing scientific breakthroughs applied to industrial systems
01:31 | The founding team — Jo’s nanoscience PhD + 18 years commercialising deep tech, Marc’s finance → CVC → impact VC journey (and Jo’s 37km Channel swim)
03:52 | The complementary edge — technical rigor meets financial/commercial structuring, evidenced through 45 investments and a 2.3× MOIC track record
05:22 | The industrial innovation gap — 75% of emissions come from industry, yet only ~25% of climate VC targets it (because the systems are hard, complex, and interconnected)
06:11 | Why industry is ripe for deep-tech disruption — 20th-century inefficiencies, high value pools, and the need for performance + cost + decarb together
10:17 | “Deep tech works for venture—if you know where to look” — how to identify capex-efficient, scalable industrial technologies vs. science projects that need different capital
12:25 | Case study: Hot Green — a new compressor architecture enabling industrial heat pumps for 200–400°C processes (F&B, manufacturing) with electrification upside
13:49 | Case study: ReClinker — Cambridge spinout recycling cement inside steel arc furnaces, piggybacking heat, removing the CO₂-heavy chemistry step
15:19 | Do you need to be an operator to invest in deep tech? — why complementary experience (science + venture + corporate + some ops) beats any single “must-have”
18:35 | Investment strategy — first-check investor at TRL 4–7, pan-Europe, €300k–€1M tickets, aiming for a 25–30 company portfolio with follow-on capacity

Europe does not have a deep tech problem. It has a commercialisation problem.

The last European companies to reach €100B+ market caps were SAP and ASML, both founded 40–50 years ago. If Europe wants a new generation of deep tech champions, venture capital alone won’t get us there. Customers have to step in.

In this episode, Andreas Munk Holm is joined by Martin Schilling, former operator, investor, and founder of Deep Tech Momentum, to unpack why Europe excels at funding breakthroughs, but consistently fails to industrialise them.

This is a conversation about:

why enterprise buyers are the missing link in European deep tech
what corporates are doing wrong (and how they can fix it)
how founders actually win large customers in complex, regulated markets
and why courage — not grants — is Europe’s real constraint

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🎧 Here’s what’s covered:

01:15 Martin’s background: from N26 operator to deep tech ecosystem builder
01:52 What is Deep Tech Momentum (DTM)?
03:00 Why commercialisation — not capital — is the real bottleneck
04:19 The age gap: Europe’s top companies vs the US
06:26 Why US corporates acquire twice as many startups as Europe
06:54 The uncomfortable truth: Europe funds innovation others industrialise
08:54 Why corporates (not just VCs) must change behaviour
10:49 Neo-primes: the new system integrators Europe desperately needs
12:50 The four things corporates must fix to work with startups
15:06 Why startup collaboration must be CEO-owned
17:14 Buyers first: why conferences get this wrong
19:03 Money + customers: the only two things founders really need
21:27Trust, speed, and why procurement kills startups
23:25 Why trust starts inside the corporate, not with founders
27:03 Selling deep tech to enterprises & governments: what actually works
32:03 When CVCs help — and when they hurt
33:08 Enterprise sales mistakes founders keep making
38:28 Deep tech sales reality: defense, policy, and long cycles
44:57 Why DTM is not EU-funded — by design
49:07 The state’s real role: customer, not grant machine
49:23 Final takeaway: Europe needs courage, not more programs

Welcome back to another episode of Upside where Dan Bowyer, Mads Jensen of SuperSeed, and Lomax Ward of Outsized Ventures go behind the headlines shaping European tech, capital, and power.This week felt less like a market update and more like a structural reset.Nvidia posts another blowout quarter — and the market barely reacts.Ukraine, four years into war, is quietly becoming Europe’s most important defence innovation engine.Anthropic adjusts its safety posture as AI labs collide with geopolitics and procurement reality.And beneath it all, questions around margins, sovereignty, and capital allocation are getting sharper.This isn’t just a tech cycle.It feels like a systems cycle.This is Upside, where optimism is earned, not assumed.What’s covered:03:30 Nvidia earnings: perfection priced in?09:40 Ukraine four years on: from aid recipient to defence capability supplier17:30 Europe’s defence spend: real budgets or slow procurement?23:30 AI safety becomes conditional: competitive pressure meets ethics31:00 Distillation at scale: China, IP leakage, and national security35:00 SaaSpocalypse vs SaaS redemption: systems of record vs systems of action40:30 OpenAI & Anthropic margins: the hidden constraint under the hype46:00 Chips & quantum: Europe’s deep tech wedge — if scale capital shows up54:30 Abundant intelligence: what breaks if intelligence gets cheap?#euvc #VC #VentureCapital #Investing #TheEuropeanVC #Podcast #Tech #Startup

What exactly are LPs buying when they allocate to venture today and do they still believe in it?

In this episode, Andreas sits down with Max Brayand Juliet Bailin, both Venture Partners at Kindred Capital VC to unpack what’s really happening beneath the fundraising headlines.

Max brings the raw perspective of trying to raise a first-time fund in 2025 with unicorn-founder GPs, strong angel track records, and still struggling to secure second meetings.

Juliet brings the sharper counterpoint: LP frustration isn’t always ignorance. Sometimes it’s a rational response to how venture has been practiced, especially around transparency, liquidity discipline, and the unrealistic expectation that a GP should be world-class at everything.

This is a conversation about:

LP behavior in uncertain cycles
The myth of the “full-stack investor”
Why solo GP economics are brutal
Whether software still needs venture
And why the fund model is splitting at the extremes

Not hot takes. Not doom.
Just honest mechanics.

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What’s Covered:

01:04 Max’s 2025 fundraising reality: even strong “on-paper” stories struggle to get second calls
03:46 LP rotation: capital moving toward liquidity, security, and shorter-duration bets
05:08 LP frustration: transparency gaps + liquidity decision-making
07:09 LPACs as sparring partners, not governance theatre
09:31 Europe’s structural issue: too few LPs and GPs have lived full cycles
12:47 The “full-stack investor” myth: investing + fund management + compliance + IR
14:46 Solo GP economics: why 2/20 breaks at the small end
26:08 The barbell thesis: platforms on one end, specialists on the other
27:56 Software defensibility compression in the AI era
30:24 Will AI decentralize outcomes — or centralize them further?
33:10 The rise of AI roll-ups and alternative capital models
35:19 The “middle-market squeeze” — real or overhyped?
39:34 What founders actually care about when choosing a fund

Climate isn’t “over.” But building in climate has entered a new chapter, defined by shifting regulation, politicized narratives, buyer confusion, and a market that funded dozens of overlapping platforms.

In this episode, Andreas and co-host Carmel Rafaeli, Founding Partner at The Table, sit down with Lubomila Jordanova, Co-founder & CEO of Plan A, just weeks after Plan Ajoined forces with Diginex, the NASDAQ-listed sustainability technology company, at the end of 2025.

The conversation is part of Leaders Shaping a Resilient Planet, a series spotlighting exceptional founders in climate tech who happen to be women. The focus is not identity as a theme, but execution as a discipline. These are operators building in some of the most complex and capital-intensive parts of the real economy.

This is not an acquisition recap. It is a clear-eyed discussion about what it takes to build and responsibly exit a climate tech company in a market that is maturing quickly.

What’s covered:

00:52 The Table: co-investing community + the Foundation’s recoverable grants model
02:05 Introducing Lubomila Jordanova and Plan A
02:45 The acquisition: why Plan A chose to lead consolidation
04:35 Fundraising logic → acquisition logic: what changed
06:40 Founder outcome vs VC outcome: how alignment works in an exit
11:30 “The truth is where the real economy sits”: what carbon software actually sells
13:30 The uncomfortable line: “glorified consulting with a digital angle”
15:05 What VC portfolios get wrong in climate: return distribution, capital stack, secondaries
16:55 Why “climate” can’t be one bucket: hardware vs SaaS vs reporting
20:00 Managing investor perception: visibility, bias, and boardroom baggage
23:15 The broader financial pyramid: VC vs public markets vs real-economy signals
27:35 Post-exit reality: why a public-company KPI lens changes the conversation
31:10 Three founder learnings (humility, ecosystem, real-world problems)
33:55 A rare founder truth: pregnancy during the exit + building with “more hats than one”

In a market where “AI fund” can mean almost anything, Lumo Labs is unusually specific: digital deep tech, deployed early, and anchored in one of Europe’s densest innovation clusters—Eindhoven, home of Philips’ legacy and the High Tech Campus (“smartest square kilometer” energy).

In this EUVC pitch episode, Andreas sits down with Andy Lurling, founder & GP of Lumo Labs, to unpack how an entrepreneur-turned-investor built a fund that’s deliberately more than money: a structured support program, deep technical selection, and a thesis shaped by real-world constraints, health systems under pressure, and cities as the source of most emissions and pollution.

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What’s covered:

00:59 Why “Labs” and why Eindhoven: origin story + Philips legacy
02:31 Andy’s founder journey: EyeOpener, ESA as first investor, and the exit
06:15 From angel tickets to a fund: two cornerstone LPs pull them into fund building
08:26 Fund I recap: €20m, 23 pre-seed/seed investments
08:58 Fund II status: just over €40m raised, targeting €100m final size
10:34 The actual thesis: AI + digital deep tech (security, IoT, AR)
13:12 SDG focus: health, education, sustainable cities + climate action (urban)
15:31 Why these sectors: prevention over curing, and cities as the “source problem”
19:22 Where they invest: Netherlands/Belgium/Germany core; Spain/Portugal + Nordics via scouts
20:30 “Smart capital” in practice: leadership, market fit, storytelling, follow-on readiness
23:30 Track record snapshot: 30 companies; 3 dead; 9 (soon 11) moving into scale-up territory

Welcome back to another episode of Upside where Dan Bowyer and Mads Jensen of SuperSeed go behind the headlines shaping European tech, capital, and power.

This week we’re joined by Eyal Malinger, co-founder of Resurge Growth Partners, to unpack a genuinely strange week in global tech.

China unveils humanoid robots that look disturbingly battlefield-ready. Anthropic tries to draw moral lines in defence AI. Peter Steinberger leaves Europe almost as fast as he went viral. Munich becomes less “security conference” and more “Europe, wake up.” And in the background, billion-dollar AI seed rounds and quantum mega-funds quietly signal that the frontier is accelerating again.

This isn’t just a tech cycle.

It feels like a systems cycle.

This is Upside, where optimism is earned, not assumed.

What’s covered:

02:10 China’s humanoid robot moment: hardware dominance meets AI brains
06:20 Battlefield AI and the ethics problem Anthropic can’t avoid
14:00 Raspberry Pi, edge AI, and Europe’s accidental meme stock
20:30 Anthropic vs Palantir: moral lines vs deterrence logic
25:10 Peter Steinberger leaves Europe — ecosystem gravity in action
31:00 AI inside venture: workflow automation vs real alpha
43:00 Munich Security Conference: defence budgets, sovereignty, and Stark vs Thiel
52:10 Psychedelics and glucose monitors: Europe’s quiet biotech strength
55:30 Quantum funds and Europe’s billion-dollar AI seed round

In this EUVC Live at GoWest episode, Olivier Tonneau, Founding Partner Quantonation, Jeppe Høier, Co-Host at EUVC Corporate, Paolo Pio, Co-founder and General Partner at Exceptional Ventures, Fergus Bell, Founder and Managing Partner at The Players Fund, and Prashant Agarwal, Chairman and Managing Director at Scandian xplore one defining question:

How does Europe turn frontier innovation into global scale?

Across quantum, corporate capital, longevity, and sport, the same pattern emerges: Europe doesn’t lack talent or research. It lacks the capital and market architecture required to scale strategic industries fast enough to stay independent.

Olivier opens with Europe’s quantum paradox. Europe supplies a meaningful share of deployed quantum computers globally, with strong startup and research clusters across the Nordics, France, Germany, and the UK. The science is world-class — but the financing is breaking. Over the last 12 months, the funding ratio between Europe and the US has shifted from roughly 1:2 to nearly 1:7, accelerating US scale-up, public listings, and acquisition pressure. Europe has 12–24 months to respond — not to avoid failure, but to avoid becoming the lab while others become the market.

Jeppe shifts the lens to corporates. Corporate venture capital represents roughly 25% of global VC volume, yet the average lifespan of a CVC unit is only 3.7 years. His argument is blunt: most corporates launch venture arms believing they are “doing VC,” when they are actually building a strategic instrument without the operating system required to sustain it. Without durable governance — and a clear Build, Buy, Partner model — corporate venture becomes fragile instead of strategic.

Paolo reframes health and longevity as deep tech moving at software speed. Genome sequencing has collapsed from decades to hours. mRNA proved that biology timelines can compress dramatically. With AI now embedded in diagnostics and discovery, health is entering an exponential era — and venture is being pulled with it.

The session closes with a thesis most investors still underestimate. Fergus and Prashant argue sport is no longer entertainment — it is venture infrastructure. Athletes and rights holders are becoming capital allocators and distribution rails. Elite sport has evolved into a real-world deployment environment for deep tech, health tech, AI, and performance systems — where validation happens under pressure and at global scale.

The takeaway across all five perspectives is clear:

Europe invents early.
But scale requires architecture.
Late-stage capital depth.
Liquidity.
Corporate integration.
Coordination.

What’s covered:

00:30 Europe’s scale question — five lenses on one problem
02:00 Quantum’s paradox — Europe leads in science, not in financing
05:00 The 1:7 funding gap — why the next 12–24 months matter
07:00 What Europe can do — capital architecture, procurement, scale funds
11:30 Corporate venture — 25% of global VC, but structurally fragile
13:30 Why CVCs fail — the 3-year vs 6-year test and governance gaps
16:30 Longevity as deep tech — health moving at software speed
21:30 AI in health — diagnostics, discovery, and exponential biology
27:30 Sport as venture infrastructure — athletes and rights holders as rails
34:30 Deep tech in sport — validation, performance systems, adoption under pressure
40:00 Final takeaway — Europe has innovation; it needs scale architecture

Is Europe’s defense investment wave real, or is it simply venture capital wrapped in a Ukrainian flag?

The debate featured Nicholas Nelson, General Partner at Archangel Ventures, and Sebastian von Ribbentrop, Founding Partner at Join Capital.

At stake is more than narrative. It is about capability, returns, sovereignty — and the structural future of European capital markets.

Until recently, defense investing in Europe was controversial. Many institutional LPs avoided the sector. ESG mandates were interpreted narrowly. Defense was often softened under the label “dual-use.” Russia’s invasion of Ukraine changed the landscape. Defense budgets rose. Political rhetoric shifted. Venture capital began flowing into the sector at unprecedented levels.

But the central question remains:

Is this a structural capital reallocation — or a short-term momentum trade?

The debate crystallizes around one fault line: defense-first vs dual-use.

Nicholas argues Europe’s hesitation to embrace defense-first investing is both strategically and financially misguided. Defense-only startups, he contends, have historically outperformed. Dual-use often dilutes focus by forcing two distinct go-to-market motions. Real capability requires designing directly for the warfighter — not adapting commercial products later. In his view, dual-use in Europe often functions as a reputational hedge rather than a strategy.

Sebastian counters that dual-use is not compromise — it is risk management. Advanced technologies can serve both industrial and defense customers without duplicating entire teams. Diversified revenue reduces concentration risk. Non-dilutive defense contracts can substitute late-stage equity rounds in a region where growth capital remains thin. And Europe’s comparative advantage may lie less in building vertically integrated primes — and more in dominating high-precision subsystems.

As the conversation escalates, it moves beyond product strategy into a deeper structural issue: scale capital. Even where early-stage defense investment has improved, later-stage funding remains limited. Several leading European defense startups have relied heavily on US or Middle Eastern growth capital.

Which raises uncomfortable questions:

Can Europe build independent defense champions without foreign growth capital?
Will its strongest companies inevitably “pick a flag” as they scale?
Is fragmentation across 30+ procurement regimes Europe’s structural disadvantage?

Without coordination at scale, even strong early-stage ecosystems struggle to produce global champions.

What’s covered:

00:30 Framing the question — structural shift or narrative trade?
02:00 From taboo to trend — ESG optics and the Ukraine inflection point
04:15 Defense-first vs dual-use — the core strategic divide
07:30 The defense-first case — focus, procurement alignment, and capability building
11:00 The dual-use counterargument — diversification and risk management
14:30 Subsystems vs primes — where Europe’s advantage may lie
18:00 The growth capital gap — reliance on US and Middle Eastern funding
21:00 “Picking a flag” — sovereignty vs scale
23:30 Procurement fragmentation — 30+ regimes and scaling friction
26:00 Final takeaway — Europe’s defense future depends on capital conviction and coordination

Europe is not facing a crisis of ideas — it is facing a crisis of industrial depth.

In this EUVC episode, Danijel Višević (Co-Founder & General Partner, World Fund), Heidi Lindvall (Founder & General Partner, Pale Blue Dot), Narina Mnatsakanian (Partner & Chief Impact Officer at Regeneration VC), Dr. Isabella Fandrych (Co-Founder and General Partner at Nucleus Capital), and Moritz Jungmann (GP at Future Energy Ventures) confront one of the defining questions of 2025:

What does sovereignty actually mean?

Danijel opens with history. In 1951, coal and steel powered conflict — so Europe integrated them. That integration was not symbolic. It was structural coordination under pressure. Europe repeated this reflex after the Berlin Wall, during COVID, and following the Russian gas shock. Europe does not collapse under pressure. It coordinates. But today, coordination must extend beyond policy — into capital markets and industrial systems.

The structural gaps are stark. Europe produces less than 10% of the semiconductors it consumes. It imports the vast majority of rare earth materials. It raises significantly less venture capital than the United States. Only a fraction of European climate tech startups reach Series B. Europe can invent. It struggles to industrialize.

Heidi reframes venture capital itself. Performance is necessary, but insufficient. Her equation is clear: Success = Performance × Trust. Trust — expressed through brand, values, and measurable impact — acts as a multiplier. Venture does not simply fund companies. It allocates the future. Narina reinforces the LP perspective: pension funds seek returns, but pensioners also seek stability, sustainability, and systemic resilience. Capital allocation is no longer purely financial. It is strategic.

Dr. Isabella Fandrych shifts the conversation to materials. The energy transition is not just about electrons — it is about minerals: copper, lithium, nickel, manganese. Extraction today is geopolitically concentrated and environmentally destructive. Biology offers alternatives: microbes separating metals from rock, engineered proteins extracting minerals from waste streams, plants accumulating metals for harvest. Industrial decarbonisation is chemistry as much as energy policy.

Jordan makes the case for baseload energy. Europe has reduced emissions partly through deindustrialization and outsourcing production. If Europe wants manufacturing, AI data centres, electrified transport, and economic resilience, it needs dense, dispatchable power. Renewables are essential — but intermittent. Nuclear remains one of the few proven zero-carbon baseload sources operating at scale. The debate, he argues, should be practical — not ideological.

Moritz closes on infrastructure. Europe has built renewable capacity quickly. The constraint is no longer generation. It is grid orchestration. As energy systems decentralize, operators must manage volatile, distributed flows. The opportunity lies in software: orchestration, optimization, dynamic throughput management. Energy sovereignty is not just about producing electrons. It is about system design.

Sovereignty in 2025 is not a slogan.

It is an investment strategy.

What’s covered:

00:30 Sovereignty redefined — from symbols to supply chains
03:00 Europe under pressure — integration as a structural reflex
06:00 The industrial gap — semiconductors, rare earths, and scale-up capital
10:30 Venture as allocator — Success = Performance × Trust
15:00 The LP lens — systemic capital and long-term responsibility
19:00 The materials bottleneck — why decarbonisation is mineral-intensive
23:00 Biology as infrastructure — new extraction paradigms
27:00 Baseload power — nuclear as industrial policy
32:00 The grid constraint — orchestration, optimization, software-defined systems
38:00 Sovereignty as coordinated capital and industrial depth

Introduced by our very own Andreas Munk Holm, this EUVC Live at GoWest session brings together policymakers, institutional investors, GPs, corporates, and public capital leaders around one defining question:

How does Europe mobilise its own capital to secure its technological future?

Across every session, one theme emerges repeatedly: Europe does not lack talent. It does not lack innovation. It does not lack savings. It lacks coordination.

In The Case for a United European LP Strategy, Philippe Tibi(The Tibi Initiative; French Ministry for the Economy, Finance and Recovery; Professor at École Polytechnique Paris) lays out the macro argument. Europe holds more than €35 trillion in household assets, yet its top companies often scale under foreign ownership. The problem is not capital scarcity — it is capital allocation. Pension funds and insurers must treat venture and technology as core asset classes — for returns and sovereignty.

In The Path to a United European LP Strategy, Chris Elphick (BVCA) and Philippe Tibi explore why mobilisation is slow: regulatory conservatism, fragmented mandates, cultural risk aversion, and weak cross-border coordination. Institutional allocations to venture remain near zero in many countries. Reform is structural, not optional.

Succeeding in Venture as a Long-Term Capital Investor shifts from policy to portfolio construction. Christina Brinck (Volvo Group VC), Daniel Keiper-Knorr(Speedinvest), and Joe Schorge (Isomer) examine how to underwrite European venture in a fragmented but maturing ecosystem. Themes include diversification across cycles, power-law return dynamics, patience as structural advantage, and strategic alignment with industrial direction. Venture is positioned not as optional exposure — but as infrastructure for technological transformation.

Public capital enters the equation in The Role of Public Capital in European Venture Outcomes, where Michiel Scheffer (European Innovation Council) explains how the EIC funds deep tech, underserved geographies, and growth-stage gaps. Public capital, he argues, is not distortion — it is market completion.

In Catalyst or Competitor? Adem Yakisirer (European Investment Fund) outlines how EIF has backed more than 1,600 fund managers, building a financing continuum from pre-seed to pre-IPO. In a candid exchange with Mia Grosen (Venture Partner, SuperSeed) moderated by Andreas, the tension surfaces: Is Europe becoming too dependent on public anchors? Does institutional backing signal quality or complacency?

From LP mobilisation to cross-border collaboration, one message is clear:

If Europe wants technological sovereignty and long-term competitiveness, capital must move with intent, alignment, and scale.

What’s covered:

02:30 Europe’s savings paradox — why the issue is allocation, not scarcity
05:00 Philippe Tibi — €35T in household assets and the case for a united European LP strategy
10:30 Venture as sovereignty infrastructure — why pensions and insurers must move
15:30 Chris Elphick + Tibi — the real blockers: regulation, mandates, culture, coordination
22:30 Why allocations stay near zero — institutional inertia across Europe
27:30 Christina Brinck — underwriting venture across cycles
33:00 Daniel Keiper-Knorr — power-law returns, patience, and portfolio construction
38:00 Joe Schorge — long-term capital behaviour and strategic alignment
43:00 Michiel Scheffer — the EIC as market completion in deep tech and underserved geographies
49:00 Growth-stage gaps — why public capital anchors where private markets hesitate
53:30 Adem Yakışırer — EIF’s role: 1,600+ managers backed from pre-seed to pre-IPO
58:30 Mia Grosen — dependency vs signal: when public anchoring becomes a crutch
1:02:30 Final takeaway — Europe’s challenge is coordination: capital must move with scale and intent

Welcome back to another episode of Upside where Dan Bowyer, Mads Jensen of SuperSeed and Lomax Ward of Outsized Ventures go behind the headlines shaping European tech, capital, and power.

This week is an AI-heavy sprint with a guest who’s right in the Gulf capital flow: Sam Marchant. Anthropic’s monster round is the headline, but the more interesting story is underneath: enterprise AI is becoming workflow-sticky, while OpenAI feels like it’s drifting toward consumer monetization experiments.

Then we get into the “AI productivity” paradox: why generative tools aren’t giving us leisure, they’re giving us more output… and more work. From there: Alphabet’s 100-year bond and what it says about tech becoming a utility, plus the uncomfortable European angle — our savings funding US hyperscalers while we debate sovereignty.

Finally, Europe sovereignty vibes: Mistral’s enterprise ramp, the 28th regime rhetoric, and whether political systems can actually execute. We close with space: Orbex collapsing, “data centers in orbit,” and why maybe civilization needs billionaires burning capital on high-variance cathedral projects.

This is Upside, where optimism is earned, not assumed.

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What’s covered:

00:21 Anthropic’s $30B: why the market can’t stop throwing money at enterprise AI
03:42 The real shift: OpenAI → consumer/ads vibes, Anthropic → coding + enterprise execution
04:50 Gulf capital dynamics: OpenAI relationships vs QIA showing up in Anthropic
07:21 Claude vs ChatGPT: switching costs are collapsing… until workflows become the moat
10:54 HBR’s “AI intensifies work”: why productivity becomes pressure, not leisure
12:19 Autonomy + mastery + dopamine: AI as the ultimate short feedback-loop machine
13:25 Practical use cases: research across languages, idea stress-testing, “AI as a first hire”
22:05 Alphabet’s 100-year bond: tech is now priced like infrastructure
24:51 The pension problem: Europe’s savings financing US scale while Europe underfunds Europe
32:44 Europe’s GDP gap is a tech gap: productivity isn’t the issue, tech scale is
39:51 Mistral’s enterprise ramp: sovereign AI or local services + transformation advantage?
45:37 The 28th regime: big words, hard execution — can Europe actually push reform through?
50:32 Space data centres: PR-on-steroids or physics-defying inevitability?
53:07 Orbex collapses: why “mid-sized countries” can’t win launch alone
55:20 Fusion/quantum: Europe’s deep R&D edge, blocked by capital markets structure
56:25 Deal of the week: Olex’s $1B+ moment and Europe’s chip-shaped ambition

Welcome back to the EUVC Podcast, where we bring you the people and perspectives shaping European venture.

In this pitch episode, Andreas Munk Holm sits down with Pedro Ribeiro Santos, Partner at Armilar, to walk LPs through the story, strategy, and succession plan behind Armilar Fund IV — the firm’s new pan-European early-stage fund.

Armilar is one of Europe’s longest-standing independent tech VCs and Portugal's original venture firm. Born inside a bank 25 years ago, spun out almost a decade ago, and now a multi-generational partnership, the firm has backed some of Portugal’s most important tech companies and quietly built a track record of dragons (fund-returners), not just unicorns.

Fund IV doubles down on what the team knows best: early-stage, tech-intensive companies across data, digitalization, and connectivity, with a strong focus on Portugal & Spain and selective investments across the rest of Europe.

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Here’s what’s covered:

01:17 | What is “Armilar”?
02:30 | Origins & Spinout
03:40 | Why being based in Portugal with almost no local ecosystem
04:50 | From US to Europe, Then Back Home
07:22 | Fund IV in a Nutshell
09:44 | Geography & LP Backbone
11:41 | Track Record, DPI & Dragons
13:51 | Selected Portfolio & Staying Power
16:19 | Team & Generational Design
21:38 | Iberia’s State of Play (Portugal & Spain)
27:45 | Golden Visa & LP Angle
29:29 | Closing & What LPs Should Care About

Welcome to another episode of the EUVC Podcast! Today, we’re diving into How Corporates Might just be able Beat VCs in the AI Race. Or maybe more importantly, how we can collaborate.

Our guest is Alex Dang, co-author of the bestselling book The Venture Mindset: How to Make Smarter Bets and Achieve Extraordinary Growth.

Alex is a seasoned technology executive and innovation advisor with over two decades of experience. He was a product leader at Amazon, where he launched new businesses across e-commerce, supply chain, and AI; a partner at McKinsey, helping Fortune 500 companies build digital ventures; and today advises corporate leaders and investors on AI strategies, venture building, and applying VC principles to large organizations.

In this conversation, Alex shares provocative insights on why the venture mindset is now non-negotiable for corporates in the AI era, where incumbents hold hidden advantages over VCs, and how to avoid “innovation theater” while turning data, distribution, and scale into real venture wins.

Let’s jump in!

Here’s what’s covered:

01:56 | The Venture Mindset in one frame with nine principles from 20 years of Stanford VC research: uncertainty → portfolios → outliers
03:44 | The post-book update Alex wishes he had added time compression: “days, not weeks,” and the rise of the “one slice team”
05:53 | Venture mindset applied to AI
07:34 | Why “adding AI” is the wrong framing; start customer-backward, not tech-backward
08:43 | “AI theater”, innovation theater and press release strategies vs real product value
11:19 | The European corporate trap: regulation, consensus, and downside protection as the enemy of transformation
11:56 | The right AI rollout sequence with start in back office to learn and protect trust, then go customer-facing at scale
15:21 | Why CVCs die after 3.7 years: incentives, leadership fear, and why corporate venturing fails structurally
17:24 | AI is now the world’s most democratized intelligence: everyone has the same tools; the gap is execution
18:47 | Where corporates fit in venture + startup ecosystems: strengths: data, distribution, enterprise scale
20:38 | When corporates should build in-house, when to partner, and why AI must become an internal muscle
25:24 | Incentives drive behavior: why executives won’t take venture-style risks unless failure is structurally safe
28:18 | AI-native teams and corporate reskilling among smaller, senior teams + digital workers replacing junior tasks
35:24 | What happens to the average corporate employee: tasks disappear, workflows evolve, but people still matter
38:50 | If Alex were CEO: how to move a workforce into an AI-safe future and target 25% profit uplift through AI
44:01 | Most counterintuitive venture principle — “drop bad ideas fast” and why persistence is sometimes the wrong discipline
46:05 | What top CEOs are doing right now: coding with Claude, learning by building, and staying close to users
49:00 | The compounding effect: “what was impossible 6 months ago is normal today” and why constant feedback loops win

Europe’s debate about gender equity in venture has moved beyond awareness and intention. The real question now is much sharper: how does capital actually move, where does it get stuck, and what genuinely changes outcomes for women building companies today?

In this episode, Andreas sits down with Debbie Wosskow, a serial founder, investor, and Chair of the UK’s Invest in Women Task Force, to discuss what she has learned from 25 years inside the system. This is a conversation about incentives, power, institutional capital, and why gender equity in venture is not a “nice to have” but a performance strategy.

We move from founder mindset to investor behavior to ecosystem and government-level levers and end with a clear-eyed reflection on DEI, ESG, and feminism. At a moment when many are retreating, but the case for backing women has never been stronger.

Context: the data doesn’t lie, and it isn’t improving fast enough

Welcome back to another episode of Upside where Dan Bowyer, Mads Jensen of SuperSeed and Lomax Ward of Outsized Ventures go behind the headlines shaping European tech, capital, and power.

This week is a high-velocity sprint through the AI model wars, hyperscaler capex, and the growing sense that SaaS is about to be structurally repriced by agents. Anthropic and OpenAI go toe-to-toe with flagship model releases just 20 minutes apart, while China quietly ships open models that are starting to look dangerously close to frontier performance at a fraction of the cost.

The panel also digs into the so-called SaaSpocalypse, the early signs of a European “uncoupling” from US big tech, and why Spain’s crackdown on social media is being reframed as a public health issue rather than a free speech fight.

And then there’s Muskanomics: the $1.5T SpaceX/xAI logic, the data-centers-in-space narrative, and whether any of it survives contact with physics.

What’s covered:

02:10 AI model arms race: Anthropic Opus 4.6 vs OpenAI GPT 5.3 (20 minutes apart)
10:45 China’s open-source push: Kimi K 2.5, Qwen3 Max, and swarm capabilities
14:05 Alphabet’s $180B capex signal and Wall Street’s “infraspend” panic
22:35 SaaSpocalypse: $300B wiped off software and the seat-based SaaS collapse narrative
30:05 US–EU uncoupling: France bans Zoom/Teams, Germany moves off Microsoft, sovereignty vibes
36:35 Spain’s social crackdown: CEO liability, under-16 bans, and the censorship slippery slope
43:30 Muskanomics: xAI + SpaceX, “data centers in space,” and why it feels like PR on steroids
56:30 Anthropic Super Bowl ads vs OpenAI: brand war and the ad-monetization fault line
59:25 Critical minerals: EU set to miss 2030 targets and China’s grip on rare earths
1:02:20 Deal of the week + Europe unicorn shout-outs + the new €1B growth fund

This episode starts with a surprising origin story: before building one of Europe’s most iconic on-demand companies, Sacha Michaud left home at 16 to become a professional racehorse jockey.

From there, we go deep into the operator playbook behind Glovo’s rise: launching fast, expanding internationally with limited capital, choosing battles ruthlessly, and pulling out of markets quickly when the data says the flywheel won’t spin.

This is a conversation about discipline, focus, and survival in one of the most brutal categories in venture—where network effects are real, fundraising can consume the CEO, and consolidation is always lurking.

Less theory. More real-world execution.

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What’s covered:

01:10 From racehorse jockey to startup founder: discipline, sacrifice, and the founder mindset
02:20 How Glovo started: meeting Oscar, shipping in 2.5 months, and rebuilding the MVP later
05:05 International scaling principles: why Europe isn’t enough and why speed mattered
06:25 Fundraising reality: the “lead investor” trap and why multi-stage funds can matter
08:05 Split-scaling and the growth-at-all-costs era: what the ecosystem learned (and didn’t)
10:15 Expansion playbooks: the launch team model and copying what Uber did right
13:25 Competition strategy: when to enter, when to avoid, and why capital constraints shape everything
15:25 Exiting markets fast: Brazil, iFood, and the moment you realize the playbook won’t work
17:35 Network effects in delivery: why the flywheel is more extreme than most marketplaces
19:05 Exclusivity vs multi-homing: how restaurants evolved from “threat” to “channel”
25:55 Emerging markets: Latin America → Eastern Europe → Africa and what changes operationally
33:00 Glovo Cares: why executives still deliver orders and what it teaches the org
34:30 Acquisition mindset: what founders get wrong about selling (and not selling)
43:20 YELLOW VC: building a disciplined pre-seed fund without losing operator sharpness

Welcome back!

In this episode, Andreas Munk Holm sits down with Simon Thomas, CEO of Paragraf, one of Europe’s rare hard-tech success stories, taking graphene from scientific breakthrough to industrial-scale electronics.

Graphene has been called the “wonder material” for two decades. The promise has always been clear: faster, better, and dramatically more energy-efficient electronics. The missing piece has been execution at scale. Simon and the Paragraf team are building that missing bridge, with the world’s first graphene electronics foundry in the UK, a growing portfolio of real commercial products, and a deep conviction that the next era of computing will require new materials, not just bigger data centers.

This is a conversation about what it truly takes to build venture-backed hardware in Europe.

How you fund capex-heavy deep tech.
How do you keep investors aligned when timelines are long.
How you keep teams motivated through delays and national security reviews.

And why AI may accelerate materials discovery, but won’t replace the brutal, necessary work of turning atoms into real manufacturing.

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What’s covered:

01:27 What Paragraf is building and why graphene matters now
03:50 Graphene wafers and the world’s first graphene electronics foundry
04:23 What graphene changes for power consumption and device life
05:01 Why graphene isn’t already inside data centers
06:13 The future of “2D electronics” beyond graphene
08:02 Foundry versus product company: why Paragraf does both
09:40 Graphene’s 20-year journey from papers to real-world scale
13:15 When venture investors first showed up and what they needed to see
16:58 Sovereignty, British Patient Capital, and why “national backing” matters
24:08 The product-to-foundry loop and how you hook customers early
27:36 Capex, equity limits, and the painful mechanics of deep-tech financing
30:22 Surviving hard moments: people, pivots, and the NSI Act review
38:10 How to structure boards over time, from tactical to strategic
42:23 Keeping teams committed through uncertainty
46:10 Where Paragraf is today: headcount, geographies, and commercialization
49:16 AI in materials discovery and why manufacturing is still the bottleneck

Welcome back to another episode of Upside where Dan Bowyer, Mads Jensen of SuperSeed, and Lomax Ward of Outsized Ventures go behind the headlines shaping European tech, capital, and power.

This week’s episode opens, as always, with light deal banter, closing jokes, and a reminder that fourth-time founders are still the most bankable asset in venture.

From Saudi Arabia’s surprisingly coherent Vision 2030 to Europe’s chronic inability to articulate a shared mission, this is a wide-ranging conversation about strategy, scale, and what actually forces societies to act.

Along the way, the panel digs into autonomous AI agents that can negotiate car purchases and manage your inbox, the $100B arms race between OpenAI and Anthropic, ASML’s signal on the durability of the AI buildout, and why defence spending is becoming Europe’s most structurally important tech opportunity.

The episode also tackles the uncomfortable questions: whether Europe only moves under pressure, whether the United States of Europe is real or pure projection, and whether social media bans and AI retraining schemes are genuine policy or just optics.

This is Upside, where optimism is earned, not assumed.

Welcome back to the EUVC Corporate Podcast. This week, Jeppe sits down with Axel Deniz, CEO of Bosch Business Innovations and Head of Venture Building at Bosch.

Axel is building Bosch’s venture-building engine with a clear mandate: get Bosch technology out into the world, through founder-led spinouts, joint ventures, and seed rounds that can stand on their own with external investors. With ~80,000 active patents, 20 new patents per day, and 20,000 researchers globally, Bosch has the assets. Axel’s job is turning them into investible companies.

🎧 Here’s what’s covered:

02:30 Bosch’s unfair advantage: 80k patents, 20 patents/day, 20k researchers
04:10 Horizon 2/3: building for 2030–2035 where incumbents can’t reach
05:30 Hybrid execution: not all in-house, not all studio but a blended model
06:25 Problem definition: Bosch theses + founders bringing problems from outside
08:25 Stage gates: “get to no fast” + external validation early
09:05 Gate #1: attracting “triple-A founders” before anything else
10:35 Founder-led 80/20 vs joint ventures when tech risk is still high
13:10 Venture market fit: choosing where to build is a venture builder superpower
16:20 Founder acquisition: why mediocre pre-seed talent is the biggest risk
23:05 Working with scale-ups: co-create instead of buying or minority investing
24:15 University engine: 5–6 deep partnerships (Carnegie Mellon example)
27:15 Biggest surprises: founder scarcity and portfolio restructuring complexity
29:05 Axel’s advice to founders: don’t start deep tech from scratch
30:30 Axel’s advice to VCs: don’t underestimate corporates’ learning curve
32:00 Axel’s background: founder → Silicon Valley → PWC CVC → Bosch
35:15 Career advice: no cookie-cutter route and trust your gut sometimes
37:10 How founders can engage: programs + direct outreach on LinkedIn

In conversation with our very own Andreas Munk Holm, Christian Hernandez, founding GP of 2150 and Jan Hofmannof the Viessmann Generations Group, look at how climate investing is moving from narrative to industrial reality, where cities, energy, materials, and manufacturing become venture-scale markets, and execution matters more than slogans.

Today, 2150 officially launched its €210M second fund, bringing total assets under management to €500M and reinforcing its position as one of Europe’s leading investors backing the technologies shaping future cities and industrial systems.

Fund II reflects growing institutional conviction in 2150’s thesis: that cities generate around 80% of global prosperity, and that the next wave of venture-scale outcomes will come from making urbanisation and industrial activity sustainable at planetary scale. The fund attracted a diversified LP base across Europe, Asia, and North America, including Viessmann Generations Group, Novo Holdings, EIFO, Chr. Augustinus Fabrikker, Carbon Equity, and Church Pension Group.

Momentum is already underway. 2150 Fund II has already invested into seven companies, including AtmosZero, GetMobil, Metycle, Mission Zero Technologies and three further unannounced deals. Across both funds, 2150’s 27 portfolio companies generate more than $1B in annual revenue, employ 4,500+ people globally, and deliver megatonne-scale climate impact.

Key takeaways:

Urban and industrial systems are now venture-scale markets.
Energy, cooling, industrial heat, mobility, materials, and circular economy solutions are no longer niche climate bets — they are core infrastructure categories with global demand.
Impact and returns are converging.
2150’s portfolio demonstrates that companies tackling planetary-scale problems can also generate outlier financial outcomes, measured in real revenues, jobs, and deployment at scale.
Institutional capital is leaning into climate infrastructure.
The breadth of Fund II’s LP base signals a shift: long-term institutions are increasingly backing strategies that combine sustainability with durable, industrial cash flows.
Execution matters more than narratives.
2150’s analytical, problem-first approach targeting the hardest bottlenecks in cities and industry is translating into faster scaling and earlier commercial traction across the portfolio.
Europe can build global category leaders.
With platforms spanning energy, materials, and urban systems, 2150’s portfolio shows that European-founded companies can scale globally without compromising ambition.

Welcome back to another episode of Upside at the EUVC Podcast, where Dan Bowyer, Mads Jensen of SuperSeed, and Lomax Ward of Outsized Ventures go behind the headlines shaping European tech, capital, and power.

This week’s episode starts, as ever, with tech failing spectacularly, planes landing late, and VCs reminding each other they really should be doing deals. Then it gets serious.

From a billion-pound UK data center stopped in its tracks, to Davos and Mark Carney’s quietly devastating diagnosis of the global order, to Europe’s long-awaited 28th regime finally getting real momentum, this is a conversation about whether Europe can still act at scale or whether fragmentation will finish the job.

Along the way, the trio digs into China’s AI strategy, whether SaaS has quietly peaked, why defence IPOs are suddenly everywhere, and whether science in the US is really “collapsing” or just being reshuffled under Trump.

This is Upside, where optimism is earned, not assumed.

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What’s covered:

00:02 Mads back from the Gulf + Lomax in Nazaré
00:04 UK data centre blocked: what happened + why it matters
00:07 Fast-tracking data centres: national infrastructure vs EIAs
00:12 Davos standout: Mark Carney and the end of nostalgia economics
00:18 Middle powers and fragmentation: why Europe can’t go solo
00:24 AI and jobs: are entry-level roles really disappearing?
00:27 EU Inc / the 28th regime: momentum, labour law, and risk
00:34 Has China already won AI? redefining what “winning” means
00:43 SaaS, defence IPOs, and Europe’s capital reset

Welcome back to the EUVC Podcast, where we bring you the people and perspectives shaping European venture.

This week, Andreas Munk Holm is joined by Max Schertel, co-founder & CEO of finmid, and Tim Rehder, General Partner at Earlybird, to unpack the rise of embedded lending infrastructure for B2B platforms.

From food delivery and PSPs to ride-hailing and fleet platforms, finmid lets marketplaces offer financing directly to their merchants – with a single integration, across 30+ European markets. Together, they break down why embedded lending is often new capital, not just smoother UX; how better data lets you underwrite the “invisible” SME segment; and what it really takes to scale regulated infra across a fragmented Europe.

Here’s what’s covered:

01:03 – What finmid does: One integration for platforms to offer any financing product to business users across Europe
02:02 – Why embedded wins: Tim on data access, risk scoring, and turning platforms into “banks in all but the balance sheet”
04:05 – Owning infra, not capital: Regulation, operations and data engine vs outsourcing pure funding to institutions
06:43 – Economics & margins: Market size, 60%+ gross margins, and why net income beats headline spread
10:47 – Customer examples: How Wolt Cash works, proactive offers in the merchant dashboard, and +80% retention uplift
12:32 – Impact on the market: New capital for underserved SMEs vs just smoothing the bank journey
17:57 – Ticket sizes & duration: Typical loans of €10–20k, up to ~12 months, 85% renewal and the path to larger, longer credit
21:15 – AI & risk: Using generative and agentic AI in ops (adverse media) and data science (millions of data points, daily model iteration)
29:20 – Scaling to 30 countries: U27 + UK, CH, IS – regulation, payments rails and why “ugly detail work” is the real moat
40:17 – Partner alignment: Making financing core to platform metrics (GMV & retention) and hard-won lessons on incentives

Welcome back to another episode of Upside at the EUVC Podcast, where Dan Bowyer, Mads Jensen of SuperSeed, and Lomax Ward of Outsized Ventures cut through the noise shaping tech, venture, and geopolitics in Europe and beyond.

This week starts lightly, as all good episodes do, with kids, illness paranoia, and the small joys of enforced medical naps. It escalates quickly.

From OpenAI’s new health-focused ChatGPT and the FDA’s sudden sprint toward deregulation to Trump’s Greenland fixation and what it really signals about European sovereignty, to Meta buying its way into the AI application layer, pension funds destroying value at scale, and Nvidia’s push into physical AI.

This is one of those episodes where everything connects.

The common thread is power. Who has it. Who’s losing it. And who’s still pretending nothing has changed.

This is Upside, where the takes are sharp, the systems are breaking, and the optimism is… cautiously conditional.

What’s covered:

03:00 ChatGPT Health launches and why Europe is locked out
05:00 The FDA’s pivot to deregulation and what it means for health startups
10:00 Using multiple LLMs as a “second medical opinion”
13:00 Trump, Greenland, and the slow collapse of Pax Americana
18:00 Sovereignty, defence spending, and Europe’s strategic wake-up call
23:00 France moves to ban social media for under-15s
27:00 Meta buys its way into the AI application layer
30:00 Kraken spins out of Octopus at multi-billion scale
34:00 Revolut’s Turkey move and the march to 100 million users
37:00 UK pension funds, catastrophic underperformance, and broken incentives
45:00 Why venture returns matter more than fees
49:00 FTSE hits 10,000 and why it doesn’t mean what you think
56:00 CES, Nvidia’s autonomous ambitions, and physical AI
01:04:00 Grok’s $230B valuation and free speech trade-offs
01:07:00 Deals of the Week

Welcome back to the EUVC Podcast where we go behind the craft of building and backing venture-scale companies in Europe.
Today, we’re joined by Sean Mullaney, Founder & CEO of Seapoint, andWill Prendergast, as the Founding Partner at Frontline Ventures.

Seapoint has just come out of stealth with a $3M pre-seed to rebuild the fragile and fragmented financial stack that European startups (and later: mid-market companies) rely on.

With a Stripe-forged team, AI-native development culture, and operators from Revolut, Tines & more on board, Seapoint wants to become the financial home for European startups.

This conversation dives deep into founder pain, broken tooling, AI-native product building, engineering culture, the changing shape of startup teams, syndicate-building, and why Frontline backed Sean with high conviction.

Here’s what’s covered:

01:07 The Mission: “The financial home for European startups”
03:32 Frontline’s conviction moment
06:24 The founder pain: 5 tools, 5 accounts, zero clarity
08:07 The invisible tax: fragmentation, reconciliation hell, no real-time view
10:14 Why this problem is structurally important
12:19 European vs US lens: why Seapoint is ahead
13:18 AI-native engineering: “We rebuild the stack from processes, not accounts”
15:19 AI agents allow senior engineers to ship full-stack features alone — compressing timelines that previously required 2–3× more engineers.
17:19 Rethinking teams: fewer people, more senior, more generalist
19:33 Productivity does NOT reduce funding needs — it increases ambition
21:27 Culture: curiosity, experimentation, and founder-led technical push
36:11 Syndicate design: Angels as a go-to-market weapon.
40:23 From startup financial home → to powering Europe’s mid-market backbone: lending, treasury, automation, embedded finance.

Welcome back to another episode of the EUVC Podcast. Today, Jeppe sits down with Emil Eifrem, founder & CEO of Neo4j, the world’s leading graph database and a core infrastructure layer for AI applications used by all 20 of the top US banks, 9 of 10 global pharma giants, and every major automotive OEM.

Emil recently announced a $100M global startup program to back founders building the next generation of AI-native products on top of graph technology — from knowledge graphs to hallucination-free LLMs.

We delve into why graph thinking matters now, how Neo4j came of age during the Panama Papers investigation, and why Europe is better positioned than people think to compete in the AI platform shift.

Here’s what’s covered:

02:00 — The Panama Papers “Coming Out Party”
How journalists used Neo4j to uncover 7-layer-deep financial relationships invisible to traditional databases — and why it triggered a wave of global adoption.
06:40 — Why Graphs Are the Missing Link for AI
Knowledge, meaning, context, and relationships: why LLMs without structured knowledge graphs hallucinate.
08:50 — The $100M Startup Program
Why Neo4j is returning to its roots to support AI-native founders — and why the packaging for startups had to change.
12:00 — What Founders Get
Free Aura credits, dedicated graph engineers, joint GTM, and access to the world’s largest graph developer community.
14:30 — Early Traction: 300+ Startups in Weeks
Why early demand is far ahead of expectations — and the kinds of companies applying.
16:10 — Community as a Strategic Moat
500+ annual global events, deep developer love, and why skill availability is now a CIO-level buying criterion.
19:00 — Building Deep Tech in Europe
Why Neo4j kept engineering in Europe, how the ecosystem matured, and what today’s founders can learn.
22:00 — Regulation & Competitiveness
Will Europe overregulate itself out of the AI race? Emil’s perspective on models vs infrastructure vs applications.
23:40 — The Future of AI Infrastructure
Why every company must rethink its stack — and why the biggest threat is assuming your business will survive without change.

In this episode, Andreas Munk Holm speaks with Oskar Hartmann, legendary operator turned super angel.

From Kazakhstan to Germany, Russia, Japan, and now Dubai and Silicon Valley, Oskar has built and exited more than 10 companies, invested in 150+ ventures (14 unicorns among them), and today is pioneering a new way to solve concentration risk for founders and angels: Accumulator, a share-pooling model unlocking liquidity and diversification.

They dive into Oskar’s “beast mode” founder philosophy, his candid battles with burnout, the importance of product–soul fit, and why Europe doesn’t just need more unicorns, it needs deca- and hectocorns.

Along the way, Oskar shares his learnings from India’s ecosystem, his obsession with avoiding adverse selection, and his belief that communities, not individuals, create enduring success.

Welcome back to another episode of Upside at the EUVC Podcast, where ⁠Dan Bowyer⁠,⁠ Mads Jensen⁠ of ⁠SuperSeed⁠ and ⁠Lomax Ward⁠ of ⁠Outsized Ventures⁠⁠⁠ cut through the noise shaping tech, venture, and geopolitics in Europe and beyond.

This week starts lightly, as all good episodes do, with kids, illness paranoia, and the small joys of enforced medical naps. It escalates quickly.

From OpenAI’s new health-focused ChatGPT and the FDA’s sudden sprint toward deregulation to Trump’s Greenland fixation and what it really signals about European sovereignty to Meta buying its way into the AI application layer, pension funds destroying value at scale, and Nvidia’s push into physical AI. This is one of those episodes where everything connects.

The common thread is power. Who has it? Who’s losing it? And who’s still pretending nothing has changed?

This is Upside, where the takes are sharp, the systems are breaking, and the optimism is… cautiously conditional.

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What’s covered:

00:00 Intro: ChatGPT Health launch, privacy/encryption, “use with skepticism”
00:03 FDA shifts: deregulation + faster approvals for AI medical devices / wearables
00:09 Trump + Greenland + NATO: geopolitics, minerals, defense, European sovereignty
00:18 France proposing social media ban for under-15s; phones in schools; EU vs US regulation
00:23 Meta reportedly buying Manus (AI agents / applications layer)
00:25 Octopus Energy’s Kraken spin-out: valuation, contracted revenue, European “hidden champion”
00:27 Discord IPO chatter: nearing ~$1B ARR; monetization model
00:32 UK pensions: pressure to allocate to privates; constraints + risk/return tradeoffs
00:42 FTSE 100 hits 10,000; UK vs S&P defense-driven rally; low tech weighting
00:50 CES: Nvidia autonomous driving + open sourcing; “physical AI” + Mercedes partnership
00:54 China & Nvidia H20 pressures; AMD vs Nvidia software gap; Intel relevance

Welcome back to the EUVC Podcast where we connect and champion the people building European venture.
In this episode, Andreas Munk Holm sits down with two pillars of Italy’s modern tech ecosystem:

Giovanni Daprà, CEO & co-founder of Moneyfarm, one of Europe’s leading digital wealth management platforms
Paolo Gesess, co-founder & GP at United Ventures, one of Italy’s premier early-stage VC firms

Together, they unpack how Moneyfarm went from a Milan-founded startup to a pan-European fintech player; how Italy’s ecosystem has evolved; how United Ventures backed Giovanni through multiple strategic inflection points; why the shift from Blitzscaling to Default Alive made Moneyfarm stronger; and how European fintech is entering an era of consolidation and acquisition-led expansion.

This is an episode full of concrete frameworks, real founder–VC dynamics, and hard-earned lessons from building across Italy, the UK, and Europe.

Here’s what’s covered:

04:00 | Moneyfarm as a digital wealth manager built to make investing simple, guided + discretionary, now managing £6.5B across Italy & the UK
04:54 | Why United Ventures backed them: early conviction in a massive savings problem, founder clarity from day one, and a mission that remained unchanged for 13 years
06:31 | Building from Italy first: leveraging local regulatory fluency + talent cost advantages while keeping a pan-European vision from day zero
08:59 | Italy today vs. 2012 — more capital, more repeat founders, more international operators returning, and a dramatically deeper talent pool
13:21 | The “tipping point” moments — moments where the board must choose: buy back shares, bring in global investors, widen the model (e.g., B2B2C)
17:45 | Where Moneyfarm is now — strong in Italy + UK, product expansion complete (brokerage + pensions), and preparing for the next geographic phase
18:37 | Surviving the capital cycle: seeing interest rates spike in real-time, shifting from burn to profitability in 24 months, and reshaping the framework for Europe
19:50 | The Europe playbook: “default alive” — why blitzscaling never fit most of Europe, and how disciplined scaling becomes a competitive advantage
22:25 | Founders vs. VCs on growth vs. profit — debunking the myth: alignment, capital structure, and long-term value trump forcing hypergrowth
23:09 | Managing founder stress & incentives — secondaries, refreshed equity plans, changing founder roles, and adapting governance over a 10-year journey
25:41 | The cap table reality — Moneyfarm with VCs, PEs, and industrials: why no one could force a “burn it all” strategy even if they wanted to
27:41 | Building European-style VC — United Ventures’ thesis: European standards, European ambition, and preparing founders for international Series B/C investors
30:09 | The next frontier: pan-European expansion, from product expansion → to commercial optimization → to cross-border consolidation
34:13 | Growing into M&A as a founder — Moneyfarm’s three acquisitions, building the muscle, and using M&A as a growth lever when organic slows
36:11 | The M&A playbook — when to build vs. buy, why scale matters, and the founder’s job in orchestrating product-led acquisitions
37:40 | What founders often underestimate — M&A is expensive, cognitively draining, and requires dedicated people so you don’t destroy core execution
39:47 | The board’s role — independent perspectives, long-term value thinking, and helping the CEO avoid deal fever or tunnel vision
41:00 | The hard question: exits & fund cycles — how VCs manage tail-end holdings, DPI realities, continuation funds, and why selling is not betrayal
43:48 | DPI explained simply — why some funds need liquidity earlier, and why United didn’t (strong DPI → more patience → no forced exit)

In this episode, Andreas sits down with Michael Sackler, founder of Supernode Global, to unpack the thesis behind Supernode’s Fund II: backing application-layer software with great UI/UX — the tools people actually use every day at home and at work — at a time when most European funds avoid consumer and default to “AI-infra everything.”

Michael shares how his background in film shaped his view on tech leverage, why Supernode focuses on consumer-grade experiences applied to B2B, what their six theme areas are (wellbeing, productivity, community, creative and professional augmentation), and why they’re putting unusually strong skin in the game with a 34% GP commit.

Welcome back to the EUVC Podcast where we dive deep into the craft of building and backing venture-scale companies in Europe.

Modern software doesn’t fail quietly.

It fails on Black Friday.
It fails while the CFO is in a board meeting.
It fails when your biggest customer is mid-way through a critical workflow.

And when it does, there’s one brutal reality:
The data is there but nobody has time to interpret it.

Today we’re exploring one of the most under-discussed yet mission-critical parts of building modern software: reliability in production.

Joining Andreas are:

👩🏻‍💻 Poone Mokari: CEO & Co-Founder, ewake
Paris-based startup building AI agents for software production reliability, fresh off a $2M pre-seed led by Connect Ventures.

💥 Pietro Bezza — Managing Partner, Connect Ventures
Europe’s most product-obsessed early-stage investors (Aikido, Typeform, TrueLayer), backing ewake as their next agentic AI investment in observability.

We unpack why observability is overdue for a rewrite, how AI agents finally provide the “reasoning layer” that logs & metrics never could, and how ewake is building a global devtools company out of Paris.

Here’s what’s covered:

01:12 | What ewake does — AI agents for software production reliability that reason across logs, metrics & code to cut through observability overload
02:32 | Why Connect backed them — trusted intros, a massive category (post-cloud, multi-$B), and founders with rare insider insight into reliability engineering
05:18 | The shift AI enables — from reactive data dashboards to an intelligence layer that correlates structured + unstructured data and finds root causes
07:48 | The hidden layers of tech — why deep, unglamorous infrastructure (observability, reliability, SRE workflows) is a massive opportunity for new entrants
08:52 | The wedge — LLMs as reasoning engines over infrastructure data: not more dashboards, but an operator that collaborates with engineers in critical moments
11:48 | Production ≠ code on your laptop — the real-world complexity: business context, urgency, multi-team coordination, and why semantic reasoning matters
14:38 | “Can we trust AI?” — why agentic workflows differ from ChatGPT, how ewake constrains context, guards against hallucinations & enforces “don’t know” responses
16:38 | Founder–market fit — living the pain at Criteo, deep SRE experience, and product instincts that made ewake’s pitch compelling pre-product
17:16 | Connect’s thesis — product-first founders, problem insight over pedigree, and why product is the highest leverage driver of venture-scale outcomes
22:31 | Product-led ≠ PLG — clarifying the difference between product-first strategy and the specific go-to-market motion of product-led growth
26:02 | How Awake raised $2M pre-product — insight clarity, storytelling from lived experience, fast-moving investors, and a clear “teammate, not dashboard” vision
30:40 | What Connect looks for — opinionated founders with singular insight, UX instincts, and a tinkerer’s mindset for frontier-tech categories
38:20 | Why build in Paris — deep AI talent pools, strong engineering culture, global problem space, and a shift toward France as a magnet for AI founders
42:15 | Geography myths — why great companies emerge anywhere, Europe’s deep industry advantage, and dual-hub (EU + US GTM) playbooks
47:23 | Where ewake is now — out of stealth, hiring, in design partnerships, building alongside early users, and stress-testing agents in real incidents
51:52 | Final reflections — design-led vs. tinker-led founders, why ewake fits the frontier-tech profile, and what the next wave of AI infra looks like

Welcome back to another EUVC Podcast, where we explore the lessons, frameworks, and insights shaping venture ecosystems across the globe.

In this special Southeast Asia edition this week, David Cruz e Silva from EUVC and Ambika from Circle Capital sit down with Binh Tran from AVV (Ascend Vietnam Ventures) - a VC firm headquartered in Ho Chi Minh City, backing tech founders across Vietnam, Southeast Asia, and the U.S.

A serial founder turned VC, Binh sold his first company Klout for $200M in 2014 before launching 500 Startups Vietnam and later AVV, which has now backed about 500 startups, including unicorns Turing, Skymavis, and ApplyBoard.

Together, they unpack Vietnam’s ecosystem growth, power-law returns in emerging markets, government catalysts, and how to back founders with both grit and global ambition.

🎧 Here’s what’s covered

03:24 “Build Boldly, Scale Faster” — The story behind AVV’s tagline and how speed correlates with ambition and performance.
06:29 Vietnam’s ecosystem in one decade — 60% of startups founded between 2015–2025; how AVV rode the first wave.
07:47 From founder to funder — Binh’s journey from the Bay Area’s AI wave to seeding Vietnam’s first generation of tech startups.
09:42 Power law in Southeast Asia — Why it absolutely applies, and how maturing cycles in India, China, and now Vietnam prove it.
12:26 Government as catalyst — From post-embargo GDP per capita of $300 to 8% growth; early signs of state-backed VC emerging.
14:46 Vietnam’s startup data points — Six unicorns in under five years and a domestic ecosystem hungry for risk and innovation.
17:14 Investment focus: Vietnam+ — Why AVV backs tech talent, not just local markets; global mindset, local execution.
17:59 VC learnings: It’s hands-on — From operator to builder of ecosystems; why early-stage in developing markets means getting your hands dirty.
20:54 Impact meets returns — How government collaboration enables “ecosystem shaping” as part of the VC mandate.
23:37 Advice for global LPs — Think India 10 years ago: early, cheap, high-talent markets; AI as the great equalizer.
26:23 LP mix: 45% U.S., 45% East Asia, 10% Europe; corporates using AVV for China+1 exposure and tech-talent pipelines.
28:50 Working with founders — From hacker houses in Da Nang to U.S. rounds; AVV’s boutique, founder-first approach.
33:26 Cultural calibration — Helping Vietnamese founders learn storytelling, global GTM, and hiring for scale.
34:04 Changing beliefs — From Valley-style hypergrowth to Vietnam-style resourcefulness and grit; building despite constraints.
37:31 Next five years — Mobile gaming, Web3 for developing markets, AI developer tools, and agri-tech as Vietnam’s global edge.
42:09 Final reflection — “Talent is everywhere, opportunity isn’t” — why Southeast Asia’s next decade is ripe for breakout returns.

If you’ve spent any time in European venture lately, you’ve probably noticed two things:

Everyone says they “do AI now.”
Almost nobody wants to touch consumer.

That’s exactly where Michael Sackler and Supernode Global are leaning in.

Michael started his career not in venture, but in film. He founded and ran Rook’s Nest Entertainment in London, producing and executive producing 12 feature films, including cult horror hit “The Witch”, which still makes the rounds every Halloween.

As the streamers rose in the early 2010s, he watched technology companies steamroll the media value chain. At the same time, he began angel investing around the edges of content and tech. It didn’t take long before it was obvious where the real leverage was.

Today, Michael runs Supernode Global, an early-stage fund focused on application-layer software that people use every day at home and at work. Fund I proved out the model. Fund II is where it scales.

This episode is essentially Michael’s Fund II pitch and it’s a good one.

Here’s what’s covered:

02:40 | Fund I → Fund II — expanding from “content + tech” to technologies that enhance daily personal and professional life
03:55 | The thesis shift — six themes across wellbeing, productivity, vitality, life-ops, community, and creative/pro-work augmentation
05:27 | The unifying thread — application-layer software + UI/UX obsession (consumer-grade experiences applied to enterprise)
07:50 | Fund II in motion — 13 companies already deployed and why the portfolio itself tells the story
10:36 | Sourcing edge — 50/50 inbound/outbound, a gender-balanced team, and why that drives deal flow from overlooked founders
12:57 | Speed as a superpower — winning competitive deals through fast conviction, aggressive execution, and deep consumer focus
14:42 | Value add in practice — growth support, fundraising pathways, and SuperNode’s “connector” identity (with a shoutout to Naomi)
15:33 | 34% GP commit — why Michael and Gina put unusually large personal capital into the fund (and what it signals to LPs)
18:51 | The AI elephant — where AI enhances work vs. where it risks erasing human craft (with the Graswold example)
21:56 | Human creativity vs. automation — why AI will reshape the menial, not the art, and why stories still anchor value
23:32 | AI art, authenticity & meaning — when fully AI-generated output loses emotional value, and where hybrid human–AI creation wins

Welcome back to another EUVC Podcast, where we explore the lessons, frameworks, and insights shaping Europe’s venture ecosystem.

Today, Andreas Munk Holm sits down with Matti Hautsalo, Founding Partner at Nordic Science Investments (NSI), a €60M early-stage fund dedicated to university spin-outs across the Nordics and Europe. With a team spanning tech transfer, research, founding, VC, and investment banking, NSI backs science-powered companies at pre-seed and seed, then helps recruit commercial leaders, navigate TTOs, and transfer IP cleanly so these companies can raise from broader deep-tech syndicates.

🎧 Here’s what’s covered

03:23 Why spin-outs now? - Conventional wisdom flipped: great companies can start with researchers — provided you build the tech + commercial duo early.
05:14 The “Dynamic Duo” model - Founder-scientist stays CSO/CTO; bring in an external CEO/CBO early. Titles are flexible, execution isn’t.
06:50 Why a dedicated spin-out fund? - Traditional VCs pass when boxes aren’t ticked (team/IP). NSI bridges the Death Valley with first private capital.
10:17 Working with TTOs - Best practices, process vs. policy, and what’s “OK” on ownership (≈10% fine; >20% gets tricky — but context matters).
12:56 Reality check - Hard negotiations happen — but good deals get done; the constraint is resourcing, not intent.
14:42 How VCs should navigate universities - It’s a people & trust business; adapt to each campus, don’t try to rewrite policy from the outside.
17:25 Team building - Two paths: (1) interim CEO from within; (2) recruit CEO fast — and set expectations from day one.
20:51 Attracting CEOs - Offer meaningful equity and a credible follow-on plan; industry operators will take risk if the tech is real.
21:27 Incentives & cap table - Set a ~20% option pool early; avoid dead equity for non-operating senior academics; educate on vesting.
23:27 Terms that fail - Over-allocating to passive contributors; unclear vesting; under-sizing option pools for key hires.
24:55 When founders return to academia - Standard 12-month cliff, then linear vesting; cap table rewards future commitment, not past papers.
26:39 Beyond silos = alpha -Why the best spin-outs are multidisciplinary — and why most investors miss them.
28:10 Case: Perfect Technologies - Physics × food science; ultrasound-structured oils mimicking butter at ~0% saturated fats; small Series A just closed with food-tech co-investors.
32:51 Tranching & milestones—Pre-seed is small and milestone-based (one tech + one commercial); Nordics soft funding extends runway.
35:37 Ticket sizes - ~€100k pre-seed, ~€500k seed (case-by-case); “From seed onwards we act like any other VC.”
44:58 Why specialization wins - Networks to validate state-of-the-art, patience with TTOs, and willingness to roll up sleeves on team building.

Welcome back to the EUVC Podcast.

Today Andreas is joined by Stefan Roebel, Co‑Founder & CEO of ARX Robotics — one of Europe’s fastest-rising defense tech startups.

From his 12 years in the German Armed Forces to leadership roles at Amazon, eBay, and Grover, Stefan has lived both sides: the military front line and the global business battlefield. Now, he’s combining that experience to tackle one of the most pressing challenges of our time: Europe’s ability to defend itself in a new era of war.

In this episode, Stefan shares ARX’s journey from DIY decoy robots to NATO-backed modular robotic systems already deployed in Ukraine. We dive deep into why Europe must break with its slow procurement culture, how startups can become the “new primes,” and what it really takes to build dual-use autonomy in a defense-first world.

Here’s what’s covered:

00:56 | From Afghanistan to Amazon to ARX Robotics: Stefan’s unlikely founder journey
02:30 | The broomstick that became a digital decoy — ARX’s origin story
06:34 | The first breakthrough: selling duct-taped prototypes that worked
08:30 | ARX’s modular robotics suite explained (500kg payload, autonomy, retrofits)
10:47 | Educating VCs: how defense tech went from “too weird” to oversubscribed
13:55 | Picking investors: big names vs true believers with military insight
16:53 | Real deployments in Ukraine: ammo supply & medevac in the kill zone
19:49 | Why Ukraine’s lessons are shaping Europe’s defense future
23:24 | The drone war changed everything: solving Europe’s “lack of mass”
27:31 | Will ARX become a “new prime”? Why incumbents can’t move fast enough
29:17 | Dual use beyond defense: disaster relief, critical infrastructure & NGOs
32:36 | AI in defense robotics: solving missions, not chasing the holy grail
35:21 | Hiring for defense: when military background matters (and when it doesn’t)
40:57 | Why Stefan is hopeful for Europe’s defense tech ecosystem
44:56 | Veterans, perception, and why “peace comes from strength”

This week on the EUVC Podcast, Andreas Munk Holm sits down with Matthew Wilson, co-founder of Jack & Jill, and Peter Specht, General Partner at Creandum. Fresh off a $20M seed to take their AI recruiting agents global, they dig into how conviction is built in Europe, from founding insight to investor belief, and what it now takes to scale an agent-native company with speed, precision, and craft.

Jack helps candidates find and optimize their careers. Jill helps companies hire brilliantly. Together, the two agents form a high-signal, two-sided network that aims to become the world’s most networked AI-powered recruitment agency — without the classical incentive conflicts of human middlemen.

Here’s what’s covered:

02:35 | Why Creandum leaned in, conviction on voice-based interfaces and why recruiting is a massive, broken vertical for agent AI
03:38 | The founding moment: leaving Omnipresent, 18 months in the wilderness, and the February insight that agents make talent marketplaces finally viable
07:07 | Recruiting is broken (and AI made it worse): why first-principles thinking is needed to avoid “more noise, not more signal.”
09:15 | Investor conviction: founder/market fit, why this moment is different, and the defensibility of a two-sided agentic marketplace
12:22 | The user experience: the “coffee chat” with an AI recruiter: deep voice conversation → matching, prep, coaching, introductions
16:30 | Solving the incentives trap: why Jack works 100% for candidates and Jill works 100% for companies (fixing agency conflicts)
19:10 | Coaching as core: how AI unlocks career guidance, interview prep, and hands-on support that humans rarely get today
22:47 | Building fast in the AI era: talent density, global expansion, and why a 20M seed makes sense for a dual-product marketplace
26:35 | Two companies in one: scaling Jack (consumer) + Jill (B2B) simultaneously, across markets, with AI leverage
34:02 | The GTM playbook: engineering-led marketing, AI-driven creative testing, instant value, and rethinking B2B buying entirely
37:47 | The new AI go-to-market: speed, PLG dominance, virality-by-design, and why distribution now matters more than ever
43:52 | Two GTM worlds: viral AI products vs. slow, enterprise-heavy AI deployments (and why both will coexist)
47:15 | The “productization” of marketing — why engineering now powers growth, not headcount-heavy marketing orgs
50:29 | Final advice (VC POV) — start with a unique insight, not a trend; think in 5–10 year arcs, not quick ARR bumps

Welcome back to another episode of Upside at the EUVC Podcast, where ⁠Dan Bowyer⁠,⁠ Mads Jensen⁠ of ⁠SuperSeed⁠ and ⁠Lomax Ward⁠ of ⁠Outsized Ventures⁠⁠⁠ gather for a holiday-home special to cut through the noise around Europe’s tech, geopolitics and AI shifts.

What begins as an innocent debate about whether DeepMind is “still a UK company” quickly spirals into a tour of sovereign AI strategy, the SpaceX mega-raise, Europe’s increasingly uncomfortable place between China and the US, defence-spending reality checks and a surprisingly uplifting set of deep-tech deals across the continent.

It is classic Upside: the takes are sharp, the geopolitics gets spiky, and the optimism… well, it arrives eventually.

What’s covered:

04:36 AI-for-Science, robotics and the new “AI scientist” era
06:50 A national-curriculum Gemini and the vision of a tutor for every child
09:39 The SpaceX 2026 IPO: what investors are actually buying
14:00 Starship, orbital compute and the trillion-dollar imagination gap
18:07 Why Europe missed the space race once again
19:43 Portugal flips the script: “Economy of the Year”
22:58 Europe between China’s export tsunami and America’s cold shoulder
32:07 Defence budgets: the hype, the delay and the reality for startups
34:25 AI Corner: bubble fears, Mistral’s comeback, Meta goes closed, China goes full-stack

Comms Strategy Expert Session

Apply or share the opportunity with a founder or investor in your network: https://luma.com/euvc-comms-expert-session

If you’re in B2B SaaS, you probably feel it already: the old way of “just hire more SDRs and send more emails” is broken.

Everyone has the same tooling. Everyone is running the same sequences. Everyone is “personalising at scale” with the same prompts. Yet pipeline quality is down, efficiency is under scrutiny, and suddenly… go-to-market (GTM) design has become a first-class strategic problem.

Few people are better positioned to talk about this shift than Harrison Rose.

Harrison co-founded Paddle, helped turn it into one of the UK’s fastest-growing software companies, and has now raised a $13M Series A (led by Notion Capital, with participation from Robin Capital, Inovia, Salicap, Common Magic, Andrena and more) to build GoodFit – an AI-driven GTM data platform.

Here’s what’s covered:

00:47 | What GoodFit actually does — mapping your entire market and scoring every account
01:32 | Paddle origins → the first-principles GTM problem that later became GoodFit
03:31 | From internal tool to standalone company — recognizing the “product inside Paddle”
04:18 | Who buys GoodFit — why B2B tech is the first adopter (and why the market is much bigger)
06:28 | Second-time founder advantage — credibility, networks, and selling before the product exists
08:29 | Choosing investors — why Notion, avoiding echo chambers, and constructing a syndicate
13:24 | Bootstrapping for four years — optionality, profitability curiosity, and knowing when VC is the right path
18:34 | AI’s real impact on go-to-market — why most teams are just automating bad outreach
22:25 | The GoodFit vision — deciding who to sell to, why, and how (and leaving execution to others)
35:34 | Leaving Paddle — identity, founder evolution, and learning to lead differently the second time around
46:40 | Giving back — why Harrison opens his inbox for “weird, gnarly, unsaid” founder questions

This week, Andreas Munk Holm talks with Sergey Jakimov, Co-founder and Managing Partner at LongeVC, a leading longevity-focused venture fund backing breakthroughs in biotech, AI-driven drug discovery, and the science of healthy aging.

From pre-seed biotech spin-outs to multi-hundred-million-dollar exits with Big Pharma, LongeVC is building the category-defining fund at the frontier of life extension. In this episode, Sergey walks us through the team’s 3x+ MOIC track record, how LongeVC’s scientific advisory board unlocks proprietary deal flow, and why longevity and healthspan investing could be venture’s next trillion-dollar frontier.

🎧 Here’s what’s covered

01:15 – Who is Sergey Jakimov? From biotech entrepreneur to longevity investor
03:00 – What is LongeVC: thesis, structure, and Fund II snapshot
06:20 – The market for longevity & age-related disease: a $1.6 trillion opportunity
09:30 – Track record: Fund I’s 3x+ MOIC, 0 write-offs, 20 portfolio companies
12:40 – How LongeVC sources deals: scientific advisory board and AI-driven diligence
15:15 – Ecosystem advantage: from nonprofits to physician networks
18:00 – Case study 1 – Insilico Medicine, the $1.5 billion AI-drug-discovery unicorn
20:15 – Case study 2 – Turn Biotechnologies and $300 million + HanAll partnership
22:30 – Case study 3 – Rubedo Life Sciences and Beiersdorf’s dermatology deal
25:00 – How pharma’s pipeline erosion fuels biotech M&A
28:10 – Fund II: $120 million target, 20 % carry, 10-year term
31:20 – LP privileges: access, co-investments, and semi-annual IC observation
34:00 – Sergey’s vision: longevity as both moral and financial imperative

In this episode, Andreas Munk Holm sits down with Ole Lehmann to explore the rise of the solopreneur movement, what AI unlocks for solo founders, and how blockchain may finally have its moment as the infrastructure layer for AI. Ole also unpacks his new initiative, Built in Europe, and why he’s betting on a future where ambitious company builders thrive without moving to the U.S.

Here’s what’s covered:

00:52 Ole’s Journey: From Music Production to Crypto to AI Education
03:57 Crypto Disillusionment & the Promise of Blockchain Infrastructure
10:08 Inside the Solopreneur Mindset: Freedom, Curiosity & Leverage
16:32 Content Market Fit > Product Market Fit: A New Way to Build
21:18 Why Interest Graphs Beat Follower Counts in 2025
28:43 A New Class of Founders—and the Portfolio Play to Back Them
39:10 How AI Tools Empower a One-Person Media Company
43:31 Building in Europe: More Than a Narrative Play
47:05 The Cultural and Regulatory Hurdles Still Holding Europe Back
50:08 Why European Tech Founders Need to Enter the Political Arena

Andreas Munk Holm opens the episode by introducing Charles Dunn, Principal at SV Health Investors, and Ruth McKernan, CBE and Operating Partner at SV Health, former CEO of Innovate UK. SV Health is a transatlantic healthcare specialist with a focus on company creation and full-spectrum biotech investing. Notable wins include the exit of SV-created EyeBio to Merck & Co for up to $3bn including $1.3bn upfront, and the recent launch of SV’s newest company creation Driag Therapeutics, a UK-based neuropsychiatry company, which recently announced its $140m Series A financing.

SV Health’s approach blends early-stage company creation with later-stage venture investment. Charles emphasizes that this structure allows:

Diversified risk for LPs: Early-stage opportunities carry higher risk but higher upside; later-stage investments provide more stability.
Learning across stages: Experience in late-stage investing informs early-stage decision-making, and vice versa.
Flexible company formation: SV Health creates companies across different development stages, sometimes even after Phase 1 data exists, as with Draig Therapeutics.

Welcome back to another episode of Upside at the EUVC Podcast, where ⁠Dan Bowyer⁠,⁠ Mads Jensen⁠ of ⁠SuperSeed⁠, ⁠Lomax Ward⁠ of ⁠Outsized Ventures⁠⁠⁠, and Andrew Scott of 7percent Ventures to break down the real stories behind the headlines shaping European tech and venture.

From Bending Spoons’ audacious European rollup strategy, to Brexit’s economic hangover, to the existential challenges facing Volkswagen, to Google vs. OpenAI’s new “Code Red”, and finally whether Europe has had its long-overdue shock moment — this episode goes wide, fast, and deep.

This is Upside, where the takes are sharp, the macro is messy, and the optimism is… conditional.

What’s covered:

02:00 The valuation reset, debt-fuelled M&A, and the Italian PE–VC hybrid model
04:00 Arbitrage: firing US teams, rehiring elite Italian engineers
06:00 Do rollups really work? Tech debt, distribution, and execution risk
07:00 Brexit revisited: GDP losses, trade collapse, and political reality
08:00 The myth of “you can’t know the counterfactual” — and why you actually can
10:00 Will the UK rejoin the customs union? And would Europe even take us back?
12:00 Europe’s manufacturing crisis: Porsche, Volkswagen, BYD and the end of German exceptionalism
15:00 China’s shift: stop importing, start replicating
17:00 Welfare-state complacency and the European stagnation problem
20:00 The bitter truth about Europe’s carbon “success story”
22:00 How to actually fix European tech: R&D, immigration, procurement, capital markets
24:00 Why 0.02% pension allocation to VC is Europe’s biggest structural handicap
26:00 Should we “Farage-pill” Europe into a tech-first agenda?
33:00 Distribution vs. loyalty: why consumers don’t care about brand
36:00 Who wins the cost base war: Google, Amazon, Meta, or OpenAI?
38:00 Anthropic’s IPO plans and what they signal about the private capital cycle
42:00 Deals of the Week: Black Forest Labs, ICEYE, Expedition Growth Capital
44:00 Robotics is the next AI wave — and the picks-and-shovels startups emerging now

This week on the EUVC Podcast, Andreas Munk Holm sits down with Mikael Johnsson, Co-founder & General Partner at Oxx, one of Europe’s leading specialist B2B software investors.

Mikael has a very clear-eyed view on the current AI wave: he’s seeing valuation discipline slip, fundamentals being stretched, and a real risk that the market mistakes pilot-driven excitement for lasting enterprise value.

In this episode, they explore how to distinguish hype from substance, what “real” AI adoption looks like within a business process, and how both founders and investors can remain level-headed when everyone else is losing theirs.

Welcome back to another episode of the EUVC Podcast. Today, we’re thrilled to feature Leyla Holterud, partner at Vintage Investment Partners. Many know Leyla from her years at StepStone, where she led venture growth across EMEA. Now, at Vintage, she’s helping deploy $4.3 billion from their global platform to double down on Europe, anchored by the firm’s new London office. With a strategy spanning fund-of-funds, growth, and secondaries, Leyla offers a rare vantage point on the European VC landscape.

Welcome back to the EUVC Podcast, your inside track on the people, models, and math reshaping European venture.

This week, Andreas talks with Damian Cristian and Guy Conway, co-founders of Rule 30 - an AI research lab building what they claim is the world’s first fully systematic venture strategy. We go deep on the difference between “data-driven” (hygiene) and decision-driven (engine), why labels matter, and how portfolio math crushes intuition.

They unpack founder-trajectory signals, graph-based network evolution, market topology (yes, biology-inspired stats), and a portfolio design targeting 3x+ minimum returns with 97.5% confidence. We also debate the “access myth,” party rounds, and why they won’t sell their alpha.

Whether you’re an LP testing managers, a GP rethinking reserves, or a founder curious how algorithms “see” you - this one’s for the nerds and the pragmatists.

Here’s what’s covered:

01:46 | What is “Quant VC” and how it differs from traditional venture
06:39 | Why pre-seed isn’t an access problem — it’s a triage problem
09:55 | Can AI really make investment decisions at pre-seed?
14:13 | Training the model on 15 years of startup data to find top-decile winners
20:55 | The “Outlier Trajectory” of founders — decoding team evolution through data
26:42 | Why Rule 30 calls itself an AI Research Lab, not a VC fund
35:36 | Portfolio construction math: the danger of the “middle” strategy
55:57 | Follow-ons vs upfront bets — why they avoid reserves entirely
61:40 | Access myth-busting — why 99 % of pre-seed deals are open to smart capital

This week, Andreas Munk Holm sits down with Jack Leeney, co-founder of 7GC, the transatlantic growth fund bridging Silicon Valley and Europe and a backer of AI giants like Anthropic, alongside European rising stars Poolside and Fluidstack.

From IPOs at Morgan Stanley to running Telefónica’s US venture arm and now operating a dual-continental fund, Jack shares how 7GC reads the AI supercycle, why infrastructure and platforms win first, and what Europe must fix to unlock the next wave of venture liquidity.

🎧 Here’s what’s covered:

02:00 7GC’s transatlantic model: investing where liquidity lives
05:00 AI’s stack order: infra → platforms → horizontal → vertical
10:40 Hype vs. compute cycles: why this time is different
11:30 OpenAI vs. Anthropic vs. Mistral: the new map of winners
17:40 Llama, open source, and Meta’s defensive play
19:00 European AI bets: Poolside, Fluidstack, and dual-market strategies
22:40 The EU AI Act: noise, nuance, and why customers still decide
26:30 IPOs are back: US windows, European silence
33:00 Liquidity, secondaries, and when 7GC hands stock to LPs
37:40 Europe’s missing link: scaled M&A
43:00 What policymakers and corporates must do next

Welcome back to another episode of Upside at the EUVC Podcast, where ⁠Dan Bowyer⁠,⁠ Mads Jensen⁠ of ⁠SuperSeed⁠, ⁠Lomax Ward⁠ of ⁠Outsized Ventures⁠⁠⁠, and this week’s special guest Robin Haak break down the real stories behind the headlines shaping European tech and venture.

Robin joins us as the founder of Robin Capital, an early employee at SmartRecruiters, angel in 100+ companies, including eight unicorns, and one of the most active emerging GPs in Europe. He brings deep operator insight, especially into the German ecosystem, politics, and economy, which this episode leans heavily into.

We cover everything from UK policy signals to German recession warnings, AI dominance to Europe’s bureaucratic drag, the rise of solo GPs, and why the next decade of tech will be won or lost on energy availability more than anything else.

What’s covered:

04:00 EU wants to restrict social media for minors
The team debates the proposals to ban or limit social media for children under 16, the mental health case, and the tension between safety and overreach.
06:00 Surveillance creep & messaging regulation
Robin explains concerning drafts that would’ve allowed governments to read private messages. The group breaks down the slippery slope of “protect the children” legislation.
10:00 UK Budget: surprisingly startup-friendly
Dan and Lomax unpack EMI reforms, EIS/VCT clarity, and why the market reacted calmly. Signals of a more innovation-forward UK emerge.
12:45 Lovable.ai’s VAT scandal & Europe’s compliance maze
A Swedish engineer’s viral post on LinkedIn sparks a discussion on Europe’s inconsistent VAT rules, compliance complexity, and whether hypergrowth and European regulation can co-exist.
17:00 N26’s long struggle with German regulators
Robin, an early angel, offers an insider's view on the fintech’s challenges—BaFin restrictions, governance issues, and the counterfactual: “Would N26 be worth €20B if it were French?”
20:00 Germany’s big macro problem: stagnation + overload
A brutally honest breakdown of the German economy: energy scarcity, migration overload, rising welfare costs, labor shortages, and political paralysis.
28:00 Education, welfare, pensions & the cost structure crisis
Robin explains why Germany’s systems are buckling: the collapse of PISA scores, overloaded municipalities, and an economic model no longer supported by productivity.
33:00 Nuclear shutdowns & Europe’s AI energy deficit
Why Germany shut down its safest reactors, how it backfired, and why France and the Nordics will become the new AI infrastructure hubs.
40:00 Startup ecosystem: the good, the bad, the bureaucratic
From Munich’s deep tech boom to notary nightmares, ESOP fixes, GmbH limitations, and how founders are learning to hack the system.
55:00 The rise of Solo GPs
The team discusses the American roots, European trajectory, operator funds, fund-of-funds appetite, and why founders increasingly prefer solo GPs.
01:00:00 AI Corner
OpenAI’s trillion-dollar capex future, Google’s TPU resurgence, Anthropic momentum, Michael Burry shorting AI (and why it’s misguided), and the geopolitics of compute.

Welcome back to another episode of the EUVC Podcast, your trusted inside track on the people, deals, and dynamics shaping European venture.

This week, Andreas Munk Holm is joined by Max Kufner, Co-Founder and CEO of again, and Jan Miczaika, Partner at HV Capital.

again is one of those rare European deep-tech stories that blends academic brilliance, industrial execution, and venture pace. Born out of DTU, with roots at Stanford and MIT, again uses gas-eating microbes to turn CO₂ emissions into valuable chemicals and materials. In plain English: they take carbon that’s already in the air (not the ground) and repurpose it into things we use every day, from plastics to fertilizers.

Backed by HV Capital, GV, and a handful of top European and US investors, again is on a mission to decouple industrial growth from fossil carbon. But the conversation goes far beyond climate tech.

Max and Jan unpack what it takes to build deep tech at venture speed, the reality of talent scarcity in Europe, the cultural differences between US and EU deep-tech ecosystems, and how to navigate board dynamics, milestone-based investing, and the journey to a Series B in a capital-intensive world.

Whether you’re a founder, investor, or LP curious about deep tech’s reindustrialisation wave — this one’s for you.

Here what’s covered:

01:24 | again in one line — gas-eating microbes → chemicals (no oil out of the ground)
02:53 | Why HV Capital backed again — climate upside and a chance to redefine European chemicals
04:31 | Investor → founder pendulum — why Max went from Atlantic Labs partner back to operator
06:20 | The serial founder advantage (and its hidden trap)
10:17 | Building deep tech in Europe — talent constraints, optimism gaps, and moving early to the US
15:30 | Multipolarity — global operations, risk appetite, and where to spend your time
23:38 | Boardcraft — how to use your board (and avoid being over-managed)
28:39 | On-air sparring — asset-heavy vs. platform-heavy business models
33:17 | Prepping for Series B — risk, IRR, and the difference between validation and scale
36:59 | Milestone-based investing in deep tech — bridges, binaries, and how to keep momentum
43:12 | LPs and VCs — why deep tech is high-risk and high-alpha
46:08 | Founder lessons — customer co-creation, speed, and building fast with scientists
48:06 | Final reflections — Europe’s industrial renewal through deep tech

Corporate venture capital isn’t just having “a bit of VC on the side.”
Done well, it’s a strategic lens on the future. Done badly, it’s a short-lived pet project with a half-life of 3.7 years and a trail of confused founders and annoyed co-investors.

In this episode, we sit down with Martin Scherrer, Partner & Head of Managed Funds at Redstone, alongside our own CVC lead Jeppe Høier, to unpack what really happens when corporates leave venture — and how to do it without destroying value or reputation.

Redstone runs a dual model: classic VC funds + “VC-as-a-Service” for corporates and family offices. Martin himself has lived three lives:

Inside Swiss Re’s CVC (later shut down)
As a founder of an insurtech in Switzerland
Now as VC & fund manager at Redstone across multiple corporate mandates.

🎧 Here’s what’s covered:

01:37 Why Martin? Why now? — Jeppe on Redstone’s VC-as-a-service role, his history with them, and why Martin is the go-to voice on CVC secondaries.
02:50 Redstone in both worlds — Martin explains Redstone as a VC + CVC-as-a-service platform with deep corporate, VC, and founder roots.
06:12 Portfolio thinking 101 — Why corporates underestimate startup investing, ignore the J-curve, and must commit to true portfolio construction + financial KPIs.
09:37 Runoff vs. selling the bag — Score case: options to sell the whole portfolio at a 50–80% NAV discount vs. patient value-maximising runoff.
13:54 Spin-outs & resilience — How CVCs can evolve into mixed-LP or fully independent VC funds (Swisscom Ventures, Berliner Volksbank → Redstone Fintech III).
18:27 Follow-ons in “shutdown mode” — Why corporates sometimes should still fund follow-ons in runoff to unlock new investors and protect upside.
20:25 Designing the partnership — Governance, IC design, reporting (e.g. IFRS 9), and performance-based structures that align Redstone and corporates.
31:41 Managing vs. buying portfolios — How Redstone runs CVC runoff as an external manager with fees + carry, versus secondary buyers who acquire the assets outright.
44:02 How to avoid a wind-down — The “gold standard”: bring in third-party LPs, avoid annual-budget setups, ringfence capital in a dedicated entity, and keep exec sponsors close.

Welcome back to another EUVC Podcast, where we explore the lessons, frameworks, and insights shaping Europe’s venture ecosystem.

Today, Andreas Munk Holm sits down with Jan Lozek, Co-Founder and Managing Director and Founder of Future Energy Ventures (FEV), the Berlin-based climate-tech investor born from the carve-out of E.ON’s corporate venture arm.

With a 50-company track record and a new €235M fund, Jan shares what it takes to spin out from a corporate, how to invest across the energy transition with venture discipline, and why Europe’s renewable leadership is creating both opportunity and complexity.

🎧 Here’s what’s covered

01:41 Jan’s personal journey from Berlin’s early tech scene to shaping E.ON’s venture arm.
04:02 The moment FEV’s carve-out became inevitable and how independence was structured.
09:33 Inside the two-fund model: managing E.ON’s legacy portfolio while launching a new EU fund.
11:27 FEV’s thesis: software-first, Series A–B investments driving the energy transition.
13:33 Grid intelligence - trading flexibility, AI for grid balance, and the battery boom.
16:35 The economics of renewables: why decarbonization now pays for itself.
21:11 Data centers and AI’s energy demand - the US urgency vs. Europe’s slow policy gears.
24:16 Electrifying cities - EV fleets, industrial decarbonization, and heat-pump adoption.
33:24 How FEV supports founders through market turbulence, pivots, and bridge rounds.
46:32 Scaling to billions: fund growth, LP lessons, and advice to Europe’s climate founders.

Welcome back to another episode of Upside at the EUVC Podcast, where ⁠Dan Bowyer⁠,⁠ Mads Jensen⁠ of ⁠SuperSeed⁠, ⁠Lomax Ward⁠ of ⁠Outsized Ventures⁠⁠⁠ dissect the stories reshaping European venture, from Helsinki’s Slush takeover to China’s rising leverage, TPU vs GPU battles, the UK’s AI money wave, and why immigrants found half the unicorns in the Western world.

This week’s episode ranges from Germany’s €35B space ambitions to Meta’s TPU dealmaking, from cookie law rollbacks to Lithuania’s secondhand unicorn, all culminating in one conclusion: Europe’s window for action is open, but narrowing.

🎧 Here’s what’s covered

00:26 Slush recap: from Nokia’s fall to Europe’s most founder-first event.
05:11 Web Summit vs Slush: why nonprofit incentives matter.
07:52 Germany’s €35B space strategy: defense, procurement & sovereignty.
10:21 The immigrant founder effect: 50–90% of unicorns built by newcomers.
13:12 The political backlash: skilled vs low-skilled migration confusion.
17:22 Defense stocks boom: tanks, night vision, gearboxes — and 200%+ gains.
20:51 Vinted’s €8B secondary: Lithuania’s marketplace becomes half the ecosystem.
22:58 Cookie banners may finally die: EU proposes a digital omnibus rollback.
25:07 UK’s AI investment wave: growth zones, sovereign AI, drug discovery.
31:20 China’s new posture: rare earth leverage, Belarus factories & new red lines.
35:41 Europe’s multipolar dilemma: squeezed between the US and China.
40:14 AI Corner: 70% of AI startups now using Chinese open source models.
42:00 Google’s TPU moment: Gemini 3 beats frontier models across 19/20 benchmarks.
43:20 Meta & Anthropic commit to TPUs — a major shift in compute economics.
44:20 Nvidia’s blowout quarter: $57B Q3, 75% margins, sold out through 2026.
46:15 Deals of the Week: Voice (Germany) raises $50M; nursing workflows go AI.

Welcome back to the EUVC Podcast — and today, a special Venture Beyond edition.

Joining Mike Reiner of 432 Legacy and Andreas is Dave Bailey — one of Europe’s most in-demand founder coaches, the brain behind FounderCoach.com, and a voice shaping how CEOs grow into their role.

Dave’s journey has been anything but linear: from co-founding startups like Delivery Hero, to a stint in venture capital, to now coaching Europe’s most ambitious CEOs. Along the way, he’s built a results-driven coaching methodology that balances competence, curiosity, and conviction.

If you’re a founder, VC, or operator wrestling with scaling leadership, navigating founder psychology, or turning board meetings into actual strategic levers — this episode is for you.

Here’s what’s covered:

01:10 | From Delivery Hero to VC to founder coach: Dave’s unorthodox path
05:00 | Why competence always comes before confidence
09:15 | The five pillars of Dave’s coaching methodology
13:40 | Founder Mode: planning and executing with quarterly rhythm
18:25 | Why visual clarity often beats verbal reflection
22:10 | The hidden link between trauma, ego, and founder drive
27:45 | Product launches as a culture-shaping mechanism
32:30 | How to transform board meetings into true strategic accelerators
38:50 | The founder’s mindset: obsessive curiosity + conviction

Welcome to a new episode of the EUVC Podcast, where we bring you the people and perspectives shaping European venture.

Today, we’re joined by Adrian Locher, co-founder and GP at Merantix Capital, the Berlin-based AI venture capital firm and venture studio that’s just planted its flag in London. Known for building and investing in AI-first companies from the ground up, Mirantix operates at the intersection of venture creation, community, and applied AI consulting — a model Adrian argues is especially well-suited to the AI age.

In this conversation, we dive into the reality of the studio model, what makes it work (and not), and why Adrian believes validation with paying customers before a single line of code is written is the ultimate early-stage filter.

🎧 Here's what's covered:

02:00 | Why Merantix Capital Chose Berlin Over Silicon Valley — and Why London’s Next
05:00 | The Three Pillars: Studio, Community, and Consulting
08:00 | Deep Tech vs Wrapper AI — Going Beyond the Hype
11:00 | Why Many Venture Studios Fail — and Where Merantix Capital Adds Value
16:30 | PowerPoint to Paying Customers — The Validation-First Approach
20:00 | Why AI Makes the Studio Model More Relevant Than Ever
30:00 | Regulating AI — Why Europe Should Target Applications, Not Tech
36:00 | Europe’s Edge in Healthcare, Manufacturing, and Finance
44:00 | The Future of Venture Studios — Where They’ll Win by 2030
49:00 | Betting on Neurotech — Frontier Opportunity or Too Soon?

A billion-euro bet on Europe’s most uncertain frontiers: climate, deep tech, and industrial transformation. Can government-backed funds catalyze global champions—or do they risk crowding out private capital?

Dr. Elisabeth Schrey leads the Deep Tech & Climate Fonds (DTCF), a €1B investment vehicle co-financed by Germany’s Future Fund and ERP Special Fund. From Munich to Berlin to Brussels, she’s navigating the hardest question in European venture: how to deploy government capital without distorting markets.

Together, we explore how DTCF is shaping Europe’s growth-stage landscape, what it takes to invest in policy-fragile verticals like hydrogen and climate tech, and why Europe’s future industrial champions may depend on funds like this.

Here’s what’s covered:

01:47 Why Elisabeth Took the Helm at DTCF (and What Gap It Fills)
03:32 The Co-Investment Model: Benefits, Limits, and Founder Experience
05:38 Crowding Out or Catalyzing? Steelmanning the Public Capital Debate
07:21 When DTCF Steps Aside—and When It Competes for Deals
09:54 Walking the Tightrope: Returns, Ecosystem Support, and Incentives
14:36 Thinking Ahead: Could DTCF’s Next Fund Be Purely Financial?
15:42 The Scale Up Europe Fund vs. DTCF: Complement or Competition?
17:18 Investing in Policy-Fragile Sectors Without Betting on Subsidies
20:38 Defining “Readiness to Scale” in Uncertain Markets
22:28 Avoiding the Subsidy Trap: Building Models That Work Without Support
25:03 Climate & Hydrogen: Placing Bets Before the Hype
27:36 Tech Waiting for the Market vs. Market Waiting for Tech
29:06 Expanding the Portfolio: Semiconductors, Robotics, Cybersecurity
31:27 Munich vs. Berlin: Why Munich Has Emerged as a Hardware Hub
32:53 Corporates in Venture: Buffer, Booster, or Bottleneck?
34:38 What Founders Need: Senior Hires & Serious Cashflow Models
36:04 What Investors Get: Policy Links, Due Diligence, Deep Tech Edge
38:22 Advice for Emerging VCs & Policymakers: Where the Next Gap Lies

Welcome back to another episode of the EUVC Podcast, where we bring together Europe’s venture family to share the stories, insights, and lessons that drive our ecosystem forward.

Today we dive into one of the most under-discussed — yet increasingly important — topics in European venture: Opportunity Funds.

Joining Andreas Munk Holm is Lea Strumberger, Senior Investment Manager at KfW Capital, one of Europe’s largest and most mission-driven LPs. KfW Capital co-operates several modules of Germany’s €10B Future Fund (Zukunftsfonds) and deploys into VC funds to strengthen Europe’s late-stage capital base.

Within that framework, KfW Capital has launched an Opportunity Fund facility to back managers deploying Series B+ capital — often into their own breakouts — with a structure and governance playbook that preserves alignment and avoids “continuation-vehicle rescue” dynamics. Public examples of European Opportunity strategies include Notion Capital’s Opportunities funds, built alongside its core franchise.

Here’s what’s covered

00:17 — Mandate & why Series B+: Europe needs domestic late-stage capital
04:39 — Two OF archetypes: inside-only vs blended
08:15 — How KfW diligences emergent managers launching OFs
13:19 — Why a third-party lead (≥25%) matters
18:53 — Terms that matter: fees, carry, GP commit, duration
25:30 — GP commit reality for second-timers
33:19 — Governance: allocation policy, LPAC, down-rounds
36:10 — Hurdle rates: 6–8% standard, not the battleground
37:55 — Market pulse: ~10 OFs/year cross KfW’s desk

Welcome back to another episode of Upside at the EUVC Podcast, where ⁠Dan Bowyer, ⁠Mads Jensen of ⁠SuperSeed⁠, and ⁠Lomax Ward of ⁠Outsized Ventures⁠ unpack the headlines reshaping European venture.

This week, the trio dives into the UK’s blink-and-you-miss-it exit tax, China’s rising open-source AI threat, hyperscaler accounting drama courtesy of Michael Burry, Europe’s supply-chain vulnerabilities — and why kill switches might soon matter as much as CapEx.

Here's what's covered:

08:42 The enterprise AI “nothingburger”: why progress is slower than adoption claims.
10:31 Nexperia: Europe’s dependence on Chinese chip packaging exposed.
11:55 The four–six week fragility window in Europe’s automotive supply chain.
13:47 EU formalises 5G vendor bans — the €3B Huawei/ZTE rip-out begins.
17:12 Dan vs. Alex Karp: “word salad” or visionary govtech architect?
20:34 Palantir’s privacy architecture: why governments keep choosing them.
23:28 Markets wobble: Nvidia leads the downturn; Apple stands alone.
28:14 Hyperscalers’ depreciation trick: why Michael Burry calls fiction.
35:12 Anthropic cyber incident: Claude “jailbroken” via social engineering.
38:27 Chinese kill switches in European buses — and what comes next.

Welcome back to the EUVC Podcast, where we explore the frameworks moving European venture, finance, and policy.
Two weeks after Building Bridges 2025 in Geneva, Andreas Munk Holm and Enrique, Chi Impact Capital sit down with Patrick Odier — Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Lombard Odier and Chair of Building Bridges — to get practical on financing systemic transition. Odier argues for a shift from “risk and exclusion” to opportunity and system redesign, spotlighting circularity, materials, and real-economy partnerships as core alpha.

🎧 Here’s what’s covered

03:15 Why circularity = business — Input/output efficiency, risk (physical, legal, reputational), and investment edge across the real economy.
04:50 Three big transition arenas — (1) Energy & electrification; (2) Nature & land-use systems; (3) Materials (extraction, use, re-use) as a vast investment universe.
06:48 Odier’s journey — From 1990s exclusions → best-in-class → transition of business models with macro “planetary limits” as the north star.
11:57 Tools & targets — From COP21 to portfolio methodologies (e.g., temperature alignment) to favor transition leaders.
14:35 Sector stance — No blanket bans: even “hard-to-abate” sectors can be alpha if they’re truly transitioning.
17:40 Asset classes — Why private assets (esp. venture & growth/PE) are pivotal to de-risk early tech and unlock later capital at scale.
22:37 Impact vs. returns — Not either/or: aim for a risk–impact–performance triangle; measurement comparability is the current frontier.
25:32 Where to invest now — Energy systems, regenerative ag & food waste, materials (plastics, cement, steel, aluminum), reuse/refill/repair models, and recycling infrastructure.
29:21 Plastics deep-dive — Industrial partnerships, sorting, advanced recycling, refill/repair, and why “ending waste” is an investable value chain.
31:20 Geopolitics & headwinds — Non-linear transition, policy swings, but market forces (cheaper renewables, storage, infra) keep compounding.
38:06 Bottom-up pull — Next-gen leaders (e.g., IMD students) already demand sustainable models; culture is catching up with capital.
39:57 Alliance models — Working with producers (e.g., Alliance to End Plastic Waste) to validate feasibility and scale innovations.
42:17 Policy matters — Targeted regulation beats volume of rules; e.g., virgin-plastic taxes rising push manufacturers to redesign.

Welcome back to another episode of the EUVC Podcast, your trusted inside track on the people, deals, and dynamics shaping European venture.

This week, Andreas Munk Holm is joined by Mariette Roesink, Co‑Founder of Curie Capital. Named after Marie Curie, the fund backs breakthrough life science technologies with a mission to both deliver outsized returns and transform patient outcomes.

Mariette and her co-founder Han de Groot have already been part of two unicorn exits, raised €200M across their portfolio in a single year, and — most strikingly — can point to zero bankruptcies across 25 investments. As family office-backed GPs, they also invest significant personal capital alongside LPs.

They dive into Curie’s approach, the unique dynamics of European biotech, why Western Europe is a life science powerhouse, and how to make life science VC anything but “binary.”

Whether you’re an LP curious about the sector, a GP sharpening your pitch, or a founder in healthtech — this conversation is packed with insights.

Here’s what’s covered:

01:00 | Why Curie Capital is named after Marie Curie
03:00 | High financial returns + patient impact: the dual promise of biotech
05:00 | Why GPs investing their own family money matters
07:00 | Raising €200M in “harsh” markets — portfolio highlights
09:30 | The billion-dollar impact story of Acerta Pharma
12:00 | Building specialist networks & engaging strategics early
14:00 | TargED Biotherapeutics: developing a breakthrough stroke therapy
17:00 | Zero bankruptcies — besides capital Curie helps the

young ventures with their network to support raising next rounds

and partnering * 20:00 | The Curie Capital team — science, business, and hands-on support * 21:30 | Why Western Europe is a life sciences powerhouse * 23:30 | The 6.1x valuation gap between EU & US early-stage biotech * 25:00 | The truth about life science holding periods & exits * 27:00 | Educating LPs: why life science VC isn’t as binary as many think

Welcome back to another episode of Upside at the EUVC Podcast, where ⁠Dan Bowyer⁠,⁠ Mads Jensen⁠ of ⁠SuperSeed⁠, ⁠Lomax Ward⁠ of ⁠Outsized Ventures⁠⁠, and this week’s guest Jone Vaituleviciute, Managing Partner at ⁠Firstpick⁠ VC, unpack the forces shaping venture across Europe and the Baltics.

This week’s conversation bridges Lithuania’s booming early-stage scene and Europe’s macro tensions — from defense investments and bootstrapping culture to Matt Clifford’s call for “permissionless growth,” the rise of quant capital, and how Europe’s AI reality is evolving fast.

🎧 Here’s what’s covered

00:31 From Startup Wise Guys to Firstpick: why Jone spun out to back Baltic founders even earlier.
04:22 “It will never get cheaper than pre-seed”: on starting at the first line of code.
05:47 The Baltic edge: distribution over product perfection and why bootstrapping still wins.
11:22 €300 M defense deal: Rheinmetall’s Lithuanian factory and why incentives trump fear.
16:23 Matt Clifford’s speech: 17 years of UK stagnation and a call for permissionless growth.
25:04 The politics of productivity — shock therapy vs. bureaucracy fatigue.
33:18 Quant trading boom: XTX’s 25 k GPUs vs. Germany’s 10 k, and where talent flows.
40:19 AI corner: Calm model, Nebius cloud, and Europe’s token factory moment.
52:36 Circular financing or just capital cycles? The debate behind AI mega deals.
55:45 Deals of the week: Nexus AI’s $8 M raise and Poolside’s $2 B round.

Welcome back to the EUVC Podcast — where we go deep with the people shaping European venture.
Today, David sits down with Kristaps Ronis, Partner at ION Pacific, a global secondaries investor (HQ in LA, presence in Europe & Asia) focused on Series B+ tech and a specialty that’s getting hotter by the month: structured secondaries.

Kristaps runs ION Pacific’s European practice and has been with the firm since inception (2015). In this episode, he unpacks why DPI is king, why traditional “sell-the-shares” secondaries often fall short, and how structured deals can deliver liquidity without selling or signaling — all while preserving control and upside for GPs.

Whether you’re a GP under LP pressure, an LP looking for distributions, or a founder trying to understand what’s happening around your cap table, this one’s for you.

Here’s what’s covered:

00:55 – Who is ION Pacific? Global secondaries focused on B/C/D with a European practice led by Kristaps.
02:36 – What they do: Liquidity for venture via structured & traditional secondaries.
04:01 – Kristaps’ path: Latvia → Peking University → Hong Kong banking → co-founding ION Pacific.
06:05 – What are structured secondaries (in one line).
07:35 – Three big learnings in venture: lack of financial innovation, complex cap tables = silent killer, DPI is king.
10:48 – Early vs. later stage instruments — why complexity hits hard post-Series B.
17:16 – Why secondaries now (esp. in Europe): DPI pressure, awareness, more dedicated players.
21:09 – Continuation vehicles in Europe: “2025 is the year of the EU CV.”
23:31 – Where structured deals fit: liquidity without selling, pricing gaps, zero market signaling.
26:20 – “What’s the catch?” Educating LPs on partial upfront + future upside.
28:05 – Advice for GPs & LPs: how to open the liquidity conversation.
29:53 – Solving the bid–ask spread: structure beats headline discounts.
31:27 – Co-investing: where others join (and where they don’t).
32:26 – The market gap: too big for small PE secondaries, too small for mega funds — ION’s sweet spot.
35:55 – Timing: don’t start in year 11 of a 10+2 fund; think 6–9 months ahead.
36:58 – Seller mistakes: timing, portfolio prep, governance blockers, LP comms.
40:23 – Good news for emerging managers: relationships can reopen info rights.
43:37 – Kristaps’ bookshelf: The One Thing, Getting to Neutral, Buy Back Your Time.
45:23 – How to reach Kristaps: LinkedIn + email; open to being a sounding board.

Welcome back to another EUVC Podcast, where we gather Europe’s venture family to share the stories, insights, and lessons that drive our ecosystem forward.

Today we dive into the world of gaming with Alper Oner, Co-founder of Agave Games, and Enis Hulli, General Partner at e2vc. Agave has taken the gaming world by storm with its hit “Find the Cat” — a quirky hidden-object game that has become a global revenue driver, generating hundreds of thousands of dollars in daily revenue. But this wasn’t a straight line: Agave started as a publisher, pivoted into building games in-house, and is now raising big rounds to expand with its new hit “What the Hex.”

Agave has taken the gaming world by storm with its hit “Find the Cat” — a quirky hidden-object game that climbed global charts, hitting tens of thousands of dollars in daily revenue and inspiring a wave of imitators. But the road here was far from linear: Agave began as a publisher, pivoted to a studio model, and has since raised an $18M Series A led by Baldur’s Gate Capital, Felicis, and e2vc to fuel its next big title — “What the Hex.”

Together, Enis and Alper unpack how to back founders over ideas, pivot at the right time, and scale when metrics explode — all while explaining why Turkey has quietly become Europe’s mobile gaming superpower.

🎧 Here’s what’s covered:

00:10 Introduction: Andreas sets the stage with Alper (Agave) & Enis (E2VC), and why Turkey is Europe’s gaming powerhouse.
05:00 Origins: Alper’s pivot from San Francisco data science to mobile gaming, founding Agave with high school friends.
10:00 Publisher Model Pivot: Why Agave started as a publisher, why the space saturated, and how they decided to build games in-house.
15:00 Betting on Founders: Enis on why pivots are inevitable, and why VCs back founders over ideas.
20:00 Turkey’s Gaming Wave: From Peak Games to 80+ new studios, how the ecosystem multiplies talent and capital.
25:00 Cracking the Code: How “Find the Cat” scaled from intuition to top charts, with ROAS and retention metrics off the charts.
30:00 The Cat Effect: Why cats trend globally, the copycats that followed, and why Agave resists “reskinning.”
35:00 What the Hex: Agave’s next title in the booming sorting genre, its differentiating mechanics, and early fan addiction stories.
40:00 Raising $18M: How Agave closed its Series A with Baldur’s Gate Capital, Felicis, and E2VC, and why they chose speed over maximum valuation.
45:00 Lessons Learned: Alper on vision-setting before execution, Enis on prorata strategy, and why gaming is Pixar, not SaaS.
50:00 Future of Gaming: Will the industry move towards blockbusters or niches, and why agility across multiple titles is now key.

Welcome back to the EUVC Podcast, where we gather Europe’s venture family to share the stories, insights, and lessons that drive our ecosystem forward.

Today we zoom in on the inner game with Seb Agertoft, former product leader turned executive coach and Partner at Evolution, a collective of ~80 coaching and leadership-development partners across the US and Europe. Seb works primarily with VC-backed founders, co-founding teams, and leadership teams. Joining me is Mike Reiner (432 Legacy), who’s helping us bring more conversations like this to light. We dig into what real coaching is (and isn’t), how product experience helps without turning coaching into advice, why founders need the right kind of stubbornness, and how slowing down actually improves performance.

🎧 Here’s what’s covered:

01:30 From product career to coaching founders
02:10 Why Seb: product depth + coaching depth; what we’ll explore with Mike.
02:46 Seb’s path: eBay → GoCardless → Pelago Health → full-time coaching; joining Evolution’s partner collective.
04:13 Switching from product to coaching: motivated by people, team-building, and reducing avoidable waste in tech.
06:46 Personal thread: yoga training, teaching meditation, and blending “human development” with tech.
07:46 What coaching is (and isn’t): non-directive, developmental; the “I/We/It” frame; support vs. challenge.
10:50 Using product experience without slipping into advice; building trust to go deep and tactical.
17:26 Mike on the investor’s role: supporting the person, not just the metrics; presence, somatics, and listening.
24:39 Alignment & diligence: picking founders for the journey they actually want (and can) live.
25:54 Slow down to speed up: cadence, space, and performance (not “softness”).
28:12 Trauma can drive—and derail; purpose/servitude as a more sustainable fuel.
33:58 “Double goals”: it’s okay to build for self and service; lessen attachment to outcomes.
40:20 The “right kind” of stubborn: high conviction and curiosity; avoid playbook worship.
43:40 Balancing conviction and openness: an anecdote on resisting “quick money” detours.
47:58 Demystifying “spirituality”: meaning-making, connection, and time-tested practices.

Welcome back to another episode of Upside at the EUVC Podcast, where ⁠Dan Bowyer⁠,⁠ Mads Jensen⁠ of ⁠SuperSeed⁠, ⁠Lomax Ward⁠ of ⁠Outsized Ventures⁠ and ⁠Andrew J Scott⁠ of ⁠7percent Ventures⁠, and Lomax unpack the forces shaping European venture capital.

This week’s conversation spans the spectrum, from AI moratoriums and political overreach to funding freezes, LP pullbacks, and the question of whether Europe still dares to dream big.

The crew digs into whether regulation is protecting society or suffocating innovation, the chilling effect of capital retreat, and how optimism can be rebuilt amid macro fatigue.

🎧 Here’s what’s covered

00:41 – The “AI Pause” Debate — Can governments ever pause technology? Why moratoriums sound moral but stall momentum.
05:25 – Europe’s Fear Reflex — The rise of “safety-first” politics and how overregulation is quietly killing risk appetite.
09:57 – LP Freeze Frame — Europe’s institutional capital dries up as funds extend cycles — why secondaries and NAV loans are back in fashion.
13:36 – The Optimism Deficit — How founders are stuck between doomist media and cautious investors, and why conviction is now a superpower.
17:59 – Policy Paralysis — The mismatch between innovation speed and Brussels process — can Europe’s bureaucracy ever run at startup pace?
22:44 – The Deep Tech Divergence — Climate tech, quantum, and AI hardware get hot — but early checks are scarcer than ever.
27:32 – Founders as Statesmen — Why European founders must now act as ambassadors for progress — defending the right to build.
32:18 – The Politics of Optimism — Why Europe’s next unicorns will be built by those who ignore the headlines and build through doubt.
37:20 – AI Regulation & Reality — The EU AI Act’s new interpretive layer — compliance theater vs. competitive advantage.
42:48 – The Great European Reset — Why this downturn might finally force quality, discipline, and depth into the ecosystem.

This week on the EUVC Podcast, Andreas Munk Holm sits down with Sebastian Peck, Partner at KOMPAS VC, Europe’s leading specialist in industrial tech and the decarbonisation of manufacturing and the built world.

KOMPAS VC is an early- and growth-stage venture capital firm backed by leading corporates, focused on transforming how the world builds, moves, and powers itself. With offices in London, Amsterdam, and Copenhagen, KOMPAS partners with startups and industrial leaders driving efficiency, automation, and decarbonisation across sectors like manufacturing, construction, energy, and mobility.

With the firm gearing up for major announcements, Sebastian unpacks why industrial tech is finally having its moment in European VC — and why resilience, regulation, and risk appetite will determine whether Europe leads or lags.

Here’s what’s covered:

00:20 Defining Industrial Tech - Decarbonisation, productivity, and resilience: the three pillars driving transformation in Europe’s industrial base.
03:30 The Energy Debate: Transition vs pragmatism, nuclear’s comeback, and Europe vs US vs China
09:14 Fragmented Corporate Commitments: Nordics doubling down, US ambivalence, China scaling renewables fast
11:21 AI in Industrial Tech: From power-hungry models to agentic AI: where real productivity gains are emerging and what’s still hype.
16:02 Robotics: Hype vs. reality: Why humanoid robots won’t take over factories (yet) — and where automation truly moves the needle.
21:57 Adoption Hurdles: Why industrial tech moves slower than SaaS, and how smart VCs help bridge the gap between pilots and production.
24:37 AI & Jobs: Creative destruction or just destruction? How Europe, the US, and China are charting radically different paths.
33:18 Regulation: Europe’s protective instinct: how the EU’s AI Act balances innovation with oversight - for better and for worse.
40:27 Startups × Corporates: Why pilots fail, and how KOMPAS VC brokers real commercial traction
44:48 KOMPAS VC Fund II: New bets, Makersite’s standout Series B, and how the firm is deepening its industrial tech thesis.
45:54 Specialist vs Generalist VCs: Why Europe needs deep domain VCs working alongside generalist syndicates to build lasting industry platforms.
48:52 Magic Wand Policy: Pension capital reform and risk appetite as Europe’s bottlenecks
51:09 It’s Not Founders, it’s the Ecosystem: Employees, customers, regulators, and LPs — everyone needs to lean in if Europe is to lead.

Welcome back to the EUVC Podcast, where we bring you the people and perspectives shaping European venture.

Today we’re joined by Lucanus Polagnoli (Founding Partner & CEO) and Stephanie Urbanski (Managing Director) of Calm/Storm — a specialist early-stage fund backing software-only digital health across Europe. Fresh off the close of Fund II, we dive into how they’ve evolved from a solo-GP experiment into a community-powered platform, why they keep the scope digital-only, and how they navigate regulation, AI and the post-COVID reality without losing the plot.

🎯 This Episode’s Themes

Same, same — but sharper: Fund II doubles down on pre-seed/seed, software-only digital health, with bigger checks and higher ownership.
Community as a product: 60+ “supporting partners” and 110+ LPs powering 100+ co-invests — founder-to-founder help on demand.
Specialist by design: Why digital health (no molecules, no hardware) lets a small fund move fast and add tangible value.
Regulation ≠ roadblock: In health, approvals can protect moats — if you have the patience and the cash plan.
AI without the buzzwords: Companion to clinicians, not a replacement; curated, longitudinal data beats generic LLM advice.
Europe’s moment (still): Later-stage money does show up now; e-prescriptions and rails are here; US health is just as complex.
Logo gravity matters: Follow-on quality (Sequoia, Balderton, Creandum et al.) is the strongest portfolio predictor.

⏱️ Here’s what’s covered

00:24 | Names & origins - how to say “Polagnoli” (and why words matter)
01:24 | Fund II - same stage/sector/geo; larger tickets (€400–500k initial), higher ownership, co-lead when conviction is high
03:30 | Supporting partners - 60+ founder-operators + LPs as an on-call help network
05:45 | Why Calm/Storm - the gap they saw in 2019; launching Feb 5, 2020, right before the pandemic wave
08:52 | Post-COVID reality - rails stayed (e-scripts, digital flows), tourists left; real followers now fund B/C rounds in Europe
11:08 | Longevity & prevention - out-of-pocket willingness, AI unlocking insights from dormant data
13:21 | Team split - Stefanie’s operator engine + community execution; Lucanus on strategy and navigation
16:10 | Why digital-only - software speed, small teams, low capex; pass on molecules/hardware for fund construction reasons
22:45 | Regulation as moat - ThinkSono’s 8-year climb on DVT ultrasound automation; Europe vs. US complexity myths
26:44 | AI in health - pattern recognition, prep and triage; risks of generic LLMs for personal diagnosis
31:10 | Adoption & incentives - public vs. private delivery, prevention economics, and Europe’s risk-capital bottleneck
36:26 | Where AI wins first - curated data, longitudinal monitoring, workflow copilots; the missing top-10 health app
42:58 | Community receipts - burnout averted, board-level engagements, LPs turning co-investors
45:27 | Portfolio & follow-ons - Nelly, Lindus, 9am Health; why “who picks you up” predicts outcomes
48:56 | Exit math & fund design - earlier liquidity via M&A/secondaries; co-lead over “winner-takes-all”; stay early-stage by choice

Welcome to a new episode of the EUVC Podcast, where our good friends Dan Bowyer, Mads Jensen, Lomax Ward, andAndrew Beebe(Managing Director at Obvious Ventures) dig into the headlines shaping Europe’s venture, policy, and tech future.

This week, the crew dives deep into automation and AI’s real-world impact:
Amazon’s plans to replace half a million jobs with robots, the question of whether AI can truly spark a new industrial revolution in Europe, the UK’s new AI sandbox experiment, and an update on the long-awaited 28th Regime—the EU’s bid for a unified startup entity.

They also unpack China’s automation surge, Europe’s productivity crisis, and whether policy and politics are keeping pace with the technology curve.

🎧 Here’s what’s covered

00:24 Amazon’s Robot Push - Replacing 500,000+ jobs with automation — what it means for Europe’s workforce and competitiveness.

05:26 Automation & Employment - Europe’s 31M manufacturing workers, Germany’s 80% robotized auto sector, and whether job “shifts” beat displacement.

09:37 Productivity & Policy Tension - Can Europe keep up as Asia deploys 70% of new industrial robots? And how do we balance growth with labor protection?

16:00 AI’s Second Industrial Revolution - John Thornhill’s “Industrial Revolution 2.0” thesis — does Europe have the institutional capacity to absorb and profit from AI?

21:24 Enterprise AI Failure Modes - Why 50–75% of AI implementations flop — and why it’s a skills and structure problem, not a tech one.

26:05 White Collar Co-Pilots - AI as enabler, not replacer — from doctors to lawyers — and why the change must happen at human speed.

28:00 China’s Lead & Europe’s Complacency - China’s robot factories, biotech dominance, and why European policymakers “don’t feel the fire.”

34:15 Politics & Technocracy - Why Europe needs tech-literate leaders before the next wave of disruption turns social.

38:00 UK’s AI Sandbox - A new initiative to let startups test AI in the wild — but is it another FCA-style fix or a token gesture?

41:30 AI in the NHS - Where regulatory sandboxes could actually work — in diagnostics, admin automation, and cutting waiting lists.

48:00 EU’s 28th Regime - A pan-European startup entity proposal — regulation vs. directive, and whether it can fix the admin drag across borders.

55:00 The German Bottleneck - How 200+ local laws still choke innovation — and why fixing Germany alone could free €800M+ annually.

59:00 Deal of the Week: CoalMine - Plural backs UK brain-computer interface startup CoalMine with a $102M Series A — Europe’s Neuralink moment.

Welcome back to another episode of the EUVC Podcast, where we bring you the people and perspectives shaping European venture.

Today, we’re joined by Alexandre Mars, the French entrepreneur and philanthropist behind Blisce, one of Europe’s pioneering B Corp-certified venture funds. From bootstrapping his first business at 17 to building and selling multiple startups across Europe and the US, Alexander has seen both sides of the entrepreneurial journey — the grind and the freedom.

In this conversation, we explore his evolution from founder to impact investor, the trade-offs between wealth and purpose, the challenge of defining “impact” in venture capital, and why Europe’s next tech era will depend on bridging public policy, capital, and purpose.

🎧 Here’s What’s Covered:
00:19 | Welcome & Origin Story — From a 17-year-old entrepreneur to serial founder and philanthropist
02:37 | Freedom Redefined — What “no boss” really means when clients become your new one
05:44 | Sacrifice & Grind — Why success without discipline doesn’t exist
08:12 | From Founder to Investor — The transition from building to backing
11:03 | Birth of Blisce — From family office to impact VC
13:32 | Series A to B Sweet Spot — Why Blisce focuses on post-revenue scale-ups
15:08 | Returns & Responsibility — Outperforming funds while doing good
17:21 | The Problem with Defining Impact — Why dogma kills nuance
21:05 | Europe vs. US — Risk, failure, and ambition across cultures
25:47 | The Role of Tech in Society — Investing with purpose, not just profit
28:19 | Sovereignty & Scale — Europe’s AI and data independence moment
31:02 | Policy & Venture — Why investors can’t stay silent in the public debate
34:29 | Paris as a Rising Hub — Why France is building something real this time

This week, Andreas Munk Holm and Jeppe Høier sit down with Matti Rönkkö, Managing Director of Kiilto Ventures, the venture arm of Finnish family-owned Kiilto.

From Rocket Internet to running a corporate-backed, family-owned venture arm, Matti shares how Kiilto Ventures blends family capital, industry know-how, and VC pace to back startups in the sustainable built environment. They dive into portfolio examples, CVC vs VC dynamics, co-investing with generalists, and why superior product performance at price parity is the only path forward in climate and construction tech.

🎧 Here’s what’s covered:

00:30 – Cold open & setup: why this is a “CVC episode”
01:00 – Who is Matti? From Rocket Internet & scale-ups to Kiilto Ventures
02:00 – What is Kiilto Ventures: mandate, geography, and ownership model
04:56 – CVC, VC, or family office? Matti’s “best-of-all-worlds” answer
07:30 – How Kiilto’s mothership helps: labs, chemists, and customer intros
10:44 – Rocket Internet lessons: speed, scale, and culture
18:12 – The built environment’s big four problems: carbon, circularity, health, inefficiency
20:25 – Portfolio snapshots: Recoma, Nobody Engineering, Acembee
24:21 – Co-investing & partnerships: specialists + generalists, and when offtakes make sense
37:27 – Macro & climate politics: why only price-parity products will win

In this episode, Andreas Munk Holm speaks with Anders Kjær, General Partner at PSV Hafnium, Denmark’s first dedicated deep tech fund. Together, they explore the evolving role of technical founders, the Nordic research-industrial complex, and how early-stage deep tech capital needs to work differently to unlock tomorrow’s transformative companies.

Here’s what’s covered:

01:30 Why PSV Hafnium Was Built—and the Deep Tech Opportunity in the Nordics
04:13 PSV Hafnium as a Symbol of Deep Tech: The Element & the Brand
08:24 Turning Research into Portfolio Power: DTU's Role in Diligence & Support
10:19 Can a Copenhagen-Based Fund Compete Across the New Nordics?
14:26 Nordic Tech Clusters: Are There Regional Strengths or Pure Serendipity?
19:43 Bio Solutions, Green Energy & Industrial Legacy: Why Deep Tech Thrives Here
21:15 Sciencepreneurs Rising: Shifting Founder Mindsets in Deep Tech
24:52 How PSV Hafnium Gauges Entrepreneurial Readiness in Deep Tech Teams
27:44 What Generalist VCs Get Right—and Wrong—About Deep Tech
30:18 What “European Resilience” Actually Means at the Early Stage
36:18 The Common Thread in All Deep Tech Bets (Hint: It’s Not Sector)
42:09 Bridge Rounds in Deep Tech: A True Test of Conviction
45:53 Rapid Fire: Nordic Bets, Myths to Kill, & Advice to Scientist Founders

Welcome to a new episode of the EUVC Podcast, where our good friends Dan Bowyer and Mads Jensen from SuperSeed are joined by Lomax Ward from Outsized Ventures and Ben Prade, investor & operator at Bullhound Capital (the investment arm of GP Bullhound), for an unfiltered look at Europe’s venture reality: fundraising pain, secondaries-as-a-service, AI’s power hunger, China’s “dark factories,” and how Europe unlocks the capital to compete.

Ben focuses on deep tech, AI, quantum, and space, and he brings a clear-eyed view on how liquidity, secondaries, and structural headwinds are reshaping the market.

🎧 Here’s what’s covered

02:35 Fundraising reality: fewer funds, flight to brands
Why ~25% of new VC money goes to the top 10 brands; what that means for emerging managers; and why DPI is king again.
05:26 Sovereign LPs & strings attached
When government money shapes mandates: the upside (more capital) and the risk (policy over performance).
06:45 Chinks of light: Klarna & liquidity
How high-profile exits (and lock-ups ending) can recycle cash back into European VC.
09:37 Goldman buys Industry Ventures
Why a Wall Street giant wants secondary data + wealth distribution — and how that can unclog LP portfolios.
13:08 Nobel Prize & growth mechanics
Creative destruction (Aghion–Howitt) meets realpolitik: state de-risking, catch-up industrialization, and China’s “build both infra and innovation” model.
21:24 AI’s “everything app” moment
OpenAI’s ~30 GW compute plan (> $1T decade CapEx), Google’s ad-cash advantage, and the looming pricing showdown.
25:09 Circularity vs. reality
Vendor-financing analogies in AI, but remember: revenue expectations — not loops — pop bubbles.
28:03 Unit economics: AI ≠ SaaS
Negative gross margins down the stack; LLMs climbing into apps; why vertical data + UX decide winners.
32:02 China’s dark factories
Execs return “shaken”: robotized plants, BYD’s surge, and how physical AI (motors, batteries, autonomy) changes competitiveness.
39:29 Unleashing Europe’s capital
JP Morgan’s $1.5T initiative vs. European pensions stuck in gov bonds; rewiring incentives to fund productive risk.
45:00 Deal of the Week: ecoRobotix
€90M Series D (Highland Europe, McWin). Precision AI spraying that cuts herbicides/pesticides by up to 95% across 20+ countries.

Welcome back to the EUCVC Summit Talks, where we spotlight Europe’s corporate venture leaders, founders, and academics shaping the future of venture collaboration.

In this episode, Francesco Di Lorenzo, Associate Professor at Copenhagen Business School, takes the stage to share fresh research on the state of corporate venture capital (CVC) in the Nordics. From Sweden to Denmark, Francesco explores how corporates are experimenting with different venturing models, what makes CVC effective, and why Nordic corporates are some of Europe’s most important venture partners.

Rather than polished slides, Francesco offers candid reflections from the Summit itself: the open questions corporates face, the trade-offs in structuring CVC units, and why cultural change in the boardroom is key if corporate venturing is to succeed long-term.

🎧 Here’s what’s covered

00:00 Nordic snapshot — Why the region punches above its weight in tech and CVC.
01:00 Tools beyond CVC — Incubators, accelerators, and venture clienting: complementary or conflicting?
03:00 The CVC effect — Beyond capital: what corporates bring to the table (and why it matters).
05:00 Measuring success — Why CVC units last only 3.7 years on average and the difficulty of proving ROI.
07:00 Smart money vs. just money — How engineer exchanges and board participation can be more impactful than capital alone.
08:00 Venture clienting — A rising model where corporates act as first customers instead of investors—and the risks it carries.
10:00 Governance cycles — Why CVC units live and die with CEO tenure, and why board-level protection is essential.
11:00 Collaboration vs. competition — What data says about corporates co-investing (and when they don’t).
13:00 Nordic findings — Early results from research in Norway, Finland, and Sweden: small portfolios, early-stage focus, and bureaucracy as the top blocker.
14:00 AI paradox — Corporates investing in AI startups but cutting internal AI budgets—what this signals for the future.

Welcome back to the EUCVC Summit Talks, where we bring you candid conversations with Europe’s leading founders, corporate leaders, and investors shaping the future of venture collaboration.

In this session, Christian Tang, Partner at San Francisco–based Acme, and Claus Gregersen, CEO of the 275-year-old evergreen investor Augustinus Fabrikker, explore what global ambition really means in today’s venture landscape.

From recalibrating US expansion strategies to navigating sovereignty, trade tensions, and structural resets, they unpack how investors and founders must adapt to thrive in a more complex—but still interconnected—world.

🎧 Here’s what’s covered:

00:00 Setting the stage: Cycles, crises, and why this downturn feels different.
02:00 Structural reset, not just another downturn—why waiting for “normal” is not an option.
03:30 Investors as navigators, not moral arbiters—what it means in practice.
04:15 Why the US remains critical: learning, scaling, and surviving tough competition.
06:00 Page nine of every pitch deck: the inevitable US expansion slide.
07:20 Trade tensions vs. venture building—why early-stage models aren’t derailed by politics.
08:30 The importance of value-adding capital—choose partners for impact, not geography.
09:15 Lessons from COVID and defense: building lean, fast, and resilient.
10:00 Closing thoughts: capital may be scarcer, but ambition must remain global.

Welcome back to the EUCVC Summit Talks, where we bring you candid conversations with Europe’s leading founders, corporate leaders, and investors shaping the future of venture collaboration.

In this episode, Anne C. Fleischer, Global VP of Consumer Engagement and New Business Models at Novo Nordisk, joins Henrijette Richter, Managing Partner at Sofinnova Partners, for a conversation on the future of health innovation.

Together they explore how corporates and VCs are driving the next wave of digital health, the role of AI in transforming patient care, and what it takes to turn breakthrough science into scalable business models.

🎧 Here’s what’s covered:

00:00 Pharma’s digital leap — why Novo Nordisk is going “beyond the pill” with AI and personalized engagement.
01:30 The investor’s lens — what makes AI-driven health fundable versus “still a science project”.
03:00 AI at the patient interface — where machine learning is closest to real-world integration.
04:30 Corporate + VC collaboration — how pharma and venture can align (and where they clash).
06:00 Scaling deeptech in health — what it takes for startups to go global from day one.
07:30 Consumerization of health — balancing trust, privacy, and the impatience economy.
08:45 Europe’s edge — strengths in science and regulation, risks of falling behind the U.S..
09:30 Lightning round — the next big thing in health innovation: specificity for patients.

Corporate venture capital has become a $100B+ force in tech. Charlie Hayward from Global Corporate Venturing unpacks what’s really driving the trend: which sectors are heating up, where CVCs make a difference, and how Europe stacks up under capital constraints and geopolitical pressure.

Here’s what’s covered:

00:00 – Setting the stage: CVC as a $100B+ global force
01:00 – Why corporate venture matters: from Microsoft’s outlier story to the role of corporate backers
03:00 – Active CVC units: stock performance and why entrepreneurs should care
04:00 – Lower bankruptcy risk & higher exit multiples for CVC-backed startups
05:00 – State of play: fundraising headwinds, but CVCs take the long-term view
05:30 – Early-stage shift: corporates getting active in seed & pre-seed rounds
06:00 – Global hotspots: Latin America and APAC showing strong momentum
07:00 – What CVCs bring: board seats, portfolio support, but still lighter on financial-return expectations
08:00 – Who plays the game: large corporates with $1B+ revenues dominate, but LP stakes open doors for smaller players
09:00 – New frontiers: universities, accelerators, and venture clienting as the next CVC battlegrounds

Welcome back to the EUCVC Summit Talks, where we bring you candid conversations with Europe’s leading founders, corporate leaders, and investors shaping the future of venture collaboration.

In this session, Marcus Behrendt, Managing Director at BMW i Ventures, and Nicole LeBlanc, Partner at Woven Capital (Toyota’s global growth fund), join Andreas Munk Holm to explore the shifting landscape of mobility and corporate venture.

From navigating capital-intensive hardware bets to finding the balance between strategic alignment and financial discipline, Marcus and Nicole share what they’ve learned running two of the world’s most active mobility CVCs. They open up on exits, collaboration with startups, and how CVCs must evolve to remain relevant in an era of autonomous, connected, and electrified vehicles.

🎧 Here’s what’s covered:

00:00 BMW i Ventures’ journey from corporate “experiment” to one of Europe’s most established mobility CVCs.
01:00 Woven Capital’s global mandate — $800M to invest in growth-stage companies shaping the future of mobility.
02:00 Strategic vs. financial returns: how to keep credibility with founders while serving corporate parents.
04:00 The hard part of hardware — why scaling in mobility takes patient capital and operational backing.
06:00 Startups + corporates = frictions and opportunities — lessons from portfolio collaborations.
08:00 Exit realities: IPO droughts, M&A dynamics, and how mobility startups find liquidity.
10:00 The next decade of CVC in mobility: sustainability, AI, and cross-border collaboration.

Welcome back to another episode of the EUVC Podcast, where we bring you the people and perspectives shaping European venture.

Today, we’re joined by Alexey Plesakov and Alexander Lis from Social Discovery Ventures (SDV) — a quietly influential, globally active investment firm deploying capital across the US and Europe. Born out of the bootstrapped success of Social Discovery Group (the company behind Dating.com), SDV invests in both funds and directs, with a venture allocation far above the family office norm.

We dive into their origin story, why they’re leaning into Europe now, their approach to fund vs. direct investments, and how they think about the future of VC in a more uncertain macro climate.

🎯 This Episode’s Themes:

From bootstrapped dating giant to global LP & VC player
Why diversification isn’t just about having “more investments”
How they balance US vs. European VC allocations
The case for emerging managers — and the collaboration edge they offer
Where they see the biggest bets in European tech over the next decade
Why they’re playing more conservatively in 2025 — without stopping deal flow
Lessons from building lean — and the “Five Whys” test for cutting through hype

🎧 Here’s what’s covered:

00:24 | Welcome & Origin Story: From Dating.com to a global investment portfolio
01:24 | Bootstrapping a Unicorn: How Social Discovery Group scaled without outside capital
04:38 | The Myth of Diversification: Quality over quantity in portfolio construction
06:19 | Why 30%+ of Their Assets Are in Venture Capital
08:44 | Leveraging Network Effects: How their IT roots give them an edge in sourcing deals
09:31 | VC Fund Portfolio: From NEA & Khosla to emerging managers like Davydov & Black River
14:26 | US vs. Europe: Why their overall portfolio skews 70% US but VC is more balanced
15:55 | Emerging Managers vs. Big Names: Risk, return, and picking the right early funds
19:41 | Big Picture Bets: Tariffs, decoupling, and a possible US–Europe tech split
22:31 | Direct Investment Focus: Fintech, PSD3, and voice-first neobanking
25:07 | Macro vs. Micro: Combining top-down analysis with bottom-up deal work
27:05 | Playing Defense in 2025: Why they’re slowing deployment without stopping pipeline building
30:23 | European VC Arbitrage: Lower valuations — until growth takes off
34:23 | Bootstrapping Lessons: Discipline, burn control, and ROI-driven decisions
35:25 | The “Five Whys” Test: Cutting through hype to find fundamentally sound investments

With: Nicholas Nelson (Archangel) • Dan • Lomax • MadsTL;DW• Defence-first wins on capability and returns; primes are partners and channels.• Helsing: buys platforms/revenue for access; layers AI—different from Anduril’s buy-TRL-tech + scale model.• Beyond drones: biggest gap/opportunity is tactical EW.• Procurement: more fast lanes (SOF, pilots); primes getting easier to work with.• AI: real profits exist (esp. NVIDIA), but value chain is fragile; expect a correction, not a collapse. Picking winners more important than timing.Content with Time Codes02:40 — Why defence-firstBeats dual-use on outcomes and returns; lifelong focus.04:32 — DefinitionsCustomer = MoDs + primes; aim: lethality/readiness and societal resilience. Beware “defence-washing”.06:37 — What’s hotAvoid herd to drones only; counter-UAS, EW, human performance, deception, survivability.08:23 — Helsing buys GrobNeo-prime play: new co buys legacy manufacturing for platform access.10:42 — The two Defence M&A playbooksAnduril: buys mid-TRL tech (Area-I, Dive LD/Ghost Shark, Adranos) → scales via brand/distribution.Helsing: buys finished products/revenue (Mittelstand) → immediate customers; then add AI.14:25 — Prime status & capitalDistribution + capital to AI-enable platforms.17:47 — Roll-up vs buildNarrative “build”; execution “roll-up + build”.19:47 — Drones & ‘drone wall’Layered answer: blunt with drones, hold with conventional forces.21:49 — The big one: Electronic Warfare (EW)NATO underinvested; tactical EW is the unmet need; legacy kit is ’80s/’90s.24:54 — Startup wedgePut EW at the edge (drones/aircraft/fixed) → near-term wins.26:33 — Baltic realismHistory, 2007–09 Estonia cyber, current incursions; likely Kaliningrad corridor.28:19 — Founder mistakesTech ≠ win by itself; experience + gov engagement matters; US analogue: top funds have IC/SOF DNA.30:43 — Are there really only a “Few buyers?”Many real buyers inside a MoD/DoD (services, sub-units, innovation orgs).36:23 — Sovereignty & US primesUS strategics will buy abroad; Europe balancing autonomy with jobs/exits.41:07 — Starlink vs IRIS²Starlink’s lead + cadence; IRIS² slower—watch timelines vs evolving threats.47:18 — AI bubble?Warnings vs fundamentals; self-funded capex; real profits.49:37 — NVIDIA ramp$4.4B (2023) → $73B this year; growth tempers multiples.51:48 — AI Circular money & marginsCursor → Anthropic → hyperscalers → NVIDIA; only NVIDIA mints big margins; margin pressure coming (new semis, China, SLMs).53:12 — Picking beats timingDot-com lesson: Cisco losses vs Amazon wins.54:19 — Capacity vs efficiencyCapex likely useful long-run, but open source squeezes costs.55:52 — Platform riskFrontier labs moving up-stack; vertical AI + trust + data = moat.58:58 — Base caseLikely correction (30–50%) at some point; timing is unknowable (not investment advice).

Welcome back to the EUCVC Summit Talks, where we bring you the voices shaping Europe’s venture and corporate collaboration landscape.

In this episode, Andreas Munk Holm speaks with Tanja Lind Melskens, Head of Corporate Strategy and M&A at Terma, Denmark’s tier-one defense technology group. As Europe re-arms and defense spending surges, Tanja shares how startups, corporates, and investors must rethink dual-use technology, navigate inflated wartime valuations, and prepare for the post-conflict market.

From frontline innovation in Ukraine to the challenges of ESG in defense tech, this conversation sheds light on one of the most important—and controversial—frontiers for venture collaboration.

00:00 Europe’s re-armament: rising budgets, real opportunities—and inflated valuations.
01:30 Ukraine as the “Silicon Valley of defense tech”: 4 million drones a year and frontline R&D.
03:00 Why startups must prepare for the post-conflict market, not just donation-driven sales.
04:30 Terma’s Kyiv subsidiary and partnerships with Ukrainian startups.
06:00 Drone wars and critical infrastructure: protecting energy, transport, and hospitals.
07:00 ESG in defense: compliance vs. survival in frontline innovation.
08:00 Risks no VC faces: working with founders whose survival is uncertain.

💡 One-liner takeaway: Europe’s defense tech boom is real but risky—success depends on bridging frontline innovation with post-conflict markets, and balancing ESG ideals with the brutal realities of war.

Welcome back to the EUCVC Summit Talks, where we bring you candid conversations with Europe’s leading founders, corporate leaders, and investors shaping the future of venture collaboration.

In this session, Andreas Munk Holm is joined by Crispin Leick, Managing Director of EnBW New Ventures, Georg Reifferscheid, Head of Sustainability Ventures at REWE Group, and Jeppe Høier. Together, they explore how corporates are deploying capital, rethinking supply chains, and integrating AI to tackle Europe’s most urgent challenge: the energy transition.

From evergreen venture models to decarbonizing retail operations, the discussion dives deep into how industrial and consumer giants are investing, where capital is moving fastest, and why success still depends on aligning financial and strategic incentives.

🎧 Here’s what’s covered

00:00 The energy transition is here — Europe’s corporates on the frontlines.
01:00 Evergreen VC at EnBW New Ventures — why Crispin calls it the “best decision ever.”
03:00 REWE Group’s sustainability mandate — tackling scope 1, 2, and 3 emissions.
05:00 Where venture capital meets infrastructure — smarter, more capital-efficient deployment.
06:00 AI in energy — real-world use cases from batteries to trading algorithms.
07:00 Cooling, HVAC, and sustainable construction — REWE’s innovation priorities.
08:00 Financial return first — why strategic impact only follows startup success.
09:00 Incentives matter — why carry and financial alignment are make-or-break in CVC.

✍️ Show Notes

Evergreen Model at EnBW New Ventures

Unlike closed-end CVC funds, EnBW’s evergreen structure reinvests all exit proceeds into new startups.
This creates stronger alignment with founders and sharper accountability for the investment team.
Crispin: “It’s the best decision we made in nine years — we’re entrepreneurs ourselves.”

Decarbonizing Retail at REWE Group

Sustainability ventures are embedded directly in operations.
Current focus: scope 1 & 2 emissions (energy, mobility, buildings).
Scope 3 (supply chain) remains the hardest challenge due to missing data and supplier dependency.

AI in Energy

Not chasing LLMs or infrastructure — instead focusing on applied AI.
Examples: battery analytics for health monitoring; algorithmic trading in intraday power markets.

Innovation Priorities at REWE

Cooling and HVAC with natural refrigerants.
Alternative building materials (wood, green concrete).
Greener retail store construction.

Financial First, Strategic Second

For both corporates, financial returns are non-negotiable.
Strategic impact only comes if startups succeed.
Incentives (including carry) are key for aligning CVC teams with true financial discipline.

💡 One-liner takeaway: The energy transition needs corporates that invest like VCs — financially disciplined, strategically relevant, and willing to back startups tackling Europe’s toughest infrastructure and sustainability challenges.

Welcome back to the EUCVC Summit Talks, where we bring you ground-level conversations with the founders, corporate leaders, and investors shaping Europe’s innovation future.

In this episode, Andreas Munk Holm sits down with Nadia Carlsten, VP at DCAI, and Bjarke Ruse Sejrsen, CEO of Go Autonomous, to explore how Europe is putting AI hype into practice. From Denmark’s launch of the Gefion supercomputer to startups training proprietary models, this conversation dives into the reality of building AI factories that deliver business value — and what it will take for Europe to compete globally.

Nadia shares why compute sovereignty matters and how Denmark is positioning itself as a hub for large-scale AI innovation, while Bjarke explains how Go Autonomous trained the world’s first B2B foundation model — and why European startups need braver investors to seize the AI-native future.

🎧 Here’s what’s covered:

00:00 Forget the AI hype — why compute sovereignty matters for Denmark and Europe.
01:40 From infrastructure to innovation — Nadia on how Gefion enables Danish startups and researchers.
02:15 Go Autonomous’ leap — Bjarke on training the world’s first B2B foundation model.
03:20 Scale in action — handling €30B annually with tailor-made AI.
04:00 Adoption gap — Nadia on why Denmark must accelerate real-world AI use cases.
05:20 Capital mindset — Bjarke on why Europe lags the U.S. in risky AI-native investments.
06:30 Investor responsibility — Nadia on knowing which startups are fine-tuning vs. building foundational models.
07:30 Green AI — Europe’s unique advantage: pairing supercomputing with sustainability.
08:15 The missing link — Nadia on translating business ambition into compute-ready AI projects.
09:00 Corporate + startup collaboration — Bjarke on why structured partnerships could be Europe’s AI superpower.

Welcome back to the EUCVC Summit Talks, where we bring you candid conversations with Europe’s leading founders, corporate leaders, and investors shaping the future of venture collaboration.

In this session, Sead Bajrovic of Water Impact Partners and Gijs de Bruin of PureTerra Ventures take the stage to unpack one of the most overlooked challenges in climate investing: water. From scarcity and pollution to corporate resilience and trillion-dollar opportunities, they explain why water technology must become a central pillar of Europe’s impact and climate strategy.

🎧 Here’s what’s covered

00:00 Why water is the “oil that runs everything” — and why it’s undervalued.
01:00 The hard facts: only 0.3% of Earth’s water is accessible, and demand will outstrip supply by 40% by 2030.
02:30 Legacy systems can’t cope — why centralized water treatment is failing.
04:00 Corporate risk: data centers, manufacturing, and the Amazon Arizona case.
05:00 Who’s leading: Apple, BASF, and L’Oréal’s water stewardship programs.
06:00 Investment shift — from niche impact to mainstream VCs entering water.
07:00 UN data: every $1 invested in water resilience returns $7.
08:00 Innovation spotlight: AI, software, and applied technologies for efficiency.
09:00 The most disruptive thing? Corporates putting real money into water.

Welcome back to the EUCVC Summit Talks, where we bring you candid conversations with Europe’s leading founders, corporate leaders, and investors shaping the future of venture collaboration.

In this session, Andreas Munk Holm speaks with Bodil Sidén, Founding Partner at Kost Capital, and Marika King, Head of PINC, the venture arm of Paulig. Together, they explore how Europe can reinvent food systems to feed 10 billion people by 2050—without destroying the planet.

From test kitchens and Michelin chefs in VC funds, to evergreen corporate models and the hunt for plastic-free packaging, Bodil and Marika share their unique approaches to food and agri-tech investing, the biggest opportunities ahead, and what they look for in founders building the future of food.

🎧 Here’s what’s covered

00:00 Feeding 10 billion people by 2050 — why food is “different” and needs a new venture model.
01:00 Inside Kost Capital’s test kitchen — from Michelin chefs to food historians in due diligence.
02:00 PINC’s evergreen model — why speed and long-term capital matter for food innovation.
03:00 Execution over ideas — why market obsession beats product obsession.
04:00 The secret sauce: validating food science claims in real time.
05:00 When corporates add value without killing agility — the good and bad of CVC in food tech.
06:00 The holy grail: plastic-free packaging that behaves like plastic.
07:00 Big bets today: green fertilizers, bio-controls, smart water, and sustainable agriculture.
08:00 AI as an enabler — cutting costs and accelerating product development.
09:00 Food, health & nutrition — the rise of sustainable fatty acids, vitamins, and bio-based aromas.

Welcome back to the EUCVC Summit Talks, where we bring you candid conversations with Europe’s leading founders, corporate leaders, and investors shaping the future of venture collaboration.

In this episode, Samuli Sirén, Managing Partner at Redstone, joins Andreas Munk Holm to explore how data-driven deal sourcing is reshaping venture capital. Redstone has spent nearly a decade building Sophia, its proprietary analytics platform, to track trends, identify group dynamics, and map startup opportunities long before they show up on mainstream radars.

From the promise and limits of AI in scouting to the common mistakes corporates make in startup sourcing, Samuli pulls back the curtain on what works, what doesn’t, and how data can give investors an edge without replacing human judgment.

🎧 Here’s what’s covered

00:00 Data, hype, and reality — is algorithmic deal flow just LP marketing or a real sourcing edge?
01:00 Building Sophia: Redstone’s proprietary database for mapping opportunities
02:00 Identifying groups and dynamics — why trends matter more than picking a single winner
03:00 From regulation to signals: how legal shifts and new markets trigger clusters of startups
04:00 Geography and global scope — why national champions rarely scale, and why global is better
05:00 Corporate mistakes in sourcing — overfocusing on core business and overestimating their value
06:00 Doing it right: how corporate LPs can learn, stay hands-off, and still gain massive value
07:00 Lessons from Redstone’s fintech funds — German banks as LPs and the power of curiosity

Welcome back to EUVC Live in Malmö, where we bring you unfiltered conversations and reflections from the people shaping Europe’s venture ecosystem.

As the day closed, Andreas Munk Holm, co-founder of EUVC, took the stage for the final word — a candid reflection on where real power comes from and what Europe’s venture community must do next.

Throughout the day, speakers discussed sovereignty, collaboration, and Europe’s industrial future. Andreas’ message cut through with urgency: if we want Europe to lead, we can’t stop at innovation — we must step into politics.

He pointed to the example of the United States, where the tech ecosystem has rallied around political power, influenced policy, and put its candidates into office. The takeaway? Values matter, but influence requires engagement — and Europe’s founders and investors need to find their voice in the political arena.

🎧 Here’s what’s covered:

00:30 Closing thanks — to Sophia for orchestrating EUVC Live, to Jeppe for bringing it to life, and to Nicole and Team Woven for backing Team Europe.
01:00 Europe’s mood — sovereignty, collaboration, and the belief that unity is power.
01:30 The missing ingredient — understanding that real power doesn’t just come from technology or capital, but from politics.
02:00 Lessons from the U.S. — how tech rallied around a candidate, won power, and now shapes national policy from within the system.
02:30 The power of lobbying — Andreessen Horowitz’s largest internal team today isn’t marketing or hiring — it’s policy and lobbying.
03:00 The challenge for Europe — we have the values and the vision, but not yet the political infrastructure or courage to act collectively.
03:30 The call to action — for VCs, founders, and ecosystem leaders to step up, take a side, and engage politically to secure Europe’s future.

Welcome back to EUVC Live in Malmö, where we bring you unfiltered conversations with the voices shaping Europe’s venture ecosystem.

In this session, Nick de la Forge, Partner at Planet A Ventures, takes the stage to share insights from an eye-opening field trip through China’s climate and hardware startup ecosystem.

Nick’s story begins with a simple question: what if we’re wrong about China’s advantage? — and ends with a humbling realization of just how fast and how efficiently the world’s largest manufacturing ecosystem now moves.

Joined by fellow investors from 2150, Energy Impact Partners, and Compass, Nick toured factories, startups, and hyperscalers like CATL and BYD, witnessing firsthand what “scale” really looks like. The takeaway? Europe’s biggest competitor isn’t just cheaper — it’s faster, leaner, and far more integrated.

🎧 Here’s what’s covered:

00:30 Why China — what sparked the trip, who joined, and how a week-long “Disneyland of hardware” tour changed everything.
01:30 Inside the factory visits — from solid-state batteries to precision fermentation, startups founded just 3–5 years ago already hitting $30–60M in revenue.
02:30 The myth of state subsidy — why cheap labor and government handouts aren’t what’s driving China’s success.
03:00 The real drivers of scale
04:30 Capital efficiency at another level — $20M raised, $40M revenue, full-scale factories operational within 24 months.
05:00 What Europe can learn — humility, realism, and the need to choose its battles wisely.
05:30 Competing with China = playing Djokovic at tennis — pick a different game. Find niches in ultra-high-precision manufacturing and advanced polymers where Europe still leads.
06:30 The founder takeaway — every European hardware founder should go to China, see it, and learn from it firsthand.
07:00 Managing IP risk — why sourcing below component level is the new best practice for protecting innovation.
07:30 The role reversal — 20 years ago, China came to Europe to learn. Today, Europeans visit China in awe.
08:00 Europe’s opportunity — use China’s speed as leverage: source smarter, integrate faster, and turn dependency into advantage.
08:30 Final message — be humble, be smart, and keep perspective: Europe has world-class science and talent — but must learn to play to its strengths.

Welcome back to EUVC Live in Malmö, where we bring you unfiltered conversations with the voices shaping Europe’s venture ecosystem.

In this session, Daniel Wiegand, Founding Partner at World Fund, takes the stage with a powerful message: Europe’s strength has always been its ability to turn crisis into collaboration — and it must do so again.

Daniel traces Europe’s journey from the coal and steel community of 1951 to today’s climate and geopolitical challenges. From the fall of the Berlin Wall to COVID and the war in Ukraine, he reminds us that Europe’s greatest leaps have always come from unity, resilience, and investment in shared progress.

Now, as Europe faces an era of “polycrisis” — encompassing war, climate change, supply chain fragility, and tech disruption — Daniel calls for a new act of radical innovation: rebuilding Europe’s industrial leadership through collaboration, deep technology, and climate investment.

🎧 Here’s what’s covered:

00:30 The Coal and Steel Treaty of 1951 — when Europe chose collaboration over conflict.
02:00 From war to unity — Daniel’s personal story of a continent rebuilt through cooperation.
03:00 The “Age of Polycrisis” — or, as Daniel reframes it, the age of opportunity for those who collaborate.
04:00 Europe’s new sovereignty — not armies and flags, but semiconductors, raw materials, data, and AI.
04:30 The hard numbers: 98% of rare earths and 97% of lithium imported; 80% of solar panels made in Asia.
05:30 Europe at risk of becoming a spectator in a game it helped invent — and why collaboration is the antidote.
06:00 Lessons from history — how Europe expanded prosperity after 1989 and launched the NextGenEU fund during COVID.
07:30 Real transformation: cutting Russian gas dependency from 40% to 11% in two years — with renewables as resilience.
08:30 The venture challenge — Europe raises 7x less VC than the US, and only 11% of climate startups reach Series B.
09:00 Hope in motion — from €300M climate funds to €1B+ deep tech and climate vehicles driving the next wave.
09:30 European champions
10:30 The next phase — Europe needs ambitious scale-up capital, public–private partnerships, and a shared mission.
11:00 The call to action — Europe’s story isn’t stagnation; it’s reinvention through unity and belief.

Welcome back to another EUVC Podcast, where we gather Europe’s venture family to share the stories, insights, and lessons that drive our ecosystem forward.

Today we dive into the corporate venturing journey of Georg Reifferscheid, Head of Climate Tech at REWE Group, one of Europe’s largest retailers with €94B in revenue and 350,000 employees. With supermarkets, discount brands, travel agencies, hotels, DIY markets, and more under its umbrella, REWE is a powerhouse — but also a company with massive sustainability challenges.

Georg walks us through how REWE Ventures is structured across four focus areas (Retail Tech, E-Grocery/Mobility, Food Tech, and Climate Tech), why his team is prioritizing cooling, HVAC, and green construction materials, and what it really takes to get startups and corporates to collaborate effectively. From investment strategy and deal stages to the psychology of expectation management, this is a candid look at how a €100B cooperative builds innovation for the next century.

🎧 Here’s what’s covered:

00:10 Introduction: Jeppe welcomes Georg and sets the stage on REWE’s scale and Georg’s unique background.
05:00 Inside REWE Ventures: the four focus areas and how each ties directly into REWE’s business units.
10:00 Climate Tech mandate: from Scope 1 and 2 emissions to why cooling and HVAC are priority #1.
15:00 Investment approach: Series A+ sweet spot, why hardware is front and center, and REWE’s role as a strategic co-investor.
20:00 Diligence process: how technical validation, strategic fit, and M&A teams all come together.
25:00 Strategic vs. financial: Georg on why strategic value add trumps pure returns.
30:00 Building trust inside a corporate: expectation management, psychology, and anecdotes from warehouses and stores.
35:00 Climate Tech Challenge: how REWE screens startups efficiently and generates pilots.
40:00 Portfolio highlights: Project Eden in Food Tech, plus upcoming pilots in cooling technology.
45:00 Lessons for corporates: defining your “why,” building with psychology in mind, and learning that startups and corporates live in different time zones.

Welcome back to EUVC Live in Malmö, where we bring you unfiltered conversations with the voices shaping Europe’s venture ecosystem.

In this session, Jamie Rowles, Partner at Regeneration VC, takes the stage to explore Europe’s role in the global climate transition — and why consumer climate tech might just be the continent’s hidden superpower.

Regeneration VC is a transatlantic early-stage fund investing in what they call consumer climate tech — the intersection of sustainability, circular systems, and the products we touch every day. From fashion and food to electronics and personal care, these industries account for over half of Europe’s GDP and are ripe for climate-driven reinvention.

Jamie makes the case that Europe is the world’s “conscious consumer lab” — home to 450 million affluent consumers, global brands with long-term outlooks, and cultural leadership in taste and sustainability. In a world divided by politics and partisanship, Europe’s climate leadership might emerge not from regulation or tech — but from what people choose to buy.

🎧 Here’s what’s covered:

00:30 From California to Europe — why Regeneration VC shifted its center of gravity across the Atlantic.
01:00 Climate Tech 2.0 — five years in, why the sector still battles skepticism and political headwinds in the US.
02:00 What China has won — manufacturing scale in renewables and batteries — and where Europe still has an edge: brands, culture, and consumers.
02:40 Europe’s $17T consumer market — 450 million developed consumers representing half of Europe’s GDP across food, fashion, electronics, and home care.
03:30 The overlooked industries — fashion’s carbon footprint beats shipping and aviation combined, yet remains underfunded in climate solutions.
04:10 The Regeneration thesis — investing across the value chain “from the molecule to the product and back,” with circularity and regeneration at the core.
04:30 The “movie” metaphor — brands as directors, climate technologies as actors, and consumers as the audience. Changing the script from extractive to regenerative.
05:30 Europe’s unique role — home to the world’s most influential consumer brands, from IKEA to Adidas, that define global taste and culture.
06:00 Taste as system change — when European design and lifestyle drive demand for better, circular products, the world follows.
06:30 Partnerships that matter — why the next decade of climate progress will be built on collaboration between startups and corporates.
07:00 Next-gen materials — microbes dyeing clothes, enzymes digesting plastics, and circular chemistry reshaping trillion-dollar industries.
07:30 The European consumer advantage — more conscious, regulation-aware, and quality-driven than anywhere else in the world.
08:00 Human health = planetary health — how awareness of PFAS and microplastics is shifting mainstream behavior and regulation.
08:30 Regulation as tailwind — why Europe’s high standards and strict product rules accelerate innovation, not stifle it.
09:00 The takeaway — Europe as a living experiment in regenerative consumer capitalism, where culture, capital, and conscience align.

Welcome back to EUVC Live at Malmö, where we bring you unfiltered conversations with the voices shaping Europe’s venture ecosystem.

In this episode, Rokas Pečiulaitis, Founder & Managing Partner at Contrarian Ventures, joins Andreas on stage to unpack one of the most fundamental questions in climate and deep tech: why the technology of today becomes the infrastructure of tomorrow.

Rokas takes us from Rockefeller’s Standard Oil to today’s climate transition, explaining how every technological revolution ends in infrastructure and why venture capital must evolve to bridge the gap between innovation and deployment.

From energy transitions and the rise of China’s solar dominance to why investors must learn to fund the “missing middle” between venture and project finance, Rokas lays out a vision for Europe’s climate future — and a roadmap for how to fund it.

🎧 Here’s what’s covered:

00:30 Standard Oil & the Tech-to-Infra Thesis
How Rockefeller’s oil refinement monopoly explains why technology success always ends in infrastructure dominance.
03:00 From Fossil Fuels to Electrons
Why the next 150 years of global growth will be powered by electrons — and why infrastructure, not IP, will capture the value.
04:30 Bridging Venture and Infra
Why 80% of capital in climate tech will flow into infrastructure — and how founders and VCs must learn to speak both venture and project finance.
05:10 Risk Discipline: Product or Market — Not Both
Rokas’ hard-learned rule for climate investing: if you take both technology and market risk, you end up “in the cemetery.”
06:00 The Wedge Strategy
How to enter consolidated industries like pulp & paper or agriculture — solve one problem, give the solution away, and monetize through embedded transactions.
07:40 Vertical Integration Wins
From Amazon to climate tech: why owning the full stack from technology to infrastructure creates the real moat.
09:00 From Rockefeller to Google
Why today’s tech giants mirror Standard Oil — accumulating monopoly power until the system forces a break-up.
10:30 The Missing Middle in Climate Capital
Why Europe doesn’t have a “growth gap,” but an “emerging infra gap” — and how to fill it with blended venture and project finance.
13:00 China’s Lesson in Scale
How China captured solar’s value by building, not inventing — and what Europe must learn about owning deployment.
14:30 Long Cycles, Real Impact
Why true infrastructure transitions take decades — and why those who get it right redefine economies and history itself.

Welcome to a new episode of the EUVC podcast, where our good friends Dan Bowyer and Mads Jensen from SuperSeed in a discussion with Andrew J. Scott, Founding Partner at 7percent Ventures, cover recent news and movements in the European tech landscape 💬

They debate whether governments should backstop industrial giants, what Germany’s lithium find really means for European sovereignty, and how the venture model itself is being reimagined with AI, secondaries, and multi-product funds.

🎧 Here’s what’s covered:

00:10 Welcome & Quick News
US government shutdown symbolism, Labour’s fading momentum, Apple’s backdoor standoff, OpenAI’s half-trillion valuation, and EF’s pivot to the US.
09:45 Entrepreneur First’s US Shift
Why EF’s consolidation westward feels emotional for Europe — and why Lomax calls it validation of stronger European founders who still need US DNA early.
15:30 Germany’s Lithium Find
A 43-million-ton discovery worth an estimated $600B could cover 50 years of EU demand — if energy costs, extraction tech, and permitting don’t stall it.
22:20 London’s IPO Crisis
The UK drops to #23 globally — behind Mexico, Singapore, and Oman. How pensions, regulation, and lack of tech listings hollowed out the market, and what real fixes look like.
30:20 Governments, Bailouts & Moral Hazard
JLR’s £1.5B loan guarantee and Germany’s €500B stimulus spark debate: when should governments step in, and how to ensure taxpayers get upside and discipline in return.
40:15 Reinventing Venture
Dan’s bugbear topic: are new VC models emerging? RIAs, revenue-share hybrids, AI pickers, and Europe’s path to multi-product platforms.
50:00 Deals of the Week
From Periodic Labs’ $300M seed to Cusp AI, legal tech’s boom, and a surge of defense and deep-tech capital — including Black Forest Labs’ $4B valuation rumor.
57:30 Defense Momentum
Inside London’s Resilience Conference: NATO’s new funds, European urgency gaps, and why founders must think faster to keep pace with US counterparts.

Welcome back to the EUCVC Summit Talks, where we bring you candid conversations with Europe’s leading founders, corporate leaders, and investors shaping the future of venture collaboration.

In this episode, Andreas Munk Holm sits down with Simon Boas Hoffmeyer, Global Head of Sustainability & ESG at Carlsberg, and Kasper Hulthin, serial entrepreneur and investor at Future Five (co-founder of Peakon, Podio, and more).

With ESG facing political backlash, accusations of greenwashing, and shifting investor sentiment, the question looms: is ESG still a lever for real change—or does it need a reset? Simon and Kasper explore what’s broken, what still works, and how corporates and startups can embed sustainability into real business value.

🎧 Here’s what’s covered

00:10 ESG under fire — political pushback, greenwashing, and regulatory flip-flops.
01:00 Carlsberg’s take: facts, faith, and fear as the drivers of sustainability.
02:00 Why startups must reframe ESG as financial return, not a premium add-on.
03:00 Culture vs. compliance — how corporates integrate ESG into decision-making.
05:00 Born-green startups vs. legacy corporates: different pressures, same imperatives.
06:00 Where opportunities lie: inputs for future food systems, alternative coffee and chocolate.
07:00 From “sustainability” funds to “energy transition” — reframing the narrative.
08:00 Partnerships in practice: pilots, off-take agreements, and startup collaborations.
09:00 The investment paradox — more money into NFTs than climate at ESG’s peak.

Welcome back to the EUCVC Summit Talks, where we bring you candid conversations with Europe’s leading founders, corporate leaders, and investors shaping the future of venture collaboration.

In this episode, Andreas Munk Holm sits down with Hampus Jakobsson, General Partner at Pale Blue Dot, one of Europe’s leading climate-focused funds. With shifting U.S. politics, renewed uncertainty around climate policy, and growing skepticism of “green hype,” Hampus shares why he defines climate investing as simply “not dumb investing.”

From Donald Trump’s return to the White House to Europe’s resilience, China’s role, and the gritty reality of scaling “boring but effective” solutions, this conversation is a masterclass in how investors, corporates, and founders can navigate climate risks — and seize opportunities.

🎧 Here’s what’s covered:

00:10 Political whiplash — Trump, vibes, and the stress test for climate policy.
02:41 Why Europe must stop looking to the U.S. and start managing risk at home.
04:55 Climate investing = not dumb investing — the overlooked opportunities in obvious inefficiencies.
06:50 Case study: last-mile delivery — why disruption often comes from solving “boring” problems.
08:15 Advice to corporates — how CFOs should think about risk and resilience.
09:30 Advice to founders — why no more free pilots, and how forward-deployed engineering wins.

Welcome back to EUVC Live powered by Woven Capital at The Drop, where we bring you unfiltered conversations with the voices shaping Europe’s venture ecosystem.

In this episode, Alex Bakir, founding partner at Norrsken Evolve, takes the stage fresh off his latest fund close — but instead of talking about fundraising, Alex dives into the bigger picture: how competition, climate, and chaos are reshaping the world we invest in.

From the cycles of history and the rise of populism to the structural shocks of climate change, Alex challenges us to rethink Europe’s role, its vulnerabilities, and why rebuilding around cleantech and climate tech isn’t just optional — it’s inevitable.

🎧 Here’s what’s covered:

00:30 Competition at every level — from startups chasing scarce resources to nation states fighting for security.
01:30 The age of AI: why superintelligence could solve everything — or sharpen competition.
02:30 Populism’s return: when economics and expectations don’t align, and why inequality fuels discontent.
03:30 Comparative advantage & free trade: why the “end of history” never arrived.
04:30 Wealth concentration and the broken promise of the nation state.
05:30 Cycles of history: Ray Dalio, Harvard sociologists, and why we’re at the realist end of an 80–100 year cycle.
06:30 Climate crisis as self-organized criticality — when stress tips systems into avalanches and floods.
07:30 Europe’s long decline since 1900 — and why reliance on external manufacturing is now a liability.
08:30 Why Europe must rebuild industry on cleantech and climate tech foundations.
09:00 Populism isn’t a blip — it’s a decade-long cycle that requires addressing lived realities.
10:00 Final call: in a world of shocks, AI, and climate, people and collaboration matter more than ever.

Welcome back to EUVC Live powered by Woven Capital at The Drop, where we bring you the candid conversations with the investors shaping Europe’s venture ecosystem.

In this episode, Nicole LeBlanc, Partner at Woven Capital, joins us on stage in Malmö to share why Toyota’s $800M global fund is doubling down on Europe. From talent pools and global mindsets to climate tech leadership, Nicole explains why Europe is the testbed for scaling climate, mobility, and automation solutions worldwide.

🎧 Here’s what’s covered:

00:30 Why Europe matters: 15% of global VC and growing deal sizes.
01:00 Diversification — why global funds can’t rely on just one market.
01:30 Talent in Europe: strong engineering pools and founders thinking global from day one.
02:30 Climate tech in Europe’s DNA — regulation, partnerships, and net-zero by 2050.
03:30 Inside Woven Capital: Toyota’s $800M LPGP fund, financial-first approach, and global mandate.
04:30 Toyota Open Labs: Europe-exclusive program giving startups structured access to Toyota.
05:30 Portfolio spotlight: Corvus, zero-emission shipping with batteries + hydrogen.
06:30 What’s next: circularity, advanced materials, and figuring out AI.

Welcome back to the EUCVC Summit Talks, where we bring you candid conversations with Europe’s leading founders, corporate leaders, and investors shaping the future of venture collaboration.

In this session, Mette Hoberg Tønnesen, CEO of The Link, joins Jeppe Høier, EUVC Corporates, for a candid conversation moderated by Andreas Munk Holm. Together they explore how corporate venture networks can outlive the 3.7-year average lifespan of CVCs, bridge the gap between startups and corporates, and unlock Europe’s full potential as an alternative to US and Chinese capital.

From translating corporate complexity for startups to tackling “startup theater” and making CVCs real value creators, this is a roadmap for corporates who want to build networks that actually last.

🎧 Here’s what’s covered

00:00 Why most CVCs only last 3.7 years — and how networks can change that.
01:00 The Link’s mission: making startups scale faster by bridging silos and translating corporate-speak.
02:00 Where corporates fumble: unclear pilots, wasted startup time, and overbearing “strategic” investors.
04:00 The classic value-adds — brand, expertise, assets, customers, data — and why most corporates should start small.
05:00 Venture = high school: why networks and rubbing shoulders matter more than PowerPoints.
06:00 Corporates must show up — at TechBBQ and startup events, not just closed-door investor tracks.
07:00 Early-stage CVC is hard: why late-stage corporates can wait, but seed/A needs sweat and trust.
08:00 Europe’s opportunity: corporates stepping up to keep startups from exiting to the US.
09:00 LP investing as a gateway: why corporates should back funds to tap networks and learn the game.

Welcome back to the EUCVC Summit Talks, where we bring you candid conversations with Europe’s leading founders, corporate leaders, and investors shaping the future of venture collaboration.

In this session, Jeppe Høier sits down with Mike Smeed, Managing Director of InMotion Ventures (the venture arm of Jaguar Land Rover), and Ida Christine Brun, Partner at Maersk Growth. Together, they dive into how two global giants—one in mobility and one in logistics—approach corporate venturing, what they’ve learned about balancing financial returns with strategic purpose, and how they decide where to play in a fast-changing landscape.

From decarbonization and electrification to supply chain innovation and customer-centric business models, Mike and Ida share firsthand lessons on what works, what doesn’t, and how corporates can create real value in venture.

🎧 Here’s what’s covered

00:10 Why corporates must venture beyond the core — InMotion and Maersk Growth’s mandates.
01:00 Balancing financial return with strategic alignment — why both guests insist on “financial first.”
03:00 The big themes: decarbonization, electrification, and digital supply chains.
05:00 What corporates can offer startups that VCs can’t — customer access, distribution, and industrial know-how .
06:00 Avoiding “tourist investing” — the discipline corporates need to compete with top-tier VCs .
07:00 Building trust with founders — transparency, aligned incentives, and patient capital .
08:00 Lessons learned: when corporate bureaucracy kills speed, and how to prevent it .
09:00 Looking forward: why corporate venturing will be central to Europe’s green and digital transitions .

Welcome back to EUVC Live powered by Woven Capital at The Drop, where we bring you raw and unfiltered insights from Europe’s venture ecosystem.

In this episode, Hampus Jakobsson - serial founder, angel investor, and one of the driving forces behind The Drop - takes the stage to share two big themes: his hard-earned lessons on corporate venturing, and how AI is set to reshape both energy demand and climate solutions.

From scars of failed CVC deals to the epiphany that corporates must be at the table, and from the risks of AI’s off-grid energy needs to its potential as “a thousand free interns” in old industries, Hampus delivers a candid, fast-paced perspective you won’t want to miss.

🎧 Here’s what’s covered:

00:30 Why Hampus once banned CVCs from The Drop — scars from 150+ angel investments and failed corporate deals.
01:30 The epiphany: corporates aren’t optional — they’re core to scaling industries like construction, mobility, and climate.
02:30 Why we need a clearer language to explain the full spectrum of corporate venture — from balance sheet strategics to spun-out financial-first funds.
03:30 Case study: Motorola’s smart deal structure with Hampus’s first company, aligning incentives without blocking other partnerships.
05:00 Enterprise sales realities: 18-month sales cycles and €7M average contracts — why corporates matter most for scaling.
06:30 Transition to AI: how Hampus’s background in AI shapes his view of its role in climate.
07:00 The challenge: AI’s energy demand could reach 10–50% of global consumption, forcing off-grid solutions.
08:00 The opportunity: AI as “a thousand free interns” — driving efficiency in old industries from waste management to construction.
09:30 Why AI isn’t magic — it’s about practical applications, compilers for design, and tools that boost margins in unsexy industries.
10:30 Closing thoughts: solving off-grid energy production and deploying AI where it can have real impact.

Welcome back to another EUVC Podcast, where we gather Europe’s venture family to share the stories, insights, and lessons that drive our ecosystem forward.

Today, we dive into the announcement of Ventech’s Fund VI, which has closed at €175M — the firm’s largest fund yet, with an impressive 95% LP re-up rate. To unpack it all, Andreas Munk Holm sits down with Stephan Wirries, General Partner at Ventech.

From AI and industrial software to European sovereignty and late-stage capital markets, Stephan shares how Ventech is positioning itself for the next decade — and why Europe still has structural gaps to fix if it wants to scale globally.

🎧 Here’s what’s covered:

01:00 Announcing Fund VI: €175M close, Ventech’s largest ever, with 95% LP re-up.
03:00 What LPs are telling us: trust in the model and appetite for AI.
04:00 Ventech’s pan-European footprint: Paris, Munich, Berlin, Helsinki, Stockholm.
06:00 Why 50% of capital is aimed at AI, with cross-pollination into health, cyber, and industry.
08:00 AI inside VC itself: sourcing, diligence, and portfolio support.
09:30 Sovereignty & cybersecurity as Fund VI’s core theme.
12:00 Industrial software & robotics: Europe’s edge in automation and “physical AI.”
15:00 Lessons from the dot-com crash to today’s AI wave.
18:00 Why Ventech avoids foundational LLMs but backs applied AI.
20:00 Strategic European bets: Mistral, ASML, and deep tech leadership.
22:00 The road ahead: growth capital, IPO markets, and pension reform.

Welcome back to the EUCVC Summit Talks, where we bring you candid conversations with Europe’s leading founders, corporate leaders, and investors shaping the future of venture collaboration.

In this session, Linn Clabburn, Head of CVC at Inter IKEA Group, and Destana Herring, Partner at Regeneration.VC, explore how corporates and VCs can partner with founders without overshadowing them.

From aligning on objectives to translating “corporate scale” into startup reality, Linn and Destana share how trust, sparring, and clarity in the boardroom can make or break collaboration.

🎧 Here’s what’s covered:

00:10 Scale with, not over, founders: why trust is the foundation.
01:00 The “love triangle” — navigating the CVC, VC, and founder dynamic.
02:30 Different ambitions, shared value — why alignment before investing is key.
04:00 Case study: IKEA + Regeneration joint investment and aligning KPIs.
05:00 Translation role of VCs — turning corporate jargon into tangible founder action.
06:00 What scale means at IKEA vs. in a startup — and how to bridge the gap.
07:00 Success looks different — iterating market applications until corporate fit arrives.
08:00 Boardroom courage — how to challenge each other without pulling founders apart.
09:00 Unified front — why investors must spar privately, align publicly.

Welcome back to the EUCVC Summit Talks, where we bring you candid conversations with Europe’s leading founders, corporate leaders, and investors shaping the future of venture collaboration.

In this episode, Thijs Povel, CEO of dealflow.eu, and Ekke Van Vliet, Investment Coordinator at the European Innovation Council (EIC), sit down to discuss one of the biggest challenges in Europe’s venture ecosystem: bridging the gap between corporates and startups.

From EIC’s €10B budget for deep tech to the lessons learned from more than 70 “corporate days,” this session explores what works — and what doesn’t — when building collaboration between Europe’s most innovative startups and its largest corporates.

🎧 Here’s what’s covered:

00:10 Why startups want scale and corporates want innovation — and why it’s still hard to align.
01:00 Inside dealflow.eu: making EU-funded startups visible and accessible to corporates and investors.
02:00 The EIC’s €10B fund — grants and equity for deep tech across Europe.
03:00 From grants to growth: how EIC supports startups after initial funding.
04:00 Lessons from 70+ corporate days — what works, what fails, and the magic ratio of corporates to startups.
05:00 Why in-person, 1:1 meetings matter — but too many can backfire.
06:00 Tomorrow’s corporate day at TechBBQ — a live case study in matchmaking.
07:00 Why deep tech startups in energy, climate, and healthcare are prime for corporate collaboration.
08:00 What corporates actually get: curated startups, ready-to-scale solutions, and no cost to participate.
09:00 Tomorrow’s 14 featured startups — from solar blinds to healthy air and construction tech.

Welcome back to the EUCVC Summit Talks, where we bring you behind-the-scenes conversations with the founders, corporates, and investors shaping Europe’s venture collaboration landscape.

In this episode, Jeppe Høier sits down with Jesper Bang Olsen, Partner at BEAM, and Kerk Wichmann, VP of Corporate Strategy at Jungheinrich and Managing Partner at Uplift Ventures. Together, they unpack the realities of corporate venture building: why corporates need to separate venture initiatives from the mothership, how to anchor strategically, and what it takes to balance startup agility with industrial scale.

From governance and champions to customer infiltration and fast decision-making, this is a candid look at how leading corporates are building real ventures—not just innovation playgrounds.

🎧 Here’s what’s covered

00:19 Why Uplift Ventures was born—responding to Chinese competition and software-driven disruption.
01:00 Why ventures fail inside the mothership—rules, governance, and slow cycles.
03:00 Jesper’s story: from DVDs wiped out by Spotify to creating BEAM as a venture builder.
04:00 Value triggers at BEAM—finding good niche problems, anchored near but not inside the core.
05:00 Anchoring strategy: why top management commitment is non-negotiable.
06:00 Balancing two worlds—leveraging 6,000 service engineers and 2,000 sales reps while learning startup speed.
07:00 Secret sauce at BEAM—separation from the corporate, but with champions inside who love the speed.
08:00 Customer infiltration—winning over corporate clients directly to create positive friction.
09:00 Venture governance—independent venture board, external members, and strict stage-gate decisions.

Welcome back to another episode of Upside at the EUVC Podcast, where Dan Bowyer, Mads Jensen of SuperSeed and Lomax from Outsized Ventures unpack what’s happening in European tech and venture capital.

This week: The UK lands $150B of US pledges and 120,000 Nvidia GPUs—can London turn its AI hype into substance? NATO on edge after Russian incursions across Poland and Denmark. Are we witnessing an AI bubble, or just the infrastructure wave of the century? Plus: cyber risk after JLR’s ransomware hit, Trump’s $100K H-1B visa fee, and the week’s billion-dollar deals.

🎧 Here’s what’s covered:

01:59 The UK Economy: stalled housing, digital ID hopes, and why Gatwick beats Heathrow.
08:02 Macro Context: UK at 1% growth vs US 3.8%, but Revolut and AI unicorns offer upside.
11:23 Trump’s UK State Visit: $150B in pledges, Nvidia’s mega GPU cluster, and hidden strings.
17:34 Pageantry vs Reality: Andrew on IMF forecasts and why the UK still outpaces France & Germany.
20:41 Pensions & Equity Gap: Why Europe lags the US in growth capital.
25:17 Are We in an AI Bubble? Big tech’s circular bets, Nvidia’s chokehold, and history repeating.
35:12 Cybersecurity & AI: JLR hack fallout, ransomware surge, and a $500B market by 2030.
43:21 NATO on Edge: Russian drones in allied airspace, Trump’s hawkish rhetoric, and Europe’s defense unicorns.
53:28 The H-1B Shock: Trump’s $100K fee and whether Europe can seize the talent opportunity.
59:44 Deal of the Week: N-Scale’s $1.1B data center raise and Oura Ring’s $875M round.

Welcome back to the EUCVC Summit Talks, where we bring you candid conversations with Europe’s leading founders, corporate leaders, and investors shaping the future of venture collaboration.

In this episode, Andreas Munk Holm speaks with Gina Domanig, Managing Partner at Emerald Technology Ventures, and Nicolas Sauvage, President of TDK Ventures, on what it really takes to design, launch, and evolve corporate venture capital programs that endure.

They explore how corporates can balance financial credibility with strategic impact, why governance and structure matter, and how to bridge the cultural gap between startups and corporates. From KPIs and deal flow to long-term commitment, this is a masterclass in building CVCs that deliver more than returns.

Here's whats covered:

00:30 Building a CVC program is more than financial—it’s a cultural shift.
01:00 Exploitation vs. exploration — balancing today’s business with tomorrow’s bets.
02:00 The role of funds, reserves, and acting like financial VCs to gain credibility.
04:00 Gina’s “CVC as a service” model — how Emerald engages with multiple corporates.
05:00 Why corporates must commit resources to both financial and strategic value creation.
06:00 Engagement processes — KPIs, partnerships, and designing for tangible outcomes.
07:00 Mining deal flow — helping corporates benefit even from startups not invested in.
08:00 Deliverables matter — deal flow, pilots, KPIs, and leadership pressure for follow-through.
09:00 Investor + consultant? Or financial + strategic VC? — the real identity of CVCs.

💡 One-liner takeaway: Corporate venture programs succeed when they combine financial discipline with strategic alignment—backed by clear KPIs, strong governance, and leadership commitment.

Welcome back to another EUVC Podcast, where we gather Europe’s venture family to share the stories, insights, and lessons that drive our ecosystem forward.

Today we dive into the mainstreaming of stablecoin yield with David Sutter, CEO & Co-founder of OpenTrade, and Itxaso del Palacio, GP at Notion Capital. With $11M raised in just six months, transaction volumes already topping $200M, and growth at 20% month-on-month, OpenTrade is one of the fastest-scaling fintech infrastructure plays in Europe. But this is about much more than another fintech: it’s about embedding yield into the financial internet, bridging stablecoins with real-world assets, and building institutional-grade trust for millions of users across Latin America and Europe.

🎧 Here’s what’s covered:

- 00:00 Introduction: Andreas sets the stage on stablecoin yield; welcomes David (OpenTrade) & Itxaso (Notion).
- 05:00 OpenTrade Origins: David on early stablecoin work, the “yield gap,” and why embedded yield is the next frontier.
- 10:00 Why Notion Invested: Itxaso explains the fintech infra angle, regulatory tailwinds, and parallels to prior bets.
- 15:00 Stablecoins & AI: How AI agents will need financial rails, and why stablecoins are the only money fit for machines.
- 20:00 The B2B2C Model: Why OpenTrade scales via fintech partners, lessons from Circle & Stripe.
- 25:00 Real-World Asset Yield: Treasuries, commercial paper, trade finance, private credit, and DeFi strategies.
- 30:00 Traction & Growth: $200M processed, $65M balances, 20% MoM growth — early but fast-scaling.
- 35:00 Investor Diligence: Itxaso on team quality, regulatory strategy, asset transparency, and Notion’s conviction.
- 40:00 Scaling Priorities: David on building the right team, institutional safeguards, and systems for growth.
- 50:00 Closing Reflections: Investor opportunity in crypto infra, regulation as an enabler, and why “now is the time.”

Welcome to a new episode of the EUVC Podcast, where we bring you the people and perspectives shaping European venture.

This week, Andreas sits down with Andy Budd, Venture Partner at Seedcamp, founder-turned-investor, and one of the earliest pioneers of UX design in Europe.

Andy’s journey spans two decades of building and scaling—from creating one of the UK’s first CSS-based websites to founding Clearleft, Europe’s first UX agency, to now advising founders at Seedcamp. He’s used that knowledge to write a new book all about startup growth. Something we’re sure your portfolio companies will find super useful.

In this episode, Andy unpacks why design is central—not cosmetic—to early-stage success, how product-market fit often hides behind poor UX, and what AI might (and might not) automate in a founder’s journey.

Here’s what’s covered:

02:00 | UX Before It Was Cool: Launching Europe’s first UX agency
04:00 | Mentor to Partner: The Seedcamp connection and how it evolved
07:30 | Design in Venture: Why UX is essential to product-market fit
11:00 | AI & UX: Johnny Ive, ChatGPT, and designing for mass adoption
15:00 | Super Users vs. Everyone Else: Where AI tools fail the average user
18:00 | Operator Value: What Andy brings to the Seedcamp portfolio
22:00 | The Growth Equation: Seven factors every founder needs to master
30:00 | Fundraising Is Also UX: Using growth principles to pitch better
33:00 | Small Is Smart: The rise of leaner, faster, better startups
39:00 | Can Seed-Strapping Work? Why not all winners need to be unicorns
43:30 | Product-Led Growth: When it works—and when it doesn’t

From governance models to internal alignment, they share the blueprint for how corporate venture arms can thrive beyond the 3.7-year industry average lifespan. The discussion ranges from financial vs. strategic returns, to the “King of the Hill” philosophy, to why equal-win partnerships are essential if corporates want to play the long game.

This is essential listening for corporate leaders, founders, and investors who want to understand how to build CVCs that stand the test of time.

🎧 Here’s what’s covered

00:35 Balancing short-term pressures with long-term horizons in corporate venture.
01:00 Measuring strategic impact: why financial returns aren’t enough, and how to keep communication continuous.
02:00 Governance models: how Fidelity and TDK designed their investment committees.
03:12 Strategy vs. finance: why it’s a false choice and the case for picking future market leaders.
05:00 The “King of the Hill” concept: investing in potential category leaders even before markets exist.
06:00 Why the financial bar must come first—and how corporates can offer startups more than just capital.
07:00 Avoiding the “strategic-only” trap: why CVCs fail and how to last beyond the 3.7-year average.
08:00 Working with champions inside the mothership and building early success stories.
09:00 Equal-win partnerships: why both corporates and startups must feel the value for relationships to endure.

Welcome back to the EUCVC Summit Talks, where we bring you candid conversations with Europe’s leading founders, corporate leaders, and investors shaping the future of venture collaboration.

In this episode, Florian Noell, Partner at PwC, and Gina Domanig, Managing Partner at Emerald Technology Ventures, join Jeppe Høier to explore why limited partner (LP) investing is emerging as the smartest entry point for corporates entering venture.

From accessing deal flow and ecosystems to building internal conviction and avoiding common mistakes, Florian and Gina share their playbooks for making LP positions deliver both financial returns and strategic impact.

🎧 Here’s what’s covered

00:00 Why PwC chose LP investing as part of its corporate venturing activities.
02:00 Ecosystems, neighborhoods, and the importance of other LPs around the table.
03:00 Gina on structuring LP relations to meet both financial and strategic goals.
04:30 The role of sector specialists, KPIs, and deal platforms in delivering value.
05:45 Running “sprints” with corporates to align strategy and business units.
06:45 Beyond capital: how LP investing enables startups to access global corporates.
08:00 Building trust and staying engaged with GPs to unlock real value.
09:00 Complementary models — Emerald’s cleantech depth vs. PwC’s global reach.

Welcome back to another episode of the EUVC Podcast, your trusted inside track on the people, deals, and dynamics shaping European venture.

This week, Andreas is joined by Florian Schweitzer, Founding Partner at b2venture, one of Europe’s longest-running VC funds — and one of the only firms to scale a structured angel investing model alongside institutional capital.

They unpack how Florian built an active, deeply interlinked community of 350 angels, the philosophy behind their 90/10 investment model, and why chasing unicorns is the wrong game. The conversation also dives into trust-building with LPs, culture as a strategy, and what it takes to build trillion-euro thinking into Europe’s founder psyche.

Whether you’re an emerging manager trying to scale responsibly, or an LP wondering what durable early-stage outperformance actually looks like — this one’s for you.

Here’s what’s covered:

01:00 | The impossible alignment: angels vs. institutions
02:30 | Treating angels as partners — not a sourcing channel
03:30 | The founder–angel–VC triangle
04:00 | Winning institutional support: data, not just story
05:40 | Why most firms abandon the angel model — and how btov didn’t
06:00 | Culture, rules, and the “honourable merchant”
08:00 | The numbers: 350 angels, 80 core collaborators
09:00 | The unicorns: how every single one came via angels
10:30 | When angels lead and VCs co-lead
12:30 | Why chasing unicorns is “silly” — and what to do instead
14:00 | Building trillion-euro aspirations into early diligence
15:00 | 90/10: The case for a dual investment strategy
17:00 | DPI lessons from Fund 1 & 2 — and what they forgot in 3 & 4

Welcome back to the EUCVC Summit Talks, where we bring you the candid insights of Europe’s leading founders, corporate leaders, and investors reshaping venture collaboration.

In this episode, Andreas Munk Holm speaks with Petr Míkovec, Managing Director of Inven Capital, the CVC arm of ČEZ, one of Central Europe’s most conservative utilities. From nuclear power plants to climate tech bets, Petr shares how Inven Capital was born inside a 30,000-person corporate giant—and why culture by design, not default, is the only way to make innovation stick.

From boardroom alignment to founder empathy, this conversation reveals what it takes to balance corporate DNA with startup speed—and how Inven Capital won founders’ trust despite starting from scratch.

VC #VentureCapital #Investing #TheEuropeanVC #Podcast #Tech #Startup

Welcome back to the EUCVC Summit Talks, where we bring you candid conversations with Europe’s leading founders, corporate leaders, and investors shaping the future of venture collaboration.

In this episode, Jeppe sits down with Peter Aksel Villadsen (GN Hearing) and Helle He (PwC) to unpack the messy middle of post-merger integration: aligning strategy and governance, protecting talent and culture, and getting the operating model right so the deal value actually shows up. From pre-close planning to the first 100 days, they share what works, what fails, and how to keep the integration machine honest.

This is essential listening for any corporate venturer, founder, or investor navigating M&A.

Welcome back to the EUCVC Summit Talks, where we bring you candid conversations with Europe’s leading founders, corporate leaders, and investors shaping the future of venture collaboration.

In this episode, Kasper Hulthin, serial founder now at Future Five (and co-founder of Peakon, Podio, and others) and Heini Zachariassen, founder of Vivino, the world’s largest wine app and marketplace. Both have experienced firsthand what it means to be acquired by a corporate—and they don’t hold back on the reality behind the headlines.

From culture shock and governance friction to the trade-offs of autonomy versus scale, Kasper and Heini share the inside story of what happens post-acquisition. They also reflect on when collaboration works, how to preserve founder spirit, and what corporates must do to retain the trust and agility of entrepreneurial teams.

This is essential listening for any corporate venturer, founder, or investor navigating M&A.

In this EUCVC Summit Talks episode, Hermann Haraldsson, CEO of Boozt, unpacks the journey of taking a Nordic e-commerce scale-up from scrappy beginnings to a billion-dollar listed company. He discusses Boozt’s playbook for customer trust, operational discipline, and balancing growth with profitability. Hermann reflects on how corporate partnerships can (and can’t) accelerate scale, why governance is critical earlier than founders think, and how AI and sustainability are reshaping retail.

Whether you’re a corporate VC, startup founder, or institutional investor, this is a candid look at the realities of building Europe’s digital champions.

🎧 Here’s what’s covered

- 00:30 – Boozt Journey: Founded in 2011, IPO in Stockholm (2017), dual listing in Copenhagen (2020). Once the most valuable e-commerce company in the Nordics.
- 01:30 – Culture From Day One: Three pillars: trust, freedom, and responsibility — built on Nordic values. Hiring the right people and giving them space to grow.
- 02:30 – The “Care Why” Culture: From “know what” to “know why” to “care why.” How Boozt tests for true ownership mindset (like picking up trash in the warehouse).
- 03:30 – Scaling Culture: How to keep startup mentality when growing from 5 to 500 people. Inspiration from Bain’s Founder’s Mentality framework.
- 04:30 – Founder’s Mentality in Action: Key principles: skin in the game, challenging industry wisdom, and obsessively reducing friction for customers and staff.
- 06:00 – IPO as a Turning Point: Why going public didn’t mean “growing up” — compliance is outsourced, while startup culture is doubled down.
- 07:00 – Staying a Startup Post-IPO: Hermann’s role shift: from “machinist greasing the wheels” to communicator of values, frontline obsession, and owner mindset.
- 08:00 – Don’t Fear Compliance: Investors buy into the startup spirit, not the corporate bureaucracy. Compliance is license to operate, not a competitive advantage.
- 09:00 – Closing Lesson: An IPO doesn’t have to make you corporate — if you focus on what matters, your company’s immune system will fight bureaucracy, not innovation.

In a high-energy session that sparked nods across the room, Lucille and Marc tackled the shifting paradigms in the SaaS market—and made a compelling case for why vertical SaaS is quickly outpacing horizontal models.

Marc opened with a candid assessment of the current SaaS landscape. “What’s the flaw in the current market?” he asked. In his view, horizontal SaaS faces serious headwinds:

AI is leveling the playing field: Tools like AI-assisted coding have lowered the barrier to entry. Startups can now build and scale to $10–20M in revenue without a CTO, making it easier than ever to launch—but harder to stand out.
Enterprise sales are brutal: Horizontal SaaS faces challenges in defining clear ICPs (Ideal Customer Profiles), making it harder to gain traction quickly. This often results in sluggish proof points and delayed product-market fit.

Vertical SaaS—companies that serve a single, well-defined industry—has several structural advantages that Lucille and Marc believe make it the smarter play:

Clear Go-To-Market Motion
With deep domain knowledge, vertical SaaS teams know exactly how to sell and to whom. Their understanding of customer pain points gives them a clear runway for product adoption.
Economic Moats from the Start
By solving a niche problem deeply (rather than broadly), vertical SaaS players build sticky products with defensible positioning. This leads to easier upselling and faster PMF (product-market fit).
Composable Growth
Once established in one vertical, these companies can expand into adjacent markets or layers—embedding financial products like payments, insurance, or lending. That transforms them into mini-operating systems for their customers.
AI as an Embedded Edge
AI isn’t just a buzzword here—it’s embedded into the business model. These companies use AI to build smarter workflows, increase automation, and create differentiated products right out of the gate.
M&A and Platform Potential
Vertical SaaS allows for cleaner M&A and roll-up strategies, given the homogeneity of the user base. This is significantly harder with broad horizontal plays. Layering in APIs and platforms makes them extensible and scalable.

Lucille emphasized that success in vertical SaaS hinges on one key ingredient: deep workflow integration. These companies become indispensable to their customers, reducing churn and increasing lifetime value. It’s not about shallow features—it’s about becoming mission-critical.

“The future is not just SaaS—it’s vertical SaaS,” Marc concluded. “That’s how you build enduring, category-defining software companies.”

Corporate Venture Capital (CVC) can be both a powerful ally and a cautionary tale for founders and financial VCs alike. At the EUVC Summit, Nicholas Sauvage of TDK Ventures took the stage to break down the CVC landscape — past, present, and future — and give practical advice for founders considering CVCs on their cap tables.

Nicholas challenged the audience with a question: who’s had a good experience with a CVC? Hands shot up and fewer hands went up for “bad experiences.” This, he noted, shows we’re at a new stage for corporate venture.

He outlined the three eras of CVC:

CVC 1.0: The early days, marked by balance-sheet-driven investments and corporate sponsorships. These often came with odd term sheets and slower processes, but could unlock synergies.
CVC 2.0: Skipped over, just like today’s pre-seed to Series A jumps.
CVC 3.0: The modern era: financially disciplined, strategically aligned, fast-moving, and structured like financial VCs without sacrificing strategic purpose.

Importantly, Nicholas debunked the idea that financial and strategic returns are a trade-off - a "false premise," as he called it. The best CVCs aim for both: venture-type returns and deep strategic synergies.

Nicholas shared the characteristics of high-performing CVCs:

Fast decision-making (some in under 2 weeks!)
Clear investment theses
Slim, empowered ICs (not consensus-based groups of 12)
Strategic clarity and preparedness
A giver mindset — value-add first, not value-extract

He also offered advice for traditional VCs:

“Be thoughtful about when a CVC joins your cap table. Some are great at de-risking science, others support go-to-market — it's all about matching their superpower to your founder’s needs.”

TDK Ventures uses a strict three-pillar framework:

Contribution to society
Venture-type returns
Strategic synergy (giver-focused)

If an opportunity scores less than 9/10 on any one of the three, they won’t invest. Why? Because climate tech and deeptech take time and patience, and TDK is playing a long game to back meaningful technologies — like Type One energy and nuclear fusion — that can shape humanity’s future.

Before taking CVC money, ask the hard questions:

What’s their why?
What value do they add?
Are they ready to support at the right stage of your journey?

“Without exits, we don’t have a VC ecosystem,” Nicholas reminded the room — so make sure you’re partnering with CVCs who can help drive toward them.

Tom Wehmeier of Atomico took the stage to present the Achievement of the Year Award, offering a touching reminder of the power of community, storytelling, and persistence in building Europe’s venture identity.

Before diving into the award itself, Tom took a moment to pay tribute to the unsung heroes who make the EUVC Summit possible. Special thanks went to:

Dan Taylor, Director of Content, whose voiceovers shaped the tone of the event’s videos—even if he had to duck out early for a birthday party.
Geraldine, for her tireless efforts behind the scenes, now rewarded with, in Tom’s words, “a very well-earned glass of wine—or two, three, I don’t mind!”

It was a warm and human moment, reminding the audience that even in high-stakes venture circles, gratitude and team spirit are what truly drive momentum.

Tom also took the opportunity to reflect on Atomico’s long-standing effort to amplify the voice of the ecosystem—particularly through their widely circulated surveys and reports. He playfully acknowledged the flood of emails and DMs over the years, encouraging people to contribute to the State of European Tech report.

But beyond the spam, the intent was serious:

“It’s been massively important to have the voice of tens of thousands of people shared and elevated… We’re all here because we believe Europe needs to tell its story in a positive way.”

The Achievement of the Year Award isn’t just about one startup’s exit or one investor’s return—it celebrates initiatives that move the whole ecosystem forward. In a continent still carving out its narrative on the global venture stage, this recognition honors those who go beyond capital to inspire, build infrastructure, and create shared momentum.

With that, Tom handed the mic back to Chris to announce the winner—but not before delivering a final rallying cry:

“The need was great then. The need is even greater today.”

“Europe Can Win in Applied AI — If We Play to Our Strengths”

In one of the most focused and forward-looking sessions of the summit, Juliet Bailin of General Catalyst made a compelling case for why Europe is uniquely positioned to lead in applied AI—not by copying Silicon Valley, but by doubling down on what makes the continent distinct.

Juliet opened with a reminder of Europe’s superpowers:

Regulatory complexity,
Cultural and linguistic diversity, and
Strong traditions in research and privacy.

These aren’t weaknesses—they’re strategic advantages for human-centric, domain-specific, and trust-first AI.

“Highly regulated industries are perfect for specialized AI,” Juliet argued. “And cultural diversity is crucial for building human-centric systems.”

Rather than pursuing general-purpose models that require vast compute resources (a game already dominated by US giants), Juliet emphasized applied AI—targeted solutions built into real-world workflows. Europe’s leadership in sectors like healthcare, finance, and mobility offers the perfect foundation.

General Catalyst is backing this with:

Incubation of applied AI startups
AI roll-ups of legacy businesses with strong distribution
Public-private convenings via the General Catalyst Institute

Juliet called on governments to do more than fund foundational research:

“We need governments that can incentivize the adoption of European, homegrown applied AI companies.”

That means clear pathways for public procurement, regulation that encourages innovation, and aligned industrial policy.

Her message to entrepreneurs was crisp and actionable:

Build in regulated industries where Europe leads
Prioritize trust-first AI—privacy, explainability, fairness
Join the EU AI Champions Initiative → AIChampions.eu
(A platform to connect startups with the corporates and investors driving Europe's AI future)

Juliet closed with a powerful vision—not just of returns or GDP growth, but of rewriting the social and economic history of Europe:

“If we do this right… future historians will talk about it at the next EUVC summit.”

Europe’s tech playbook has evolved — from mastering consumer internet and telecoms to now confronting the most ambitious challenge yet: the green transition. In a compelling Summit address, Natalie Tydeman of Kinnevik framed climate tech not just as a hot trend, but as the defining commercial and industrial transformation of our time.

Despite political headwinds and shifting corporate rhetoric in some markets, Europe’s climate policy support remains strong. More importantly, we’re finally witnessing a turning point: climate tech is no longer about sacrificing economics for sustainability. As Natalie put it, the new breed of green solutions are both commercially viable and environmentally necessary.

What’s needed from founders and investors alike? Patience, resilience, adaptability, and creativity. The capital profiles of these companies often look very different from classical tech — they’re more capital intensive, and success often depends on building coalitions of aligned investors.

Natalie emphasized two core themes where Kinnevik is most focused:

Green Supply Chains
Energy Transition

These areas are where the visibility of future revenue streams is strongest — crucial for unlocking project financing and credit facilities. Joint development agreements, government-backed low-cost financing, and project equity play a far bigger role than in SaaS or consumer models.

Europe might lag in some tech metrics, but in climate it’s starting to pull ahead:

~50% of EU energy is now renewable vs. under 20% in the US
84% of consumers express a desire to shop more sustainably
Government and blended finance are now key backers of green ventures

This ecosystem makes it possible to build large, climate-positive businesses in Europe without sacrificing scale or returns.

Natalie closed by reaffirming Kinnevik’s conviction: the green transition isn’t just a moral imperative — it’s a multi-decade economic opportunity. The fund is staying highly selective, but deeply committed to supporting the few ventures that can deliver climate impact and venture-scale returns in tandem.

“We’re not looking for the most startups — we’re looking for the ones that will matter most.”

Investing in Climate Requires Patience — and CreativityFinancial Ecosystems & Policy: Europe Has a TailwindThe Takeaway: Selective but Bold

At the EUVC Summit 2025, the award for Emerging Manager of the Year went to a team that has carved its place in Europe’s venture ecosystem with grit, heart, and vision: Tapestry Venture.

Founding Partners Patrick Murphy, Audrey Miller, David Kelly, and Alex McKenzie were celebrated for their relentless effort to build something new—not just for themselves, but for founders and LPs across the continent.

Not Just Another Fund. Not Just Another Story.
Tapestry isn’t simply adding capital to the market. They’re challenging the established players in Luxembourg’s fund admin industry, pushing through barriers that often make it hard for emerging managers to break in.

Patrick Murphy took the stage to accept the award, on behalf of his partners:

“It’s amazing to be able to work with people I like so much every day for the last five years. At least now we’re all back in person—because it wasn’t so fun on Zoom.”

From Ireland to Venture
Patrick’s journey into venture wasn’t planned.

“I grew up in Ireland building computers and websites. I didn’t know venture capital was even a thing—that people could believe in your dreams and then give you money to do something about them. It’s pretty wild. I’m glad venture found me.”

That spirit—of discovery, belief, and persistence—is what defines Tapestry.

In Service to Founders
If there was one theme in Patrick’s words, it was service.

“To be in venture is to be in service,” he said. “There’s no exam, no syllabus, no license for board members—though I wish there was. There’s no ombudsman, no complaint line for founders. So it’s up to us to raise our own standards. To be in service to the great founders who want to change Europe and change the world.”

That vision is backed by their LPs and by a belief that the ecosystem thrives not through competition alone, but through collaboration—co-investors and friends lifting each other up.

Leadership That Raises the Bar
For Tapestry Venture, winning Emerging Manager of the Year is less about the trophy and more about the mandate:

To challenge entrenched structures
To empower founders head-on
To raise the standards of venture itself

Congratulations to Patrick Murphy, Audrey Miller, David Kelly, and Alex McKenzie of Tapestry Venture—Emerging Manager of the Year.

Because in their words: “We’re all winners in this ecosystem. And we’re going to be here for a long time.”

At EUVC Summit 2025, one of the most anticipated sessions broke down a powerful data set: 100 of Europe’s breakout startups. This wasn’t theory—it was company-by-company insight, straight from interviews and bottom-up analysis.

Yes, there were rogue slides.
Yes, the crowd wanted to skip to the AI part.
And yes, it delivered.

~75% of these startups are based in Germany, France, and the UK.

Despite growing noise around new hubs, Europe’s big three remain dominant. It reflects ecosystem maturity—but also a challenge: how do we better back breakout teams in the Nordics, Baltics, Southern Europe, and CEE?

For the first time in years, Fintech dropped in sector rankings.

Instead, we saw a wave of AI-native sales and marketing tools—building products that help companies grow smarter, automate go-to-market, and personalize customer acquisition at scale.

“This year’s cohort is selling before building. AI is their leverage.”

One of the most notable shifts: a significant increase in solo-founder companies.

This reflects:

A rise in repeat operators
Greater early-stage tooling
More confidence in focused execution

It also implies VCs may need to shift their bias—many of these founders are no longer waiting for a co-founder to “complete” them.

The moment everyone waited for: AI-native insights.

49% of these 100 startups are AI-native at their core.

This means:

AI is not bolted on—it's the product itself
Many founders have already moved beyond horizontal LLMs to verticalized applications
They're monetizing via use-case depth, not just model architecture

Last year’s 100 had an average of 25 employees per company.
This year’s cohort? Just 14. That’s a 40% drop.

But don’t mistake that for weakness—roles are more specialized, and teams are more surgical. These aren’t MVPs—they’re hyper-focused execution machines.

“Today’s teams are smaller, sharper, and trained on efficiency from Day 1.”

Across hundreds of founder interviews, one theme stood out:

Tool loyalty is low.

Founders are switching infra, models, APIs, and tooling with no hesitation.
That’s not a sign of flakiness—it’s a sign of rapid evolution, where AI-native teams optimize continuously.

Controversially, the speaker closed with a contrarian take:

“I believe European AI regulation will actually accelerate enterprise adoption.”

Why?

Clarity breeds confidence
Corporate buyers need frameworks
Knowing what’s allowed = faster go/no-go decisions

In a twist, Europe might become the first-mover on enterprise AI—not in spite of regulation, but because of it.

Final Message:

“AI-native is not a trend. It's a new category of company. And Europe is building it—faster and leaner than ever before.”

Let’s keep watching the signals. Let’s keep fueling the flywheel.

At the EUVC Summit 2025, the stage belonged to a voice shaped by geopolitics, defense, and the future of industrial innovation: Sebastian von Ribbentrop, Managing Partner at Join Capital.

Sebastian took us on a journey—one that started in Berlin in 2017 with a cornerstone commitment from Eiser Capital, and has since expanded to NATO, Ukraine, and beyond.

Not Just Startups. Not Just Capital.
Join was born when European engineers left corporates like Siemens and Airbus to build their own ventures—but weren’t getting funded.

Sebastian and his team stepped in. Today, with 148 LPs (90% from across Europe’s industrial heartlands), Join has become a backbone for the builders reimagining enterprise and defense.

The paradigm shift became undeniable in 2023, when the NATO Innovation Fund wrote its largest ticket into Join Fund II. It wasn’t just capital—it was a mandate to help reshape defense and industrialization.

A New Industrial Moment
From Washington’s NATO anniversary to trips into Ukraine, Sebastian’s message was clear: the defense supply chain has transformed.

It is now:

Fast
Targeted
Smart

And while Europe faces inefficiencies (43 different tanks vs. one Abrams in the U.S.), it also faces a massive market opportunity.

Billions at Play
The scale is unprecedented:

€200 billion from Ursula von der Leyen into defense & infrastructure
€500+ billion from Germany’s new chancellor, Matz
$500 billion floated by Trump over the next five years

These aren’t subsidies—they’re revenues. Offset programs that give companies the ability to build products, not just pitch ideas.

DARPA, Dual Use & the Technology Race
Sebastian reminded the room: shocks create breakthroughs. Sputnik birthed DARPA, which still deploys $4 billion annually into challenges.

Now, the race is on—dual-use technology, export restrictions, inexpensive smart radar systems taking down next-gen jets.

Europe, he argued, must catch up. But it has the chance to lead.

“Geopolitics,” he quoted Kissinger, “is 100% personal.” And Europe must take responsibility—urgently.

Leadership With Teeth
Sebastian’s talk wasn’t about abstractions. It was about:

How wars reshape supply chains overnight
How NATO’s backing changes venture capital
How Europe can seize its industrial and defense moment

Because leadership in this decade won’t be written in press releases. It will be written in supply chains, radar systems, and the speed of capital deployment.

Congratulations to Sebastian von Ribbentrop and Join Capital—for reminding the ecosystem that industrial innovation isn’t just defense spending. It’s Europe’s opportunity to lead in a world being reshaped, fast.

At the EUVC Summit 2025, Andreas Klinger didn’t mince words.
Europe lacks something every other industry has had for decades:
→ Big spending
→ Big infrastructure
→ Big exits

And without them, we can’t pretend we’re building a sovereign innovation ecosystem.

“Europe needs tech innovation to work—because without it, we will never be fully sovereign.”

Andreas opened by flipping a common narrative:

“Startups are too often framed as small, creative, ambitious companies. But in reality—they’re the foundation of sovereignty in tech.”

Europe doesn’t need more “projects.”
It needs repeatable, scalable, founder-first infrastructure to unlock its next wave of global tech companies.

“The easiest way to explain EO Inc? It’s Deliveroo—but for incorporation. A European legal and operational standard for startups.”

The idea is deceptively simple:

Standardized formation
Recognized structures across all member states
Seamless stock option systems
Taxation only at exit
Bank acceptance by default

“This isn’t just for startups. It’s a company structure any business can use—built for the modern economy.”

And the movement? It’s already here:

16,000+ signatories
Backing from founders of Wise, Bold, and countless unicorns
Support from every major VC fund and ecosystem body in Europe
Growing traction in Brussels

This wasn’t launched by a ministry.
It wasn’t cooked up by consultants.

“EO Inc was built by founders, VCs, and ecosystem people who literally just got together in a WhatsApp group.”

The message is clear:
You don’t need permission. You need momentum.

Andreas ended on a blunt but vital point:

“If one of my founders did an IPO in Europe right now—I’d sue them.”

Why? Because there’s no pan-European IPO framework. No deep exit market. And without exits, VC doesn’t work.

“So please. Someone. Anyone. Get together and fix this.”

He wasn’t joking.
He was inviting.

Andreas closed with the same clarity he opened with:

“You can just do things.”

This wasn’t a stage for platitudes—it was a platform for action.

So if you know a policymaker, a president, a minister—connect them to EO Inc.
And if you care about making European venture work—get involved.

Thanks, Andreas—for reminding us that sovereignty isn’t just about borders. It’s about infrastructure.
Let’s build it.

Startups Aren’t Small. They’re Strategic.Introducing EO Inc: Europe’s Standard Startup InfrastructureFounders Did This. In a WhatsApp Group.The Missing Piece: IPOs in EuropeFinal Words: Just Do Things

At EUVC Summit 2025, Reece Chowdhry from Concept Ventures made a bold claim:
Pre-seed isn’t just a quirky corner of venture. It’s the layer that will define the future of European tech.

“Pre-everything. Backing crazy people. No product. No traction. Just vision.”

And if that makes your IC uncomfortable? Good.

Reece laid it out clearly:

No product
Often no team
Up to €3M raises
Entry valuations where true upside is unlocked

This is not a place for 60-page memos. It’s a place for conviction, operating instincts, and guts.

“If you’re running a market-sizing exercise at pre-seed, you’ve already missed the point.”

With a wink, Reece shared some hard truths:

“Sorry to our French and German friends—but the UK is trouncing you.”

From unicorn creation to capital deployed to founder density, London continues to pull ahead.

Backed by data (and a few cheeky slides), he reinforced that high-density talent hubs are gravity wells—and London’s orbit is strong.

Reece didn’t sugarcoat it:

“Pre-seed is also about luck. Let’s just say it.”

And that’s why portfolio construction matters.
→ Too many GPs still run over-concentrated portfolios at pre-seed.
→ The layer needs larger portfolios, faster deployment, and more acceptance of variance.

“You want your winners to carry the fund? You better give yourself enough shots.”

One of the most striking trends?

“Founders can now go straight from pre-seed to Series A.”

Why?

AI tools let solo operators do more with less
MVPs are faster, GTMs are leaner
Seed rounds are getting compressed—and sometimes skipped entirely

This means pre-seed is becoming a more critical entry point than ever, and if Europe wants to compete, we need more risk-on LPs and ICs willing to lean into the earliest bets.

“If you’re in an IC meeting with a 60-page memo for a pre-seed deal, please… just remember this talk.”

Pre-seed is where the crazy ideas live. It’s where the upside is wild. It’s where founders take real swings—and where GPs must be brave enough to back them.

“We need more European GPs to take more risk, earlier.”

Thank you Reece for the reminder: you don’t de-risk the future by waiting—you do it by backing the people building it.
No product? No problem. Just conviction.

Defining Pre-Seed: Where the Real Risk LivesThe UK Is (Still) Leading—Sorry, Everyone ElsePre-Seed is High Risk, High Volume—and High RewardThe AI Effect: Shrinking the StackFinal Advice? Just Write the Damn Check.

Welcome back to another episode of the EUVC Podcast, where we gather Europe’s venture family to share the stories, insights, and lessons that drive our ecosystem forward.

Today we welcome Alex Bakir, General Partner at Norrsken Evolve, the new €57M pre-seed fund spun out of the legendary Norrsken family of funds. Together with Johan Attby and Rebecka Löthman Rydå, Alex is doubling down on impact-driven founders building Europe’s resilient and sustainable future—with backing from EIF, Saminvest, SmartCap, and operators like Taavet Hinrikus and Sten Tamkivi of Plural.

We dive into Alex’s journey - with family roots in Iraq and England to Cambridge, the World Bank, Climate Change Capital, and Planet Labs; his lessons from the clean-tech crash of 2008; why resilience is now the lens for Europe’s industrial strategy; and how Norrsken Evolve is rethinking fund construction with 80 portfolio companies, automated follow-ons, and a sprint model for founder collaboration.

Here’s what’s covered:

01:38 Alex’s path: Iraqi–English upbringing, Cambridge climate science, World Bank, first-wave cleantech VC
04:30 Lessons from the cleantech crash (’08): macro can kill even great theses
07:19 Why this time is different: realism, supply chains, energy security
10:31 Fundraising the hard way: €40M → €57M; satellites vs. raising a fund
12:36 Mistakes & pivots: from naive global to Europe-first resilience
15:50 LP profiling: local anchors + institutional validation (Saminvest, EIF)
19:00 The trough of despair & team completion with Rebecka Löthman Rydå
22:11 The “funky” model: 80 companies, €250K tickets, no boards, automated follow-ons
26:06 Sprint model: six-week in-person collaboration (not a school)
31:22 Investment focus: The carbon-free economy, the infrastructure of tomorrow, future of Europe
40:57 Founder fit: mission-driven, experienced builders with scars and purpose

Welcome back to another episode of the EUVC Podcast, where we gather Europe’s venture family to share the stories, insights, and lessons that drive our ecosystem forward.

Today we welcome Olav Ostin, Founder & Managing Partner at TempoCap, one of Europe’s few dedicated secondary direct firms. With a nine-year track record, a 12-person team in London and Berlin (soon Paris), and multiple $500M+ exits, Olav is perfectly placed to explain why secondaries have gone from taboo to the hottest corner of venture.

From buying whole portfolios from corporates to cherry-picking strip deals with VCs under LP pressure, TempoCap has built a reputation for navigating complex transactions and delivering liquidity in a market starved of exits. In this conversation, Olav shares what makes secondary directs different, how pricing really works, and why “who isn’t selling?” is the right question in today’s market.

🎧 Here’s what’s covered:

01:00 TempoCap’s story: founded in 2016, 9 years of secondary directs, team and footprint
02:00 What secondary directs really are: single-asset vs. portfolio transactions
03:03 What they buy: later-stage, €10–30M ARR, fully funded enterprise software, fintech, cyber & more
05:00 Typical deal sizes: €5–20M singles, €20M–€100M+ portfolios
06:30 How deals come in: board seats, VC relationships, and corporate inbound
09:50 Portfolio deals: cherry-picking vs. full takeovers, strip deals, and tailored solutions
15:00 Misconceptions: discounts are not automatic; valuation discipline and liquidity dynamics
23:40 How a secondary deal is actually done: NDA, desktop analysis, confirmatory DD, SPA
28:20 Who’s selling? Corporates offloading, GPs under DPI pressure, but few fire sales
36:00 Notable exits: Onfido ($650M), D-Orbit ($500M), and what they say about today’s market
39:20 The future of TempoCap: bigger funds, becoming Europe’s leading secondary direct player

At EUVC Summit 2025, Marius Istrate didn’t come to pitch a fund or debate capital structures.
He came to talk about something harder to define—but more urgent than ever: inspirational European leadership.

And it wasn’t all comfortable.

“It’s great to win together with others. But we should be capable of winning alone if needed.”

Marius spoke as someone who’s helped shape ecosystems from the ground up. As the leader of Romania’s largest angel group, he’s seen firsthand what local ambition looks like—and what it lacks.

“I don’t want to be the VC who accidentally becomes a politician because no one else stepped up.”

But leadership, he argued, isn’t about power. It’s about clarity, empathy, and ownership.

“If you pinned every place in Europe that calls itself the ‘Silicon Valley of Europe,’ the map would collapse.”

The obsession with copying Silicon Valley is a distraction. What Europe needs isn’t mimicry—it’s confidence in its own identity. And that means policies, capital structures, and culture that reflect our values, not someone else’s blueprint.

One of the most poignant parts of Marius’ talk centered on something distinctly European:

“It’s not fair that I should work more than my parents. It’s not fair that my retirement is uncertain.”

That sense of fairness—a shared European moral compass—isn’t a bug. It’s a feature.
And it can inform the kind of political and ecosystem leadership we need now.

“People don’t want perfection. They want dignity. And when possible, empathy.”

In a time of rising populism and political gridlock, this felt like a quiet manifesto for something different.

“It shouldn’t be our job to inspire people—because our political leaders should already be doing that.”

Marius wasn’t calling for VCs to become politicians. He was calling for a renaissance of purpose in Europe. For a generation of builders, thinkers, and yes, investors, to step up and fill the vacuum—not with slogans, but with systems, strategy, and soul.

“Give us something to hope for—something we can call our own.”

This wasn’t a policy talk. It was a wake-up call.
And in classic EUVC fashion, it ended with an open invitation: Let’s talk more. Let’s build better. Let’s define what European leadership really means—together.

From VC to VisionSilicon Valley of Europe? Please.Fairness, Dignity, EmpathyA Call to Build What’s Ours

Welcome back to another episode of Upside at the EUVC Podcast, where Dan Bowyer, Mads Jensen of SuperSeed, Andrew J Scott of 7percent Ventures, and Lomax unpack the forces shaping European venture capital.

This week, veteran journalist Mike Butcher (ex-TechCrunch Europe, The Europas, TechFugees) joins the pod. From the creator economy eating media brands, to Europe’s fragmented ecosystem and the capital gap that just won’t die, we dive into EU-Inc, Draghi’s unfulfilled reforms, ASML’s surprise bet on Mistral, Europe’s defense awakening, Klarna’s IPO, and quantum’s hot streak.

Here’s what’s covered:

00:01 – Mike’s Reset
TechCrunch Europe closes; Mike reflects on redundancy, summer off, dabbling in social and video.
03:00 – Media Evolution & Creator Economy
From ’90s trade mags → TechCrunch → The Europas & TechFugees. Blogs as early social media; today’s creators (MrBeast, Bari Weiss, Cleo Abram) echo that era. Bloomberg pushes reporters front and center as media becomes personality-driven.
06:45 – Europe’s Ecosystem & Debate Culture
Europe isn’t Silicon Valley’s 101 highway — it’s dozens of fragmented hubs. Conferences like Slush, Web Summit, VivaTech anchor the scene, but the missing ingredient is debate. US VCs spar on stage then grab a beer; Europe is still too polite.
12:00 – All-In Summit Debrief
Mads’ takeaways from LA: Musk on robotics (the “hand” bottleneck), Demis Hassabis on AGI (5–10 yrs away), Eric Schmidt on US–China AI race, Alex Karp on Europe’s regulatory failures. The Valley vibe captured, but it’s only one voice.
17:00 – EU-Inc & Draghi Report
Draghi’s 383 recommendations, just 11% implemented. €16T in pensions sit mostly in bonds; only 0.02–0.03% flows into VC (vs 1–2% in the US). Permitting bottlenecks: 44 months for energy approvals. Panel calls for a Brussels “crack unit,” employee stock option reform, and fixing skilled migration.
35:00 – Deal of the Week: ASML × Mistral
ASML leads a €2B round in Mistral at €11B valuation. Strategic and cultural fit (Netherlands ↔ Paris) mattered more than sovereignty. Mads: 14× revenue is a bargain vs US peers. Andrew: proof Europe’s VCs are too small — corporates must fill the gap. Lomax: ASML knows it’s a one-trick pony with 90% lithography share; diversifying into AI hedges risk.
49:00 – Defense & Industrial Base
Russian drones hit Poland, NATO urgency spikes. UK pledges defense spend to 2.5% GDP by 2027, but procurement bottlenecks persist. Poland cuts red tape under fire; UK moves at peacetime pace. Andrew: real deterrence is industrial capacity. Mike: primes must be forced to buy from startups; dual-use innovators like Helsing show the way.
59:00 – Klarna IPO & the Klarna Mafia
Klarna IPOs at $15B (down from $46B peak). Oversubscribed; Sequoia nets ~$3.5B; Atomico 12M → 150M. A new “Klarna Mafia” of angels and operators will recycle liquidity back into Europe’s ecosystem.
01:03:00 – Quantum’s Hot Streak
PsiQuantum ($7B, Bristol roots), Quantinuum ($10B, Cambridge), IQM (Finland unicorn), Oxford Ionics’ $1B exit. Europe has parity in talent but lacks growth capital. Lomax: “Quantum is hot, but a winter will come.” Andrew: Europe can win here — if the money shows up.
01:05:00 – Wrap-up
The pod ends on optimism: Europe may not own AGI, but in quantum it has a fair fight.

At EUVC Summit 2025, one speaker opened with an unexpected challenge:

“Let’s stop munching grass like a herd of sheep—and start looking toward the horizon.”

What followed was a deeply tactical session on how VCs and founders can recruit, test, and develop top-tier talent, with lessons drawn from—of all places—English football and cybersecurity unicorns.

Will Maunder-Taylor shared the story of Leicester City FC, one of the most improbable sporting triumphs of modern times.

In 2008, they were relegated to the UK’s third division
In 2010, bought by new owners
In 2011, hired Steve Walsh as head of recruitment
By 2016, against 5,000-to-1 odds, they won the Premier League

How? By focusing on:

Mindset over CV
Data over brand
Team chemistry over big-name signings

They built an entire team for £25M—less than what a competitor paid for one player.

“They believed in talent and mindset over character. And they trained accordingly.”

Once founders have the confidence to hire ambitiously, the next question becomes: How?

The speaker offered a practical framework:

Be brutally honest in interviews – Share real concerns and observe how candidates respond. Can they absorb and reflect?
Create structured feedback loops – Let people improve in real time, not post-mortem.
Test behavior, not polish – Past brand names don’t predict future startup grit.
Build in weekly accountability – The only difference in the top-performing teams? They check in—regularly, honestly, and constructively.

“If you're a VC or board member and you’re not instilling weekly accountability in your portfolio, you’re missing the biggest lever.”

Will Maunder-Taylor called on VCs to get tactical—not just strategic:

Ask founders how they’re hiring
Who’s mentoring the team?
What KPIs exist for internal talent development?
How is feedback being delivered?

Because talent isn’t just about who you hire—it’s how you coach, test, and level them up.

Let’s give founders the confidence to stop hiring like sheep—and start winning like Leicester.

Accountability, mindset, and trust in the process win out over pedigree, every time.

In this episode, Andreas Munk Holm speaks with Dom Hallas, Executive Director of the UK’s Startup Coalition, to explore how the organization is influencing policy at the intersection of startups, venture capital, and government. From immigration reform to capital access and regulatory red tape, Dom brings a candid view on what it takes to create real impact for founders across Europe.

They dive into the power of founder-first advocacy, the evolving lobbying landscape in Europe, and the urgent need for a united tech voice across the continent.

Here’s what’s covered:

01:10 Why Policy is a Competitive Sport
03:42 GDPR, Brussels & Lessons from Tech Regulation
05:12 What is the Startup Coalition & Who Funds It?
07:13 The Three Buckets: Talent, Capital, Regulation
11:20 Why Founders Need Their Own Voice in Politics
16:31 Making Advocacy Fun, Human & Effective
17:56 What Startups Can Learn from Farmers
21:30 Time Horizons & Playbooks in Policy Work
26:18 How the Coalition Sets its Agenda
31:46 A Crossroads for European Tech
35:46 The Current Policy Agenda: Talent, Finance & Reg
43:27 Funding the Underfunded: Inclusion as Policy
47:01 Regulation That Clears the Way for the Next Thing

At the EUVC Summit 2025, the Firm of the Year award didn’t go to a household name—or a partner of the presenter. It went to a firm that’s quietly built one of the most impactful portfolios in European venture over the past decade:

Credo Ventures – winner of this year’s Firm of the Year Award.

And the irony? They didn’t see it coming.

“I never really liked awards like this… but maybe I’m ready to reconsider.”

Credo Ventures’ rise hasn’t always been center stage. Based in Central and Eastern Europe, they’ve long bet on founders and ecosystems that many in mainstream venture overlooked.

But the results speak for themselves—category-defining companies, global expansion stories, and a consistent track record of backing ambitious founders early.

“Maybe having such an award can be a new KPI for us—right next to DPI.”

The Credo team kept the moment light, thanking not just their founders and LPs—but even the investors who didn’t back them.

“Thank you, Thomas, for not investing in us. Maybe that pushed us forward even more.”

This self-awareness is part of what’s made Credo so beloved in the ecosystem: no arrogance, no buzzwords—just clear conviction, strong founder relationships, and outcomes that speak louder than headlines.

This award wasn’t just about Credo—it was a signal to every fund building off the beaten path:

That it’s possible to build world-class performance from anywhere
That recognition follows consistency
And that humility and humor are strengths, not liabilities

“The real credit goes to the founders we’ve backed. Their success is why we’re here today.”

Congratulations to Credo Ventures—EUVC Firm of the Year 2025.
May DPI stay high, and KPIs stay fun.

At the EUVC Summit 2025, Tom Wilson took the stage to highlight something we often overlook when talking about Europe’s breakout tech stories:

“The real engine of growth isn’t just the unicorns. It’s what happens after.”

Tom opened with a striking stat:

“Over 2,000 startups have been founded by alumni of just 250 European unicorns.”

This ripple effect—beautifully documented in the Atomico State of European Tech report—is the unsung compounding force in our ecosystem. Each breakout company doesn’t just create returns—it creates founders. And each founder then builds the next set of teams, products, and outcomes.

“Tech is right at the heart of Europe’s growth story. It’s what drives jobs, resilience, and momentum.”

While the flywheel is turning, one spoke is still weak: liquidity.

“The recycling of capital is still too thin across the ecosystem.”

Without steady exits—IPOs, large acquisitions, secondary markets—we limit:

Angel reinvestment
Emerging manager formation
Operator talent flowing back into early-stage companies

Tom called for more policy, infrastructure, and cultural support to celebrate exits—not just fundraises—and to empower alumni to give back as investors, advisors, or future founders.

Tom also made a powerful point about non-linear outcomes.

“Not every startup becomes a unicorn. But the people who build them still carry value—and often show up in the next big story.”

He cited examples of founders who, after shutdowns, joined early teams at Revoo, Vizier, and other category leaders—and played crucial roles in their success.

This isn’t just resilience. It’s how ecosystems mature.

“We need to do more to recognize and encourage the second act: the angels, the early hires, the operators who cycle back in.”

Because Europe’s breakout companies aren’t just wins.
They’re launchpads for the next generation.
And every reinvested euro—and recycled founder—keeps the flywheel spinning faster.

2,000 Startups Later: The Alumni EffectWhat’s Still Missing? Liquidity.Failures That Feed the FutureFinal Message: Celebrate the Cycle

In this episode, Andreas Munk Holm and Jeppe Høier sit down with Paul Morgenthaler, Partner at CommerzVentures, to unpack the inner workings of a single-LP CVC and how strategic structure can drive long-term VC success. Paul shares insights from over a decade of fintech investing, offering a rare look into how one of Europe’s leading corporate venture arms thinks about climate, compliance, and the coming wave of agentic AI in financial services.

They explore what it takes to make a single-LP model work, how GenAI is reshaping fintech workflows, and why European regulation may be a global feature, not a bug.

🎧 Here’s what’s covered:

03:54 How LP alignment shapes internal incentives & decision-making
06:28 What fundraising looks like when your only LP is a bank
12:52 How CommerzVentures handles regulatory risk
15:24 Customer insights from climate fintech portfolio founders
17:27 Climate policy, public budgets & surviving U.S. turbulence
19:10 Why ROI matters more than mission in today’s market
21:11 Timing markets vs. betting on long-term trends
33:35 What metrics matter most in AI x FinTech startups
39:19 Can the EU AI Act be a wedge for new startups?
41:55 Paul’s call to Series A/B fintech founders across Europe

Welcome back to another episode of the EUVC Podcast, where we gather Europe’s venture family to share the stories, insights, and lessons that drive our ecosystem forward.

Today we welcome Enrique Alvarado Hablutzel, Co-founder and Chief Investment Officerof Chi Impact Capital, and Marvin Nusseck, Finance Lead at Circle Economy. Together they’re behind the landmark Circularity Gap Report, the reference point for tracking how much capital flows into the circular economy — and where it still falls short.

We dive into the latest data, why most money is still chasing recovery-phase solutions with the least systemic impact, the outdated risk models blocking capital flows, and how circularity can address not only climate but also geopolitics, competitiveness, and resource security.

🎧 Here’s what’s covered:

01:00 Why the Circularity Gap Report matters: tracking where capital really flows.
03:00 The numbers: From $10B in 2018 to $42B peak in 2021 — and why momentum slowed.
05:00 VC on the ground: Enrique on why linear models still attract most capital.
07:00 Where the money goes: 50% of flows target recovery, not design or use phases.
08:00 Geopolitics & resources: Why circularity = resource security in a multipolar world.
10:00 Cynics & excuses: Why “China won’t play along” isn’t a reason to sit out.
12:00 Linear risk models: Outdated finance ignores systemic and material risks.
15:00 What’s missing: Correctly pricing resources — recycled vs. virgin.
17:00 Investor levers: Bio-based chemicals, methanol, hydrogen as circular enablers.
20:00 Circularity as systemic lens: Tackling biodiversity, climate, and geopolitics together.
23:00 Local loops: Why Amsterdam and Dutch PP partnerships matter.
25:00 Misalignment: Money goes to transport, but construction offers far bigger impact.
26:00 The 7.2% economy: More than 90% of global materials are still in a linear economy.

Welcome back to another episode of Upside at the EUVC Podcast, where Dan Bowyer, Mads Jensen of SuperSeed, and Lomax unpack the forces shaping European venture capital.

This week: Can Europe build a “VC Alliance” like the US and India? Why pensions remain the missing piece of Europe’s capital markets. Gold, bonds, and macro risk: what really matters for startups. Google’s antitrust reprieve, the UK’s “middling AI power,” and how Europe should play catch-up. Plus: Xi Jinping’s military parade, why manufacturing supremacy is destiny, and quantum’s hot streak in Europe.

Here’s what’s covered:

00:01 Europe’s VC Alliance? Lessons from the US–India deeptech pact
00:06 Europe’s Capital Gap: pensions, late-stage funding, and IPO droughts
00:09 Macro Forces: gold, bonds, deficits, and what founders should care about
00:24 Google’s Antitrust Ruling: no breakup, just data-sharing
00:29 The UK’s Middling AI Power: Eisenberg supercomputer & Europe as a “power user”
00:34 Tesla, humanoid robots, and China’s military parade
00:41 Europe’s Defense & Industrial Base: what’s at stake
00:44 Deal of the Week: Quantum computing’s billion-dollar moment
00:46 Looking Ahead: All-In Summit, new funds, and Lisbon reflections

At EUVC Summit 2025, few sessions packed as much history, humility, and hard-earned wisdom as the conversation with Bernard Dallé and Thomas Kristensen.

What began as a one-man show in the early ’90s—when venture in Europe was barely a concept—has become one of the most respected platforms in the global industry.

“I joined Index before it even existed as a venture firm. It was still Index Securities.”

This was more than a talk. It was a journey through time, with insights for every fund manager—new or seasoned—building for the long haul.

Before Skype, before unicorns, before European VC had a flag to wave, it was about scraping together conviction and capital.

Index Fund I: $17 million
Raised in 1999, following years of groundwork and trial
No real ecosystem, no pattern recognition, and no “easy” capital

“You can’t raise without a track record. So we used Fund I to create it.”

And then came the landmark deal: Skype’s acquisition by eBay for $3–4 billion. That one outcome shifted the trajectory of Index—and of European venture as a whole.

“After Skype, we could raise with more ease. It gave us credibility.”

One of the standout themes was Index’s philosophy around team building:

“The hires that worked? People we knew—or people who joined slightly below partner level and grew into the role.”

In contrast, hiring senior talent cold—especially across geographies—proved far harder. Culture cohesion was key, and misalignment at the top often broke the system.

The advice was clear:

Grow talent internally when you can
Only bring in outsiders when they’re “known entities”
Avoid parachuting in partners who haven’t lived the firm’s values

“At some point, having someone senior focused purely on operations becomes essential.”

This wasn’t about back office—it was about survival.
Today’s LP demands include:

ESG compliance
Fund reporting
Exit prep
Ongoing fundraising
Portfolio support

“You need to start thinking about this 10 years in advance.”

“It takes 15 years to become somewhat successful in this business. And once you get there—you need to start thinking about who’ll take over.”

Venture isn’t just about spotting founders. It’s about building the kind of firm that can back them for decades to come.

Bernard and Thomas left the stage with no fluff—just a quiet reminder:

Build slowly. Hire wisely. Think in generations.

And good luck to all of us doing the same.

The Early Days: A Market Without MomentumScaling a Firm: Culture First, Titles LaterOps Matter More Than You ThinkThe Final Lesson: Play the Long Game

At the EUVC Summit 2025, the “Impact Leader of the Year” award went to a voice that’s impossible to ignore—and equally impossible to copy.

Hampus Jakobsson, General Partner at Pale Blue Dot, was honored for his relentless push to bring urgency, clarity, and conviction to climate investing.

The award, presented by Google Cloud, recognized not just a fund or a firm, but a force in the ecosystem—someone who has helped reshape the narrative on impact itself.

As Google Cloud put it:

“Innovation isn’t just the next feature. It’s about who’s solving the world’s most pressing challenges.”

What Hampus and the Pale Blue Dot team have done is create a space—both intellectually and practically—that brings together VCs, LPs, founders, and operators who actually want to build things that matter.

From climate investing as a sector (not a virtue), to challenging LPs who see ESG as a checkbox, to advocating for clarity over carbon offsetting theatre—Hampus has never opted for the easy soundbite.

When he came back to the stage to accept the award, Hampus didn’t offer a speech. Just a sharp observation—about his T-shirt:

“Some smart people noticed my T-shirt today. It’s not the Zuckerberg one that says ‘We need more emperors.’ It’s the one that says—‘We need fewer emperors.’”

Because that’s the vibe:
Less ego.
Less bluster.
More building.
More impact.

Hampus leads not with scale, but with substance.

Not with "thought leadership", but with actual thought.

He reminds the ecosystem that climate investing is:

Urgent
Smart
Potentially enormous
And yes, a little uncomfortable—because it means changing how capital behaves

Congratulations to Hampus Jakobsson—Impact Leader of the Year.
Let’s keep turning clarity into action. And ambition into outcomes.

Not Just Widgets. Not Just Warm Words.We Need Fewer EmperorsLeadership That Leaves a Mark

European VC Power Law Report: Why Revenue Beats Unicorn Status

Dealroom's recently released 2025 Power Law Investors Ranking 2025 report offers a unique milestone for European venture capital: 700 companies across EMEA now generate over $100 million in annual revenue. These aren't just unicorns floating on paper valuations. These are businesses with real customers paying real money.

The report introduced a new category called "thoroughbreds" to capture this shift toward fundamental business metrics. While unicorns still matter for their forward-looking promise, thoroughbreds tell us something different: which companies actually built sustainable businesses that can weather market cycles.

Today, Andreas Munk Holm digs into this topic and more with Saul Klein, co-founder of Phoenix Court (home to LocalGlobe, Latitude, Solar, and Basecamp) and the #1-ranked investor in the report, alongside Yoram Wijngaarde, founder & CEO of Dealroom.

⏱️ Here’s what’s covered:

00:39 - Saul on what topping the ranking says about Phoenix Court's approach
01:53 - Yoram explains the thoroughbreds metric
03:49 - Revenue vs valuation debate, lessons from Skype
07:36 - Why Phoenix Court became multi-stage
13:02 - The $35-50 billion growth stage funding gap
17:38 - Advice for seed firms considering multi-stage expansion
22:31 - Defense of the methodology's seed weighting
24:58 - Picking companies at seed vs later stages

Welcome back to another episode of the EUVC Podcast, where we gather Europe’s venture family to share the stories, insights, and lessons that drive our ecosystem forward. Today’s conversation takes us on a global journey from Croatia to San Francisco to uncover how one founder caught lightning in a bottle and is now racing to harness it.

Our guest: Ivan Burazin, founder of Daytona. With a career spanning Toronto, Croatia, Infobip, Shift Conference, and now Daytona, Ivan brings a rare, global perspective on how Europe can lead in DevTools and AI infrastructure. Alongside him, our dear friend Enis Hulli from E2VC joins to spotlight Daytona’s story, the lessons from its dramatic pivot, and what it means for founders and investors navigating this new AI wave.

Ivan has spent two decades at the intersection of infrastructure and developer communities. From racking servers in the early 2000s to launching one of the first browser-based IDEs in 2009 to scaling the Shift Conference to thousands of attendees, his career has consistently circled around enabling developers.

Daytona’s first act was a cloud IDE provider for enterprises — “one-click setup for secure developer environments.” With Fortune 500 customers onboard, revenue flowing, and a healthy pipeline, Daytona 1.0 showed promise. But something was missing.

Six months ago, Ivan and his team made a bold decision to pivot. Daytona 2.0 is no longer about provisioning dev environments for humans — it’s about powering AI agents with the computers they need.

“Agents are not computers themselves. They need access to computers to run browsers, clone repos, analyze data. Daytona gives them that — an isolated sandbox with machine-native interfaces built for agents.” – Ivan

The differences between human and agent runtimes turned out to be massive:

Humans tolerate 30 seconds of spin-up; agents need milliseconds.
Humans solve problems sequentially; agents branch into parallel “multiverse” solutions.
Humans parse terminal output; agents require clean APIs.

By recognizing this, Daytona carved out a new category: the computer for agents.

The pivot coincided with a deliberate move to San Francisco. Ivan recalls how Figma embedded with designers at Airbnb, or how Twilio found adoption among early Valley startups. To own mindshare in a new category, location mattered.

“From San Francisco outwards, adoption flows naturally. From Europe inwards, it’s like pushing uphill.” – Ivan

So Daytona went all-in: presence at AI meetups, team members flying in and out, and early product evangelism on the ground.

HAfter the pivot, Daytona saw extraordinary pull from the market:

Customer conversations ended with “send me the API key”.
Infrastructure demand showed power-law dynamics: just a handful of fast-growing customers could drive scale.
Instead of polished decks, Ivan shared raw revenue dashboards with authenticity.

The momentum was immediate and tangible.

Ivan admits he hadn’t explicitly asked permission to pivot. He hinted at it in updates, tested the idea with a hackathon, and only later informed his cap table. The response? Overwhelmingly positive.

“Almost half the angels replied. Go f***ing go. Let’s go. I should’ve told them sooner.” – Ivan

Enis highlights this as a key distinction: experienced angels with broad portfolios encourage bold swings, while less diversified angels may fear the risk.

Catching lightning is one thing. Harnessing it is another. Ivan’s current focus:

Hiring deliberately: keeping the team small and ownership-driven.
White-glove onboarding: every serious customer gets a Slack channel with the whole team.
Balancing speed and reliability: ship daily, but solve today’s scale problems without over-engineering.

Enis introduces a new term: seed-strapping — raising a seed, skipping A and B, and scaling straight to unicorn status.

Ivan is cautious. Infra is capital-intensive, and while Daytona could raise a Series A today, he’s committed to doing it on his terms.

When Hampus Jakobsson and Romain Diaz took the stage at EUVC Summit 2025, the conversation wasn’t about convincing people that climate matters. That part’s done.

This was about the harder bit:
→ How do we fund the climate transition without compromising ambition?
→ How do we handle LPs who see impact as indulgence, or carbon reporting as box-ticking?
→ And how do we build conviction-led portfolios in a world that wants both velocity and virtue?

One of the most powerful reframes came from Hampus:

“Climate is like mobile or AI—it’s not a virtue, it’s a vertical. The difference is: in AI, we don’t know the problem. In climate, we do—we’re just figuring out the solutions.”

That means climate investing is not philanthropy. It’s not reputation management. It’s venture—with a horizon, a thesis, and real outcomes.

“If you're just looking to carbon offset with our fund, I’m fairly uncomfortable taking your money.”

As Romain and Hampus both pointed out, climate LPs today fall into three broad groups:

Impact-maximizers – want carbon reporting, ESG scoring, metrics.
Return-seekers – want DPI, not data tables.
Narrative-driven LPs – want the signal value of “being in climate.”

A good fund has to navigate all three—with alignment being more valuable than agreement.

“We had an LP walk away from Fund I because we wouldn’t do their carbon reporting. And we were okay with that.”

Instead, Pale Blue Dot found alignment with LPs like IIP, the pension fund for Denmark’s nurses:

“I sometimes ask myself—will this startup help deliver a pension to Danish nurses in 10 years? That’s the kind of alignment I want.”

From methane-reducing agtech to fintech disruptors, the pair underscored the importance of building for what the world will need—not just what it rewards today.

“We’re backing founders who are asking: will this still make sense in 2050?”

The subtext: stop treating the climate transition as a hypothetical. It’s already here. And it’s reshaping everything from agriculture to infrastructure to insurance.

“We don’t need everyone to believe. We just need to keep showing portfolio wins. The returns—and the reality—will take care of the rest.”

The closing message from Romain and Hampus was clear:

We don’t need more virtue. We need more velocity.

Velocity in:

Deploying capital
Backing bold founders
Scaling actual solutions
And reshaping LP mindsets—one fund, one return, one story at a time

The climate transition isn’t waiting. Neither should we.

Climate Is Not a Virtue Signal—It’s a SectorThe Tension: Impact vs Reporting vs ReturnsOn Methane, Neobanks & the Year 2050Climate Investing Is Growing Up

Welcome back to another episode of Upside at the EUVC Podcast, where Dan Bowyer, Mads Jensen of SuperSeed, and this week’s guest Andreas from EUVC unpack what’s happening in European venture capital.

This week: Nvidia’s meteoric rise (and first signs of slowdown), Apple’s clash with UK regulators, and why regulators may be fighting yesterday’s battles. Plus: Trump’s Intel equity grab, whether governments should hold stakes in strategic industries, and what Europe can learn from Airbus and Ørsted. Finally, what digital sovereignty really means for Europe in an age of AI, energy bottlenecks, and geopolitical dependency.

Here’s what’s covered:

00:01 Nvidia’s Reality Check: From 20% of Nasdaq to slowing 5% quarterly growth.

00:06 Apple vs UK Regulators: The 30% “Apple tax” and post-Brexit CMA ambitions.

00:13 Competition vs Regulation: Why IBM and Microsoft fell by creative destruction, not regulators.

00:21 Trump’s Intel Shakedown: Retroactive equity grabs and should states take stakes?

00:29 Europe’s State Aid Constraints: Airbus, Ørsted, and why Europe can’t do national champions like the US or China.

00:36 The UK Buying AI: £573M in H1 government contracts, Microsoft & Palantir dominance.

00:49 Defining Sovereignty: Europe’s dependency on US tech and Chinese production.

00:57 Europe’s Luxury Beliefs: Outsourcing energy, defense, and manufacturing — and why pension reform is key.

01:02 Closing Takeaways: Sovereignty is more than regulation — it’s about competing, investing, and not being naïve.

Europe has just gained its first unapologetically defense-first venture fund. Archangel Ventures, led by Nicholas Nelson and Daniel Carew, is not here to hedge, not here to play dual-use semantics, but to put defense front and center.

Nic brings the lived experience of government, strategy, and deployments, with the policy networks to match. Daniel comes from a deep tech/DARPA-inspired investing background, obsessed with the frontier of what technology can achieve. Together, they’re building a fund that rejects the hype cycle and instead anchors itself in Europe’s sovereignty, resilience, and the urgent reality of our geopolitical moment.

Why Estonia? Why now? Because the frontier matters. From Tallinn to Vilnius to Warsaw, the tyranny of geography makes defense personal. Partnering with Superangel, Archangel is embedding itself in the heart of the Baltics—a region that already knows what it means to digitize, mobilize, and defend.

Archangel Ventures is a platform, a coalition of the willing, a bet that Europe can and must build its own defense ecosystem. As they put it, defense is not a bubble, not a passing Ukraine-driven hype cycle. It’s the crucible where the next generation of European technology—and deterrence—will be forged.

We’re proud to have launched this journey with them on the pod. Tune in:

- 01:00 Origins of Archangel — Nic on why he wouldn’t start with just any partner.
- 04:00 Why they teamed up — Daniel recalls NATO roots and complementary skillsets.
- 08:30 Why defense-first matters — Nic explains why dual-use doesn’t work at seed.
- 11:00 The timing challenge — Daniel on NATO’s long horizon investing.
- 14:00 Portfolio construction — Nic’s three buckets: unmet needs, future needs, unknown unknowns.
- 20:00 Filling the ecosystem gap — Daniel on bridging startups and primes in Europe.
- 27:00 Why Estonia — Nic on geography and teaming with Superangel.
- 33:00 Personal ties — Daniel on his Estonian family and NATO links.
- 41:00 On working with primes — Nic pushes back on the “dinosaurs” narrative.
- 53:00 Risks ahead — Nic on what happens if the war in Ukraine ends tomorrow.

At the EUVC Summit 2025, Cherry Ventures’ Christianand Elsa Deseilligny from Cambridge Associates offered a behind-the-scenes view of what it takes to stay true to your mission while building a firm that lasts. At the center of it all? The founder.

For Cherry, “Founders First” isn’t just a slogan. It’s a system.

“Putting the founder at the center—doing everything to make them thrive—that’s the foundation of how we build.”
– Elsa

That principle doesn’t stop at deal selection or portfolio support. It shapes how Cherry builds its own team, firm, and platform. Every strategic decision—from hiring to productizing services—is filtered through one lens: Will this help our founders thrive?

And when it comes to fundraising?

“Your right to win with LPs ultimately ties back to that clarity of mission.”

Christian addressed a tension many top-tier funds face: how big is too big?

He acknowledged the importance of honest, iterative conversations with LPs—but also highlighted a view shared by allocators like Cambridge Associates:

“There’s a sweet spot—where a strategy is still repeatable, but hasn’t lost its edge.”

In VC, scaling up can mean professionalization—but it can also lead to dilution of edge. The best funds find the institutional footing they need without drifting into sameness.

“You want to reach a size where you're clearly outperforming with discipline… but then stop there. That’s where true long-term relationships are built.”

The insight many LPs quietly share?

They’re often betting on managers before they peak.

“Ideally, we find the manager early. We scale with them to that sweet spot—and then, no one else can get in.”

It’s not just about performance. It’s about conviction. The best LP–GP relationships are forged when the firm still feels like a startup—when the ambition is high, but the capacity is still intimate.

Cherry’s message was clear:
If you want to build a lasting firm, don’t chase scale for the sake of it. Build around your mission. Build with intentionality. And stay small enough to stay sharp.

The founders will notice. And so will the LPs.

A Platform Built Around “Founders First”Scaling with Intention (and Limits)The Emerging Manager Advantage

Welcome to a new episode of the EUVC podcast, where Andreas Munk Holm explores the cutting edge of European venture capital. Today’s guest is Louis Dussart, Partner at RTP Global.

Louis entered venture at just 20 years old with White Star Capital, built a startup bridging Europe and China, and now helps lead RTP Global’s European strategy. In this conversation, he shares why Europe faces a political wake-up call on tech, what we need to fix in talent, growth capital, and IPO markets, and why founders are not just entrepreneurs—they’re geopolitical assets.

From emerging managers to sovereign LPs, from tech transfer to liquidity, Louis lays out the hard truths and actionable priorities for Europe to compete globally.

Here's what's covered:

02:12 Louis’s Path: From White Star Intern to RTP Partner
06:01 What Makes RTP Global Different: A Truly Global, Debate-Driven DNA
10:14 The Political Wake-Up Call: Why Tech Must Sit at the Top of Europe’s Agenda
12:48 Talent, Visas & Education: The Dual Strategy for Closing the Skills Gap
15:32 Sovereign LPs, Emerging Managers & The Role of Fund-of-Funds
19:20 Tech Transfer in Europe: Why Our Universities Still Struggle
25:40 US Growth Funds in Europe: Selling to America vs. Selling Out of Europe
29:12 The Liquidity Problem: Why Capital Markets Union Is an Elephant in the Room
34:45 Founders as Geopolitical Assets: Lessons for Europe’s Leaders
38:55 The VC Role: Echo Chambers Between Founders, LPs & Policymakers
44:20 Why Europe Needs Risk-Taking Politicians as Much as Risk-Taking Founders

Welcome back to the Impact Highlight Series, powered by EUVC, Impact VC, and Impact Supporters.

Over the past months, we’ve hosted ten conversations with some of the most thoughtful GPs, LPs, and unicorn founders shaping the impact investing landscape. In this special capstone episode, August Solliv (Impact Supporters) and Dougie Sloan (Impact VC & Better Society Capital) sit down to unpack what we’ve heard and distil the lessons into four big themes.

🎧 Here’s what’s covered:

01:00 Impact driving returns: from the founder lens to the “lockstep” model where impact and profits reinforce each other.
04:00 Shared value in practice: how impact-native companies scale impact and profit — and why this creates resilience and de-risks venture.
07:00 Proving performance: what LPs at EIF, Isomer, and BSC are seeing in their data, and why DPI still matters.
09:00 Great vs. good funds: LP perspectives on partner skills, GP thesis fit, and “edge” in impact venture.
12:00 Specialist vs. generalist: why even generalist impact funds must go deep in certain verticals.
14:00 Overlooked opportunities: adaptation, circularity, first-of-a-kind plants, and where impact capital is most needed.
17:00 Innovating the VC model: evergreen structures, impact-linked carry, and the tension between GP innovation and LP appetite.
20:00 Democratizing LP capital: why both institutional and retail channels are needed to scale impact VC.
23:00 It all comes back to people: values, motivation, and the dual lens of commercial and impact acumen that defines the unicorn founders of tomorrow.
26:00 Closing reflections: what we’ve learned from 10 conversations, and what’s next for the Impact Highlight Series.

Welcome back to another episode of the EUVC Podcast, where we gather Europe’s venture family to share the stories, insights, and lessons that drive our ecosystem forward.

Today we welcome David Vlerick, Founding Partner at Bluegrass Ventures, to discuss how LP capital can be mobilised with meaning, why a platform approach makes venture more accessible, and what it takes to shift mindsets in a conservative market like Belgium.

Bluegrass Ventures backs top-decile, small-to-mid-sized VC funds globally, while giving investors flexibility and transparency through a platform model. In this conversation, David shares his journey from law and private equity into venture, the philosophy behind Bluegrass, and why he believes primary capital is one of the most powerful forces for shaping a brighter future.

🎧 Here’s what’s covered:

01:00 David’s Path: From law and private equity to launching Bluegrass Ventures.
05:00 Building Bluegrass: Why a platform, why small-to-mid-size funds, and why top-decile track records matter.
08:00 Fund Selection: Unfair advantages, avoiding hype cycles, and sector-focused funds.
15:00 The Person Behind Bluegrass: Travel, poetry, and how fatherhood shapes perspective.
22:00 Risk in VC: Why startups ≠ diversified funds, and what the data says.
27:00 Primary Capital: Fueling the future vs. parking money in secondary markets.
31:00 Belgium’s Culture: From conservatism and PE comfort to embracing venture.
36:00 Platform Model: How Bluegrass balances investor choice with portfolio discipline.
42:00 Venture as Community: High-calibre people, collaborative networks, and optimism.
43:00 Bluegrass’s Mission: Delivering Belgium’s best financial product and moving more money with meaning.

Welcome back to another episode of the EUVC Podcast, where we bring together Europe’s venture family to share the stories, insights, and lessons that drive our ecosystem forward.

This week, we sit down with Will Wells, founder-turned-VC, and now Partner at Speedinvest, where he leads deep tech and supports the firm’s growth strategy.

Will’s journey spans building Hummingbird Technologies, an AI-powered agtech company exited to Agreena in 2022, to leading frontier tech at Firstminute Capital and Lightspeed Venture Partners. Now at Speedinvest, he’s focused on backing European founders working on sovereign compute, defense, energy resilience, biosecurity, and the “picks and shovels” of the next decades.

🎧 Here’s what’s covered:

01:00 From founder to investor: lessons from building Hummingbird Technologies and the empathy it gave Will as a VC.
05:00 Learning venture at Firstminute and Lightspeed: what “good” looks like in deep tech investing.
07:00 Beyond buckets: why the biggest opportunities lie in combining AI, hardware, defense, and science into multi-sector platforms.
10:00 Big bets in deep tech: Europe’s challenge at pre-seed and why bold consortium funding matters early.
12:00 Defense tech & geopolitics: reconciling economic opportunity with moral responsibility.
15:00 Strategic sovereignty: compute, semiconductors, energy resilience, and why Europe needs its own infrastructure.
17:00 Thesis-building: inevitable truths, technical stacks, and where customers will actually buy.
20:00 Agtech, climate, and humility: what Will learned from being early in robotics and regen agriculture.
24:00 Leveraging Speedinvest’s platform model: why deep vertical teams and operational scale matter in frontier tech.
29:00 Looking ahead: biosecurity, autonomy, energy resilience — and why Europe must back multi-generational deep tech companies.

Welcome to the Impact Highlight series, powered by EUVC, where we bring you the people and perspectives shaping European venture.

Today, we sit down with Chloe DagnellfromIsomer Capital, one of Europe’s most active LPs, to unpack what institutional investors are looking for, how impact sits alongside returns, and what makes a GP truly stand out.

With more than six years at Isomer Capital and a background that started in international development before moving into venture, Chloe brings a unique perspective on building portfolios that balance financial performance with sustainability, diversity, and long-term alignment.

🎧 Here’s what’s covered:

01:34 Chloe’s Journey: From international development to venture and why local context matters.
06:12 Isomer’s Strategy: Building a diversified portfolio across pre-seed and seed in Europe.
11:08 Impact in the Portfolio: Why ~30% of Isomer-backed companies are SDG-aligned — and how impact sits alongside returns.
17:55 Returns vs. Impact: Revolut, scale, and why the biggest value drivers aren’t always in impact funds.
23:41 Good vs. Great GPs: Evidence over slides, specialist edge, and values alignment.
31:26 Diversification & LP Interests: Corporate LPs and the green transition — why Isomer doesn’t get pushed into one theme.
37:14 DEI as the Next Frontier: Ownership, accountability, and why female-led teams in Isomer’s portfolio are top performers.
44:58 Advice to Emerging Managers: How to prove differentiated access and cut through generic pitch decks.
51:02 Closing Takeaways: Evidence, access, values — what LPs really want in Europe’s next generation of funds.

Welcome back to another episode of the EUVC Podcast, where we gather Europe’s venture family to share the stories, insights, and lessons that drive our ecosystem forward.

Today’s guest is Omri Benayoun, General Partner at Partech, one of Europe’s premier investment platforms. Since 2014, Omri has co-led Partech’s growth equity strategy, raising more than €1B across two funds and backing some of Europe’s most capital-efficient champions. With a career spanning government, corporate strategy, e-commerce, M&A, and growth investing, Omri brings a rare lens on what it takes to build resilient global tech leaders from Europe.

From rock climbing as a metaphor for measured risk-taking to the structural advantage of Europe’s “do more with less” DNA, this conversation covers Partech’s contrarian bet on bootstrapped scale-ups, the role of elite LPs, and why Europe’s complexity might be its greatest strength.

🎧 Here’s what’s covered:

01:34 Rock Climbing & Investing: Risk, fear, and why falling is part of the journey.
04:00 Omri’s Background: From government to e-commerce (Cdiscount), retail (Casino), and software (Dassault Systèmes).
10:00 Lessons from Dassault: Product roadmaps, customer listening, and why big M&A requires years of courtship.
14:00 Government Experience: Why investors and founders can’t afford to ignore policy anymore.
20:00 Launching Partech Growth: Filling the gap for European growth capital in 2014.
22:00 Fund II Strategy: Betting on bootstrapped, capital-efficient companies during the 2020 frenzy.
25:00 Defining Capital Efficiency: Rule of 40, ARPU per employee, and Europe’s structural advantage.
29:00 Case Study – EcoVadis: From bootstrapped ESG ratings leader to global scale.
33:00 Inside Partech: The “Greek city-states” model of seed, venture, growth, Africa, and impact strategies.
39:00 Efficiency vs. Profitability: Why founders must avoid the “dead zone” of low growth + breakeven.
41:00 Elite LPs Enter the Game: How Cambridge Associates, StepStone, and sovereigns now back European growth.
46:00 Europe on the Map: From founders settling early to chasing world-class scale.
50:00 Complexity as a Feature: Why regulatory fragmentation creates stronger survivors.
52:00 Partech’s Cohesion: A culture of numbers, engineers, and price sensitivity across geographies.

At the EUVC Summit 2025, Mehmet Atici from Bek Ventures aimed a popular narrative—that Europe is underperforming as a tech region. Not because it’s untrue, but because it’s incomplete.

“Yes, there’s catching up to do. But you can’t argue there’s no dynamism in Europe—it’s just not evenly distributed.”

And once you look closer, the picture changes fast.

Much of the “Europe must act” discourse comes from the continent’s largest economies—France, Germany, and the UK. But productivity data tells a different story:

Poland and Bulgaria are growing steadily.
Ecosystems in Tallinn, Lisbon, and Barcelona are booming—fueled in part by digital nomad visas.
Eastern European founders are making waves well beyond their borders—with names behind global giants like Databricks and Snowflake.

“Building a business isn’t a lifestyle choice for them. It’s a global ambition from day one.”

These founders bring international exposure, capital efficiency, and hunger—without the insular networks that often define more mature markets.

Sure, improving regulation—around stock options, company formation, or funding incentives—helps. But as Mehmet put it:

“That’s medicine without a proper diagnosis.”

The bigger issue isn’t operational—it’s strategic positioning.

The U.S. remains the most attractive market: a single language, deeper capital markets, and cultural cohesion.
Europe’s software market is just 23% of global share, compared to 43% in North America.

So even if we fix the mechanics, the gravitational pull of the U.S. won’t go away. And in some cases, a European identity may actually slow access to that market—not speed it up.

What if fragmentation wasn’t our weakness—but our untapped advantage?

“The most thriving tech ecosystems are the most politically cohesive—because they serve founders, not flags.”

Europe doesn’t need to copy the U.S. to succeed. It needs to recognize excellence wherever it emerges, connect the dots, and support founders wherever they’re starting from.

In Mehmet’s words:

“Our opportunity is to transcend borders—not erase them.”

“Let’s not forget: the original EU model was ‘United in Diversity.’”

It wasn’t a flaw. It was a feature.

Europe’s next wave of global founders may not come from the centers you expect—but they’re already building. Our job is to back them, bridge them, and help them win on a global stage.

Let’s get to it.

Not Just Paris, London, BerlinEurope’s Problem Isn’t Just PolicyFrom Fragmentation to SuperpowerThe Original European Model Still Applies

At the EUVC Summit 2025, Kerry Baldwin (IQ Capital) and Chris Elphick led one of the most urgent conversations of the year:

Can Europe mobilize its pension capital to fund innovation—or will it stay stuck on the sidelines?

With £1 trillion expected to be funneled into innovation, growth, and venture by 2030, the opportunity is massive. But unlocking it will take more than speeches and slogans. It will take structures, translation, and a whole lot of education.

Chris opened by setting the context:

In July 2023, 10 of the UK’s largest pension funds agreed to invest 5% of assets into unlisted equities—representing £5 billion of fresh capital.
That capital is (unsurprisingly) biased toward private equity. But the real win?

Getting a meaningful slice of it into venture.

We now have the technical tools to do it:

The introduction of Long-Term Asset Funds (LTAFs)—with 27 launched to date—means the legal infrastructure is in place.
Regulatory shifts have opened the door. Now it’s time to walk through it.

“The pipes are built. Now we need to make the case.”

As Kerry pointed out, it’s not just about access—it’s about alignment.

“The pension world doesn’t speak venture. It speaks in valuations, risk ratings, board approvals, and actuarial models.”

To bridge the gap:

Ditch the pitch decks. Instead, build relationships.
Use case studies. Show, don’t just tell.
Speak their language. Get founders in the room. Educate through stories and real-world examples.
And yes, explain your fees—transparently.
→ “We charge fees because we hunt. We engage with professors. We run deep knowledge sessions. That’s where the value lives.”

Kerry closed with a critical reminder from someone who’s seen the cycles before—2001, 2009, and now:

“Just play nicely.”

→ That means fair terms.
→ Respecting early-stage angels.
→ Not forcing founder-unfriendly clauses when capital is tight.

Venture doesn’t work when trust is broken at the seed layer.

The prize is on the table. The pipes are laid. The policymakers are listening.

Now it’s up to us—as GPs, founders, LPs, and ecosystem builders—to:

Make venture legible
Build long-term trust
And design financial vehicles that serve founders, fuel returns, and unlock national innovation agendas

“Let’s stop waiting for the future to finance itself. Let’s build the financial architecture to fund it now.”

The Landscape: Shifting Regulations, Real PotentialThe Real Bottleneck? Language & UnderstandingA Word of Warning: Don’t Harm the EcosystemA Trillion-Pound Opportunity—If We Get This Right

At this year’s EUVC Summit Awards, the “Exit of the Year” category drew intense debate—and for good reason.
Europe is finally entering its outcome era, and this year brought no shortage of competitive contenders.

But one exit stood out.

Winner: SV Health Investors, for the exit of EyeBio

As the host reminded us, this award isn’t just about a number on a term sheet:

“With exits, we’re celebrating outcomes. Outcomes that validate years of work, conviction, and follow-through.”

For SV Health, this exit marked a textbook example of deep science meets disciplined execution.
It wasn’t a flash-in-the-pan. It was a story of patient capital, strategic support, and a global-scale outcome born in Europe.

A breakthrough healthtech company delivering real-world impact
An outcome that unlocked returns and credibility
A case study in what’s possible when bio meets business in the right way

In a space where timelines are long and conviction is everything, SV Health and EyeBio proved what Europe is capable of when the pieces align.

“Hopefully, we’ll be seeing more and more exits like this in the years ahead.”

We agree. Because one great exit isn’t just a win for the team—it’s a signal to the ecosystem.
It tells LPs, policymakers, founders, and future fund managers: we can build here, and we can win here.

Congratulations to SV Health Investors and the entire EyeBio team.

Let’s keep building toward the next one.

Celebrating More Than Just ReturnsWhy It MatteredThe Bar Has Been Raised

At EUVC Summit 2025, Joe Schorge of Isomer Capital didn’t come with slides—he came with a metaphor. And it stuck.

He asked the room to imagine orchards of fruit. Not just apples or oranges, but a whole harvest cultivated over 12 to 14 years. Venture-backed companies. GPs. Fund positions. GP stakes. A record crop, grown with care across the UK and Europe.

“We’ve never had this much high-quality fruit in European venture. The question now is—how do we get it to market?”

For years, Europe has been laser-focused on planting:
→ Backing great founders
→ Building great firms
→ Cultivating portfolios patiently

But as Joe reminded the audience:

“People expected the fruit to somehow sell itself. But we’ve learned: exits aren’t automatic. Distribution isn’t easy. And not everyone has the truck to move a watermelon.”

Secondaries aren’t just a workaround. They’re a solution. Partial or full sales, done right, serve founders, GPs, and LPs alike.

The market is waking up:

There’s more to buy than ever before: mature companies, vintage funds, GP stakes
There’s more to sell than ever before: GPs needing liquidity, LPs rebalancing
There’s more need than ever before: LPs want DPI, not just IRR

“We’re all running 10-year funds. Buy-and-hold sounds noble, but LPs want cash back. And founders want momentum.”

Joe’s message to LPs?
→ Loosen your restrictions on secondary transactions
→ Back the capital that makes liquidity possible
→ Recognize that secondaries are a tool for progress, not shortcuts

Joe kept it simple:

Educate yourself – There’s a wealth of info online. Learn the mechanics and the nuance.
Look at your own portfolio – Where’s the fruit starting to ripen?
Talk to players in the space – From Isomer to a new wave of specialized secondary platforms, this market is growing fast.

“Let’s harvest, replant, and build the future together.”

Secondaries aren’t just about exits. They’re about creating circulation, maturity, and movement in a market that’s ready for it.

European venture has planted well. Now it’s time to harvest with discipline—and get ready to sow the next cycle with even more conviction.

Planting Was Easy. Harvesting Is Hard.The European Secondary Market: Why Now?Where to Begin?A New Era of Venture Hygiene

At the EUVC Summit 2025, Stephen Lowery of HSBC Innovation Banking laid out a vision that wasn’t just about capital—it was about building the infrastructure to unlock the next wave of innovation.

“The future is not going to finance itself.”

And the tools we need? Most of them don’t exist yet.

We’re entering a new era—one where emerging categories like robotics, deeptech, AI hardware, and compute-intensive models demand new forms of financial support.

But most of our current instruments were built for a different generation of tech.

Stephen reminded us of the pre-SaaS era, when software businesses lived and died by upfront license fees. It wasn’t until financing models evolved that subscription software (and eventually SaaS) could flourish.

“Just like we innovated in software 20 years ago, we need to do the same now—in hardware, robotics, and beyond.”

Stephen called for three key building blocks:

Blended Capital
→ Mix long-term venture equity with creative debt structures
→ Pair revenue-based financing with contract support
→ Add credit insurance into the mix
Category-Specific Models
→ Think robot-as-a-service, compute-as-a-service
→ Let hardware businesses monetize more like software ones
Collaboration
→ VCs, banks, LPs, and operators need to co-build
→ “Let’s do more than finance innovation—let’s finance the infrastructure that enables it.”

Stephen’s message wasn’t just for investors. It was for architects—those willing to help engineer the future of capital itself.

“We need to work together in partnership to build the tools that will finance the industries of tomorrow.”

Finance is no longer a back-office utility. It’s a frontline enabler of innovation.
And if we want European ventures to lead the next wave—we need to start building the financial rails today.

The Problem: Our Financial Stack Is OutdatedWhat We Need: Purpose-Based Financing for a New AgeA Call to Builders (Not Just Founders)

At the EUVC Summit 2025, Nirmesh Patel from Amino Collective took the stage with a message that felt less like a pitch and more like a call to arms. His focus? The intersection of AI, health, and bio—and why Europe is uniquely positioned to lead this next era.

We’re still waiting for the first blockbuster drug developed using large AI models. But don’t mistake that for inaction. As Nirmesh put it:

“It’s fundamentally changed how everyone does research in this space.”

So much so that the Nobel Prize committee had no choice but to take notice.

That shift is already reshaping how scientists think, experiment, and build companies—and it’s opening the door for a new generation of outlier founders at the earliest stages.

Amino Collective invests pre-seed and seed into health and bio, and Nirmesh was unequivocal:

“Europe has all the ingredients required to make the next healthcare giants.”

Here’s what he sees:

Technical founders now thinking commercially from Day 1.
Citizens more willing to contribute data to studies, even if they don’t cancel that January gym membership.
Stable grant funding across Europe—especially in contrast to recent volatility at U.S. institutions like the NIH.
On-continent innovation in manufacturing mRNA at scale—key to pandemic preparedness.

These aren’t future predictions. They’re current capabilities, and they’re maturing fast.

Venture is about betting on outliers.
In AI x Bio, the next outliers are likely being formed right now.

“We’re at the very early stages of the collision between AI, health, and bio. The companies that will define the future are just starting.”

If you want to back the next transformative firm in medicine, don’t just look to the coasts.
Look to Europe. The science is here. The funding is here. The talent is ready.

“I truly believe the future of medicine is European.”

So do we.

AI Has Already Transformed Research. The Market Impact Comes Next.Why Europe? The Ingredients Are Already Here.From Outliers to Giants

Welcome back to another episode of Upside at the EUVC Podcast, where Dan Bowyer, Mads Jensen of SuperSeed and this week’s special guestJoe KnowlesfromSmedvig Ventures unpack what’s happening in European venture capital.

This week: Are we doomed to lag the US in wealth creation or is Europe finally closing the gap? Why a record $100B of M&A matters for exits and recycling capital, and how founders should think about selling vs going for gold. Plus: Porsche & Deutsche Telekom anchoring a €500M defence fund as Germany drops its taboos, the scramble for cheap energy and battery breakthroughs, and what GPT-5, Perplexity, and Nvidia tariffs tell us about Europe’s place in the AI race.

Here’s what’s covered:

00:48 US vs Europe in Wealth Creation: Compounders, unicorns, and Europe’s capital efficiency.
09:07 Late-Stage Funding Gap: Why pensions and IPO markets hold Europe back.
17:36 M&A is Back: Google’s $32B Wiz deal, Windsurf drama, and Europe’s “second tier” opportunity.
25:52 Why Exits Matter: Recycling capital and the venture flywheel.
27:09 Defence Tech Goes Mainstream: Porsche, DT, EIF and Germany’s cultural shift.
36:18 The Ethics Question: Dual use, deterrence, and uncomfortable truths.
41:22 Energy Corner: Lithium recycling, sodium-ion batteries, and Europe’s 4x US energy costs.
46:44 AI Needs Power: Grid bottlenecks, red tape, and planning reform urgency.
51:10 GPT-5 Launch: Unified model, user backlash, and coding benchmarks.
54:37 Perplexity vs Chrome: PR stunt or regulatory opening?
58:32 Chip Wars: Nvidia tariffs, Huawei delays, and why Europe needs Chips Act 2.0.
1:05:59 Shoutout to Italy: Record €655M H1 startup funding.

At this year’s EUVC Summit, the “Newcomer of the Year” award didn’t go to someone just making noise—it went to a team making real moves.

A team built for the long game. A team proving that even when entering late, you can lead early.

Shapers VC took home the honor. And in the words of Phil himself:

“Being new is not easy. But this team makes it look easy.”

What makes a great newcomer?

At EUVC, we looked for three things:

Performance — Are they picking winners or building platforms?
Perspective — Are they differentiated, or derivative?
Community & Conviction — Are they lifting the ecosystem around them?

Shapers VC showed up on all three.

Backed by over 60 FinTech founders and operators, they’re building the kind of platform that’s more than capital. It’s signal. It’s support. It’s sweat equity from people who’ve been in the trenches.

“Community is core to us. Most of our LPs are strategic—it’s what makes our model work.”
– Greg Brown, Shapers VC

Greg put it simply:

“When everyone else left the party, that’s when we showed up.”

Shapers wasn’t chasing a trend. They were responding to a gap—stepping in when others were stepping back. In FinTech, timing is everything. And they timed it with intent.

“It probably feels weird to receive an award just as we’re getting started. But shining a light on emerging managers matters—and we’re honored to be in that spotlight.”

Phil’s closing message was one we believe in deeply:

“There are so many strong emerging managers striking out on their own right now. Some are in this room. Recognizing them isn’t just nice—it’s necessary.”

At EUVC, we don’t just celebrate the legends. We champion the next ones.
And if this year’s award is any sign—Shapers VC is one to watch.

Why It Matters: Community, Conviction & TimingThe Power of Showing Up Late (and Ready)

At the EUVC Summit 2025, Anthony and Sarah took the stage with what turned out to be one of the most intellectually charged exchanges of the day.

The topic? Solo GPs, specialization, and the hard choices that define fund performance.

Let’s just say—no consensus was reached. But the tension? That’s where the insight lived.

Anthony came in strong:

“Being a solo GP is the purest form of interest alignment.”

To him, solo GPs aren’t a stepping stone or niche play—they’re a category in their own right. The advantage? Focus. Speed. Zero overhead. And most importantly: a differentiated product founders want.

He highlighted what he sees as the compounding edge:

No IC.
No coordination cost.
Vertically integrated workflows.
A position as a complementary node, not a competitor, in the ecosystem.

And yes—there’s scale in solo too.

“I just had coffee with two solo GPs managing over a billion in AUM. You don't need to ‘scale up’ to be credible.”

Sarah offered a more grounded lens: focus on performance over scale.

“You don’t win on good ops alone—but you can lose on bad ops.”

Her point: it’s not about copying what works in another market. It's about right-sizing your fund to what your strategy and your market can actually sustain.

Especially in Europe, she argued, the path isn’t about chasing a 10x in AUM—it’s about finding the zone where your edge sings.

“If I think about the funds I admire, they got really good at finding the fund size that matched their true strategy.”

And for emerging managers, the key is still figuring out what the market needs now, not just what worked last cycle.

As the session wrapped, one line captured the spirit of it all:

“The test of a great intelligence is holding two opposing ideas at the same time.”

At EUVC, we didn’t just hear those ideas.
We saw them—sitting side by side on stage.

And if we’re smart about it, we won’t choose one or the other.
We’ll connect the dots.

The Case for the Solo GP: Pure Alignment, Compounding AdvantageThe Performance Perspective: Ops, Fund Size & Market FitTwo Views. Both True.

Carlos Moreira da Silva brings a rare blend of insight: a deep B2B operator, a specialist investor at 33N, and a leading force behind Europe’s cybersecurity coordination efforts through ECSO. Together, we explore why cybersecurity is Europe’s opportunity to lead, not follow, in the new geopolitical tech stack.

Here’s what’s covered:

01:15 What is ECSO and Why It Matters for European Cyber
03:30 Mapping the Cybersecurity Investment Gap: US vs Israel vs Europe
05:20 The Tech Stack Power Shift: From Cloud to AI, and Why Security Must Catch Up
07:30 Europe’s Fragmentation Problem—Or Its Untapped Advantage?
09:45 The Role of ECSO in Building a Unified European Cyber Strategy
11:45 Why Europe Needs Specialist Cybersecurity VCs
15:30 What Other Movements Can Learn from the ECSO Playbook
20:00 Cybercrime vs Cyber Spending: The 10 Trillion Dollar Wake-Up Call
21:30 Building Global Champions in Cyber (Not Just Regional Winners)
25:00 What Startups Should Look for in a Cyber VC (Beyond the Check)
26:30 Invest for Cyber @ SuperVenture: Why the LP Community Should Pay Attention
28:00 Where Cyber Ends and Defense Begins—Drawing Ethical Boundaries at 33N

Welcome to a new episode of the EUVC Podcast, where we bring you the people and perspectives shaping venture — this time with a lens on Southeast Asia and India.

This week, David Cruz e Silva, founder of EUVC, and Ambika Behal from Circle Capital sit down with Tanuja Rajah, Partner at M Venture Partners (MVP) in Singapore — an early-stage fund backing founders from day zero across Southeast Asia and India.

Tanuja’s path is not your typical VC story: a PhD in immunology, a startup built on trial and error, and a mission now to fund the region’s next generation of founders tackling healthcare, trust, access, and affordability — without the science risk.

🎯 This Episode’s Themes:

How a science background shapes a founder-first investment lens
Southeast Asia vs. India: where the next breakout health techs will come from
The truth about exits in Asia: secondaries, roll-ups, & why IPOs are hard
AI hype vs. reality: why MVP waits before jumping on the AI bandwagon
Going from B2C to B2B: the maturity curve in regional digital health
The realities of being an emerging fund manager in an overheated early-stage ecosystem
Tanuja’s biggest lesson: great teams are not enough — markets matter more

🕒 Here’s what’s covered:

01:30 | How a PhD in immunology landed Tanuja in venture
03:00 | Starting a company with no playbook: lessons from Malaysia to Singapore
05:00 | Why MVP backs healthcare — but avoids the science risk
07:00 | 25% of the world’s population: why India & Southeast Asia are consumer goldmines
10:00 | Biggest VC lesson: ownership matters (and why it’s so hard for new funds)
12:30 | How MVP balanced brand building with early fund modeling
15:00 | Why angels and micro-funds make Southeast Asia so competitive
17:00 | Healthcare’s future: physical + digital or nothing
19:00 | AI: hype, scribe startups, and the real wedge that matters
22:00 | Portfolio spotlight: how HD used real-world data to build a regional moat
25:00 | Can Southeast Asia’s healthtech scale into Europe?
28:00 | Where follow-on capital is (and isn’t) coming from
30:00 | Exits done right: why secondaries and &A trump IPO dreams
35:00 | Strong beliefs overturned: why the best teams still need the best markets
39:00 | Advice for emerging fund managers: pick your people and sharpen your USP
42:00 | Book of the Week: how Siddhartha Mukherjee’s “Emperor of All Maladies” shaped Tanuja’s mission

Welcome to a new episode of the Impact Highlight Series, powered by EUVC, Impact VC and Impact Supporters.

Today, we’re joined by Tony Jamous, founder and CEO of Oyster. Oyster is on a mission to reverse brain drain and reduce wealth inequality by democratizing access to global job opportunities. Before founding Oyster in 2020, Tony took his previous software API company public on the New York Stock Exchange.

Together, we dive into how Tony built Oyster into an impact unicorn, what it means to lead a mission-driven company, and why he believes impact and financial success are collinear. From hiring across 45 countries to creating a billion-dollar company in just two years, Tony shares the lessons, challenges, and values that guide him.

This is the playbook for building impact unicorns — straight from the founder’s journey.

🎧 Here's what's covered:

02:11 Witnessing the Power of Global Hiring in 45 Countries
05:02 Why Oyster Started: Democratizing Access to Global Jobs
08:27 From Zero to $1B in Two Years — How the Pandemic Accelerated Demand
12:04 Impact Entrepreneurs: Using Technology as a Means, Not an End
15:43 Aligning Financial Success with Impact — The Virtuous Cycle
20:12 The “Inner Rock”: Sticking to Your Values Under Pressure
24:05 Playing the Infinite Game: Building for the Next Generation
27:44 Recruiting for Mission Alignment & Emotional Stability
33:02 Why Impact Businesses Attract the Best Talent and Investors
37:19 The Oyster Framework: Wellbeing as a Core OKR
41:08 Choosing Impact-Driven Investors with Real Frameworks
46:30 Actionable Tip for Generalist VCs: Get Curious and Start Testing

Mike Maples Jr., the legendary co-founder of Floodgate and early backer of Twitter, Lyft, and Twitch, joined EUVC to deliver a masterclass in contrarian venture investing. His message to European GPs and LPs was clear: the biggest winners don’t follow the rules — they break them.

He not only challenged European venture capitalists to rethink their playbooks but also distilled years of hard-won wisdom into a framework he calls Inflection Theory, urging GPs and LPs alike to focus on pattern breakers instead of pattern matching.

In typical fashion, Mike was sharp, candid, and even a bit irreverent, dropping truth bombs about everything from what makes a founder truly breakout to why fund size is a VC’s destiny. This essay captures those key insights and explores what they mean for European investors who aspire to back the future’s biggest winners.

Mike Maples Jr. has never been one for incremental change. As our conversation revealed, he believes venture success comes from “changing the subject” entirely – defying conventional wisdom and waging “asymmetric warfare on the present”. European GPs and LPs tuning in were treated to a masterclass on identifying unreasonable founders who don’t fit the mold, and why the usual check-the-box approach to startups misses the mark. From Inflection Theory and the anatomy of breakout founders to the transatlantic culture clash in tech, let’s dive into Maples’ playbook – and see how it challenges us all to up our game.

Welcome back to another episode of Upside at the EUVC Podcast, where

,

of

and

from

unpack what’s happening in European tech and venture capital.

This week: Why Series A in Europe now often means “multi-seed” and what founders should do about it, Germany’s €100B industrial policy push and whether it can actually deliver, and the Bank of England’s rate cut as a red flare for the economy. Plus: the OECD’s warning on corporate underinvestment, why the EU’s Chips Act 2.0 risks missing the AI boom, and the latest in the global AI race from GPT-5 rumours to billion-dollar raises. Also: Clay’s $100M relationship-intelligence war chest, N8N’s unicorn momentum, and a Spanish autonomous tractor that’s rewriting farm economics.

🎧 Here's what's covered:

01:12 Series A Reality Check: US vs Europe timelines, bridge rounds, and why naming matters.
06:04 The Multi-Seed Era: How European founders should think about funding milestones.
10:47 Germany’s €100B Deutschlandfonds: Ambition, execution risk, and industrial policy priorities.
17:58 UK Rate Cut at 4.0%: Red flare for growth, modest boost for VC competitiveness.
22:31 OECD on Corporate Investment Stagnation: Why regulatory drag is Europe’s silent growth killer.
29:44 Europe’s Chips Act 2.0: From missed targets to high-value manufacturing opportunities.
38:11 AI Corner – GPT-5 Rumours & Claude 4.1: Funding surges and the open-source shift.
45:27 IP & AI Models: Data leakage risks and the Napster-era copyright parallel.
52:03 Deals of the Week: Clay, N8N, and Voltrac’s autonomous tractor breakthrough.
57:46 Closing Takeaways: Focus, speed, and execution as Europe’s competitive levers.

At EUVC Summit 2025,

(

) didn’t give a talk—he threw down a gauntlet.

Forget polite panel chatter. This was part existential reckoning, part investor roast, and part Radiohead reference. It left the room laughing, nodding, and—if we’re honest—slightly uncomfortable.

Which was the point.

“Venture is lending money to people believing one future. That’s what I do at least.”

2019: The Climate Fundraising GauntletHampus opened with a flashback to 2019, when fundraising for climate still meant fighting disbelief.

“One third of LPs didn’t believe in climate change. Another third didn’t understand the business models. The rest were waiting for someone else to go first.”

Fast forward to today, and while climate events are louder, many investors still hesitate.

“The expected value of climate change is huge. So why are we still asking if there’s upside?”

Fossil Fuels vs. Electrons: Which Sounds Dumber?

In classic Hampus form, he took aim at the status quo with punchy simplicity:

“We burn things that explode to move forward. Or we could use electrons that fall from the sky for free. Which sounds smarter?”

He skewered half-hearted circularity narratives and ESG buzzwords, pointing out the absurdity in how valuable materials (like titanium in aerospace) are wasted—literally thrown out next to cigarette butts.

Radiohead, Trump & the Venture Job DescriptionAt one point, Hampus invoked a line from Radiohead:

“If you're a plastic surgeon, you gotta know—gravity always wins.”Then added:“Sorry, Trump.”It was funny—but also cutting. The message was clear: You can deny physics and climate reality for a while, but eventually, gravity wins.

How Venture Can Actually Matter

Hampus made one thing very clear: he’s not in climate to feel good—he’s in it to win.

That means:

Bigger rounds
Bigger companies
Bigger exits
And fewer excuses

“Let’s stop pretending it’s complicated. Let’s raise, build, scale—and let’s be less dumb.”

At the EUVC Summit 2025,

of

delivered a data-backed reminder: If we’re serious about building global companies from Europe, we need to stop treating the US as a rival—and start treating it like the deeply connected partner it already is.

Robin Klein & the Power of Ecosystem BuildersThe session opened with a heartfelt nod to Robin Klein, this year’s Hall of Fame inductee. When Frontline asked leading investors across the continent “Who has been most influential in your journey in European tech?”—four out of five said Robin.

“Building an ecosystem isn’t just about investing. It’s about building a fund, a culture, and a movement. Robin has done all three.”

His recognition is a signal to us all: the best investors aren’t just backing startups—they’re laying foundations for the entire ecosystem to thrive.

Europe vs. US? The Data Tells a Different Story

You might think Europe and the US operate as separate tech spheres. The media often frames it that way. Politicians like Trump make it seem that way. But the data tells a different story:

45% of the world’s internet traffic flows through just 17 transatlantic cables—every single day.
In consumer tech, nearly 75% of global spend comes from Europe + the US combined.
Signal AI, a Frontline portfolio company, analyzes global news in 150+ languages—yet a major share of its revenue comes from the US.

“We’re already collaborating—just not always intentionally.”

Think Big. Think Global.William’s message to investors was crystal clear:

“We shouldn’t be advising founders to go small or to ignore the US. Europe and America are economically and digitally intertwined—and always have been.

”He cited the powerful example of Dr. Katalin Karikó (Europe) and Dr. Drew Weissman (US)—the Nobel-winning team behind mRNA vaccines. Global breakthroughs, enabled by global collaboration.

Yes, it’s harder today to build across borders. But that’s where investors need to step up—not retreat.

Let’s not let political headlines shape our investment strategies.

Let’s help our companies build globally, because that’s how we build lasting, category-defining businesses.

And let’s take a page from Robin Klein’s book: invest in the ecosystem, not just the deal.

Welcome to a new episode of the EUVC Podcast, where we bring you the people and perspectives shaping European venture.

Today, we’re joined by Ties Boukema, Head of Data, Tech & AI at Dawn Capital, one of Europe’s leading B2B SaaS and Fintech investors. With a background spanning law, statistics, Google Health, and five brain surgeries, Ties brings a rare mix of grit, optimism, and technical firepower to Venture and he’s putting it to use by building Rolodex, an internal AI-powered operating system for Dawn.

This is not an AI trends episode. This is an inside look at what it takes to build and deploy technology within a venture firm—and why the industry has been lagging behind.

🎯 This Episode’s Themes:

How a near-death experience shaped Ties’ perspective—and his edge
Why most software in VC is “surprisingly bad” and what to do about it
How Dawn is building Rolodex: AI-powered prep, network graphs, and event intelligence
The myth of “no data in early-stage” and why private markets still need software
What Gawande’s checklist manifesto can teach European venture

Here’s what’s covered:

02:00 | Meet Ties: From New York brain surgery to Google to Dawn
04:00 | Life Before Surgery: Growing up with 200+ hospital stays
09:30 | A Second Life: What changed post-op—and how it shaped his drive
11:00 | From Sales to AI: Ties' journey at Google and pivot into health
12:45 | Why Venture: “These people are smart… but why are they fixing slides at 2 AM?”
14:00 | Perspective as Edge: Handling pressure, breaking rules, and ignoring experts
17:30 | AI vs Experts: The false trust in tradition—and how AI challenges it
20:00 | The Speed Mismatch: We can produce info 100x faster than we can understand it
24:00 | Building Tech for Venture: The reality, the resistance, the rewards
29:00 | Buy vs Build: Why VC firms should think like operators, not tinkerers
32:00 | Rolodex Origins: The deal Dawn lost—and what it taught them
36:00 | Entity Resolution Hell: Why syncing your contacts is harder than you think
40:00 | Rolodex in Action: Deal prep, relationship mapping, board meeting alerts
44:00 | Quantifying Network Power: How Dawn tracks angels & co-investors
46:00 | Strong Opinions, Loosely Held: Why Ties changed his mind on VC’s “human core”
50:00 | The Checklist Revelation: What brain surgeons taught him about process

This year at the EUVC Summit Awards, Robin Klein was inducted into the Hall of Fame. Backed by HSBC Innovation Banking, the award celebrates a lifetime of impact—and Robin’s legacy stands as a blueprint for what long-term conviction in European tech can look like.

As Chris Adelsbach reminded us on stage, we’re no longer an emerging ecosystem. We’ve grown up. And few have helped shape that growth more consistently, more humbly, and more powerfully than Robin.

A Legacy That Began Before Venture Had a Name

Robin’s story doesn’t begin with startups—it begins with family, migration, and belief.

A century ago, his grandfather left Eastern Europe for South Africa. Years later, he handed over his life savings to a young engineer—Robin—to start a business. That first act of belief, Robin said, was venture capital before we had the word for it.

From there, the journey spanned decades:

→ Two companies built and exited.
→ A pivot to angel investing in 1999.
→ A front-row seat to the power law—and the human stories behind it.

From Fledgling Angels to a $2B Platform

What followed was a fundamental reshaping of Europe’s innovation landscape.

Across LocalGlobe, Latitude, and Solar, Robin and his team have helped founders build not only unicorns—but also communities, movements, and ecosystems. They’ve backed science and inclusion, food banks and frontier tech, with LPs from both East and West. Today, their platform manages nearly $2 billion.

And through it all, one belief has remained constant:Innovation and technology are forces for good—capable of delivering stellar returns to LPs, and positive change to society.

A Call to Builders—And the FutureRobin closed by thanking his grandfather—the original backer—and his son and partner, who now help lead the next generation forward.

His message to the room was clear:We have the talent, the universities, the engineers. We have the moment.

The time is now.

Thanks to the foundations we’ve laid— the best is still ahead.

At this year’s EUVC Summit, Oliver Holle from Speedinvest delivered a powerful call to arms. In a room filled with the ecosystem’s builders, he laid out a bold vision for European venture: one that embraces our values, recognizes our untapped capital strength, and demands we shift from fragmentation to scale. His words weren’t just timely—they captured a moment of reckoning for European VC. The message? The opportunity is ours to lose, and the only thing standing in the way is us.Something strange has happened lately—I’ve never felt more proud to be European.

Not in a jingoistic way. But in the sense that Europe’s values—modesty, facts over noise, democratic principles, and consensus-building—are becoming a competitive advantage. At a time when reliability and trust are global currencies, Europe’s soft power has quietly gained weight.

But soft power alone isn’t enough.

In this episode, Jeppe Høier and Andreas Munk Holm sit down with Julien Fredonie, Head of Europe & Africa at Honda Xcelerator Ventures, for a deep dive into how one of the world’s most iconic manufacturing giants is strategically navigating venture capital across Europe.

They explore Honda’s global investment strategy, Julien’s views on Europe’s deeptech strengths, the nuanced role of corporate VC, and why Honda is bullish on European innovation—from climate tech to AI and advanced manufacturing.

This one’s a rare look into how a global player allocates capital, thinks about strategic alignment, and partners with both startups and emerging funds.

Here’s what’s covered:

01:10 Who is Julien Fredonie and what is Honda Xcelerator Ventures?
02:40 The 4 Strategic Pillars: Sustainability, Manufacturing, Mobility, AI
04:15 What "Deep Tech That Sells" Means to Honda
05:30 Strategic Projects Explained: POCs, JVs, and R&D Partnerships
07:45 Fund-of-Fund Activity: Why Honda Also Backs VCs
09:00 Structuring the CVC: The Role of Julien’s Team vs. Internal Honda R&D
11:30 What Startups Get from Honda (Beyond Capital)
13:45 Deep Tech DD: How Honda Approaches Validation from Inside & Outside
23:30 Where Europe Stands Out: Climate, Advanced Industry, AI
25:30 Gen 2 Climate Tech: From Environmental to Industrial Impact
26:15 The State of French VC and Deep Tech Momentum

Welcome back to another episode of Upside at the EUVC Podcast, where Dan Bowyer, Mads Jensen of SuperSeed and Lomax from Outsized Ventures unpack what’s happening in European tech and venture capital.

This week: Why Meta and Microsoft are minting cash from AI, what Figma’s IPO signals for SaaS, whether the EU got rolled in its new trade deal with the US, and how Europe’s AI scene is finally delivering billion‑dollar exits. Plus: OpenAI’s new “Study Mode” and Harry Stebbings’ Project Europe—an “anti‑YC” deep‑tech accelerator for founders under 25.

🎧 Here's what's covered:

01:07 Meta & Microsoft Blowout Earnings: How AI is driving real revenue and margins.
04:43 Meta’s Efficiency Playbook: Ads, engagement, and headcount cuts fueling growth.
06:39 Zuckerberg’s Billion-Dollar AI Talent Grab: Why Meta is betting the farm on AI.
11:23 CapEx Shockwaves: Meta at $70B and Amazon at $100B—bigger than all of European VC.
14:02 Sticky Inflation & AI Boom: Why markets stay bullish despite high rates.
21:33 Figma’s Blockbuster IPO: SaaS revival or a one‑off outlier?
25:37 Index Ventures’ €7B Payday: Power law dynamics in European venture.
33:51 EU–US Trade Deal Breakdown: Tariffs, defense procurement, and $600B in investment.
46:43 Anthropic’s $5B Raise: Can US AI dominance withstand cheap, open‑source rivals from China?
49:32 Germany’s $1B AI Exit: Cognigy and the rise of European enterprise AI.
01:07:59 Accelerators & the “Best Founders Don’t Need Them” Debate

In this episode,

sits down with

and

, the founding partners of

, a brand-new fund laser-focused on what they call Human Interaction Tech.

They explore why online communication, remote work, and AI are disrupting how we relate at work and in life, and why that opens a massive opportunity for a new kind of VC firm. With a track record of backing unicorns like Flo, Revolut, and Patreon, and institutional knowledge from Bain and SDV, the duo is now raising their first fund to scale this vision.

We dive into how they define their category, the growing $150B+ market opportunity, their standout portfolio performance, and how their unfair advantages—from GTM playbooks to Tier 1 VC intros—create gravity with both founders and LPs.

🎧 Here’s what’s covered:

00:05 Introduction to AdHoc Ventures
01:30 The Concept of Human Interaction Tech
05:28 Market Opportunities in Human Interaction Tech
09:23 Investment Strategy and Track Record
12:27 Unfair Advantages of Ad Hoc Ventures
16:03 Building a Global Fund
20:03 The Role of AI in Human Interaction
24:25 Value Addition as Specialized Investors
25:40 Management Fee Structure Explained

Welcome back to another episode of At the Cap Table, your trusted inside track on the people, ideas, and power dynamics shaping the future of European venture.This week, Savs sits down with

, Partner at

and Co-Founder of

, for a candid conversation about doing VC differently—from day-one investing and values-led portfolios to walking away from a fund that could have been.

They dive into the rise of “residency models” over accelerators, why ESG is often misunderstood (even by the pros), and how real co-founder chemistry can’t be faked. Hannah also opens up about why Fund II didn’t happen at Houghton Street Ventures, what she’s learned about partnership dynamics, and what kind of founders actually thrive under pressure.

Whether you're building from zero, navigating the future of VC, or just wrestling with what it means to do this job with intention—this one's for you.

Here’s what’s covered:

01:50 | How an NGO office in Mumbai sparked a decade-long obsession with founders
04:20 | VentureESG: the accidental nonprofit now guiding 700+ VCs and LPs
11:30 | Houghton Street Ventures: the thesis, the traction, and the hard call not to raise Fund II
18:00 | Why working with the right people trumps firm strategy
20:00 | Antler’s “day one” model and what a residency really offers founders
23:00 | Week 3 in the Antler cohort: when teams form, and sometimes fall apart
25:30 | What actually matters in early-stage teams (hint: not the idea)
28:00 | Standard terms, 10-week pressure, and founder selection inside Antler
30:00 | Project Europe, collaboration culture, and why VC needs more team sports
33:00 | Europe’s strength in AI, climate, and thoughtful founders
34:30 | Luck, wonky careers, and why no door is ever really closed

Welcome to a new episode of the EUVC podcast, where Andreas Munk Holm and Jeppe Høier explore the cutting edge of European venture capital. Today’s guest is Nacho Tovar, who is the Group Innovation Director at IAG.IAG—the airline group behind British Airways, Iberia, and Vueling.

Together, they unpack how one of the world’s most complex legacy industries is retooling itself through deep tech, startup collaboration, and CVC-backed transformation—from synthetic fuels to quantum AI.

This is the CVC playbook for aviation, straight from the cockpit.

🎧 Here's what's covered:

02:02 How Childhood Dreams of Flight Became a CVC Career
05:12 IAG’s Six Investment Themes: AI, Automation, SAF, CX, Connectivity & Quantum
10:01 No Fund Yet—But €200M in Committed Capital Through the Balance Sheet
14:30 Why IAG Doesn’t Invest at Concept Stage (And Doesn’t Take Equity in Accelerator)
18:32 Nacho’s Career Path: Why Engineering + Accenture + VC = Ideal CVC Operator
24:34 Inside Iberia’s Turnaround: From €1M/day Losses to €1B Profit
28:47 Co-Investing over Leading: IAG’s Approach to Rounds
30:29 What Nacho Brings to the Cap Table: Commercial Scale, Access & Global Brand
32:54 The Secret Sauce: Airline Autonomy + Strategic Collaboration
34:08 How IAG Unlocks Strategic Value Post-Investment
39:23 Why Punctuality, Cost & CX Are All Linked in Aviation
44:59 The Airline-Customer Relationship: From Booking to Destination

Welcome back to another episode of the EUVC Podcast, your trusted inside track on the people, deals, and dynamics shaping European venture. This week marks a major milestone — Episode 50! To celebrate, Dan Bowyer, Mads Jensen of SuperSeed and Lomax from Outsized Ventures, and Andrew J. Scott return to unpack the headlines and trends shaping the European tech landscape.

From the UK government’s OpenAI partnership and what it means, to the missed boat on stablecoins, and to AI outperforming the brightest minds in math—this episode cuts deep into the future of tech, sovereignty, and competitiveness in Europe.

Whether you're a founder navigating policy shifts, an investor eyeing infrastructure plays, or just an AI-curious policy wonk—this one’s for you.

Here's what’s covered

00:00 | Celebrating Episode 50
The gang reflects on hitting a podcasting milestone and shares quick updates from Denmark, Paris, and a beachside founder retreat.
03:30 | OpenAI x UK Government: A Real Deal?
The UK’s MOU with OpenAI is meant to boost public sector productivity—but is it too flimsy to matter? The hosts debate if this partnership is toothless signaling or meaningful progress.
06:00 | Can AI Actually Transform Public Services?
From “Humpfree the Chatbot” to NHS waitlists, the panel weighs in on the real-world use cases, and how opt-in AI diagnostics could solve the NHS backlog.
09:30 | The Bigger Picture: AI Sovereignty and Strategy
With the UK relying on US players (OpenAI, Anthropic, Nvidia), are we compromising our digital sovereignty? Andrew drops the big question: Is this the modern equivalent of exporting raw strategic resources?
14:00 | US vs UK AI Plans: Build, Baby, Build vs. Think, Baby, Think
The team compares the UK's thoughtful “consultancy-style” AI strategy with the US’s aggressive, deregulatory action plan—complete with eagles and executive orders.
19:00 | Policy Recommendations from the Pod
From national compute backbones and Buy-UK mandates to AI visa fast-tracks and sovereign LLMs — the panel proposes big ideas Europe should act on today.
25:00 | Stablecoins: UK’s Missed Opportunity
While Japan, Singapore, and the US regulate stablecoins, the UK is just starting consultations. Why? And what’s at stake?
30:00 | Dollar Dominance Reinvented
Mads explains how stablecoins are reinforcing US economic control — and how UK hesitation risks long-term relevance in fintech.
34:00 | Ideas for UK Leadership in Stablecoins
Could interest-bearing stablecoins become London’s new edge? Could we reclaim fintech innovation by embracing DeFi rails?
38:00 | AI Wins Gold at the Maths Olympiad
Google’s DeepMind and OpenAI hit gold-level scores at the IMO. The gang discusses the leap in AI’s creative reasoning and what it means for R&D, drug discovery, and Europe’s scientific leadership.
43:00 | Should Europe Build Its Own Sovereign Research Hub?
From CERN-for-AI to training sovereign models, the crew asks whether public sector moonshots are the right way to compete.
48:00 | Deal of the Week: Eurazeo’s €650M Fund for AI Scaleups
In a capital-constrained landscape, Eurazeo closes a rare growth fund to back Europe’s AI champions.
50:00 | Wildcard: AI vs. Raccoons
Andrew shares a niche but hilarious use case for computer vision AI: keeping raccoons out of houses. No joke.

In this episode, Andreas Munk Holm is joined by Eoghan O’Neill, Senior Policy Officer at the European Commission’s AI Office, to break down the EU AI Act, Europe’s strategy to lead the global AI wave with trust, safety, and world-class infrastructure.

They dive into why the EU’s approach to AI is not just regulatory red tape but a proactive framework to ensure innovation and adoption flourish across sectors—from startups to supercomputers. Eoghan unpacks how startups can navigate the Act, why Europe’s regulatory clarity is an advantage, and how investors should be thinking about this new paradigm.

Here’s what’s covered:

02:41 Eoghan’s Unorthodox Journey: From Gravy Systems to AI Policy
04:32 The Mission & Structure of the AI Office
05:52 Understanding the AI Act: A Product Safety Framework
09:40 How the AI Act Was Created: An Open, 1,000+ Stakeholder Process
17:42 What Counts as High-Risk AI (And What Doesn’t)
21:23 Learning from GDPR & Ensuring Innovation Isn’t Crushed
26:10 Transparency, Trust & The Limits of Regulation
30:15 What VCs Need to Know: Obligations, Timelines & Opportunities
34:42 Europe's Global AI Position: Infra, Engineers, Strategy
43:33 Global Dynamics: Commoditization, Gulf States & the Future of AGI
48:46 What’s Coming: Apply AI Strategy in September

In this episode, Jon from the European VC pod is joined by co-host Ambika from Circle Capital for a special look at the Southeast Asian VC landscape. Their guest, Bhavik Vashi—Managing Director at Carta for APAC and MENA—brings both operator and investor lenses to the table. From the myth of “Southeast Asia as a region” to emerging manager struggles, this conversation pulls no punches. If you’re thinking global, this is your field guide.

Here’s what’s covered:

01:20 Bhavik’s Journey from Anaplan to Carta
03:45 Why “Southeast Asia” Is a Convenience, Not a Region
08:00 The Operator’s Reality: Fragmentation, Regulation, and Talent Arbitrage
11:45 Power Law Doesn’t Work Here: Rethinking Portfolio Construction
16:10 Fund IRRs Are Down, and It’s Worse in Southeast Asia
19:00 The First Wave of Emerging GPs: What Went Wrong
22:30 The Bright Side: Carta’s $1B Bet and Market-by-Market Nuance
27:15 Australia, MENA, Singapore, and What Global LPs Should Understand
32:00 The Case for Emerging Managers (And Why LPs Need to Get Over Their Fears)
36:10 Belief Shift: The East Isn’t Copying the West Anymore
41:00 Hub-and-Spoke Is Dead: Local Ops for Global Scale
44:00 Middle East ≠ Europe: Why Singapore and Dubai Are Mirror Plays

This week on the EUVC podcast,Andreas Munk Holm is joined by Jörg Binnenbrücker, General Partner at Capnamic, to unpack the story behind one of Europe’s standout software exits—LeanIX, winner of Exit of the Year at the European VC Awards.

Jörg walks us through how a €500K initial check turned into a billion-dollar outcome—and why the deal was perfectly sized for the realities of European venture. We go deep on Capnamic’s founder-first philosophy, their obsession with DPI, and how they’ve built a venture firm that consistently turns real returns across funds—not just paper markups.

From investing early in B2B SaaS to building a culture that mirrors the best of startups, Jörg shares the blueprint behind Capnamic’s flywheel—one rooted in trust, ownership, and team alignment.

🎯 In This Episode, We Cover:

The inside story of the LeanIX deal—and why it was a fund-maker
How Capnamic builds DPI-first into every decision
Why real founder empathy starts with how your team works
Lessons from Michael Jordan and Yoda (really)
Europe’s underrated software founders—and why they’re winning
Why generalist firms still play a key role in climate, deep tech & beyond

Here’s what’s covered:

00:00 | Jörg joins: From Capnamic to Exit of the Year
02:15 | Why LeanIX is a “Google Maps for Enterprise Software”
04:30 | The €500K check that turned into a billion-dollar outcome
07:45 | What makes a “perfect” exit for European fund sizing
10:30 | DPI > Paper: How Capnamic structures for real returns
13:00 | Building founder empathy through operational design
16:30 | Every team member gets carry—even platform
19:00 | No consensus, no problem: Why Capnamic values conviction
22:00 | B2B SaaS, German depth, and the Capnamic thesis
25:45 | York on founder-centric processes and fast reps
28:00 | Why they track “10x front returners” at investment stage
31:00 | The art of timing exits—and when secondaries don’t work
34:00 | LeanIX team, bootstrap mentality, and long-term value creation
36:30 | Jörg’s parting advice: Start businesses wisely. Play like Jordan.

This week, August Solliv is joined by Fabian Heilemann, founding partner at AENU, a climate-focused Article 9 fund reshaping what institutional-grade impact investing looks like in Europe.

A former serial entrepreneur turned VC heavyweight, Fabian spent nearly a decade at Earlybird before launching AENU alongside his brother. Today, he leads a €170M early-stage climate tech fund with one clear mission: backing ventures that can decarbonize at gigaton scale.

In this episode, we dive into Fabian’s journey from angel investor missteps to system-level innovation, and what it takes to truly build an impact-native VC platform—beyond surface-level ESG.

We talk about why the old fund structures don’t cut it for deep tech and climate moonshots, what real accountability looks like for impact metrics, and why mission-aligned founders are starting to demand more than just capital.

🎯 This Episode’s Themes

Why Fabian walked away from generalist VC to go all-in on climate
The hard truths of raising an evergreen fund in a bear market
What it takes to measure impact—beyond the marketing slide
How AENU’s founders “walk the talk” in company operations
Why biodiversity collapse may hit harder than climate

Here’s what’s covered:

00:45 | Meet Fabian: From founder to Earlybird GP to climate VC
03:30 | When the science became too loud to ignore
06:00 | Early mistakes in angel investing—and how it shaped AENU
08:45 | Building AENU: Clean slate, pure play, Article 9
12:00 | Impact metrics that matter: CO₂e saved or removed
15:30 | Walking the talk: Travel policy, green ops & founder integrity
18:45 | Challenging the 10-year VC fund model
22:30 | Why climate tech exits need more patient capital
26:00 | The failed evergreen experiment—and what it taught them
30:00 | Climate vs. biodiversity: The next systemic wave
33:30 | Why Sequoia won’t fix this—but emerging managers might
36:15 | Founder redemptions: Building for impact after fast commerce
40:00 | The reality of fundraising as an impact-first VC
43:00 | AENU’s three pillars: Energy, decarb & climate adaptation

In this episode, Andreas Munk Holm and Jeppe Høier sit down with Florian Noell, PwC’s Global Venturing & EMEA Startups & Scale-ups Leader. Florian draws on his rare blend of experience as a founder, ecosystem advocate, and now corporate innovator to unpack the evolution—and missed opportunities—of corporate venture capital across Europe.

They delve deeply into what distinguishes enduring CVCs from the 3.7-year average lifespan, how to avoid wasting money as a corporate angel, and the structural shifts needed to transition from optics to outcomes. With both realism and optimism, this is a masterclass on corporate-startup collaboration done right—and wrong.

This one’s for ecosystem builders, corporate strategists, and VCs looking to make CVC work in the long term.

Here’s what’s covered:

02:10 | Two Hats, One Mission: How Florian Took His Founder Lens to PwC
05:50 | What Great Corporate-Startup Collaboration Looks Like
08:30 | Why CVCs Die After 3.7 Years—and How to Beat the Odds
11:20 | Structuring for Success: The 10 Building Blocks to a Lasting CVC
14:00 | Venture Clienting vs. Venture Investing
17:40 | The Case for Later-Stage Investing—If You Can Afford It
21:15 | LP Investing as a Smart Starting Point
25:50 | Policy’s Role: Useful, But Not the Magic Fix
30:00 | Changing the Corporate Mindset
34:00 | Why Corporates Don’t Reinvent Themselves—And What to Do About It

Welcome back to another episode of the EUVC Podcast, your trusted inside track on the people, deals, and dynamics shaping European venture.

This week,

and

of

and

from

, gather to unpack the macro forces and micro signals shaping European tech and venture.

They dive into the EU’s latest corporate structure reforms, the battle with resistant notaries, and the implications for startup formation and cross-border investing. Then it’s onto LLM innovation in China, valuation exuberance in AI, and the strategic shifts in capital allocation. The group finishes by zooming out on macro policy, sovereignty debates, and a cautious optimism for European tech.

Whether you’re an investor, founder, or policymaker trying to navigate Europe’s choppy regulatory waters — this one’s for you.

Here’s what’s covered

02:00 | Startup law, friction, and EU Inc.
06:30 | The SAFE envy
09:30 | Founders as fund managers — and vice versa
12:00 | From Pink Floyd to trillion-parameter models
17:30 | Capital efficiency and compute arbitrage
21:00 | UK startup ecosystem: a shadow of its former self?
25:00 | Fundraising cycles and trapped capital
28:00 | D2C health — a comeback?
31:00 | Crypto week in Europe?
35:00 | Macro clouds and haven-hunting

In the latest episode of “Path to Market,” Natasha and Micah are joined by Fanny Talagrand, Head of EMEA sales for startups and SMBs at Stripe to discuss key sales strategies from startups to enterprises. Drawing from her extensive experience in global tech companies like Google Cloud and Stripe, Fanny emphasizes the importance of understanding user needs and journeys, leveraging user feedback, and the different dynamics between selling to startups versus enterprises.

She also provides advice for hiring the first sales reps, highlighting the need for candidates to be smart, driven, and coachable. She stresses the significance of onboarding processes and embedding new hires with users early on. Additionally, she explores how to balance product-led growth with enterprise sales and shares metrics to optimize sales performance.

Tune in to learn about:* how to align sales strategies with the needs and journeys of different types of users; * how PLG and enterprise motions can coexist with careful planning and differentiation in user journeys; * why as companies grow, including a sales team becomes vital to extend market reach and support users who require more comprehensive solutions; * and more practical strategies for founders looking to enhance their sales operations and build successful teams.

Here’s what’s covered:* 00:00 Introduction to Fannie Talegrand * 00:46 Fannie’s Career Journey * 03:11 Comparing Sales Strategies at Google Cloud and Stripe * 09:02 Product-Led vs. Enterprise Motion * 12:13 Sales Metrics and Funnel Optimization * 15:14 Differences in Selling to Startups vs. Enterprises * 22:50 Hiring the Right Sales Leader * 33:11 Onboarding New Sales Hires * 38:51 Conclusion and Final Thoughts

In this week's podcast,

is joined by

at

and

at

to explore one of the most consequential deep tech opportunities Europe faces: RNA. With roots in foundational biology and applications from cancer therapy to precision agriculture, RNA is both a symbol and a stress test of Europe’s capacity to scale science into sovereignty.

The conversation is based on their

on the State of RNA in Europe, a data-rich, in-depth analysis of patents, funding flows, regulatory bottlenecks, and startup activity across the continent.

Here’s what’s covered:

03:05 The State of RNA in Europe
05:59 Challenges in Commercialization and Investment
09:09 The Landscape of RNA Companies in Europe
15:02 Regulatory Challenges in RNA Development
17:58 The Future of RNA in Europe
26:54 Navigating Regulatory Challenges in Biocontrol Products
30:46 The Impact of European Policies on Innovation
32:41 Learning from Global Regulatory Practices
40:34 The Exodus of Talent and Innovation from Europe
45:59 Funding Challenges for RNA Companies in Europe

In this episode,

talks with

— early-stage investor — about the new wave of entrepreneurs in Spain: those who’ve exited, raised again, and are now backing the next wave. They dive into the rise of Spain’s emerging managers, the structural limitations new fund managers face when fundraising, and how institutional platforms can solve them.

Carlos shares insights on how his team is designing a new type of investment structure — one that serves both fund-of-fund limited partners (LPs) and those deeply committed to ecosystem development. From syndicate-style collaboration to collective capital and US micro-fund inspiration, Carlos unpacks the anatomy of the new European seed scene.

Whether you’re building a micro fund, exploring Spain’s founder-led evolution, or curious about how fund design is adapting to new LP profiles — this one’s for you.

Here’s what’s covered:

00:00 The Rise of Repeat Founders: From Glovo to Preval and beyond
03:15 Why Founders Become Emerging Managers
05:42 The Fundraising Gap for New Managers
08:10 Co-investing and Scouting for Ecosystem Development
11:35 Challenges of Hybrid Investment Models
14:00 Case Study: Transcend — A $1.5M EdTech Concept Fund
17:20 Collective Capital: When LPs Roll Up Their Sleeves
19:45 Closing Thoughts & Invitation to Meet in Barcelona

Welcome to a new episode of the EUVC Podcast, where we bring you the people and perspectives shaping European venture.

This week,

is joined by

, Founding Partner at

, and

, Founder at

, for a deep dive into the rise of solo GPs and micro funds in Europe. Together, they unpack the forces driving this new wave of intentional, nimble VC—why it’s working, how it's evolving, and what it takes to win.

It’s a conversation that builds on their stage debate at the EUVC Summit—this time going deeper into headless rounds, syndication dynamics, the next generation of angel investors, and the very real personal decisions behind going solo.

🎯 This Episode’s Themes:

Why the solo GP model fits today’s best founders
The rise of “headless rounds” and what makes them work
The art (and risk) of conviction without consensus
The future of angels, from weekend warriors to fund managers
What’s next for micro funds in Europe—and why some won’t make it

Here’s what’s covered:

00:22 | Solo Love: The magic of being founder-picked and founder-aligned
01:30 | Angel Roots: Why Sarah and Anthony bet small before going big
04:00 | Market Dynamics: The squeeze between seed giants and multistage platforms
06:30 | Why Small Wins: Flexibility, focus, and belief in outlier founders
09:00 | Micro Syndication: Why solo GPs are finally co-leading in Europe
13:00 | The Reserve Question: What happens when founders need more capital?
16:00 | Conviction Building: The difference between borrowing belief and earning it
20:00 | Headless Rounds: The founder-led raise and its pros and cons
24:30 | Next Round Realities: Why leads don’t always do the heavy lifting
27:00 | Angel Competition: How to win without bidding wars
31:00 | Angel Education: Power law, concentration risk & the need for fresh blood
38:00 | Going Solo: The case for building your own lemonade stand
44:00 | The Big Firm Tradeoff: Coordination, politics, and the limits of scale
47:00 | Looking Ahead: What’s next for Europe’s micro fund wave

In this episode,

is joined by Colin Knight, a leading coach in the startup ecosystem, and

, co-founder of

, to dive deep into the emotional and relational dynamics that power — and often derail — the venture journey.

This conversation is part of the Venture Beyond initiative: a space to reflect on the human side of venture, supporting founders and investors in building intentional teams, resilient cultures, and sustainable energy for the long game.

Here’s what’s covered:

02:15 – What is Venture Beyond? (feat. 432 Legacy & Stride VC)
05:00 – “Peeling the Onion”: Relationships → Team → Role → Self
10:30 – Power dynamics and pitching: resetting the foundation
22:00 – The myth of pleasing and the power of check-ins
29:00 – Why VC firms struggle as teams
38:00 – Role transitions: letting go of identity and control
44:00 – The “Colin Column”: Why am I doing this?
47:00 – The Self: Paying the price of transformation
49:00 – Outcome addiction vs. joy in the journey
55:00 – Energy is everything: what drains you, what fuels you
57:30 – Finding your inner peace in a mad world

Welcome back to another episode of the EUVC Podcast, your trusted inside track on the people, deals, and dynamics shaping European venture.

This week,

and

of

and

from

, gather to unpack the macro forces and micro signals shaping European tech and venture.

They unpack the defense boom powering Europe’s deep tech surge — and ask whether startups should rush in or sit this wave out. They break down OpenAI’s next big product moves, the battle for browser dominance, and whether we’re already at peak LLM. They ask if working from home quietly kills startup culture (and what actually keeps it alive). And they check in on Trump’s tariffs, Europe’s big tech fines, and the resilience playbook that’s pulling startups deeper into geopolitics.

If you’re investing, building, or just trying to make sense of where Europe’s venture scene goes next — this one’s for you.

Here’s what’s covered

02:00 | The defense boom: Europe’s rearmament moment
How Germany has overtaken the UK in startup funding for the first time — and why defense, dual-use, and resilience are fueling the deep tech wave.
04:50 | Moral lines: should you build in defense?
Mads, Lomax and Andrew debate whether there’s an ethical red line — and if Europe’s founders should follow the money or sit this one out.
08:40 | Peak LLM? OpenAI launches a browser
Is OpenAI eating Google’s lunch? Mads explains why a new browser isn’t just a gimmick — it’s a data moat and a massive ad market play.
12:00 | The new search wars & what founders should do
Lomax breaks down how SEO is dead — GEO (generative engine optimization) is in. Why this shift is reshaping startup distribution playbooks.
15:30 | Grok 4, Elon & the next frontier
Mads explains how Musk’s Grok leapfrogged benchmarks — and why the next LLM battle is all about compute, data quality, and Nvidia’s $4T edge.
18:50 | Does working from home kill culture?
Are great companies built on Slack or in person? The crew unpacks why strong culture is more than values on a wall — and why the best teams come together.
25:00 | Trump’s tariffs: a real threat or priced in?
Why markets barely shrug at Trump’s latest trade threats — and what selective escalation could mean for European startups this autumn.
29:00 | UK startup stats: steady but small
Eight billion raised, a handful of unicorns minted — but the US is still 20x bigger. Why the same structural issues keep the UK from scaling like Silicon Valley.
33:15 | Big Tech vs Europe: do the fines matter?
From DMA penalties to encrypted chat backdoors, the team debates whether Brussels’ big fines work — and who really pays the price.
38:10 | Deal of the Week: Eutelsat’s €1.35B resilience play
Why Europe’s sovereign satellite champion matters — and why Lomax wants them to rebrand fast.

Welcome to a new episode of the EUVC Podcast, where we bring you the people and perspectives shaping European venture.

This week,

sits down with

, founding GP of

, the new defense-first fund going all in on the blunt reality of European strategic autonomy.

Nicholas is no newcomer to this. From advising governments to serving in Afghanistan, launching syndicates, or building dual-use bridges when few wanted to touch defense, he’s stayed on the same mission while the market shifted all around him.

In this episode, Nicholas breaks down why Europe needs unapologetic defense-first investing, why dual-use alone won’t cut it, and what founders, LPs, and co-investors must face up to if they’re serious about Europe’s sovereignty.

Here’s what’s covered:

00:00 | Nicholas Nelson’s journey: from service to syndicates to Archangel
02:00 | Two decades of doing defense before it was cool
04:00 | Why now? Why real defense? Why not just dual-use?
07:00 | The war tech shift: tanks out, rapid iteration in
10:00 | Ukraine’s ‘hourly sprints’—why on-the-ground matters
13:00 | Deterrence, lethality & Europe’s strategic gap
16:00 | When dual-use brands muddy the water (and why that’s risky)
19:00 | The bullets & bombs dilemma: investing when LPs say no
22:00 | Primes, vendor lock & the truth about the military industrial complex
26:00 | ESG tensions: Europe’s extra layer of complexity
30:00 | The pan-European Anduril myth—why it doesn’t map
34:00 | Local vs. pan-European scaling: what’s realistic
37:00 | Exit routes & why the big growth rounds go abroad
40:00 | The flywheel we didn’t get to—coming in part two

Welcome to a new episode of the EUVC Podcast, where we bring you the people and perspectives shaping European venture.

This time, we flip the mic: Jeppe Høier, normally the host, steps into the hot seat in a conversation with Francesco Di Lorenzo, Associate Professor of Strategy and Entrepreneurship at CBS and an expert on entrepreneurial and innovation strategy.

In this episode, you’ll get the full backstory on Jeppe—from PwC to CFO at a pan-European fund, Heartcore Capital, to building Maersk’s CVC arm, and now shaping Europe’s corporate VC landscape through the EU CVC podcast, newsletter, and summit.

They dive deep into how corporate venture works (and fails), why the immune system metaphor holds true, and what’s needed to build an ecosystem across Europe that actually delivers.

🎯 This Podcast’s Themes:* From finance to strategy: Jeppe’s journey into venture * Why CVC is more organ transplant than M&A * How to survive 3 CEOs—and why you must * Fund of funds vs. direct investing: what’s trending in corporate venture * Building Europe’s corporate VC community: podcast, masterclasses, summits

Here’s what’s covered:* 00:00 | From Interviews to the Interviewee: Jeppe in the spotlight * 02:00 | Auditor Turned VC: From PwC to CFO of a pan-European fund * 04:30 | The Maersk Years: Strategy, innovation, and the “immune system” * 07:00 | Organ Transplant Theory: Why CVCs often get rejected * 10:00 | Newsletter to Podcast: Building the EU CVC platform * 12:00 | The European Vision: A fragmented but collaborative ecosystem * 14:00 | Strategic vs Financial Tension: Why most corporates are confused * 16:00 | Global Case Studies: TDK Ventures, Woven Capital, Maersk Growth * 21:00 | The Pivot Playbook: Survive, evolve, stay relevant * 23:30 | How to Do CVC Right: From metrics to mindset * 25:00 | Fund of Funds 101: What corporates need to know * 27:00 | Advice to MBAs: Learn the craft, love the long game

Watch it here or add it to your episodes on Apple or Spotify 🎧. Chapters for easy navigation are available on the Spotify/Apple episode.

In this episode, Andreas Munk Holm sits down with Julia Binder (IMD), Manuel Braun (Impact Hub), and Enrique Molina (CircularCo) to unpack the evolving world of circular venture. They dive into why circularity should be viewed as a horizontal investment lens — not a niche — and how startups across materials, manufacturing, and infrastructure are already proving out scalable models.

From textile dyeing to resale logistics and digital product passports, the group highlights how circularity intersects with every vertical and why now is the time for more GPs and LPs to get involved.

Here’s what’s covered:* 00:50 – “We don’t invest in dumb things”: The Pale Blue Dot mindset * 02:30 – Why current supply chains reward harm — and how venture can reverse it * 04:30 – Startups vs. corporates: Who’s best positioned to drive change? * 07:40 – 5 monetizable circular business model archetypes * 12:10 – What infra is needed to scale circularity? * 15:00 – Real-world startups & back-end enablers in resale, reuse & track-and-trace * 18:00 – Circularity: Horizontal lens or vertical category? * 23:00 – Where capital is flowing: Startups, funds & LPs getting serious * 26:00 – Hype cycles: AI ascendant, circularity under the radar * 28:00 – Building ecosystems: Infrastructure, co-opetition, and collective voice * 31:00 – Final call: Why everyone — from founders to family offices — must engage

Welcome to a new episode of the EUVC Impact Highlight, where we bring you the people and perspectives pushing the boundaries of purpose-driven venture. This week, August Solliv sits down with Dougie Sloan, Managing Director, Impact Venture at Better Society Capital, and Jacqueline van den Ende, Co-founder & CEO of Carbon Equity, to explore how we unlock billions for climate action by rethinking the very architecture of venture capital.

Together, they dive into how Carbon Equity is turning everyday citizens into climate LPs, why “retail” doesn’t mean amateur, and how tech, transparency, and trust can finally bring impact investing to scale.

This episode’s themes:* Why climate finance is stuck—and how we build new pipes * Reimagining access: giving more people a seat at the capital table * The rise of the prosumer LP: conviction, education, and agency * Bridging alpha and impact without trade-offs * Redesigning private markets for participation at scale

Here’s what’s covered:* 00:30 Jacqueline’s journey: from traditional VC to climate capital rebel * 02:15 The climate capital gap: why only 2% of VC goes to climate tech * 03:45 Institutional capital vs. bold innovation: the trust mismatch * 05:30 Rethinking “retail”: building for a sophisticated next-gen LP * 07:00 Tech as an enabler: onboarding, transparency, and scale * 08:45 What private market investors need (and don’t get today) * 10:00 Productizing the LP experience: clarity, ownership, conviction * 11:45 How Carbon Equity builds education into capital deployment * 13:00 The vision: mobilizing the masses without dumbing things down * 14:30 Impact with returns: challenging the trade-off fallacy * 16:00 What’s next: tokenisation, retail regulation, and unlocking access

Welcome to a new episode of the EUVC podcast, where we connect and champion the voices shaping European venture. Today, we spotlight Lorenzo Franzi, Founding Partner at the Italian Founders Fund, to explore how a new generation of fund managers is reshaping Italy's startup landscape—and why deep empathy, focused strategy, and intentional market building are the foundation.

Lorenzo opens up about his journey from angel investor to institutional VC, shares insights on navigating Italy’s regulatory landscape, and explains why now is the time to believe in the Italian opportunity.

Here's what's covered:* 02:00 Why Fund Strategy Starts With Empathy: How Lorenzo’s unique experience grounds his founder-first approach * 05:15 The Thesis of Italian Founders Fund: A triad of Italy, diaspora, and inbound startups * 08:10 Why There Are No Small Funds in Italy: Structural barriers and the missing middle * 12:44 Data-Driven Support at Scale: Building productized VC operations * 16:02 Market Maturation: Applying Foundamental's venture framework to Italy * 19:00 Building an Edge through Focus: A concentrated portfolio with proximity-driven value * 22:30 From Angels to Institutions: What the Italian startup scene needs next * 25:50 Forget Unicorn Chasing: Why the alpha strategy matters more at pre-seed * 28:40 Is Now the Time to Back Italy? Lorenzo’s bet and what makes it different * 30:18 Ecosystem Building Through Visibility: Why global VCs must come meet local founders

Welcome back to another episode of the EUVC Podcast, your trusted inside track on the people, deals, and dynamics shaping European venture.

This week, Dan Bowyer and Mads Jensen of SuperSeed and Lomax from Outsized Ventures, gather to unpack the macro forces and micro signals shaping European tech and venture.

They sit down to break down the two sides of the IPO market: the soaring optimism behind Figma’s public debut — and the deep freeze that’s hit London listings harder than at any time since before the dot-com crash.

They also unpack what Figma’s $730M paper loss means, how vertical AI is the next generation of SaaS, and what the UK must fix to stand a chance in the global listings race.

If you’re investing, building, or just trying to make sense of the markets this summer — this one’s for you.

Here’s what’s covered* 02:30 | AI infra’s moment & CoreWeave hype
Why infra plays like CoreWeave and Circle have the market buzzing — but vertical AI is where the next SaaS returns lie. * 04:50 | Figma’s $730M paper loss explained
Mad breaks down the headline figure, the failed Adobe deal, the FTC veto, and why this IPO is about fundamentals — not hype. * 08:20 | Tender offer drama & employee morale
How Figma’s $20B exit fizzled — and the May 2024 tender to keep teams motivated ahead of listing. * 12:00 | Figma as a bellwether for design & vertical AI
Why product-led SaaS is shifting toward deep vertical AI workflows — and what that means for investors. * 15:45 | London: the slowest IPO H1 in nearly 30 years
Counter to the US’s $9B+ haul in 12 deals, London managed just $160M across five listings. A brutal gap. * 18:10 | Worse than dot-com. Worse than ‘08.
Dan & Mad put the numbers in perspective: this is the weakest stretch since before many listeners were born. * 26:15 | Dual-class shares & free float: too little too late?
Why tweaking share classes & float minimums is more copy-paste than innovation — and not the real fix. * 35:20 | The ESG paradox & listing tension
Where does London’s ESG edge help — and where does it push big companies abroad? * 40:15 | US vs UK capital markets: talent, trust & scale
Why founders and funds still flock to New York — and the structural advantages London must address. * 44:30 | Can London fight back?
What would it actually take to make London relevant again for growth listings? Dan’s realist take. * 50:00 | Lessons from Figma for founders
Why strong fundamentals still matter — and how the tender saga shows the cost of employee trust. * 55:00 | The vertical AI playbook: Europe’s edge?
Where Europe’s sector expertise might win if it can get capital markets working again.

In this episode, Andreas Munk Holm talks with Paolo Pio and Matt Cooper, Founding Partners of Exceptional Ventures, to unpack their mission-driven approach to health and wellness investing. They dive into “Joyspan®”, their unique investment thesis which centres on a personal balance between health and happiness, and the growing need to separate science from hype in health tech.

Here’s what’s covered:* 02:53 Paolo Pio's Journey to Venture Capital * 05:52 Matt Cooper's Accidental Path to VC * 14:57 Unique Positioning in the Venture Ecosystem * 17:46 The Importance of Entrepreneurial Integrity * 20:55 Navigating the European Venture Landscape * 24:08 Investment Strategies and Value Creation * 28:03 Developing Future Leaders in Venture Capital * 31:01 The Mission of Joyspan®: Health, Wellbeing, and Happiness * 36:34 Integrating Health and Joyspan® into Venture Capital * 40:27 Separating Science from Fiction in Health Tech

In this episode, Andreas Munk Holm sits down with Rich Ashton to unpack the unique thesis behind FirstPartyCapital, a specialist VC fund backing early-stage founders in the global AdTech and MarTech sector.

Rich explores why this trillion-dollar industry has remained overlooked by mainstream VC, what it takes to be a successful investor in the complex ad ecosystem, and why FirstPartyCapital's massive LP network and deep expertise are enabling them to lead the charge.

Here’s what’s covered:
* 04:07 Why AdTech is the Trillion Dollar Niche * 11:51 The Facebook & Google Dominance Myth * 12:22 Case Studies: Trade Desk, AppLovin, Lumen * 14:17 Why Most Funds Miss the AdTech Opportunity * 15:38 DOJ vs Google, and the Breakup Implications * 17:20 AI & the Future of Attention * 24:37 Why First Party Capital is Uniquely Positioned * 26:27 From Fund to Syndicate, Studio, and Lending * 28:54 Portfolio Highlights: Lumen, Bedrock, Pixels * 31:22 Fund II: Now Raising, Backed by Strategic LPs

Welcome to a new episode of the EUVC Podcast, where we bring you the people and perspectives shaping European venture.

This week, Andreas is joined by Oliver Brunschwiler, purpose-driven entrepreneur, former pro snowboarder, and longtime systems thinker, along with Enrique Molina from Chi Impact Capital, co-hosting this deep dive into what it means to lead with purpose, design for circularity, and build organizations that reinvent themselves from the inside out.

Oliver’s journey goes from first tracks on fresh powder to first tracks in organizational design—helping companies ditch rigid hierarchies for role-based, purpose-led systems. Enrique brings the investor lens, showing how these principles translate into impact capital and portfolio building today.

In this episode, they break down how circularity is moving from hype to hard reality, why trust and leadership still matter in the most “self-organizing” teams, and how the best founders navigate the tension between market dips and mission-driven staying power.

This Episode’s Themes:* Holacracy, role-based teams & why leadership still matters * Circularity’s gap phase—and what’s quietly thriving * Industrial impact: batteries, PET, and supply chains redesigned * Policy tailwinds: how the EU is making circular the new norm * First tracks mindset: from snowboarding to systems change

Here’s what’s covered:* 00:00 | From pro snowboarding to purpose-driven business * 02:00 | Sports, freedom & the roots of Oliver’s entrepreneurial DNA * 04:30 | The value of pushing limits—on boards and in boardrooms * 08:00 | Holacracy & new work: why “no boss” usually fails * 12:00 | Purpose is boss: role-based systems done right * 15:00 | AI, agents & managing the unmanageable—what changes, what doesn’t * 19:00 | When people don’t want ownership—why clear leadership stays vital * 20:00 | Circularity: beyond the hype cycle and into tough reality * 24:00 | Surviving the stock dip: founders reconciling mission and market * 28:00 | Industrial scale impact: batteries, chemical recycling & what’s next * 32:00 | Where Oliver sees big opportunities now (food, upcycling, building) * 36:00 | Corporates, supply chains & Fairphone as a case in point * 40:00 | The EU Green Deal, Right to Repair & why policy matters * 44:00 | Final thoughts: trust the purpose, ride the dip, build the system

At the EUVC Summit, Bernard Dalle (formerly of Index Ventures) and Thomas Kristensen (LGT Capital Partners) shared candid reflections on how to build a venture firm from the inside out. Instead of fixating on star hires and grand strategies, their talk emphasized the compounding power of cultural alignment, junior talent development, and early operational investment.

Drawing on first-hand experience, they unpack what it takes to build enduring institutions—where team, trust, and time matter more than titles.

Whether you're raising your first fund or scaling your platform team, this conversation offers timeless lessons from one of Europe’s most respected firms.

Here’s what’s covered:* 00:45 Betting on People: Why hiring for cultural fit beats chasing CVs * 02:20 Long-Term Talent Playbooks: Junior hires, long runway, big impact * 03:50 Under-hiring on Purpose: Why Index rarely hired GPs straight out * 05:10 The Operations Edge: Building support teams early pays dividends * 07:00 The Index Blueprint: Early days with David, Pascal, and a deep ops bench * 08:30 Institutional Memory: Capturing partner insights across the portfolio

Welcome to the Impact Highlight series, powered by EUVC, where we bring you the people and perspectives shaping European venture.

This week, August is joined by Emma Steele (Partner at Ascension) and Emily Trant (Head of Impact at Wagestream), two of the most vocal champions for mission-aligned tech in Europe.

In this episode, we explore the nuances of building and backing commercial businesses that generate genuine social value. Emma and Emily reflect on where the commercial model does work for impact, where it doesn’t, and why intent matters as much as outcomes.

From designing products that serve vulnerable users to structuring impact advisory boards that challenge you, this is a real look into how impact venture plays out at the fund and founder level.

🎯 This Episode’s Themes:* What “tech for good” actually looks like in venture * Building scalable impact and sustainable returns * How to think about charity vs commercial models * Why intent and design matter more than labels * How impact boards can go wrong—and how to make them work

Here’s what’s covered:* 00:00 | Meet Emma & Emily: Impact VC meets operating at scale * 02:30 | What Is “Impact” Anyway? And why Ascension never used the label * 06:15 | Wagestream’s Model: Serving those who can’t pay—at scale * 10:00 | Market Failures & Margin Models: Why commercial still wins * 13:00 | Data That Matters: From savings behavior to sleep quality * 17:00 | Charity vs Commercial: The tension no one likes to talk about * 20:15 | Impact Boards: How to make them useful (hint: be honest) * 24:30 | The Venture Fit: Why scale and impact aren’t opposites * 28:00 | Calling Future Founders: Be intentional from day one

Welcome to a new episode of the EUVC podcast, where Dan Bowyer and Mads Jensen of SuperSeed and Lomax from Outsized Ventures, gather to unpack the macro forces and micro signals shaping European tech and venture.

This week, the trio tackles one of the most geopolitically charged, capital-heavy, and morally complex episodes yet:

🎯 This Week’s Themes:* The global reshuffling of power: Israel, Iran, Russia, Ukraine * Why defense is back—and what it means for VCs * Europe’s space ambitions and what the ESA’s new satellite project signals * China’s trade plays and Europe’s rare earths vulnerability * AI, IPOs, and why founders might want to stay private longer * Surgical robots, ambient AI, and who’s building the future of healthcare * Plus: Daniel Ek gets flak, SPACs sneak back, and why VCs are speed-running $15B deals in one week

Here’s what’s covered:* 02:00 | War & Markets: Iran, Israel, oil prices & the Bank of England holds steady * 06:00 | Defense Budgets: Why Europe is (finally) spending * 10:00 | VC Taboo: Why investing in weapons gets complicated fast * 15:00 | EIF Restrictions: Sex, gambling, and no defense * 20:00 | The Rise of Helsing: Europe’s $12B defense unicorn * 24:00 | Strategic Autonomy: Europe’s new military satellite constellation * 30:00 | ESA vs Starlink: Earth observation gets serious * 34:00 | China, Trade Wars & Rare Earths: Why Europe’s exposed * 40:00 | EU-US Tariffs & Trump’s Pharma Threat * 42:00 | IPO Boom: Chime, Circle, and the SPAC comeback * 47:00 | CMR Surgical: UK’s $4B robot exit—is that enough? * 53:00 | Lessons from Intuitive Surgical & deeptech M&A * 56:00 | Deal of the Week: Nabla’s AI for clinicians, Helsing’s big swing, and Scale AI’s lightning-fast cash * 1:02:00 | Founders in Government: Alex DePledge & Matt Clifford’s impact * 1:05:00 | Meta’s AI Transfers: Zuck goes full football transfer window

Welcome to a new episode of the EUVC Podcast, where we bring you the people and perspectives shaping European venture.

This week, Andreas Munk Holm sits down with Paolo Pio, co-founder and Managing Partner at Exceptional Ventures — a mission-driven early-stage fund investing in the future of human health, fitness, nutrition, and longevity.

Paolo shares how a personal obsession with sleep, metabolism, and fitness evolved into a structured thesis for investing in businesses and technologies that help us live better, longer — and how Exceptional Ventures plans to back over 200 founders across three funds to deliver returns that match the mission.

🎯 This Episode’s Themes:* Why health, fitness, and prevention are ripe for VC investment * How personalized, continuous monitoring unlocks true wellness * The 4-pillared thesis: prevention, early detection, smarter care & delivery * Lessons from Fund I: 3,600 companies reviewed → 37 investments * The case for “high-volume VC” in Europe: why more bets matter * From sleep hygiene to nanobots: the future of health innovation * Community, LPs, and morning workouts at SuperVenture

Here’s what’s covered:* 01:00 | The Mission: Improving the human joy path through health & longevity * 03:00 | Why Now: Obesity, metabolic health & the need for smarter prevention * 05:00 | The Four Pillars: Sleep, exercise, early detection & delivery innovation * 08:00 | Exceptional’s Model: Fund I learnings, Fund II targets, Fund III ambitions * 10:00 | The Volume Bet: Why Europe needs funds backing 50+ startups per cycle * 12:00 | Sourcing & Screening: From 3,600 companies to 37 portfolio bets * 15:00 | Backing Founders on the Edge: From glucose monitoring to rural US clinics * 18:00 | The Big Vision: 200+ founders backed, 30,000+ community members * 21:00 | Big LP Names & Co-Investors: How the wider venture stack leans in * 24:00 | Why Community Matters: The morning workouts, the events, the energy * 27:00 | Longevity & Fund IV: Why the best is still ahead

In this episode, Andreas Munk Holm sits down with Björn Tremmerie, Head of Technology Fund Investments at the European Investment Fund (EIF), live from the EUVC studio at SuperVenture 2025.

They delve deeply into the true state of European venture capital, examining long-term performance trends, the role of EIF as Europe's policy-aligned capital allocator, and how sovereignty, resilience, and maturity are reshaping the ecosystem.

Here’s what’s covered:* 00:00 SuperVenture Loyalty & Ecosystem Energy * 01:02 The Mood in Market: Storms, Maturity & Resilience * 03:04 What Makes This Moment in Venture a Real Opportunity * 03:31 Recap of Björn’s Panel with Joe from Isomer * 05:15 DPI Truths: The Top 50 Funds & A Look Back to 2017 * 06:04 Defense Tech & Dual-Use: What EIF Will (and Won’t) Fund * 09:34 Sovereignty ≠ Isolation: The Real Role of the EIF * 11:00 Later-Stage Funding Gaps & Europe’s Infrastructure Problem * 12:36 Satellites, SpaceX & European Strategic Dependencies * 14:14 Learnings From 25+ Years in the Game * 15:01 Philosophical, But Practical: What VC Responsibility Means * 16:17 A Clear Statement on Openness, Not Isolation

In this episode, David Cruz e Silva sits down with Andre de Haes, founder of Backed VC, live from SuperVenture 2025 in Berlin.

Backed is one of Europe’s boldest early-stage funds, known not just for investing in frontier tech but for pioneering a new model of VC community. In this conversation, Andre unpacks the philosophical and practical foundations of their work—from turning a value-add into a moat to why “edge” in venture is mostly a myth—unless you build your own rules.

Who should listen:
* Emerging managers figuring out how to build true differentiation * LPs trying to evaluate durable edge in a saturated VC market * Founders deciding what kind of capital partner they want long-term

Here what’s covered:
* 00:00 Who is Andre de Haes & What is Backed VC? * 00:32 Frontier Tech Focus: Fintech, Bio, and Manufacturing Software * 01:30 Why Community is a Core Offering—Not a Side Show * 02:15 Behind the Scenes: The SuperVenture Speaker Dinner & Rooftop Surprise * 04:00 Playing the Long Game: Trust Built Over 20-Year Cycles * 05:08 Stage Preview: What it Means to Build VC Edge * 07:50 Advice for LPs on Identifying Real Differentiation * 10:50 Biggest Learnings: Humility, Leverage & Contrarian Courage * 15:00 Investing at the Frontier: Computational Bio, Optics & Non-Invasive Brain Tech * 16:00 What Munger & Buffett Teach Us About Capital Efficiency in VC

Live from SuperVenture 2025 in Berlin, Andreas Munk Holm sits down with Jan Miczaika, Partner at HV Capital, one of Europe’s largest and longest-standing venture capital firms.

Together, they talk about macro trends shaping the future of VC, HV Capital’s unique positioning across funding stages, and offer a refreshingly honest take on ESG, DEI, defense, hype, LP dynamics, and the challenges of building a VC fund.

This episode is a must-listen for:
* LPs trying to understand how established firms see the world * Emerging managers finding their product-market fit * Founders building across deep tech, defense, and climate

💡 What you'll learn:
* Why SuperVenture is a cultural paradox in Berlin—and why Jan loves it * How HV Capital operates with flexibility across €500K to €50M investments * The future of ESG & DEI in a depoliticized, impact-first world * Defense investing: HV’s bets on Quantum Systems & Rocket Startups * What the G in ESG means—and why it's more relevant than ever * Advice for emerging managers: Fund I is hard, Fund II and III are harder * A reflection on being humbled by VC, even after successful exits

Here what’s covered:
* 00:00 SuperVenture, Berlin, and Capitalism in the Radical Left’s Hometown * 01:00 The HV Capital Model: From €500K to €50M in One Platform * 02:00 ESG, DEI & Fiduciary Duty: Past the Pendulum, Toward Balance * 04:05 Why Impact Companies Still Win: A Case Study from Copenhagen * 05:05 Defense Tech & ESG: Not Contradictory, But Complementary * 06:54 Advice for Emerging Managers: Fund Fit, Hustle & Dual Product-Market Fit * 10:02 Words for LPs: Don’t Dismiss Venture as “Too Risky” * 11:45 Lessons in Humility: From Founding Two Companies to Becoming a VC * 13:00 Betting Big: Why NeuroRobotics Said No to Focus & Yes to Full Stack

Welcome to a special emergency episode of the EUVC podcast, where Andreas Munk Holm sits down with Cathy White founder of CEW Communications and her star colleague and former tech.eu managing editor Dan Taylor —two of the most plugged-in voices in European tech media —to dissect the shocking news of TechCrunch Europe’s closure and what’s ahead.

In this raw and real conversation, they unpack:
* Why TechCrunch’s downfall signals something bigger in media * What the rise of AI means for journalists, PR pros, and founders alike * And how Europe’s startup ecosystem can—and must—take charge of its narrative

From the role of creators and newsletters to the shift from SEO to “LEO,” this one’s for anyone building in, writing about, or pitching European tech.

Here’s what’s covered:
* 00:10 The Impact of TechCrunch's Closure on European Media * 06:33 The Future of Media in Europe * 10:30 The Rise of Entrepreneurial Journalism * 15:46 Navigating the New Media Landscape for Startups * 18:06 The Shift from SEO to LEO in Media Strategy * 23:13 Making Complex Ideas Accessible * 27:18 The Role of PR in the Age of AI * 29:31 The Importance of Human Touch in AI * 33:12 AI's Impact on Content Creation and Journalism * 39:37 The Future of Journalism and New Publications

In this episode, David Cruz e Silva sits down with Joe Schorge, founder of Isomer Capital, one of Europe’s most thoughtful and active LPs—backing funds, co-investing with top GPs, and increasingly leaning into secondaries.

From deep dives into the maturing European tech ecosystem, to the reality of what “liquidity” means today, Joe shares what it takes to build long-term portfolios and navigate cycles with wisdom (and a little humor).

Who should listen:
* LPs thinking through secondary exposure and portfolio liquidity * GPs raising new funds with legacy tailwinds (or baggage) * Founders and angels curious about how liquidity really works behind the scenes

Here’s what’s covered:
* 00:00 Meet Joe Schorge & Isomer Capital’s model * 00:31 Why SuperVenture is ground zero for LP/GP dealflow * 01:30 A New Era of Secondaries: From passive to proactive * 02:55 "It's not a return until you can buy a beer with it." 🍻 * 03:30 DPI, exits & reflections from the stage with Björn Tremmerie * 05:00 What macro uncertainty (and Trump tariffs) are doing to exit timelines * 06:00 Under the hood: Growth is happening — but the windows haven’t reopened yet * 07:30 Who’s actually buying today? Founders, growth funds, and LP-focused secondaries * 09:28 Joe’s key learnings: time, uncertainty & the illusion of predictive power * 12:23 Advice to aspiring LPs & emerging allocators * 15:00 Diversification in venture is not optional — it’s existential

In this episode, David Cruz e Silva sits down with Matthew Spence, Barclays’ Global Head of Venture Capital Banking, to talk about the state of exits, dual-use tech, and how Europe can seize the next defense innovation wave. With a background spanning the White House, Pentagon, and a16z, Matt shares a unique view from the intersection of global power, technology, and venture.

Who should listen:
* GPs working with later-stage companies or exit-readiness * LPs and allocators curious about dual-use and defense opportunities * Policymakers and ecosystem builders across Europe * Anyone wondering how venture intersects with geopolitics

Here’s what’s covered:
00:00 Meet Matt Spence & why Barclays is doubling down on venture * 01:00 SuperVenture 2025: Why Berlin matters to a Silicon Valley banker * 01:39 “Sneaky good”: The IPO market is back—but not how you expect * 03:00 How GPs can prep for exits—before they’re even on the table * 04:00 Barclays as an LP: What their private bank is looking for * 05:10 Defense tech: From bombs to AI & cloud for the battlefield * 07:00 “The government is a terrible customer”—but that’s changing * 08:30 Dual-use: Why it’s not code for defense and shouldn’t be * 10:00 The real opportunity for Europe: leapfrog, don’t lag * 12:30 A wake-up call for Brussels and national leaders * 15:00 The return to deep tech: hardware + software, redux * 16:45* Why this isn't just a new trend—it's a venture returning to its roots

Welcome to a new episode of the EUVC podcast, where Dan Bowyer and Mads Jensen of SuperSeed and Lomax from Outsized Ventures gather to unpack the macro forces and micro signals shaping European tech and venture.

This week, the trio tackles one of the most geopolitically charged, capital-heavy, and morally complex episodes yet:
* The global reshuffling of power: Israel, Iran, Russia, and Ukraine * Why defense is back—and what it means for VCs * Europe's space ambitions and what the ESA's new satellite project signals * China's trade plays and Europe's vulnerability in rare earths * AI, IPOs, and why founders might want to stay private longer * Surgical robots, ambient AI, and who’s building the future of healthcare

Plus: Daniel Ek gets flak, SPACs sneak back, and why VCs are now speed-running $15B deals in one week.

Here’s what’s covered:
02:00 War & Markets: Iran, Israel, oil prices & Bank of England holds * 06:00 Defense Budgets: Why Europe is (finally) spending * 10:00 VC Taboo: Why investing in weapons gets complicated fast * 15:00 EIF Restrictions: Sex, gambling, and no defense * 20:00 The Rise of Helsing: Europe’s $12B defense unicorn * 24:00 Strategic Autonomy: Europe’s new military satellite constellation * 30:00 ESA vs. Starlink: Earth observation gets serious * 34:00 China, Trade Wars & Rare Earths: Why Europe’s exposed * 40:00 EU-US Tariffs & Trump’s Pharma Threat * 42:00 IPO Boom: Chime, Circle, and the SPAC comeback * 47:00 CMR Surgical: UK’s $4B robot exit—is that enough? * 53:00 Lessons from Intuitive Surgical & deeptech M&A * 56:00 Deal of the Week: Nabla’s AI for clinicians, Helsing, and Scale AI’s lightning-fast cash * 01:02:00 Founders in Government: Alex DePledge & Matt Clifford’s impact * 01:05:00* Meta’s AI Transfers: Zuck goes full football transfer window

Welcome to a new episode of the EUVC podcast, where we bring you the people and perspectives shaping European venture. This week, Andreas is joined by Christophe Jurczak, Managing Partner at Quantonation, the world’s first dedicated quantum technologies VC fund.

Together, they unpack the tangible, applied promise of quantum technologies—far beyond the hype—and discuss why Europe may still win in this deep tech arena if capital (and courage) show up at the right time.

This week’s themes:
Real-world quantum use cases in health, energy, climate, and security * The rise of quantum internet and the race to secure communications * How interdisciplinary talent makes or breaks applied quantum ventures * Why late-stage capital* remains quantum Europe’s biggest bottleneck

Here’s what’s covered:
01:30 Quantum Is Real: Health, energy, climate & security * 02:45 Quantum Drug Discovery: Pascal & Qubit Pharmaceuticals * 05:00 Simulation Power: Designing less toxic, more effective molecules * 06:45 Quantum Internet: Unhackable infrastructure deployments in NYC & Berlin * 08:30 Why Encryption Is Under Threat—And What Quantum Does About It * 10:00 No Cryo, No Labs: Room-temp quantum machines are here * 11:45 Talent Mix: Why computer scientists + physicists = startup advantage * 13:30 ML on Quantum Hardware: Graph ML and novel quantum algorithms * 15:00 Europe’s Competitive Edge: IQM, Pascal, and more * 16:30 The Real Risk: Growth-stage capital and the transatlantic gap * 18:00 Quantonation’s Vision: A future late-stage fund for European quantum * 19:00* Final Thoughts: Sci-fi vibes, real-world traction, and a rallying cry

In this new episode of Path to Market, our Director Natasha Lytton and co-host Micah Smurthwaite, Partner at Pipeline Ventures, sit down with Tim Bertrand — a three-time GTM leader who’s scaled companies from just a few million to hundreds of millions in revenue. Currently serving as President of HAProxy, Tim previously held sales leadership roles at Acquia and Project44, and brings deep insights into category creation, founder-led sales, sales hiring, and international expansion.

Tim walks us through his career of building sales engines from the ground up — including Acquia’s leap from $2M to $200M+ ARR — and explains why he keeps coming back to the early-stage trenches.

He also shares actionable advice for founders: when to hire (and who to hire) in your first sales roles, how to think about pricing in new markets, how to align product and GTM, and what great onboarding and sales coaching look like.

Here’s what’s covered:
05:00 Early-Stage Sales: Why Tim Keeps Coming Back * 07:12 Structuring Your First Sales Hires * 09:44 Traits of Great Early-Stage Sellers * 13:00 Does Domain Expertise Matter? * 15:28 Best Practices for Sales Onboarding * 17:48 Sales Methodologies: MEDDICC & BANT * 22:14 Creating Real Urgency in the Sales Cycle * 30:23 Value-Based Pricing & Market Signals * 38:09 Building a Business Around Open Source * 42:16 Sales Methodologies for Founders * 43:40* Hiring a CRO: When & What to Look For

In this episode, Andreas Munk Holm, Dr. Daniel Carew, and Sebastian von Ribbentrop discuss the critical importance of defense and strategic technologies in Europe. They explore Joint Capital's investment thesis, the complexities of dual-use technology, and the intersection of technology, defense, and geopolitics. The conversation also touches on the impact of the Ukraine conflict on European defense strategies and the evolving landscape of venture capital investment in this sector.

Here’s what’s covered:
18:55 The Evolution of Joint Capital's Investment Thesis * 24:01 Understanding Dual-Use Technology in Defense * 28:49 Navigating the Commercial and Defense Markets * 34:01 The Role of Geopolitics in Defense Investments * 38:09 Geopolitics and Personal Connections * 41:29 Complexity of European Defense and Innovation * 45:10 The Shift in Global Power Dynamics * 48:06 Defense Washing vs. Genuine Innovation * 52:55 Investment Strategies in a Changing Landscape * 59:47* The Future of Defense Post-Ukraine Conflict

In this episode, Andreas Munk Holm and Jeppe Høier sit down with Nicole LeBlanc, Partner at Woven Capital, the $800M growth-stage CVC fund backed by Toyota. They unpack what it takes to drive real strategic and financial outcomes in corporate venture — and what founders and GPs often get wrong when working with CVCs.

Nicole shares how Woven structures its global operations, works hand-in-hand with Toyota’s business units, and leverages a portfolio success team to shepherd startups through complex corporate dynamics. She also breaks down Woven’s investment logic, from hydrogen to lunar rovers — and why corporate alignment shouldn’t come at the cost of independence.

Here’s what’s covered: 00:40 – The structure of Woven Capital & its relationship with Toyota * 03:00 – How Toyota Ventures (early-stage) and Woven (growth-stage) complement each other * 09:45 – Building internal bridges: the Portfolio Success team model * 13:15 – Toyota’s internal incentives (and the carrot vs. stick approach) * 15:10 – The CVC cultural challenge: Japan, US, and Europe * 21:40 – How to spot a “red flag” CVC as a founder * 31:30 – Toyota Open Labs: a new playbook for startup-corporate collaboration * 34:00 – Woven’s LP strategy: investing in funds for access, insight & geography * 39:00 – Learnings from fund investing: what CVC LPs need from GPs * 42:00* – Final advice for startups and corporates alike

In this conversation, David Cruz e Silva sits down with Dario de Wet, Founding Partner of LTV Capital, a next-generation fund-of-funds reshaping the LP-GP landscape through intentional, hands-on support for emerging managers, especially in underserved and global markets.

Together, they unpack what it takes to stand out as an emerging VC manager today, how LP sentiment is shifting across continents, and why democratizing access to venture capital remains fraught with friction.

📣 Want to go beyond the podcast? Join us as a EUVC member and dive deeper with Dario de Wet in a Live LP AMA

Following his powerful podcast episode, Dario de Wet—Founding Partner at LTV Capital—is joining us live to continue the conversation with the EUVC community.

We’re bringing together top LPs actively investing in VC funds to unpack the realities of allocation strategy, fund selection, and how the global LP playbook is evolving, particularly for emerging managers in Europe and underserved markets.

🎤 Don’t Miss This AMA: LP Strategy with Dario de Wet

From sitting on the Ubuntu Foundation’s LP committee to running a hands-on, next-gen fund-of-funds, Dario brings rare insight into how LPs think, how narrative shapes outcomes, and what’s working (and not) across geographies.

Whether you’re raising your first fund or leading a fund-of-funds, this is your chance to:

✅ Ask your questions directly
✅ Learn how LPs assess GPs beyond the pitch
✅ Explore trends in co-investments, secondaries & cross-border allocations

This is the room to be in if you care about the future of venture capital investing—and the LPs who shape it.

📅 RSVP here for MEMBERS ONLY→ https://lu.ma/n9ugmx1c

Here’s what’s covered in the podcast:
03:10 Becoming the Best Emerging Manager: Intentional Positioning * 06:05 What LPs Actually Want: Archetypes, Risk & Regional Nuance * 09:30 The Ubuntu Foundation: Building Africa’s Emerging Managers * 12:45 US vs Europe: Why Dario Still Bets on Europe * 15:20 Strategic Value in Venture: More Than Just Capital * 18:35 The Power of Narrative: How Emerging Managers Stand Out * 26:30 The “1000 Funds” View: Pattern Recognition from UVC * 28:45 Strategic Sessions, GP Coaching & Market Signal Loops * 31:20 Should LPs Just Invest in the U.S.? Dario’s Response * 39:15* If You Made It This Far… The Real Secret to Success

At the EUVC Summit, Will McQuillan of Frontline delivered a keynote that flipped the script on the increasingly popular narrative of Europe needing to "decouple" from the US. With data points, historical context, and a call to action, Will urged VCs and founders to resist isolationist instincts and double down on building global companies, despite rising geopolitical noise.

Rather than succumbing to isolationist trends, this talk urges the venture community to reclaim a global mindset, reminding us that the best companies are built across borders, not within them.

Whether you're in venture, policy, or portfolio support, this is your reminder that global ambition still matters—and it’s up to investors to make it possible.

Here’s what’s covered: 00:50 US Revenue Reliance: A warning or a reality check? * 02:30 The Case Against Isolationism: Why Europe can’t afford to go it alone * 04:15 Historical Proof of Collaboration: From deep-sea cables to the Large Hadron Collider * 06:00 Policy vs Practice: Why builders must rise above political narratives * 08:10* VC’s Role in the Globalization Equation: Making international scale possible again

Welcome to a new episode of the EUVC podcast, where Dan Bowyer and Mads Jensen of SuperSeed and Lomax from Outsized Ventures gather to unpack the macro forces and micro signals shaping European tech and venture.

This week, the trio dive into:
* Why cyber preparedness is a growing boardroom concern * The overlooked fragility of Europe's energy systems * How automation, AI, and policy are colliding in the UK * Europe's capital gap—and the uncomfortable truth behind it * Plus: OpenAI margins, startup resilience, and robotaxis in London

Here’s what’s covered:
02:00 Cybercrime as a Macro Risk: Are We Sleepwalking into Crisis? * 06:10 Iberian Blackouts & Energy Fragility * 09:00 Immutable Ledgers, AI & Infrastructure Resilience * 11:15 UK’s £2B AI Action Plan: Where’s the Real Bravery? * 14:20 Nuclear Woes: The True Cost of Delay * 17:40 Marginal Cost Pricing & the Renewable Conundrum * 20:30 Tesla’s Robotaxi Vision & a $40K Price Tag * 22:00 Wave x Uber Deal: Level 4 Autonomy Comes to the UK * 24:00 Brexit’s AV Dividend? The UK Races Ahead of the EU * 26:30 Europe’s Capital Gap: Funding or Fundamentals? * 29:00 OpenAI’s Gross Margins & Startup Implications * 31:30 Incumbents Strike Back: Why Big Tech Moved Faster * 34:00 Startup Opportunity in the Next Wave of AI * 35:40 European vs. US Startup DNA: Who’s Built to Win? * 37:30* Final Thoughts & Condolences on Global Tragedies

In this episode, Andreas Munk Holm is joined by Joe Seager-Dupuy and Mike Martin, General Partners at True Global, a £1B investment firm focused on consumer and retail, to explore how AI transforms how consumer businesses are built, scaled, and experienced.

They unpack why consumer AI is more than a buzzword - it's unlocking entirely new market categories, reshaping broken UX flows, and expanding the definition of addressable markets. From agentic software and hyper-personalized health stacks to defensibility through data, brand, and workflow, this episode offers a deep dive into how to build and invest at the intersection of frontier tech and human behavior.

Here’s what’s covered: 07:27 Exploring Consumer AI Innovations * 14:47 Challenges and Opportunities in Consumer AI * 20:27 The Path to Agentic Business Models * 25:27 Building Optionality in AI Products * 26:23 Case Study: Superhuman's Agentic Email System * 28:10 The Velocity of AI Announcements * 31:10 Defensibility in Consumer AI * 39:15 AI's Impact on Consumer Company Operations * 43:07* The Disruption of Incumbents by AI Startups

In this episode, Andreas Munk Holm and Jeppe Høier sit down with Zack Weisfeld, the founding force behind Intel Ignite (now Ignite Deep Tech), to explore the evolution of one of the most respected deep tech accelerators in the world. From reinventing how corporates engage with startups to pioneering a "co-founder as a service" model, Zack shares what it takes to build real bridges between enterprise and entrepreneurship.

Here’s what’s covered:
03:10 Why Intel Chose to Spin It Out—And How the Ecosystem Reacted * 06:15 The Three Pillars: Seed, Pre-Seed, and Ideation Programs * 08:00 What Most Corporate Accelerators Get Wrong * 11:40 Co-Founder as a Service: A New Model of Acceleration * 13:25 Why Corporate Mentorship Works When Done Right * 19:40 Lessons from 14 Years of Building Accelerators * 26:20 How Mentorship Creates Internal Champions * 30:15 Aligning Startup Success with Corporate Transformation * 35:10* Why Mental Health Support for Founders Is a Strategic Imperative

In this special episode, we welcome back Patric Hellermann to dive deep into the concept of edge in venture capital. This isn't your average discussion on differentiation—it's a methodical breakdown of what creates enduring alpha for fund managers, grounded in Patric’s experience building Foundamental, a B2B-focused early-stage VC.

This episode is for anyone asking: How do I build an edge that scales? You’ll leave with answers rooted in practice, not theory.

Here’s what’s covered:
02:30 What Makes an Edge? Why Most VCs and LPs Struggle to Answer * 06:15 The 4 Steps of VC Value Creation: Sourcing, Picking, Winning, Managing * 12:45 What Founders Want: How to Make Yourself the First Call * 17:10 DPI Over Hype: Why Patrick Optimizes for Liquidity, Not Likes * 21:20 Empathy, Proximity & Pattern Recognition: What Most European Funds Get Wrong * 28:35 Pan-European Funds & the Pitfalls of “Routine-Free” Investing * 34:40 Why Distribution Beats Product: Lessons from Category Leaders * 41:25 Fund Design That Scales: GPs with Domain Depth Over Generalism * 53:30 Prioritization as a Superpower: How to Build With Focus * 1:00:45* National vs Global Champions: How LPs Think About Risk and Follow-On Capital

In this episode, Adriana Stan is joined by Jon Coker, founding partner at Eka Ventures, to unpack how the team behind the £68M Fund I has backed 21 early-stage companies driving systemic change in consumer health and sustainable consumption.

They dive into the team’s shift from MMC Ventures to launching a new kind of impact fund, the lessons learned from backing 3 unicorns, and why founder learning velocity is Jon’s No. 1 metric for long-term success.

Eka Ventures is an early-stage VC fund with a clear mission: to back the founders building a more equitable, sustainable future with business models that scale both shareholder value and societal return.

Here’s what’s covered:
01:50 Jon’s journey from analyst to co-managing partner at MMC * 05:15 Launching Eka Ventures: why impact needs its own home * 08:30 Choosing the themes: consumer health & sustainable consumption * 12:45 Building conviction around shared value * 16:00 Distribution in health: why access is half the battle * 19:25 Generalist vs. Specialist: where Eka fits in * 23:10 Fund I analysis: what worked and what didn’t * 27:45 Operating in the “real world”: why it’s harder, but worth it * 30:10 Lessons from unicorns and founder growth * 34:00* The problem with how VCs evaluate “team”

In this episode, Andreas Munk Holm sits down with Philippe Petitpont, co-founder & CEO of Moments Lab, and Gökçe Seylan, Principal at OX, for an insider conversation on the future of video AI and how Europe is producing vertical champions with real traction.

Fresh off a $24M scale round, Philippe walks us through the evolution of Moments Lab from metadata indexing to full AI-powered video agents. Gökçe shares why this was a must-invest opportunity for OX and what the company’s journey reveals about product-market fit, global GTM, and the rise of vertical AI platforms in Europe.

This one’s a must-listen for anyone building at the intersection of AI, SaaS, media, and enterprise.

Here’s what’s covered:
04:00 Understanding 1 Million Hours of Video: Why AI was the only answer * 07:00 Why ChatGPT Can’t Win This Market: Vertical depth vs. horizontal power * 10:30 Real Video vs. Synthetic Content: Where emotion, IP, and accuracy still rule * 16:00 Rights Management in Video AI: How Moments Lab handles ownership at scale * 21:10 What Is Agentic AI? From prompt to production, with real content * 27:30 The VC Perspective: Why OX backed this team at scale * 31:00 From Startup to Scale-Up: Going enterprise, going US * 36:30 Business Model Design: Why they price by hours, not seats * 44:00 Scaling from Seed to Series A+: Building infrastructure, not just growth * 49:30 Being a European Deeptech Founder: Talent advantages, GTM challenges * 54:30* The Rise of European Vertical AI: Legal, industrial, cyber—and now video

Welcome to a new episode of the EUVC podcast, where Dan Bowyer and Mads Jensen of SuperSeed and Lomax from Outsized Ventures gather to unpack the macro forces and micro signals shaping European tech and venture.

This week, the trio dive into:
* Why Europe’s fiscal firepower could be its unfair advantage * The growing exodus of IPOs from the UK to the US * Strategic defense investment—can the UK move the needle? * How AI and capital markets are colliding * And yes, we close on psychedelics and patient-first biotech breakthroughs

Here's what’s covered:

02:15 Europe’s Fiscal Advantage: Why Better Balance Sheets Matter for Innovation
07:00 The Return of Low Rates: What It Means for Startups
11:20 London vs. New York: The IPO Drain
17:00 Why Capital Leaves: Liquidity, Coverage & the Search for Growth
21:30 Rebuilding the UK Market: The Case for LP Allocation Reform
25:50 Beyond IPOs: The Full-Stack Capital Problem
30:40 AI and Lawsuits: Welcome to the New Frontier
33:10 Defense Tech Heats Up: Drones, AI & Strategic Capital
38:40 Can the UK Compete? Global Arms Races & National Reviews
42:30 Liquid Biopsies & Healthcare Breakthroughs
46:20 NHS Efficiency Crisis: More Money, Worse Outcomes
50:30 Psychedelics on the Edge: Awaiting the Data Drop

In this episode of Path to Market, Seedcamp’s Natasha Lytton and Pipeline Ventures’ Micah Smurthwaite are joined by Gia Scinto, Partner at The Cole Group and one of the most seasoned go-to-market talent experts in tech. Gia has helped build out executive teams at category-defining startups like Stripe, Airbnb, Datadog, Canva, and Confluent — and previously led talent at Y Combinator and Andreessen Horowitz.

Gia shares hard-earned lessons from years of recruiting top-tier GTM leaders and partnering directly with founders at every stage, from pre-seed to IPO. In this conversation, she breaks down how to hire your first sales leader, how to evaluate candidates for stage fit and values alignment, and how to avoid common hiring pitfalls that can cost startups months of momentum.

From sales methodology and hiring frameworks to founder mindset and onboarding tactics, this episode is packed with tactical insights for founders, operators, and investors alike.

Here’s what’s covered:* 02:34 Building the First GTM Talent Function in VC * 06:25 From a16z to YC: Supporting Founders Across Stages * 09:42 First Sales Hire vs. Later-Stage Leadership * 13:38 The Anatomy of a Great Recruiting Process * 22:26 Best Interview Questions for Sales Roles * 29:45 How to Pitch Senior Candidates at Early Stage * 33:39 What GTM Leaders Want to Hear * 44:35 Why Sales Hires Fail — and How to Avoid It * 47:36 Systems, Team Design & Ops from 0 to $10M * 51:42 Advice for GTM Candidates: How to Pick Your Next Role

If you came expecting a neat keynote, you were in for something else entirely.

What he gave us instead in fourteen minutes was part sermon, part therapy, and part existential gut check for anyone shaping the future.

Here’s what stuck:

“This isn’t a rehearsal.”

Fred opened with vulnerability: standing in front of his peers, in a room that lives and breathes venture, ready to say the uncomfortable things.

He asked us to zoom out—to consider the power we hold as people who don’t just fund companies but shape the narratives that shape the future.

“We sit in the cockpit alongside the founders. That’s where creation happens now. That’s our canvas.”

But with that power comes disorientation. Because the world we’re building into? It’s fragmented. Conflicted. Loaded with moral confusion.

On Truth, Power, and the Collapse of Shared Narratives

Fred pulled no punches.

“Historically, we had shared systems for truth. Religion. Philosophy. Math. But now? Everything’s been deconstructed. Lived experience replaced truth. Everything’s power.”

Welcome to the legacy of critical theory. Foucault, Derrida—ideas that once helped explain systems of oppression have now left us with... nothing to agree on.

“We’re left in a nihilistic landscape. Everything is a power struggle. There’s no shared center.”

And it’s not just academic. It unfolds in cycles of outrage, weaponized identities, and moral ambiguity. Tech doesn’t escape this, it amplifies it.

The Algorithm Doesn’t Care About Truth

“We thought more information meant more truth. It doesn’t.

”Truth, Fred reminded us, is costly. Outrage is cheap. And platforms optimize for what’s fast, not what’s real.

“A four-second tweet can destroy someone’s life. Investigative journalism takes months.

”Now, enter AI. Beautiful, powerful—and deeply destabilizing.

“We’re staring at it like it’s the sun or a cobra. We don’t know what it is yet. But it’s changing the rules faster than we can track.”

The Danger of Playing Games We Don’t Know We’re In

A warning:

You may think you’re being righteous. You may think you’re being helpful.

“But maybe you’re playing a social game. Maybe you’re being used. And maybe you don’t even know it.”

In a world where narratives shift daily, we often end up reinforcing the very dynamics we oppose.

“You want to call out a Nazi salute online? Be careful. You might just normalize the thing you hate.”

So Where Does That Leave Us?

In a word: Stewardship.

Fred closed with a challenge:

“This is the most powerful tool mankind has ever created. What the fuck are we doing with it?”

We’re not just funding innovation. We’re authoring meaning. In an anxious world, that’s a profound responsibility.

One Last Question (That Stuck With Us All)

“What is the quality of the conversation we’re having?”

With ourselves. With each other. With our founders. With the world.

Because if we don’t ask that, the rest doesn’t matter.

In this episode, Andreas Munk Holm sits down with Kamel Zeroual, GP of Varsity, one of Europe’s boldest new funds out of Paris. Varsity is making waves—not just for their ambition to build a pan-European fund with global aspirations, but for already closing €120M+ toward a first-time fund targeting €150M.

Kam breaks down what makes Varsity different: a team with deep operator and investor experience, a track record spanning over 100 startups, and an agnostic but conviction-led strategy focused on next-gen SaaS, fintech, healthtech, and climate.

🎧 Here’s what’s covered:* 00:00 – Introduction to Varsity and team background * 03:34 – Track record and investment thesis * 05:57 – Varsity’s investment strategy * 07:08 – Paris roots, pan-European vision * 09:57 – Sector focus and founder-first logic * 13:53 – Why generalist funds still matter * 18:00 – The case for a €150M seed fund * 22:23 – What convinced LPs to back Varsity * 25:53 – Final reflections and EUVC Awards recognition

In this episode, Andreas Munk Holm talks with Gloria Baeuerlein, founding partner of Puzzle Ventures, about building a solo GP model rooted in high-conviction, ultra-early B2B investing. From AI-native SaaS pricing to capital-efficient pre-seed strategies, Gloria breaks down how she’s crafting a differentiated firm in one of Europe’s most competitive venture environments.

They unpack why capital is commoditized, how solo GPs can outperform larger seed funds, and what it takes to design a fund around personal strength, not industry templates. If you’re building a fund, raising one, or just want an inside look into how modern venture firms are architected, this one’s for you.

Here’s what’s covered:* 03:20 How AI Is Reshaping SaaS: Delivery, Pricing, and UX * 07:30 Pricing Models in Construction Tech and Outcome-Based Sales * 09:45 The Shifting VC Landscape: Seed, Multi-Stage, and Angels * 12:30 Differentiation in VC: Finding Your True Value-Add * 14:40 Building a Fund Around Strengths, Not LP Preferences * 22:50 The Competitive Landscape: Seed Funds vs. Solo GPs * 24:15 Operational Differences: Solo GPs vs. Multi-Stage Funds * 30:00 Fund Model, Ownership, and Return Expectations * 38:20 Firm Building as a Solo GP: Who to Lean On * 42:26 Will Puzzle Always Be a Solo GP Fund?

In this episode, Andreas Munk Holm sits down with Rina Onur, co-founder of Peak and formerly of 500 Istanbul, for a raw and rare conversation about stepping back as a VC partner—and what it takes to switch hats between operator and investor. Together with Enis Hulli, they unpack the story behind Rina’s exit from fund management, her next chapter with Spyke Games, and the unique DNA behind Turkey’s explosive gaming ecosystem.

This one’s both personal and analytical—a crash course in partnership dynamics, performance-driven ecosystems, and what founders truly need from their VCs (and what they don’t).

Here’s what’s covered:
* 02:00 Rina’s Back-and-Forth Journey: From Private Equity to Peak, Back to VC, and Out Again * 08:20 The Emotional Weight of Short-Term Partnerships * 11:15 How to Offboard Gracefully as a VC Partner * 13:10 What Rina Hated About Venture Capital * 15:25 Fundraising Fatigue & Convincing Dozens vs. One * 21:40 Why Gaming Became Turkey’s Breakout Sector * 24:15 Local vs. Global Success Stories: Turkey, Poland & Beyond * 29:50 Serial Founders vs. Untapped Talent: The Two Sides of Portfolio Building * 36:30 Geographic Advantage: Why Local VCs Still Matter * 41:30 State-Backed Ecosystems: What Works, What Doesn’t * 49:00 A Candid Ending: Offboarding, Vulnerability & Starting Over

In this episode, Dan Bowyer, Lomax, and Mads Jensen reunite to talk about the stories behind the headlines - Trump’s tariffs, EU’s sluggish startup strategy, the Anthropic surge, and why Europe’s hardware design hopes might rest on Munich.

From missiles interrupting pool time in Tel Aviv to Nvidia’s record-breaking quarter, the crew tackles everything from macro trade wars to micro founder incentives—plus a healthy dose of sarcasm, realpolitik, and startup survival.

Here’s what’s covered:

04:30 Tariffs, trade wars & what it means for European startups
08:15 Harmonization vs. regulation: Why EU/US divergence matters
10:55 Tariffs & inflation: Why macro still rules the game
13:10 The public/private schism and bond market dismay
21:45 The EU startup plan: blue carpets, unicorn labs & old ideas
26:00 Talent, tax & the fight for Europe's future founders
29:30 Why Munich might be Europe’s next deep tech capital
31:00 Big tech flexes: Google, Anthropic, and the return of hardware
35:00 Vibe coding & SaaS disruption: The new normal?
41:00 AI agents, Nvidia blowouts, and the pace of change
45:20 Deal of the Week: Brightflag exits for $425M
57:00 Why the crew skipped SuperVenture to actually build stuff

In this episode, Andreas Munk Holm sits down with Etienne, co-founder and GP at Intuition—a new €10M fund focused on pre-seed and seed investments in consumer, prosumer, and B2B2C startups across Europe and the US. From chasing the NBA dream to raising a fund for overlooked sectors, Etienne shares the founder's journey behind the fund, his obsession with AI-native products, and why consumer investing needs a new generation of believers.

Here’s what’s covered:
* 02:20 From Pro Basketball to Founding Intuition * 05:11 Discipline, Resilience & Pain Tolerance: The Athlete’s Edge * 08:30 Why Obsession Beats Talent Every Time * 13:13 Recalibrating After Burnout: Life Beyond the Grind * 19:13 Why Building a Fund Is Just Another Startup * 24:41 Building a Portfolio to Survive Volatility * 36:46 The Return of the Capital-Efficient, Profitable Company * 41:14 Why Intuition Plans to Stay Small (on Purpose) * 46:00 Create Like a God, Connect Like a Human: The New Founder Paradigm * 50:11 Multitask or Die: Surviving in the Agentic Age of AI

In this episode of the EUVC podcast, Andreas Munk Holm is joined by LP Evan Finkel and Cocoa’s Carmen Alfonso to explore the gritty, unvarnished truth about what it takes to raise a venture fund today. They unpack the fundraising myths that mislead first-time GPs, the pitch deck traps that instantly raise LP eyebrows, and the misunderstood concept of “edge” that too often becomes just another slide.

Together, they dive into the uncomfortable but essential lessons that don’t get talked about enough—why brutal feedback is a gift, why preparation is a differentiator, and why your real superpower probably doesn’t look good on LinkedIn. From fake timelines to founder references and chocolate brand storytelling, this one’s for every emerging manager looking for clarity in the fog.

Here’s what’s covered:* 03:04 Why Brutal Honesty in Venture Matters More Than Ever * 05:44 The Myth of the Effortless Fundraise (and Who It Hurts) * 08:04 Preparation Is a Superpower—Not Just Talent * 12:48 What LPs Want to Know * 16:23 The VCX Framework: Edge ≠ Thesis * 19:55 Superpowers Are Personal—Not PR * 26:58 The Case for Being an Outlier (or Not Doing VC at All) * 30:22 How LPs Evaluate GPs on Call #1 * 35:47 Red Flags in Decks That Make LPs Cringe * 41:52 Polish vs. Substance: What the Deck Signals

In this episode, August Solliv and Douglas Sloan speak with Cyril Gouiffès, Head of Social Impact Investments at the European Investment Fund (EIF), to explore what distinguishes authentic impact fund managers from the growing crowd. From team composition and investment discipline to LP expectations and impact integrity, Cyril shares a candid perspective shaped by years of experience at the intersection of public capital and private markets.

Together, they unpack what EIF looks for when backing emerging impact managers, why team dynamics matter more than ever, and how the market can defend against “impact washing” as the sector matures.

Here’s what’s covered:
* 01:00 – Why Cyril’s early influences shaped his mission-driven investing lens * 04:15 – From altruism to efficacy: lessons from failed NGO models * 06:20 – The rise of genuine dual-performance funds post-2014 * 08:45 – Why team quality is the #1 differentiator in impact VC * 17:30 – EIF’s role in supporting first-time, emerging managers * 20:10 – Why impact metrics must tie to the business model * 23:15 – The dangers of forgetting your impact thesis post-fundraise * 26:00 – Impact failures vs. financial failures: lessons learned * 28:00 – Why LPs must stay engaged beyond the fundraising stage * 33:15 – State of fundraising: too many funds, not enough capital * 35:20 – The call for impact pioneers: back to the original thesis

If you tuned in hoping for crisp conclusions on fund performance, you may have left empty-handed.

But if what you came for was a razor-sharp, high-stakes debate on the mechanics of venture economics—then this was your moment. Fourteen minutes of fierce dialogue at the EUVC Summit, and not a second wasted.

Here’s how it went:

“If you're drawing any conclusions from those data sets... be my friend. But we won't do that.

”Why? Because the data is still messy. Still underpowered. And when you're modeling venture returns—especially for emerging managers—it’s more art than science.

But oh, did we try.

This fast-paced exchange brought clarity (and fire) to a few of venture’s most misunderstood dynamics:
* Why the $20B outcome is the new benchmark for greatness * How fund size maps to percentile outcomes * The hard math behind Seed-to-Series A attrition * Why early-stage investing remains low-probability but high-upside * And the eternal debate: do emerging managers truly outperform, or just dominate a distorted sample?

"If you're really needing data to prove that model—it does not exist.”

We’ll get back to that.

In this episode, Andreas Munk Holm is joined by Jeremy Uzan, co-founder and GP at Singular, for a look at how a “plain vanilla” approach to venture—driven by deep founder focus and relentless performance orientation — can be a powerful advantage. Together, they unpack the mechanics behind Singular’s model, how the team stays agile without a rigid thesis, and what it means to create an empowering internal culture. Singular is an early-stage venture capital firm born in Europe, committed to empowering European founders with global ambitions across all sectors, from Seed to Series B, with a strong focus on Series A companies.Jeremy also shares his evolving views on European talent, the rise of Paris as a startup epicenter, and why he believes we’re only just beginning to unlock the entrepreneurial potential of Europe’s scientific minds.Here’s what’s covered:02:00 – Should Generalist VCs Still Exist in Europe?

07:10 – Fundraising Like a Founder: How LPs Backed Fund I and II
14:00 – Why Generalist Isn’t a Weakness—It’s Strategic
16:25 – Diversification vs. Focus: Squaring LP Needs with Performance
21:15 – Temporary Specialists: Sprinting Deep Into Sectors
24:20 – From Zero to One on Markets: Learning via Founders
27:15 – European Talent Post-COVID: What’s Changed
30:00 – Paris Joins the Core of the European Ecosystem
35:15 – The Rise of Science Entrepreneurs in Europe
39:00 – Why Bio is the Next Big Tech Frontier

In this episode, Andreas Munk Holm sits down with Nebular GP Finn Murphy. From launching Nebular after FTX’s collapse to backing AI, data centers in space, and fossil startups, Finn shares the unpredictable and highly personal journey of building a fund from scratch. A manifesto for curiosity-led investing emerges, as does a bold vision for reshaping European venture and policy.Here’s what’s covered:* 01:25 Leaving Frontline, Launching Nebular, and Solo GP Life * 03:45 Fund One in the Nuclear Winter of VC Fundraising * 06:30 A Thesis of Curiosity: No Theme, Just Timing, Talent & Tails * 09:50 From Healthcare Ops to AI Teddy Bears to Fossil Markets * 16:10 Strategy Drift, Authenticity, and Embracing the Unknown * 18:30 Being a Solo GP Without Being Alone * 21:00 How Long Can You Be Great? A Venture Career as Athletic Peak * 27:30 Europe vs. US: Talent, Incentives, and Risk Appetite * 35:40 Project Europe, EU Inc & Why Attitude Is the Real Bottleneck * 44:00 Yes, Tech Should Get Political

In this episode, Andreas Munk Holm talks with Kasper Hulthin, co-founder of Kost Capital and Future Five, to unpack what it takes to build food startups that change the system. Kasper argues that creating better food is not about crafting the perfect health product for the elite, but about designing for impact, scale, and real-world distribution.They explore why traditional VC models often fail food startups, how founders can balance purpose with platform thinking, and what it means to move beyond “more alternatives” into a world of more and better.
Here’s what’s covered:
* 00:45 – Why “more” food options doesn’t always mean “better” * 03:30 – Why optimizing for Whole Foods isn’t a scalable strategy * 06:20 – The ketchup analogy: exclusive vs. inclusive innovation * 10:15 – Scaling challenges: distribution, regulation, perception * 14:05 – What founders miss about consumer routines * 17:50 – Building platforms, not just products * 21:10 – The role of storytelling in transforming food narratives * 25:00 – What “better” really means: nutrition, access, equity

In this episode, Andreas Munk Holm is joined by Guenther Dobrauz-Saldapenna and Enrique Molina from Qi Impact Capital to explore how capital can be deployed with purpose to accelerate the circular economy. From personal stories to portfolio-level insight, this conversation shows how values-based investing can be compatible with venture returns.Guenther and Enrique unpack the urgency of systems change, how storytelling shapes capital flows, and why they believe Europe’s sustainability movement is at a critical inflection point, despite the headwinds.Here’s what’s covered:
* 02:18 Qi Impact Capital’s Holistic Investment Thesis * 03:27 Guenther’s Journey: From PwC to Circularity Champion * 05:34 Why Capital is the Catalyst for Circular Innovation * 06:37 Narratives, Regulation & the Sustainability Backlash * 08:50 Storytelling, Identity & Investment Decision-Making * 13:30 What ‘Conscious Capital’ Really Means * 17:17 Case Studies: OceanSafe, Vital & ID Genève * 22:53 Designing Products for Reusability & Impact * 25:41 The Financial Returns Behind Circular Success * 29:45 Tensions in Consumer Behavior: Circular vs. Fast Fashion

Marcus Behrendt, Managing Partner at BMW iVentures, joins Andreas and Jeppe to explore how corporate venture capital can drive transformation in Europe’s most iconic industries. From autonomy to AI and natural-fiber composites, the episode dives deep into how BMW’s venture arm scans, invests, and hedges across global markets while staying rooted in strategy and sustainability.🎧 Here’s what’s covered:
* 04:11 Investment Focus: From Smart Supply Chains to Sustainability * 09:56 The Auto Industry in Flux: Disruption, Legacy & Tesla’s Vertical Model * 14:31 Integration vs. Modularity: What Will Define the Next Automotive Leaders * 17:01 Avoiding the Kodak Trap: Why Culture Eats Strategy in Corporate Innovation * 25:56 Leveraging the Core: Staying Close to BMW’s Strategic Heartbeat * 28:04 Natural Fibers & Rare Earths: Investing for CO2 Impact and Supply Chain Resilience * 34:42 Scaling Autonomy in the Real World: From Car Plants to Ports * 37:33 Europe's Structural Weakness: Legal Complexity and Inconsistent ESOPs * 44:11 Pensions, Politics & the Case for Venture Policy Engagement * 47:04 Why BMW iVentures Remains a Single-LP Fund—and Proud of It

In this episode, Andreas Munk Holm sits down with Oliver Holle, Founding Partner at Speedinvest, to unpack Europe’s current position in the global venture landscape. Fresh off the EUVC Summit and gearing up for GITEX, Oliver brings the heat — calling out flawed narratives, making the case for political engagement by founders and VCs, and breaking down the strategic implications of geopolitical capital shifts.Oliver shares how Europe is better positioned than its reputation suggests, why AI represents a public narrative opportunity for tech, and how learning from private equity could help European VCs build durable winners. From silent fund shutdowns to the rise of solo GPs, this episode is a crash course in navigating the new European venture normal.Here’s what’s covered:
* 03:46 Key Relationships in the Founder-VC Dynamic * 09:56 Navigating Power Dynamics in Founder-VC Relationships * 22:03 The Importance of Team Dynamics in Startups * 26:05 Building Effective Communication and Culture in Growing Teams * 28:44 The Challenge of Team Dynamics in VC Firms * 32:36 Addressing Ego Issues in Leadership * 38:32 The Evolving Role of Founders * 47:12 Self-Reflection and Personal Growth * 55:12 The Importance of Energy Management

In a new episode of “Path to Market”, our Director Natasha Lytton and her co-host Micah Smurthwaite, Partner at Pipeline Ventures are joined by Ryan Lieber, an experienced Go-to-Market Leader and one of Snowflake’s earliest employees and its first SDR.

Together they discuss Snowflake’s impressive growth trajectory, the challenges and strategies of category creation, key sales methodologies like MEDDPICC, the best approaches for scaling internationally, and cross-functional sales efforts. Ryan shares his experiences from joining Snowflake when it was an unknown startup in 2014 to its current status as a data giant with over 7,000 employees and a market capitalization of over $50 billion.

He also delves into when and how founders should hire their first SDRs and sales leaders, the metrics for measuring their success, and the role of marketing alignment in scaling sales. Moreover, he emphasizes the importance of understanding regional cultural and communication nuances, and how to leverage partnerships in new markets.

Lastly, Ryan discusses his current role leading Snowflake’s startup program in Europe, aiming to help next-generation data-intensive startups succeed using Snowflake’s data cloud.

In this episode, Andreas Munk Holm is joined by Joe Seager-Dupuy and Mike Martin, General Partners at True, a £ 600 M+ consumer and retail-focused investment and innovation firm, to explore what it means to be a sector specialist in venture—and why that matters more than ever in today’s market.They unpack how True brings together deep operational experience, a robust corporate network, and full life-cycle investment—from pre-seed to public markets. This episode offers a masterclass in building durable advantage in venture through network effects, strategic LP engagement, and sector expertise.Here’s what’s covered:* 03:14 Founders' Backgrounds and Experiences * 05:50 Overview of True's Investment Strategy * 09:02 Sector Specialization in Consumer and Retail * 12:00 Leveraging Network and Expertise * 15:09 Investment Decision-Making Process * 17:59 Ecosystem and Corporate Partnerships * 21:10 Consumer Market Opportunities * 24:07 Investment Strategy and Focus Areas * 27:00 Closing Thoughts and Future Directions

In this episode, Andreas Munk Holm sits down with Christian Hernandez, co-founder and Partner at 2150, to challenge a common VC misconception—adaptation isn’t plan B, it’s a billion-dollar frontier. From heat-proofing megacities in the Global South to tackling the carbon cost of concrete, Christian breaks down why the climate crisis needs more than mitigation—and why adaptation is just as investable.Christian shares how 2150 is building its strategy around deployment readiness—bridging the chasm between early tech and infrastructure-scale solutions. This conversation lays out the economics, urgency, and capital flows reshaping climate tech today—and why adaptation is core to building a livable 2150.
Here’s what’s covered:* 01:35 Scaling for the Switch: When Venture Hands Off to Infra * 03:01 Cooling the Planet: Human Limits, Economic Drivers & Air Conditioning * 05:06 De-risking for Deployment: The Role of IFC, World Bank & Public Finance * 07:42 Software for Adaptation Risk: Interdependencies & Insurability * 11:42 Concrete, Meat & Flying: Where Real Emissions Come From * 16:50 Why 2150? Long-Termism and Climate Deployment Urgency * 18:15 Lessons for Climate VCs: Investing with Impact and ROI in Mind * 24:38 Case Study: Vammo's Electric Scooters & Battery Swapping in Brazil * 26:15 Open Source Thinking: Sharing Climate Research Across the Ecosystem

In this episode, Andreas Munk Holm talks with Sebastian Pollok to unpack the thesis behind Visionaries Tomorrow, a fund purpose-built to back industrial deep tech founders emerging from Europe’s labs and institutes.Sebastian explores why Europe's frontier innovation requires new LP-GP dynamics, portfolio construction models, and national ambition—and how family offices and sovereign industrial strategy can unlock a generational leap in European deep tech leadership.Here’s what’s covered:* 02:30 Why Industrial Deep Tech Needs Purpose-Built Capital * 06:45 Founders from Labs, Not MBAs: Rethinking Team Archetypes * 10:10 Case Study: Proxima Fusion & Max Planck’s World-Leading Design * 13:55 Balancing Moonshots and Pick-and-Shovel Businesses * 18:20 Family Offices & Mittelstand: Europe’s Strategic LP Base * 22:40 What It Means to Truly Love Your LPs * 26:30 The New Portfolio Construction for Deep Tech VC * 36:10 Why Capital Efficiency Still Matters in Deep Tech * 40:25 Strategic Sovereignty & the Role of the West in Frontier Tech

In this episode, Andreas Munk Holm talks with Dave Haynes at FOV Ventures to unpack how the evolution of multimodal AI, audio intelligence, and teleoperation are driving a new wave of human-computer interaction. From audio-enhancing models like AI Acoustics to video synthesis via 3D engines, and from VR-powered robot control to wearable AI glasses—you'll get a front-row seat to the technologies that are redefining the frontier of ambient computing.Dave shares how AR glasses are already unlocking new workflows, why multimodal models are changing the way we use AI daily, and what this means for investors eyeing the next trillion-dollar opportunity. If you’ve ever wondered what comes after mobile and SaaS, this is it.Here’s what’s covered:
* 02:30 From Text to Multimodal: How AI Has Leveled Up * 06:00 Voice is the Interface: Audio Models Like 11 Labs and AI Acoustics * 08:45 The Rise of Ambient AI: Talking to Your Computer Like a Human * 12:10 The Future Is Synthetic: Training Video Models in 3D Engines * 15:55 Robotics in the Wild: Why Teleoperation Still Matters * 19:40 The Role of VR in Human-Robot Collaboration * 23:20 AR Glasses and Continuous Context Capture * 26:50 Using AI to Wrap Your Day: Follow-Up Summaries from Lifelogging * 30:10 Beyond SaaS: Why Frontier Tech Is Where Alpha Lives * 33:00 Convincing LPs to Bet on the Future * 36:25 Venture in the Age of Disruption: The 10-Year Thesis

Welcome to a new episode of the EUVC podcast, where our good friends Dan Bowyer and Mads Jensen from SuperSeed, in discussion with Lomax Ward from Outsized Ventures and Andrew J. Scott, Founding Partner at 7percent Ventures, cover recent news and movements in the European tech landscape.Behind the headlines—wind implosions, deep tech dead ends, exit deserts, secondaries, and AI drama—lie seismic shifts that will define the trajectory of European startups and the capital that fuels them.Here’s what’s covered:* 01:30 Europe’s Wind Sector in Crisis * 05:12 Hornsea 4 Fallout & Government Accountability * 10:24 The Collapse of Deep Tech Momentum in the UK * 15:36 Public Sector Catastrophes: Fujitsu’s £12B Flop * 20:48 UK-EU Youth Mobility Deal & Trade Strategy * 26:00 Trump, IP Tariffs & Global Trade Disruption * 31:12 RIA Funds & the Evolving VC Model * 41:36 Secondary Markets in Venture * 46:48 The AI Arms Race: OpenAI vs. Google * 52:00 European Drone Unicorns & GovTech

In this episode, Andreas Munk Holm talks with Jon Coker, co-founder and GP at Eka Ventures, to unpack the strategy behind their conviction-led investment model and its outsized outcomes. Jon shares why Eka’s focus on consumer health and sustainable consumption is redefining what it means to deliver impact from venture, not just within it.Jon challenges the traditional index-style logic of venture capital, arguing instead for deep diligence, founder-first frameworks, and high-bar decision-making shaped by firsthand experience with outlier success. This episode is a masterclass in aligning fund design, sourcing strategy, and conviction-building to deliver both impact and performance.
Here’s what’s covered:
* 03:25 Why Eka Doubled Down on Concentrated Portfolios * 05:44 Structural Drivers Behind the Portfolio Strategy * 07:18 Challenging the Index Logic of Venture * 14:05 How Eka's Style Shapes Decision-Making Processes * 16:34 Consumer Tech: Eka's Favorite Layer Cake * 21:05 Bias for Action: A Key Founder Trait * 28:35 Building Conviction: The Founder's Role at Eka * 29:12 Eka's Deep Founder Diligence Model * 44:57 Impact From Venture vs. Impact In Venture * 50:57 Scaling Impact: Why Depth and Scale Matter

In this episode, Andreas sits down with Exit of The Year Finalist Fergal Mullen, Founding Partner at Highland Europe, to explore the firm’s growth-only investment strategy and what it really takes to scale durable, capital-efficient European champions.Fergal shares why Highland’s equal partnership model is more than just internal structure—it’s a reflection of how trust, alignment, and founder collaboration drive outcomes. From turning operational efficiency into alpha to navigating U.S. expansion and cap table cleanups, this episode lays out a blueprint for growth with discipline in a market still shaped by cycles, hype, and hard-earned fundamentals.

🎧 Here’s what’s covered:
* 01:15 Spinning Out from Highland Capital & Building a Growth-Only Fund * 02:30 Why Equal Partnership Structure Matters—for GPs and Founders * 04:20 Sensible Growth > Blitzscaling: Highland’s Core Investment Philosophy * 09:10 Founder Coachability, No-Frills Marketing & Building Trust Post-Investment * 11:50 Exiting and Re-Investing: When and Why to Consult LPs * 13:45 US Expansion: Why Founders Must Move to Make It Work * 16:00 Europe’s Best Exit Year? Why Fundamentals (Still) Win * 17:55 Tourist Capital: How Cycles Distort Venture Discipline * 19:20 Founders’ Liquidity and Cap Table Cleanups—Done Right * 24:30 Closing Reflections from Fergal: Growth with Discipline, Always

Exit of The Year Sponsor: Ace Alternatives
At ACE Alternatives, we’re honoured to sponsor the Exit of the Year Award at the EUVC Summit. This award celebrates not only the incredible achievements of founders and their teams but also the vital roles played by the GPs who champion them and the LPs who believe in their vision. Together, these efforts create success stories that drive innovation, growth, and long-term impact in the venture ecosystem. We’re thrilled to recognise and celebrate these collective milestones.

In this episode, Andreas Munk Holm sits down with Andreas Klinger—founding team at Product Hunt, ex-CTO at On Deck, and now GP at Prototype Capital—to dive into the work behind EU Inc., a grassroots initiative to fix Europe’s fragmented startup ecosystem by rewriting its regulatory plumbing.Klinger shares how his experience as a founder and investor on both sides of the Atlantic led to a mission to standardize how we do business in Europe. They unpack how EU Inc. is working with the ecosystem—associations, communities, and top GPs—to propose a concrete policy blueprint aimed at simplifying scaling across borders.But the conversation goes much deeper: into the role of media as a self-selecting tool for ambition, how to build conviction and access as a micro-VC, and why VCs must engage with both macro-level systems change and micro-level founder support to make a lasting impact.Here’s what’s covered:
* 01:15 From Product Hunt & AngelList to Fixing European Venture * 02:30 Why Klinger Made VC a Full-Time Play * 06:10 Vlogging Hyper-Ambition: Behind-the-Scenes of Europe's Top Startups * 09:30 The Cultural Gap: Work Ethic, Values & Systemic Signals * 12:00 The Hidden Power of Performative Culture (and Its Risks) * 14:22 What EU Inc. Actually Is: A Business-Led Policy Blueprint * 18:30 Industry-Wide Buy-In: Why Everyone's Signing the EU Inc. Manifesto * 24:15 Can VCs Stay Apolitical While Driving Change? * 34:00 Reports Don’t Build Economies—People with Bias for Action Do * 37:10 Action, Not Words: What Europe Really Needs Next

In this short but insightful episode of the EUVC Podcast, we’re joined by George Robson of Sequoia and Benjamin, our trusted ambassador from Tech Barbecue, for a candid conversation on the transformative impact of AI—especially through the lens of content creation.The group touches on the disconnect between innovators and the mainstream when it comes to AI adoption. George and Benjamin reflect on the massive potential of AI, the surprisingly slow uptake among everyday users, and how those on the cutting edge are already rethinking workflows, communication, and strategy.
Here’s what’s covered:
* 05:46 Reconciling European Optimism with U.S. Skepticism * 17:22 U.S. Views on Europe: Misconceptions & Missed Nuance * 21:00 The Return of Real Venture: Deep Tech vs. SaaS * 24:00 Evaluating Deep Tech Founders: What Sequoia Looks For * 26:59 Adapting Sequoia’s Platform to Serve Technical Founders * 29:57 Scale-Up Capital in Europe: Reality vs. Perception * 32:11 AI Company Metrics: Changing Signals & Due Diligence * 34:56 Explosion of Founders in the AI Era: A Double-Edged Sword * 36:59 Why Some European Companies Don’t Scale Big Enough * 42:54 Foundational Principles for Building in the AI Era

Welcome to a new episode of the EUVC podcast, where Dan Bowyer and Mads Jensen of SuperSeed and Lomax from Outsized Ventures dive deep into the macro and micro of European venture, joined this week by special guest Chris Elphick, Head of Venture Capital at the British Private Equity & Venture Capital Association (BVCA).Together, they pull back the curtain on the real stories shaping VC—from pension reform to geopolitical shocks, blackout readiness, and the transatlantic battle for AI and aerospace dominance.
Here’s what’s covered:
* 03:15 What Really Happens at a VC Conference? * 07:40 Politicians Using AI: Tech Literacy or National Security Risk? * 12:01 UK Local Elections: Rise of Reform & Political Fragmentation * 18:20 Trump’s Tariffs: Recession Risk & Global Trade Realignments * 22:33 Heart Aerospace Flies to LA: A Blow to Europe? * 28:04 UK VC Fundraising Rebounds—but Where’s the LP Money? * 33:42 The Pension Problem: Zero UK Pensions Backing UK VC? * 48:58 NATO x Deeptech: Europe’s First Combat Robots? * 52:35 Portugal’s Great Blackout: A Warning for Renewable Grids * 1:03:00 Show Me the Money: Can Pension Reform Really Unlock Capital for UK VC?

In this episode, Daniel Dippold unpacks the radical vision behind EWOR — a venture platform designed not as a fund, but as a self-reinforcing ecosystem where LPs become builders, community drives capital, and Europe’s boldest entrepreneurs find a launchpad.Daniel challenges the traditional LP-GP dynamic, advocating instead for an interconnected flywheel where education, storytelling, and systems-thinking empower both founders and funders. From the structural flaws in European venture to the cultural shifts needed to drive generational change, this episode is a masterclass in rethinking the venture equation from first principles.

Here’s what’s covered:
* 02:47 The Origin of Ewor: Lessons from Building Momentum * 07:12 Understanding the LP Journey * 11:25 The European LP Landscape vs. the U.S. * 15:33 Structuring EWOR as a Flywheel, Not a Fund * 21:10 Solving for LP Education and Community * 26:45 Why Now: The Timing Behind EWOR’s Launch * 30:30 LPs as Builders: Shifting the Narrative * 35:18 How EWOR Aims to Serve GPs * 42:14 Storytelling, Visibility, and the Next Chapter

In this episode, Charles Martin from Kinnevik shares how the firm's evergreen investment model supports long-term, sustainable growth for portfolio companies. By eliminating the pressure of fixed fund lifecycles, Kinnevik can take a hands-on approach, offering support through various growth stages and aligning closely with entrepreneurs over time.Charles highlights the shift in venture capital, where today’s focus is not just on financial returns but also on building adaptable companies with strong governance and positive societal impact. Kinnevik’s approach exemplifies this broader movement toward deeper, more collaborative partnerships in driving lasting success.Here’s what’s covered:
* 05:10 AI in the Nordics: Talent and Innovation * 08:56 The Importance of Operational Talent * 13:16 Spotting Outlier Talent and Venture Insights * 25:22 Evaluating Founders: Experience vs. Potential * 39:02 The Importance of People in Venture Capital * 44:53 The Future of AI and Talent

In this episode, Andreas Munk Holm talks with Sara Kappelmark, Co-CEO of Norrsken Foundation, and Willem Vriesendorp, Founder of Sustainable Public Affairs, to explore the powerful intersection of venture capital, sustainability, and EU policymaking.In this episode, Sara and Willem share how they’re bridging the gap between Europe’s most mission-driven founders and the often distant world of regulation, starting with the launch of the Norrsken House in Brussels. From climate tech to deep tech, they unpack why now is the moment for VCs and startups to engage with policy, how smart regulation can unlock real scale, and why Europe may be on the brink of its own era of exceptionalism.Here’s what’s covered:
* 04:15 The Importance of Regulation in Venture Capital * 06:04 The Excitement in Brussels: Tech and Policy * 12:27 The Role of Norkin House in Brussels * 16:55 Engaging in Policy as a Small VC Firm or Startup * 20:26 The Importance of Sustainability in Tech * 26:07 The Role of VCs and Founders in Shaping Policy

In this episode of our Behind European Unicorns series, David Cruz e Silva talks with Dan Vahdat, the founder and CEO of Huma, to unpack the journey behind one of Europe’s standout digital health scaleups. Founded in 2011, Huma is headquartered in London and has grown to approximately 500 employees and has raised over €275 million to date. Dan shares how the company evolved from supporting rare diseases to building a disease-agnostic, globally scalable platform used by healthcare systems, research institutions, and pharmaceutical giants. Here’s what’s covered:
* 07:09 The Evolution of Huma * 09:56 Challenges and Future Vision * 22:16 The Challenges of Starting a Digital Health Company * 22:40 Geographical Focus and Strategy * 29:57 Navigating Regulatory Challenges in Digital Health * 36:12 Partnerships and Organizational Growth * 41:26 Future Vision and Expansion Plans for Huma

Welcome to a new episode of our podcast series focused on impact, where August Soliv, author of Impact Supporters, and Douglas Sloan, Managing Director at Better Society Capital, talk with Marie Ekeland, Founder and CEO of 2050 and one of Europe’s most forward-thinking impact investors.

In this episode, Marie shares how her path, from coding at J.P. Morgan to founding France Digitale and now 2050, has been driven by a deep curiosity and a passion for building businesses that matter. She discusses why the classic VC model falls short in addressing today’s biggest challenges and how she is rewriting the rules with a regenerative, evergreen fund that aligns profit with purpose.Here’s what’s covered:
* 05:53 Challenges and Systemic Issues in Tech and Impact VC * 10:15 The Concept of Alignment in Impact VC * 28:17 Reinventing the VC Model for a Sustainable Future * 33:17 Rethinking the VC Model: Extending Time Horizons * 37:14 Evergreen Model: Diversifying Risk and Liquidity * 39:53 Understanding the Science Behind Climate Change

Welcome to a new episode of the EUVC podcast, where our good friends Dan Bowyer and Mads Jensen from SuperSeed in a discussion with Andrew J. Scott, Founding Partner at 7percent Ventures, cover recent news and movements in the European tech landscape 💬

In this episode, Andreas Munk Holm talks with Karma Samdup, Head of Private Funds and Venture in Europe in Haynes Boone's London office, and Vicki Odette, Partner in Dallas and New York, at Haynes Boone. They discuss the legal considerations in launching and managing venture capital funds. They also provide a detailed overview of key issues such as fund structuring, regulatory compliance, cornerstone LP dynamics, GP commitments, default provisions, and expense policies. They also discuss practical guidance on compensation models for key employees, using side letters, and negotiating with different types of investors.Here’s what’s covered:
* 03:59 The Importance of Legal Expertise in Fund Management * 10:58 Key Legal Considerations for Fund Managers * 26:31 Navigating LP Negotiations * 35:57 Effective Communication with LPs * 40:48 Compensation Strategies for Key Employees * 45:00 Hiring from Competitors: Best Practices * 47:11 Protecting Your Firm from Departing Employees

In this episode of our CVC series, Andreas Munk Holm and our CVC in-house expert, Jeppe Høier, talk with Marika King, Head of PINC, the corporate venture arm of Paulig.

Marika shares how PINC was born to accelerate core innovation and deliver long-term impact across health, sustainability, and food security. She explains why PINC goes earlier than most CVCs and how they leverage Paulig’s R&D and cultural DNA to validate, support, and scale startups. Marika also offers candid reflections on governance structures, founder dynamics, and how her journey through burnout shaped her values as an investor.Here’s what’s covered:
* 03:10 Early Stage Investments and Validation * 16:54 Governance and Structure of Pink Ventures * 24:00 Lessons in Structuring a Corporate Venture Fund * 26:34 Understanding the Role of a CVC * 27:03 Misconceptions About CVCs * 28:49 Flexibility and Patience in CVC Investments * 31:29 The Importance of Founder-Friendly A

In this episode we're spotlighting Emerging Manager of the Year finalist Concept Ventures. Andreas talks with Reece Chowdhry, Founding Partner of Concept Ventures, about his bold approach to pre-seed: leading rounds, writing big checks early, and building founder trust from day one. Curious who else made the shortlist? Stay tuned—the big reveal’s coming soon.

Reece shares his journey into early-stage investing and explains how his approach to pre-seed funding means writing big lead checks when others hesitate, building trust and momentum with founders right from the start. He also opens up about his early experiences in tech investing, which shaped his conviction to back talented teams and innovative ideas in a maturing European ecosystem. Reece also dives into the heart of his investment philosophy, focusing on the power of a strong people process and unwavering conviction. He outlines how his team’s careful evaluation of team dynamics and growth mindset helps startups skip rounds of dilution and accelerate their progress.

Chapters:

03:02 Reece's Journey into Investing
06:35 The Evolution and Philosophy of Concept Ventures
09:44 Challenges and Strategies in the Pre-Seed Ecosystem
23:38 Collaborative Investment Strategies
25:00 The Importance of People in Venture Capital
26:25 Father-Son Partnership Dynamics
28:52 Public Markets Insight in Venture Capital

In this episode of the EUVC podcast, Andreas talks with Carmen Alfonso Rico, a self-described VC turned angel at Cocoa Ventures. and Evan Finkel, Head of Venture Capital Investments at Integra Global Advisors.

Evan outlines a framework for how LP expectations evolve across different fund stages, highlighting key criteria like thesis clarity, team credibility, track record, and consistency of execution. Carmen shares her experience raising Cocoa Fund I during a peak market and the challenges of navigating a very different environment for Fund II. Together, they explore practical strategies for targeting the right LPs, understanding different LP profiles, and managing long-term relationships.

Here’s what’s covered:
* 11:36 Challenges in the European LP Ecosystem * 29:51 Long-term Commitment and Strategy * 38:46 Evaluating the Product: Key Considerations * 39:54 Importance of Historical Track Record * 41:22 Decision-Making Process in Investments * 54:14 The Role of LPs in Fund Management * 01:02:15 Challenges of Being a Fund Manager

Welcome to a new episode of the EUVC podcast, where our good friend Dan Bowyer from SuperSeed meets with Andrew J. Scott, Founding Partner at 7percent Ventures, Lomax Ward, General Partner at Outsized Ventures, and Dilek Dayınlarlı, General Partner at ScaleX Venture,s to cover recent news and movements in the European tech landscape 💬Here’s what’s covered:
* 01:31 Recent News and Highlights * 02:38 European Defense and Tech Investments * 07:41 UK and Turkish Startup Ecosystems * 30:42 Capital Efficiency in Europe vs. Silicon Valley * 31:34 Navigating the Middle of the Portfolio * 34:57 Insights from the 2024 PitchBook Report * 45:17 The Rise of the Turkish Startup Ecosystem

In this episode of our CVC series, Andreas Munk Holm talks with Bruno Moraes, Managing Director at Wayra, Telefónica’s corporate venture capital arm. With nearly 15 years of experience, Wayra stands out for its focus on driving strategic business value by connecting startups with Telefónica’s core operations across Europe and Latin America.

Here’s what’s covered:
* 03:40 Investment Strategies and Goals * 04:51 Fund Management and Structure * 06:32 Geographical and Vertical Focus * 08:28 Team Structure and Operations * 19:54 Evolution and Growth of WRA * 22:56 Incentives and Compensation in CVC

In this episode of the EUVC podcast, our host, David Cruz e Silva, talks with Chris Wade, Co-Founder of Isomer Capital, to explore the evolving European venture landscape in 2025. Reflecting on a decade since Isomer’s inception, Chris shares insights on the industry's growth and how Europe has expanded from just 20 unicorns in 2014 to nearly 400 today.

Here’s what’s covered:
* 02:25 Celebrating 10 Years of Isomer * 05:39 The Growth and Future of European Venture Capital * 08:43 Challenges and Opportunities in the VC Landscape * 17:56 Transparency and Communication in Venture Capital * 25:57 The Role of VCs on Company Boards * 27:17 Understanding DPI and Secondary Transactions * 39:16 The Future of European VC and Emerging Managers

Welcome to the first episode of our brand new podcast series focused on impact, where August Soliv, author of Impact Supporters, and Douglas Sloan, Managing Director at Better Society Capital, talk with Niklas Adalberth, co-founder of Klarna and the visionary behind the Norrsken Foundation.

Here’s what’s covered:
* 02:14 Niklas' Personal Journey and Realizations * 06:45 The Birth of Norsken Foundation * 11:30 Norsken's Global Expansion and Impact * 13:35 Balancing Commercial Success and Impact * 25:07 The Role of AI in Impact Investing * 39:50 Building a Mission-Driven Team * 43:04 Future of Impact VC and Norsken's Vision

In this episode, Andreas Munk Holm talks with Oleg Bibergan, co-founder of S16VC, a venture capital fund built on the foundation of a tight-knit founder community. Oleg shares the story of how S16 began in a Moscow apartment he shared with fellow founders, where casual poker nights evolved into startup discussions, business clubs, and an informal incubator.

Here’s what’s covered:
* 01:18 Alex's Entrepreneurial Journey * 05:17 Oleg's Background and Investment Experience * 06:50 The Birth of S16: From Poker Nights to a Tech Incubator * 10:37 Building a Global Community and Fund * 11:48 The Fund's Unique Approach and Strategy * 19:37 Productizing the Fund: Technology and Community * 29:36 Investment Success and Future Goals

Welcome to a new episode of the EUVC podcast, where our good friends Dan Bowyer from SuperSeed, in discussion with Andrew J. Scott, Founding Partner at 7percent Ventures, and Lomax Ward, General Partner at Outsized Ventures, cover recent news and movements in the European tech landscape 💬

Here’s what’s covered:
* 01:22 Klarna's IPO and European Market Insights * 04:19 AI, Tariffs, and Future Predictions * 24:35 European Venture Capital Trends * 25:52 Generative AI and Market Speculations * 29:56 Challenges in the European Tech Ecosystem * 35:30 UK AI Sector Report Insights * 46:22 Exciting Deals and Future Prospects

In this insightful episode of “Path to Market”, Director Natasha Lytton and co-host Micah Smurthwaite, Partner at Pipeline Ventures, are joined by Alicia Carney, a seasoned product marketing expert with extensive experience at high-growth startups like Deliveroo.

Together, they dive deep into identifying and validating Ideal Customer Profiles (ICPs) in pre and post product-market fit stages. Alicia shares her insights on navigating early market fit through to scaling operations post-product market fit.

She emphasizes the importance of starting with customer needs rather than product ideas, advocating for qualitative user research and pain mapping to identify and validate ideal customer profiles (ICP). She also shares her best strategies for conducting effective customer interviews, iterating quickly based on market feedback, and leveraging practical tools and methodologies for market research.

Elaborating on her experiences at Deliveroo, she explains how she managed to segment and prioritize different types of customers, from small businesses to large enterprises, and used iterative testing to refine go-to-market strategies.

Chapters:

01:01 - 01:36 | Pre-Product Market Fit Strategies
01:36 - 02:30 | Validating Customer Assumptions
02:30 - 03:50 | Effective Customer Interviews
03:50 - 05:04 | Identifying ICP and Pain Points
06:23 - 07:39 | The Importance of Customer Feedback
07:39 - 08:54 | Retention vs. Acquisition Strategies
08:54 - 10:15 | Post-Product Market Fit Tactics

In this episode of our CVC series, Andreas Munk Holm and our CVC in-house expert, Jeppe Høier, talk with Gitte Aabo to explore the world of corporate venture. With a remarkable background that spans 27 years at Leo Pharma, including 12 years as CEO and further experience at GN Hearing, Gitte shares her journey in building innovation initiatives like Leo iLab. She explains how she helped develop digital tools to improve treatment outcomes and diagnostics, drawing on her extensive experience in both board leadership and hands-on management to drive change.

During the conversation, Gitte dives into aligning corporate culture with innovative practices. She emphasizes that success in corporate venturing doesn’t come from following a one-size-fits-all formula but from ongoing, one-on-one discussions with board members and key executives. By integrating strategic insights with practical initiatives, she shares how innovation teams must work closely with the core business to ensure long-term impact, even if the financial returns take time to materialize.

Chapters:

03:55 Establishing Leo Innovation Lab
04:15 Digital Tools for Skin Disease Treatment
05:01 Improving Diagnosis with Mobile Tools
05:16 Philosophy of Patient Focus
06:20 Structure and Funding of Leo iLab
08:10 Challenges and Learnings from Leo iLab
08:28 Collaboration with US and External Investments
09:31 Balancing Innovation and Core Business
11:24 Reflections on Corporate Innovation
14:43 Transition to GN Hearing
15:50 Integrating Innovation in GN Hearing
17:00 Strategic Partnerships and External Innovation
19:52 Challenges in Corporate and Startup Collaboration

In this episode, Andreas Munk Holm talks with Enis Hulli, General Partner at e2vc, and Gorkem Yurtseven, founder and CTO of Fal.ai, to unpack the story behind one of Europe’s fastest-growing AI startups.

Gorkem shares how Fal.ai carved a unique niche in the generative media space, focusing not on text but AI-generated images, video, and audio. Enis reflects on the challenges (and perks) of backing a long-time friend turned founder rocketship. Together, they walk through the journey from scrappy pre-seed rounds to a $49M Series B led by Andreessen Horowitz, offering an unfiltered look at what it takes to scale in a hyper-competitive, fast-moving AI landscape.

Gorkem also discusses building a sales motion from scratch as a technical founder, the importance of developer-first products, and how being in San Francisco created viral moments that fueled Fal’s breakout growth. Meanwhile, Enis shares how Fal’s rise shapes his investment strategy, doubling down on diaspora founders and “blue ocean” markets where Europe’s engineering talent can quietly build global winners.

Chapters:

04:50 Deep Dive into Faleye and Generative Media
23:48 Revenue Growth and Market Dynamics
25:30 Strategic Market Positioning
29:10 Sales and Team Management
35:18 Building in San Francisco vs. Europe
47:33 Lessons and Insights for Founders and VCs

In this episode, Andreas Munk Holm talks with Alex Konoplyasty, Managing Partner at Flashpoint Venture Growth. Currently raising its fourth venture growth fund with a target of $200 million, Flashpoint manages $500 million across multiple funds. The firm is headquartered in the UK and focuses on Series A investments in global high-growth B2B software companies from Europe and Israel. With 80 portfolio companies—including Guesty, Chili Piper, and OfficeRnD—Alex and his team bring deep expertise in guiding startups toward sustainable success.

In this conversation, we discuss the nuts and bolts of exits, co-investments, and the role of venture debt in today’s market. Alex shares how Flashpoint Venture Growth builds operator-led portfolios, taking a hands-on approach to deal sourcing and capital efficiency and helping founders make tough decisions.

Chapters:

06:54 Fundraising Challenges and Strategies
11:05 Portfolio Management and Exits
28:51 Understanding Liquidation Preferences
30:02 Valuation Discrepancies in Different Markets
32:04 Strategies for Founders to Manage Valuations
36:49 Investment Criteria and Founder Fit
47:39 Co-Investment Opportunities and Challenges

Welcome to a new episode of the EUVC podcast, where our good friends Dan Bowyer from SuperSeed, in discussion with Andrew J. Scott, Founding Partner at 7percent Ventures, and Lomax Ward, General Partner at Outsized Ventures, cover recent news and movements in the European tech landscape 💬

In this episode, Andreas Munk Holm talks with Jim Pulcrano, an entrepreneur turned venture capital educator and professor at IMD Business School. Jim shares how his early startup experience in Switzerland pulled him into the orbit of venture capital back when the ecosystem was still in its infancy. He talks about creating IMD’s VC Asset Management Program, which aims to give LPs a crash course in venture, teaching them both the appeal and the real difficulty of being a GP. It’s a fresh look at how education can bridge the knowledge gap between conservative allocators and the fast-moving world of startups.

Jim also shares what he’s learned running IMD’s startup competition and Swiss scale-up programs. He shares insights from his research into VC behavior, like why less experienced investors are often eager to lead rounds while mid-career ones take a backseat. He explains why experienced GPs tend to source proactively and why most avoid relying too much on HR assessments when evaluating founders.

Chapters:

01:38 Jim's Journey into Venture Capital
02:42 Creating the VC Asset Management Program
03:37 Challenges and Strategies in Educating LPs
07:24 Understanding Pension Fund Managers
16:40 The IMD Starter Competition
18:29 Swiss Startups and Silicon Valley
20:04 European vs. US Entrepreneurial Ambitions
22:50 Can You Teach Venture Capital?
25:38 Recognizing Entrepreneurial Potential
26:04 Swiss Scale-Up Program Overview
26:32 Challenges in Scaling Up
27:16 Leadership in Scaling Companies
28:05 Venture-Backed vs. Bootstrapped Startups
28:57 Founder-Led Companies and VC Opinions
31:41 VCs and Lead Investors
36:33 VC Experience and Investment Strategies
41:17 Evaluating Founders and Teams
46:18 Outbound Sourcing by Experienced VCs

In today’s episode of our CVC series, Andreas Munk Holm and our CVC in-house expert, Jeppe Høier, talk with Ida Christine Brun, Venture Investments and Partnership Director at Maersk Growth. With over 13 years at Maersk under her belt, Ida brings experience from commercial business development and supply chain management to her current role in corporate venturing. She explains how Maersk Growth invests in early-stage startups focused on decarbonizing and digitizing supply chains, using a well-rounded approach that blends equity investments with strategic partnerships.

During the conversation, Ida shares how her team leverages Maersk’s deep logistics expertise to test and validate innovative solutions in real-world settings. She discusses the value of engaging with both internal teams and external VC partners to drive impactful change, emphasizing the importance of addressing current business challenges and paving the way for future growth. By integrating strategic insights with practical pilot projects, Maersk Growth is working to bridge the gap between groundbreaking technology and sustainable, long-term industry transformation.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

03:08 Ida's Journey at Maersk
03:38 Transition to Corporate Venturing
04:02 Maersk Growth's Mission and Team
04:26 Corporate Venturing at Maersk Growth
04:54 Investment Focus: Climate Tech and Supply Chain
05:52 Portfolio and Investment Strategy
06:39 Strategic Partnerships and Internal Collaboration
07:05 Challenges in Corporate Venturing
07:30 Engaging with Internal Teams
09:24 Value Creation for Portfolio Companies
13:56 Decarbonizing Supply Chains
14:14 Investment Strategy and Exciting Startups
17:35 Global Collaboration for Innovation
22:21 Navigating Regulatory Challenges
32:49 Corporate Venturing vs. Corporate Venture Capital
36:59 Collaborating with VCs and Investors

We are excited to introduce you to Seedcamp’s new podcast series, “Path to Market,” where Director Natasha Lytton and co-host Micah Smurthwaite, Partner at Pipeline Ventures, dissect the art and science behind effective go-to-market (GTM) strategies for startups and scale-ups.

Whether you’re a budding entrepreneur grappling with your first sales hires or a seasoned founder looking to refine your GTM approach, this podcast aims to bring you valuable insights from industry experts.

In today’s fast-moving entrepreneurial landscape, mastering the art and science of go-to-market strategies is vital for startups and scale-ups. While companies must drive customers, revenue, and monetization sooner than ever before, founders struggle to find a consolidated resource that distinguishes between various GTM motions. Our podcast aims to fill this gap by providing diverse insights through the lenses of both sales and marketing.

The introductory episode explores essential elements of go-to-market planning, real-world examples of startups overcoming market-entry challenges, and practical advice on avoiding common pitfalls.

In today’s episode, David Cruz e Silva talks with Justinas Milasauskas, an investment manager at Willgrow, a single-family office based in Lithuania. Justinas explains how Willgrow approaches venture investments worldwide, focusing on US and European early-stage managers. He shares the family office’s history, reasons for getting into venture, and how they think about manager selection, covering everything from ticket sizes to fund-of-funds benefits. It’s a great look at how an LP outside the traditional financial hubs can still build a global venture portfolio.

In this conversation, Justinas also reveals the importance of balancing conviction with consistent due diligence, highlighting why his team benchmarks managers against top peers worldwide. He talks about how they stay disciplined by maintaining a structured watchlist, stacking GPs based on strategy fit, and investing across multiple vintages. It’s an honest, behind-the-scenes view of how a first-generation family office grows its exposure to private markets while keeping that entrepreneurial spirit front and center.

Chapters:

03:02 WillGrow's Investment Strategy and Focus
04:31 The Background and Experience of Justinas
08:39 Building a Convincing Strategy for Sourcing
09:45 The Role of Senior Advisors and Fund of Funds
12:09 The Importance of Diversification and Long-Term Commitment
13:56 Understanding WillGrow's Investment Approach
14:28 Investment Strategy and Risk Profiles
18:10 Active vs Passive Investment Approach
20:54 Biggest Learnings in Venture Investing
22:43 The Importance of Proper Benchmarking
23:53 Diversification Across Funds and Vintages
28:03 The Role of Stack Ranking in Investment Decisions
34:47 Overcoming Barriers to Access in Venture Investing
42:45 The Value of Fund of Funds
43:48 Book Recommendation: Leading by Alex Ferguson

Welcome to a new episode of the EUVC podcast, where our good friends Dan Bowyer and Mads Jensen from SuperSeed discuss with Alex Macdonald, Co-Founder & CEO of sequel, and Lomax Ward, General Partner at Outsized Ventures, to cover recent news and movements in the European tech landscape 💬

Chapters:
03:54 The Fall of 23andMe
05:37 Challenges in Commercializing Healthcare Data
08:11 Project Europe: A New Venture Initiative
14:51 Addressing Criticisms and Diversity
18:11 The Need for Growth Capital in Europe
28:03 Rachel Reeves' Spring Statement and Economic Outlook
34:17 Navigating Economic Challenges
35:23 Spring Statement and Policy Implications
36:08 AI Corner: OpenAI's New Developments
36:54 Deep Seek's V3 Model and AI Competition
37:53 Google's Gemini and AI Wars
39:00 AI and Copyright Issues
43:08 Scandals in the Tech World
50:08 Brand Power and Soft Power
51:58 US-EU Relations and Defense Implications

In today’s episode of the EUVC podcast, Andreas Munk Holm is joined by Victoria Palatnik, Managing Partner at Raw Ventures, Peter Effenberg, Founder & CEO of Jay, and Severin Zugmayer, Founder of New Renaissance Ventures.

The discussion starts by exploring why consumers are returning to trusted, branded media for quality journalism, even as the digital world bombards us with endless information streams. It also tackles the challenges posed by regulatory frameworks like GDPR, the rapid pace of technological change, and emerging opportunities in areas such as shoppable content and digital twin technology—painting an engaging picture of the media tech future.

Chapters:

01:07 The Rise of Legacy Media
02:41 Victoria's Perspective on Media Tech
03:47 Peter's Journey in Media Tech
05:43 Severin's Focus on Creative Industries
07:32 Mapping Media Tech Hubs in Europe
12:02 The Shift in Media Branding
17:31 Challenges in Monetizing Media Content
19:13 Debate on Legacy Media's Future
28:44 Media Bias in the US vs Europe
29:43 The Role of Journalists in Europe
31:06 The Impact of Technology on Journalism
31:50 The Rise of Independent News Platforms
32:15 Challenges in Modern Journalism
33:15 The Flourishing Creator Economy
35:27 AI's Role in Media Tech
39:36 Generative AI and Media Production
46:59 Ethical and Legal Considerations in AI
52:24 Future of Media Tech and AI

In today’s episode, Andreas Munk Holm talks with Jonatan Luther-Bergquist from Inflection.xyz, who shares his journey in framing crypto fundamentally as a compute technology and formulating their thesis on sovereign compute back in 2023. Jonatan explains that while the early work in crypto helped lay the groundwork for disruptive technology, he saw a bigger picture emerging - a need for Europe and other regions to improve their digital independence.

In this conversation, Jonatan dives into the three pillars of his sovereign compute thesis: scaling compute capabilities, building resilient systems, and ensuring access to data flows. He illustrates his points with real-world examples, from photonics and semiconductor technologies to communications that can make all the difference in modern defense scenarios. By drawing parallels between evolving technology and the pressing geopolitical challenges, like those seen in Ukraine, Jonatan makes a compelling case for why investing in robust, forward-thinking compute solutions is essential for a secure and prosperous future.

Chapters:

00:23 The Importance of Compute for Sovereignty
00:38 Key Areas for Improvement in Compute
01:27 Integrating Compute into Daily Life
02:54 The Story of Inflection
04:03 Inflection's Early Focus on Crypto
05:18 Transition to Sovereign Compute
11:22 Challenges in the Crypto Space
17:22 Understanding Sovereign Compute
21:24 Equipping Compute Resources with Quality Data
22:04 Understanding the Concept of Flow in Compute
22:15 Evaluating Vertical Focus in VC Firms
24:14 The Importance of Quality in Investment Decisions
28:52 Exploring Technologies in Sovereign Compute
29:40 Innovative Compute Solutions: From Semiconductors to Brain Tissue
31:47 The Role of Communication in Modern Warfare
33:48 The Geopolitical Importance of Sovereignty
34:27 Personal and Professional Journey in Defense Tech
41:26 Transitioning from Crypto to Sovereign Compute

In today’s episode, Andreas Munk Holm talks with Ertan Can, the Founding General Partner of Multiple Capital, a venture capital fund based in Luxembourg. Together, they delve into how micro funds work and why they’re becoming an attractive investment option for limited partners.

Ertan discusses the role of manager selection and the benefits of a diversified micro-fund portfolio. He outlines LPs' challenges in sifting through hundreds of emerging funds each year, noting that a disciplined approach is needed to identify the best opportunities. The discussion also touches on the influence of local networks and market niches in sourcing high-quality deals and future trends in venture capital, highlighting how a strategic focus on micro funds may offer more sustainable and robust returns for LPs.

Chapters:
* 02:15 Importance of Fund Size * 03:34 Emerging Managers and Small Funds * 04:56 Performance of Small Funds * 11:08 Management Fees and Small Funds * 12:41 Exit Valuations and Small Funds * 13:31 Summary of the Presentation * 14:49 Post-Presentation Discussion * 16:39 Challenges for LPs in Selecting Funds * 17:43 Optimal Number of Fund Managers * 19:13 Debate on Micro Funds * 21:27 Risk Perception in Venture Capital * 22:34 Alternative Investment Strategies * 26:37 Geographical and Vertical Specialization * 27:29 Future of the Venture Market

In today’s episode, Andreas Munk Holm talks with Enis Hulli, General Partner at e2vc, and Akin Babayigit, Co-founder of Tripledot Studios. Akin brings a wealth of experience from his journey across Turkey, the U.S., and the U.K., while Enis provides insights into the evolving ecosystems of Turkey and Eastern Europe. Together, they discuss how mobile gaming has emerged as a massive industry driven by a unique blend of creativity and data analytics and how the sector’s scale and business models differ significantly from traditional console and PC gaming.

In this conversation, Akin and Enis delve into the latest trends reshaping mobile gaming, including the rapid adoption of AI to enhance gameplay and optimize monetization strategies. They also discuss the launch of Arcadia Gaming Advisors, a new $100 million fund designed to drive the next wave of innovation in gaming.

Chapters:

02:58 How We Met: A Humorous Backstory
04:56 Akin's Life Story: From Turkey to the UK
06:01 Career Path: From Engineering to Gaming
07:46 Tripledot and Gaming Success
09:10 Investing in Gaming: Challenges and Opportunities
12:08 The Misunderstood World of Gaming
17:08 Mobile Gaming: A Unique Business Model
23:08 Gaming Talent in Turkey and Eastern Europe
25:11 Turkey's Unique Conditions for Success
26:11 Gaming vs. E-commerce in Turkey
27:03 Rise of Successful Turkish Gaming Companies
27:35 Shifting Career Aspirations in Turkey
28:18 The Importance of Iteration in Gaming
28:47 Investment Strategies in Gaming
30:50 Europe vs. US: A Venture Capital Perspective
32:16 The Talent and Diversity in Europe
40:14 The Future of Gaming with AI
43:51 Launching a Mobile Gaming Fund

In today’s episode of the EUVC podcast, Andreas Munk Holm talks with Claude Ritter and Stefan Walter from NAP, formerly known as Cavalry and Rene Andres from the European Investment Fund (EIF).

In today’s episode of the EUVC podcast, Andreas Munk Holm talks with Claude Ritter and Stefan Walter from NAP, formerly known as Cavalry and Rene Andres from the European Investment Fund (EIF).

The conversation centers on Cavalry’s recent rebranding into NAP and evolving investment approach, which now emphasizes backing early-stage startups led by expert founders. The team explains how their shift from a broad, pre-seed focus to a more refined strategy—centered around proprietary data, instant utility, and interoperability—reflects the changing dynamics of the tech landscape in Europe.

Our guests also discuss broader themes shaping the venture ecosystem, such as managing team dynamics and maintaining transparent, candid communication with limited partners. They share insights on the importance of agility in a market influenced by rapid technological change, political shifts, and the AI boom.

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Chapters:

02:35 Claude and Stefan's Background and Firm Overview
03:52 Rene's Background and EIF's Role
06:13 Current State of the European Venture Ecosystem
09:55 The Role of Tech in Politics
17:47 Rebranding from Cavalry to NAP
20:55 The Meaning Behind Nerds and Pioneers
22:10 Managing Partnership Changes
24:05 Navigating Team Changes in VC Firms
24:39 The Importance of Adaptability
26:00 Challenges and Strategies in Team Dynamics
29:44 Honesty and Transparency with Investors
32:08 Reflecting on Core Learnings
36:55 The Evolution of Investment Theses
38:41 Focusing on Proprietary Data and Instant Utility
39:48 Interoperability: The Future of Business Models
44:09 Expert Founders and Founder Future Fit
48:28 Final Thoughts and Key Takeaways

Welcome to a new episode of the EUVC podcast, where our good friends Dan Bowyer and Mads Jensen from SuperSeed in a discussion with Andrew J. Scott, Founding Partner at 7percent Ventures and Lomax Ward, General Partner at Outsized Ventures, cover recent news and movements in the European tech landscape 💬

Welcome to a new episode of the EUVC podcast, where our good friend Dan Bowyer from SuperSeed talks with Andrew J. Scott, Founding Partner at 7percent Ventures, and Lomax Ward, General Partner at Outsized Ventures, to cover recent news and movements in the European tech landscape. 💬

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In today’s episode of our CVC series, Andreas and our CVC in-house expert, Jeppe Høier, talk with Ann-Sofie Ekberg, CEO of Volvo Cars Tech Fund, the corporate venture arm of Volvo Cars. Founded in 2018, the fund invests directly from Volvo’s balance sheet, backing startups in mobility, sustainability, and digitalization. While prioritizing strategic relevance, the fund maintains a disciplined investment approach, engaging with startups at various stages—predominantly Series A and B, with some selective seed investments.

Under Ann-Sofie’s leadership, the Tech Fund has developed a structured approach to ensure investments align with Volvo’s readiness to adopt new technologies. She emphasizes the importance of startups having diverse customer bases beyond Volvo to avoid over-reliance. In this conversation, Ann-Sofie also shares insights into balancing strategic and financial priorities, how Volvo collaborates with competitors in CVC, and why she believes platform-based vehicle architectures will unlock faster innovation and startup adoption in the automotive industry.

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Chapters:

02:28 Understanding Volvo Cars and Volvo Group
03:25 Corporate Venture at Volvo Cars
03:50 Volvo Cars Technology Fund: History and Mission
05:14 Investment Decisions and Internal Sponsors
07:06 Seed Investments and Strategic Disruptions
08:05 Strategic vs. Financial Investments
10:07 Portfolio Modeling and Investment Criteria
12:33 Mandate and Budget Flexibility
14:08 Challenges in the Automotive Industry
17:40 The Role of Technology and Platforms
20:04 Sustainability Goals and Initiatives
22:59 Investment in Battery Technology
26:17 Collaboration and Scaling Challenges
33:41 Corporate Venturing and Competition
39:47 Boardroom Dynamics and Ownership
44:23 Success Stories and Additional Opportunities
45:49 Conclusion and Final Thoughts

Welcome to a new episode of our special series, At The Cap Table Series, where Sarah Finegan, Senior Investor at Antler, talks with Emma Phillips, Investment Partner at LocalGlobe. Local Globe is one of Europe’s most respected early-stage venture firms. Founded by Robin and Saul Klein, Local Globe has backed nearly 300 companies, including 17 unicorns and five IPOs, focusing on B2B software, applied AI, and the future of work.

With deep entrepreneurial DNA and a commitment to investing in founders at the earliest stages, the firm plays a crucial role in shaping Europe's startup ecosystem. Since joining Local Globe nearly a decade ago, Emma has transitioned from an operating partner to a leading investor, bringing hands-on experience in scaling companies and navigating operational challenges.

In this conversation, she shares her insights on what makes a great founder, the importance of first-principles thinking, and why exceptional talent can come from anywhere. We also dive into Local Globe’s unique approach to venture investing, the major trends shaping the future of work & AI, why founders should embrace unscalable solutions early on, and why Europe needs to build a more open and accessible venture ecosystem.

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Welcome to a new episode of the EUVC podcast, where our good friend Dan Bowyer from SuperSeed in a discussion with Andrew J. Scott, Founding Partner at 7percent Ventures, and Lomax Ward, General Partner at Outsized Ventures, to cover recent news and movements in the European tech landscape. 💬

In today’s episode, Andreas Munk Holm speaks with Sune Stilling and Christy McCaig, General Partners at Nine Realms, a venture fund focused on transforming global supply chains. With a target size of €200 million, Nine Realms is raising its first fund, screening high-potential Series A investments across Europe and North America.

Notably, their portfolio and previous investments include innovative companies like Clearly, Forto, and Loadsmart, which drive change in logistics and sustainable operations. Sune and Christy bring their extensive experience from corporate ventures and logistics, including Maersk Growth, to identify startup opportunities that address today’s global supply chain challenges.

In this conversation, they discuss the fund’s strategy of building a concentrated, operator-led portfolio to generate steady returns from trade sales, not just unicorn exits. They explore how evolving trends like AI optimization and sustainability open new market opportunities.

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Chapters:

02:20 Nine Realms Fund Overview
03:05 Team Background and Expertise
03:46 Christy's Professional Journey
04:54 Sune's Professional Journey
07:54 Building Nine Realms
09:45 Collaboration Between CVCs and VCs
10:46 Corporate VC Strategies
12:04 Investment Structure and Decision Making
15:18 European Supply Chain Innovation
17:03 Investment Strategy and Allocation
18:24 Portfolio Management and Value Creation
28:09 Two-Sided Value Creation Model
29:45 Strategic Investors and Partnerships
35:43 Industry Trends and Themes for 2025
42:51 Resilience in Supply Chains

In today’s episode of the EUVC podcast, Andreas talks with Stephen Millard, Operating Partner & Chief Platform Officer at Notion Capital, a London-based fund exclusively investing in B2B SaaS. With roots dating back to early SaaS pioneers like Message Labs, Stephen brings deep operational know-how and a data-driven approach to venture investing. Notion Capital’s Cloud Champions latest report unpacks European SaaS companies' unique challenges, from navigating fragmented markets to scaling revenue rapidly, emphasizing the need for constant reinvention.

Using extensive experience and real-world case studies, Stephen explains how today’s well-informed buyers reshape the traditional seller-buyer dynamic. He outlines the critical transition for founders: from a hands-on, experimental phase to a disciplined, outcome-focused strategy, ensuring that teams align across sales, marketing, and product development. Stephen also shares practical insights on adapting go-to-market strategy and building enduring, high-growth businesses in a rapidly evolving market landscape.

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Welcome to a new episode of the EUVC podcast, where our good friends Dan Bowyer and Mads Jensen from SuperSeed in a discussion with Andrew J. Scott, Founding Partner at 7percent Ventures and Karin Nielsen, Product & Growth Advisor at Unruly Labs, cover recent news and movements in the European tech landscape 💬

In today’s episode of the EUVC podcast, Andreas talks with Ingrid Bonde Åkerlind, a seasoned investor at Oxx, a venture capital firm focusing on B2B SaaS companies that operate from London and Stockholm. Backed by a $190 million second fund and a boutique, high-conviction approach, Oxx targets late Series A and Series B companies that have not only passed the product-market fit gauntlet but are now ready to scale. Ingrid’s unique blend of hands-on operational experience and investment insight helps her spot startups that truly understand their market dynamics.

Drawing on her journey from building growth teams to steering venture investments, Ingrid explores the power of a well-defined Ideal Customer Profile (ICP). She explains how transitioning from an experimental phase to a focused customer strategy can align sales, marketing, and product teams for sustained success. In this conversation, she shares practical insights on refining go-to-market strategies and leveraging data-driven customer segmentation to drive operational efficiency and venture-scale returns.

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In today’s episode of The European VC, Andreas talks with Shmuel Chafets, co-founder and Partner at Target Global, one of Europe’s leading venture firms with investments spanning software, fintech, mobility, logistics, healthcare, and consumer internet. With over 140 portfolio companies, including Revolut, Delivery Hero, and TravelPerk, Target Global operates across Europe, Israel, the Middle East, and Africa, backing founders from early-stage to growth. Known for its pragmatic approach to investing, the firm is increasingly focused on AI-native startups and frontier technologies shaping the next decade.

Since launching Target Global a decade ago, Shmuel has been at the forefront of European venture investing, navigating market cycles and shifting investment strategies in response to macro and technological trends. In this conversation, he shares his candid views on Europe's lagging position in AI, why Europe must shift from a risk-averse mindset to a creator-driven economy, and how AI is set to disrupt everything from public services to vertical SaaS. We also dive into why Target Global is moving earlier in its investment strategy, the growing relevance of Israel and the UAE in global tech, and why European bureaucracy remains one of the biggest obstacles to innovation.

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Welcome to a new episode of the EUVC podcast, where our good friends Dan Bowyer and Mads Jensen from SuperSeed have a discussion with Ben Prade, Partner at GP Bullhound, to cover recent news and movements in the European tech landscape. 💬

In today’s episode of the EUVC podcast, Andreas is joined by Bogdan Iordache, General Partner at Underline Ventures, and Jakob Stein, Vice President at Creandum, for a roundtable discussion on the latest insights from the Venture in Eastern Europe report launched yesterday by How to Web.

Eastern Europe’s venture scene has seen remarkable growth, with an increase in international funding and a maturing ecosystem that’s producing more globally competitive startups than ever before. With capital flowing into follow-on rounds at an unprecedented rate and local funds growing their influence, the region is no longer an "exotic" investment destination—it’s a strategic one.

In this conversation, we explore why Eastern European founders have to work harder to prove themselves, how global investors are adapting their strategies for the region, and which startup hubs are leading the charge in gaming, SaaS, and AI. We’ll also unpack the findings from the latest How to Web report, which highlights key investment trends, the role of local and international capital, and the biggest challenges still facing founders in the region.

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In today’s episode of our CVC series, Andreas and our CVC in-house expert, Jeppe Høier, sit down with Nicolas Sauvage, President of TDK Ventures, the corporate venture capital arm of TDK Corporation, a global leader in electronics and materials technology. With $350 million in AUM across three funds, TDK Ventures focuses on hard tech, deep tech, and energy transformation. It invests between $250K and $10 million per deal while balancing strategic alignment with venture-scale returns.

Since founding TDK Ventures in 2019, Nicolas has built one of the market's most disciplined and entrepreneur-friendly CVCs, backing startups in sustainability, mobility, and advanced materials. Under his leadership, the firm has pioneered a unique "Diverse Advocate" investment process, ensuring rigorous due diligence and a first-principles approach to deep tech investing. In this conversation, Nicolas shares how TDK Ventures bridges the gap between startups and a global corporate parent, the power of patience in CVC, and why he believes nuclear fusion will be the defining energy source of the future.

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In today’s episode, Andreas talks with Tom Wehmeier, Head of Intelligence at Atomico, to discuss the State of European Tech and what’s shaping the ecosystem's future. For over a decade, Tom has been at the forefront of data-driven investment strategies, market education, and ecosystem analysis at Atomico. He leads the firm's intelligence efforts, sits on the investment committee, and shapes European venture capital policy discussions.

Operating across Europe, Atomico is a multi-stage venture capital firm with over 155 portfolio companies, 1 in 6 valued in excess of $1 billion. They’ve partnered with some of the continent’s biggest tech success stories, including Klarna, Stripe, and DeepL. Tom has been driving Atomico’s research efforts, particularly the annual State of European Tech report, which has become the most awaited yearly report in venture that helps us understand Europe’s investment landscape and future potential.

In this conversation, Tom shares insights into Europe’s confidence crisis, the impact of regulation, and the future of AI and deep tech. He unpacks key findings from the latest State of European Tech report, discussing capital gaps, liquidity challenges, and why Europe’s fragmented markets can be a strength. The discussion also covers public market dynamics, how Europe can compete in AI, and government collaboration's role in deep tech innovation.

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Welcome to a new episode of the EUVC podcast, where our good friends Dan Bowyer and Mads Jensen from SuperSeed in a discussion with Andrew J. Scott, Founding Partner at 7percent Ventures and Lomax Ward, General Partner at Outsized Ventures, cover recent news and movements in the European tech landscape 💬

In today’s episode, Andreas talks with Miki Yokoyama, Managing Director of Aurum Impact, the impact investment arm of the Goldbeck family office. Unlike most family offices that operate behind closed doors, Aurum Impact is taking a public stance—sharing its journey, investment strategy, and vision to inspire other families to engage in venture and impact investing.

Since launching in February 2023, Aurum Impact has made seven direct startup investments in companies like Paebbl, The Landbanking Group, Voltfang, UNDO, CleanHub, and Cyclize, alongside ten venture funds, including Planet A, Systemiq, Revent, Breakthrough Energy Ventures, and Counteract. With a mission to invest in four to five startups and four to five funds annually, their approach is both strategic and deeply rooted in creating environmental and social impact.

Miki and Andreas dive into the challenges of family office investing, the lack of transparency in the space, and the role of family wealth in shaping venture capital’s future. They also explore best practices for VCs fundraising from family offices, why many funds struggle to differentiate themselves, and how emerging fund managers can stand out in today’s competitive landscape.

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In today’s episode of the EUVC Podcast, Andreas talks with Juliet Bailin, Partner at General Catalyst, to explore the firm’s expansion in Europe, investment philosophy, and unique approach to venture capital. General Catalyst, known for backing companies like Stripe, Samsara, Livongo, and Mistral, operates with a global mindset while maintaining a deep commitment to early-stage investing.

Juliet, who focuses on infrastructure and applied AI, shares how her history background shapes her perspective on venture, why truth-seeking is fundamental to being a great investor, and how General Catalyst’s collaborative culture enables them to operate as one unified firm across geographies. She also dives into the firm’s recent rebrand and refreshed core values, including playing the long game, serving others, and shaping ambiguity.

In the second part of the conversation, we tackle an honest discussion on why venture needs a self-awareness reset. Juliet calls out common bad investor behaviors, from ghosting founders to exploding term sheets, and explains why overvaluing companies for ego reasons ultimately hurts founders the most. She also shares how General Catalyst ensures transparency in decision-making and why long-term relationships—not just transactional networks—are key to success.

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Welcome to a new episode of the EUVC podcast, where our good friends Dan Bowyer and Mads Jensen from SuperSeed have a discussion with Lomax Ward, General Partner at Outsized Ventures, to cover recent news and movements in the European tech landscape. 💬

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

As we look to the future of venture capital, it's clear that AI will play an increasingly pivotal role in shaping investment strategies and portfolio management.

The GP Roundtable on Leveraging AI in Portfolio Monitoring & Management brought together leading data-driven VCs to explore AI's transformative potential in venture and more.

Our guests:* Alvaro Alvarez del Rio from Boost Capital Partners, renowned by LPs around the globe for their pioneering work with data and AI * Dr. Andre Retterath, partner at Earlybird Venture Capital and founder of the go-to newsletter and community for data-driven VC: Data-Driven VC * John Frankel a long-time OG with ff Venture Capital who have realized the power of AI * Steven Greenberg, co-founder of TotemVC who's taking portfolio mgmt into the age of AI

They discuss how AI is being used in portfolio management, including uncovering trends and insights, data-driven decision-making, and portfolio value creation. The VCs share their experiences with AI tools and platforms, such as Totem VC and Early Bird's internal platform called Eagle Eye. They also discuss the importance of data quality and relevance in AI applications. The conversation highlights the potential of AI in improving efficiency, synthesizing information, and providing valuable insights for VCs.

The conversation explores the use of AI and machine learning in venture capital, specifically in the areas of deal sourcing, due diligence, portfolio monitoring, and reporting. The panelists discuss the benefits and challenges of using AI tools, such as language models, in these processes.

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Welcome to a new episode of the EUVC podcast, where our good friends Dan Bowyer and Mads Jensen from SuperSeed in a discussion with Andrew J. Scott, Founding Partner at 7percent Ventures and Lomax Ward, General Partner at Outsized Ventures, cover recent news and movements in the European tech landscape 💬

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Today, we are joined by Savitri Tan in a conversation with Maria Rotilu, Founding Partner at OpenseedVC.

Maria Rotilu is the founder and general partner of OpenSeed VC, a £10M venture fund that invests in experienced operators transitioning into founders. With a unique thesis focused on zero-to-one founders, OpenSeed aims to be the first check for those building in commerce, health, and work across Europe and Africa. Maria’s journey has included scaling Uber in emerging markets, managing the Oxford Seed Fund during her MBA, and working at Octopus First Cheque before launching her fund.

With a focus on early-stage investing, Maria leverages her operating background to provide empathy and actionable insights to founders navigating the challenging zero-to-one stage. OpenSeed’s strategy also involves a disciplined focus on the UK and four key African markets—Nigeria, Kenya, South Africa, and Egypt—ensuring deep expertise in these geographies.

Together, they explore Maria’s approach to venture investing, her belief in the power of operator-led insights, and the challenges of building a solo GP fund in a volatile market. Maria also shares her thoughts on the importance of saying no with kindness and clarity, staying disciplined, and her vision for creating a long-lasting institution that partners with founders for decades to come.

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In today’s episode of our CVC series, Andreas and our CVC in-house expert, Jeppe Høier, talk with Alokik Advani, Managing Partner at Fidelity’s Corporate Venture Capital (CVC) arm, a strategic investment group focused on early-stage FinTech. Operating globally from London, Fidelity’s CVC targets opportunities in asset and wealth management, investing between $3–$10 million per deal and maintaining a disciplined approach to achieving both financial returns and strategic alignment.

With over six years of experience leading Fidelity’s CVC strategy, Alokik has spearheaded investments in companies like Moneybox, Moonfare, and 73 Strings. He shares insights into the unique challenges and opportunities of combining venture capital expertise with the strategic goals of a global asset manager. The conversation explores Fidelity’s thematic investment framework, the evolving CVC landscape, and the pivotal role of AI and sustainability in shaping the future of financial services.

Welcome to a new special episode of the EUVC podcast! In this episode, we’re joined by Apostolos Apostolakis, Founding Partner at VentureFriends and one of the early backers of Blueground, a European unicorn in the prop-tech space. Blueground, founded in 2015, operates as a full-stack provider of fully furnished apartments for medium-and long-term stays, available in over 30 cities worldwide, including New York, London, Paris, Dubai, and Tokyo. Apostolos shares the journey from VentureFriends' initial investment to Blueground’s growth as a global leader, raising multiple rounds and overcoming challenges.

Apostolos co-founded VentureFriends, a €170M fund currently deploying from its third fund and planning a fourth. Focused on pre-seed and seed investments, VentureFriends operates across Europe, the UK, and the Middle East, backing startups in B2B and B2C software, fintech, and marketplaces. Notable investments include Blueground, Huspy, Instashop, Carmoola, Plum, Flexcar, Embat and Harborlab.

Together, we explore how Apostolos and VentureFriends supported Blueground's expansion from Greece to international markets like Dubai and the U.S., the lessons learned from navigating crises like COVID, and the importance of founder conviction and operational efficiency in scaling a business. Expect insights into prop-tech innovation, venture dynamics, and the art of balancing growth and profitability, along with candid reflections on the human side of venture investing.

Welcome to a new episode of the EUVC podcast, where our good friends Dan Bowyer and Ferdinand Reynolds from SuperSeed, in a discussion with Lomax Ward, General Partner at Outsized Ventures, cover recent news and movements in the European tech landscape 💬

In this episode of the EUVC podcast, we’re talking to Ben Saunders, a pioneer in one of the most demanding fields on Earth and an accomplished climate investor.

Ben is arguably one of the most acclaimed explorers in the world today. He's pushed the boundaries of human endurance and traveled more than 4,500 miles (7,000km) on foot in the polar regions. Ben is only the third person in history to ski solo to the North and South Poles, and he holds the record for the longest-ever polar journey on foot.

But Ben’s pursuits extend beyond the physical. He is now an active climate investor but recently decided to halt the fundraising process for his fund, Kintanna Ventures.

Today's episode promises to be among our most candid and thought-provoking conversations. Ben will share his unique journey from extreme exploration to entrepreneurship and back again. We'll dive deep into the reasons behind his decision to stop the rise of Kintanna Ventures, offering an unparalleled look into the challenges of fund creation, today’s market dynamics, and the importance of grit—how to develop it and how expedition grit compares and differs to entrepreneurial grit.

Get ready for an honest, transparent discussion about resilience, decision-making, and the true meaning of grit - all from someone who has faced nature's harshest challenges and the complexities of the business world.

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In today’s episode, Andreas welcomes Marius Istrate, Chairman of the Board at Tech Angels Romania, the country’s largest and most successful angel investment network. Over the past 11 years, Tech Angels has invested €45M in more than 300 startups, driving the growth of Romania’s tech scene and influencing the broader CEE region.

With a focus on pre-seed and seed-stage ventures, Tech Angels operate across Romania (80%) and the wider CEE region (20%), supporting startups in Enterprise B2B, SaaS, DeepTech, and HealthTech.

Notable investments include FlowX.ai, FintechOS, Druid.AI, Creatopy, Colossyan, and Pythagora.ai. Marius and Andreas dive into how Romania’s entrepreneurial ecosystem evolved, Tech Angels’ ambitious goal of creating 10 unicorns in 10 years, and the role of healthy boldness in unlocking founder potential.

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Today, Andreas talks with Cem Sertoglu, Managing Partner at Bek Ventures, a global venture capital firm that recently closed a $250M fund that was three times oversubscribed. Formerly known as Earlybird Digital East, Bek Ventures focuses on founders with their roots in Central and Eastern Europe, a region Cem calls "Dynamic Europe."

With over a decade of experience, the Bek Ventures team has supported global successes like UiPath, Payhawk, and Peak, the first unicorns in Romania, Bulgaria, and Turkey, respectively, and has been recognized by HEC as the best-performing venture firm globally since 2010. Cem shares insights into the firm’s disciplined investment strategy, its belief that early-stage venture doesn't scale, and how its focus on technical talent gives it an edge in building global companies.

Together, they explore Bek Ventures’ approach to VC fundraising, the challenges of funding beyond seed stages, and the lessons Cem has learned from two decades in venture capital.

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Welcome to a new episode of the EUVC podcast, where our good friends Dan Bowyer and Mads Jensen from SuperSeed have a discussion with Andrew J. Scott, Founding Partner at 7percent Ventures, to cover recent news and movements in the European tech landscape. 💬

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Today, Andreas talks with Paula Wehmeyer, Partner at General Catalyst, a global investment powerhouse that partners with the world’s most ambitious entrepreneurs to drive resilience and applied AI.

General Catalyst has $8B in new capital, with a track record spanning over 700 investments in transformative companies like Stripe, Airbnb, Anduril, and Helsing. Paula has an extensive background in investing across stages, from pre-seed to pre-IPO, and she has expertise in navigating the global venture landscape.

Together, we’ll explore how General Catalyst approaches cross-sector investments and what it takes to build resilience in the ever-evolving tech ecosystem. We’ll also discuss how applied AI reshapes industries and the opportunities this presents for founders and investors.

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In today’s episode, Andreas and Jeppe sit down with Petr Mikovec, Managing Director and Chairman of InvenCapital, the corporate venture capital arm of CEZ Group. They discuss how InvenCapital operates with a unique dual-funding structure in collaboration with the European Investment Bank (EIB), blending corporate strategy with financial investment goals.

InvenCapital, which manages €500M and focuses on climate tech and sustainability, provides insights into how corporate investors can balance strategic objectives with financial returns.

Together, we explore:
* How InvenCapital’s structure supports strategic and financial goals through its partnership with CEZ Group and the European Investment Bank. * The role of systemic coaching in venture investing and how it fosters stronger relationships with founders and teams. * Challenges and advantages of corporate venture capital models compared to traditional VC firms. * Strategies for effective board participation and aligning stakeholders for company growth. * How InvenCapital manages partnerships and exits when working with competitors in the energy sector.

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In today’s episode, Andreas talks with Oliver Holle, Co-Founder and Managing Partner at Speedinvest, and Ekaterina Almasque, General Partner at OpenOcean, to unpack the current landscape of AI investing.

Speedinvest, a €500M generalist fund, and OpenOcean, a €150M fund specializing in AI and deep tech, offer contrasting yet complementary perspectives on how VCs are navigating the rapid advancements in artificial intelligence.

Together, we explore:
* How SpeedInvest and OpenOcean approach AI investments and the strategic decisions behind focusing on specific layers of the AI stack. * The rise of AI agents and how this next wave of AI innovation shapes investment strategies. * Risk and opportunity in AI investing, particularly in foundational models versus applications and infrastructure. * Key AI disruption sectors include healthcare, enterprise solutions, and content creation. * Why VCs need to rethink traditional investment models when approaching AI startups.

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Welcome to a new episode of the EUVC podcast, where our good friends Dan Bowyer and Mads Jensen from SuperSeed have a discussion with Lomax Ward, General Partner at Outsized Ventures to cover recent news and movements in the European tech landscape. 💬

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In today’s episode of the European VC Podcast, we have a powerful conversation with Rupda, a trauma therapist and expert in somatic healing, to explore the profound impact of self-awareness, connection, and body-based healing on personal and professional lives.

If you’re a founder, investor, or someone striving for balance, this episode offers transformative insights into navigating stress, building meaningful relationships, and reconnecting with yourself.

Join the next Deep Work Retreat from April 1 to 6 in beautiful Italy. To learn more about it, go here, and to request an invitation, contact Andreas at a@eu.vc.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

In this episode of the EU CVC podcast, Andreas and Jeppe, our in-house CVC expert talks with Mike Smeed, Managing Director at InMotion Ventures, the corporate venture capital arm of JLR (Jaguar Land Rover).

InMotion Ventures is one of the most active corporate investors in the UK, with a global presence from the UK, Bay Area, and Tel Aviv. The team focuses on Seed to Series A investments, with typical cheque sizes ranging from $250K to $2M, and has the flexibility to participate in Series B rounds when there’s strong strategic alignment with JLR.

Mike and his team back exceptional startups in climate, industrial, and enterprise technologies. Today, we’ll explore how InMotion Ventures leverages venture investing to accelerate innovation, the unique opportunities within their focus geographies — UK/Western Europe, North America, and Israel — and the role of corporate venture capital in driving impactful solutions.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Welcome to a new episode of the EUVC podcast, where our good friends Dan Bowyer and Mads Jensen from SuperSeed in a discussion with Andrew J. Scott, Founding Partner at 7percent Ventures and Lomax Ward, General Partner at Outsized Ventures, cover recent news and movements in the European tech landscape 💬

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

For today’s episode, Andreas is joined by Hampus Jakobsson, General Partner at Pale Blue Dot, Michael Smith, General Partner at Regeneration VC, and Tobias Seikel from Planet A to discuss the future of climate tech in the wake of Trump’s reelection. Together, they analyze how shifting narratives and geopolitical dynamics will impact the climate agenda and the broader venture ecosystem.

Together, they analyze how shifting narratives and geopolitical dynamics will impact the climate agenda and the broader venture ecosystem.

The conversation covers:

📌 Adapting to uncertainty: How portfolio companies are navigating mistrust and unpredictability while focusing on solving real business problems.
📌 Lessons from China: Insights into China’s strategic focus on solar, EVs, and battery production, and how Europe can adopt similar multi-decade planning while fostering cross-border unity.
📌 The role of big bets: Reflecting on the fallout of Lilium and Northvolt, the group emphasizes the importance of learning from failures and continuing to back transformative projects in Europe.
📌 Stimulating growth: What an ideal EU stimulus plan could look like, from collaborative cross-border energy grids to dual-use strategies between defense and green tech.

Go to eu.vc to read the core take-aways.

In this episode of the EUVC podcast, Dan Taylor, former journalist and Director of Content at CEW Communications is joined by
* Itxaso del Palacio, General Partner at Notion Capital * Nico Goulet, Founding Partner at Adara Ventures * Stefan Mores, Managing Partner at Indico Capital Partners.

Together, they explore the dynamics of the Iberian startup and VC ecosystem, highlighting the region's strengths, challenges, and future potential.

The conversation dives into what makes Iberia an attractive hub for tech talent and investment, the unique advantages of Portugal and Spain, and the critical role of local and global markets in shaping the success of startups.

Go to eu.vc to read the core take-aways.

Welcome to a new episode of the EUVC podcast, where we’ll cover recent news and movements in the European tech landscape with Dan Bowyer and Mads Jensen from SuperSeed.

Go to eu.vc to read the core take-aways.

In today’s episode, Andreas talks with Nico Schoenenberger, part of the Investment Team at 10x Founders, a Munich-based fund with €160M AUM in Fund I. 10x Founders focuses on early-stage investments (Pre-Seed/Seed) across Europe and the US, with a portfolio spanning sectors like B2B SaaS and Fintech. Notable investments include Ixana, magic, Ivy, Fernride, and cylib.

Nico dives into the dynamics of entrepreneurial communities that form funds, sharing insights on decision-making for entrepreneurs, the strategic use of follow-on reserves, and the advantages of round pre-emption. Drawing from his experience, Nico provides actionable advice for founders navigating early-stage funding and growth.

Together, we explore:* The story behind 10x Founders and its entrepreneurial community-driven approach. * Entrepreneurial decision-making and what it takes to succeed at the early stage. * How to structure follow-on reserves and why round pre-emption matters. * Lessons from Nico’s journey and the success stories from 10x Founders’ portfolio.

In today’s episode, Andreas talks with Christian Meermann, Founding Partner at Cherry Ventures and a Forbes Midas Lister. ith a €320M fund size and €1B in AUM, Cherry Ventures has made its mark across Europe by backing companies like Flixbus, Auto1, Flaschenpost, Finimize, and Ninetailed. Headquartered in Germany, the fund focuses on early-stage investments (Pre/Seed/Seed+) across both B2B software and consumer verticals.

Christian shares the secrets behind Cherry’s culture of excellence, navigating competition in venture capital, and how to underwrite new managers in today’s market. He also dives into the art of decision-making for follow-on rounds, discussing what to look for and how to support portfolio companies effectively.

With deep entrepreneurial roots, including his role as CMO of Zalando—scaling it from small revenues to over €2 billion at IPO—Christian brings a wealth of operational experience, strategic insight, and passion for founders with global ambitions.

Together, we explore:
* Cherry's founding journey and Christian’s entrepreneurial background. * Building a culture of excellence while competing in a dynamic venture market. * Underwriting new managers: What investors should look for in emerging talent. * The decision-making process for follow-on investments and how Cherry approaches it. * Lessons from Christian’s career and success stories, including one of Germany’s largest exits with Flaschenpost.

In today’s episode, Andreas talks with with Kaari Kink, Investment Manager at Superangel and Chair of EstVCA, and Margus Uudam, Partner at Karma Ventures and a long-time pioneer in venture capital, to uncover the secrets behind Estonia’s rise as one of Europe’s most dynamic startup ecosystems.

Estonia, known for producing global champions like Skype, Bolt, and Wise, has become a model for entrepreneurial success thanks to forward-thinking policies, minimal bureaucracy, and a bold mindset. Kaari and Margus share their experiences, reflect on Estonia’s journey, and highlight the policies and initiatives that other European ecosystems can learn from.

Together, we explore:* The key policies, like Estonia’s progressive stock option framework, that attract and retain tech talent. * The “Skype Effect” and how it transformed Estonia’s ecosystem. * Europe’s challenges in harmonizing policies to compete globally with the U.S. and China. * The role of cross-border collaboration and fund-of-funds in building a resilient VC landscape.

Go to eu.vc to read the full show notes.

In this episode of the EUVC podcast, Andreas talks with Avid Larizadeh Duggan, Senior Managing Director (EMEA) at Teachers' Venture Growth (TVG), the venture arm of Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan (OTPP), headquartered in Toronto.

TVG has €5.4B in assets under management, backing innovative companies like Canva, Databricks, DeepL, and SpaceX. Avid brings experience from her work leading investments for TVG, with a strong focus on scaling Series B+ technology companies globally.

Together, we will explore the unique perspective OTPP brings as one of the world’s largest pension funds; we’ll. We will also dive into the challenges and opportunities of scaling global technology companies and the role of late-stage growth investing in driving the next wave of innovation.

Go to eu.vc to read the core take-aways.

Chapters:

00:03 Meet Avid from Ontario Teachers Pension Plan
02:57 Ontario Teachers Pension Plan's Global Investment Strategy
07:55 Avid's Journey to Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan
12:20 The Role of Teachers in the Investment Ecosystem
12:58 Advantages of Being Part of a Pension Plan
15:58 Leveraging Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan Network
19:30 Focus on Growth Stage Investing
21:57 Challenges and Opportunities in the European Growth Stage
28:32 Challenges of Scaling in Europe
29:53 Talent Development Over Time
31:58 Ecosystem Strength and Growth Stage Investment
35:05 Manufacturing and Industry 4.0
36:00 Investing in Hardware and Software
36:50 Thematic Investing and Industry 4.0
41:01 Navigating Hardware and Deep Tech Investments
46:58 Advice for Founders and Investor Relationships
52:36 Equity vs. Debt Financing at Growth Stage

In this episode of the EUVC podcast, Andreas is joined by Mike Reiner, General Partner at 432 Legacy, Fred Destin from Stride, and Rupda, a coach specializing in deep work retreats. The conversation explores the role of inner work in venture capital, highlighting its potential to improve founder-investor relationships, reduce burnout, and foster personal growth.

Mike shares how 432 Legacy integrates coaching and self-development into its seed-stage investment strategy. Fred discusses his focus on enhancing trust and presence in boardrooms, and Rupda explains the transformative power of group retreats for addressing stress and building resilience.

Go to eu.vc to read the core take-aways.

Chapters:

02:53 Meet the Guests: Mike, Fred, and Rupda
03:58 Mike Reiner on 432 Legacy and Deep Work
04:36 Fred Destin on VC-Founder Relationships
07:46 Rupda's Unique Journey and Spiritual Background
12:06 The Importance of Inner Work for Founders
15:37 Balancing High Achievement and Personal Growth
16:43 The Role of Trauma and Obsession in Success
24:24 The Benefits of Deep Work for Leaders
34:29 Fred's Personal Journey and Reflections
40:56 Finding Inner Motivation
41:30 Questioning Life's Path
43:17 The Power of Connection
44:41 Men and Vulnerability
46:20 The Collective Experience
49:40 Coaching vs. Mentoring
56:03 The Essence of Presence
57:46 The Importance of the Body
01:07:07 The Power of Retreats
01:18:41 Upcoming Retreat Details

Welcome to a special episode of the EUVC podcast! This time, we’re experimenting with a new format where we bring together a founder and two of their key investors to uncover the dynamics behind building and scaling a venture-backed company.

In this episode, we’re joined by Stanislav Poslavsky, CEO and Co-Founder of MiLaboratories, a US-based biotech company founded in 2021. Focused on providing innovative solutions for genomic research, MiLaboratories operates on a B2B revenue model, catering to bioinformaticians and biologists in academic and pharmaceutical settings across the US, EU, and UK.

Joachim Laqueur, Founding Partner at Acrobator Ventures, a seed-stage investment firm with €28M in assets under management. Based in the Netherlands, Joachim specializes in backing global startups with a focus on Europe and the US, targeting B2B software and software-enabled hardware.

Miguel Arias, General Partner at KFund, €225M early growth fund, with €650M in assets under management. Based in Spain, Miguel focuses on Series A and B investments across Southern Europe and Latin America, targeting enabling technologies such as AI, IoT, and digital infrastructure.

Together, we explore how MiLaboratories secured its place in their portfolios, the process of building conviction across investment stages, and the unique challenges and opportunities of funding a biotech company in today’s landscape. Expect deep dives into deal-making dynamics, the art of company building, and even a few lighthearted moments that reveal the human side of venture capital.

Go to eu.vc to read the core take-aways.

Chapters:

01:50 Journey: Founding MiLaboratories
02:47 Joachim's Perspective: Investing in MiLaboratories
04:05 The Early Fundraising Challenges
05:30 The Role of COVID in Fundraising
07:45 Miguel's Introduction and Perspective
10:08 Series A Fundraising Experience
15:24 Lessons Learned in Fundraising
19:46 Understanding MiLaboratories' Impact
33:02 The Duality of Business Strategy
33:13 Building a Sustainable Business
34:23 The Power of Open Source
35:48 Conviction in Venture Capital
38:03 Choosing the Right Investors
42:04 The Art of Pricing
45:57 The CEO's Many Hats
49:12 Understanding Platforma and MeXR
53:35 Challenges and Lessons Learned
57:47 The Future of MiLaboratories

In this episode of the EUVC podcast, Andreas sits down with Michael McGraw, Principal at Inovia Capital, a €415M growth equity fund headquartered in Canada but making waves in Europe.

Inovia has €2.3B in assets under management and a track record of backing companies like Cohere, Lightspeed, Neo4j, and Wealthsimple. Mike brings a unique perspective shaped by his journey from LP at CDPQ—one of the world’s largest pension funds—to leading growth-stage investments at Inovia. Together, we’ll dive deep into the evolving role of European LPs, exploring why embracing a higher risk appetite could yield outsized returns and drive systemic innovation.

We’ll also discuss Inovia’s strategy for scaling Series B to pre-IPO companies across North America and Europe, shedding light on key challenges and opportunities in the software space. Whether you’re an LP curious about market dynamics or a founder navigating growth-stage fundraising, this episode is packed with insights you won’t want to miss.

Go to eu.vc to read the core take-aways.

Chapters:

01:00 Meet Michael McGraw from Inovia
01:59 Inovia's Strategy and Focus
02:23 Inovia's European Expansion
03:22 Success Stories and Notable Investments
04:05 The Role of CDPQ and Mike's Experience
04:55 Canadian vs. European VC Ecosystems
07:22 CDPQ's Investment Strategy
11:42 Challenges for European LPs
16:49 Fundraising in Europe: Insights and Observations
27:27 Firepower and Fund Allocation
28:05 Late Stage Market in Europe
28:28 Investment Strategies and Risk Appetite
29:49 Challenges in European Venture Growth Capital
31:45 Government's Role in Venture Capital
32:27 Canadian Venture Capital Action Plan
34:09 Fund of Funds in Europe
37:45 Mike McGrath's Background
41:41 Lessons Learned in Venture Capital
48:06 Fundraising Tips for VCs

Welcome to a new episode of the EUVC podcast, where our good friends Dan Bowyer and Mads Jensen from SuperSeed, discuss with Lomax Ward, General Partner at Outsized Ventures, to cover recent news and movements in the European tech landscape 💬

Go to eu.vc to read the core take-aways.

Chapters:
00:47 Personal Story: Full Body Scan Experience
01:58 Health Tech Renaissance
02:47 Preventative Health Scanning Debate
04:59 Lomax's Health Journey
08:47 Investment in Health Tech
11:58 ChatGPT's 2nd Birthday
16:22 Impact of LLMs on Business
18:03 Future of AI and Productivity
19:33 Future of Large Language Models
19:50 VC Investments and Market Speculations
21:40 Northvolt's Downfall
23:03 Challenges in the European Market
23:47 Lessons from Tesla's Survival
27:31 Recursion and Accenture Merger
31:37 Psychedelics in Mental Health
35:47 Impact of Psychedelics on Founders
37:35 Cradle Bio's Success
38:22 Closing Thoughts and Optimism

In this episode of the EUVC podcast, Andreas sits down with Mike Reiner and Joachim Laqueur, General Partners at 432 Legacy, the successor to Acrobator Ventures.

Mike and Joachim are investors with deep expertise in scaling B2B software and software-enabled hardware startups across Europe and the US. With a fund size of around €50M and €28M in assets under management, 432 Legacy is focused on seed-stage investments but supports founders up to Series A, fostering innovation on a global scale.

In this episode, we’ll explore the vision behind 432 Legacy, including how their journey with Acrobator laid the groundwork for the fund’s mission. We’ll discuss their approach to identifying high-impact startups and the strategies they’ve employed to achieve standout successes like Lemonaid Health, Vital Fields, and Ready Player Me, among others.

Go to eu.vc to read the core take-aways.

Chapters:

01:34 Introducing 432 Legacy
01:55 Investment Focus and Notable Investments
04:20 Personal Development Journey
06:25 The Importance of Mindfulness and Coaching
07:46 Challenges and Breakthroughs
10:19 Incorporating Personal Development in Business
15:56 Retreats and Deep Connections
17:17 Skepticism and the Power of Vulnerability
26:03 Data and AI in Venture Capital
29:17 Challenges in Building Comprehensive Systems
29:53 Serendipity in Venture Capital
30:28 Early Experiments with AI in VC
31:15 Discovering the WR Hambrecht System
32:12 Meeting Thomas and Building Relationships
34:07 Quantics: A Hybrid Approach
34:55 Evaluating Companies with Quantics
44:21 Future of 432 Legacy
48:47 The Meaning Behind 432 Legacy
52:47 Excitement for 2025 and Beyond

In this episode of the EUVC podcast, Andreas talks with Robin Haak, the solo GP behind Robin Capital, and Jerome Ternynck, founder of SmartRecruiters and a new initiative called Rypples.

Together, we explore the evolution of recruiting, why "you are who you hire," and how AI is reshaping talent acquisition. Jerome brings insights from decades in HR tech, while Robin adds the investor’s perspective on navigating and succeeding in competitive markets.

We’ll dig into Jerome’s journey with SmartRecruiters and the problem-solving mindset that’s driven his work for the past 30 years. We'll also uncover Rypples—his new mission to combine sustainable impact and financial return by investing in ocean-positive startups—and why sustainability is the next big business frontier.

Go to eu.vc to read the core take-aways.

Chapters:
02:10 Jerome's Journey and Smart Recruiters
03:39 Core Expertise: HR and Hiring Success
03:45 Scaling a B2B SaaS Company
03:57 The Founder Perspective on Raising Money
04:06 Jerome's New Mission: Rypples
15:54 The Evolution of Recruiting and AI
16:34 Metrics for Hiring Success
26:31 Purpose-Driven Business and Reverse Recruiting
32:23 Reflecting on Past Mistakes
32:52 Challenges of Scaling a SaaS Company
34:25 Optimizing Sales and Marketing
35:23 Balancing Growth and Retention
38:50 Navigating VC Relationships
41:17 The Role of the CEO in Scaling
46:13 Fundraising Strategies and FOMO
55:13 Building a Sustainable Business
55:40 Introducing Rypples: An Ocean Investment Firm
01:02:17 Final Thoughts and Farewell

In this episode of the EUVC podcast, Andreas talks with Benoit Vandevivere, CEO of Consentio and a driving force behind the eu/acc movement.

Benoit is an advocate for innovation and technology in Europe, frequently speaking on the global stage for tech founders, policymakers, and institutions such as the NYSE and the European Commission. Together, we’ll dive into the origins and mission of the eu/acc movement—what it is, why it matters, and how it’s rallying founders and policymakers to create a unified European startup ecosystem. We’ll explore the root challenges facing Europe, from market fragmentation to scaling barriers, and the actionable solutions that the EU Accelerationism movement proposes to accelerate progress.

We’ll also uncover the latest on key initiatives like the “10-second investment process” and the EU Inc movement, both designed to simplify and strengthen Europe’s innovation landscape. If you’re passionate about driving change and empowering European founders, this conversation is one you won’t want to miss.

Go to eu.vc to read the core take-aways.

Chapters:

00:02 Meet Benoit from the EU Act Movement
00:05 Overview of the EU Act Movement
00:30 How to Get Involved with EU Act
00:46 The Growing Support for EU Act
02:40 Introduction to the Podcast Episode
03:56 Benoit's Background and Journey
05:05 Early Career and Entrepreneurial Ventures
07:28 Challenges and Opportunities in Europe
09:09 Policy and Regulation Insights
10:33 The Importance of Speaking Up
13:39 AI and Technological Advancements
15:10 The Role of European Talent
18:31 The EU Act Movement's Philosophy
20:04 Key Figures and Contributors
26:20 The 10 Second Investment Process
28:55 Challenges with Current Regulations
31:37 The Need for Policy Change
39:50 Call to Action for Entrepreneurs
44:29 Final Thoughts and Farewell

In this episode of the EUVC podcast, Andreas talks with Alberto Chalon, founding GP of Giano Capital and an expert with a decade of experience in venture secondaries.

Andreas and Alberto dive deep into the sell-side of venture secondaries, exploring the fundamentals that drive the market, the motivations of key players, and the nuances of preparing for a sale. Alberto shares his sophisticated approach to buyer processes, using a quantitative scorecard, and provides a practical guide for sellers navigating valuation, pricing, and legal challenges. Their conversation also addresses the current dynamics and trends shaping the secondaries market, offering a comprehensive look at what it takes to succeed.

At Giano Capital, Alberto specializes in secondaries, drawing on his extensive experience to drive value for both buyers and sellers. This episode is packed with real-world insights and practical examples, making it an essential listen for anyone looking to understand or engage in the world of venture secondaries.

Go to eu.vc to read the core take-aways.

Chapters:

00:33 Gianno Capital's Focus and Mission
01:13 Current Transactions and Future Prospects
01:36 The Rise of Secondaries
02:04 Understanding the Secondary Market
02:33 Key Players and Stakeholders
02:49 Market Evolution and Opportunities
05:20 Differences Between US and European Markets
06:32 Types of Sellers in the Secondary Market
10:28 Role of Intermediaries in Secondary Transactions
13:34 The Buyer Process and Giano Capital's Framework
15:20 Quantitative Analysis and Scorecard Approach
20:47 Qualitative Analysis and Reference Checks
22:12 Valuation and Pricing Strategies
25:37 Legal and Financial Due Diligence
28:50 Closing the Deal 31:29 Preparation for a Sale from a Fund
36:15 Valuation Preparation for Assets
38:02 Final Thoughts and Conclusion

In this episode of the EUVC podcast, Andreas talks with Sandeep Bakshi, Head of European Investments at Prosus Ventures.

Andreas and Sandeep discuss the evolving dynamics of early-stage investing across Europe and beyond, sharing insights into how Prosus Ventures identifies opportunities in a global landscape. Sandeep offers his perspective on navigating the European VC scene, reflecting on the unique challenges and opportunities facing founders today. The conversation also covers the role of strategic capital in scaling startups, with a focus on the sectors and trends shaping the next decade.

At Prosus Ventures, Sandeep oversees a diverse portfolio targeting early-stage companies around the world. With notable investments such as Delivery Hero, iFood, OLX, Bilt Rewards, Corti, Superside, Avant Arte, and Oxford Ionics, Prosus Ventures continues to drive innovation by backing transformative startups across various sectors and geographies.

Go to eu.vc to read the core take-aways.

Chapters:

02:56 Understanding Prosus Ventures
04:03 Investment Strategies and Market Cap
07:29 Focus on AI for Marketplaces
14:22 Operational Efficiencies in Marketplaces
18:04 Generative AI in Creative Services
23:20 AI in Search and Discovery
24:37 Challenges in Deep Tech Talent
25:22 The Axis of Talent
26:37 Europe vs. Other Regions in AI Marketplaces
28:02 Innovations in India and Southeast Asia
29:55 Social Commerce and Conversational Tools
31:23 AI Tools for Marketplaces
32:50 AI Reshaping Shopping Habits
36:07 The Role of Agents in AI
38:08 Investment Opportunities in Europe's AI Marketplaces
43:29 Sandeep's Personal Journey and Insights
45:32 Controversial Beliefs and Market Trends

Hello and welcome back to 'At The Cap Table”, a podcast series here at EUVC, where we explore the journeys and insights of some of the most influential leaders in venture capital. Today, we’re thrilled to have Evgenia Plotnikova, General Partner at London HQ’d Dawn Capital.

From her start in investment banking during the financial crisis to her role now in VC, she talks about the challenges, successes, and what it takes to thrive in an ever-evolving industry.

We dive into her work at Dawn, what it means to be a B2B software specialist, and her thoughts on navigating today's exciting AI landscape. Let's get into it!

Go to eu.vc to read the core take-aways.

Chapters:

00:14 Guest Introduction: Evgenia Plotnikova
00:20 Evgenia's Early Career in Investment Banking
00:30 Transition to Venture Capital
00:49 Invitation to Venture Escape Event
01:24 Welcome to the Interview
01:35 Evgenia's Journey to Dawn Capital
02:01 Early Career Challenges and Insights
03:19 Private Equity and the Shift to Venture Capital
04:59 Joining Dawn Capital
05:51 Dawn Capital's Focus and Specialization
08:57 The Importance of Mentorship
09:57 Team and Culture at Dawn Capital
13:51 Challenges and Resilience in Venture Capital
15:20 The Exit Environment in Venture Capital
20:49 AI and the Future of Venture Capital
22:34 Final Thoughts and Reflections
22:47 Alternative Career Paths 24:06 Conclusion of the Interview
00:41 Closing Invitation to Venture Escape Event

In this episode of the EUVC podcast, Andreas speaks with Maitham Mohamed, CEO of Material10.

Andreas and Maitham explore the rapid evolution of the gaming industry, discussing innovative business models and unique approaches to monetization that are reshaping consumer engagement worldwide. Maitham shares his journey to founding Material10 in 2022, highlighting his mission to revolutionize mass-market gaming with a free-to-play model that aims to drive sustained player engagement while building a new revenue framework.

At Material10, Maitham leads a lean team of 10 from the company’s headquarters in the United Kingdom, backed by €2.5 million in funding. With a focus on the global mass-market gaming audience, Material10 is positioning itself as a disruptive player in the gaming space, delivering immersive experiences that appeal to a broad demographic and challenging traditional B2C models.

Go to eu.vc to read the core take-aways.

Chapters:

00:17 Meet Maythem: Founder of Material10
00:52 The Revolutionary Business Model
01:06 Sponsor Message
02:14 Deep Work Retreat and First Impressions
03:55 Maythem's Background and Journey
09:28 The Birth of Material10
13:01 Challenges in Web3 Gaming
23:31 Innovative Monetization Strategies
31:05 The Game Mechanics
33:37 Unveiling Project Fallen
34:05 Trading Mechanics in the Game
35:20 Economies in Gaming
37:19 Validating the Game Concept
39:32 Why Develop a Game Instead of a Platform
42:17 User Experience and Development Cycle
46:07 Team and Culture
48:40 Pre-Production Metrics and Marketing
54:17 Competitors and Market Landscape
01:02:32 Future Vision and Final Thoughts

In this episode of the EUVC podcast, Andreas sits down with Jan Lynn-Matern, Founder and General Partner at Emerge, a global pre-seed fund backed by over 100 leading operators in the future of work and learning. Jan shares Emerge’s mission to democratize access to opportunity for early-stage founders, providing not just capital but deep expertise and a community of seasoned professionals.

Together, Andreas and Jan dive into how AI is transforming work and education. They discuss Emerge’s investment philosophy and focus on impact, the importance of nurturing curiosity from a young age, and Jan's insights on the European market and its dynamics. Jan sheds light on the evolving landscape of education, the challenges and opportunities posed by generative AI, and how these shifts are redefining job markets. The conversation explores the critical need for adaptability and upskilling within organizations to keep up with technological change and how AI could become a powerful tool for enhancing learning and career development.

This episode offers a nuanced look at Jan’s journey, Emerge’s investment approach, and the unique role AI plays in reshaping the future of work, learning, and access to opportunity.

Go to eu.vc to read the core take-aways.

Chapters:

00:02 Meet Jan from Emerge
00:25 Emerge's Mission and Impact
01:48 Personal Stories and Inspirations
02:23 The Role of AI in Learning and Work
04:16 Founding Journey of Emerge
07:31 Investment Philosophy and Strategies
20:01 The European Opportunity
21:36 Technological and Societal Convergences
25:43 Investment Themes: Learn, Navigate, Work
38:51 Consumer Learning and AI in Education
39:49 Challenges in Formal Education Systems
40:50 The Decline of Traditional Universities
42:30 AI-Powered Learning Support for Students
44:50 Innovative Education Models
46:09 Personal Experiences with Education Systems
49:19 Navigating Career Choices with AI
56:23 AI in Recruitment and Career Development
01:01:11 Upskilling and AI Adoption in Enterprises
01:07:50 Future of Education and Final Thoughts

Welcome to a new episode of the EUVC podcast, where we’ll cover recent news and movements in the European tech landscape with Dan Bowyer and Mads Jensen from SuperSeed.

Go to eu.vc to read the core take-aways.

Chapters:

00:00 Introduction: What's Happening This Week?
00:59 Election Drama and Trump Headlines
01:26 The Most Expensive Election
Ever 02:03 Swing States and Predictions
03:05 Potential Civil Unrest
03:38 Trump's Policy Implications
05:20 The CHIPS Act Debate
09:20 European Chips Act
11:47 UK's Semiconductor Strategy
13:20 Government Investment and Planning
18:16 Berkshire Hathaway's Cash Reserves
18:59 Warren Buffett's Investment Strategy
21:46 ChatGPT vs. Google Search
23:41 AI Boom and Market Cap Gains
24:00 Europe's Role in Semiconductors
25:04 Startup Founder Mental Health
26:15 VC's Role in Founder Support

In this episode of the EUVC podcast, Andreas is joined by Robin Haak, the solo GP behind Robin Capital, to share his unique journey through venture capital and entrepreneurship.

Robin opens up about his extraordinary path, from building a coffee shop in Bhutan to fighting Muay Thai in Thailand, and how these experiences shaped his investing philosophy. Andreas and Robin discuss the realities of being a solo GP in Europe, the challenges of fundraising, and the importance of community-driven LP relationships. Robin shares why he chose the solo GP route after co-built Revaia, a €250 million growth fund, and why staying small and boutique matters to him.

This episode goes beyond the typical investment talk. It dives deep into what drives Robin, the principles behind his investments, and the personal journey that shaped him into the investor he is today. Robin’s story is one of resilience, growth, and a deep desire to serve founders in ways that go beyond just financial backing.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

02:55 Robin Capital: The Basics
03:59 Investment Strategy and Progress
05:54 Challenges of Fundraising
09:14 Personal Journey and Philosophy
13:02 Spirituality and Life Lessons
16:54 The Importance of Community
17:46 Long-Term Vision and Acceptance
20:07 Spiritual Exploration and Insights
25:23 Conclusion and Newsletter Shoutout
26:59 The Journey's End: Funding Status
27:17 Finding Passion in Marketing
27:45 The Love for Human Stories
28:34 Exploring Bhutan: A Personal Journey
30:36 Meeting the Royal Family
32:13 Building a Coffee Shop in Bhutan
32:47 Impact of COVID-19
33:10 Transition Back to Travel Business
34:09 The Role of Operators in VC
44:57 The Importance of Serving Founders

In the ever-evolving landscape of business communication, platforms like WhatsApp are no longer just messaging apps but have transformed into powerful platforms enabling businesses to connect with their customers in groundbreaking ways.

The latest episode of Startups in Focus features Carlos Espinal and Felix Martinez from Seedcamp, dive deep into this topic with Tarek Khalil and Mohamed Elbadwihi, co-founders of Rasayel, exploring how they are leveraging WhatsApp to redefine business communication.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

00:35 Founders' Backgrounds and Journey
02:42 Lessons Learned from Previous Startups
04:59 The Birth of Rasael
07:35 Understanding Rasael's Product
10:08 WhatsApp as a Business Platform
12:59 Platform Risks and Meta's Incentives
16:00 Global Adoption of WhatsApp
18:37 WhatsApp's Role in Business Functions
20:52 Navigating Multiple Messaging Platforms
23:25 Global Customer Insights
23:41 The Dominance of WhatsApp
24:12 Trust and Confidentiality
25:12 WhatsApp's Strategic Development
26:42 Regional Messaging Preferences
27:10 Navigating Multiple Channels
31:07 WhatsApp Business Platform
32:41 Compliance and Data Management
37:01 Future of WhatsApp Integrations
44:28 Conclusion and Contact Information

In this episode of the EUVC podcast, Andreas discusses with Mikael Johnsson, co-founder and General Partner of Oxx.

Andreas and Mikael discuss the key strategies and insights that have shaped Oxx as a leading player in the European B2B SaaS investment landscape. Mikael shares his extensive 24-year journey in venture capital, highlighting the evolution of his investment philosophy and the experiences that have driven Oxx’s unique approach to backing scale-up stage companies.

Oxx’s second fund, totaling $190M, underscores the firm’s commitment to supporting B2B SaaS innovators across Europe and Israel. With a team of six in Stockholm and nine in London, Oxx maintains a pan-European reach, enabling it to stay closely connected to the pulse of regional tech ecosystems. The firm’s notable investments, including Funnel, Gravitee, and SOCRadar, exemplify Oxx’s focus on high-potential SaaS businesses with the ambition and capability to scale internationally.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

02:35 Meet Michael Johnson of Oxx
03:04 Michael's Journey into Venture Capital
04:35 The Intellectual Curiosity of Venture Capital
05:20 Building and Growing Companies
06:11 Challenges and Stubbornness in Venture
07:31 Pivotal Moments and Lessons Learned
09:47 Oxx's Investment Strategy
13:49 The Importance of Product-Market Fit
19:07 The State of Early Stage and Growth Stage VC in Europe
26:00 Challenges in Scaling Venture Firms
26:44 Optimism in European Venture Ecosystem 2
7:30 Importance of Positioning for Startups
28:43 Building a Scalable Company
29:49 Common Mistakes by Founders
30:59 Evaluating Companies for Investment
32:11 The Role of Hustle and Strategy
36:29 Issues in the Venture Capital Industry
49:12 Final Thoughts and Learnings:

In this episode of the EUVC podcast, Andreas talks with Carmen Alfonso Rico, a self-described VC turned angel at Cocoa Ventures. and Evan Finkel, Head of Venture Capital Investments at Integra Global Advisors.

Carmen is leading the charge at Cocoa Ventures, a €15M fund headquartered in the UK and focused on backing pre-seed and seed-stage startups across Europe. Cocoa Ventures invests across sectors, emphasizing Carmen’s vision of supporting bold founders in their first institutional round. Notable investments include Speckle, Eventstore, FDM, Tilebox, Fractile from Cocoa I, and hopin, SideQuest, Hived, pre-Cocoa.

At Integra Global Advisors, a venture fund with €700M in assets under management, Evan targets early-stage and emerging managers across the US, LatAm, Europe, and Israel. Notable investments include Plural, Fly, and Retail (EU).

Carmen, and Evan delve into the complexities of LP-GP relationships in venture capital, emphasizing the importance of separating personal and business dynamics. They also share insights on identifying strong GPs and the importance of maintaining integrity in the venture ecosystem and discuss the complexities of management fees and carry in the venture capital landscape, emphasizing the need for alignment of incentives between GPs and LPs.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

02:10 Diving into Personal and Business Relationships
04:09 Managing LPGP Relationships
10:45 Gamesmanship in Business
15:07 Challenges of First Closings
23:57 Re-ups and Signaling in Fundraising
32:50 Handling Fund Breakups
45:30 Succession Planning in VC
46:33 Tough Decisions in Venture Capital
48:00 Assessing Emerging Managers
49:16 The Importance of Personal Brand in VC
50:30 Carmen and Cocoa: A Perfect Synergy
53:18 Management Fees and Carry: A Deep Dive
55:52 Challenges with the 2% Management Fee Model
01:03:05 The Debate on Carry Structures
01:05:12 European vs. American Waterfalls
01:11:39 Navigating LP-GP Relationships
01:29:14 Closing Thoughts and Future Topics

Welcome to a new episode of the EUVC podcast, where we’ll cover recent news and movements in the European tech landscape with Dan Bowyer and Mads Jensen from SuperSeed.

Go to eu.vc to read the core take-aways.

Chapters:

01:48 UK Autumn Budget Highlights
02:29 Government's Investment Focus
03:07 Challenges in Public Services
04:14 Economic Reactions and Investor Sentiments
04:56 Tax Changes and Their Implications
05:59 Impact on Founders and Venture Capital
06:57 Building a Company: Challenges and Rewards
08:19 Capital Gains and Venture Capital Taxation
09:15 London's Position in the Global Market
15:45 ARM vs. NVIDIA: The AI Race
16:47 ARM's Business Model and Market Position
18:58 Qualcomm and ARM: Legal Battles
20:15 SoftBank's Influence on ARM
23:46 Volkswagen's Profit Warnings
25:30 Boeing's Challenges and Industrial Issues
28:15 The Role of AI in Startups
30:15 Meta's AI Search Engine
32:42 Football Regulation and Government Policies
36:21 Conclusion and Final Thoughts

Today, we’re thrilled to bring you one of the most anticipated episodes of the year with Anthony Danon about the official announcement of Rerail, his brand-new $20M angel fund. You ofc already know Anthony as one of the hosts of our SuperAngel podcast series and part of the powerful duo behind Cocoa together with Carmen 🍫.

But now he’s built Rerail to pursue his powerful "FinTech is everything" thesis, placing $200-500K checks into early-stage companies that are transforming the future of finance and beyond. And my god are we excited for this.

He focuses on pre-seed and seed investments in three core areas:* Fintech: Backing companies driving innovation across all finance sub-verticals, tapping into the potential of AI and cutting-edge technologies. * Fintech-powered sectors: From climate tech to healthcare and logistics, Anthony looks for startups leveraging fintech to disrupt and enhance industries far beyond traditional finance. * Not-yet Fintech: Seeking companies that may not be fintech today but have the potential to use fintech as a strategic advantage, whether in their revenue model, customer base, or business approach.

This is one of the biggest and most important episodes we’ve done because we think Anthony will be one of the European venture's true trailblazers.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

02:07 Welcoming Anthony Dannon
02:33 Anthony's Journey to Founding Rerail
03:06 Early Career and Transition to VC
04:16 Building a Network in FinTech
07:34 Launching Cocoa and the Angel Fund
11:05 The FinTech is Everything Thesis
20:29 Collaborative Investment Strategy
23:28 Global Expansion and LP Support
26:44 Proving the Strategy
27:27 Degrees of Freedom in Fund Management
27:51 Focus on Europe First
28:19 Collaborative Fund Approach
30:18 Ownership Sensitivity in Venture Capital
33:24 Co-Investment Strategies
37:50 Balancing Pre-Seed and Seed Investments
39:24 Reserve Ratios and Fund Economics
41:51 Handling High-Valuation Outliers
47:10 Future Ambitions for Rerail

Welcome to a new episode of the EUVC podcast, where our good friends Dan Bowyer and Mads Jensen from SuperSeed cover recent news and movements in the European tech landscape 💬

Go to eu.vc to read the core take-aways.

Chapters:

00:09 AI Perplexity's Massive Valuation
01:41 Anthropic's New AI Model
03:46 NHS and Patient Records
06:06 Palantir's Role in NHS IT
06:31 Revitalizing NHS with IT
07:59 Stripe, HubSpot, and JP Morgan's Media Acquisitions
08:37 The Creator Economy and Content Marketing
09:56 Sustaining Economic Growth
10:24 The Future of Economic Growth
11:11 Investing in Business Technology
11:23 The Myth of Limited Growth 11:37 Solving the Energy Problem
12:17 The Positive Side of AI
13:27 Europe's Digital Leap 13:55 Challenges in the Automotive Sector
14:32 Unlocking Venture Capital in Europe
15:00 Regulatory Hurdles and Growth
18:35 The Future of the S&P 500
23:07 Trump's Economic Policies

In this episode of the EUVC podcast, Andreas talks with Charlotte Palmer, Vice President at Integra Global Advisors.

Andreas and Charlotte explore the evolving role of government LPs in Europe, discussing best practices and key considerations for fund managers. Charlotte shares her insights on why she joined Integra, reflecting on her new position as a global LP with a focus on European VC. The conversation also delves into fundraising for impact-driven VCs across Europe and the US, offering valuable perspectives for investors and founders alike.

At Integra Global Advisors, Charlotte oversees a fund with €700M in assets under management, targeting early-stage and emerging managers across the US, LatAm, Europe, and Israel. Integra’s agnostic approach has led to notable investments, including Plural, Fly, and Retail (EU), as the firm continues to back innovative companies across various sectors.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

02:08 Welcoming Charlotte Palmer
03:08 Charlotte's Background and Career Journey
04:28 Transition to Integra Global Advisors
05:25 The Role of Government LPs in Venture Capital
06:55 Challenges and Reflections on Being an LP
08:33 Integra's Investment Strategy and Focus
12:02 Government Institutions in Venture Capital
24:38 Improving Processes and Best Practices
35:48 Navigating Restrictive Criteria in Fund Management
36:23 Key Terms LPs and GPs Should Avoid
37:05 Geographical Focus and Investment Strategy
37:40 Challenges with Government Institutions
39:42 The Importance of Sticking to Your Strategy
45:52 The Role of Government Institutions in Market Distortion
49:17 Transitioning to a Global LP: Insights and Experiences
53:39 Balancing Global Expectations with Local Realities
59:43 Advice for Aspiring LPs and Effective Hiring Practices
01:04:10 Impact VC Funds: A Controversial Topic

In this episode of the EUVC podcast, Andreas talks with Massimiliano Magrini, Co-Founder and Managing Partner at United Ventures.

Andreas and Massimiliano delve into the intricacies of scaling startups, the European venture ecosystem, and the challenges of attracting growth capital. They also touch on lessons from managing funds across different stages and sectors, and the unique dynamics of Italy’s growing role in venture capital.

At United Ventures, Massimiliano oversees the firm’s third early-stage fund (UV3) of €150M and a later-stage fund (UVTG), managing approximately €500M in assets under management. Based in Italy, United Ventures targets Series A investments across Europe, with a focus on enabling technologies for sustainable digitization. Their portfolio spans enterprise software, deeptech, and fintech.

Over the past decade, Massimiliano has backed notable startups including Moneyfarm, FaceIT, MusixMatch, Fiscozen, xFarm Technologies, and Exein, supporting founders from seed through early growth as they scale their companies into market leaders.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

00:03 Meet Massimiliano Magrini of United Ventures
00:09 Today's Focus: Attracting Growth Capital
03:33 The Evolution of United Ventures
05:12 Challenges in the European VC Landscape
07:56 The Importance of Growth Capital
10:05 Differences Between US and European Investors
22:25 Regulatory Hurdles in Europe
23:40 Europe's Call to Action
23:50 Excitement Over the Paper
24:19 Investing in AI and Infrastructure
24:59 Geopolitics and Investment Shifts
26:47 European Ecosystem and Interconnected Centers
27:58 US Perspectives on Europe
33:01 Endurance Cycling and Vineyard Life
36:02 Lessons in Venture Capital
39:35 Fundraising Challenges and Successes

In this episode of the EUVC podcast, Andreas and our in-house CVC expert, Jeppe Høier, are joined by Samuli Siren, CEO of Redstone, one of Europe's most successful venture capital firms.

Together, we’ll dive deep into Redstone’s approach to corporate venture capital, exploring how they’ve built a portfolio with around €600M across ten different funds. Redstone specializes in Series A rounds and is headquartered in Berlin, focusing on DACH (Germany, Austria, Switzerland) and global markets—particularly the U.S.

Redstone's focus spans multiple sectors, though always with a digital and B2B edge. Some of their standout investments include PlanRadar, Liqid, Psy, Finanzguru, Atlas Metrics, and Yoto. With Samuli, Redstone has excelled in attracting corporate investors, making his insights invaluable to anyone looking to understand how to raise capital from corporates.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

01:53 The Journey of Building Redstone
03:32 Challenges in Venture Capital
04:42 Working with Corporate Investors
07:03 Managing Corporate Relationships
14:07 Fundraising Strategies and Insights
16:15 The Importance of Investor Relations
19:32 Long-Term Relationships with LPs
24:01 The Importance of Professional LPs
24:32 Key Strategies for Success with Corporates
25:05 Making Startup Innovation Fun
25:33 Personal Touches in Business Interactions
26:50 Tailoring Pitch Decks for Corporates
28:33 The Pain of Cold Outreach
29:49 Fundraising Buckets and Success Rates
33:01 Balancing Passion, Family, and Self
34:11 Advice for Young CVC Professionals
40:52 Challenges in Corporate Digitalization

Welcome to a new episode of the EUVC podcast, where our good friends Dan Bowyer and Mads Jensen from SuperSeed cover recent news and movements in the European tech landscape 💬

Go to eu.vc to read the core take-aways.

Chapters:

01:11 UK VCs on the Rise
02:41 Global VC Fundraising Trends
03:45 Big Names in Fundraising
06:40 Climate Tech and COP
29 11:06 UK International Investment Summit
13:06 Labour's Economic Strategy
16:35 Public Sector Investment Insights 20:07 National Wealth Fund Discussion
22:07 Investment and Planning Challenges
22:54 Exploring the Future of the European Union
23:30 Macron's Warning and the EU's Productivity Challenge
24:45 The German Automotive Industry's Struggles
25:37 The Rise of Electric Vehicles in China
25:54 Protectionism and the European Export Engine
28:09 The EU's Startup Ecosystem Initiative
30:05 SpaceX's Technological Feats
32:48 Balancing Space Exploration and Climate Change
33:47 The Future of Energy and Innovation
36:42 Venture Capital and Market Liquidity Challenges

In this episode of the European VC podcast, we're diving into the fascinating world of investing in culture and everything that surrounds it.

At the CultTech Summit on November 5th and 6th in Vienna, a dedicated panel discussion is planned, and as a foretaste, we have brought together a panel of experts with diverse backgrounds who are reshaping how we think about culture and creativity through investment.

We are joined by Oliver Holle, Founding Managing Partner at Speedinvest, who brings a wealth of knowledge from his experience backing startups across various sectors. Alongside Oliver, we have Severin Zugmeyer, Founder of New Renaissance Ventures, who specializes in pre-seed and seed investments, particularly in creative tech.

We’re also excited to welcome Uli Schmitz, Co-Founder and Managing Director of Axel Springer Digital Ventures, an expert in the media and adjacent spaces. Finally, we are completing the panel with Hazel Savage, VP of Music Intelligence at SoundCloud, whose insights into the intersection of tech and music will add a unique perspective to the discussion.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

00:20 Meet the Panelists
03:49 Defining the Creative and Cultural Industries
04:24 Investment Opportunities in Creative Industries
05:56 Challenges and Opportunities in Creative Tech
14:26 AI's Role in the Music Industry
16:46 Legal Challenges in Generative AI
21:02 European Competitiveness in Creative Industries
24:08 Success Stories and Market Dynamics
29:02 Challenges and Opportunities in Consumer Investments
30:40 Founder Profiles in Creative Industries
32:27 Importance of Understanding User Behavior
35:35 Generative AI in Music
38:03 The Role of AI in Music Creation
43:38 Emerging Technologies: Metaverse and Beyond
46:27 The Future of AR and VR
49:04 Success Stories and Final Thoughts

Welcome to a new episode of the EUVC podcast, where our good friends Dan Bowyer and Mads Jensen from SuperSeed, discuss with Lomax Ward, General Partner at Outsized Ventures, to cover recent news and movements in the European tech landscape 💬

Go to eu.vc to read the core take-aways.

Chapters:

03:33 Nobel Prizes and AI Innovations
06:16 The DOJ vs. Google: Breaking Up Big Tech
11:47 UK Borrowing Costs and Economic Challenges
14:14 Pension Funds and Infrastructure Investment
18:45 Labour Government's Economic Strategy
20:03 Regulatory Innovation Office: Speeding Up Approvals
20:39 Exploring the Impact of Deregulation
21:01 The Role of Regulation in Innovation
22:15 Challenges of Regulatory Bodies
23:29 Investing in the UK: A Critical Perspective
23:41 LPs and Venture Capital: A 2025 Outlook
25:27 Emerging Managers and the Venture Landscape
31:27 European Series B Success Stories
32:25 The Importance of Ownership and Location
37:36 The Future of European Deep Tech
38:31 Concluding Thoughts on European Venture

In this episode of the EUVC podcast, Andreas discusses with Hannah Seal, Partner at Index Ventures. Andreas and Hannah explore the dynamics of founder relationships, the European venture landscape, and more with insights from the recently launched book - Scaling Through Chaos.

As a Partner at Index, Hannah focuses on B2B software and enterprise AI applications. She works with founders, reshaping every sector of the economy by digitizing workflows, automating manual processes, and transforming the services sector at large.

In close to a decade at Index, she has built a track record of helping visionary entrepreneurs from day one and supporting them as their companies scale. She is particularly energized by founders who leverage technology to tackle daunting problems in large and traditional sectors previously deemed too hard to tackle. Her investments at Index include DataSnipper, who supercharge auditors; Remote, a platform to hire, manage and pay global teams; Multiverse, the company bringing apprenticeships into the digital age; and Fonoa, tax technology for global businesses.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

03:02 Debunking Myths About European Startups
04:48 Scaling Through Chaos: Research Insights
06:59 The Importance of Talent in Startup Growth
08:53 Navigating Founder Dynamics and Team Evolution
09:45 The Rise of Breakout Founders
17:15 AI's Impact on Professional Services
23:05 The Role of AI in Modern Startups
27:57 The Future of Remote Work in Venture Capital
29:34 The Future of Remote Companies
30:13 Navigating US Investor Expectations
31:54 Hannah Seale's Journey to Venture Capital
35:11 The Venture Capital Apprenticeship
36:37 Inside Index Ventures: Culture and Growth
38:05 The Investment Decision Process
42:26 Global Presence and Knowledge Sharing
45:03 The Importance of US Market Insight
48:48 Building a Unique Company Culture
50:31 Advice for Founders on Fundraising

Welcome to a new episode of our special series, At The Cap Table.

Today, Sarah Finegan, Senior Investor at Antler has a discussion with Nicola McClafferty, Partner at Molten Ventures. Molten Ventures, formerly Draper Esprit, is a venture capital firm investing in high-growth technology companies with global ambitions, with offices in London and Dublin. Molten is publicly listed on the London Stock Exchange and takes flexible and patient capital to invest across primary, secondary, and fund funds. Molten invests ~$200 million a year across Seed - Series B stage companies with ~$2 billion AUM.

Nicola spent 5 years as a venture capital investor with Balderton Capital and media consultancy Ravensbeck, focusing on early-stage technology and digital consumer investments. She graduated from University College Dublin with a degree in International Business and French.

In this episode of At The Cap Table, Nicola will share her insights and experiences in a dynamic and wide-ranging discussion. We’ll dive into Nicola's personal journey, her work at Molten Ventures, and her industry expertise, offering a mix of personal and business insights. Stay tuned for an engaging and informative conversation!

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

00:14 Meet Nicola McClafferty
00:32 Nicola's Unique Career Path
03:40 Early Career in Investment Banking
05:01 Transition to Venture Capital
07:34 Building and Scaling a Business
08:00 Challenges and Exit Strategy
08:34 Return to Venture Capital
09:00 Key Learnings as a Founder
09:39 Empathy and Understanding Founders
11:20 State of Entrepreneurship in Europe
15:38 Excitement About the Irish Market
19:00 Molten Ventures' Unique Model
24:59 Trends in Pre-Seed and Seed Stage
28:53 Focus on Consumer Software and AI
33:57 Advice for Founders: Zero to One
39:00 Final Thoughts and Personal Insights

Join us as Tom Wilson from Seedcamp and Anthony Danon from Cocoa talk to Dorothy Chou, Director of Policy & Public Engagement at DeepMind.

Dorothy shares her journey from working at major tech companies to becoming an angel investor. She raises the importance of diversity in the startup ecosystem, particularly in supporting underrepresented founders. Dorothy highlights the need for a systemic change in venture capital and how her experiences have shaped her investment strategy. She also discusses AI's potential for driving social change and innovation.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

01:45 Dorothy's Journey to Angel Investing
03:12 Focusing on Diversity in Founding Teams
03:38 Venturing into Women's Health
03:56 Challenges in Women's Health Investment
05:23 First Angel Investment Experience
05:54 Success Stories and Notable Investments
06:25 The Power of Public Procurement
08:09 Leveraging Networks in Angel Investing
09:29 The Importance of Access and Diversity
09:54 Backing Underrepresented Founders
19:40 The Role of Relational Competence
21:35 AI's Impact on Science and Society
22:43 Public-Private Partnerships in AI
26:35 Core Learnings in Angel Investing
35:09 Counterintuitive Insights in Investing

Today, we welcome the amazing duo Salomon Aiach, co-founder & General Partner, and Blaise Matuidi, General Partner from Origins Fund.

Origins is a new type of venture capital fund backing legendary consumer founders with an unfair advantage from pre-seed to series A. They invest $100k to $500k in consumer tech startups and come with the power of influence of LP’s community and their 160,000,000 followers.

We invite you to listen to this discussion below for some inspiring stories; besides the actionable advice, you can have a sneak peek at the below.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

00:02:05 - From Athlete to Investor
00:04:13 - Starting your first investment journey
00:06:18 - The Journey into Venture
00:07:59 - Adding Value as a GP at a Fund
00:09:53 - Strength in Numbers
00:12:00 - Angel Investing for Athletes
00:14:10 - Changing Landscape of the Sports World
00:16:09 - The Glamour and Resilience of Successful Entrepreneurs
00:19:38 - Investing in Mental Health and Education
00:21:36 - The Mental Challenges of High Performance
00:23:42 - Raising Awareness for Mental Health
00:25:23 - The Impact of Supportive Individuals and Entities in Entrepreneurship
00:27:44 - The Influence of Soloman on Entrepreneurs
00:29:35 - The Challenges of Consumer Investing
00:31:31 - Investing in Consumer Companies in Europe
00:33:26 - The Importance of Building the Best Team
00:35:49 - Trust and Accessibility in the Industry

In this episode of the EUVC podcast, Andreas and our in-house CVC expert Jeppe Høier discuss venture capital with Gina Domanig, Managing Partner at Emerald Technology Ventures.

Gina Domanig is the Managing Partner of Emerald Technology Ventures. In 2000, she founded the business as Europe's first independent cleantech venture capital fund. In addition to Emerald activities, Gina serves on the boards of Die Mobiliar and the Basel Agency for Sustainable Energy (BASE) Foundation.

In today’s conversation, Gina shares insights on how they landed their first corporate LPs and the challenges of engaging with startups. She also emphasizes the importance of technical depth, thorough due diligence, and being supportive and constructive in the startup ecosystem.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

02:25 Gina's Journey in Venture Capital
03:11 Emerald's Focus on Sustainability and Industrial Technologies
04:08 Flex Term Structure and Corporate Engagement
06:56 Challenges and Innovations in Corporate Partnerships
13:48 Leveraging AI and LLMs in Venture Capital
16:58 Insights on Corporate Venture Capital
28:43 Corporate Culture and Specialist Roles
29:07 Managing Corporate Partnerships
29:33 Investment Process and Portfolio Management
30:26 Corporate Co-Investment and Follow-On Rounds
32:04 Branding and Transparency in CVC
32:52 CVC Team Dynamics and Responsibilities
35:48 Navigating LP Conversations
36:46 Corporate Venture Programs and Team Structure
38:16 Corporate Relationships and Conflict of Interest
49:43 Balancing Corporate and VC Worlds

In this episode of the EUVC podcast, Andreas discusses with David Meiborg, General Partner at First Momentum Ventures.

First Momentum Ventures, with their €30M fund, specializes in backing deeply technical founders at the pre-seed stage. Their focus spans deep tech, industrial climate tech, dev tools, data, and enterprise SaaS across the DACH region and beyond.

In today’s discussion, David introduces us to the Deep Tech Hardware Napkin framework they recently launched, which includes the latest benchmarks on funding, team, product, and commercialization, broken down by stage. The Napkin and full report are based on a survey completed by 30 DeepTech VCs from 8 countries.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

00:02 Meet David Marburg from First Momentum Ventures
00:28 Deep Tech Heartware Napkin
05:48 Deep Tech Napkin Collaboration
06:17 Inspiration and Data Sourcing
09:34 Deep Tech Hardware Napkin Breakdown
10:54 Pre-Seed Stage Insights
14:18 Seed Stage Insights
16:40 Series A Insights
24:07 Series B Insights
26:59 Founding Teams and Commercial Savviness
35:46 Technology and Product Stages
44:12 Tech Maturity and Valuation
49:06 Common Hardware Business Models

Welcome to a new episode of the EUVC podcast, where our good friends Dan Bowyer and Mads Jensen from SuperSeed cover recent news and movements in the European tech landscape 💬

Go to eu.vc to read the core take-aways.

Chapters:

00:06 Microsoft's Nuclear Energy Plans
00:13 Energy Context in Europe
00:22 UK's Energy Challenges
02:34 Three Mile Island and Energy Needs
06:24 UK's Energy Strategy
09:18 Amazon's Office Return Policy
11:37 Chip Manufacturing in the UAE
13:56 Future of AI by 2030
14:57 Healthcare and AI
16:27 AGI and AI's Impact on Jobs
18:33 Telegram's Privacy Concessions
20:26 Mark Zuckerberg's Orion Glasses
21:48 Neuralink and Future Interfaces
25:44 Foundations Paper on UK Stagnation

In this episode of the EUVC podcast, Andreas discusses with Fatou Diagne, Founder and Managing Partner at Bootstrap Europe.

Bootstrap Europe is a venture investment firm currently raising the fourth fund, aiming for €350-400M, after closing Fund III with €157M. With €250M in assets under management, Bootstrap Europe is headquartered across London, Luxembourg, and Zurich.

Bootstrap Europe targets companies in the post-Series A+ or Series B stage—those with venture capital already on their cap table, solid KPIs, or valuable patents and assets in place. The firm’s sweet spot? European HQ’d companies, or those with European founders or VCs, with an upcoming allocation to support U.S. expansions. They even have 10% of their fund reserved for other exciting regions, like Africa.

Bootstrap Europe specializes in geeky, transformative sectors: Deeptech, Life Sciences, Cleantech, Fintech, and SaaS, and some of their notable investments are:* Scandit (Swiss Unicorn) in Machine Vision * Blueprint Genetics (exited investment, Finnish tech used by Quest Diag during COVID - 1 of 2 largest labs in US) * Telensa: largest installed base of smart city lighting wordlwide, bought by Signify * Recent undisclosed exciting investments in robotics, AI healthcare, foodtech, RNA tech

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

00:03 Meet Fatou Diagne and Bootstrap Europe
00:26 Bootstrap Europe's Investment Focus
01:25 Diving Deep with Fatou: Trends and Growth
02:51 The Origin of Bootstrap Europe
04:11 Venture Debt vs. Venture Capital
11:11 The Collapse of Silicon Valley Bank
20:27 The Role of Venture Debt in Europe
28:29 Sector Focus: Life Sciences and AI
36:45 Momentum in Business and Financing
37:00 Regional Preferences in Venture Debt
38:16 Germany: Cultural Challenges and Progress
39:17 Spain: A Unique Venture Debt Market
40:43 Nordics and European Investment Bank
47:33 Macroeconomic Influence on Venture Debt
54:05 Innovative Financing Structures
56:54 Future Predictions for Venture Debt
01:02:09 AI's Impact on Venture Debt and Beyond

Welcome to a new episode of the EUVC podcast, where our good friends Dan Bowyer and Mads Jensen from SuperSeed, in a discussion with Monik Pham, Founding Partner at Pact, cover recent news and movements in the European tech landscape 💬

Go to eu.vc to read the core take-aways.

Chapters:

00:05 Today's Agenda
02:18 Monique's Background and PACT Ventures
03:14 AI Startup 11X Moves to the US
03:48 Challenges for European Startups
07:44 Interest Rate Cuts in the US
09:56 Impact of US Economic Policies on Europe
10:56 UK's Economic Challenges and Labor's Plan
12:10 Government's Role in Supporting Startups
15:47 Germany's Investment in Startups
20:01 EU's First Commissioner for Startups
21:04 Addressing Fragmentation in the EU Market
26:47 Proxies for Economic Health
28:41 Opportunities in Economic Downturns
29:56 The Role of AI in Business
34:18 Balancing Technology and Regulation
35:13 Closing Thoughts on AI Regulation
36:44 Conclusion and Farewell

In this episode of the EUVC podcast, Andreas discusses how we prepared a new panel discussion with our in-house CVC expert and friend, Jeppe Høier, and his guests.

Francesco Di Lorenzo is an Associate Professor of Strategy and E-ship at Copenhagen Business School (Department of Strategy and Innovation), where he is actively involved in research and teaching topics related to Corporate Venturing.

Crispin Leick is the Managing Director at EnBW New Ventures, where he leads the company's corporate venture capital (CVC) efforts. Based in Germany, EnBW New Ventures focuses on investing in innovative startups that drive digital and sustainable infrastructure, with a particular emphasis on climate tech.

With a committed €100M fund, they target Series A investments across Europe. Their portfolio includes notable investments in ESG and carbon-focused startups like Sunhat and Cozero and key players in the battery rollout space such as Enspired and Volytica.

In today’s panel discussion, we’re exploring all things corporate venture capital (CVC)—from the best ways to engage with CVCs to how to effectively set them up and the key strategies that drive success. We’re also digging into the dynamics of collaboration between traditional venture capital, CVCs, and the corporate world.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

00:03 Meet the Guests: Francesco, Crispin, and Jeppe
04:50 Understanding Corporate Venture Capital
06:02 CVC Strategies and Models
09:22 Challenges and Successes in CVC
13:50 The Importance of Financial Returns in CVC
18:12 Setting Up a Successful CVC
44:12 Measuring Startup Growth
45:02 Importance of Gross Margin
45:20 Investment Strategies in B2B Digital Models
45:49 Challenges and Benefits of Seed Investments
46:37 Strategic Corporate Investments
48:01 Commercial Agreements and Conflicts of Interest
53:50 Engagement Management in Corporates
01:00:56 Governance Structures in CVC
01:14:42 Evergreen Model in CVC
01:18:14 Future Trends in CVC

In this episode of the EUVC podcast, Andreas discusses with Will Prendergast, Partner at Frontline Ventures.

With ~€435M in assets under management, Frontline Ventures is a venture investment firm that operates two distinct funds:* Frontline Seed: A €100M fund targeting pre-seed and seed-stage European companies with clear U.S. expansion intentions. * Frontline Growth: A €100M fund focusing on Series B up to D in U.S. companies planning to expand to Europe within 12-18 months.

Frontline Ventures, headquartered in Ireland, specializes in B2B SaaS and Deeptech sectors. The firm's position allows it to bridge the gap between European and U.S. markets, providing valuable support for companies looking to expand across the Atlantic in either direction.

As a Partner at Frontline Ventures, Will Prendergast offers us a distinctive perspective on European and U.S. venture landscapes. His insights on early-stage investing in Europe and growth-stage opportunities for U.S. companies expanding to Europe are sure to be valuable for anyone interested in transatlantic venture capital's current state and future.

Notable investments: Workvivo (acquired by Zoom), SignalAI, Finbourne, Lattice, MosaicML (acquired by Databricks), Navan.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

00:03 Meet Will Prendergast of Frontline Ventures
00:06 Frontline Ventures' Dual Strategy
00:51 Notable Investments and Achievements
02:47 Welcoming Will Prendergast
03:57 Frontline's Unique Approach to Seed and Growth
04:41 The Importance of U.S. Market for European VCs
05:44 Challenges and Strategies in U.S. Market Entry
11:01 LP Perspectives and Fund Strategies
37:25 Navigating Series A and B Funding
38:09 Engaging US Investors
39:16 Importance of US Customer Base
39:29 Choosing the Right US City for Expansion
41:37 Building a US Team 43:40 Common Mistakes in US Market Entry
48:04 Impact of the Pandemic on US Expansion
53:08 Differences in US and European Business Practices
55:12 Remote Work Trends and Performance
57:46 Personal Journey into Venture Capital

Welcome to a new episode of the EUVC podcast, where we’ll cover recent news and movements in the European tech landscape with Dan Bowyer and Mads Jensen from SuperSeed.

Go to eu.vc to read the core take-aways.

Chapters:

00:36 Meet Andrew Scott: Investor and Community Builder
01:35 The Value of Events for Investors and Founders
03:20 Insights from Tech Barbecue in Copenhagen
05:05 Highlights from the All In Conference
06:15 Inspiration and Serendipity at Conferences
11:22 The Role of Politics in Business Inspiration
15:35 DeepMind's Alphaproteo: A Breakthrough in Protein Binders
17:50 Implications for the European Ecosystem
18:08 Future Opportunities in Biotech and AI
18:40 Introduction to Investment Focus
18:50 AI in Drug Discovery 20:01 Efficiency and Productivity in Health and Pharma
20:18 Mario Draghi on European Competitiveness
21:23 Challenges in European Innovation
22:25 UK and EU Collaboration
24:33 Regulatory Frameworks and Innovation
27:03 Government Strategy and Short-termism
34:11 AI in Healthcare and Spaceports
36:48 Future of SaaS and AI Integration

In this episode of the EUVC podcast, Andreas discusses with Tzlil Kovetz, Principal at Vintage Investment Partners.

With $4B in assets under management, Vintage Investment Partners is a global investment fund that focuses on three distinct strategies:* A fund-to-fund play targeting early-stage VCs across Europe, the U.S., and Israel; * A growth fund for early growth companies (typically Series B and beyond); * A secondary fund invests in both funds and companies at various stages.

Vintage Investment Partners invests across all sectors and has made notable investments in companies like Wolt, Klarna, Mirakl, SentinelOne, Monday, JFrog, Yotpo, Holidu, and many others. In the European fund investment space, they've backed top-tier firms such as Accel, Creandum, PointNine, Seedcamp, BlueYard, and others.

Tzlil offers a unique perspective evaluating trends in both the European and U.S. venture markets. Her insights are sure to be valuable for anyone interested in the current state and future of VC.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

03:14 Vintage's Global Investment Perspective
06:22 The European Venture Ecosystem
13:51 Fund Size Evolution in European VC
16:36 The State of the Venture Market in 2024
19:32 Impact of Geopolitical Events on VC
25:07 Opportunities in Venture Capital
26:09 Early Stage Gap in Europe
26:56 Market Adjustments and Seed Valuations
28:10 Challenges in Series A and B Rounds
33:18 Exit Markets Overview
35:33 European IPO Pipeline
38:58 Personal Journey into Venture Capital
41:00 Vintage Investment Strategies
46:26 Future of FinTech in Europe
51:02 Top Tips for VC Fundraising

In this episode of the EUVC podcast, Andreas discusses with Andrea Di Camillo, Founder, CEO & Managing Partner at P101.

P101 is one of the most well-known players in the Italian VC landscape and has established a strong position in early-stage investing. Currently, on its third fund, which raised €250M, P101 manages a total assets under management (AUM) of €400M.

Headquartered in Italy, the firm focuses primarily on Series A investments, with 70% of their portfolio in Italy and the remaining 30% spread across Europe and the United States. P101's investment strategy spans a diverse range of sectors, including enterprise software, deep tech, health tech, fintech, energy, transportation, and food tech.

Notable Investments: 1000Farmacie, Casavo, Cortilia, CyberGuru, Deporvillage, FatMap, Habyt, Musixmatch, Musement, Tannico, Velasca

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

00:25 P101's Investment Focus and Notable Investments
02:46 The Origins of P101
04:57 Italy's Journey to Becoming a Global Tech Player
06:12 Challenges and Opportunities in the Italian VC Ecosystem
12:02 The Role of Corporates and Private Wealth in Italian VC
23:40 Investment Strategies and Fund Management at P101
35:28 The Media's Role in Venture Capital
36:26 Challenges in Italian Venture Capital
37:02 The Importance of Narrative in VC
38:11 Highlighting European Venture Success
41:41 The Impact of Past Investments
45:59 Leveraging AI and Big Data in VC
53:52 The Evolution of Venture Capital
56:59 A Personal Journey in Venture Capital
01:04:28 The Growth of the Italian Tech Ecosystem
01:05:43 Closing Remarks and Future Prospects

Welcome to a new episode of the EUVC podcast, where we’ll cover recent news and movements in the European tech landscape with Dan Bowyer and Mads Jensen from SuperSeed.

Go to eu.vc to read the core take-aways.

Chapters:

00:00 Introduction to European Adventure
01:07 SuperSaaS Event Overview
02:10 Corporate Relationships and Communication
02:51 The Value of Mission-Driven Companies
03:35 Upcoming Super SAS Event 04:03 Positive Global Trends
06:04 Technological Impact on Society
06:39 Democracy and Technology
07:48 AI Regulation Treaty
09:45 Privacy and Competitive Concerns in AI
11:20 The Future of AI Regulation
15:55 Energy Revolution and AI
17:24 Central Bank Digital Currency
18:12 Implications of Digital Euro
22:06 Founder Mode vs. Manager Mode
23:25 Traits of Successful Founders
25:33 Mission-Driven Leadership
29:34 Immigration and Economic Growth

In this episode of the EUVC podcast, Andreas discusses with Robert Lacher, a Founding Partner of Visionaries Club. Robert's journey in VC is impressive. He was also one of the Founding Partners of La Famiglia when they launched their first fund, and he's since gone on to make waves with Visionaries Club. Let's talk numbers for a moment:* Visionaries Club currently manages a total of $350 million USD * $185 million seed fund * $165 million early growth fund

Headquartered in both Germany and the UK, with offices in London and Berlin, Visionaries Club has strategically positioned itself at the heart of Europe's tech ecosystem. Their focus? Seed and early growth stages, particularly in the B2B and software sectors. Robert’s investments include Personio, Choco, Miro, Pigment, Tacto, and Babbel, just to name a few.

Today, we'll dive deep into Robert's strategy, exploring why they've structured their funds the way they have, and getting his insights on the European VC landscape. Get ready for an enlightening conversation that will leave you with a new appreciation for the intricacies of venture capital in Europe. So, without further ado, let's welcome Robert Lacher to the show!

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:
* 00:03 Meet Robert Lacker: Founding Partner of Visionaries Club * 00:14 Visionaries Club: Fund Size and Focus * 03:13 Robert's Journey into Venture Capital * 04:14 Connecting Old and New Economies * 08:48 The Role of Family Entrepreneurs in Innovation * 18:17 Visionaries Club's Unique Approach * 28:53 Challenges and Opportunities in European VC * 36:51 Introduction to S16 VC and Its Impact * 37:28 Upcoming Content Collaboration with S16 VC * 38:03 Key Learnings from the Last Decade * 39:04 The Ikigai Framework for Passion and Profession * 41:02 Overcoming Setbacks and Failures * 42:54 Networking and Learning in Venture Capital * 45:14 Advice for Aspiring Entrepreneurs * 47:52 The Importance of Risk-Taking * 57:21 Local vs. Pan-European VC Strategies * 01:01:38 Manufacturing Serendipity in Venture Capital

Kicking off our efforts to further connect the European VC and Corporate world, we’re talking to our in-house CVC expert and friend Jeppe Høier, uncovering his biggest learnings in CVC, how he thinks about corporates as LPs and the key trends he thinks will impact the industry going forward.

Jeppe Høier is a long-time corporate venturing specialist and former partner at Maersk Growth with more than 80 MUSD invested for a multiple of 3.6x with massive breakout Einride in the portfolio.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

00:25 Bridging the Gap Between VC and Corporate Worlds
02:00 The Growing Importance of CVC
02:28 Jeppe's Journey into Venture Capital
03:12 Joining Maersk Growth
05:00 Maersk Growth: Early Days and Challenges
08:03 Strategic Shifts and Direct Investments
11:10 Case Studies and Early Investments
18:18 Strategic vs Financial Motives in CVC
19:18 Challenges and Misconceptions in CVC
25:24 Hiring Talent for CVC Teams
27:47 Diligence in CVC Partnerships
39:15 Corporate Climbing and Collaboration
42:08 Corporate LP Investing 45:08 Trends in CVC in Europe
47:28 Conclusion and Future Episodes

Welcome to a new episode of the EUVC podcast, where we’ll cover recent news and movements in the European tech landscape with Dan Bowyer and Mads Jensen from SuperSeed.

Go to eu.vc to read the core take-aways.

Chapters:
* 02:45 Telegram CEO Arrested in France * 03:35 Debate on Free Speech and Responsibility * 04:07 Balancing Security and Privacy * 07:58 The Role of Mega Firms in VC * 12:36 UK Budget and Its Impact on Startups * 13:44 Potential Tax Changes and Their Implications * 15:26 Comparing Economic Strategies: UK vs. US * 16:50 The Need for Bold Economic Moves * 19:42 Cancer Vaccines and Medical Innovations * 21:12 AI and Personalized Medicine * 23:24 AI Regulation and Its Impact on Europe * 26:39 Germany's Economic Challenges and Renewable Energy * 28:17 The Future of Nuclear Energy in Germany * 29:58 Agentic Workflows: The Future of AI in Business * 31:27 Microservices and Autonomous Agents * 32:24 Productivity Enhancements in Corporates * 32:34 Closing Thoughts on AI and Business

In this episode of the EUVC podcast, Andreas discusses with Christoph Klink, a Partner at Antler.

He draws on his background as a Business Angel and Partner with McKinsey & Company. Before joining Antler, he served a range of leading technology organizations, amongst others in the mobility and transportation space, on disruptive strategy and building innovative business models. Building and nurturing top-talent organizations is one of his key passions and a great source of inspiration for Christoph.

Christoph is at the forefront of early-stage investing, and we're thrilled to have him share his insights with us. Christoph is investing out of Antler's first Continental European fund, which has an impressive 60M EUR AUM. What sets Antler apart is their focus on investing and supporting startups from "day zero" to Series C.

In today's episode, we're diving deep into a topic that Cristoph has studied recently: The Rise of the European Technical Founder. Christoph will share some insights from their recent report, and why Antler is doubling down on this area and how it could be a game-changer for European tech.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

00:02 Meet Christophe Klink from Antler Continental Europe
00:13 Antler's Investment Focus and Portfolio
00:44 The Importance of Technical Founders in Europe
03:12 Christophe's Recent Study on Technical Founders
04:15 Challenges in Building European Tech Giants
06:54 The Rise of Technical Founders in Europe
21:30 Antler's Approach to Founder Team Composition
26:09 The Role of Generalists and Specialists in Startups
28:53 Finding the Right Co-Founder
29:13 Recap of Core Learnings
29:48 European Tech Giants Dilemma
29:54 Rise of Technical Founders
31:14 Meet Christoph: The Investor
33:23 Antler's Work Ethic and Culture
36:48 Challenges of Building Antler
38:24 Olympic Medalists vs. Unicorn Founders
40:35 Top Lessons in Venture Capital 47:16 Advice for Emerging VCs

AI is not just a buzzword; it's a force that's transforming industries across the board.

This is why we have brought together Europe’s top tech minds for a roundtable discussion that will provide an inside look at the most significant trends and investment strategies, helping you stay ahead of the curve.

Our guests:
* Sam Cash, Founding Partner, Entropy Industrial Capital * Eric Truebenbach, Managing Director, Teradyne Robotics Ventures * Claude Ritter, Managing Partner, Cavalry Ventures

The discussion begins with an overview of what AI in this context actually means, followed by a deep dive into whether the buzz around AI’s impact on both white-collar and blue-collar jobs is more hype or genuine reality. With insights from leading VCs, the conversation will also show how investors approach AI in these industries, showcasing notable companies and the strategic interests driving their investment decisions.

Additionally, the event will discuss the European investment landscape for AI, weighing the strengths, opportunities, and challenges unique to this region, offering a clear picture of where the continent stands in the global AI race.

Chapters:
* 06:23 Defining AI in the Physical World * 08:20 Applications and Impact of AI in the Physical World * 12:48 Challenges in AI Deployment * 22:26 Transitioning to AI-Enabled Robotics * 29:13 Overcoming Obstacles in AI and Robotics * 33:27 Investor Landscape in Europe * 34:08 AI's Impact on the Physical World * 36:34 Challenges for Generalist Investors * 38:55 The Future of AI and Robotics * 43:13 Investment Strategies and Risks * 45:35 Emerging Trends in AI * 57:26 Europe's Position in Robotics * 01:04:13 Closing Thoughts and Future Outlook

The Seed: Weekly Tech & VC Roundup This week on The Seed:

Featuring insights from Alex McDonald (Sequel.co), Mads Jensen (SuperSeed), and Andreas (EUVC). Join us for a deep dive into the latest in tech, startups, and venture capital.

Chapters:

00:00 - Intro and welcome
01:14 - Launch of The Seed podcast collaboration
05:14 - UK rejects EU youth mobility scheme: Missed opportunity or political maneuvering? Mads and Alex discuss the implications for talent and investment.
10:02 - AI fears on the rise: 56% of US firms now see AI as a potential risk. Alex argues against heavy-handed regulation, while Mads considers the need for oversight.
18:42 - California's proposed AI regulation: Discussing potential liability for model developers.
23:15 - Startup shutdowns up 60%: Alex provides context, suggesting it's part of a natural cycle following increased startup formation in 2021-2022.
25:33 - The "silent VC recession": Examining the recent 0.4% return in Q4 2023 after a two-year drought. Mads explains the industry's need to adjust to new realities.
31:54 - The value of patience in VC: Alex shares insights on why funds optimizing for quick returns often underperform in the long run.
36:22 - UK AI funding controversy: Discussing Labour's decision to scrap a £1.3B Conservative AI initiative.

We're excited to announce our investment in Silicon Roundabout Ventures, a £5 million SuperAngel Deep Tech pre/seed fund by Francesco Perticarari.

Backing Silicon Roundabout Ventures is a bet on Francesco. We’ve known Francesco for three years now and following his journey, unwavering hustle and community grow has been an inspiration. Francesco brings a strong technical background as a former CTO/Lead Software Engineer at deep tech startups and the University of London and has made 15 angel investments, 12 of which are within Deep Tech/Big Data and are progressing well.

We love Francesco for his community-driven approach leveraging his community of 15,000+ founders and engineers, built through more than 600 deep tech meetup events held in London since 2011. As an example of the opportunity this community presents, the 26 pitch competition winners from 2016 - 2020 have a combined enterprise value of £6.3 billion. The ecosystem Francesco has built around himself and plugged the fund into clearly provides unique access for SRV.

Francesco and the team at Silicon Roundabout Ventures invest in "Next-Generation technology startups" across five categories:
Technical: Leveraging in-house science and engineering expertise
Infrastructural: Solving large-scale global problems at the infrastructure level
Defensible: Building fundamental hardware or low-level software with strong IP
Trend-Setting: Disrupting industries with 1B+ revenue potential in 10+ years
Global Impact: Addressing key challenges in Computing, Climate, Health, and Defense
With this investment, we cement and announce to the world that we believe Silicon Roundabout Ventures is well-positioned to build one of Europe’s new truly meaningful deep tech firms. If you'd like an intro to Francesco, don't hesitate to reach out 💌

Chapters:
* 02:32 Francesco's Journey into Venture Capital * 03:27 Building Silicon Roundabout Ventures * 05:50 Defining Deep Tech * 08:20 Challenges of Being a Solo GP * 15:58 Leveraging Community for Investment Success * 20:44 The Origin and Growth of the Tech Meetup Community * 27:06 Impact and Achievements of the Community * 29:02 Understanding Enterprise Value * 29:09 Challenges of Raising a Fund * 30:18 Angel Investing and Fund Commitments * 31:11 Evaluating Early-Stage Companies * 32:08 The AI Investment Landscape * 33:01 Sector-Specific AI Investments * 33:51 Fund Size and Investment Strategy * 36:51 Deep Tech and Emerging Sectors * 43:24 Fund Economics and Allocation Strategy * 50:11 Vision for Silicon Roundabout Ventures

In this episode of the EUVC podcast, we prepared a new panel discussion with our friend Tom McGinn, General Counsel at Northzone. We’ve been looking forward to having a conversation on this topic for a long time, especially after Generative AI gained traction. So, without too much ado, let’s dive into all things LegalTech.

We are joined by:* Zach Posner, Co-Founder & Managing Director at The LegalTech Fund, a dedicated investor across the globe that focuses on the legal community and companies transforming the world of law. * Shruthi Ajitzaria, Partner at A&O Shearman, a former derivatives lawyer, who about seven years ago, launched Fuse, an incubator focused on LegalTech. * Nnamdi Emelifeonwu, CEO & Co-Founder at Definely, a LegalTech company that provides a unified solution for lawyers by simplifying access and understanding of legal documents.

The discussion centers on the evolving legal tech industry, highlighting the importance of bridging legal and tech expertise, understanding customer pain points, and creating strong user experiences. It also addresses the role of AI, particularly language models, in shaping the future of legal tech while noting the challenges posed by regulatory constraints and the differences between the European and US legal tech markets.

The latest episode of Startups in Focus features Leonid Feinberg, founder of Verax, a Seedcamp-backed company that provides enterprise-grade trust solutions for generative AI. Having a strong background in security and cloud services, including a previous company acquired by Amazon, Leonid shares insights on managing AI-related risks and offers practical advice for future customers regarding AI's potential and trust management.

In conversation with Seedcamp’s Managing Director Carlos Espinal, he delves into the challenges and solutions associated with deploying generative AI in production. He also explains how Verax's Control Center helps enterprises gain visibility and mitigate risks by analyzing and modifying AI responses in real-time.

Chapters:

00:00 Introduction to Today's Guest: Leonid Feinberg, Co-founder and CEO of Verax
00:53 Leonid's Background and Journey to Founding Verax
01:33 Understanding Verax: Enterprise Trust Solution for Generative AI
02:48 Architectural Insights: Rolling Out LLMs in Enterprises
05:02 Challenges and Best Practices in AI Deployment
08:01 Future of AI and Data Management
12:16 Verax's Role in Enterprise AI Trust
18:39 Geopolitics and AI: Global Implications
26:15 Advice for future AI Customers
28:21 Conclusion

For today’s episode of the EUVC podcast, we have prepared a panel discussion on Data Driven Portfolio Modelling, and we brought together:* Joel Larsson, Founding GP of Pale blue dot * Jon Coker, Founding GP of Eka Ventures * Joe Schorge, Founding GP of Isomer Capital * Anubhav Srivastava, Founder & CEO of Tactyc.

Together, we discuss portfolio modeling, fund forecasting, and portfolio construction, emphasizing the importance of maintaining a current fund forecast and making adjustments based on real-world market conditions.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

08:29 Best Practices in Portfolio Modeling
10:03 Maintaining a Dynamic Fund Forecast
12:05 Challenges in Portfolio Construction
32:51 Debating Portfolio Concentration
39:40 Sector-Specific Strategies and Risks
42:24 Portfolio Construction Insights
43:01 Examples of Portfolio Construction
44:27 Fundraising Challenges and Realities
47:23 Tracking Fund Progress
49:50 Evaluating Portfolio Companies
52:32 Qualitative vs Quantitative Metrics
01:08:20 Scenario Analysis and Reserves
01:11:00 Optimizing Reserves
01:25:59 Closing Remarks and Takeaways

In this episode of the EUVC podcast, Andreas talks with Christian Dorffer, Founder and General Partner of Defiance Capital, about The Unicorn Founders DNA report that Christian and his team recently published.

Defiance Capital is a €25M fund based in London focused on investments at the pre-seed stage. They invest in sectors like enterprise AI for companies based in Europe and the US.

The report reveals that a significant number of unicorn founders are immigrants and women, challenging the traditional criteria used by venture capitalists to evaluate founders. The conversation also discusses the challenges faced by underrepresented founders in raising capital and the need for a more sophisticated approach to identifying and backing non-obvious founders.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:
* 02:41 Deep Dive into the Unicorn Founders DNA Report * 03:08 Christian's Background and Investment Philosophy * 06:07 Core Findings of the DNA Report * 06:50 European vs. US Unicorn Founders * 09:09 Challenges Faced by Female Founders * 13:38 VCs' Approach to Diverse Teams * 15:45 Christian's Investment Strategy * 17:02 Opportunities for Non-Obvious Founders * 23:11 Defiant Capital's Operational Model * 26:38 Christian Dorfer's Personal Journey * 39:53 Advice for Young Entrepreneurs and VCs * 48:17 Closing Remarks and Final Thoughts

In this episode of the EUVC podcast, David discusses with Chris Wade, Founding Partner at Isomer Capital.

David and Chris discuss the current sentiment in the European venture capital ecosystem. They touch on topics such as VC sentiment, comparisons to previous years, LP appetite, the potential IPOs of Revolut and Klarna, the rise of AI and semiconductor companies, and the geopolitical and economic uncertainties affecting the industry.

Chris also reflects on the positive and negative developments in 2024 and the importance of humanity prevailing over negative forces.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

01:19 VC Sentiment in 2024
02:36 Comparing 2021 and 2024
04:01 European Venture Capital Landscape
05:00 The Power Law in Venture Capital
11:06 Emerging Managers and AI
13:26 The Importance of Exits
23:58 The Semiconductor Renaissance
27:39 Global Political Climate and Its Impact
30:31 Predictions and Reflections
31:40 Standing by Predictions
32:45 Interest Rates and M&A
34:48 AI's Impact on Venture Capital
38:49 Regulation and Ethics of AI
46:51 Geopolitical Tensions and Defense Tech
57:53 Personal Growth in 2024
01:01:12 The End of Mega Funds Era

This is the second of the “Startups in Focus” series, where Carlos Espinal from Seedcamp chats with Ryan Donnelly, co-founder and CEO of Enzai. Their conversation revolves around:
* the impact of AI as a technological revolution similar to the mobile shift, dotcom boom, and web invention * the importance of regulations and standards in ensuring AI’s responsible use and trustworthiness * the challenges and opportunities in AI adoption * Enzai’s mission of enabling organizations to leverage AI technology effectively and responsibly, in compliance with emerging regulations * Enzai’s vision of enabling trust in AI * future regulatory landscapes and the necessary frameworks for AI adoption

Chapters:

00:00 Introduction to the AI Technological Revolution
00:36 Meet Ryan Donnelly: Co-founder and CEO of Enzai
01:14 The Inspiration Behind Enzai
02:19 Understanding Enzai’s Customers
03:13 The Role of Regulations in AI
05:07 The Evolution of AI Regulations
10:26 The Importance of Standards in AI
14:20 Enzai’s Vision for the Future
15:49 Final Thoughts and Call to Action

In this episode of the EUVC podcast, Andreas discusses with Chris Wade, Founding Partner at Isomer Capital, and Travis Pittman, co-founder and CEO of TourRadar, one of the finalists in the Achievement of the Year category at this year’s European VC Awards.

TourRadar is an Organized Adventure Platform, offering the world’s largest selection of multi-day adventures worldwide. TourRadar’s online platform seamlessly connects travelers and travel agents with 2,500 multi-day operators, offering 50,000 adventures in more than 160 countries globally.

Travis has raised $60m of capital from Speedinvest, Hoxton Ventures, and Cherry Ventures and, in 2018, raised a C round led by Technology Crossover Ventures (TCV). Isomer Capital and LGT also joined this round. The company’s GMV grew to 9 figures in 2019, then 2020 started very well with all-time high monthly revenues until Feb 2020 when Covid hit revenues went negative as customers asked for their money back as they were unable to travel.

To ensure the business's survival, they made significant cuts to their workforce and reduced salaries. Travis emphasized the importance of transparency in communication during uncertain times. Despite the difficulties, TourRadar was able to recover and is now back at a revenue level above pre-COVID levels and more profitable. They have also expanded their product offerings, particularly in the payments and affiliate networks areas.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

00:00 Introduction and Background of TourRadar
10:49 Pre-COVID Success and Funding Journey
15:06 Understanding and Improving Unit Economics
23:50 Prioritizing Customer Support and Making Difficult Decisions
26:14 Adapting and Navigating Through the Crisis
36:00 Transparency and Communication in Uncertain Times
40:13 Expanding Product Offerings: Payments and Affiliate Networks
48:14 The Future of TourRadar: Mobile App Development and Search Experience
53:44 Prioritizing Mental Health and the Role of Supportive Investors

In this episode of the EUVC podcast, Andreas discusses with - Mikhail Taver, Founder and Managing Partner of Taver Capital II, with a target fund size of $20M.

Taver Capital is a fund based on Delaware, US, focused on early-stage global AI startups from the industrial sector. They have already invested in companies like Earth AI, MSQRD (acquired by Facebook), ID R&D (acquired by Mitek), and Sayana (acquired by Headspace).

In this conversation, Andreas discusses with Mikhail his experience in robotics and AI investing, the potential of AI in various industries, the challenges of communication between startups and corporations, the impact of regulation on technological progress, and the importance of education and networking in fundraising. They also touch on the topic of mentors and the need for founders to find their own path.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

00:12 Tavar Capital II: Focus and Investments
03:34 Passion for Robotics and AI
03:53 Mikhail's Journey into Robotics and AI
06:36 AI in Industry: Early Examples
08:11 Earth AI: A Success Story
08:47 Predictive Maintenance and More
09:28 VC Metrics of Success
11:07 Challenges in Industry Disruption
12:09 Communication Gaps Between Startups and Corporations
15:07 GP-LP Dynamics in Venture Capital
18:24 Communication Gaps Between Startups and VCs
21:19 Working with Generalist VCs
23:04 Regulation and Technological Progress
31:45 Advice for Emerging VCs and Founders

In this roundtable discussion, experts from European venture capital and innovation ecosystems share insights on empowering women in these fields. The conversation addressed the importance of female representation in venture capital, investment in women-led startups, women's challenges in these industries, and initiatives to support female entrepreneurs.

The dialogue also touches on inclusive innovation policies, the impact of parental leave on careers, and strategies for long-term solutions to encourage more women to pursue careers in science, technology, and engineering.

Our guests were:
* Ralitsa Zhekova, Executive Director at RAPIV * Deepali Nangia, Partner at Speedinvest * Iwona Cymerman, General Partner at FundingBox Deep Tech Fund * Jone Vaituleviciute, General Partner at FIRSTPICK

The roundtable happened as part of the CO-INVESTIN project, an EU-funded project to connect our beautiful European investment ecosystems while strengthening transparency and inclusion across the ecosystem ✊.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

07:04 Inclusive Innovation Policies
09:52 Challenges in Female Representation
11:53 Breaking Barriers in Venture Capital
21:47 High Churn Rates Among Women in Venture
27:36 Strategies for Retaining Women in Venture
30:57 Empowering Women in the Workplace
31:58 Challenges Faced by Women and Ethnic Minorities
32:06 Balancing Parenthood and Career in Venture Capital
33:19 Parental Policies in Small vs. Large Funds
34:07 Personal Experiences with Parental Leave
36:35 The Reality of Parenthood in High-Level Careers
40:02 Gender Roles and Societal Expectations
43:56 The Importance of Open and Transparent Relationships
51:15 Encouraging Women in STEM

Join us as Tom Wilson from Seedcamp and Anthony Danon from Cocoa talk to Sarah Harvey, Advisor at Tunic Pay.

In this episode of the Super Angel podcast, Sarah Harvey discusses her career transition from strategy roles in both corporate and non-profit sectors to operating roles in startups, eventually starting her journey into angel investing.

Sarah shares insights from her experiences with different startups, including Tough Mudder, Square, and Prodigy Finance, and highlights the importance of networking, the impact of her work in health tech during COVID-19, and her approach to angel investing. She also emphasizes the significance of diversity on cap tables and how her unique background adds value to the companies she invests in.

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Chapters:

02:30 Discovering Angel Investing
03:03 First Steps in Angel Investing
03:18 Bringing Experience to Angel Investing
03:58 Memorable Deals and Investments
04:37 The Value of Angel Investing
05:25 Personal and Professional Growth
05:48 Encouraging Female Angel Investors
07:22 Transitioning to Investment Strategies
07:44 Investment Focus and Portfolio
09:04 Evaluating Founders
10:04 Value Proposition to Founders
11:07 Future Portfolio Development
14:59 Collaboration and Networking
16:48 Core Learnings from Angel Investing

n this episode of the EUVC podcast, Andreas discusses with Carlos Eduardo Espinal , Managing Partner at Seedcamp.

Carlos Eduardo Espinal is a Managing Partner at Seedcamp, arguably, Europe's leading seed fund, first launched in 2007 to support European entrepreneurs truly compete on a global scale. With investments in over 460 companies including publicly listed Romanian-founded, UiPath, Wise and unicorns Revolut, wefox and Pleo. Carlos is a published author, fellow podcaster and has been on the Forbes Midas List as one of the most influential VCs in Europe for more or less as long as yours truly has been alive.

In today’s discussion, we're talking about the third edition of the "Fundraising field guide" the latest startup founder's guide to all things fundraising launched by Carlos. This third edition captured a very interesting period in VC, marking the completion of VC market’s full fundraising cycle.

The first edition of the book was written during the linear growth curve of the post-2008 era. The second during the “bubble” in valuations formed post-COVID where we saw large injections of capital into private markets leading to an exponential growth period for startups. This third edition covers the collapse of that “bubble”, and highlights common pitfalls you should avoid as an early-stage founder (such as taking too much money).

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Chapters:

06:23 The Challenges of Access to Knowledge and Best Practices
09:12 The Three Cycles of Carlos' Book
13:09 The Success of VC as an Asset Class
16:24 The Emergence of Many Unicorns
26:18 Added Pressure on Founders to Tell Compelling Stories
28:41 The Focus on Sustainable Business Models
33:45 The Balancing Act: High-Growth Potential vs. Stable Business Models
38:32 The Cyclical Nature of Venture Capital
43:09 Creating Liquidity and Attractiveness for Companies
46:20 Supporting Struggling Companies and Making Difficult Decisions
49:47 The Challenges and Benefits of the Large Portfolio Model
56:20 The Impact of Financing Terms and Structures
01:13:39 Changing Attitudes to Tech Entrepreneurship and the Role of VCs

In this episode of the EUVC podcast, Andreas discusses with Sion Evans, Senior Investment Manager at VenCap, currently investing out of a $340M fund with $2.0bn in total AUM.

VenCap was founded in 1987 and is one of the longest-established FoFs around. They are headquartered in the UK and are backing the leading Tier 1 firms from globally — with just 12 core relationships! They count 47 underlying unicorns with notable mentions being the likes of Google, Facebook, Airbnb, Coinbase, ByteDance, and Stripe.

In today’s discussion, we're talking about manager selection and big versus small funds, a topic we're constantly debating on LinkedIn, as well as how Sion and Andreas thinks about fund sizing in Europe.

Sion emphasizes that good funds outperform, regardless of their size, and whatever the strategy, manager selection is the most important factor in venture.

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Chapters

00:11 Overview of VenCap's Investment Strategy
03:13 Debating Big vs. Small Funds
04:50 The Importance of Manager Selection
05:42 Analyzing Fund Performance Data
09:39 Fund Sizing in Europe
14:46 VenCap's Global Investment Approach
26:40 Fund Size and Investment Strategy
27:58 Fund Sizes and Portfolio Construction
28:35 Early Stage vs. Growth Stage Strategies
29:02 Global Investment Approach
30:08 Performance Consistency Across Strategies
31:21 Risk and Return in Venture Capital
32:31 Building and Maintaining Relationships
35:14 Performance Dispersion in Venture Capital
44:11 Secondary Investments and Strategy
49:17 Reflections and Personal Insights

In this episode, Andreas discusses with Giulia Van Waeyenberge, an experienced investor and judge in the European VC Awards. Giulia is the Managing Director of Sofina Group, an investment holding company with more than 9 billion in AUM.

Sofina Group is a global investor. It invests mainly in the Venture and Growth stages. Its sectors include digital, healthcare and life sciences, consumer, education, and sustainable supply chain sectors. Sofina has a direct investment strategy, investing from a series B/C until IPO and beyond. We also invest in venture and growth capital funds on a global basis. We invest from our own balance sheet and take a long-term view.

Sofina is a shareholder in Vinted (a second-hand marketplace), Mistral AI, Cleo (an AI chatbot providing financial advice to young adults), and ByteDance.

On the fund side, they have long-standing relationships with US managers where they have invested for several decades in firms like Sequoia, Iconiq, and Lightspeed.In Europe, they invested in several European GPs, some more emerging than others. In the seed stage, they have a partnership with Point Nine, Moonfire, Atlantic Labs, Seedcamp, Visionaries Club, Stride, and Hoxton. On the seed/series A stage they have invested in Blossom Capital, Singular, and Alven. On the platform side, they have in funds like Northzone, Balderton, Atomico, Dawn, and Felix Capital.

Today, Giulia shares her reasons for joining the awards and her commitment to supporting and contributing to the European venture ecosystem. She discusses her investment strategy, which focuses on backing entrepreneurs with patient capital and supportive advice. Giulia also discusses the importance of ESG and sustainability in her investment approach.

Gulia also shares her views on the maturity of the European venture ecosystem and the strengths of Europe as a market for venture investment. Finally, Giulia provides valuable insights and advice for emerging VCs on fundraising and navigating the industry's challenges.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters

05:49 Direct Investments and Partnerships
06:16 Allocation and Investment Decision-making
07:40 Investing from a Balance Sheet
08:39 Investment Pace and Diversification
09:08 Allocation to Venture and Growth
10:44 Investing in Venture for Multiple Decades
22:56 Views on the European Venture Ecosystem
25:12 Maturity of the European Ecosystem
28:37 US Investors' Perspective on Europe
32:37 Venture in Eastern Europe
33:37 Long-Term Orientation and Dealing with Challenges
37:58 Shoutout to Ophelia Brown of Blossom
39:25 Learnings from the Last 10 Years
41:30 Tips for Emerging VCs in Fundraising
42:44 Counterintuitive Lessons in Venture

In today’s episode, Andreas discusses the importance of ESG in the venture capital industry with our four guests:* Henry Philipson, Director of Marketing and Communications at Beringea * Ashley Brown, Sustainability Manager at Atomico * Antonia Whitecourt, Director at Seedcamp * Grace Savage, ESG Lead at Molten Ventures

We are talking about ESG in VC because ESG_VC recently published an analysis of ESG data collected from 587 startups backed by leading VC firms, including Atomico, Molten Ventures, Bringea, and Seedcamp. ESG_VC is a global network of more than 300 VC firms enabling start-ups to tackle ESG.

Join us while diving into the value of ESG for startups, how VCs are working with founders to drive forward the sustainability agenda, and what the future of European ESG looks like. We also address the buzz surrounding ESG, emphasizing the need to focus on building well-governed and responsible businesses.

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Chapters:

00:34 Deep Dive into the ESG Report
07:11 Importance of ESG in Startups
07:36 Historical Context of ESG
09:15 Operational vs. Strategic ESG
10:19 Challenges and Opportunities in ESG
11:14 Backlash and Misunderstandings of ESG
12:32 Divergence in ESG Practices
16:32 Future of ESG in European VC
19:38 Materiality and Practical Implementation
25:25 Carbon Footprint and Environmental Impact
35:17 Diversity and Talent in Startups

Join us as Tom Wilson from Seedcamp and Anthony Danon from Cocoa talk to Cyril Chemla, co-founder at ProcessOut (acquired by checkout.com)

In this episode of the Super Angel podcast, Cyril shares his inspiring journey from a school project in computer science to building a successful payment business that was acquired by Checkout.com.

Cyril discusses the importance of resilience, the dynamics of starting a business while still a student, and the impact of support from VCs and angel investors. He emphasizes the value of networking, iterating on business ideas, and the role of imposter syndrome in continuous learning.

Cyril also shares memorable experiences from his angel investing career and offers insights into his investment strategy, including the importance of evaluating founders and market potential beyond just revenue figures. The discussion also touches on the significance of collaboration and network-building in angel investing, particularly for international investments.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:
* 01:04 Cyril's Early Days in Computer Science * 01:43 The Birth of ProcessArt * 02:15 Acquisition by Checkout.com * 02:37 Support from Mentors and Angel Investors * 03:19 Giving Back to the Ecosystem * 03:46 Encouraging Young Entrepreneurs * 04:15 The Best Times to Start a Business * 06:39 Memorable Angel Investments * 07:50 Investing in Family Connections * 09:20 Traveling and Bonding with Founders * 11:55 Lessons from Angel Investing * 16:19 The Importance of Grit and Determination * 16:48 Cyril's Investment Strategy * 17:56 Focus on FinTech * 26:03 Challenges in the FinTech Market * 27:36 Collaboration with Angels and VCs * 31:24 Key Learnings and Advice

In this episode we’re joined by one of the most honest and dynamic LPs we’ve yet met: Evan Finkel, Head of Venture Capital Investments at Integra Global Advisors. Evan’s based in the US with an Early-stage investment focus - first check to Series A in the US, Europe, Israel, and LatAm. This is a long one and covers a lot of ground from an LP’s perspective, so strap in. Big shoutout to Ophelia Cai from Tiny for the introduction 💖

In this episode, Evan emphasizes the importance of accessing top-tier investment opportunities and the need for a data-informed approach as well as his perspective on the current market conditions, including the deployment slowdown and the potential for a macro TVPI adjustment. The conversation also highlights the importance of having well-defined goals and strategies as a venture capital LP, exploring the principles and considerations important when allocating to venture.

We also discuss how investing in smaller funds yield a higher probability of outsize returns for LPs as well as the stages of investment that Evan believes offer the best value for money while overcoming the challenges of performance dispersion in VC.

Finally, we discuss the classification of ecosystems, why Evan considers Europe an established ecosystem and how he thinks about the challenges and opportunities in different VC markets, concluding on the importance of data-informed decision-making and the importance of separating personal relationships from investment decisions.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

02:02 Meet Evan Finkel: Background and Journey
05:37 Building a Global Venture Fund Strategy
09:25 Market Insights and Current Trends
13:08 Challenges and Opportunities in Emerging Markets
17:04 Government Support and Market Distortion in Europe
21:07 Deployment Slowdowns and Capital Management
22:34 First Principles of VC Investment Strategy
30:47 Performance Dispersion in Venture Capital
38:00 European Venture Challenges
40:44 The Emotional Side of VC
41:47 Balancing Emotions and Investments
44:18 Friends in VC: A Double-Edged Sword
45:50 The Reality of Fund Management
55:32 Operational Due Diligence
01:05:33 Fundraising Strategies for Emerging VCs
01:08:35 The Commitment of Raising a Fund
01:12:07 Counterintuitive Learnings for LPs

In this episode of the EUVC podcast, Andreas discusses, with Richard Muirhead, Managing Partner at Fabric Ventures, the transformative potential of Web3 and AI.

Richard shares insights into how these technologies will reshape the internet, the power dynamics between big tech and decentralized communities, and Fabric Ventures' role in this evolving landscape. They also discuss ethical considerations, the development of decentralized finance, and the challenges and opportunities facing venture capital in Europe.

Fabric Ventures is a 125M EUR fund, with 250M under management, anchored in Europe around Paris & Zurich, but investing globally. They are actively investing in WEB3, which has become a global phenomenon, and they have incredible investments in their portfolio so far, such as Sorare, Ramp, Near, Immutable, Polkadot, Flashbots, and many more.

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Chapters:

In this conversation, we explore the distinction between construction tech and prop tech, with a focus on the former. Construction tech is a project-based business that optimizes supply chains, while prop-tech is an operations-based business that focuses on real estate transactions and utilization. The conversation delves into:* The different segments within construction tech, including architecture, engineering, construction, and supply chain technology. * The importance of outcome-based business models. * The role of AI and data infrastructure in the construction industry.

The conversation concludes with an analysis of the funding trajectory of construct tech and its potential for future growth. Andreas and Patric examine the waves of technology in the construction industry and the importance of data connectivity and harmonization. They also touch on the challenges of pre-manufactured housing and the fallacies in VC fund strategies. Patric shares insights on their fund model, which is vertically dedicated, global, and focused on early-stage investments. They prioritize preempting follow-on rounds and emphasize the importance of staying involved and not delegating decision-making. Patric also offers advice to young people in the industry, including thinking from a DPI perspective and finding differentiation.

About the guest.

Patric Hellermann, the Founding General Partner of Foundamental, an $84M EUR venture capital fund focusing on construction technology, with $100M EUR Fund III just launched.

About the firm.

Foundamental is led by three GPs, 1 in the US, 1 in Europe, and 1 in Pacific Asia. They are investing in AEC-Tech: 3D-design, Construction, Renovation, Supply Chain & Logistics, and Blue-Collar Work, starting from day zero up to Series A.

Portoflio highlights count Infra.Market (Series A), Enter (pre-seed), Speckle (pre-seed), Rayon (pre-seed), Metalbook (pre-seed), SafeAI (seed), and Wizfreight (seed).

Key facts include a 94% follow-on rate among Fund-1 companies, the vast majority of which they invested at seed, top-decile returns in both funds, incl. top-decile DPI (Fund-2 actually top 3-5% currently), circa 10 portfolio companies have achieved net-profitability.

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Chapters:

00:03 Meet Patric Hellemann and Foundamental
00:32 ConstructTech Explained
03:40 PropTech vs. ConstructTech
05:40 AECS: Architecture, Engineering, Construction, and Supply Chain
06:58 Robotics in Construction
08:51 Challenges and Opportunities in Construct Tech
19:33 Data Infrastructure and AI in AECS
33:07 Market Trends and Investment Insights
41:06 Automating Data Connectivity
42:59 The Second and Third Waves of Data Integration
43:22 Consolidation in the Infrastructure Sector
45:00 Challenges in Construction Robotics
46:21 Onsite vs. Offsite Construction
47:04 Automating Bricklaying
48:36 VC Fallacies and Sector-Specific Insights
01:13:05 Personal Productivity and Fund Strategy

Celebrating one of the finalists in the Newcomer of the Year category at this year’s European VC Awards, this episode dives deep with Sarah Drinkwater, solo GP at Common Magic.

Common Magic is a pre-seed/seed solo GP fund investing in and supporting founders building products with community at their core across Europe and the US. As a small fund, they act like an angel:* fast decisions * operationally useful * comfortable being the first commitment

Sarah Drinkwater has been building communities in tech for over 15 years and building communities for fun for much longer. From advising protocols for Filecoin and Gitcoin on their ecosystem building to growing Campus, Google’s East London space for startups, and growing an angel investing portfolio of 36 startups, she built playbooks and networks that can help founders build powerful communities right from the start.
Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

00:24 Diving into Community

00:53 Common Magic's Investment Focus
03:07 Sarah's Journey and Achievements
04:19 Understanding Community in Tech
10:58 Blockchain and Community
17:27 Community as an Investment Focus
22:19 Fund Structure and Geography
22:47 Investment Focus and Strategy
23:27 Community and Market Assumptions
27:30 Monetization Strategies
28:29 Challenges in Community Building
35:45 AI and Community Platforms
38:38 AI Investment Trends
42:29 Fund Status and Future Plans

Celebrating a new finalist in the Firm of The Year category at this year’s European VC Awards, this episode dives deep with Beata Klein, Principal at CREANDUM.

Creandum is a leading European early-stage venture capital firm backing some of Europe’s most successful tech companies, including Spotify, Pleo, Kahoot, Depop, Trade Republic, Neo4j, and Factorial. Creandum has hubs in Stockholm, Berlin, London, and San Francisco.

In this episode, we dive deep into Beata’s article “AI in B2B SaaS: Beyond Vertical and into the Horizon(tal),” which we reproduce below together with the rest of the show notes.

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Chapters:

01:05 Deep Dive into AI and Horizontal vs Vertical SaaS
04:27 Beata's Insights on B2B SaaS and AI
06:15 The Future of AI in Horizontal SaaS
07:22 Challenges and Opportunities in AI Integration
09:15 Exploring Legacy Systems and New Innovations
20:31 Legal Tech and AI: A Disruptive Force
32:39 AI First Approach: The Future of User Interfaces
33:23 Revolutionizing the Internet: Human vs. Agent Interaction
35:10 Blockchain and AI: A Seamless Future
35:48 Tailwinds in AI: Adaptability and Data Ingestion
37:28 The Power of AI in Data Ingestion
41:03 AI in Compliance: Disrupting Legacy Systems
42:44 Horizontal vs. Vertical AI Applications
47:50 The Future of AI: European vs. US Models
51:48 Work-Life Balance and Career Growth in VC
59:06 Advice for Aspiring VCs: Embrace Failure and Specialize

Join us as Tom Wilson from Seedcamp and Anthony Danon from Cocoa talk to Szymon Sypniewicz, co-founder & CEO of Ramp Network.

Prior to Ramp, he was an advisor for a peer-to-peer bitcoin lending platform. He has a background in law and has worked for several legal firms, including Norton Rose Fulbright.

Szymon has also worked as the Director of Research at the Adrianople Group, where he conducted research on free economic zones around the world – focusing on areas in which companies are taxed very lightly or not at all to encourage economic activity. Like many leaders across the crypto space, Szymon has roots in libertarian free-market ideology, he is one of the original founders of the Libertarian Party in Poland.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:
* 00:50 Simon's Background and Journey * 01:03 Founding RAMP Network * 01:47 Transition to Angel Investing * 02:39 First Angel Investment Experience * 02:50 Investment Strategy and Learning * 02:53 Focus on Complex Technologies * 03:57 Investment Patterns and Themes * 05:03 Web3 and Early Stage Investments * 05:42 Criteria for Selecting Founders * 08:49 Geographical Focus: Poland and Europe * 10:45 Specialization vs. Broad Knowledge * 14:40 Characteristics of Successful Founders * 23:07 Advice for Aspiring Angels * 27:37 The Role of Angel Investors

Celebrating a new finalist in the Firm of The Year category at this year’s European VC Awards, this episode dives deep with Xavier Lazarus, Partner at Elaia Partners.

We’re very excited to have this conversation with Xavier because, as you already know, Elaia has achieved many things in +20 years of activity. Elaia is a French venture capital firm focused on European digital and deep tech startups, from early stage to growth development.

Together with Xavier, we’re gonna tackle the following topics:* Generative AI & how it has been shaping venture capital * Future AI trends and what we should expect from this industry * The recent 200M round they have just participated in with H company * The rise of Paris as a venture ecosystem and innovation hub * … and some other exciting topics that we invite you to discover by yourself.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

00:44 Diving into Gen AI and H Company
01:48 Xavier's Transition from Boutique to Franchise
04:58 Exploring H Company's AI Innovations
12:03 AI's Impact on Various Sectors
15:17 Future of AI in Education and Beyond
32:14 The Rise of French Tech
32:26 The Impact of AI and International Investments
34:02 Challenges and Strategies in Fund Modeling
36:28 Portfolio Management and Risk Assessment
43:52 Elia's Growth and Expansion
44:50 Strategic Partnership with Lazard
54:30 Personal Insights from Xavier Lazarus
58:23 Reflections on VC and Entrepreneurship

Celebrating a new finalist in the Firm of The Year category at this year’s European VC Awards, this episode dives deep with Max Bautin, co-founder & Managing Partner of IQ Capital.

IQ Capital is investing out of a 185 m€ Fund 4 and also has a 150 m€ Growth Opportunities fund and has an established portfolio of over 60 companies and notable investments, including Thought Machine, Paragraf, and Nyobolt.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

00:03 Meet Max Bautin of IQ Capital
00:42 IQ Capital's Deep Tech Investments
04:48 Deep Tech Trends and Challenges
05:15 Investor Interest in Deep Tech
06:33 Risks and Rewards in Deep Tech
16:23 Deep Tech Funding Resilience
20:24 Hardware and Materials in Deep Tech
28:11 Aerospace and Defense Innovations
41:00 Space as a Market: Strategy and Evolution
41:49 Starlink and SpaceX: Beyond Rockets
43:11 Innovations in Space Access and Manufacturing
44:33 The Rise of Robotics and AI
46:03 Investing in Robotics: Challenges and Opportunities
50:13 AI and Robotics: Hype vs. Reality
52:32 Exploring Computational Biology and Tech Bio
58:42 Deep Tech Software Trends
01:06:05 Managing VC Funds: Strategies and Challenges

Welcome back to a new episode of the European VC Podcast!Today, we are celebrating one of the finalists in the Exit of The Year category at this year’s European VC Awards, this episode dives deep with Marc-Olivier Luecke, General Partner at Atlantic Labs, and Christian Siewek, co-founder and MD at Vimcar.

Atlantic Labs is a 110M EUR fund with 300M under management, based in Berlin, Germany. They focus on pre-seed rounds but occasionally go for seed rounds. They focus mostly on Climate & Energy, AI & Data, and European Deep Tech. Some of the most notable investments from their portfolio are: Choco, Zenjob, Wandelbots, Again, and of course Vimcar.

We’re going to dive deep into the exit of Vimcar that happened in January 2023, together with Marc and Christian and make sure to touch on things like:
* the thesis of Atlantic Labs and why they invested in Vimcar * the challenges of building a company like Vimcar * the journey of going from pre-seed to Series B and exit to Battery Ventures * … and more that we invite you to discover below.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

00:23 Overview of Atlantic Labs
00:49 Vimcar's Journey and Exit
04:13 Investment Thesis and Founding Story
05:24 Early Challenges and Solutions
08:19 Series A Fundraising Journey
13:48 Series B and Expansion
21:38 Reflections on VC and Founder Dynamics
37:22 Investor Alignment and Ambitions
40:10 Series B Funding and Expansion
40:37 Challenges During the Tech Reset
43:07 Strategic Decisions in 2022
44:02 Reflections on Growth and Sales Strategies
51:14 Engaging with M&A Advisors
55:53 The Acquisition Process and Challenges
01:04:44 Post-Exit Integration and Leadership

Welcome back to a new episode of the European VC Podcast! Today, we are very excited to introduce you to Sumer Juneja, the Managing Partner of SoftBank Investment Advisors in Europe.

For those of you who don’t know, SoftBank is the GP of the Vision Fund that we all know about.SoftBank has an AUM of $147B across all funds, has made around 60 investments in Europe so far, and has allocated $13B in total here. In their current portfolio, you can find companies like Revolut, Klarna, eToro, or BytdeDance.

Sumer has been investing since 2006. Before SoftBank, Sumer was a Partner at Norwest Venture Partners, focusing on growth equity and venture investments in Indian companies across various sectors. He has led and successfully exited multiple investments, including Swiggy, Indusind Bank, Shriram City Union Finance, Cholamandalam Finance, and National Stock Exchange.At SoftBank, Sumer is covering the EMEA region and India, and today we’ll talk about things like:
* Europe vs. India - and how each market is different * Why Sumersh joined Softbank, and his view on fundraising. * How does investing in Europe look for SoftBank? * … and more that we invite you to discover below.

Chapters:

04:06 Sumer's Journey into Venture Capital
05:49 The Importance of Mentorship in Career Growth
08:52 Joining SoftBank: A Game-Changing Decision
11:43 SoftBank's Investment Strategy
15:54 Comparing Venture Dynamics: India vs. Europe
22:45 The European Exit Environment
26:46 Lessons from Success and Failure in VC
40:29 SoftBank's Success in India
42:35 The Importance of Having Your Feet on the Ground
43:15 SoftBank's Organizational Structure in Europe and India
46:45 Building Relationships with VCs
53:44 Evaluating Founders and CEOs
57:49 Case Study: Swiggy's Success in India
01:03:42 Challenges of Scaling Across Regions
01:04:23 Balancing Work and Family Life
01:12:20 Key Learnings and Advice for Emerging Managers

Celebrating one of the finalists in the Achievement of the Year category at at this year’s European VC Awards, this episode dives deep with Sophie Winwood, co-founder & CEO of WVC:E and Operating Partner at Foxe Capital.

Foxe Capital is a pre-seed and seed VC fund investing in the next generation of FinTech founders across the UK, Europe, and the US. Some of the companies they invested in are Flock, Kaiko, Hometree, Opply, and Ember.

Today, we are meeting with Sophie to talk about diversity in European venture capital, Sophie’s journey in VC, and some of the principles that led her to build WVC:E. WVC:E is a community and platform for women in VC. The company seeks to develop highly productive networks to increase the success of diverse investors and founders through frequent local and virtual events and training programs supported by a continuous stream of content and resources. The 950+ member WVC:E community includes GPs, LPs, investors, founders, and women working in tech. If you would like to join the WhatsApp community, let us know here!

The flagship Summit, which brings together 400+ women in VC across Europe, is taking place on Oct 7th and 8th in Paris, and early bird tickets are on sale now.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

00:25 Diversity in European Venture
02:24 WVCE's Achievement of the Year
04:48 The State of Diversity in European VC
08:20 Challenges and Underlying Causes
10:26 The Role of Role Models and Representation
32:15 Parental Leave and Support Systems
50:06 Building WVCE: The Journey Begins
54:09 Community Success
55:36 Expanding the Community
01:00:24 Community Design Principles
01:08:24 Policy Work and Industry Impact
01:11:41 Building a Successful Community
01:29:33 Advice for Young People in the Industry
01:33:59 Advice for Emerging VCs

Welcome back to another episode of the EUVC podcast. Today, we are discussing all things marketing in venture capital, such as:* narrative development * thesis development * measuring marketing activities * content creation for a VC firm * positioning and its role in fund strategy * AI impact on marketing & future trends in 2024

Our guests for this talk are Natasha Lytton, Director at Seedcamp, Vincent Touati-Tomas, Head of Marketing at Northzone, and Jeroen van Doornik, aka JD, among friends, co-founder & General Partner of Pacenotes.Before diving into the podcast itself, we also want to mention that we have already published two episodes on a similar topic with Natasha and Vincent that you can check out on EUVC.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

00:02 Marketing in Venture Capital
04:39 Crafting a Unique Identity for VC Firms
06:20 Balancing Differentiation and Credibility
15:12 Marketing Strategies for Emerging Managers
17:37 Thought Leadership and Thesis Development
34:06 The Role of AI in Venture Capital
36:35 Privacy and Confidentiality in AI Usage
37:29 The Role of AI in Content Creation
38:36 Using Templates and AI for Productivity
40:10 Data Ownership and Privacy Concerns
43:12 GDPR and Its Impact on Marketing
45:05 Challenges in Marketing Strategies
48:53 Brand and Strategy for VCs
53:14 Measuring Marketing Effectiveness
58:44 Reputation Management in VC Firms
* 01:07:08 Transparency and Performance in Venture Capital

Today, we welcome Rodrigo Ferreira, Investment Director at Vinthera, for a new episode of the EUVC podcast. As a VC investor at Vinthera, a hybrid venture capital fund, Rodrigo is backing top-performing VCs as an LP and their breakout companies across the US, Europe, and Israel.

Prior to joining Vinthera, Rodrigo gained 5 years of experience backing VC fund managers across the globe as Principal and Investment Team lead at boutique fund of funds firm BFP.

There he played a key role in over 20 fund investments and managed a portfolio of more than 50 funds with top decile aggregate returns.Before that, he gained experience in investment banking and asset management.

Rodrigo holds an MSc in Finance from ESADE Business School in Barcelona, a BSc (Hons) in Economics, and a BSc in Management from the University of Lisbon, where he later sat on both the Advisory Board and Board of Directors.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

00:25 Co-Investing Strategies with Emerging Managers
04:48 A Deep Dive into Diligencing Performance for Emerging Teams
05:11 The Three Pillars of Evaluating Fund Performance
05:57 Portfolio Construction: A Key Focus for Venture Capitalists
07:21 Understanding Track Record and Team Dynamics
10:21 The Art of Building a Concentrated Portfolio
10:58 Emerging Managers and the Strategy of Concentration
15:42 Co-Investment Strategies and Building Relationships
17:00 Relationship Building in Venture Capital
19:55 Diligencing the Partnership Fit with Managers
22:39 The Long-Term Nature of LP-GP Relationships
23:28 Closing Thoughts and Advice for Emerging Managers

Today, we are joined by David Dana.

David is the Head of VC Investments at the European Investment Fund, leading the Disruptive Tech & Innovation VC Team with 10 investment professionals. He contributed to developing the new #InvestEU financing program of the EU, aiming at ensuring the technological sovereignty of Europe.

Previously, he has been in charge of EIF investments in VC funds in France, Israel, and of the Luxembourg Future Fund. David was also overviewing EIF activities with Accelerators. Over 15 years, invested +€3.5B of capital in over 120 VC funds, mainly following deeptech strategies. Previously, spent 6 years as investment professional at SGAM AI Funds of Funds and senior advisor Corporate Finance at PWC.

David is also a regular contributor to podcasts and speaker at industry events, expert in deeptech fields such as AI, Space, Web 3.0, Blockchain, Quantum Technologies, Semiconductors, Tech Transfer.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

04:03 Initial Thoughts on Emerging Managers
04:35 Evaluating Added Value and Differentiation
07:28 Challenges with Deep Tech Investments
07:50 Assessing Company Performance and KPIs
09:52 Co-Investors and Market Feedback
10:29 First Meeting and Initial Questions
11:29 Track Record and Full Cycle Experience
12:43 Challenges with Exits in Europe
14:38 Diligence and Replicability of Exits
16:13 VC Management Experience
17:47 Fund Models and Financial Theory
20:20 Importance of a Strong Fund Model
22:31 Submitting Proposals to EIF
24:10 Combining Skills Within a Team
27:42 Due Diligence for Second and Third Time Funds
33:20 Advice for Emerging Managers

Join us as Tom Wilson from Seedcamp and Anthony Danon from Cocoa talk to Leng Lee, angel investor, co-founder & Chief Product Officer at Oui Therapeutics.

Leng was previously the first employee at Codecademy where he was the Head of Product, before joining MongoDB as the Director of Product (Cloud). He later spent a year as a Research Fellow at the Columbia University Centre for Anxiety and Related Disorders, developing a virtual reality product for social anxiety.

Leng is an Expert-in-Residence at Seedcamp, Europe’s leading seed investor. He is an active angel investor through Seedcamp, and the accelerator program Pioneer, and is an advisor to a number of SaaS companies. He is also on the product advisory board for Cambridge University Press.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

00:54 Leng's Journey into Angel Investing
01:01 From Academia to Tech: A Career Transition
04:16 Expanding Horizons: MongoDB and Beyond
05:25 Advising Startups and Navigating the Ecosystem
06:22 The Leap into Angel Investing
07:23 Learning from Early Investment Experiences
09:35 Developing an Investment Philosophy
16:11 Evaluating Founders and Startups
17:53 Evaluating Founders: The Art of Storytelling
18:40 The No-Go Zone: Clarity and Engagement in Pitching
19:21 Healthcare Investment Trends and Challenges
22:28 Local vs Global: Angel Investing Perspectives
23:11 The Dual Life: Balancing U.S. and UK Ventures
25:24 Core Learnings from Angel Investing
28:30 Supporting Founders: The Angel Investor's Dilemma

Today, we have Natasha Lytton with us.Natasha is the Director of Brand at Seedcamp, where she runs all things brand, network strategy, and post-investment activities.

She creates the infrastructure and runs the team to support the portfolio of the fund that stands for over +460 companies. She loves discovering and helping to build startups that have the potential to radically change the future and who are shaping the world we want to be part of.

Seedcamp first launched in 2007 to support European entrepreneurs in truly competing on a global scale. With investments in over 460 companies including publicly listed Romanian-founded, UiPath, Wise, and unicorns Revolut, wefox, and Pleo. Carlos is a published author, fellow podcaster and has been on the Forbes Midas List as one of the most influential VCs in Europe for more or less as long as yours truly has been alive.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

00:06 Journey from Startup Founder to Seedcamp Marketing
05:57 Balancing Professional Growth and Parenthood
16:04 Marketing in Venture Capital: Strategy and Impact
22:09 Communicating with Clarity: Seedcamp's Approach to Messaging
27:59 Strong Brand Identity in Venture Capital
28:12 Navigating Brand Evolution and Market Positioning
29:12 Reflecting on Seedcamp's Legacy and Future Direction
30:37 Brand Alignment and Operational Practices
31:37 The Continuous Evolution of Brand Strategy
32:54 Challenging Operational Norms for Brand Integrity
34:27 Embedding Marketing and Branding Across the Firm
37:14 Content Creation: Strategy and Execution
40:04 Supporting Founders with Seedcamp's Marketing
43:48 Seedcamp’s Approach on Performance Marketing and KPIs
57:11 Adapting to Change: The Evolution of Seedcamp's Community Engagement

Celebrating one of the finalists in the Newcomer of the Year category at this year’s European VC Awards, this episode dives deep with Clare Murray, co-founder and Managing Partner of Blume Equity.

Blume Equity is a climate-tech growth equity firm investing in companies driving sustainable outcomes for planet and people. With offices in Amsterdam and London, and based in Luxembourg, the fund invests in European growth-stage companies, with core regions being the UK, Benelux, the Nordics, Germany, and Ireland.

Some of the most notable investments include:
* Sensorfact, a provider of an IoT data solutions that enable European industrial SMEs to reduce energy usage. * Aerones - a leading robotics company providing inspection and maintenance services to the wind turbine industry. * Normative - a carbon accounting platform focusing on Scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions for large enterprise clients. * Matsmart Motatos - a Swedish company tackling FMCG food waste.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

03:29 Celebrating Bloom Equity's Nomination
04:13 Claire's Journey to Co-Founding Bloom Equity
06:36 Introducing the Co-Founders of Bloom Equity
08:27 Bridging the Funding Gap in European Climate Tech
09:35 Analyzing the European Funding Ecosystem
25:19 Bloom Equity's Investment Thesis and Market Approach
33:47 Exploring LP Bases and Global Investment Dynamics
34:02 Growth Stage Investment Frustrations with Early Stage VCs
34:38 Timing and Preparation for Market Entry
36:32 The Importance of Strategic Venture Fund Relationships
40:48 Navigating the Challenges of Establishing a New Fund
44:37 Brand Building and Strategic Networking for Success
48:02 Key Learnings on Personal and Professional Growth
53:24 The Art of Influence and Valuation in Venture Investing

Today, we have with us David Bateman, Managing Partner at Claret Capital Partners a growth capital fund based in the United Kingdom.

The venture capital fund has a total size of €297M with +€700M in AUM and focuses primarily on growth-stage and VC-backed deals with European companies that are typically post-Series B. As an investment thesis, they focus on technology and life science companies, and some of their most notable investments are in Abivax, Butternut Box, Holidu, and Veed.

David has more than 20 years of experience in technology lending and financing. Prior to the buyout of Claret Capital from Harbert Management Corporation, he and Johan Kampe had co-founded Harbert European Growth Capital.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

03:17 David's Journey into Venture Capital
05:37 The Role of Debt in Venture-Backed Businesses
07:19 Venture Debt's Unique Position in Europe
11:03 Optimal Timing for Venture Debt
12:05 Sector-Specific Strategies for Venture Debt
16:48 Key Players in the European Venture Debt Ecosystem
21:36 Understanding the Terms of Venture Debt Deals
27:26 Capital Return Timelines and LP Expectations
28:21 Venture Debt in Different Market Conditions
31:25 The European Venture Landscape
36:30 Building Relationships with VCs and Entrepreneurs
43:25 Learnings from the Latest Fundraising Round
48:30 Advice for Emerging VCs and Final Thoughts

Today, we have a different episode for you, introducing you to the first episode of the newly launched Startups in Focus series by Seedcamp.This first episode features Carlos Espinal, Managing Partner of Seedcamp, in a conversation with Johannes Keienburg, PhD, co-founder and CEO of Cakewalk, on building access management processes.Their conversation revolves around:
* The importance of access control, visibility, and security in organizations. * Insights on the need for access management processes. * The challenges of data security. * The evolution and future of access controls. * … and more that you can discover on EUVC.

Chapters:00:03 Launching Seedcamp Podcast Series: Startups in Focus
00:45 Meet the Guests: Carlos Espinal and Johannes Kainberg
01:14 Diving Deep into Access Management with Cakewalk
03:02 Johannes's Journey to Founding Cakewalk
05:05 Addressing the Challenges of Data Security
05:45 Understanding Customer Outreach and Engagement
10:33 Integrating SaaS Products for Enhanced Security
10:46 The Future of Identity and Access Management
15:57 Implementing Access Controls in Companies
18:23 Envisioning the Future Organization with Cakewalk
19:37 Role-Based Access and Its Evolution
22:09 Advice for Founders on Early Security Steps
25:49 Closing Thoughts and How to Connect

Today, we are joined by Michael Smith, the co-founder and General Partner of Regeneration VC Fund II of $150M. Regeneration.VC is an early-stage venture fund supercharging consumer-powered climate innovation.

Michael ran marketing & digital for Smith Broadcasting, a group of 20 network TV stations, before selling to Boston Ventures. Shortly thereafter, he followed his lifelong passion for music to become a touring DJ and performed alongside artists including Guns N Roses, Rihanna, and Diplo.

In 2006, he launched The Playlist Generation, one of the world's largest background music providers. In 2010, he co-founded Creative Space, a real estate firm with a portfolio of 80 adaptive reuse projects between Los Angeles and San Francisco. After successfully exiting both companies in 2015, Michael formed Ponvalley, an environmentally focused family office initiative comprising philanthropy, research, and impact investments. He convened Shared Mission, an emergency climate summit with Former VP Al Gore, General Wesley Clark, the Department of Energy, and Harvard leadership.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

01:28 From DJ to Venture Capitalist: Michael's Unique Journey
03:34 The Power of Branding in Venture and Music
04:09 Specialization in Climate Tech Investing
14:04 Understanding Circularity in Sustainable Investing
25:02 The Role of LPs and Celebrity Influence in Climate Tech
32:31 Navigating Corporate Partnerships and Impact Goals
45:55 Finding Your Tribe and Embracing Change
48:39 Venture Capital Insights: Specialization and Navigating the Market
50:11 The Art of Perseverance in Venture Capital
52:04 Building Long-Term Relationships in Venture Investing
54:53 The Intersection of Venture Capital and Talent Management
01:01:14 Exploring the Potential of Generative AI in Music and Beyond
01:04:36 The Future of Music: AI's Role and Industry Insights
01:09:30 Venture Capital Meets Music: A Unique Blend of Talents

Celebrating one of the finalists in the Firm of The Year-category at this year’s European VC Awards, this episodes dives deep with Stephen Chandler, Co-founder & Managing Partner of Notion Capital. With 1.1 bn€ under management and 5 flagship funds under their belt, Notion is one of Europe’s absolute top firms and in this episode, Stephen dives into a level of detail rarely seen discussing everything from the guiding principles building Notion to the process and learnings from raising their latest fund. I highly encourage you to read Stephen’s notes below and tune in for this episode. I truly think this is one of our best to date. Notion at glimpse:
* Fund Name: Notion Capital * Fund size: €300m (Fund V) * AUM: €1.1bn * HQ Country: UK * Target Stage: Series A focus, but invest across pre-seed to growth * Target Geography: Pan European * Target Sector/Vertical: Business Software & Fintech * Notable Investments: CurrencyCloud, Easol, GoCardless, Mews Systems, Paddle, Upvest, Yulife

From the principles building Notion to the learnings from raising fund V oversubscribed and the decision to clone his dog, this episode is one of our best to date. Don't miss Stephen's notes on eu.vc - they're legendary.

Big shout out to our Firm of The Year Sponsor Haynes Boone.
And you don't have to take it from themselves, take it from one of their long term clients, Joe Schorge: "Having worked together for many years now, they fully understand the Isomer ethos and process, and we really appreciate the value that this long-term relationship brought to this mandate from start to finish. We look forward to continuing to work with Karma, Ronan, Will and the rest of team.” Naturally, we’re incredibly excited about having the Haynes Boone team with us as sponsors of the Firm of The Year Awards - yet another testament to their support for the EUVC ecosystem. We strongly encourage you get in touch with Karma and the team for a great experience 🔥

Join us as Tom Wilson from Seedcamp and Anthony Danon from Cocoa talk to Christoph Deckert, Strategy Expert at Personio. Christoph has a unique mix of operating experience with +7 years of working with Personio, the European HRTech unicorn. Personio now has +2000 employees across 7-8 different European and US offices and a portfolio of more than 12K customers.

Christoph joined the company very early on and took on different responsibilities to take Personio’s customer growth to the next level, shape the organizational culture and structures, and hire the right people to support this mission.

His passion and journey towards angel investing became very organic after having different conversations with other founders. After one particular talk that he enjoyed, he decided to support that startup without being fully aware of what angel investment is.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

00:36 From Personio to Angel Investing
03:43 Memorable Deals and Investment Philosophy
06:22 The Personal and Professional Growth from Angel Investing
09:18 Chris's Angel Investing Strategy
17:43 Networking and Collaboration With VCs and Other Angels
21:02 Core Learnings from Angel Investing
26:05 Building and Leveraging Networks
31:19 Closing Thoughts and Future Aspirations

Today, we have with us Stephan Heller, Founding Partner at AlphaQ Venture Capital. AQVC is an innovative, evergreen VC fund of funds focused on small VCs globally and democratizing diversified access to venture capital.

Stephan is a seasoned tech entrepreneur and investor passionate about nurturing the next generation of innovative companies, developing robust platforms, and cultivating thriving ecosystems. Over the past 15 years, he has been deeply involved in the entrepreneurial landscape.

Stephan also co-founded five companies, including a leading deep-tech startup accelerator for one of the largest high-tech corporates in the world and establishing a successful and innovative VC fund of funds.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

00:13 Diving Deep into AQVC's Approach
00:35 Stefan's Unique Framework for Evaluating Funds
03:24 The Criteria for Evaluating Emerging Managers
03:38 Alignment and Uniqueness in Funds
04:14 Evaluating First-Time Funds: Challenges and Strategies
05:09 The Hustler Mentality in Venture Capital
05:59 Building a Firm with a Vision
06:37 Technical Aspects of Fund Evaluation
08:26 The Journey from First to Second Time Funds
09:03 The Role of Reference Calls in Due Diligence
10:46 Deep Dive into Track Record Validation
11:27 The Challenge of Investing in First-Time Investors
18:39 Evaluating Fund Performance and Strategy Execution
21:18 Understanding DPI Creation in Third Time Funds
24:04 Closing Thoughts and Future Plans

Today, we have Carina Namih and Sten Tamkivi with us. Carina and Sten are Partners at Plural, a 400M EUR early-stage venture fund to back ambitious European founders on massive missions with hands-on help from experienced operators.

Plural launched in June 2022 with the aim to give serious founders in Europe investors with company-building experience to match their ambition. Plural’s mission is to have a GDP-level impact on Europe, address systemic risks, and reduce the opportunity gap worldwide through the companies it backs.

Plural has just announced its second fund with a total of 650M AUM and an established portfolio of 25 companies and notable investments, including Ready Player Me, Robin AI, and Unitary. Plural’s team is split between Tallinn, Estonia (where Sten is from) and London (where Carina is from).

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

01:37 Karina's Journey from Biotech Founder to Venture Capitalist
03:14 Stan's Path: From Entrepreneur to Plural Partner
04:57 Raising a Fund in a Challenging Market
07:02 Plural's Investment Strategy and Focus
15:52 Plural's Unique Approach to Adding Value for Founders
23:03 Scaling the Impact: Plural's Vision for Europe's Tech Ecosystem
25:21 Addressing the Critiques: A Candid Look at the VC Landscape
29:25 Challenging the Status Quo in VC Practices
30:20 The Philosophy Behind Investment Decisions
30:47 Strategic Follow-On Investment Approach
31:55 Innovative Decision-Making in Investment Committees
34:02 The Unique Approach to Follow-On Investments
42:14 Building the Plural Platform: Insights and Strategies
58:13 Uncommon Beliefs and the Future of European Tech

Today, we are joined by Mikko Silventola for a new episode of the SuperAngel podcast. Mikko is an angel investor, and Venture Partner at Superangel. 😉Mikko invests his own capital, but also via Magnetic Global Fund (Index Ventures Angel Fund), and he likes to provide capital for the underdogs in the ecosystem. He was the first investor in companies like:* Bolt (previously Taxify, first investor & hands-on advisor, raised >$2B from Sequoia) * Hugo (raised >$100M from TMT Investments, DST Global etc. Acquired by Delivery Hero) * PayMongo (raised >$45M from Stripe, Founders Fund, Thiel)

Mikko also has a solid track record in the internationalization of companies in Asia, Europe, and the Middle East. He spent the past 10 years in Asia and the Middle East operating in the private equity sector, focusing on advising early-stage companies, angel investing, M&A advisory, and fundraising.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

02:30 Miko's Angel Investing Journey
03:32 Transition to Venture Business and Global Investments
07:23 Defining the Superpower of an Angel Investor
09:15 Strategic Angel Investing and Portfolio Management
10:20 The Art of Following On in Investments
12:44 Navigating Challenges and Opportunities in Venture Capital
22:05 Investment Philosophy and Identifying Potential Unicorns
26:12 Selecting the Right VCs and Avoiding Pitfalls
33:34 Personal Reflections and Life Lessons
35:13 The Concept of Life Design and Work-Life Balance
40:07 Investing Without Borders: A Global Perspective
40:28 Analyzing the Strengths of the Nordic and Baltic Startup Ecosystem

The landscape of venture capital is evolving, and Isomer Capital is at the forefront with its new fund designed to meet the dynamic needs of the European venture capital market.We sat down with Joe Schorge and Omolade Adebisi from Isomer to talk through the market, the strategy and the future. Well-worth a watch as we open up the deck that raised the fund and tap the brains that incept and run it. But let’s get the headline numbers in place:* 100 M€ Fund dedicated to secondaries exclusively. * 65-75% of dedicated to acquiring Limited Partner (LP) interests in existing VC funds. * An additional 15-25% is earmarked for direct secondaries in companies, providing crucial liquidity to stakeholders. * The remaining funds, up to 15%, are reserved for discretionary investments, which may include buying stakes or carry from general partners.

This strategic distribution of funds is a response to the current market conditions where many European VCs have yet to realize significant returns from their investments. These circumstances often necessitate liquidity solutions for personal reasons—such as purchasing homes or funding private education—or professional requirements like meeting General Partner (GP) commitments for raising new funds.* Typical ticket sizes range from €1 million to €10 million injecting much-needed flexibility and liquidity across Europe's venture capital ecosystem and broadening Isomer’s impact beyond the traditional fund of funds model to include any Europe-based fund or startup 💖

Hope you’ll enjoy the read and watch on eu.vc and the listen here on your pod player 🙏

Rainer Märkle is the General Partner of HV Capital, €380m Venture and €400m Growth fund, with almost €3BN AUM.

Rainer joined HV 15 years ago. In his third week at the firm, HV invested in Zalando. Accompanying the founders of Zalando from seed to IPO and beyond has been the most rewarding chapter in his VC career. It taught him that anything is possible, boundaries are imaginary, and amazing things can happen by working in the right set-up. Aside from this, he has been involved in big exit stories with HelloFresh, Quandoo, and Stylight. Some of his other highlights include working with Scalable Capital, Alasco and finn.auto.

In his spare time, Rainer is a family guy. He also likes to push boundaries in sports, participating in the Ironman World Championships Hawaii and many other endurance events.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

03:16 Rainer’s Journey: From Engineer to VC
04:04 Diving Deep into HV Capital
07:21 Transitioning from Corporate VC to Independent Fundraising
10:56 Raising Funds in a Challenging Market
13:26 Maintaining Trust with Existing LPs
16:03 Keep Your Principles Against Market Hype
30:57 Strategies for Achieving Fundraising Goals
32:39 The Importance of DPI in Fundraising
34:33 Balancing Act: Liquidity vs. Value Potential
37:34 Decision-Making Dynamics Within the Firm
39:29 Adjusting Strategies and Narratives in Changing Markets
42:05 Insights for Emerging VCs and Fundraising Challenges
44:30 Shout Outs to Emerging Managers and Partners
48:26 Key Learnings from the Latest Fundraise
51:43 Advice for Younger Selves and Emerging VCs

We continue our discussion on Fundraising during and after the tech reset, as part of our little hype parade ahead of the launch of the State of European VC Fundraising Report. Today, we have with us two close friends of the pod: Carlos Eduardo Espinal from Seedcamp and Bogdan Iordache from Underline Ventures.

Carlos Eduardo Espinal is a Managing Partner at Seedcamp, arguably, Europe's leading seed fund, first launched in 2007 to support European entrepreneurs truly compete on a global scale. With investments in over 460 companies including publicly listed Romanian-founded, UiPath, Wise and unicorns Revolut, wefox and Pleo. Carlos is a published author, fellow podcaster and has been on the Forbes Midas List as one of the most influential VCs in Europe for more or less as long as yours truly has been alive.

Bogdan Iordache is the Founding GP of Underline Ventures, a $20M seed fund in Romania and the first solo GP in the region. Bogdan and his team are focusing on backing Eastern European founders with global ambitions, and though I just said vertical-agnostic, Underline does pay extra attention to enterprise automation, AI, cybersecurity, industrial tech, defense, and climate-related startups 🌳.

Chapters:

00:14 Shifting Sands and the Rise of New LPs
00:32 Seedcamp and Underline Ventures
04:52 Shifting Sands and Impact on Emerging Managers
05:43 Bogdan's Journey Through the Tech Reset
07:58 Carlos's Insights on Supporting Emerging Managers
10:23 The Challenges of Fundraising
12:00 The Tech Reset on VC Funding
17:10 Raising Fund Six and the Importance of Fund Size
21:02 The Art of Fundraising and Learning from LPs
26:27 Exploring Overlooked Geographies in Venture Capital
39:00 The Role of Community and Background in VC
47:44 Reflecting on the Evolution of the Venture Ecosystem
50:02 Closing Thoughts on GPLP Relationships and Emerging Managers

We sat down with Daniel Keiper Knorr, founding partner of Speedinvest for a discussion on what he thinks allowed them to raise 500 million during and after the tech reset.

What ensued was a conversation revealing how Speedinvest decided to diverge from traditional VC practices by dedicating substantial resources including the full time attention Daniel, one of the founding partners, to fundraising and investor relations.

This conversation ONLY focuses on the raise process, dynamics and learnings, to understand the thesis behind the fund, go read the original launch post of Speedinvest IV by Oliver Holle.

Chapters:

03:34 Daniel's Journey into Venture Capital
04:02 The Evolution of Speedinvest
05:15 The Unique Approach to Fundraising
06:28 Navigating Fund Generations
07:21 Experiencing Market Cycles and Pivots
08:28 The Strategy Behind Speedinvest's Latest Raise
11:22 Adapting to Changing Market Conditions
12:26 The Impact of Macroeconomic Changes on Fundraising
16:19 Pivoting the Narrative Around the Fund
21:11 Differentiating Between Seed and Growth Stage Investing
24:56 Advice for Fund Managers Raising in Europe
26:03 Understanding LP Preferences and Building Relationships
27:41 Creating Urgency Among LPs
28:53 Thoughts and Advice for Future Fundraisers

Key learnings from the episode

Economic sensitivity and its implications for venture capital

One of the most striking revelations from Daniel’s experience is the profound impact of global economic conditions on venture capital dynamics. He delves into how the sudden shift in LP inquiries from portfolio-centric to macroeconomic concerns mirrored the broader economic uncertainties, highlighting the necessity for VCs to be economically astute. This sensitivity to macroeconomic shifts is not just about staying informed but about integrating this understanding into the strategic narrative of the fund. Daniel’s recount of adapting Speedinvest’s narrative in response to changing economic sentiments underscores the importance of this adaptability not as a reactionary measure but as a strategic imperative. It serves as a compelling reminder that venture capital, while focused on the future, must navigate the present’s economic realities.

The art and science of LP communication

Daniel’s emphasis on transparent and ongoing communication with LPs underscores a fundamental pillar of successful venture capital operations. The strategic approach to communication — viewed through the lens of building trust and managing expectations — is both an art and a science. Daniel illustrates how Speedinvest’s preemptive communication strategy, especially in times of strategic pivots or market volatilities, has been instrumental in reinforcing trust with LPs. This proactive engagement goes beyond regular updates, encompassing a nuanced understanding of LP preferences, concerns, and the strategic dissemination of information to mitigate surprises and align expectations. It’s a testament to the view that in the realm of venture capital, effective communication is as crucial as financial acumen.

Navigating shifts with agility and insight

The conversation further illuminates the critical importance of agility in the face of market shifts. Daniel’s narrative brings to life the concept of strategic adaptability — not just as a response to changing market conditions but as a proactive stance in anticipation of these changes. This agility, underpinned by a thorough understanding of both the venture ecosystem and broader economic indicators, is pivotal for the relevance and efficacy of venture funds in fluctuating times. It’s about the capacity to pivot not just in strategy but in the narrative, ensuring that the fund remains aligned with the evolving priorities and concerns of investors.

Leverage of experience in winning confidence

Speedinvest’s journey through various economic cycles, as narrated by Daniel, accentuates the invaluable role of experience in the venture capital landscape. This seasoned expertise, characterized by a history of navigating booms and busts, is a cornerstone in building and sustaining LP confidence, particularly during turbulent market conditions. Daniel’s reflection on Speedinvest’s strategic decisions, underpinned by decades of collective experience, underscores the trust that experience engenders in investors. It’s a poignant reminder of the weight that history and track record carry in the venture capital arena.

The strategic importance of local markets

Finally, Daniel’s insights on the significance of local markets in Speedinvest’s fundraising success story offer a compelling perspective on the value of nurturing local investor relationships. Despite the allure of global expansion, the substantial support from within Austria highlights the untapped potential and strategic importance of home markets. This aspect of Speedinvest’s strategy underlines a broader lesson for the venture capital community: the power of local ecosystems as a bedrock for support and growth. It challenges the venture capital ethos to look beyond the global horizon and recognise the value lying within their immediate geographical and economic contexts.

We sat down with Daniel Keiper Knorr, founding partner of Speedinvest for a discussion on what he thinks allowed them to raise 500 million during and after the tech reset.

What ensued was a conversation revealing how Speedinvest decided to diverge from traditional VC practices by dedicating substantial resources including the full time attention Daniel, one of the founding partners, to fundraising and investor relations.

This conversation ONLY focuses on the raise process, dynamics and learnings, to understand the thesis behind the fund, go read the original launch post of Speedinvest IV by Oliver Holle.

Chapters:

03:34 Daniel's Journey into Venture Capital
04:02 The Evolution of Speedinvest
05:15 The Unique Approach to Fundraising
06:28 Navigating Fund Generations
07:21 Experiencing Market Cycles and Pivots
08:28 The Strategy Behind Speedinvest's Latest Raise
11:22 Adapting to Changing Market Conditions
12:26 The Impact of Macroeconomic Changes on Fundraising
16:19 Pivoting the Narrative Around the Fund
21:11 Differentiating Between Seed and Growth Stage Investing
24:56 Advice for Fund Managers Raising in Europe
26:03 Understanding LP Preferences and Building Relationships
27:41 Creating Urgency Among LPs
28:53 Thoughts and Advice for Future Fundraisers

Key learnings from the episode

Economic sensitivity and its implications for venture capital

One of the most striking revelations from Daniel’s experience is the profound impact of global economic conditions on venture capital dynamics. He delves into how the sudden shift in LP inquiries from portfolio-centric to macroeconomic concerns mirrored the broader economic uncertainties, highlighting the necessity for VCs to be economically astute. This sensitivity to macroeconomic shifts is not just about staying informed but about integrating this understanding into the strategic narrative of the fund. Daniel’s recount of adapting Speedinvest’s narrative in response to changing economic sentiments underscores the importance of this adaptability not as a reactionary measure but as a strategic imperative. It serves as a compelling reminder that venture capital, while focused on the future, must navigate the present’s economic realities.

The art and science of LP communication

Daniel’s emphasis on transparent and ongoing communication with LPs underscores a fundamental pillar of successful venture capital operations. The strategic approach to communication — viewed through the lens of building trust and managing expectations — is both an art and a science. Daniel illustrates how Speedinvest’s preemptive communication strategy, especially in times of strategic pivots or market volatilities, has been instrumental in reinforcing trust with LPs. This proactive engagement goes beyond regular updates, encompassing a nuanced understanding of LP preferences, concerns, and the strategic dissemination of information to mitigate surprises and align expectations. It’s a testament to the view that in the realm of venture capital, effective communication is as crucial as financial acumen.

Navigating shifts with agility and insight

The conversation further illuminates the critical importance of agility in the face of market shifts. Daniel’s narrative brings to life the concept of strategic adaptability — not just as a response to changing market conditions but as a proactive stance in anticipation of these changes. This agility, underpinned by a thorough understanding of both the venture ecosystem and broader economic indicators, is pivotal for the relevance and efficacy of venture funds in fluctuating times. It’s about the capacity to pivot not just in strategy but in the narrative, ensuring that the fund remains aligned with the evolving priorities and concerns of investors.

Leverage of experience in winning confidence

Speedinvest’s journey through various economic cycles, as narrated by Daniel, accentuates the invaluable role of experience in the venture capital landscape. This seasoned expertise, characterized by a history of navigating booms and busts, is a cornerstone in building and sustaining LP confidence, particularly during turbulent market conditions. Daniel’s reflection on Speedinvest’s strategic decisions, underpinned by decades of collective experience, underscores the trust that experience engenders in investors. It’s a poignant reminder of the weight that history and track record carry in the venture capital arena.

The strategic importance of local markets

Finally, Daniel’s insights on the significance of local markets in Speedinvest’s fundraising success story offer a compelling perspective on the value of nurturing local investor relationships. Despite the allure of global expansion, the substantial support from within Austria highlights the untapped potential and strategic importance of home markets. This aspect of Speedinvest’s strategy underlines a broader lesson for the venture capital community: the power of local ecosystems as a bedrock for support and growth. It challenges the venture capital ethos to look beyond the global horizon and recognise the value lying within their immediate geographical and economic contexts.

Today, we are meeting with Ertan Can, the Founding General Partner of Multiple Capital, a venture capital fund based in Luxembourg.

Ertan has just closed his third fund with a target of $50M after investing already in companies like NP-Hard, Angular, Airstreet (1), Lunar, Fly, Inflection, Foreword by Declan, and Remote First Capital by Andi Klinger, Nomad by Marc McCabe.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

00:54 Deep Dive into Ertan Can's Third Fund and Investment Strategy
04:07 Ertan's Journey from Family Office to Micro VC
06:04 Challenges and Learnings from Raising Fund III
08:13 Navigating the European Fundraising Landscape
13:47 Strategic Shifts in LP Engagement and Fundraising Realities
21:29 Understanding the Micro VC Ecosystem and Fund Size Dynamics
35:42 Evaluating Emerging Managers and Fund Performance
37:50 The Role of Randomness in Fund Success and Investment Strategy
39:55 Evaluating Investment Consistency and Strategy
40:34 The Importance of Building a Strong Network
41:07 Performance Metrics: Beyond Early Success
43:14 Assessing Portfolio Company Progress and Entry Valuations
53:23 The Rise of Fund of Funds in Europe
54:03 The Role of LPs in the Venture Ecosystem
01:03:02 Advice for Emerging Managers and Fundraising Challenges
01:13:42 Personal Reflections and Future Directions

Key Learnings from the episode
* Acceptance of Power Law

One must acknowledge that not all VC funds, especially first-time funds, will be outperformers. Ertan works from an expectation that a minority, perhaps 10 to 20 percent, will become outlier funds, with the remainder performing average or below average.
* Role of Randomness

Ertan Can notes the randomness in fund success, citing that outliers in his experience have come from unexpected places, suggesting a belief in the potential rather than the certainty of each fund being a standout.Assessment
* Beyond Immediate Performance

The transition from a first to a second fund often does not provide sufficient time to demonstrate real performance in terms of markups or DPI. Early successes or markups are seen as unsustainable for predicting future performance.
* Consistency and Focus

Ertan values the consistency of the emerging manager with their initial strategy and approach. He looks favorably upon GPs who remain focused on their initial thesis and do not chase current market hypes or trends without a well-thought-out reason for any strategic shifts.
* Networking and Co-investor Quality

The ability of a GP to build a network, attract follow-on investments from reputable names, and be invited to competitive rounds is viewed as more important than early performance metrics.
* Entry Valuations as KPIs

An important KPI for Ertan is the range of entry valuations a fund manager secures. Investing at lower entry valuations, indicative of conviction and an earlier investment stage, is preferred over higher entry valuations that might follow market signals or competitiveness.
* Brand Building and Recognition

Building a recognizable brand and becoming the go-to GP in a specific region, vertical, or niche is deemed more crucial than first-fund numbers. Recognition in the ecosystem can be a more significant indicator of future success than immediate performance data.

Advice for Emerging Managers

Ertan advises maintaining consistency, having a well-defined market thesis, and resisting the urge to significantly upscale the fund size or pivot strategies to follow current hypes. Managers should focus on being recognized as experts in their specific focus areas, which is seen as vital in a competitive market.

Q: Advice for your 10 year younger self.* Take advice more seriously. * Dont underestimate the fundraising part. * 10y ago was my inflection point, so did right, but than after…

Q: Advice for fundraising managers* Try to identify the most realistic LPs for you. And that might be the closest, people in your network, like other angel investors, founders who invest in funds, smaller family offices, and also corporates as they might be strategic and strategic partners. So try to think before you're reaching out to everyone in a broad sweeping approach. I think most of that will be noise and will not be helpful. * Try to use intros. If people who are well-considered in the market makes an introduction to a fund that increases the probability that someone looks at your fund from a different view. * Try not to change your strategy every six months. Don’t adapt to a new strategy just because it is easier to raise capital. Just try to be very focused on what you do. And if that focus does not lead to raising a fund. So be it, I think that's better than raising a fund with a different focus just because of raising a fund.

Q: The most counterintuitive thing learned in venture.* Invest in people you don’t like.

Today, we are meeting with Ertan Can, the Founding General Partner of Multiple Capital, a venture capital fund based in Luxembourg.

Ertan has just closed his third fund with a target of $50M after investing already in companies like NP-Hard, Angular, Airstreet (1), Lunar, Fly, Inflection, Foreword by Declan, and Remote First Capital by Andi Klinger, Nomad by Marc McCabe.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

00:54 Deep Dive into Ertan Can's Third Fund and Investment Strategy
04:07 Ertan's Journey from Family Office to Micro VC
06:04 Challenges and Learnings from Raising Fund III
08:13 Navigating the European Fundraising Landscape
13:47 Strategic Shifts in LP Engagement and Fundraising Realities
21:29 Understanding the Micro VC Ecosystem and Fund Size Dynamics
35:42 Evaluating Emerging Managers and Fund Performance
37:50 The Role of Randomness in Fund Success and Investment Strategy
39:55 Evaluating Investment Consistency and Strategy
40:34 The Importance of Building a Strong Network
41:07 Performance Metrics: Beyond Early Success
43:14 Assessing Portfolio Company Progress and Entry Valuations
53:23 The Rise of Fund of Funds in Europe
54:03 The Role of LPs in the Venture Ecosystem
01:03:02 Advice for Emerging Managers and Fundraising Challenges
01:13:42 Personal Reflections and Future Directions

Key Learnings from the episode
* Acceptance of Power Law

One must acknowledge that not all VC funds, especially first-time funds, will be outperformers. Ertan works from an expectation that a minority, perhaps 10 to 20 percent, will become outlier funds, with the remainder performing average or below average.
* Role of Randomness

Ertan Can notes the randomness in fund success, citing that outliers in his experience have come from unexpected places, suggesting a belief in the potential rather than the certainty of each fund being a standout.Assessment
* Beyond Immediate Performance

The transition from a first to a second fund often does not provide sufficient time to demonstrate real performance in terms of markups or DPI. Early successes or markups are seen as unsustainable for predicting future performance.
* Consistency and Focus

Ertan values the consistency of the emerging manager with their initial strategy and approach. He looks favorably upon GPs who remain focused on their initial thesis and do not chase current market hypes or trends without a well-thought-out reason for any strategic shifts.
* Networking and Co-investor Quality

The ability of a GP to build a network, attract follow-on investments from reputable names, and be invited to competitive rounds is viewed as more important than early performance metrics.
* Entry Valuations as KPIs

An important KPI for Ertan is the range of entry valuations a fund manager secures. Investing at lower entry valuations, indicative of conviction and an earlier investment stage, is preferred over higher entry valuations that might follow market signals or competitiveness.
* Brand Building and Recognition

Building a recognizable brand and becoming the go-to GP in a specific region, vertical, or niche is deemed more crucial than first-fund numbers. Recognition in the ecosystem can be a more significant indicator of future success than immediate performance data.

Advice for Emerging Managers

Ertan advises maintaining consistency, having a well-defined market thesis, and resisting the urge to significantly upscale the fund size or pivot strategies to follow current hypes. Managers should focus on being recognized as experts in their specific focus areas, which is seen as vital in a competitive market.

Q: Advice for your 10 year younger self.* Take advice more seriously. * Dont underestimate the fundraising part. * 10y ago was my inflection point, so did right, but than after…

Q: Advice for fundraising managers* Try to identify the most realistic LPs for you. And that might be the closest, people in your network, like other angel investors, founders who invest in funds, smaller family offices, and also corporates as they might be strategic and strategic partners. So try to think before you're reaching out to everyone in a broad sweeping approach. I think most of that will be noise and will not be helpful. * Try to use intros. If people who are well-considered in the market makes an introduction to a fund that increases the probability that someone looks at your fund from a different view. * Try not to change your strategy every six months. Don’t adapt to a new strategy just because it is easier to raise capital. Just try to be very focused on what you do. And if that focus does not lead to raising a fund. So be it, I think that's better than raising a fund with a different focus just because of raising a fund.

Q: The most counterintuitive thing learned in venture.* Invest in people you don’t like.

In this roundtable, we pull the curtain back on some of the core insights from our upcoming State of European VC Fundraising-report and dive deep on the impact of the tech reset for fundraising managers, discuss GP/LP dynamics and uncover how VCs best navigate the current fundraising environment. For the conversation, we brought together some of the most respected investors in our ecosystem:
* Daniel Keiper-Knorr, Founding GP at Speedinvest * Joe Schorge, Founding GP at Isomer Capital * Ekaterina Almasque, General Partner at OpenOcean * Christian Hjort Pedersen, VC Fund Investor at IIP Denmark..

And to moderate the whole thing; Tom Hughes Ellis & eu.vc’s Andreas Munk Holm.

Watch it on eu.vc 👀

Get the full report before anyone else on floww.io/raise ! 👀

Together with our good friends at Isomer Capital and Floww, we’ve spent the winter digging into 300+ interviews as well as the latest market data and Isomer Capital’s vaulted data treasures to uncover how the tech reset has impacted the fundraising market in Europe and how leading VCs across the continent have changed their strategies, tactics and operational handbook.Filled with graphs, beautiful narratives and video interviews providing an entirely new and engaging experience, we’ve created an unparalleled learning experience you won’t just sift through, but actually spend real time with.

In this roundtable, we pull the curtain back on some of the core insights from our upcoming State of European VC Fundraising-report and dive deep on the impact of the tech reset for fundraising managers, discuss GP/LP dynamics and uncover how VCs best navigate the current fundraising environment. For the conversation, we brought together some of the most respected investors in our ecosystem:
* Daniel Keiper-Knorr, Founding GP at Speedinvest * Joe Schorge, Founding GP at Isomer Capital * Ekaterina Almasque, General Partner at OpenOcean * Christian Hjort Pedersen, VC Fund Investor at IIP Denmark..

And to moderate the whole thing; Tom Hughes Ellis & eu.vc’s Andreas Munk Holm.

Watch it on eu.vc 👀

Get the full report before anyone else on floww.io/raise ! 👀

Together with our good friends at Isomer Capital and Floww, we’ve spent the winter digging into 300+ interviews as well as the latest market data and Isomer Capital’s vaulted data treasures to uncover how the tech reset has impacted the fundraising market in Europe and how leading VCs across the continent have changed their strategies, tactics and operational handbook.Filled with graphs, beautiful narratives and video interviews providing an entirely new and engaging experience, we’ve created an unparalleled learning experience you won’t just sift through, but actually spend real time with.

Join us as Tom Wilson from Seedcamp and Anthony Danon from Cocoa talk to Eva Spannagl, co-founder & Managing Director of Climatos.

Eva is a builder. She loves to build things and see their outcomes come to life, and she loves to work with people who are building something. Previously, she worked at McKinsey and at Moss, an early-stage FinTech startup from Berlin.

Now, Eva is leading Climatos, a company that builds mini solar panels for urban spaces while nurturing her passion for angel investing.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

00:48 Eva's Journey from Consulting to Angel Investing
03:04 Eva's First Investment Story
03:55 The Motivation Behind Becoming an Angel Investor
05:25 Eva's Approach to Angel Investing
05:32 Memorable Deals and the Impact of Angel Investing
08:52 Eva's Investment Thesis and Strategy
11:03 Portfolio Diversification and Founder Support
18:46 The Value of Collaboration with VCs and the Angel Community
22:05 Core Learnings from Angel Investing
26:42 Testing for Founder Drive and Attitude

Join us as Tom Wilson from Seedcamp and Anthony Danon from Cocoa talk to Eva Spannagl, co-founder & Managing Director of Climatos.

Eva is a builder. She loves to build things and see their outcomes come to life, and she loves to work with people who are building something. Previously, she worked at McKinsey and at Moss, an early-stage FinTech startup from Berlin.

Now, Eva is leading Climatos, a company that builds mini solar panels for urban spaces while nurturing her passion for angel investing.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

00:48 Eva's Journey from Consulting to Angel Investing
03:04 Eva's First Investment Story
03:55 The Motivation Behind Becoming an Angel Investor
05:25 Eva's Approach to Angel Investing
05:32 Memorable Deals and the Impact of Angel Investing
08:52 Eva's Investment Thesis and Strategy
11:03 Portfolio Diversification and Founder Support
18:46 The Value of Collaboration with VCs and the Angel Community
22:05 Core Learnings from Angel Investing
26:42 Testing for Founder Drive and Attitude

In the Investing and Scaling in Romania and Beyond webinar, we talk about the vibrant entrepreneurial ecosystem of Central and Eastern Europe, with a specific focus on Romania. From celebrating the local technical skills and historical engineering heritage, countries in CEE examine the nuances of building a startup with a global mindset from day one.

Our guests discuss the 'UiPath effect', highlighting how success stories like of this one company have inspired new entrepreneurs and attracted increased attention and resources from the venture capital world.

In essence, the webinar provides a comprehensive, nuanced, and up-to-date exploration of the Eastern European startup and venture capital landscape, making it a must-watch for investors, founders, and anyone interested in the local tech scene of Romania and its surrounding regions.

Listen to it here or watch it on eu.vc for a discussion on:
* How to crack the code: Understand the challenges and opportunities shaping the Romanian ecosystem. * Empowering the future: Delve into the status and growth prospects for women-led startups in the region. * Scaling beyond borders: Learn how to overcome challenges and adapt global best practices to the Romanian context from the people who have done it. * Pioneering Deep Tech: Explore the intricacies of launching, backing, and scaling a deep tech company in Romania and the region. * Success stories: Get inspired by real-life case studies of thriving Romanian scale-ups.

This event is a part of the CO-INVESTIN project, focusing on understanding and improving European investment ecosystems.

Chapters:
00:26 The Venture Ecosystem in CEE
04:56 Romania's Flourishing Ecosystem: Insights and Success Stories
07:34 The Technical Talent and Entrepreneurial Mindset in Romania
09:37 Challenges and Opportunities for Romanian Startups
12:51 Investor Perspectives: The Appeal of Romanian Startups
17:27 The UiPath Effect: A Catalyst for Romanian Innovation
23:05 The Global Impact of Romanian Startups and the UiPath Legacy
29:40 Investment Strategies and Considerations in CEE
34:06 Investment Trends and Pricing in the Startup Ecosystem
37:42 Local vs. Global: Startup Challenges in the CEE Region
40:07 Unique Challenges of Building Startups in CEE
41:23 The Role of Engineering Culture in Startup Success
43:24 The Critical Need for More Capital in the Ecosystem
55:16 Addressing Diversity and Gender Gaps in Tech

In the Investing and Scaling in Romania and Beyond webinar, we talk about the vibrant entrepreneurial ecosystem of Central and Eastern Europe, with a specific focus on Romania. From celebrating the local technical skills and historical engineering heritage, countries in CEE examine the nuances of building a startup with a global mindset from day one.

Our guests discuss the 'UiPath effect', highlighting how success stories like of this one company have inspired new entrepreneurs and attracted increased attention and resources from the venture capital world.

In essence, the webinar provides a comprehensive, nuanced, and up-to-date exploration of the Eastern European startup and venture capital landscape, making it a must-watch for investors, founders, and anyone interested in the local tech scene of Romania and its surrounding regions.

Listen to it here or watch it on eu.vc for a discussion on:
* How to crack the code: Understand the challenges and opportunities shaping the Romanian ecosystem. * Empowering the future: Delve into the status and growth prospects for women-led startups in the region. * Scaling beyond borders: Learn how to overcome challenges and adapt global best practices to the Romanian context from the people who have done it. * Pioneering Deep Tech: Explore the intricacies of launching, backing, and scaling a deep tech company in Romania and the region. * Success stories: Get inspired by real-life case studies of thriving Romanian scale-ups.

This event is a part of the CO-INVESTIN project, focusing on understanding and improving European investment ecosystems.

Chapters:
00:26 The Venture Ecosystem in CEE
04:56 Romania's Flourishing Ecosystem: Insights and Success Stories
07:34 The Technical Talent and Entrepreneurial Mindset in Romania
09:37 Challenges and Opportunities for Romanian Startups
12:51 Investor Perspectives: The Appeal of Romanian Startups
17:27 The UiPath Effect: A Catalyst for Romanian Innovation
23:05 The Global Impact of Romanian Startups and the UiPath Legacy
29:40 Investment Strategies and Considerations in CEE
34:06 Investment Trends and Pricing in the Startup Ecosystem
37:42 Local vs. Global: Startup Challenges in the CEE Region
40:07 Unique Challenges of Building Startups in CEE
41:23 The Role of Engineering Culture in Startup Success
43:24 The Critical Need for More Capital in the Ecosystem
55:16 Addressing Diversity and Gender Gaps in Tech

Today, we have Davor Hebel with us. Davor is the Managing Partner at Eight Roads, a $11bn global venture platform. The firm has over 450 portfolio companies, including 60 IPOs and many unicorns, such as Alibaba, Toast, Flywire, Chewy, Hibob, Neo4j, and Fever. Eight Roads invests in companies at scale-up stages (usually rounds A-C) and helps them win globally.

Davor runs the Europe and Israel franchise with around 45 companies and $1.5bn AUM. Davor’s investments count leaders across SaaS, consumer, digital health, and fintech sectors, including Hibob, Appsflyer, Fever, Fireblocks, Owkin, Wallapop, ScyllaDB, Red Points, Packlink (sold to Auctane), Rimilia (Blackline), Innogames (MTG), and Treatwell (Recruit).

Davor was born in Croatia and studied in the US. Davor is also passionate about sports, and he still tries to find time for some rowing, tennis, and Barry’s Bootcamp 🙂 whilst raising his 3 kids (11, 9, and 6).

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

01:03 Davor's Journey: From in Venture Capital
03:50 The Role of a VC: Beyond Investment
04:12 Empathy and Support: The VC Approach to Entrepreneurship
06:05 Balancing Business and Personal Life in Entrepreneurship
06:53 The Evolution of a Founder's Role
11:22 The Future of Technology: AI's Impact
14:42 AI in Venture Capital: A Tool for Success
17:00 The European Entrepreneurial Landscape: From Ice Age to Innovation
19:45 The Growth and Potential of European Startups
22:27 US Investor Participation in Europe
24:06 Navigating the VC Landscape in a Changing Europe
30:20 Davor's Top Learnings from a Decade in Venture Capital

Today, we have Davor Hebel with us. Davor is the Managing Partner at Eight Roads, a $11bn global venture platform. The firm has over 450 portfolio companies, including 60 IPOs and many unicorns, such as Alibaba, Toast, Flywire, Chewy, Hibob, Neo4j, and Fever. Eight Roads invests in companies at scale-up stages (usually rounds A-C) and helps them win globally.

Davor runs the Europe and Israel franchise with around 45 companies and $1.5bn AUM. Davor’s investments count leaders across SaaS, consumer, digital health, and fintech sectors, including Hibob, Appsflyer, Fever, Fireblocks, Owkin, Wallapop, ScyllaDB, Red Points, Packlink (sold to Auctane), Rimilia (Blackline), Innogames (MTG), and Treatwell (Recruit).

Davor was born in Croatia and studied in the US. Davor is also passionate about sports, and he still tries to find time for some rowing, tennis, and Barry’s Bootcamp 🙂 whilst raising his 3 kids (11, 9, and 6).

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

01:03 Davor's Journey: From in Venture Capital
03:50 The Role of a VC: Beyond Investment
04:12 Empathy and Support: The VC Approach to Entrepreneurship
06:05 Balancing Business and Personal Life in Entrepreneurship
06:53 The Evolution of a Founder's Role
11:22 The Future of Technology: AI's Impact
14:42 AI in Venture Capital: A Tool for Success
17:00 The European Entrepreneurial Landscape: From Ice Age to Innovation
19:45 The Growth and Potential of European Startups
22:27 US Investor Participation in Europe
24:06 Navigating the VC Landscape in a Changing Europe
30:20 Davor's Top Learnings from a Decade in Venture Capital

Today, we have Christine Tsai with us.

Christine is the CEO and Founding Partner at 500 Global, a multi-stage venture firm in Silicon Valley with $2.4B in AUM, which has backed 2,900 companies operating in 80+ countries. 500 has invested in 35+ companies valued at over $1 billion and 160+ companies valued at over $100 million (including private, public, and exited companies)³.

This includes companies like Canva, Talkdesk, Grab, Lucidchart, eFishery, Credit Karma, Intercom, Twilio, Sendgrid, and more.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

00:09 Diving Deep into 500 Global's Evolution
03:02 Christine Tsai's Personal Journey into Venture Capital
10:22 500 Global's Unique Approach to Venture Capital
14:07 Diverse Backgrounds in Venture Capital
27:41 VC Unlocked in Educating Emerging Managers
40:42 The Early Bird Gets the Worm: Investing in Startups
41:15 The Challenges and Opportunities of Accelerators
41:51 Navigating the Accelerator Landscape: Tips for Founders
42:48 Spotlight on Global Accelerator Success Stories
43:30 The Evolution of Venture Capital: From Skepticism to Success
44:02 Venture Capital's Herd Mentality vs. Disruptive Investing
48:39 Leading the Charge: Transitioning from Co-Investor to Lead Investor
01:08:23 Balancing Act: Navigating Work and Family Life in Venture Capital

Today, we have Christine Tsai with us.

Christine is the CEO and Founding Partner at 500 Global, a multi-stage venture firm in Silicon Valley with $2.4B in AUM, which has backed 2,900 companies operating in 80+ countries. 500 has invested in 35+ companies valued at over $1 billion and 160+ companies valued at over $100 million (including private, public, and exited companies)³.

This includes companies like Canva, Talkdesk, Grab, Lucidchart, eFishery, Credit Karma, Intercom, Twilio, Sendgrid, and more.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

00:09 Diving Deep into 500 Global's Evolution
03:02 Christine Tsai's Personal Journey into Venture Capital
10:22 500 Global's Unique Approach to Venture Capital
14:07 Diverse Backgrounds in Venture Capital
27:41 VC Unlocked in Educating Emerging Managers
40:42 The Early Bird Gets the Worm: Investing in Startups
41:15 The Challenges and Opportunities of Accelerators
41:51 Navigating the Accelerator Landscape: Tips for Founders
42:48 Spotlight on Global Accelerator Success Stories
43:30 The Evolution of Venture Capital: From Skepticism to Success
44:02 Venture Capital's Herd Mentality vs. Disruptive Investing
48:39 Leading the Charge: Transitioning from Co-Investor to Lead Investor
01:08:23 Balancing Act: Navigating Work and Family Life in Venture Capital

Join us for a new episode of the NEUVC series dedicated to those embarking on their journey in the VC. In this episode, Freddie Macpherson, Associate at Isomer Capital, and Linda Võeras, Investment Manager at Karma Ventures, are joined by Marie Brayer, Partner at Fly Ventures.

Fly Ventures is an early-stage deep tech and tech-heavy B2B software specialist fund. They are the first-check VC for technical founders and invest from day zero to seed, backing founders from all over Europe.

Marie has a background in finance and a keen interest in engineering. Before joining Fly Ventures in 2022, she worked with Serena Capital, where she invested and worked with more than 10 French B2B startups, including Descartes Underwriting, Lifen, Malt, and Kili Technology.

Marie is always looking to help founders who really want to take on a huge technical challenge. Make sure to listen to Marie’s inspiring story on today’s podcast episode below.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:
* 00:58 Marie's Journey into Venture Capital * 03:54 From Software Engineering to Venture Capital * 06:23 The Evolution of the French Tech Ecosystem * 08:35 Expanding Horizons: From France to Europe * 10:20 Joining Fly Ventures: A New Chapter * 11:47 The Changing Landscape for Technical Founders in Europe * 12:26 Education and Ecosystems in Tech Success * 16:53 The Diverse Paths to Success in European Tech * 20:22 The Strategy Behind Winning Deals Across Europe * 22:46 Supporting Deep Tech Founders: Risks and Rewards * 29:27 Navigating the European VC Landscape * 42:02 The Future of Board Dynamics in Early-Stage Startups * 47:08 The Power of Side Projects in Venture Capital * 49:40 Advice for New VCs: Embrace the Intensity

Join us for a new episode of the NEUVC series dedicated to those embarking on their journey in the VC. In this episode, Freddie Macpherson, Associate at Isomer Capital, and Linda Võeras, Investment Manager at Karma Ventures, are joined by Marie Brayer, Partner at Fly Ventures.

Fly Ventures is an early-stage deep tech and tech-heavy B2B software specialist fund. They are the first-check VC for technical founders and invest from day zero to seed, backing founders from all over Europe.

Marie has a background in finance and a keen interest in engineering. Before joining Fly Ventures in 2022, she worked with Serena Capital, where she invested and worked with more than 10 French B2B startups, including Descartes Underwriting, Lifen, Malt, and Kili Technology.

Marie is always looking to help founders who really want to take on a huge technical challenge. Make sure to listen to Marie’s inspiring story on today’s podcast episode below.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:
* 00:58 Marie's Journey into Venture Capital * 03:54 From Software Engineering to Venture Capital * 06:23 The Evolution of the French Tech Ecosystem * 08:35 Expanding Horizons: From France to Europe * 10:20 Joining Fly Ventures: A New Chapter * 11:47 The Changing Landscape for Technical Founders in Europe * 12:26 Education and Ecosystems in Tech Success * 16:53 The Diverse Paths to Success in European Tech * 20:22 The Strategy Behind Winning Deals Across Europe * 22:46 Supporting Deep Tech Founders: Risks and Rewards * 29:27 Navigating the European VC Landscape * 42:02 The Future of Board Dynamics in Early-Stage Startups * 47:08 The Power of Side Projects in Venture Capital * 49:40 Advice for New VCs: Embrace the Intensity

If one of your guilty pleasures is watching four wealthy, over-the-top opinionated talking heads every weekend, you may recall that Chamath Palihapitiya predicted that 2024 will be the year that bitcoin becomes a mainstream asset. We brought together three true crypto native VCs to discuss crypto’s comeback, recent trends and where we’re headed.

Listen to it here or watch it on eu.vc for a discussion on:* The State of the crypto market overall * What has been built in the last few years? * Challenges for crypto to overcome in the coming years * The impact of global regulations on crypto. * Key growth drivers, innovations and hot sectors * What makes our panelists excited? * Predictions for the future of crypto investments. * Sustainability and ethics in crypto investing

The Panelists
Jan Baeriswyl, GP at very early Ventures has deep expertise in token design and a dedication to working closely with founders. Veryearly is one of Europe’s leading first time funds in supporting the builders of critical Web3 infrastructure. They focus on helping founders design products, protocols, and tokens with a technical hands-on approach. We recently announced our investment in Very Early - check it out here for a spotlight on what we believe a rising star in crypto looks like.

Felix Machart, Partner at Greenfield Capital is an expert in crypto-economics, governance, and crypto capital markets at large. Greenfield is a European crypto investment firm and long-term backers of early developer teams building toward an open, decentralized, and more robust architecture of tomorrow’s web.

Anirudh P., Partner at Dragonfly has a track record of identifying new trends early and making bold bets on contrarian theses. Dragonfly are crypto-natives who have been investing and building for 10+ years. Founded in 2018, dragonfly brings access and influence to help crypto teams with global aspirations find innovation and adoption anywhere.Chapters:* 00:00 Opening Remarks and Roundtable Context * 01:58 Introducing the Crypto Investment Experts * 02:49 Diverse Investment Strategies in Crypto * 06:59 Current State and Future Prospects of the Crypto Market * 18:38 Stablecoins and Geopolitical Implications * 22:39 Navigating Regulatory Compliance and Crypto's Ethos * 23:56 Demographic Challenges and Crypto's Role in Global Policy * 25:50 Addressing Crypto's Main Challenges: Privacy, Security, and Usability * 30:55 Distributed systems and Governance in Crypto * 35:24 Predicting the Market's Future

If one of your guilty pleasures is watching four wealthy, over-the-top opinionated talking heads every weekend, you may recall that Chamath Palihapitiya predicted that 2024 will be the year that bitcoin becomes a mainstream asset. We brought together three true crypto native VCs to discuss crypto’s comeback, recent trends and where we’re headed.

Listen to it here or watch it on eu.vc for a discussion on:* The State of the crypto market overall * What has been built in the last few years? * Challenges for crypto to overcome in the coming years * The impact of global regulations on crypto. * Key growth drivers, innovations and hot sectors * What makes our panelists excited? * Predictions for the future of crypto investments. * Sustainability and ethics in crypto investing

The Panelists
Jan Baeriswyl, GP at very early Ventures has deep expertise in token design and a dedication to working closely with founders. Veryearly is one of Europe’s leading first time funds in supporting the builders of critical Web3 infrastructure. They focus on helping founders design products, protocols, and tokens with a technical hands-on approach. We recently announced our investment in Very Early - check it out here for a spotlight on what we believe a rising star in crypto looks like.

Felix Machart, Partner at Greenfield Capital is an expert in crypto-economics, governance, and crypto capital markets at large. Greenfield is a European crypto investment firm and long-term backers of early developer teams building toward an open, decentralized, and more robust architecture of tomorrow’s web.

Anirudh P., Partner at Dragonfly has a track record of identifying new trends early and making bold bets on contrarian theses. Dragonfly are crypto-natives who have been investing and building for 10+ years. Founded in 2018, dragonfly brings access and influence to help crypto teams with global aspirations find innovation and adoption anywhere.Chapters:* 00:00 Opening Remarks and Roundtable Context * 01:58 Introducing the Crypto Investment Experts * 02:49 Diverse Investment Strategies in Crypto * 06:59 Current State and Future Prospects of the Crypto Market * 18:38 Stablecoins and Geopolitical Implications * 22:39 Navigating Regulatory Compliance and Crypto's Ethos * 23:56 Demographic Challenges and Crypto's Role in Global Policy * 25:50 Addressing Crypto's Main Challenges: Privacy, Security, and Usability * 30:55 Distributed systems and Governance in Crypto * 35:24 Predicting the Market's Future

Join us as we step back and chart the evolution of European VC with a true O.G. Roundtable:
* Yaron Valler, Founding Partner at Target Global * Chris Wade, Founding Partner at Isomer Capital * Kerry Baldwin, Founding Partner at IQ Capital

And moderated by Andreas Munk Holm from EUVC and Gabriel Shin, CFA from Vauban from Carta 🎙️

Chapters:
* 00:02:28 The Transformation of European Venture Capital * 00:08:57 Challenges and Misalignments in the Venture Capital Landscape * 00:11:43 Navigating the Cyclical Nature of Venture Capital * 00:19:35 The Impact of Government and Regulation on European VC * 00:30:29 Approachability of Senior Politicians in Europe * 00:30:53 The Role of VCs in European Policy and Politics * 00:31:33 The Impact of AI on Society and the Economy * 00:35:41 The Importance of Data in Shaping Policies * 00:38:03 Changing Expectations and Needs of Founders * 00:41:27 The Role of Accelerators and Incubators * 00:48:44 The Importance of Governance and Board Readiness in VC * 00:50:55 What LPs Look for in European Venture

Watch the webinar eu.vc or listen on Apple/Spotify 🎧

This roundtable is brought to you in partnership with Carta, the easiest way to launch & run your fund and syndicates.

It’s no secret that we at eu.vc are happy and heavy users of the Carta platform as it allows us to be creators turned angels without bogging us down in back-office hassle of investing. For a very special treatment, go here to let the Carta team know you’re coming from the eu.vc community 🤗

Join us as we step back and chart the evolution of European VC with a true O.G. Roundtable:
* Yaron Valler, Founding Partner at Target Global * Chris Wade, Founding Partner at Isomer Capital * Kerry Baldwin, Founding Partner at IQ Capital

And moderated by Andreas Munk Holm from EUVC and Gabriel Shin, CFA from Vauban from Carta 🎙️

Chapters:
* 00:02:28 The Transformation of European Venture Capital * 00:08:57 Challenges and Misalignments in the Venture Capital Landscape * 00:11:43 Navigating the Cyclical Nature of Venture Capital * 00:19:35 The Impact of Government and Regulation on European VC * 00:30:29 Approachability of Senior Politicians in Europe * 00:30:53 The Role of VCs in European Policy and Politics * 00:31:33 The Impact of AI on Society and the Economy * 00:35:41 The Importance of Data in Shaping Policies * 00:38:03 Changing Expectations and Needs of Founders * 00:41:27 The Role of Accelerators and Incubators * 00:48:44 The Importance of Governance and Board Readiness in VC * 00:50:55 What LPs Look for in European Venture

Watch the webinar eu.vc or listen on Apple/Spotify 🎧

This roundtable is brought to you in partnership with Carta, the easiest way to launch & run your fund and syndicates.

It’s no secret that we at eu.vc are happy and heavy users of the Carta platform as it allows us to be creators turned angels without bogging us down in back-office hassle of investing. For a very special treatment, go here to let the Carta team know you’re coming from the eu.vc community 🤗

Today, we have Vincent Touati-Tomas with us. Vincent is the Head of Marketing at Northzone, a global VC firm Northzone that has raised more than ten funds to date, with its most recent fundraising in excess of €1 billion, investing in startups from Seed to Growth.

Northzone is investing out of Fund X and more than 80 active portfolio companies and notable investments, including Personio, Klarna, Kahoot, Spotify, and Spring Health. At Northzone, Vincent focuses on all things marketing.

Now, Vincent is one of the great thinkers and practitioners of marketing in European VC, and we're so lucky that he has taken the time to structure his thoughts on the topic for us in this episode. So, you're in for a real master class.

Some might be a bit hard to follow if you're not doing marketing in your day-to-day, but I urge you to stay tuned because there's so much to learn for any VC thinking about how to build and grow their firm and its impact. So strap in, and let's hear from Vincent.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

00:02:18 Vincent's Journey into Venture Capital
00:04:15 The Power of Podcasting in Vincent's Career
00:05:51 Marketing Strategies for VC Firms: Insights from North Zone
00:18:36 Building Relationships and the Importance of Content in VC
00:39:54 The Transparency Challenge in European Venture Capital
00:40:48 The Importance of Public Performance Metrics
00:43:18 Liquidity and Performance: A European Perspective
00:46:46 Marketing and Operations: Dream Structures for VC Firms
00:56:03 Building a VC Brand: Narrative and Franchise Development

Today, we have Vincent Touati-Tomas with us. Vincent is the Head of Marketing at Northzone, a global VC firm Northzone that has raised more than ten funds to date, with its most recent fundraising in excess of €1 billion, investing in startups from Seed to Growth.

Northzone is investing out of Fund X and more than 80 active portfolio companies and notable investments, including Personio, Klarna, Kahoot, Spotify, and Spring Health. At Northzone, Vincent focuses on all things marketing.

Now, Vincent is one of the great thinkers and practitioners of marketing in European VC, and we're so lucky that he has taken the time to structure his thoughts on the topic for us in this episode. So, you're in for a real master class.

Some might be a bit hard to follow if you're not doing marketing in your day-to-day, but I urge you to stay tuned because there's so much to learn for any VC thinking about how to build and grow their firm and its impact. So strap in, and let's hear from Vincent.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

00:02:18 Vincent's Journey into Venture Capital
00:04:15 The Power of Podcasting in Vincent's Career
00:05:51 Marketing Strategies for VC Firms: Insights from North Zone
00:18:36 Building Relationships and the Importance of Content in VC
00:39:54 The Transparency Challenge in European Venture Capital
00:40:48 The Importance of Public Performance Metrics
00:43:18 Liquidity and Performance: A European Perspective
00:46:46 Marketing and Operations: Dream Structures for VC Firms
00:56:03 Building a VC Brand: Narrative and Franchise Development

Join us as our own Andreas Munk Holm and Anthony Danon from Cocoa talk to Elsa Hermal, angel investor and co-founder of Epicery, about impact investing, diverse teams, and economic resilience.

An exited impact entrepreneur turned founders mentor, Elsa empowers CEOs and C-levels to navigate both strategic and human challenges, leveraging her entrepreneurial expertise to guide them and their teams toward sustainable growth.

With a dedicated 100% impact investment portfolio, Elsa is also a proud backer of Satgana, the climate tech fund we recently announced our investment into, whose final close is just around the corner with a 4.2x TVPI.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

00:00:00 Welcome to the Super Angel Podcast
00:01:08 Elsa's Journey into Angel Investing
00:03:38 Investment Philosophy: Impact Over Profit
00:04:28 Exploring Unconventional Investment Areas
00:05:14 Balancing Purpose and Profit in Investments
00:12:26 The Future of Mental Health
00:14:30 Deep Dive into Psychedelics
00:30:13 Elsa's Investment Strategy and Core Learnings

Join us as our own Andreas Munk Holm and Anthony Danon from Cocoa talk to Elsa Hermal, angel investor and co-founder of Epicery, about impact investing, diverse teams, and economic resilience.

An exited impact entrepreneur turned founders mentor, Elsa empowers CEOs and C-levels to navigate both strategic and human challenges, leveraging her entrepreneurial expertise to guide them and their teams toward sustainable growth.

With a dedicated 100% impact investment portfolio, Elsa is also a proud backer of Satgana, the climate tech fund we recently announced our investment into, whose final close is just around the corner with a 4.2x TVPI.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

00:00:00 Welcome to the Super Angel Podcast
00:01:08 Elsa's Journey into Angel Investing
00:03:38 Investment Philosophy: Impact Over Profit
00:04:28 Exploring Unconventional Investment Areas
00:05:14 Balancing Purpose and Profit in Investments
00:12:26 The Future of Mental Health
00:14:30 Deep Dive into Psychedelics
00:30:13 Elsa's Investment Strategy and Core Learnings

Today, we have Jan Voss with us. Jan is the Head of Family Office at BLN Capital, a Berlin-based Single Family Office. BLN invests across almost all asset classes but has historically been most active in early-stage ventures in Germany as well as the VC and PE fund space.

AT BLN, Jan leads a three-person investment team focused on long-term investments across almost all asset classes. Jan is also a very active author on LinkedIn with over 15,000 followers, regularly sharing insights into family offices, venture capital, and asset allocation with his readers.

BLN manages over 100M€ in assets and has an established portfolio of 30+ companies and notable investments, including Kittl, PowerUs, and Meine Erde.

Jan is also the Managing Director of Cape May Wealth. Cape May Wealth is a Berlin-based wealth management firm. They aim to make family office investment knowledge available to everyone to help entrepreneurs make better decisions regarding their wealth.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

00:05:18 - Balancing Moonshots and Profitability
00:07:54 - The Mistake of Family Offices in VC Investments
00:13:00 - The Value of European VCs
00:20:29 - Secondaries and Venture Debt
00:23:03 - The Versatility of Growth Funds in the German Market
00:25:36 - Investments in Private Equity and Venture Capital
00:30:39 - The Pros and Cons of Large Funds and Small Market Investments
00:33:06 - Direct VC Investments and Portfolio Strategy
00:35:41 - Different approaches to investing
00:38:17 - The Importance of Tracking Companies' Progress
00:40:55 - VC Fund Behavior and Courage
00:45:57 - Three Biggest Learnings from the Past 10 Years
00:48:19 - Being proactive and driving personal traction
00:53:11 - Tips for Emerging VCs
00:58:22 - Contradictory Communication Styles

Today, we have Jan Voss with us. Jan is the Head of Family Office at BLN Capital, a Berlin-based Single Family Office. BLN invests across almost all asset classes but has historically been most active in early-stage ventures in Germany as well as the VC and PE fund space.

AT BLN, Jan leads a three-person investment team focused on long-term investments across almost all asset classes. Jan is also a very active author on LinkedIn with over 15,000 followers, regularly sharing insights into family offices, venture capital, and asset allocation with his readers.

BLN manages over 100M€ in assets and has an established portfolio of 30+ companies and notable investments, including Kittl, PowerUs, and Meine Erde.

Jan is also the Managing Director of Cape May Wealth. Cape May Wealth is a Berlin-based wealth management firm. They aim to make family office investment knowledge available to everyone to help entrepreneurs make better decisions regarding their wealth.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

00:05:18 - Balancing Moonshots and Profitability
00:07:54 - The Mistake of Family Offices in VC Investments
00:13:00 - The Value of European VCs
00:20:29 - Secondaries and Venture Debt
00:23:03 - The Versatility of Growth Funds in the German Market
00:25:36 - Investments in Private Equity and Venture Capital
00:30:39 - The Pros and Cons of Large Funds and Small Market Investments
00:33:06 - Direct VC Investments and Portfolio Strategy
00:35:41 - Different approaches to investing
00:38:17 - The Importance of Tracking Companies' Progress
00:40:55 - VC Fund Behavior and Courage
00:45:57 - Three Biggest Learnings from the Past 10 Years
00:48:19 - Being proactive and driving personal traction
00:53:11 - Tips for Emerging VCs
00:58:22 - Contradictory Communication Styles

Today, we have Julia Hawkins with us. Julia is a General Partner at Phoenix Court, a $1.5bn AUM EMEA multi-stage tech investor, backing the most ambitious founders on their journey from seed through to public markets and beyond over the last two decades.

LocalGlobe is the pre-seed and seed fund investing out of Phoenix Court’s Fund 12 with an established portfolio of over 200 companies with notable investments including At-Bay, Motorway, Zego and Improbable. At Phoenix Court, Julia focuses on health and hard tech and led investments into AccuRx, Oxford Nanopore, Vaccitech, and more recently Spore Bio and Early Health.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:00:00:00 Welcome to the European VC Podcast with Julia Hawkins
00:00:26 Diving Deep into Phoenix Court and Multi-Stage Investing
00:04:22 Julia Hawkins' Journey into Venture Capital
00:15:44 The Impact of Personal Experiences on Professional Paths
00:18:27 Exploring the Future of Hard Tech in Europe
00:34:09 Exploring Healthcare Innovations and Community Impact
00:34:33 The Unique Approach of Local Globe in Healthcare Investments
00:35:25 Building Relationships and Community in the Healthcare Sector
00:44:21 Mentorship and Diversity in Venture Capital
00:52:47 Advice for Emerging VCs

Today, we have Julia Hawkins with us. Julia is a General Partner at Phoenix Court, a $1.5bn AUM EMEA multi-stage tech investor, backing the most ambitious founders on their journey from seed through to public markets and beyond over the last two decades.

LocalGlobe is the pre-seed and seed fund investing out of Phoenix Court’s Fund 12 with an established portfolio of over 200 companies with notable investments including At-Bay, Motorway, Zego and Improbable. At Phoenix Court, Julia focuses on health and hard tech and led investments into AccuRx, Oxford Nanopore, Vaccitech, and more recently Spore Bio and Early Health.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:00:00:00 Welcome to the European VC Podcast with Julia Hawkins
00:00:26 Diving Deep into Phoenix Court and Multi-Stage Investing
00:04:22 Julia Hawkins' Journey into Venture Capital
00:15:44 The Impact of Personal Experiences on Professional Paths
00:18:27 Exploring the Future of Hard Tech in Europe
00:34:09 Exploring Healthcare Innovations and Community Impact
00:34:33 The Unique Approach of Local Globe in Healthcare Investments
00:35:25 Building Relationships and Community in the Healthcare Sector
00:44:21 Mentorship and Diversity in Venture Capital
00:52:47 Advice for Emerging VCs

Today, we have Steffen Pauls with us. Steffen is a Founding Partner at 7GC, a €400M Growth venture fund based in Berlin, and founded the firm in 2015 to bring growth investment opportunities to a network of key decision-makers, industrial families, and entrepreneurs in Europe.

7GC is investing out of Fund II with a total €400M AUM and an established portfolio of 15 companies and notable investments including Jackpocket, Jio, Hims & Hers. Steffen focuses on Sars, FinTech, and AI.

Steffen is a serial entrepreneur who has founded several businesses; among others, he cofounded and acted as CEO of the first five AG (sold to a PE investor). In addition, Steffen is the founder of Moonfare, a financial services technology firm, which he currently runs as the acting CEO.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

00:03:14 - From Private Equity to Venture Capital
00:06:16 - Moonfare's Global Expansion Journey
00:09:14 - The Importance of Patience in Investing
00:15:15 - The Future of AI Regulation
00:18:12 - Europe's Struggle to Catch Up in AI
00:21:02 - The Imbalance of Data Ownership
00:33:36 - Democratizing Private Equity Investment
00:36:38 - Investment Pre-Selection Process
00:39:39 - Moonfare: An Innovation in the Market
00:42:31 - The Different Players in the Industry
00:45:36 - Moonfare: Building a Community
00:48:43 - Democratization of Private Equity
00:51:44 - Learning from the Challenges of Starting Moon Fare
00:54:49 - The Importance of Culture in Building Great Companies
00:58:04 - Trends in Investor Behavior
01:01:22 - The Importance of Independence and Speaking Up
01:04:26 - The Dangers of Being Cyclical
01:07:33 - The Value of University Education

Today, we have Steffen Pauls with us. Steffen is a Founding Partner at 7GC, a €400M Growth venture fund based in Berlin, and founded the firm in 2015 to bring growth investment opportunities to a network of key decision-makers, industrial families, and entrepreneurs in Europe.

7GC is investing out of Fund II with a total €400M AUM and an established portfolio of 15 companies and notable investments including Jackpocket, Jio, Hims & Hers. Steffen focuses on Sars, FinTech, and AI.

Steffen is a serial entrepreneur who has founded several businesses; among others, he cofounded and acted as CEO of the first five AG (sold to a PE investor). In addition, Steffen is the founder of Moonfare, a financial services technology firm, which he currently runs as the acting CEO.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

00:03:14 - From Private Equity to Venture Capital
00:06:16 - Moonfare's Global Expansion Journey
00:09:14 - The Importance of Patience in Investing
00:15:15 - The Future of AI Regulation
00:18:12 - Europe's Struggle to Catch Up in AI
00:21:02 - The Imbalance of Data Ownership
00:33:36 - Democratizing Private Equity Investment
00:36:38 - Investment Pre-Selection Process
00:39:39 - Moonfare: An Innovation in the Market
00:42:31 - The Different Players in the Industry
00:45:36 - Moonfare: Building a Community
00:48:43 - Democratization of Private Equity
00:51:44 - Learning from the Challenges of Starting Moon Fare
00:54:49 - The Importance of Culture in Building Great Companies
00:58:04 - Trends in Investor Behavior
01:01:22 - The Importance of Independence and Speaking Up
01:04:26 - The Dangers of Being Cyclical
01:07:33 - The Value of University Education

Cornerstoned by Isomer Capital, very early Ventures is built to capture the opportunity in three foundational Web3 pillars: Decentralized Infrastructure, Real World Impact, and Public Markets Opportunity.

The very early team has already established a solid initial portfolio in lockstep with leading web3 funds like a16z, Dragonfly, and 1kx. This is evidence that the best founders choose to work with the very early team not just for the capital, but for the value add.

At the core of Web3 lies the possibility of separating money from state. Creating a new global monetary system that transcends borders, redefines property rights, and empowers individuals like never before. This transformation may represent the biggest opportunity of our lifetimes, and we are thrilled to be part of this paradigm shift.

With the speculative excess and hype cleared from much of the Web3 ecosystem, the emerging Web3 bull market appears to be driven by applications that genuinely add value and are built on robust foundations, rather than fleeting fantasies. We believe Web3 is finally reaching the level of maturation we’ve all been waiting for, leading to the founding of projects with tangible benefits and sustainable models instead of mere speculation. And it is these projects that the very early team is helping to bring about.

If you would like an intro to the very early team, don’t hesitate to reach out.

Cornerstoned by Isomer Capital, very early Ventures is built to capture the opportunity in three foundational Web3 pillars: Decentralized Infrastructure, Real World Impact, and Public Markets Opportunity.

The very early team has already established a solid initial portfolio in lockstep with leading web3 funds like a16z, Dragonfly, and 1kx. This is evidence that the best founders choose to work with the very early team not just for the capital, but for the value add.

At the core of Web3 lies the possibility of separating money from state. Creating a new global monetary system that transcends borders, redefines property rights, and empowers individuals like never before. This transformation may represent the biggest opportunity of our lifetimes, and we are thrilled to be part of this paradigm shift.

With the speculative excess and hype cleared from much of the Web3 ecosystem, the emerging Web3 bull market appears to be driven by applications that genuinely add value and are built on robust foundations, rather than fleeting fantasies. We believe Web3 is finally reaching the level of maturation we’ve all been waiting for, leading to the founding of projects with tangible benefits and sustainable models instead of mere speculation. And it is these projects that the very early team is helping to bring about.

If you would like an intro to the very early team, don’t hesitate to reach out.

Welcome to a new episode of our special series At The Cap Table.

Today, we are joined by Sarah Finegan, an Investor at Antler, in a conversation with Susan Lin, a Partner & Investor at Felix Capital.

Susan is an investor at Felix Capital. Over the past 10+ years, Susan has advised, invested, and worked in a range of consumer and technology companies in their journeys to grow and scale. Susan joined Felix Capital from HgCapital, a London-based private equity fund where she focused on software investments and portfolio companies. Prior to HgCapital, Susan was a management consultant at Bain & Company in San Francisco, Singapore, and London, advising private equity and growth capital funds on potential investments and CPG and e-commerce companies on go-to-market, M&A, and growth strategies.

Felix Capital is a venture capital firm for the creative class, operating at the intersection of technology and creativity. The fund focuses on digital lifestyle across multiple verticals, investing in authentic consumer-facing brands and platforms and related enabling B2B technologies. Their mission is to be a partner of choice for entrepreneurs with big ideas and help them build category-defining companies that move the world forward.

Chapters:00:00:00 Introduction and Welcome
00:02:16 Susan's Journey into Venture Capital
00:02:51 The Impact of Parents' Entrepreneurship
00:04:31 Susan's Career Path and Experiences
00:05:34 Transition into Investing and Joining Felix Capital
00:06:54 Understanding Felix Capital and Its Approach
00:12:44 Opportunities in Consumer Investing
00:18:22 Impact and Positive Change in Investments
00:20:47 Outlook on Investing and Advice for Founders
00:26:10 Diversity in Europe's Tech Ecosystem
00:29:35 Advice to Younger Self and Conclusion

Welcome to a new episode of our special series At The Cap Table.

Today, we are joined by Sarah Finegan, an Investor at Antler, in a conversation with Susan Lin, a Partner & Investor at Felix Capital.

Susan is an investor at Felix Capital. Over the past 10+ years, Susan has advised, invested, and worked in a range of consumer and technology companies in their journeys to grow and scale. Susan joined Felix Capital from HgCapital, a London-based private equity fund where she focused on software investments and portfolio companies. Prior to HgCapital, Susan was a management consultant at Bain & Company in San Francisco, Singapore, and London, advising private equity and growth capital funds on potential investments and CPG and e-commerce companies on go-to-market, M&A, and growth strategies.

Felix Capital is a venture capital firm for the creative class, operating at the intersection of technology and creativity. The fund focuses on digital lifestyle across multiple verticals, investing in authentic consumer-facing brands and platforms and related enabling B2B technologies. Their mission is to be a partner of choice for entrepreneurs with big ideas and help them build category-defining companies that move the world forward.

Chapters:00:00:00 Introduction and Welcome
00:02:16 Susan's Journey into Venture Capital
00:02:51 The Impact of Parents' Entrepreneurship
00:04:31 Susan's Career Path and Experiences
00:05:34 Transition into Investing and Joining Felix Capital
00:06:54 Understanding Felix Capital and Its Approach
00:12:44 Opportunities in Consumer Investing
00:18:22 Impact and Positive Change in Investments
00:20:47 Outlook on Investing and Advice for Founders
00:26:10 Diversity in Europe's Tech Ecosystem
00:29:35 Advice to Younger Self and Conclusion

Today, we are joined by Jonathan Sibilia, Partner at Molten Ventures and one of the judges at the European VC Awards. He is an important player in our ecosystem as one of the main LPs. He has made over 80 fund investments, 2200 underlying portfolio companies with Molten Ventures, and 2B in AUM.

Jonathan joined Molten Ventures in 2009. Prior to joining the company, he was a senior associate in the technology group at Jefferies International, advising on high-profile cross-border M&A, debt & equity offerings.

Previously, he worked at Rothschild & CIE in Paris. He also worked at Apax Partners Corporate Finance in France. Jonathan holds an MA in Management from EM-Lyon and the University of St Gallen in Switzerland and an MA in Advanced Corporate Finance from the University of Paris IX Dauphine.

Molten Ventures is one of the most active venture capital firms in Europe, developing and investing in disruptive, high-growth technology companies.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

00:01:42 The Journey into Venture Capital
00:06:08 The Role of a Public Model
00:13:43 The Future of AI in Venture Capital
00:19:46 The Importance of Exit Strategies
00:20:13 The Role of Founders and VCs in Exit Strategies
00:33:07 Understanding the Importance of Realizing Gains
00:33:43 The Philosophy of De-risking Investments
00:35:03 The Reality of Today's Investment Environment
00:35:45 Shout Out to Collaborative Partners in the Ecosystem
00:36:45 The Importance of Collaboration and Sharing in the Ecosystem
00:38:51 The Role of LPs in Building the Ecosystem
00:42:06 The Challenge of Making Venture Capital Understandable to All
00:42:27 The Mission to Democratize Retail Investing
00:44:26 The Importance of Trusting Your Instincts and Talent
00:55:58 Tips for Emerging VCs: Differentiation and Discipline
00:58:20 The Counterintuitive Truth about Venture Capital
00:59:51 Closing Thoughts and Uncommon Beliefs

Today, we are joined by Jonathan Sibilia, Partner at Molten Ventures and one of the judges at the European VC Awards. He is an important player in our ecosystem as one of the main LPs. He has made over 80 fund investments, 2200 underlying portfolio companies with Molten Ventures, and 2B in AUM.

Jonathan joined Molten Ventures in 2009. Prior to joining the company, he was a senior associate in the technology group at Jefferies International, advising on high-profile cross-border M&A, debt & equity offerings.

Previously, he worked at Rothschild & CIE in Paris. He also worked at Apax Partners Corporate Finance in France. Jonathan holds an MA in Management from EM-Lyon and the University of St Gallen in Switzerland and an MA in Advanced Corporate Finance from the University of Paris IX Dauphine.

Molten Ventures is one of the most active venture capital firms in Europe, developing and investing in disruptive, high-growth technology companies.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

00:01:42 The Journey into Venture Capital
00:06:08 The Role of a Public Model
00:13:43 The Future of AI in Venture Capital
00:19:46 The Importance of Exit Strategies
00:20:13 The Role of Founders and VCs in Exit Strategies
00:33:07 Understanding the Importance of Realizing Gains
00:33:43 The Philosophy of De-risking Investments
00:35:03 The Reality of Today's Investment Environment
00:35:45 Shout Out to Collaborative Partners in the Ecosystem
00:36:45 The Importance of Collaboration and Sharing in the Ecosystem
00:38:51 The Role of LPs in Building the Ecosystem
00:42:06 The Challenge of Making Venture Capital Understandable to All
00:42:27 The Mission to Democratize Retail Investing
00:44:26 The Importance of Trusting Your Instincts and Talent
00:55:58 Tips for Emerging VCs: Differentiation and Discipline
00:58:20 The Counterintuitive Truth about Venture Capital
00:59:51 Closing Thoughts and Uncommon Beliefs

Join us for a new episode of the NEUVC series dedicated to those embarking on their journey in the VC. In this episode, Freddie Macpherson, Associate at Isomer Capital, and Linda Võeras, Investment Manager at Karma Ventures, are joined by Ondrej Bartos, General Partner at Credo Ventures.

Ondrej is the Founding GP at Credo Ventures, a 75m€ Seed stage venture fund in Prague (and a bit elsewhere!) to back Central Eastern European Tech Startups.

Credo is investing out of Fund IV with a total €250M AUM and an established portfolio of 60 companies and notable investments, including UI Path, ProductBoard, PriceFX, Resistant AI, and Eleven Labs.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

00:02:00 - Focus on Early Stage Investments
00:04:10 - Spotting Patterns in Venture Capital
00:06:17 - The Beginning of Venture Investing in the Region
00:08:39 - The Growth of Tech Talent in the Region
00:11:00 - The Growth and Progress of the CE Region
00:12:59 - Building Relationships through Networking
00:15:08 - Finding Great Deals in the Startup World
00:17:25 - Learning from Investments and Founders
00:19:49 - Evaluating the Right Investment
00:21:50 - The Risk of Investing in Startups
00:24:13 - The Role of Luck in Success
00:28:26 - The Importance of Founder in Startup Investment
00:30:45 - The Importance of Respect and Honesty in Relationships
00:35:16 - Listening and adding value in boardrooms
00:37:38 - The Role of a Board Member
00:39:53 - Skills for Success in Venture Capital
00:41:53 - The Importance of People in Venture Capital

Join us for a new episode of the NEUVC series dedicated to those embarking on their journey in the VC. In this episode, Freddie Macpherson, Associate at Isomer Capital, and Linda Võeras, Investment Manager at Karma Ventures, are joined by Ondrej Bartos, General Partner at Credo Ventures.

Ondrej is the Founding GP at Credo Ventures, a 75m€ Seed stage venture fund in Prague (and a bit elsewhere!) to back Central Eastern European Tech Startups.

Credo is investing out of Fund IV with a total €250M AUM and an established portfolio of 60 companies and notable investments, including UI Path, ProductBoard, PriceFX, Resistant AI, and Eleven Labs.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

00:02:00 - Focus on Early Stage Investments
00:04:10 - Spotting Patterns in Venture Capital
00:06:17 - The Beginning of Venture Investing in the Region
00:08:39 - The Growth of Tech Talent in the Region
00:11:00 - The Growth and Progress of the CE Region
00:12:59 - Building Relationships through Networking
00:15:08 - Finding Great Deals in the Startup World
00:17:25 - Learning from Investments and Founders
00:19:49 - Evaluating the Right Investment
00:21:50 - The Risk of Investing in Startups
00:24:13 - The Role of Luck in Success
00:28:26 - The Importance of Founder in Startup Investment
00:30:45 - The Importance of Respect and Honesty in Relationships
00:35:16 - Listening and adding value in boardrooms
00:37:38 - The Role of a Board Member
00:39:53 - Skills for Success in Venture Capital
00:41:53 - The Importance of People in Venture Capital

Today, we are joined by Tej Panesar. Tej is a Partner at Prism Ventures, the UK-based institutional investor focused on the life sciences and healthcare sectors.

Prism invests in the best-of-breed funds managed in the US, UK, and Europe through fund of funds and co-investment programs. He previously worked as an Investment Director at British Patient Capital, a UK government-backed institution very similar to the EIF and one of the largest investors in UK venture capital.

With +425M pounds invested in the UK and Europe, Tej led investments into famed firms like IQ Capital and SV Health. Tej and his team have a wide lens across the life sciences and healthcare industries but a strong focus on traditional biopharma and areas like tech bio.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:
00:00:00 - Introduction about Prism Ventures
00:03:55 - From Crowdfund Platforms to Venture Capital
00:11:09 - LP Perspective on High-Tech Work
00:14:50 - The Non-Binary Nature of the Life Sciences Sector
00:18:34 - The Exciting Opportunities in Biotechnology and Healthcare
00:26:28 - Adoption Challenges in the Health Sector
00:30:23 - The Value Equation of Learning Technologies
00:34:01 - Symbiotic Approaches in Life Sciences
00:37:50 - Focus on Life Science and Healthcare
00:41:36 - Investing in Europe vs the US
00:45:18 - Portfolio Construction and Diversification
00:49:18 - Building a Long-Term Institution
00:53:04 - Diversity and Culture in VC Firms
00:56:50 - Evaluating Team Culture and Portfolio Construction
01:00:29 - The Importance of a Viable Business Plan
01:04:04 - Scaling the Fund Size
01:07:48 - Investing as a Team

Today, we are joined by Tej Panesar. Tej is a Partner at Prism Ventures, the UK-based institutional investor focused on the life sciences and healthcare sectors.

Prism invests in the best-of-breed funds managed in the US, UK, and Europe through fund of funds and co-investment programs. He previously worked as an Investment Director at British Patient Capital, a UK government-backed institution very similar to the EIF and one of the largest investors in UK venture capital.

With +425M pounds invested in the UK and Europe, Tej led investments into famed firms like IQ Capital and SV Health. Tej and his team have a wide lens across the life sciences and healthcare industries but a strong focus on traditional biopharma and areas like tech bio.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:
00:00:00 - Introduction about Prism Ventures
00:03:55 - From Crowdfund Platforms to Venture Capital
00:11:09 - LP Perspective on High-Tech Work
00:14:50 - The Non-Binary Nature of the Life Sciences Sector
00:18:34 - The Exciting Opportunities in Biotechnology and Healthcare
00:26:28 - Adoption Challenges in the Health Sector
00:30:23 - The Value Equation of Learning Technologies
00:34:01 - Symbiotic Approaches in Life Sciences
00:37:50 - Focus on Life Science and Healthcare
00:41:36 - Investing in Europe vs the US
00:45:18 - Portfolio Construction and Diversification
00:49:18 - Building a Long-Term Institution
00:53:04 - Diversity and Culture in VC Firms
00:56:50 - Evaluating Team Culture and Portfolio Construction
01:00:29 - The Importance of a Viable Business Plan
01:04:04 - Scaling the Fund Size
01:07:48 - Investing as a Team

965 joined us for yesterday's roundtable on acing LP relationships - in case you missed it, listen here or rewatch on eu.vc 👀

Whether you're navigating the complexities of LP expectations, leveraging digital tools for onboarding, or aiming to strengthen trust and transparency, this roundtable covers it all. Watch it here or add it to your episodes on Apple or Spotify.Our esteemed speakers:* Alexander Langholz-Baikousis, CFO at Cherry Ventures. * Simon Lohmann, Head of Platform & IR at Cavalry Ventures. * Chloe Dagnell, Principal at Isomer Capital. * Sophie Heijenberg, Investor at No Such Ventures. * Enrico Ohnemüller, Founder & CEO of bunch

What You Will Learn:* Key strategies for VCs to effectively manage and nurture relationships with LPs. * Insights into the expectations and preferences of LPs in their partnerships with VCs. * The importance of transparency, communication, and alignment of interests in LP-VC relations. * Innovative tools and services that can facilitate stronger LP-VC connections. * Real-world experiences and lessons from leading professionals in the field.

This roundtable is brought to you in collaboration with bunch.capital 💖 Being the operating system for private markets, bunch goes beyond the ordinary, reshaping the investment experience by digitising every aspect of the investment process from onboarding to reporting & compliance. They focus on elevating the quality of GP-LP relationships and are trusted by over 1,500 customers who have invested more than €950 million through the platform. Join us if you are interested in exploring how cutting-edge technologies can transform your LP experience. Check them out on bunch.capital 💖

965 joined us for yesterday's roundtable on acing LP relationships - in case you missed it, listen here or rewatch on eu.vc 👀

Whether you're navigating the complexities of LP expectations, leveraging digital tools for onboarding, or aiming to strengthen trust and transparency, this roundtable covers it all. Watch it here or add it to your episodes on Apple or Spotify.Our esteemed speakers:* Alexander Langholz-Baikousis, CFO at Cherry Ventures. * Simon Lohmann, Head of Platform & IR at Cavalry Ventures. * Chloe Dagnell, Principal at Isomer Capital. * Sophie Heijenberg, Investor at No Such Ventures. * Enrico Ohnemüller, Founder & CEO of bunch

What You Will Learn:* Key strategies for VCs to effectively manage and nurture relationships with LPs. * Insights into the expectations and preferences of LPs in their partnerships with VCs. * The importance of transparency, communication, and alignment of interests in LP-VC relations. * Innovative tools and services that can facilitate stronger LP-VC connections. * Real-world experiences and lessons from leading professionals in the field.

This roundtable is brought to you in collaboration with bunch.capital 💖 Being the operating system for private markets, bunch goes beyond the ordinary, reshaping the investment experience by digitising every aspect of the investment process from onboarding to reporting & compliance. They focus on elevating the quality of GP-LP relationships and are trusted by over 1,500 customers who have invested more than €950 million through the platform. Join us if you are interested in exploring how cutting-edge technologies can transform your LP experience. Check them out on bunch.capital 💖

In this episode of our NEUVC series dedicated to those embarking on their VC journey, Freddie Macpherson, Assoicate at Isomer Capital, and Linda Võeras, Associate at Karma Ventures, are joined by Helery Pops, co-founder and Honey Pot Guardian at Honey Badger Capital. However, things move quickly in this world, so since the recording of the episode, Helery has joined Practica Capital as an Investment Manager whilst still working with and supporting the Honey Badger Capital portfolio and team 🦡 .

Helery has mastered the customer's language by doing sales and customer research in Pipedrive before moving to the product team to help build the tool that Pipedrive is today. With a love for good product design for both software and hardware, she joined the ranks of Ampler Bikes with the mission to help make the cities less car-centered.

Speaking to about 20 start-ups every week, Helery has seen pitch decks in all shapes and sizes and will definitely ask how much research went into figuring out the problem space that the start-up is solving.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:
00:00:00 - A Conversation On Investing in Sustainability and Impact
00:01:42 - Helery’s Professional Background and Evolution in Career
00:03:05 - Discovering a Superpower in Starting from Zero
00:06:05 - The Importance of Inbound Deal Flow
00:07:36 - Providing Value without Control
00:09:10 - Flexibility and Expectations in VC Investments
00:10:36 - Leveraging Value in Product Management
00:13:29 - Understanding What Partners Want
00:15:03 - Making Money and Impact
00:16:33 - Combining Science and Business to Make an Impact
00:17:59 - Supporting Founders without Investment
00:19:25 - Learning from Others' Knowledge of Geothermal Energy
00:20:52 - The Importance of Having Like-minded People
00:24:01 - Impact Investing in Green Tech
00:25:35 - Constraints on Impact Investing and the Future
00:27:15 - Creating a Deel Flow for Ourselves00:28:39 - Crucial Skills in the VC Industry

In this episode of our NEUVC series dedicated to those embarking on their VC journey, Freddie Macpherson, Assoicate at Isomer Capital, and Linda Võeras, Associate at Karma Ventures, are joined by Helery Pops, co-founder and Honey Pot Guardian at Honey Badger Capital. However, things move quickly in this world, so since the recording of the episode, Helery has joined Practica Capital as an Investment Manager whilst still working with and supporting the Honey Badger Capital portfolio and team 🦡 .

Helery has mastered the customer's language by doing sales and customer research in Pipedrive before moving to the product team to help build the tool that Pipedrive is today. With a love for good product design for both software and hardware, she joined the ranks of Ampler Bikes with the mission to help make the cities less car-centered.

Speaking to about 20 start-ups every week, Helery has seen pitch decks in all shapes and sizes and will definitely ask how much research went into figuring out the problem space that the start-up is solving.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:
00:00:00 - A Conversation On Investing in Sustainability and Impact
00:01:42 - Helery’s Professional Background and Evolution in Career
00:03:05 - Discovering a Superpower in Starting from Zero
00:06:05 - The Importance of Inbound Deal Flow
00:07:36 - Providing Value without Control
00:09:10 - Flexibility and Expectations in VC Investments
00:10:36 - Leveraging Value in Product Management
00:13:29 - Understanding What Partners Want
00:15:03 - Making Money and Impact
00:16:33 - Combining Science and Business to Make an Impact
00:17:59 - Supporting Founders without Investment
00:19:25 - Learning from Others' Knowledge of Geothermal Energy
00:20:52 - The Importance of Having Like-minded People
00:24:01 - Impact Investing in Green Tech
00:25:35 - Constraints on Impact Investing and the Future
00:27:15 - Creating a Deel Flow for Ourselves00:28:39 - Crucial Skills in the VC Industry

Today, we have Nicholas Nelson, who recently joined MD One Ventures as Partner.

Nicholas is an important and active player in building Europe’s first defence and national security venture capital fund, supporting the growing portfolio of over a dozen defence and dual-use tech companies. Nicholas is an internationally recognised defence investor and thought leader, with over 17 years of experience across the national security and defence tech sectors. His National Security career has spanned roles in the US Government, management consulting, and leading defence and dual-use tech companies.

Nicholas was an early investor in defence tech as we know it today, having made his first investment in 2020, and has been advising within the dual-use sector since 2015. He has become a leading advocate for the nascent European national security technology ecosystem- contributing to multiple publications and communities, including the US Army War College, the NATO Review, National Defence Magazine, Munich Security Conference, Defence Disrupted, College of Europe, University of Cambridge, and Kings College London.

We invite you to listen to this discussion below for a refreshingly honest talk on the defence tech sector, where we stand vis a vis the US and China, as well as actionable advice on how the ecosystem can change for the better.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:
00:02:24 - From Aerospace Defense to Government Services
00:04:24 - Transitioning from Government to Tech Startups
00:06:24 - The Role of Tech in a Changing Geopolitical Landscape
00:08:36 - Investing in European Defense Tech for Returns and Impact
00:10:36 - The Declining Tech Valuation Delta between Europe and the US
00:12:38 - Increase in European Defense Spending and Private Capital Engagement
00:14:51 - The Blurring Lines Between Defense Technology and Commercial Use
00:16:51 - The False Sense of Long-term Security
00:18:55 - Trends in Military Spending
00:21:04 - Exclusion Lists for Aerospace Defense Companies
00:23:05 - Europe at risk of being left behind in defense innovation
00:24:59 - The Role of European Primes in the Defense Economy
00:27:02 - Investing in European Defense Tech
00:33:14 - Successful Defense-First Tech Companies
00:35:30 - The Role of Defense Experience in Investing
00:37:34 - The Value of Military and National Service in Tech
00:39:41 - Defense Tech in Eastern Europe
00:41:40 - European Unity and New Beginnings

Today, we have Nicholas Nelson, who recently joined MD One Ventures as Partner.

Nicholas is an important and active player in building Europe’s first defence and national security venture capital fund, supporting the growing portfolio of over a dozen defence and dual-use tech companies. Nicholas is an internationally recognised defence investor and thought leader, with over 17 years of experience across the national security and defence tech sectors. His National Security career has spanned roles in the US Government, management consulting, and leading defence and dual-use tech companies.

Nicholas was an early investor in defence tech as we know it today, having made his first investment in 2020, and has been advising within the dual-use sector since 2015. He has become a leading advocate for the nascent European national security technology ecosystem- contributing to multiple publications and communities, including the US Army War College, the NATO Review, National Defence Magazine, Munich Security Conference, Defence Disrupted, College of Europe, University of Cambridge, and Kings College London.

We invite you to listen to this discussion below for a refreshingly honest talk on the defence tech sector, where we stand vis a vis the US and China, as well as actionable advice on how the ecosystem can change for the better.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:
00:02:24 - From Aerospace Defense to Government Services
00:04:24 - Transitioning from Government to Tech Startups
00:06:24 - The Role of Tech in a Changing Geopolitical Landscape
00:08:36 - Investing in European Defense Tech for Returns and Impact
00:10:36 - The Declining Tech Valuation Delta between Europe and the US
00:12:38 - Increase in European Defense Spending and Private Capital Engagement
00:14:51 - The Blurring Lines Between Defense Technology and Commercial Use
00:16:51 - The False Sense of Long-term Security
00:18:55 - Trends in Military Spending
00:21:04 - Exclusion Lists for Aerospace Defense Companies
00:23:05 - Europe at risk of being left behind in defense innovation
00:24:59 - The Role of European Primes in the Defense Economy
00:27:02 - Investing in European Defense Tech
00:33:14 - Successful Defense-First Tech Companies
00:35:30 - The Role of Defense Experience in Investing
00:37:34 - The Value of Military and National Service in Tech
00:39:41 - Defense Tech in Eastern Europe
00:41:40 - European Unity and New Beginnings

Today, we're happy to be joined by Edwina Johnson, Head of Global at Alloy, leading company strategy to expand their product into key markets worldwide and launch a GTM team in the UK/EMEA.

Previously Head of Global at Alloy, leading company strategy to expand our product into key markets worldwide and launch a GTM team in the UK/EMEA. Before that, COO at Alloy in NYC, taking the team from Seed to Series C and $1.55B valuation. Edwina is also an active angel investor, primarily through Ada Ventures, under the Economic Empowerment thesis, a mentor through Innovate UK’s Women in Innovation program, and an Expert in Residence for Sie Ventures.

We invite you to listen to this discussion below for some wonderful stories; besides the actionable advice, you can have a sneak peek at the below.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

00:02:08 - Building and Investing in Startups
00:03:51 - The Importance of Strong Founders in Startups
00:05:30 - Taking the First Step into Angel Investing
00:06:57 - Angel Investing and Building a Network
00:08:29 - Tangental Benefits of Angel Investing
00:10:13 - Angel Investing Qualifications
00:11:57 - Evaluating Investment Opportunities
00:13:31 - Investing in Founders with a Clear Mission and Vision
00:15:07 - Providing Value to Founders After Investment
00:16:45 - Providing Value and scaling challenges
00:18:16 - Collaborating with VC's and Diversifying Portfolio
00:19:49 - Diversifying Deal Pipeline
00:21:22 - The Importance of Networking in Angel Investing
00:23:09 - The Herd Mentality in VC Investment
00:24:44 - Balancing Objectivity and Excitement in Investing
00:26:21 - Excitement for Investing in Familiar Industries
00:28:01 - Being Open to Changing Business Models
00:29:32 - Expanding Networks and Diversity in Angel Investing
00:31:09 - The importance of founders in early-stage businesses

Today, we're happy to be joined by Edwina Johnson, Head of Global at Alloy, leading company strategy to expand their product into key markets worldwide and launch a GTM team in the UK/EMEA.

Previously Head of Global at Alloy, leading company strategy to expand our product into key markets worldwide and launch a GTM team in the UK/EMEA. Before that, COO at Alloy in NYC, taking the team from Seed to Series C and $1.55B valuation. Edwina is also an active angel investor, primarily through Ada Ventures, under the Economic Empowerment thesis, a mentor through Innovate UK’s Women in Innovation program, and an Expert in Residence for Sie Ventures.

We invite you to listen to this discussion below for some wonderful stories; besides the actionable advice, you can have a sneak peek at the below.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:

00:02:08 - Building and Investing in Startups
00:03:51 - The Importance of Strong Founders in Startups
00:05:30 - Taking the First Step into Angel Investing
00:06:57 - Angel Investing and Building a Network
00:08:29 - Tangental Benefits of Angel Investing
00:10:13 - Angel Investing Qualifications
00:11:57 - Evaluating Investment Opportunities
00:13:31 - Investing in Founders with a Clear Mission and Vision
00:15:07 - Providing Value to Founders After Investment
00:16:45 - Providing Value and scaling challenges
00:18:16 - Collaborating with VC's and Diversifying Portfolio
00:19:49 - Diversifying Deal Pipeline
00:21:22 - The Importance of Networking in Angel Investing
00:23:09 - The Herd Mentality in VC Investment
00:24:44 - Balancing Objectivity and Excitement in Investing
00:26:21 - Excitement for Investing in Familiar Industries
00:28:01 - Being Open to Changing Business Models
00:29:32 - Expanding Networks and Diversity in Angel Investing
00:31:09 - The importance of founders in early-stage businesses

We are absolutely thrilled to announce that we’ve partnered with our friends at Isomer Capital, HSBC Innovation Banking and SuperVenture to launch The European VC Awards on Day 1 of SuperVenture 🏆

When we set out to build eu.vc our mission was to connect and champion The European VC industry, so coming together with three good friends and partners to launch The European VC awards is nothing short of a dream come true 💗. We’ve so looked forward to this day when we can finally invite you all to join us in the endeavor and you can do so by nominating to the awards, joining in the conversation on social media, and inviting your peers to nominate 🌟. We will of course also cover select nominees as well as all the finalists and winners here on the eu.vc pod as well as host virtual fireside events so that you can get up close and personal with the European VC champions. Stay tuned 👀.And last but not least, you’ll of course also be able to attend the awards in person as they’re the concluding session at this year’s SuperVenture in Berlin 🏆.

Your Voice Matters - Nominate Now!

Now, let’s get into the categories, the process and the judging panel ⚖️. Five Awards to Celebrate Our ChampionsDesigned to celebrate change-makers in European VC, the awards are dedicated to recognize and honor the firms and individuals that truly stand out and make a difference. We will do so across five categories:
Hall of Fame: Celebrating a lifetime of achievement in European Venture, this award is for those who have shaped the industry through their investments, contributions, and thought leadership over 20+ years and is stepping back from an active investing role and/or entering into a portfolio career of multiple firms.
Nominate here 🏆. * Firm of the Year: This accolade recognizes a firm from a fully holistic view, including pure financial performance and portfolio performance as well as innovation, impact on the ecosystem, diversity, transparency and fairness as well as team and culture.
Nominate here 🏆. * Newcomer of the Year: Honoring emerging managers, this award goes to a fund that has had its first close in the past year, recognizing their remarkable success in bringing something new and innovative to the European Venture market while building traction around their fund and vision.
Nominate here 🏆. * Achievement of the Year: This category is for the outstanding achievements and contributions in the European VC ecosystem in the given year, whether from an individual, company, or fund. This is the wild one where anything can happen.
Nominate here 🏆. * Exit of the Year:* Honoring the firm that has had a company that has exited and created the most value back to the VC and therefore back to the European Venture ecosystem. This is about venture capital returns as opposed to “the biggest exit” and will also encompass strategic aspects of the exit such as timing in relation to market conditions and exit strategy.
Nominate here 🏆.

The judging panel
In assembling the judging panel, we’ve looked for LPs with decade-long investing excellence and experience that together would form a panel all of the European ecosystem will recognize as capable and just.
* Thomas Kristensen, Partner at LGT Capital Partners * Jonathan Sibilia, Partner & Head of FoFs at Molten Ventures * Giulia Van Waeyenberge, Member of the Executive Committee at Sofina * Stephen Lowery, Head of Investor Coverage & Business Development at HSBC Innovation Banking * Joe Schorge, Founding Managing Partner at Isomer Capital (co-chair) * Chris Wade, Founding General Partner at Isomer Capital (co-chair)

Read much more on eu.vc and go nominate on isomercapital.com/awards

We are absolutely thrilled to announce that we’ve partnered with our friends at Isomer Capital, HSBC Innovation Banking and SuperVenture to launch The European VC Awards on Day 1 of SuperVenture 🏆

When we set out to build eu.vc our mission was to connect and champion The European VC industry, so coming together with three good friends and partners to launch The European VC awards is nothing short of a dream come true 💗. We’ve so looked forward to this day when we can finally invite you all to join us in the endeavor and you can do so by nominating to the awards, joining in the conversation on social media, and inviting your peers to nominate 🌟. We will of course also cover select nominees as well as all the finalists and winners here on the eu.vc pod as well as host virtual fireside events so that you can get up close and personal with the European VC champions. Stay tuned 👀.And last but not least, you’ll of course also be able to attend the awards in person as they’re the concluding session at this year’s SuperVenture in Berlin 🏆.

Your Voice Matters - Nominate Now!

Now, let’s get into the categories, the process and the judging panel ⚖️. Five Awards to Celebrate Our ChampionsDesigned to celebrate change-makers in European VC, the awards are dedicated to recognize and honor the firms and individuals that truly stand out and make a difference. We will do so across five categories:
Hall of Fame: Celebrating a lifetime of achievement in European Venture, this award is for those who have shaped the industry through their investments, contributions, and thought leadership over 20+ years and is stepping back from an active investing role and/or entering into a portfolio career of multiple firms.
Nominate here 🏆. * Firm of the Year: This accolade recognizes a firm from a fully holistic view, including pure financial performance and portfolio performance as well as innovation, impact on the ecosystem, diversity, transparency and fairness as well as team and culture.
Nominate here 🏆. * Newcomer of the Year: Honoring emerging managers, this award goes to a fund that has had its first close in the past year, recognizing their remarkable success in bringing something new and innovative to the European Venture market while building traction around their fund and vision.
Nominate here 🏆. * Achievement of the Year: This category is for the outstanding achievements and contributions in the European VC ecosystem in the given year, whether from an individual, company, or fund. This is the wild one where anything can happen.
Nominate here 🏆. * Exit of the Year:* Honoring the firm that has had a company that has exited and created the most value back to the VC and therefore back to the European Venture ecosystem. This is about venture capital returns as opposed to “the biggest exit” and will also encompass strategic aspects of the exit such as timing in relation to market conditions and exit strategy.
Nominate here 🏆.

The judging panel
In assembling the judging panel, we’ve looked for LPs with decade-long investing excellence and experience that together would form a panel all of the European ecosystem will recognize as capable and just.
* Thomas Kristensen, Partner at LGT Capital Partners * Jonathan Sibilia, Partner & Head of FoFs at Molten Ventures * Giulia Van Waeyenberge, Member of the Executive Committee at Sofina * Stephen Lowery, Head of Investor Coverage & Business Development at HSBC Innovation Banking * Joe Schorge, Founding Managing Partner at Isomer Capital (co-chair) * Chris Wade, Founding General Partner at Isomer Capital (co-chair)

Read much more on eu.vc and go nominate on isomercapital.com/awards

Hemal Fraser-Rawal is the GP of White Star Capital, a global investment platform with 1.5B AUM housing venture capital, digital assets and now debt-led Hybrid growth financing for companies. White Star Capital backs exceptional entrepreneurs building ambitious, international businesses across multiple stages and operate out of London, New York, Paris, Montreal, Toronto, Guernsey, Tokyo, and Singapore. By having such global presence, perspective, and people enable White Star are able to partner closely with their founders and them scale internationally.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:
00:03:18 - Turbocharging company growth through equity and debt
00:06:01 - Leveraged finance and the great recession
00:08:46 - The golden age of private credit is changing
00:11:30 - Understanding the growth debt markets
00:14:28 - Volatility in valuations and risk-reward in credit vs VC
00:17:25 - The benefits of debt investments
00:20:08 - The inevitability of write-offs in investing
00:25:49 - Addressing the funding gap in Europe
00:31:08 - Investing across different stages and asset classes
00:33:44 - Considering different investment assets
00:36:18 - Debt-based investment strategy
00:39:07 - Liquidity events and talent in Europe's secondary investing sector
00:41:49 - The availability of technical sector jobs
00:44:33 - Finding Top VCs in Europe
00:50:10 - Persistence in the face of rejection
00:52:53 - Building the Future of machines and software

Hemal Fraser-Rawal is the GP of White Star Capital, a global investment platform with 1.5B AUM housing venture capital, digital assets and now debt-led Hybrid growth financing for companies. White Star Capital backs exceptional entrepreneurs building ambitious, international businesses across multiple stages and operate out of London, New York, Paris, Montreal, Toronto, Guernsey, Tokyo, and Singapore. By having such global presence, perspective, and people enable White Star are able to partner closely with their founders and them scale internationally.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:
00:03:18 - Turbocharging company growth through equity and debt
00:06:01 - Leveraged finance and the great recession
00:08:46 - The golden age of private credit is changing
00:11:30 - Understanding the growth debt markets
00:14:28 - Volatility in valuations and risk-reward in credit vs VC
00:17:25 - The benefits of debt investments
00:20:08 - The inevitability of write-offs in investing
00:25:49 - Addressing the funding gap in Europe
00:31:08 - Investing across different stages and asset classes
00:33:44 - Considering different investment assets
00:36:18 - Debt-based investment strategy
00:39:07 - Liquidity events and talent in Europe's secondary investing sector
00:41:49 - The availability of technical sector jobs
00:44:33 - Finding Top VCs in Europe
00:50:10 - Persistence in the face of rejection
00:52:53 - Building the Future of machines and software

George is a General Partner at Phoenix Court Group, the group of funds home to LocalGlobe in Somers Town, London, building global businesses based on innovative science and technology to have the maximum positive impact on society.

LocalGlobe is investing out of their fifth institutional fund, of approx. 150M pounds, with a total AUM of over 1b pounds. Local Globe has an established portfolio of +60 companies and notable investments, including Melio, TravelPerk, Tide, Hibob, Motorway, Wise and Oxford Nanopore, AvantArte, and Sorare.

At LocalGlobe, George focuses on Marketplaces, E-commerce 2.0, and SaaS with a particular focus on SMEs across New Palo Alto, a region that encompasses a market of 40 million people and is roughly 4 hours train ride from Phoenix Court’s home next to St Pancras, London. George led the investments into Travelperk, Rekki, Taster, and Qogita.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:
00:00:00 - Introduction to Phoenix Court Group and Local Globe
00:03:03 - Concentrating capital into the most exciting companies
00:08:21 - The Rise of Social Media Platforms
00:11:01 - P2P Marketplace for Local Activities
00:13:44 - Hiring as a VC
00:16:25 - EQ and relationships in the venture capital industry.
00:21:55 - The Positive Aspects of Control and Humility
00:24:51 - The Strength of Europe in the Technology Wave
00:30:23 - The Relationship Between Culture, Technology, and Politics
00:35:47 - The Role of AI in Society and Culture
00:39:00 - The Value of Open Conversations in AI
00:41:40 - The Importance of Teamwork in Venture Capital
00:44:21 - The unique structure and mission of Local Globe
00:47:01 - Lessons learned and the importance of focus
00:49:42 - Investing Tips for Emerging VCs in Europe

George is a General Partner at Phoenix Court Group, the group of funds home to LocalGlobe in Somers Town, London, building global businesses based on innovative science and technology to have the maximum positive impact on society.

LocalGlobe is investing out of their fifth institutional fund, of approx. 150M pounds, with a total AUM of over 1b pounds. Local Globe has an established portfolio of +60 companies and notable investments, including Melio, TravelPerk, Tide, Hibob, Motorway, Wise and Oxford Nanopore, AvantArte, and Sorare.

At LocalGlobe, George focuses on Marketplaces, E-commerce 2.0, and SaaS with a particular focus on SMEs across New Palo Alto, a region that encompasses a market of 40 million people and is roughly 4 hours train ride from Phoenix Court’s home next to St Pancras, London. George led the investments into Travelperk, Rekki, Taster, and Qogita.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:
00:00:00 - Introduction to Phoenix Court Group and Local Globe
00:03:03 - Concentrating capital into the most exciting companies
00:08:21 - The Rise of Social Media Platforms
00:11:01 - P2P Marketplace for Local Activities
00:13:44 - Hiring as a VC
00:16:25 - EQ and relationships in the venture capital industry.
00:21:55 - The Positive Aspects of Control and Humility
00:24:51 - The Strength of Europe in the Technology Wave
00:30:23 - The Relationship Between Culture, Technology, and Politics
00:35:47 - The Role of AI in Society and Culture
00:39:00 - The Value of Open Conversations in AI
00:41:40 - The Importance of Teamwork in Venture Capital
00:44:21 - The unique structure and mission of Local Globe
00:47:01 - Lessons learned and the importance of focus
00:49:42 - Investing Tips for Emerging VCs in Europe

Today, we have Doreen Huber. Doreen is a Partner at EQT Ventures, a €1.1 BN early-stage venture fund with offices all over Europe and the US to back European and US startups. At EQT Ventures, Doreen focuses on Software in Europe, leading the investment into Parloa this year, the AI for Customer Care Automation. EQT Ventures is investing out of Fund III with a total of €2.3 BN AUM and an established portfolio of more than +100 companies and notable investments, including Handshake, Banking Circle, Einride, Instabee, and Verkor.Prior to joining EQT Ventures as Partner in January 2022, Doreen spent several years honing her role as one of Germany’s most respected business entrepreneurs and food technology experts, holding various C-level positions throughout her career and having founded her first company at 23.

As the founder and CEO of LEMONCAT (acquired in 2019 by Rocket Internet’s B2B Food Group), Doreen built a marketplace and SaaS solution for the European catering industry. She was also COO of food delivery unicorn Delivery Hero, currently valued at over €10bn.
Outside of work, Doreen is a keen traveller and art lover and holds a Master's degree in Media Science, Literature and Art History from Humboldt University Berlin.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:
00:02:40 - From Writer to Founder and VC
00:05:08 - Investing with Aligned Goals
00:07:32 - Lessons Learned from Early Investments in Delivery Hero
00:09:47 - The Shift in Perspective
00:12:33 - Embracing Luck and Gratitude
00:15:13 - The Intersection of Business and Creativity
00:17:46 - The Intersection of Different Backgrounds in Startups
00:20:11 - Sales as Crucial to Success
00:22:36 - Sales Teams in Product Growth
00:24:58 - Sales DNA
00:27:22 - Importance of Monetization Strategy
00:29:49 - Bridging the Gap in Sales Culture
00:32:23 - The Power of EQT Partners to Connect with Experts
00:34:51 - Leveraging Knowledge within Organizations
00:37:31 - Being a Supportive Investor
00:39:56 - Lessons for Founders from a VC Internship
00:42:17 - The Randomness of VC Decision-Making
00:47:14 - The Importance of Company Culture in Remote Settings

Today, we have Doreen Huber. Doreen is a Partner at EQT Ventures, a €1.1 BN early-stage venture fund with offices all over Europe and the US to back European and US startups. At EQT Ventures, Doreen focuses on Software in Europe, leading the investment into Parloa this year, the AI for Customer Care Automation. EQT Ventures is investing out of Fund III with a total of €2.3 BN AUM and an established portfolio of more than +100 companies and notable investments, including Handshake, Banking Circle, Einride, Instabee, and Verkor.Prior to joining EQT Ventures as Partner in January 2022, Doreen spent several years honing her role as one of Germany’s most respected business entrepreneurs and food technology experts, holding various C-level positions throughout her career and having founded her first company at 23.

As the founder and CEO of LEMONCAT (acquired in 2019 by Rocket Internet’s B2B Food Group), Doreen built a marketplace and SaaS solution for the European catering industry. She was also COO of food delivery unicorn Delivery Hero, currently valued at over €10bn.
Outside of work, Doreen is a keen traveller and art lover and holds a Master's degree in Media Science, Literature and Art History from Humboldt University Berlin.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:
00:02:40 - From Writer to Founder and VC
00:05:08 - Investing with Aligned Goals
00:07:32 - Lessons Learned from Early Investments in Delivery Hero
00:09:47 - The Shift in Perspective
00:12:33 - Embracing Luck and Gratitude
00:15:13 - The Intersection of Business and Creativity
00:17:46 - The Intersection of Different Backgrounds in Startups
00:20:11 - Sales as Crucial to Success
00:22:36 - Sales Teams in Product Growth
00:24:58 - Sales DNA
00:27:22 - Importance of Monetization Strategy
00:29:49 - Bridging the Gap in Sales Culture
00:32:23 - The Power of EQT Partners to Connect with Experts
00:34:51 - Leveraging Knowledge within Organizations
00:37:31 - Being a Supportive Investor
00:39:56 - Lessons for Founders from a VC Internship
00:42:17 - The Randomness of VC Decision-Making
00:47:14 - The Importance of Company Culture in Remote Settings

Join us for another episode of the NEUVC series which is dedicated to those embarking on their journey in the VC.

In this episode, Freddie Macpherson, Analyst at Isomer Capital, and Linda Võeras, Associate at Karma Ventures, are joined by the one and only Mr. Exits, who runs Exits Cap. Exits Cap is a Seed and Series - A fund launched in 2022 focused on investments in the SaaS, Consumer Internet, and Aerospace and Defence verticals. But you may know who we’re talking about from the name of the infamous social media account Praying for Exits.

With over 80,000 followers on Instagram, we all know his memes. Today, Mr. Exits lifts the lid on the US versus Europe by setting up his social media accounts and how they've been useful to him on his journey.

Head on over to eu.vc for the core learnings 🧠

Chapters:
00:00:00 - Introduction to Mr. Exit and His Social Media Platform
00:02:10 - The Journey to Venture Capital
00:03:51 - The Journey to Becoming a VC
00:05:34 - The Impetus for "Praying for Exits"
00:07:12 - Memes and Influence in Venture Capital
00:12:07 - Building Relationships with Founders
00:15:29 - Cold Outreach and High Conversion Rates
00:17:09 - Scrutiny in the Public Eye
00:20:20 - Building a Brand with High Integrity
00:23:42 - Overcoming Anxiety and Staying Genuine on Social Media
00:26:55 - Finding Value in Social Media
00:28:35 - Revealing the Opacity of Venture Capital
00:33:36 - The Value of Attention in Early Stage Companies
00:35:16 - Utilizing Attention for Success in Venture Capital
00:36:57 - Building with Integrity in Venture Capital

Join us for another episode of the NEUVC series which is dedicated to those embarking on their journey in the VC.

In this episode, Freddie Macpherson, Analyst at Isomer Capital, and Linda Võeras, Associate at Karma Ventures, are joined by the one and only Mr. Exits, who runs Exits Cap. Exits Cap is a Seed and Series - A fund launched in 2022 focused on investments in the SaaS, Consumer Internet, and Aerospace and Defence verticals. But you may know who we’re talking about from the name of the infamous social media account Praying for Exits.

With over 80,000 followers on Instagram, we all know his memes. Today, Mr. Exits lifts the lid on the US versus Europe by setting up his social media accounts and how they've been useful to him on his journey.

Head on over to eu.vc for the core learnings 🧠

Chapters:
00:00:00 - Introduction to Mr. Exit and His Social Media Platform
00:02:10 - The Journey to Venture Capital
00:03:51 - The Journey to Becoming a VC
00:05:34 - The Impetus for "Praying for Exits"
00:07:12 - Memes and Influence in Venture Capital
00:12:07 - Building Relationships with Founders
00:15:29 - Cold Outreach and High Conversion Rates
00:17:09 - Scrutiny in the Public Eye
00:20:20 - Building a Brand with High Integrity
00:23:42 - Overcoming Anxiety and Staying Genuine on Social Media
00:26:55 - Finding Value in Social Media
00:28:35 - Revealing the Opacity of Venture Capital
00:33:36 - The Value of Attention in Early Stage Companies
00:35:16 - Utilizing Attention for Success in Venture Capital
00:36:57 - Building with Integrity in Venture Capital

Welcome to a new episode of our special series At The Cap Table.

Today Savitri Tan from Isomer Capital is joined by Naza Metghalchi, Principal atEQT Ventures to talk a lot about her career so far, transitioning from a platform role into investment, why surrounding yourselves with the best is integral and how to build relationships of trust with founders.

Naza Metghalchi was born in Iran, raised in Paris, and has lived in London for the past 15 years. She started her career as an intern at Seedcamp in 2012, whilst all her friends were joining consulting firms or investment banks. Later, she joined onefinestay, where she fell in love with the raw energy and enthusiasm of startups.

She joined the team at Series A, led commercial positions in the sales and product marketing teams, witnessing periods focusing on profitability and others on growth (at all cost!), until the company got acquired after having raised $80m.

She then became an early employee at a startup studio, Founders Factory, where she set up their accelerator program.An avid supporter of the European ecosystem, she published Rewarding Talent, a guide to democratising employee equity, and is an active angel investor, in consumer social, and the future of work space.

At EQT, she loves partnering with founders that are execution-driven whilst being self-reflective, and working alongside them as a problem-solver and people-person at her core.Outside of work, you can usually find Naza organising a dinner party, listening to podcasts outdoors, reading Japanese literature and travelling to South America.

Naza holds a BA in European Politics, and a MS in Management from the London School of Economics.

Watch the full episode as well as our upcoming events on eu.vc 👀

Chapters:
00:00:00 - Untold Stories of Amazing VCs in Europe
00:02:19 - Career Moves and Early Stage Companies
00:04:21 - Learning in Startup Environments
00:06:12 - Attributes of Successful Founders
00:08:03 - Surrounding Yourself with the Best
00:10:01 - Surrounding Yourself with Tier One People
00:12:02 - Building Your Cap Table
00:13:49 - Building Relationships with VCs
00:15:43 - Assessing Investors for Business Growth
00:17:41 - Building Trust and Vulnerability in Investor-Founder Relationships
00:19:39 - Building a Trust-Based Relationship with Founders
00:21:38 - The Importance of Alignment in Achieving Objectives
00:23:46 - Understanding Product Market Fit
00:25:37 - Assessing Founders and Market Timing
00:27:35 - The Role of Luck in Business Ventures
00:29:25 - Maximizing Chances and Grabbing Luck
00:31:22 - The Trustworthiness of Tactyc in Fund Management

Welcome to a new episode of our special series At The Cap Table.

Today Savitri Tan from Isomer Capital is joined by Naza Metghalchi, Principal atEQT Ventures to talk a lot about her career so far, transitioning from a platform role into investment, why surrounding yourselves with the best is integral and how to build relationships of trust with founders.

Naza Metghalchi was born in Iran, raised in Paris, and has lived in London for the past 15 years. She started her career as an intern at Seedcamp in 2012, whilst all her friends were joining consulting firms or investment banks. Later, she joined onefinestay, where she fell in love with the raw energy and enthusiasm of startups.

She joined the team at Series A, led commercial positions in the sales and product marketing teams, witnessing periods focusing on profitability and others on growth (at all cost!), until the company got acquired after having raised $80m.

She then became an early employee at a startup studio, Founders Factory, where she set up their accelerator program.An avid supporter of the European ecosystem, she published Rewarding Talent, a guide to democratising employee equity, and is an active angel investor, in consumer social, and the future of work space.

At EQT, she loves partnering with founders that are execution-driven whilst being self-reflective, and working alongside them as a problem-solver and people-person at her core.Outside of work, you can usually find Naza organising a dinner party, listening to podcasts outdoors, reading Japanese literature and travelling to South America.

Naza holds a BA in European Politics, and a MS in Management from the London School of Economics.

Watch the full episode as well as our upcoming events on eu.vc 👀

Chapters:
00:00:00 - Untold Stories of Amazing VCs in Europe
00:02:19 - Career Moves and Early Stage Companies
00:04:21 - Learning in Startup Environments
00:06:12 - Attributes of Successful Founders
00:08:03 - Surrounding Yourself with the Best
00:10:01 - Surrounding Yourself with Tier One People
00:12:02 - Building Your Cap Table
00:13:49 - Building Relationships with VCs
00:15:43 - Assessing Investors for Business Growth
00:17:41 - Building Trust and Vulnerability in Investor-Founder Relationships
00:19:39 - Building a Trust-Based Relationship with Founders
00:21:38 - The Importance of Alignment in Achieving Objectives
00:23:46 - Understanding Product Market Fit
00:25:37 - Assessing Founders and Market Timing
00:27:35 - The Role of Luck in Business Ventures
00:29:25 - Maximizing Chances and Grabbing Luck
00:31:22 - The Trustworthiness of Tactyc in Fund Management

Today, we have Lucile Cornet with us. Lucile is a Partner at Eight Roads, a $11BN global venture fund with offices across the globe.

Eight Roads invests in companies at the Series B stage and helps them scale up internationally. They have 450 portfolio companies globally, of which 60 are IPOs, and many are unicorns: Alibaba, Toast, Flywire, Chewy, Hibob, Neo4j, or Fever.

Lucile is part of the European team of Eight Roads. She is a French national (born in Toulouse) but has been based in London for 15 years and focuses on anything SaaS and Fintech series B. She became one of the youngest female partners in Europe, being promoted to Partner in 2021 at just 33 years old. Her investments include companies such as Spendesk, Leocare, Amenitiz, Reveal, and Thinksurance.

Outside work, Lucile is a mum of two daughters who loves adventurous travel and cooking and as you’ll see, a dazzling extrovert who thrives in meeting new people.
Watch the full interview on eu.vc 👀 and read our core learnings 🧠

Chapters
00:00:00 - Lucile’s journey in VC & Eight Roads Venture Fund intro00:06:30 - Moving fast in the tech industry
00:07:07 - Learning and unlearning in VC
00:15:07 - Building firm belief & conviction ahead of an investment
00:18:00 - Why a little bit of chaos is good for you
00:24:02 - The Potential of SME Vertical SaaS
00:29:49 - The value ad model and investing in growth
00:35:59 - Sales, marketing and adoption in enterprise software
00:38:59 - The importance of Humility and listening
00:42:17 - The importance of Speed and execution
00:45:03 - On Leadership and decision-making
00:48:04 - Building strong relationships in business
00:51:11 - People and culture in VC
00:54:16 - Advice for emerging VCs across Europe
00:57:27 - Don't give up on fundraising

Today, we have Lucile Cornet with us. Lucile is a Partner at Eight Roads, a $11BN global venture fund with offices across the globe.

Eight Roads invests in companies at the Series B stage and helps them scale up internationally. They have 450 portfolio companies globally, of which 60 are IPOs, and many are unicorns: Alibaba, Toast, Flywire, Chewy, Hibob, Neo4j, or Fever.

Lucile is part of the European team of Eight Roads. She is a French national (born in Toulouse) but has been based in London for 15 years and focuses on anything SaaS and Fintech series B. She became one of the youngest female partners in Europe, being promoted to Partner in 2021 at just 33 years old. Her investments include companies such as Spendesk, Leocare, Amenitiz, Reveal, and Thinksurance.

Outside work, Lucile is a mum of two daughters who loves adventurous travel and cooking and as you’ll see, a dazzling extrovert who thrives in meeting new people.
Watch the full interview on eu.vc 👀 and read our core learnings 🧠

Chapters
00:00:00 - Lucile’s journey in VC & Eight Roads Venture Fund intro00:06:30 - Moving fast in the tech industry
00:07:07 - Learning and unlearning in VC
00:15:07 - Building firm belief & conviction ahead of an investment
00:18:00 - Why a little bit of chaos is good for you
00:24:02 - The Potential of SME Vertical SaaS
00:29:49 - The value ad model and investing in growth
00:35:59 - Sales, marketing and adoption in enterprise software
00:38:59 - The importance of Humility and listening
00:42:17 - The importance of Speed and execution
00:45:03 - On Leadership and decision-making
00:48:04 - Building strong relationships in business
00:51:11 - People and culture in VC
00:54:16 - Advice for emerging VCs across Europe
00:57:27 - Don't give up on fundraising

Join us as Tom Wilson from Seedcamp and Anthony Danon from Cocoa talk to Paul Forster, co-founder & CEO of Indeed and currently an active angel investor.

Paul Forster co-founded Indeed and was CEO until the company’s acquisition in late 2012. Today, Indeed is the leading job site globally, with over 100 million unique visitors in more than 50 countries and 26 languages.

Paul previously co-founded the leading job site for financial professionals, and before that was an investment professional at International Finance Corporation. He holds an MBA from INSEAD and Master’s degrees from Cambridge and Oxford Universities.

Paul loves working with founders and loves their energy, creativity, and variety. As an investor, he enjoys the intellectual stimulation from getting to know different industries and sectors and from working with different kinds of people.

We invite you to listen to this discussion below to hear some wonderful stories, besides the actionable pieces of advice that you can have a sneak peek at below.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:
00:00:00 - Introduction to the Super Angel Podcast
00:01:54 - Early stage investing and angel investing
00:04:50 - Mentally stimulating work and investing in focused founders
00:06:30 - Investing in UK-based Companies
00:08:14 - Approaching New Deals and Portfolio Diversity
00:10:00 - Finding the Balance Between Diversification and Support
00:11:42 - Investing in Founders with Domain Expertise
00:13:22 - Pattern Recognition and Experience
00:15:05 - Collaborating with Other Investors in the Ecosystem
00:16:51 - Investing in Early Stage Companies
00:18:35 - Leading a Round
00:20:16 - Examples of Successful Investments
00:22:09 - Investing in VC Funds
00:23:58 - Core Learnings from Angel Investing
00:25:49 - Key Factors for Successful Investing
00:27:44 - Follow-on Investing and Objective Decision Making
00:29:28 - The Importance of the Right Team and Market Opportunity
00:30:57 - The Importance of Capital Efficiency in Building a Business
00:32:37 - Lessons from Angel Investing
00:34:28 - Building networks for international investments

Join us as Tom Wilson from Seedcamp and Anthony Danon from Cocoa talk to Paul Forster, co-founder & CEO of Indeed and currently an active angel investor.

Paul Forster co-founded Indeed and was CEO until the company’s acquisition in late 2012. Today, Indeed is the leading job site globally, with over 100 million unique visitors in more than 50 countries and 26 languages.

Paul previously co-founded the leading job site for financial professionals, and before that was an investment professional at International Finance Corporation. He holds an MBA from INSEAD and Master’s degrees from Cambridge and Oxford Universities.

Paul loves working with founders and loves their energy, creativity, and variety. As an investor, he enjoys the intellectual stimulation from getting to know different industries and sectors and from working with different kinds of people.

We invite you to listen to this discussion below to hear some wonderful stories, besides the actionable pieces of advice that you can have a sneak peek at below.

Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀

Chapters:
00:00:00 - Introduction to the Super Angel Podcast
00:01:54 - Early stage investing and angel investing
00:04:50 - Mentally stimulating work and investing in focused founders
00:06:30 - Investing in UK-based Companies
00:08:14 - Approaching New Deals and Portfolio Diversity
00:10:00 - Finding the Balance Between Diversification and Support
00:11:42 - Investing in Founders with Domain Expertise
00:13:22 - Pattern Recognition and Experience
00:15:05 - Collaborating with Other Investors in the Ecosystem
00:16:51 - Investing in Early Stage Companies
00:18:35 - Leading a Round
00:20:16 - Examples of Successful Investments
00:22:09 - Investing in VC Funds
00:23:58 - Core Learnings from Angel Investing
00:25:49 - Key Factors for Successful Investing
00:27:44 - Follow-on Investing and Objective Decision Making
00:29:28 - The Importance of the Right Team and Market Opportunity
00:30:57 - The Importance of Capital Efficiency in Building a Business
00:32:37 - Lessons from Angel Investing
00:34:28 - Building networks for international investments

Join us for another episode of the NEUVC series which is dedicated to those embarking on their journey in the VC. In this episode, Freddie Macpherson, analyst at Isomer Capital, and Linda Võeras, associate at Karma Ventures, are joined by Rebecka Löthman Rydå, Investment Director at Inventure.

Inventure is a Nordic-Baltic a generalist venture capital fund focused on early-stage investing. Rebecka has been an investor for almost nine years and ended up in venture a little bit by accident and staying because she simply couldn’t see herself anywhere else.

Her true passion is all things related to software, AI data, and nerdy stuff. A little bit of deep tech and clean tech, when possible.

Chapters:
00:00:00 - Rebecka’s journey into venture
00:04:55 - The balance of trust and empathy in deal-making
00:09:50 - The deal evaluation process
00:14:34 - Building trust and balancing relationships
00:19:32 - Key skills in deal-making
00:24:40 - Negotiating ownership and capital Needs
00:29:42 - Staying true to portfolio strategy
00:34:45 - Becoming a great investor through curiosity and deep diving
00:40:04 - The importance of staying focused and being Open
00:45:13 - VC funding in the music industry.

Join us for another episode of the NEUVC series which is dedicated to those embarking on their journey in the VC. In this episode, Freddie Macpherson, analyst at Isomer Capital, and Linda Võeras, associate at Karma Ventures, are joined by Rebecka Löthman Rydå, Investment Director at Inventure.

Inventure is a Nordic-Baltic a generalist venture capital fund focused on early-stage investing. Rebecka has been an investor for almost nine years and ended up in venture a little bit by accident and staying because she simply couldn’t see herself anywhere else.

Her true passion is all things related to software, AI data, and nerdy stuff. A little bit of deep tech and clean tech, when possible.

Chapters:
00:00:00 - Rebecka’s journey into venture
00:04:55 - The balance of trust and empathy in deal-making
00:09:50 - The deal evaluation process
00:14:34 - Building trust and balancing relationships
00:19:32 - Key skills in deal-making
00:24:40 - Negotiating ownership and capital Needs
00:29:42 - Staying true to portfolio strategy
00:34:45 - Becoming a great investor through curiosity and deep diving
00:40:04 - The importance of staying focused and being Open
00:45:13 - VC funding in the music industry.

Today we have Tom McGinn with us. Tom is the General Counsel of Northzone, a multi-stage venture fund with offices in London, Stockholm, NYC, Amsterdam and Berlin, that invests from seed to growth across Europe and the US.

Northzone closed a EUR 1 billion fund last year and has backed over 100 companies, including Spotify, Personio & Spring Health. Tom joined Northzone in 2021 from Cooley where he helped get the emerging companies team in Europe off the ground.

Watch the full interview on eu.vc 👀 and read our core learnings 🧠

Chapters:
00:00:00 - Introduction and Guest Introduction
00:03:09 - Lessons Learned from a Startup Experience
00:06:23 - European Approach to Advising High Growth Companies
00:09:34 - The Future of AI in the Legal Space
00:12:37 - The Difficulty of Reversing Company Negativity
00:15:41 - Building a High-Functioning Board
00:18:33 - The Value and Potential Destruction of Board Members
00:21:32 - Founders Treating the Board as Employees
00:24:25 - Awareness of Misalignment
00:27:38 - Strategic alignment and good cultural fit
00:30:36 - Managing Investor Departures
00:33:49 - Exceptional Leadership and Shoutouts to Female Founders
00:36:56 - Key Learnings for Founders
00:40:12 - Misalignment and liquidation preference
00:43:15 - Management Carve Out and Incentivization
00:46:36 - Tips for Emerging VCs
00:48:54 - Professionalism Amidst Technical Difficulties
00:49:29 - Europe as a model for the world's new beginnings

Today we have Tom McGinn with us. Tom is the General Counsel of Northzone, a multi-stage venture fund with offices in London, Stockholm, NYC, Amsterdam and Berlin, that invests from seed to growth across Europe and the US.

Northzone closed a EUR 1 billion fund last year and has backed over 100 companies, including Spotify, Personio & Spring Health. Tom joined Northzone in 2021 from Cooley where he helped get the emerging companies team in Europe off the ground.

Watch the full interview on eu.vc 👀 and read our core learnings 🧠

Chapters:
00:00:00 - Introduction and Guest Introduction
00:03:09 - Lessons Learned from a Startup Experience
00:06:23 - European Approach to Advising High Growth Companies
00:09:34 - The Future of AI in the Legal Space
00:12:37 - The Difficulty of Reversing Company Negativity
00:15:41 - Building a High-Functioning Board
00:18:33 - The Value and Potential Destruction of Board Members
00:21:32 - Founders Treating the Board as Employees
00:24:25 - Awareness of Misalignment
00:27:38 - Strategic alignment and good cultural fit
00:30:36 - Managing Investor Departures
00:33:49 - Exceptional Leadership and Shoutouts to Female Founders
00:36:56 - Key Learnings for Founders
00:40:12 - Misalignment and liquidation preference
00:43:15 - Management Carve Out and Incentivization
00:46:36 - Tips for Emerging VCs
00:48:54 - Professionalism Amidst Technical Difficulties
00:49:29 - Europe as a model for the world's new beginnings

Today we have Simon Lohmann, Head of Platform & Investor Relations at Cavalry Ventures, an early-stage generalist venture fund in Germany to back European Software companies with a huge LP network and a sizeable platform team in place.

Cavalry is investing out of Fund 3 with a total of 250m AUM and an established portfolio of 50+ companies and notable investments including Usercentrics (Consent Management), Planradar (Real-Estate Construction Management), Forto (Digital Freight Forwarder), and Aleph Alpha (Generative Enterprise AI), which just raised an enormous Series B.

At Cavalry, Simon focuses on Fundraising and Investor Relations now and built up the platform before.

Go to eu.vc for a full write up of our learnings from this episode 🧠

Chapters:
00:00:00 - Introduction and Sponsor Message
00:03:30 - Investment Announcement with German Corporates
00:06:58 - From Sales to VC: My Journey in the Industry
00:10:15 - The Importance of Education and Learning
00:13:47 - Investing in Talent and Consolidation in the VC Space
00:17:29 - The Challenges in the VC Industry
00:21:09 - Adjusting Valuations and Interacting with LPs
00:24:35 - The Beginning of Cavalry and the Platform Activities
00:28:11 - Structured Approach to Platform Development
00:31:40 - Using an App for Communication
00:35:04 - Using Affinity as our CRM
00:38:30 - Tracking the Success of Introductions
00:41:59 - The Value of a Platform Team in Venture Capital
00:45:28 - Importance of Value Add and Trust
00:48:45 - Supporting Portfolio Companies
00:52:14 - Shoutouts to Christian Du and Hannah from Don Capital
00:55:49 - Strategic Work and Scalability
00:59:20 - Capacity Management and Scalability Techniques
01:02:53 - Advice for First-Time Founders and Long-Term Thinking
01:06:27 - Communicating Clearly with LPs in Venture Capital
01:10:15 - European Unity and Values

Today we have Simon Lohmann, Head of Platform & Investor Relations at Cavalry Ventures, an early-stage generalist venture fund in Germany to back European Software companies with a huge LP network and a sizeable platform team in place.

Cavalry is investing out of Fund 3 with a total of 250m AUM and an established portfolio of 50+ companies and notable investments including Usercentrics (Consent Management), Planradar (Real-Estate Construction Management), Forto (Digital Freight Forwarder), and Aleph Alpha (Generative Enterprise AI), which just raised an enormous Series B.

At Cavalry, Simon focuses on Fundraising and Investor Relations now and built up the platform before.

Go to eu.vc for a full write up of our learnings from this episode 🧠

Chapters:
00:00:00 - Introduction and Sponsor Message
00:03:30 - Investment Announcement with German Corporates
00:06:58 - From Sales to VC: My Journey in the Industry
00:10:15 - The Importance of Education and Learning
00:13:47 - Investing in Talent and Consolidation in the VC Space
00:17:29 - The Challenges in the VC Industry
00:21:09 - Adjusting Valuations and Interacting with LPs
00:24:35 - The Beginning of Cavalry and the Platform Activities
00:28:11 - Structured Approach to Platform Development
00:31:40 - Using an App for Communication
00:35:04 - Using Affinity as our CRM
00:38:30 - Tracking the Success of Introductions
00:41:59 - The Value of a Platform Team in Venture Capital
00:45:28 - Importance of Value Add and Trust
00:48:45 - Supporting Portfolio Companies
00:52:14 - Shoutouts to Christian Du and Hannah from Don Capital
00:55:49 - Strategic Work and Scalability
00:59:20 - Capacity Management and Scalability Techniques
01:02:53 - Advice for First-Time Founders and Long-Term Thinking
01:06:27 - Communicating Clearly with LPs in Venture Capital
01:10:15 - European Unity and Values

Today we are welcoming Bastian Larsen, Founding Partner of BlackWood Ventures, a pan-European early-stage VC fund focused on Fintech, Web 3.0 and Cleantech. Blackwood has a value-creating approach that leverages AI to minimize biases and a proprietary pan-European network of over 1200 angels. BlackWood had a $10m first closing in early April this year, with a $50m target. As of today, BlackWood has made investments across 5 countries in just 6 months, counting companies like Qaptis, Trips and Fingreen AI.

We wanted to bring Bastian on because BlackWood, just as ourselves, build on a strong angel community, so for this episode, that’s where we focus 👀

Chapters:
00:02:54 - From London to New York: Bastian’s Journey into VC
00:04:17 - Building the European VC Market
00:05:37 - A Pivotal Moment in Venture Capital
00:06:57 - The Power of a Small Positive Impact
00:08:22 - The Lack of European Growth Stage Funds
00:09:41 - Launching Growth Stage Funds
00:11:03 - Building Blackwood and Overcoming Hurdles
00:12:15 - Leveraging the Power of Angel Networks
00:13:30 - Building Relationships with Angels
00:14:41 - The Importance of Angel Networks in Startup Investing
00:16:00 - The Importance of Feedback and Strategic Investments
00:17:16 - Leveraging the Network for Co-investment and Cash Injection
00:18:33 - Investing and Dividing Deals
00:19:54 - Monetization and Scaling Up
00:21:15 - Personalized Approach in Angel Investing
00:22:52 - Jacob Kilgard: A Backer of Blackwood
00:24:10 - Fundraising success and trust in our network
00:25:28 - Staying Curious and Building Relationships
00:26:46 - Building a Common Vision
00:28:01 - Comparing Opposites and Writing Children's Books
00:29:22 - Fundraising and Leveraging Networks in the VC Industry
00:30:43 - Drop Us a Review and Join the Blackwood Gang

Today we are welcoming Bastian Larsen, Founding Partner of BlackWood Ventures, a pan-European early-stage VC fund focused on Fintech, Web 3.0 and Cleantech. Blackwood has a value-creating approach that leverages AI to minimize biases and a proprietary pan-European network of over 1200 angels. BlackWood had a $10m first closing in early April this year, with a $50m target. As of today, BlackWood has made investments across 5 countries in just 6 months, counting companies like Qaptis, Trips and Fingreen AI.

We wanted to bring Bastian on because BlackWood, just as ourselves, build on a strong angel community, so for this episode, that’s where we focus 👀

Chapters:
00:02:54 - From London to New York: Bastian’s Journey into VC
00:04:17 - Building the European VC Market
00:05:37 - A Pivotal Moment in Venture Capital
00:06:57 - The Power of a Small Positive Impact
00:08:22 - The Lack of European Growth Stage Funds
00:09:41 - Launching Growth Stage Funds
00:11:03 - Building Blackwood and Overcoming Hurdles
00:12:15 - Leveraging the Power of Angel Networks
00:13:30 - Building Relationships with Angels
00:14:41 - The Importance of Angel Networks in Startup Investing
00:16:00 - The Importance of Feedback and Strategic Investments
00:17:16 - Leveraging the Network for Co-investment and Cash Injection
00:18:33 - Investing and Dividing Deals
00:19:54 - Monetization and Scaling Up
00:21:15 - Personalized Approach in Angel Investing
00:22:52 - Jacob Kilgard: A Backer of Blackwood
00:24:10 - Fundraising success and trust in our network
00:25:28 - Staying Curious and Building Relationships
00:26:46 - Building a Common Vision
00:28:01 - Comparing Opposites and Writing Children's Books
00:29:22 - Fundraising and Leveraging Networks in the VC Industry
00:30:43 - Drop Us a Review and Join the Blackwood Gang

As we welcome 2024, let's reflect on the critical developments in scientific research and innovation shaped by geopolitical dynamics over the past year. This pod (and article on eu.vc) delve into the shifting landscape of international collaboration, emphasizing the roles of major global players and innovative breakthroughs in energy, space technologies, and generative AI.

We'll explore how these advancements are influencing our sustainable future and expanding our cosmic understanding. Additionally, we examine the burgeoning world of AI, where rapid growth brings both opportunities and challenges in regulation and industry adaptation.A special focus is given to the evolving dynamics of startup ownership and control, illustrated by Open AI's public board deliberations.

This case study highlights the complex balance of power among founders, teams, investors, and boards in guiding the future of pioneering companies.As we step into the new year, let's navigate these changes with insight and integrity, both professionally and personally. Here's to a year of positive impact and innovation. We hope you enjoy and have a great New Year's! 🥳

As we welcome 2024, let's reflect on the critical developments in scientific research and innovation shaped by geopolitical dynamics over the past year. This pod (and article on eu.vc) delve into the shifting landscape of international collaboration, emphasizing the roles of major global players and innovative breakthroughs in energy, space technologies, and generative AI.

We'll explore how these advancements are influencing our sustainable future and expanding our cosmic understanding. Additionally, we examine the burgeoning world of AI, where rapid growth brings both opportunities and challenges in regulation and industry adaptation.A special focus is given to the evolving dynamics of startup ownership and control, illustrated by Open AI's public board deliberations.

This case study highlights the complex balance of power among founders, teams, investors, and boards in guiding the future of pioneering companies.As we step into the new year, let's navigate these changes with insight and integrity, both professionally and personally. Here's to a year of positive impact and innovation. We hope you enjoy and have a great New Year's! 🥳

It was awesome hosting more than 600 European venture investors for our Roundtable on strategies for winning with non-dilutive funding in Europe 📺 In case you missed it, you can rewatch the session above, read the quick recap below or tune in on Spotify or Apple to get it right into your ears 🎧.

You’re in for a treat with the magnificent panel consisting of:
* Gilles de Malbosc, Chief Investment Officer at Harmony Family Office * Bailey Morrow, Managing Director at HSBC Innovation Banking * Hemal Fraser-Rawal, General Partner at White Star Capital * Benjamin Rieder, Founder & CEO of Levenue

Go to eu.vc to read the full recap and watch the recording of the roundtable 👀

Chapters:
00:00:00 - Introduction to the Round Table Discussion on Non-Diluted Financing and Revenue Based Financing
00:02:52 - The Difficulty of Company Financing
00:05:33 - Using Recurring Revenue as Collateral for Financing
00:08:12 - Investing in RBF as an MFO
00:11:16 - Risk and Reward in Venture and RBF
00:13:47 - Varying Capital Stack for Companies
00:16:17 - Financing for Entrepreneurs and Investors
00:18:43 - The Benefits of Non-Dilutive Capital
00:20:45 - Non-dilutive Capital and Cap Table Management
00:22:55 - Blending Debt and Equity Instruments
00:25:22 - Uses and Benefits of Short-term Working Capital Finance
00:27:57 - Complementing Equity in Financing
00:30:13 - Investing in Alternatives
00:32:57 - Risk and Data in Private Markets
00:35:36 - Loss Rates in Private Credit and Alternative Finance
00:37:59 - Investing in Venture-backed Companies
00:40:25 - Risk Management and KPIs in Lending
00:42:30 - Choosing the Right Business Partner
00:44:54 - Fraud Stories and Short-Term Analysis
00:47:25 - Financing Options for Venture-backed Companies
00:49:46 - The Importance of Partnering with VCs and Being Creative in Venture Debt
00:52:05 - Short-Term Capital for Companies & Investors
00:55:00 - Non-Dilutive Financing
00:57:40 - Closing Remarks

It was awesome hosting more than 600 European venture investors for our Roundtable on strategies for winning with non-dilutive funding in Europe 📺 In case you missed it, you can rewatch the session above, read the quick recap below or tune in on Spotify or Apple to get it right into your ears 🎧.

You’re in for a treat with the magnificent panel consisting of:
* Gilles de Malbosc, Chief Investment Officer at Harmony Family Office * Bailey Morrow, Managing Director at HSBC Innovation Banking * Hemal Fraser-Rawal, General Partner at White Star Capital * Benjamin Rieder, Founder & CEO of Levenue

Go to eu.vc to read the full recap and watch the recording of the roundtable 👀

Chapters:
00:00:00 - Introduction to the Round Table Discussion on Non-Diluted Financing and Revenue Based Financing
00:02:52 - The Difficulty of Company Financing
00:05:33 - Using Recurring Revenue as Collateral for Financing
00:08:12 - Investing in RBF as an MFO
00:11:16 - Risk and Reward in Venture and RBF
00:13:47 - Varying Capital Stack for Companies
00:16:17 - Financing for Entrepreneurs and Investors
00:18:43 - The Benefits of Non-Dilutive Capital
00:20:45 - Non-dilutive Capital and Cap Table Management
00:22:55 - Blending Debt and Equity Instruments
00:25:22 - Uses and Benefits of Short-term Working Capital Finance
00:27:57 - Complementing Equity in Financing
00:30:13 - Investing in Alternatives
00:32:57 - Risk and Data in Private Markets
00:35:36 - Loss Rates in Private Credit and Alternative Finance
00:37:59 - Investing in Venture-backed Companies
00:40:25 - Risk Management and KPIs in Lending
00:42:30 - Choosing the Right Business Partner
00:44:54 - Fraud Stories and Short-Term Analysis
00:47:25 - Financing Options for Venture-backed Companies
00:49:46 - The Importance of Partnering with VCs and Being Creative in Venture Debt
00:52:05 - Short-Term Capital for Companies & Investors
00:55:00 - Non-Dilutive Financing
00:57:40 - Closing Remarks

In this special feature, we're excited to share a must-listen for anyone interested in the intersection of venture capital and climate change as we wrapped up COP28 with some of the leading VCs attending COP this year:
* Lena Tiede from Planet A * Peter Hirsch from 2150 * Sonia Weymuller from VentureSouq * Areije Al Shakar from Al Waha Fund of Funds

In the episode, we dived into:
* The evolution of climate tech as a crucial sector in VC as well as in fighting climate change. * The increasing role of VCs in shaping environmental policy and driving sustainable innovation. * Perspectives from both LPs and VCs on the future of climate finance and technology.

Chapters:
00:00:00 - Wrapping up COP28 and its Implications
00:01:56 - Introduction of Panelist and Funds
00:03:47 - Transition Away from Fossil Fuels
00:05:28 - Investing in Climate Tech Funds
00:07:19 - Investing in the Environmental Space
00:09:13 - Investing in Early Stage Climate in the GCC
00:10:51 - Climate Investment in the Middle East
00:12:24 - Increasing Investment in Early Stage Climate Tech
00:14:07 - Tech Tipping Points and Earth Systems Tipping Points
00:16:12 - All-Hands-On-Deck Approach in Addressing Climate Change
00:17:57 - Generating Collaborative Spaces for Climate Action
00:19:26 - The Next Generation and Climate Accountability
00:21:04 - Investing Strategies in the GCC
00:22:45 - The Global Nature of Climate Innovation
00:24:35 - Fundraising in the GCC
00:26:16 - Investing in Climate in Emerging Markets
00:27:47 - Emerging Climate Solutions in High Growth Markets
00:29:21 - The Overwhelming Scale of COP and the Role of VC in Climate Tech
00:31:11 - Growth and Construction in Developing Countries
00:32:59 - The Role of the Private Sector in Supporting Climate Technologies
00:34:43 - The Need for More Public Funding in Europe
00:36:41 - Funding Climate Solutions in the MENA Region
00:38:26 - Collaboration for Climate Solutions

In this special feature, we're excited to share a must-listen for anyone interested in the intersection of venture capital and climate change as we wrapped up COP28 with some of the leading VCs attending COP this year:
* Lena Tiede from Planet A * Peter Hirsch from 2150 * Sonia Weymuller from VentureSouq * Areije Al Shakar from Al Waha Fund of Funds

In the episode, we dived into:
* The evolution of climate tech as a crucial sector in VC as well as in fighting climate change. * The increasing role of VCs in shaping environmental policy and driving sustainable innovation. * Perspectives from both LPs and VCs on the future of climate finance and technology.

Chapters:
00:00:00 - Wrapping up COP28 and its Implications
00:01:56 - Introduction of Panelist and Funds
00:03:47 - Transition Away from Fossil Fuels
00:05:28 - Investing in Climate Tech Funds
00:07:19 - Investing in the Environmental Space
00:09:13 - Investing in Early Stage Climate in the GCC
00:10:51 - Climate Investment in the Middle East
00:12:24 - Increasing Investment in Early Stage Climate Tech
00:14:07 - Tech Tipping Points and Earth Systems Tipping Points
00:16:12 - All-Hands-On-Deck Approach in Addressing Climate Change
00:17:57 - Generating Collaborative Spaces for Climate Action
00:19:26 - The Next Generation and Climate Accountability
00:21:04 - Investing Strategies in the GCC
00:22:45 - The Global Nature of Climate Innovation
00:24:35 - Fundraising in the GCC
00:26:16 - Investing in Climate in Emerging Markets
00:27:47 - Emerging Climate Solutions in High Growth Markets
00:29:21 - The Overwhelming Scale of COP and the Role of VC in Climate Tech
00:31:11 - Growth and Construction in Developing Countries
00:32:59 - The Role of the Private Sector in Supporting Climate Technologies
00:34:43 - The Need for More Public Funding in Europe
00:36:41 - Funding Climate Solutions in the MENA Region
00:38:26 - Collaboration for Climate Solutions

Today we have Hampus Jakobsson, founding GP of Pale Blue Dot with us for a very special episode dedicated wholly to raising a fund virtually. It came about because Hampus casually mentioned that he hadn’t traveled a single mile in the raise of Fund 2, which of course had us thinking: "Wow, we need to share this story! So strap in!"

Hampus is a GP at Pale Blue Dot, an early stage venture fund in Sweden to back European Climate Tech companies. PBD are investing out of Fund 2 with a total 200M$ AUM and an established portfolio of 32 companies and notable investments including Monta, Patch, OverStory, ClimateX and Opna.

Prior to co-founding Pale Blue Dot, Hampus was a Venture Partner at science fund Blue Yard and a prolific angel investor with more than 100 angel investments. He is a software engineer turned founder, turned angel investor, turned VC. When not working with ambitious climate people Hampus cooks, reads and thinks.

We’ve had Hampus on before (episode #115 🎧) and we whole-heartedly recommend you go check it out if you haven’t yet, ‘cos Hampus is hands-down one of our best guests on the pod. Smart, candid, top performing, and a rapid talker like none other!

Go to eu.vc to watch the whole interview 👀

Chapters:
00:02:45 - The Motivation Behind Saying No to Traveling for Fundraising
00:04:56 - Building a Deck for Fundraising
00:06:47 - Defining Your Fundraising Strategy
00:14:28 - Effective Meetings and Learning Opportunities
00:16:16 - Building Trust Virtually
00:20:06 - Being a Real Person
00:22:07 - Working with What You're Good At
00:28:09 - Dealing with Different Investment Perspectives
00:32:01 - Importance of Handcrafted Relationships
00:35:47 - The Quick Fire Round
00:37:54 - The Dangers of Coming Into Wealth
00:42:26 - Parenthood and the Love for Kids

Today we have Hampus Jakobsson, founding GP of Pale Blue Dot with us for a very special episode dedicated wholly to raising a fund virtually. It came about because Hampus casually mentioned that he hadn’t traveled a single mile in the raise of Fund 2, which of course had us thinking: "Wow, we need to share this story! So strap in!"

Hampus is a GP at Pale Blue Dot, an early stage venture fund in Sweden to back European Climate Tech companies. PBD are investing out of Fund 2 with a total 200M$ AUM and an established portfolio of 32 companies and notable investments including Monta, Patch, OverStory, ClimateX and Opna.

Prior to co-founding Pale Blue Dot, Hampus was a Venture Partner at science fund Blue Yard and a prolific angel investor with more than 100 angel investments. He is a software engineer turned founder, turned angel investor, turned VC. When not working with ambitious climate people Hampus cooks, reads and thinks.

We’ve had Hampus on before (episode #115 🎧) and we whole-heartedly recommend you go check it out if you haven’t yet, ‘cos Hampus is hands-down one of our best guests on the pod. Smart, candid, top performing, and a rapid talker like none other!

Go to eu.vc to watch the whole interview 👀

Chapters:
00:02:45 - The Motivation Behind Saying No to Traveling for Fundraising
00:04:56 - Building a Deck for Fundraising
00:06:47 - Defining Your Fundraising Strategy
00:14:28 - Effective Meetings and Learning Opportunities
00:16:16 - Building Trust Virtually
00:20:06 - Being a Real Person
00:22:07 - Working with What You're Good At
00:28:09 - Dealing with Different Investment Perspectives
00:32:01 - Importance of Handcrafted Relationships
00:35:47 - The Quick Fire Round
00:37:54 - The Dangers of Coming Into Wealth
00:42:26 - Parenthood and the Love for Kids

Today, Freddie Macpherson, analyst at Isomer Capital, and Linda Võeras, associate at Karma Ventures, are joined by Paul Gillespie, Managing Director at Sheffield Haworth, a global executive search firm with a specialty in deep tech. With over 20 years in the industry, he co-founded Gilmore Stevens, focusing on building executive teams for venture-backed businesses. After merging with Sheffield Haworth to expand globally, Paul now leads their deep tech practice, covering sectors from semiconductors to nuclear fusion. An electronic engineer by training, he thrives on the cutting-edge innovation in deep tech, despite the opportunity to retire. His recent projects include a significant investment deal with a French chip company, underscoring his commitment to the ever-evolving world of technology.

Chapters:
00:00:00 - Introduction to Paul Gillespie and the Importance of Talent in High Growth Companies
00:02:24 - Deep Tech and the Exciting Era of Technology
00:04:43 - Discovering Your Superpower in the Industry
00:06:54 - Finding the Right Chief Operating Officer
00:08:54 - The process of executive search
00:11:11 - Creating a Viable Target List for Candidates
00:13:28 - The Importance of Assessing Candidates Beyond Interviews
00:15:43 - Approaching the Right Search Agency
00:18:03 - The Importance of Having a Mentor and Advisor
00:20:13 - The Importance of Critical Hires
00:22:26 - Attracting Talent with the Wow Factor
00:24:30 - Key Factors for Startup Success
00:26:50 - The Power of Evangelizing and Positioning Propositions
00:28:56 - Common Mistakes in Hiring a CFO
00:31:18 - Issues with CEO Hiring
00:33:39 - The Importance of Feedback Loops and Communication 00:35:57 - The Importance of Good Hiring
00:38:09 - The Role of Investors in the Hiring Process
00:40:18 - Replacing Founder CEOs
00:42:44 - The Role of the CEO in Company Growth
00:45:05 - Skills for Success in Investment Roles
00:47:18 - Understanding the Difference Between Titles and Skills
00:49:24 - The Importance of Mentors and Retention in Hiring
00:51:40 - Reflecting on Linder's Career

Today, Freddie Macpherson, analyst at Isomer Capital, and Linda Võeras, associate at Karma Ventures, are joined by Paul Gillespie, Managing Director at Sheffield Haworth, a global executive search firm with a specialty in deep tech. With over 20 years in the industry, he co-founded Gilmore Stevens, focusing on building executive teams for venture-backed businesses. After merging with Sheffield Haworth to expand globally, Paul now leads their deep tech practice, covering sectors from semiconductors to nuclear fusion. An electronic engineer by training, he thrives on the cutting-edge innovation in deep tech, despite the opportunity to retire. His recent projects include a significant investment deal with a French chip company, underscoring his commitment to the ever-evolving world of technology.

Chapters:
00:00:00 - Introduction to Paul Gillespie and the Importance of Talent in High Growth Companies
00:02:24 - Deep Tech and the Exciting Era of Technology
00:04:43 - Discovering Your Superpower in the Industry
00:06:54 - Finding the Right Chief Operating Officer
00:08:54 - The process of executive search
00:11:11 - Creating a Viable Target List for Candidates
00:13:28 - The Importance of Assessing Candidates Beyond Interviews
00:15:43 - Approaching the Right Search Agency
00:18:03 - The Importance of Having a Mentor and Advisor
00:20:13 - The Importance of Critical Hires
00:22:26 - Attracting Talent with the Wow Factor
00:24:30 - Key Factors for Startup Success
00:26:50 - The Power of Evangelizing and Positioning Propositions
00:28:56 - Common Mistakes in Hiring a CFO
00:31:18 - Issues with CEO Hiring
00:33:39 - The Importance of Feedback Loops and Communication 00:35:57 - The Importance of Good Hiring
00:38:09 - The Role of Investors in the Hiring Process
00:40:18 - Replacing Founder CEOs
00:42:44 - The Role of the CEO in Company Growth
00:45:05 - Skills for Success in Investment Roles
00:47:18 - Understanding the Difference Between Titles and Skills
00:49:24 - The Importance of Mentors and Retention in Hiring
00:51:40 - Reflecting on Linder's Career

Join us as Tom Wilson from Seedcamp and Anthony Danon from Cocoa talk to Harsh Sinha, Wise-CTO about his angel investing journey, thesis and strategy and core learnings.

Harsh is a seasoned technologist with a passion for creating innovative, scalable, and customer-centric digital experiences. With a strong foundation in team building and a knack for impactful business strategies, he's played a pivotal role in developing server-side technologies and enhancing consumer experiences on web and mobile platforms.

His professional journey includes a significant tenure at PayPal as Director of Product, where he spearheaded the product strategy and development of mobile applications and software for mobile wallet experiences. Join us as we dive into Harsh's insights and experiences in powering global financial infrastructure and pushing the boundaries of technology in finance.

Chapters:
00:00:00 - Introduction to the Super Angel Pod
00:02:32 - Building Experiences & the Primacy of Passionate Builders
00:07:19 - On Non-Technical Founders and Becoming More Objective
00:11:42 - Core Learnings from Angel Investing
00:13:52 - Finding a Middle Ground
00:16:06 - Balancing Diversification and Time to Support Founders
00:18:17 - Assessing Founders and their passion for solving problems
00:20:25 - Three Core Learnings: Team, First Principles, and Avoiding Bias
00:22:35 - Being Naive in Angel Investing and the Importance of Passion
00:24:44 - The Reality of Investments
00:26:55 - Lessons in Angel Investing & Investing Across Europe and Asia
00:31:19 - The Access Issue in European Markets
00:33:32 - Building a Global Lens and Investing Internationally

Join us as Tom Wilson from Seedcamp and Anthony Danon from Cocoa talk to Harsh Sinha, Wise-CTO about his angel investing journey, thesis and strategy and core learnings.

Harsh is a seasoned technologist with a passion for creating innovative, scalable, and customer-centric digital experiences. With a strong foundation in team building and a knack for impactful business strategies, he's played a pivotal role in developing server-side technologies and enhancing consumer experiences on web and mobile platforms.

His professional journey includes a significant tenure at PayPal as Director of Product, where he spearheaded the product strategy and development of mobile applications and software for mobile wallet experiences. Join us as we dive into Harsh's insights and experiences in powering global financial infrastructure and pushing the boundaries of technology in finance.

Chapters:
00:00:00 - Introduction to the Super Angel Pod
00:02:32 - Building Experiences & the Primacy of Passionate Builders
00:07:19 - On Non-Technical Founders and Becoming More Objective
00:11:42 - Core Learnings from Angel Investing
00:13:52 - Finding a Middle Ground
00:16:06 - Balancing Diversification and Time to Support Founders
00:18:17 - Assessing Founders and their passion for solving problems
00:20:25 - Three Core Learnings: Team, First Principles, and Avoiding Bias
00:22:35 - Being Naive in Angel Investing and the Importance of Passion
00:24:44 - The Reality of Investments
00:26:55 - Lessons in Angel Investing & Investing Across Europe and Asia
00:31:19 - The Access Issue in European Markets
00:33:32 - Building a Global Lens and Investing Internationally

Today we have Greg Dewerpe with us. Greg is a founder & CIO at A/O, a venture firm in London backing European founders that are building innovative technology companies that directly and indirectly solve mission critical problems in the Built World with a unique access to some of the largest B2B customers in the industry.

A/O has a total of 250€ MN in AUM, an established portfolio of 23 companies and notable investments including SPAN, Passivelogic, SatteliteVu, Plentific and Enter.

At A/O, Greg focuses on building world technology and positive transformation (like decarbonisation, climate resiliency and digitalisation), in Europe & the US, late seed to series B.A/O is also the first VC to ever join as a Global Innovator at the WEF which the attentive listener will know we are big supporters of given our involvement with the UpLink Initiative.

Watch the whole interview and our key take-aways on eu.vc 💖

Chapters:
00:00:00 - Introduction to the European VC Podcast
00:04:12 - Overcoming Challenges in Career Transition
00:07:55 - The Power of Visualization and Positivity
00:11:44 - The Challenges of the Industry
00:15:34 - Building Europe’s biggest Solo GP
00:19:25 - Keyman Risk vs. Team Risk
00:22:54 - The Journey towards Growth and Improvement
00:26:34 - On Bullying, Balancing Work and Parenthood
00:33:59 - Being Present in Relationships
00:38:02 - Confidence, Humility, and Growth in Entrepreneurship
00:41:58 - The Challenges and Opportunities of VC in Real Estate
00:45:44 - The Impact of Technology Transformation on Asset Prices
00:49:32 - Aligning Doing Good and Making Money
00:53:35 - Risk Tolerance and Acceptance of Failure in Venture Capital
00:57:14 - The Benefits of Being a Specialist in Venture Capital

Today we have Greg Dewerpe with us. Greg is a founder & CIO at A/O, a venture firm in London backing European founders that are building innovative technology companies that directly and indirectly solve mission critical problems in the Built World with a unique access to some of the largest B2B customers in the industry.

A/O has a total of 250€ MN in AUM, an established portfolio of 23 companies and notable investments including SPAN, Passivelogic, SatteliteVu, Plentific and Enter.

At A/O, Greg focuses on building world technology and positive transformation (like decarbonisation, climate resiliency and digitalisation), in Europe & the US, late seed to series B.A/O is also the first VC to ever join as a Global Innovator at the WEF which the attentive listener will know we are big supporters of given our involvement with the UpLink Initiative.

Watch the whole interview and our key take-aways on eu.vc 💖

Chapters:
00:00:00 - Introduction to the European VC Podcast
00:04:12 - Overcoming Challenges in Career Transition
00:07:55 - The Power of Visualization and Positivity
00:11:44 - The Challenges of the Industry
00:15:34 - Building Europe’s biggest Solo GP
00:19:25 - Keyman Risk vs. Team Risk
00:22:54 - The Journey towards Growth and Improvement
00:26:34 - On Bullying, Balancing Work and Parenthood
00:33:59 - Being Present in Relationships
00:38:02 - Confidence, Humility, and Growth in Entrepreneurship
00:41:58 - The Challenges and Opportunities of VC in Real Estate
00:45:44 - The Impact of Technology Transformation on Asset Prices
00:49:32 - Aligning Doing Good and Making Money
00:53:35 - Risk Tolerance and Acceptance of Failure in Venture Capital
00:57:14 - The Benefits of Being a Specialist in Venture Capital

We’re kicking the Super Angel series into a whole new gear for 2024 by introducing Seedcamp-partner Tom Wilson as our new co-host 🥳 alongside the existing host team of the amazing Anthony Danon from Cocoa, David and Andreas 🎙️

But before celebrating Tom, let us just pause and extend a heartfelt shoutout to Anthony Danon, whose contributions as a co-host have been pivotal to the Super Angel Podcast so far 💖. Anthony's vast network, particularly potent within fintech (but, tbh, generally quite mindblowing), has brought forth some of the most brilliant founders and operators to our platform.

But there’s another reason why Anthony is the perfect host for the series: with just shy of twenty angel investments made prior to launching his angel fund Cocoa, his money is where his mouth is - and with two portfolio unicorns, that’s a good place 🦄.

Anthony's deep understanding of the VC space and his dedication to bridging the gap between angels and VCs have been invaluable. His efforts have not only sculpted the podcast's feel, but also its success.

Thank you, Anthony. We can’t wait to continue on our joint journey for decades to come 🚀

Welcoming Tom Wilson to the host team 🎧
Tom comes to us with a wealth of experience from Seedcamp, where he has worked closely with some of the most promising startups in Europe. But Seedcamp is way more than just one of Europe’s top tier seed VCs with a ludicrous track. Ever since their founding in 2007, Seedcamp has been dedicated to connecting VCs and Angels across Europe having built its own fully-fledged network economy where 1,000+ founders, experts, angels and VCs come together to make each other stronger.

Or as Tom said in connection to the launch of Seedcamp VI:

"It does make sense to build a village around the founders for that initial phase and so with our very collaborative approach, and the fact that we had the chance over the past years to work with pretty much everyone that invests early in Europe, we can be a catalyst to really help entrepreneurs find the best partner for that round."

Being a catalyst for finding the right partners. That’s exactly what the eu.vc pod is about - be that as an LP, a co-investor or a founder. Connecting Europe. The super angel series being specifically designed to champion the amazing angels across the continent.

By joining the Super Angel Podcast, Tom brings the collective wisdom of Seedcamp to the forefront, offering listeners a unique insight into the journey of tech investing from the ground up.In case you should’ve missed some of our Super Angel episodes (which you’d be excused for, we’re keeping a pretty good pace on the pod), we’ve collected them all for you on the playlist below 🎧

We’re kicking the Super Angel series into a whole new gear for 2024 by introducing Seedcamp-partner Tom Wilson as our new co-host 🥳 alongside the existing host team of the amazing Anthony Danon from Cocoa, David and Andreas 🎙️

But before celebrating Tom, let us just pause and extend a heartfelt shoutout to Anthony Danon, whose contributions as a co-host have been pivotal to the Super Angel Podcast so far 💖. Anthony's vast network, particularly potent within fintech (but, tbh, generally quite mindblowing), has brought forth some of the most brilliant founders and operators to our platform.

But there’s another reason why Anthony is the perfect host for the series: with just shy of twenty angel investments made prior to launching his angel fund Cocoa, his money is where his mouth is - and with two portfolio unicorns, that’s a good place 🦄.

Anthony's deep understanding of the VC space and his dedication to bridging the gap between angels and VCs have been invaluable. His efforts have not only sculpted the podcast's feel, but also its success.

Thank you, Anthony. We can’t wait to continue on our joint journey for decades to come 🚀

Welcoming Tom Wilson to the host team 🎧
Tom comes to us with a wealth of experience from Seedcamp, where he has worked closely with some of the most promising startups in Europe. But Seedcamp is way more than just one of Europe’s top tier seed VCs with a ludicrous track. Ever since their founding in 2007, Seedcamp has been dedicated to connecting VCs and Angels across Europe having built its own fully-fledged network economy where 1,000+ founders, experts, angels and VCs come together to make each other stronger.

Or as Tom said in connection to the launch of Seedcamp VI:

"It does make sense to build a village around the founders for that initial phase and so with our very collaborative approach, and the fact that we had the chance over the past years to work with pretty much everyone that invests early in Europe, we can be a catalyst to really help entrepreneurs find the best partner for that round."

Being a catalyst for finding the right partners. That’s exactly what the eu.vc pod is about - be that as an LP, a co-investor or a founder. Connecting Europe. The super angel series being specifically designed to champion the amazing angels across the continent.

By joining the Super Angel Podcast, Tom brings the collective wisdom of Seedcamp to the forefront, offering listeners a unique insight into the journey of tech investing from the ground up.In case you should’ve missed some of our Super Angel episodes (which you’d be excused for, we’re keeping a pretty good pace on the pod), we’ve collected them all for you on the playlist below 🎧

Today we have Klementina Österberg from GU Ventures & Ted Persson from EQT Ventureswith us🎙️.

Ted is a Partner at EQT Ventures, a 1.1bn multi Stage venture fund with offices spread across Europe and the US. EQT Ventures are investing out of Fund 3 with a total €2.3bn AUM and an established portfolio of 120+ companies and notable investments including Wolt, Einride, Nothing, Anyfin and Candela.

Klementinais CEO at GU Ventures, an early seed investor and incubator in Gothenburg, Sweden, that is fully owned by the Swedish State and is an evergreen investment vehicle. GU Ventures invests in deep tech companies formed out of the research at universities. They are investing up to 200k€, have established over 165 companies, of which 82 are in their portfolio today and notable investments including Bico, I-Tech, Surgical Science, all of which are listed on Stockholm Stock Exchange and Nasdaq today.

We’ve reeled in Klementina and Ted for this episode as a warm-up for our participation at the GoWest Conference in Gothenburg, Sweden 🥳 which is proving to a be a real force in DeepTech punching above its wait just as Gothenburg and Sweden is. We’ll be there as there’s lined up for an incredibly cool investor day counting headlines like:* Fireside chat with Staffan Helgesson, the founder of Creandum * Climate panel with partners from Norrsken, Pact VC and Planet A, * DeepTech panel with partners from Speedinvest, Ventech, EQT and NATO Innovation Fund and thought provoking presentations by Sebastian von Ribbentrop at Join Capital and Nicholas Nelson on The rise of Defense Tech * LP panels with leading pension funds and corporates from the region as well as of course the EIF, Isomer Capital and BFP.

As said, just like the region, GoWest is truly attracting the best of the best. So don’t miss it if you’re into DeepTech 🤖

Chapters
00:00:00 - Introduction to EQT Ventures and GU Ventures
00:02:24 - Klementina & Ted’s Journey in the Venture Industry
00:07:14 - Investing in Deep Tech Startups
00:09:32 - Investing in Startups from Universities
00:11:40 - Investing in Companies Coming out of Academia
00:13:53 - Building Diverse Founding Teams
00:16:14 - The Skills of a Founder and Investor Relations
00:18:24 - Investment Strategies and Cap Tables
00:20:47 - Investing in Post-Internet Companies
00:23:03 - The Need for A Deep Tech Playbook
00:25:14 - Investing in Hardware
00:27:42 - Capital requirements for deep tech companies
00:30:14 - Investing in Deep Tech Startups
00:32:37 - Managing Opportunities in the Sustainable Industrial Sector
00:34:58 - Investment Strategies and Success Stories
00:37:34 - Balancing Expertise and Fresh Perspectives
00:39:52 - Building a Strong Portfolio with Balanced Capital Needs
00:42:04 - The Potential of Biotech
00:44:20 - Managing Technology Risk
00:46:31 - Collaborating with Other Investors as a VC
00:48:50 - Calling for Co-investors at Deep Tech Event
00:51:10 - European Tech Sovereignty
00:53:18 - Drop Us a Review

Considering joining us at GoWest? Here’s what you need to know 🧠

Why GoWest?Two universities. Eight incubators. Many global brands. Industrial heritage. Gothenburg is at the forefront of research& development and home to emerging industries striving to solve tomorrow’s challenges. GoWest is unique. It is fantastic meeting place for investors, startups, scaleups, talent and other stakeholders who want to engage and don’t want to miss out on the opportunities our industries and deep tech spin outs have to offer.What can you expect?There is something for everyone. We facilitate matchmaking and have a dedicated stage for fundraising startups. The hottest topics in deep tech, defense, climate, and health tech will be showcased on the main stage and next year the event will feature a brand-new Deep Tech Investor Day. The Investor Day will add extra value by bringing West Sweden’s investor community together with international peers to discuss current topics and build lasting relationships.Anything else?Yes, Gothenburg is one of the fastest-growing regions in Europe and that adds to our competitiveness on the international stage. GoWest enables easy access to our ecosystem and the region's key stakeholders. The conference has a great line up of speakers and topics on the main stage, side events, networking opportunities and more exciting announcements to come.

Today we have Klementina Österberg from GU Ventures & Ted Persson from EQT Ventureswith us🎙️.

Ted is a Partner at EQT Ventures, a 1.1bn multi Stage venture fund with offices spread across Europe and the US. EQT Ventures are investing out of Fund 3 with a total €2.3bn AUM and an established portfolio of 120+ companies and notable investments including Wolt, Einride, Nothing, Anyfin and Candela.

Klementinais CEO at GU Ventures, an early seed investor and incubator in Gothenburg, Sweden, that is fully owned by the Swedish State and is an evergreen investment vehicle. GU Ventures invests in deep tech companies formed out of the research at universities. They are investing up to 200k€, have established over 165 companies, of which 82 are in their portfolio today and notable investments including Bico, I-Tech, Surgical Science, all of which are listed on Stockholm Stock Exchange and Nasdaq today.

We’ve reeled in Klementina and Ted for this episode as a warm-up for our participation at the GoWest Conference in Gothenburg, Sweden 🥳 which is proving to a be a real force in DeepTech punching above its wait just as Gothenburg and Sweden is. We’ll be there as there’s lined up for an incredibly cool investor day counting headlines like:* Fireside chat with Staffan Helgesson, the founder of Creandum * Climate panel with partners from Norrsken, Pact VC and Planet A, * DeepTech panel with partners from Speedinvest, Ventech, EQT and NATO Innovation Fund and thought provoking presentations by Sebastian von Ribbentrop at Join Capital and Nicholas Nelson on The rise of Defense Tech * LP panels with leading pension funds and corporates from the region as well as of course the EIF, Isomer Capital and BFP.

As said, just like the region, GoWest is truly attracting the best of the best. So don’t miss it if you’re into DeepTech 🤖

Chapters
00:00:00 - Introduction to EQT Ventures and GU Ventures
00:02:24 - Klementina & Ted’s Journey in the Venture Industry
00:07:14 - Investing in Deep Tech Startups
00:09:32 - Investing in Startups from Universities
00:11:40 - Investing in Companies Coming out of Academia
00:13:53 - Building Diverse Founding Teams
00:16:14 - The Skills of a Founder and Investor Relations
00:18:24 - Investment Strategies and Cap Tables
00:20:47 - Investing in Post-Internet Companies
00:23:03 - The Need for A Deep Tech Playbook
00:25:14 - Investing in Hardware
00:27:42 - Capital requirements for deep tech companies
00:30:14 - Investing in Deep Tech Startups
00:32:37 - Managing Opportunities in the Sustainable Industrial Sector
00:34:58 - Investment Strategies and Success Stories
00:37:34 - Balancing Expertise and Fresh Perspectives
00:39:52 - Building a Strong Portfolio with Balanced Capital Needs
00:42:04 - The Potential of Biotech
00:44:20 - Managing Technology Risk
00:46:31 - Collaborating with Other Investors as a VC
00:48:50 - Calling for Co-investors at Deep Tech Event
00:51:10 - European Tech Sovereignty
00:53:18 - Drop Us a Review

Considering joining us at GoWest? Here’s what you need to know 🧠

Why GoWest?Two universities. Eight incubators. Many global brands. Industrial heritage. Gothenburg is at the forefront of research& development and home to emerging industries striving to solve tomorrow’s challenges. GoWest is unique. It is fantastic meeting place for investors, startups, scaleups, talent and other stakeholders who want to engage and don’t want to miss out on the opportunities our industries and deep tech spin outs have to offer.What can you expect?There is something for everyone. We facilitate matchmaking and have a dedicated stage for fundraising startups. The hottest topics in deep tech, defense, climate, and health tech will be showcased on the main stage and next year the event will feature a brand-new Deep Tech Investor Day. The Investor Day will add extra value by bringing West Sweden’s investor community together with international peers to discuss current topics and build lasting relationships.Anything else?Yes, Gothenburg is one of the fastest-growing regions in Europe and that adds to our competitiveness on the international stage. GoWest enables easy access to our ecosystem and the region's key stakeholders. The conference has a great line up of speakers and topics on the main stage, side events, networking opportunities and more exciting announcements to come.

Today we have Staffan Helgesson with us. Staffan is the founder of Creandum, a European early stage venture firm with no appointed headquarter but offices (or hubs as they call them) in Sweden, London, Berlin and San Francisco. Creandum just turned 20 years and are investing out of their 6th fund which is a $500m fund to back founders and companies across Europe. In addition to Europe they invest in European diaspora founders in the US.

The firm is a generalist investor but have organised themselves in six main verticals; Health, Climate, Technical SaaS, Application SaaS, Fintech and Consumer, where they spend most of their time.

Creandum has approximately $2 Bn under management and have done close to 150 investments over the years with notable investments including Spotify, Klarna, Trade Republic, Pleo, Bolt, iZettle, Cornershop, depop, Kahoot!, Taxfix, Kry and Factorial. At Creandum, Staffan leads the climate vertical and is also very active investing in Saas companies.

Chapters
00:00:00 - Introduction to Staffan and Creandum
00:01:52 - From Small-Town Origins to Silicon Valley Inspiration
00:03:49 - Loving Niche Sports and Venture Capital in Europe
00:05:47 - The European Investing Advantage & Time as a Solution
00:09:35 - Staffan’s Pivotal Moment
00:11:37 - The Importance of Bold Ideas and Drive
00:13:45 - The Importance of User-Centric Design and Delighting the End User
00:15:35 - Focusing on the Top Companies
00:17:34 - Combining Transformational Change and Hearing the Train
00:19:29 - Investing in the Future of Electric Vehicle Charging
00:21:14 - The Benefits of Electrification and the Future of EVs
00:23:26 - Shout Out to Co-Investor Angel or LP
00:25:18 - Shout out to Creandum during a difficult time
00:27:14 - Building a Franchise
00:29:12 - Building a Firm for Institutions
00:30:59 - Sustainable Competitive Advantage in Venture
00:32:52 - Gut Feeling and Logical Analysis
00:34:46 - The Importance of Gut Feeling in Decision Making
00:36:58 - Approaching Tier One Institutions
00:39:10 - Europe's New Beginnings

Today we have Staffan Helgesson with us. Staffan is the founder of Creandum, a European early stage venture firm with no appointed headquarter but offices (or hubs as they call them) in Sweden, London, Berlin and San Francisco. Creandum just turned 20 years and are investing out of their 6th fund which is a $500m fund to back founders and companies across Europe. In addition to Europe they invest in European diaspora founders in the US.

The firm is a generalist investor but have organised themselves in six main verticals; Health, Climate, Technical SaaS, Application SaaS, Fintech and Consumer, where they spend most of their time.

Creandum has approximately $2 Bn under management and have done close to 150 investments over the years with notable investments including Spotify, Klarna, Trade Republic, Pleo, Bolt, iZettle, Cornershop, depop, Kahoot!, Taxfix, Kry and Factorial. At Creandum, Staffan leads the climate vertical and is also very active investing in Saas companies.

Chapters
00:00:00 - Introduction to Staffan and Creandum
00:01:52 - From Small-Town Origins to Silicon Valley Inspiration
00:03:49 - Loving Niche Sports and Venture Capital in Europe
00:05:47 - The European Investing Advantage & Time as a Solution
00:09:35 - Staffan’s Pivotal Moment
00:11:37 - The Importance of Bold Ideas and Drive
00:13:45 - The Importance of User-Centric Design and Delighting the End User
00:15:35 - Focusing on the Top Companies
00:17:34 - Combining Transformational Change and Hearing the Train
00:19:29 - Investing in the Future of Electric Vehicle Charging
00:21:14 - The Benefits of Electrification and the Future of EVs
00:23:26 - Shout Out to Co-Investor Angel or LP
00:25:18 - Shout out to Creandum during a difficult time
00:27:14 - Building a Franchise
00:29:12 - Building a Firm for Institutions
00:30:59 - Sustainable Competitive Advantage in Venture
00:32:52 - Gut Feeling and Logical Analysis
00:34:46 - The Importance of Gut Feeling in Decision Making
00:36:58 - Approaching Tier One Institutions
00:39:10 - Europe's New Beginnings

Join us for the second episode of the NEUVC podcast which is dedicated to those embarking on their journey in the VC. In this episode, Freddie Macpherson, analyst at Isomer Capital, and Linda Võeras, associate at Karma Ventures, are joined by Mari Luukkainen, Principal at Finland based Icebreaker VC. With a background of building and scaling companies and a great eye and dedication to content, Mari has amassed a massive following of 20,000 people on LinkedIn. In this we dive into her journey as an operator as well as share tips and tricks for VCs looking to develop their personal brand ✨

Chapters:
00:00:00 - Developing Your Personal Brand in VC with Mar Lanan
00:02:59 - Finding Value in Your Journey
00:05:53 - Transitioning to Startup Growth
00:08:43 - From Cleaner Recruiting to VC Investment
00:11:40 - From Hands-on Help to Coaching
00:14:48 - The Paradox of Finding a Job
00:17:56 - Consistency in Content Creation
00:21:12 - Consistency and Networking for Building an Audience
00:24:18 - Attracting Founders at the Pre-Founder Stage
00:27:10 - Building a Personal Brand for Investors
00:30:16 - Overcoming the Challenges of Branding
00:33:12 - The Importance of Emotion in Branding
00:36:20 - The Importance of Emotional Support in Startups
00:39:17 - Transferring Writing Skills to Investment
00:42:14 - Shifting from Operator to Coach in VC
00:45:05 - Building Something Yourself First
00:47:54 - The Role of Venture Capital

Join us for the second episode of the NEUVC podcast which is dedicated to those embarking on their journey in the VC. In this episode, Freddie Macpherson, analyst at Isomer Capital, and Linda Võeras, associate at Karma Ventures, are joined by Mari Luukkainen, Principal at Finland based Icebreaker VC. With a background of building and scaling companies and a great eye and dedication to content, Mari has amassed a massive following of 20,000 people on LinkedIn. In this we dive into her journey as an operator as well as share tips and tricks for VCs looking to develop their personal brand ✨

Chapters:
00:00:00 - Developing Your Personal Brand in VC with Mar Lanan
00:02:59 - Finding Value in Your Journey
00:05:53 - Transitioning to Startup Growth
00:08:43 - From Cleaner Recruiting to VC Investment
00:11:40 - From Hands-on Help to Coaching
00:14:48 - The Paradox of Finding a Job
00:17:56 - Consistency in Content Creation
00:21:12 - Consistency and Networking for Building an Audience
00:24:18 - Attracting Founders at the Pre-Founder Stage
00:27:10 - Building a Personal Brand for Investors
00:30:16 - Overcoming the Challenges of Branding
00:33:12 - The Importance of Emotion in Branding
00:36:20 - The Importance of Emotional Support in Startups
00:39:17 - Transferring Writing Skills to Investment
00:42:14 - Shifting from Operator to Coach in VC
00:45:05 - Building Something Yourself First
00:47:54 - The Role of Venture Capital

We always hear from new VCs entering the market, but rarely do we ever hear from giants leaving the market. Today, we bring you such a conversation.

Honoring the gravity of the situation and the commitment by Fred Destin to share so openly, we invited Joe Schorge, founding partner of Isomer Capital and one of Europe’s most important LP voices, to lead the conversation.

We hope you enjoy listening in as much as we did 💞 watch it in full on eu.vc 👀

Chapters:
00:00:00 - The EUVC podcast with Joe Schorge and Fred Destin
00:02:54 - The Decision to Pause
00:04:59 - Journey of Personal Interrogation
00:07:08 - Motivation and the Next Iteration
00:09:20 - Stepping out of the Noise
00:11:19 - The Challenges of Running a Firm and Raising Funds
00:13:16 - Investor Reactions to Fundraising Efforts
00:15:14 - The State of Fundraising and LP Responsibility
00:17:24 - Positive Response to the Blog Post
00:19:08 - Triggered Responses and Leaving the Prevailing Narrative
00:20:19 - Mistakes and Challenges in Going Public with Cazoo
00:23:08 - The Rise of New VC Funds
00:25:08 - Knowing Your Value and Purpose
00:28:58 - Holding Ambiguity as a VC
00:31:00 - Self Awareness and Humility
00:32:57 - Investor Alignment and Board Tensions
00:35:11 - Shielding Founders and Managing Conflict in Investments
00:37:25 - Framing Discussions in the Right Way
0:38:40 - The State of the Industry Update for 2024
00:43:23 - The Importance of Shadow Work and Enhancing the Present Moment
00:45:20 - The Importance of Personal Work and Connection
00:47:02 - Future Coaching Program for Young VCs

We always hear from new VCs entering the market, but rarely do we ever hear from giants leaving the market. Today, we bring you such a conversation.

Honoring the gravity of the situation and the commitment by Fred Destin to share so openly, we invited Joe Schorge, founding partner of Isomer Capital and one of Europe’s most important LP voices, to lead the conversation.

We hope you enjoy listening in as much as we did 💞 watch it in full on eu.vc 👀

Chapters:
00:00:00 - The EUVC podcast with Joe Schorge and Fred Destin
00:02:54 - The Decision to Pause
00:04:59 - Journey of Personal Interrogation
00:07:08 - Motivation and the Next Iteration
00:09:20 - Stepping out of the Noise
00:11:19 - The Challenges of Running a Firm and Raising Funds
00:13:16 - Investor Reactions to Fundraising Efforts
00:15:14 - The State of Fundraising and LP Responsibility
00:17:24 - Positive Response to the Blog Post
00:19:08 - Triggered Responses and Leaving the Prevailing Narrative
00:20:19 - Mistakes and Challenges in Going Public with Cazoo
00:23:08 - The Rise of New VC Funds
00:25:08 - Knowing Your Value and Purpose
00:28:58 - Holding Ambiguity as a VC
00:31:00 - Self Awareness and Humility
00:32:57 - Investor Alignment and Board Tensions
00:35:11 - Shielding Founders and Managing Conflict in Investments
00:37:25 - Framing Discussions in the Right Way
0:38:40 - The State of the Industry Update for 2024
00:43:23 - The Importance of Shadow Work and Enhancing the Present Moment
00:45:20 - The Importance of Personal Work and Connection
00:47:02 - Future Coaching Program for Young VCs

Few periods are as busy as the end of the year. And that is definitely true for us at eu.vc this year as we announce yet another investment that we’ve been working hard on behind the scenes throughout the summer and fall. Consequently, it’s with great pride and pleasure that we announce our angel LP syndicate investment into First Momentum Ventures 🥳.

We’ve known the team for a little more than a year now and have truly enjoyed following them and working with them throughout their raise. Excellent execution, great reputation from all who have come across them and a team that’s set on a path that definitely looks like one that will lead to greatness.

We’re honored to have been invited along for the ride and will make sure that you will all get to hear much more from this team in the future. But now, we invite you to start by getting to know them via this pod episode and our spotlight article on eu.vc 👀🎧

Overview:
First Momentum Ventures (FMV), established in 2017, is a pioneering venture capital firm based in Karlsruhe, Germany, concentrating on pre-seed investments in European technology-driven B2B startups. They have been trailblazers in pre-seed venture capital in Germany since 2018, emphasizing a unique pre-seed strategy with a strong technical DNA. The team behind had its start supporting startups from a pre-seed campus incubator they started in 2015, which have collectively attracted over 500m € in capital.

Fund II Overview:
The launch of FMV's €35M Fund II targets technical pre-seed founders in the DACH region (Germany, Austria, Switzerland) and across Europe, focusing on sectors like Deep Tech, Industrial & Climate Tech, Dev Tools & Data, and Enterprise SaaS. They aim to build a portfolio of around 35 companies, targeting approximately 5% ownership with an average initial ticket size of €0.5m and keeping around 30% in follow-on reserves.Investment

Performance and Strategy:
FMV Fund I (2018 vintage) demonstrates top quartile performance with a portfolio size of 27 startups, a portfolio multiple of 1.97, and a total IRR of 28%. There are already several clear outliers visible that have a large potential to grow into fund returners (i.e. returning the entire fund by themselves). The follow-on capital raised by these startups amounted to 150m€, highlighting the fund's success in backing scalable and investment-worthy ventures.

Unique Approach and Value Addition: FMV stands out for its deep technical understanding and laser-focused pre-seed DNA. Their team of engineers & scientists, connected to leading European universities and industry decision-makers, brings a unique perspective to investing. They are known for rapid processes, candor, and risk-affine technical founder partnerships - true to their credo of “engineers at heart, investors by choice”. FMV's support extends beyond funding to include a dedicated support platform for a holistic support tailored specifically to super early technical companies.

Investment Thesis:
FMV's investment thesis is focused on supporting European deep-tech champions at the onset of their journey. They identified a gap in the market where tech founders face challenges due to a lack of true deep-tech VCs, risk aversion, and a limiting focus on SaaS by European investors. FMV aims to address these gaps by leveraging its technical expertise and network to support founders in overcoming these challenges.

Conclusion:
First Momentum Ventures represents a strategic investment opportunity, especially for those interested in early-stage, technology-driven B2B startups in the DACH region. Their technical expertise, strong network, and proven track record in supporting startups from pre-seed to scale make them a compelling choice for investors looking to engage with innovative European startups.Given their performance, unique approach, deep technical expertise, and perfect community fit with our approach to LP investing at eu.vc, we believe investing in First Momentum Ventures' Fund II presents one of the best opportunities currently available in the market to participate in the growth of Frontier Deep Tech Startups in the DACH region at the earliest stages.

Few periods are as busy as the end of the year. And that is definitely true for us at eu.vc this year as we announce yet another investment that we’ve been working hard on behind the scenes throughout the summer and fall. Consequently, it’s with great pride and pleasure that we announce our angel LP syndicate investment into First Momentum Ventures 🥳.

We’ve known the team for a little more than a year now and have truly enjoyed following them and working with them throughout their raise. Excellent execution, great reputation from all who have come across them and a team that’s set on a path that definitely looks like one that will lead to greatness.

We’re honored to have been invited along for the ride and will make sure that you will all get to hear much more from this team in the future. But now, we invite you to start by getting to know them via this pod episode and our spotlight article on eu.vc 👀🎧

Overview:
First Momentum Ventures (FMV), established in 2017, is a pioneering venture capital firm based in Karlsruhe, Germany, concentrating on pre-seed investments in European technology-driven B2B startups. They have been trailblazers in pre-seed venture capital in Germany since 2018, emphasizing a unique pre-seed strategy with a strong technical DNA. The team behind had its start supporting startups from a pre-seed campus incubator they started in 2015, which have collectively attracted over 500m € in capital.

Fund II Overview:
The launch of FMV's €35M Fund II targets technical pre-seed founders in the DACH region (Germany, Austria, Switzerland) and across Europe, focusing on sectors like Deep Tech, Industrial & Climate Tech, Dev Tools & Data, and Enterprise SaaS. They aim to build a portfolio of around 35 companies, targeting approximately 5% ownership with an average initial ticket size of €0.5m and keeping around 30% in follow-on reserves.Investment

Performance and Strategy:
FMV Fund I (2018 vintage) demonstrates top quartile performance with a portfolio size of 27 startups, a portfolio multiple of 1.97, and a total IRR of 28%. There are already several clear outliers visible that have a large potential to grow into fund returners (i.e. returning the entire fund by themselves). The follow-on capital raised by these startups amounted to 150m€, highlighting the fund's success in backing scalable and investment-worthy ventures.

Unique Approach and Value Addition: FMV stands out for its deep technical understanding and laser-focused pre-seed DNA. Their team of engineers & scientists, connected to leading European universities and industry decision-makers, brings a unique perspective to investing. They are known for rapid processes, candor, and risk-affine technical founder partnerships - true to their credo of “engineers at heart, investors by choice”. FMV's support extends beyond funding to include a dedicated support platform for a holistic support tailored specifically to super early technical companies.

Investment Thesis:
FMV's investment thesis is focused on supporting European deep-tech champions at the onset of their journey. They identified a gap in the market where tech founders face challenges due to a lack of true deep-tech VCs, risk aversion, and a limiting focus on SaaS by European investors. FMV aims to address these gaps by leveraging its technical expertise and network to support founders in overcoming these challenges.

Conclusion:
First Momentum Ventures represents a strategic investment opportunity, especially for those interested in early-stage, technology-driven B2B startups in the DACH region. Their technical expertise, strong network, and proven track record in supporting startups from pre-seed to scale make them a compelling choice for investors looking to engage with innovative European startups.Given their performance, unique approach, deep technical expertise, and perfect community fit with our approach to LP investing at eu.vc, we believe investing in First Momentum Ventures' Fund II presents one of the best opportunities currently available in the market to participate in the growth of Frontier Deep Tech Startups in the DACH region at the earliest stages.

Today we have Ondrej Bartos with us. Ondrej is a Founding GP at Credo Ventures, a 75m€ Seed stage venture fund in Prague (and a bit elsewhere!) to back Central Eastern European Tech Startups.Credo are investing out of Fund 4 with a total 250M€ AUM and an established portfolio of 60 companies and notable investments including UI Path, ProductBoard, PriceFX, Resistant AI, and Eleven Labs.

Chapters:
00:00:00 - Ondrej & Credo Bio
00:00:41 - Announcing Roundtable on The Evolution of European Venture
00:04:06 - How Ondrej Got Into Venture
00:06:34 - Pivotal Moments in Venture Investing
00:09:18 - The Challenges of Being an Entrepreneur and VC
00:12:07 - Struggling with Success and Collaboration vs Competition Among VCs
00:14:31 - Maintaining a Calm & Collaborative Approach in Competitive Deals
00:16:58 - The Transformative Power of Success
00:19:34 - Managing Expectations and Transparency
00:22:17 - Collaborative Competitive Rivalry
00:24:44 - The Meaning of Credo
00:27:15 - Supporting Entrepreneurs
00:29:32 - The Importance of Passion and Hard Work
00:32:15 - Respecting Reshma and Co-Investing
00:34:44 - Staying as a Seed and Pre-Seed Fund
00:37:13 - Building Towards a Franchise
00:39:53 - The Logic Behind the Crossover Fund Experiment
00:42:26 - Creating Relationships with Late Stage Investors
00:45:08 - Failure in Internships and Startups

Today we have Ondrej Bartos with us. Ondrej is a Founding GP at Credo Ventures, a 75m€ Seed stage venture fund in Prague (and a bit elsewhere!) to back Central Eastern European Tech Startups.Credo are investing out of Fund 4 with a total 250M€ AUM and an established portfolio of 60 companies and notable investments including UI Path, ProductBoard, PriceFX, Resistant AI, and Eleven Labs.

Chapters:
00:00:00 - Ondrej & Credo Bio
00:00:41 - Announcing Roundtable on The Evolution of European Venture
00:04:06 - How Ondrej Got Into Venture
00:06:34 - Pivotal Moments in Venture Investing
00:09:18 - The Challenges of Being an Entrepreneur and VC
00:12:07 - Struggling with Success and Collaboration vs Competition Among VCs
00:14:31 - Maintaining a Calm & Collaborative Approach in Competitive Deals
00:16:58 - The Transformative Power of Success
00:19:34 - Managing Expectations and Transparency
00:22:17 - Collaborative Competitive Rivalry
00:24:44 - The Meaning of Credo
00:27:15 - Supporting Entrepreneurs
00:29:32 - The Importance of Passion and Hard Work
00:32:15 - Respecting Reshma and Co-Investing
00:34:44 - Staying as a Seed and Pre-Seed Fund
00:37:13 - Building Towards a Franchise
00:39:53 - The Logic Behind the Crossover Fund Experiment
00:42:26 - Creating Relationships with Late Stage Investors
00:45:08 - Failure in Internships and Startups

Satgana is a next-generation Climate Tech Venture Capital firm investing in the Future of Earth. With an established portfolio of 13 companies of which ~40% are from underrepresented backgrounds. But maybe most interestingly to many, Satgana boasts an outstanding Multiple on Invested Capital (MOIC) of 4.2x on the fund that is currently closing - in other words; here’s the opportunity to buy in at 1x to a portfolio that’s already achieved quite a mark-up… Seems like impact can go hand-in-hand returns 💞.

What is more, with a community-focused approach and 60+ Limited Partners, Satgana is a great match for us and clearly well-positioned to become one of our strong partners in the climate space giving us exactly what we look for in emerging managers: potential outlier performance, insights and strong co-investment opportunities.

In one sentence, Satgana is looking to support purpose-driven entrepreneurs in Europe and Africa who are developing pain-killers (must-haves), not vitamins (nice-to-haves), to the increasingly severe environmental problems we face today. Needless to say, we’re more than eager to share this in-depth episode and article on Satgana, their journey, and the mission and vision that unites the team behind it.

Chapters:
00:00:00 - LP Syndicate into Satgana Fund One
00:02:16 - eu.vc - a union of values
00:04:27 - The Challenge and Opportunity of Climate Change
00:06:23 - The Journey to First Close
00:08:17 - The Decision to Pursue Funding
00:10:21 - Building an Investment Firm with LPs as the Focus
00:12:19 - Fee Structure and Carry Model
00:14:22 - Investing in Climate Technology
00:16:22 - Investing with Strategic Angels
00:18:14 - Investment Strategy and Fund Size
00:20:09 - Co-investment and Diversification with Angels
00:22:00 - The complexities of GP angel collaboration
00:23:49 - Following On Potential and Portfolio Performance
00:25:50 - Promising Trajectory and Revenue Growth
00:27:54 - The Power of Small Funds
00:30:01 - Investing in Climate Tech
00:32:06 - Addressing Methane Leaks in the Energy Sector
00:34:13 - Y Combinator and the European Ecosystem
00:36:14 - The Success of Y Combinator and Portfolio Companies
00:38:12 - Investing in Africa's Impact Potential
00:40:16 - Portfolio Overview and Investment Focus
00:42:20 - The Importance of Structure and Tracking Investments
00:44:02 - Commitment to Diversity and Social Impact
00:46:02 - Reaching Out on LinkedIn

Satgana is a next-generation Climate Tech Venture Capital firm investing in the Future of Earth. With an established portfolio of 13 companies of which ~40% are from underrepresented backgrounds. But maybe most interestingly to many, Satgana boasts an outstanding Multiple on Invested Capital (MOIC) of 4.2x on the fund that is currently closing - in other words; here’s the opportunity to buy in at 1x to a portfolio that’s already achieved quite a mark-up… Seems like impact can go hand-in-hand returns 💞.

What is more, with a community-focused approach and 60+ Limited Partners, Satgana is a great match for us and clearly well-positioned to become one of our strong partners in the climate space giving us exactly what we look for in emerging managers: potential outlier performance, insights and strong co-investment opportunities.

In one sentence, Satgana is looking to support purpose-driven entrepreneurs in Europe and Africa who are developing pain-killers (must-haves), not vitamins (nice-to-haves), to the increasingly severe environmental problems we face today. Needless to say, we’re more than eager to share this in-depth episode and article on Satgana, their journey, and the mission and vision that unites the team behind it.

Chapters:
00:00:00 - LP Syndicate into Satgana Fund One
00:02:16 - eu.vc - a union of values
00:04:27 - The Challenge and Opportunity of Climate Change
00:06:23 - The Journey to First Close
00:08:17 - The Decision to Pursue Funding
00:10:21 - Building an Investment Firm with LPs as the Focus
00:12:19 - Fee Structure and Carry Model
00:14:22 - Investing in Climate Technology
00:16:22 - Investing with Strategic Angels
00:18:14 - Investment Strategy and Fund Size
00:20:09 - Co-investment and Diversification with Angels
00:22:00 - The complexities of GP angel collaboration
00:23:49 - Following On Potential and Portfolio Performance
00:25:50 - Promising Trajectory and Revenue Growth
00:27:54 - The Power of Small Funds
00:30:01 - Investing in Climate Tech
00:32:06 - Addressing Methane Leaks in the Energy Sector
00:34:13 - Y Combinator and the European Ecosystem
00:36:14 - The Success of Y Combinator and Portfolio Companies
00:38:12 - Investing in Africa's Impact Potential
00:40:16 - Portfolio Overview and Investment Focus
00:42:20 - The Importance of Structure and Tracking Investments
00:44:02 - Commitment to Diversity and Social Impact
00:46:02 - Reaching Out on LinkedIn

Today we have Ben Topor with us. Ben is a Founder & Managing Partner at Titan Capital, an investment firm in Israel backing Israeli, European and American companies by providing growth equity & secondary capital to world-class internet, software, consumer, and financial technology companies, with a bottom-up approach to secondary and growth.

Titan is raising a 50m USD Fund, investing in companies and venture capital partnerships directly and via secondary transactions and is backed by top-tier global investment firms, leading corporations and family offices. And, of note, Tiger Management, which is a well-known investment firm that built an impressive track record in seeding some of the world's best fund managers, backed Titan.

Chapters:
00:00:00 - Introduction and Event Announcement
00:02:47 - The Future of European Venture Capital
00:05:50 - The Pivotal Book: Crossing the Chasm
00:08:51 - The Importance of Solving a Pressing Need
00:11:57 - Factors affecting investment strategies
00:14:50 - Timing the Market and Spreading Your Bets
00:17:58 - Different Considerations for Selling Shares
00:20:48 - Strategies for Secondary Investments
00:23:50 - Finding Bargains in the Secondary Market
00:26:56 - Investing in European Startups
00:29:57 - LP secondary deals
00:36:21 - Winning with a Data driven approach
00:39:21 - The Flexibility of Investing in Growth Companies
00:42:37 - Fundraising Challenges for VCs
00:45:48 - VC Strategies: Long-lasting businesses vs. Threatening categories

Today we have Ben Topor with us. Ben is a Founder & Managing Partner at Titan Capital, an investment firm in Israel backing Israeli, European and American companies by providing growth equity & secondary capital to world-class internet, software, consumer, and financial technology companies, with a bottom-up approach to secondary and growth.

Titan is raising a 50m USD Fund, investing in companies and venture capital partnerships directly and via secondary transactions and is backed by top-tier global investment firms, leading corporations and family offices. And, of note, Tiger Management, which is a well-known investment firm that built an impressive track record in seeding some of the world's best fund managers, backed Titan.

Chapters:
00:00:00 - Introduction and Event Announcement
00:02:47 - The Future of European Venture Capital
00:05:50 - The Pivotal Book: Crossing the Chasm
00:08:51 - The Importance of Solving a Pressing Need
00:11:57 - Factors affecting investment strategies
00:14:50 - Timing the Market and Spreading Your Bets
00:17:58 - Different Considerations for Selling Shares
00:20:48 - Strategies for Secondary Investments
00:23:50 - Finding Bargains in the Secondary Market
00:26:56 - Investing in European Startups
00:29:57 - LP secondary deals
00:36:21 - Winning with a Data driven approach
00:39:21 - The Flexibility of Investing in Growth Companies
00:42:37 - Fundraising Challenges for VCs
00:45:48 - VC Strategies: Long-lasting businesses vs. Threatening categories

Today we have Colin Daymond Hanna with us. Colin is a Partner at Balderton. And I think it goes without saying that I need not introduce this firm; but just in case anyone listening in has just started in venture, I’ll say that in the two decades since Balderton’s founding, they have worked with hundreds of extraordinary European founders, and have raised eight funds totalling more than 3bn Euros.

At Balderton, Colin invests in purpose-driven, product-focused founders spanning verticals including Cloud, Consumer, Crypto, and Fintech. Colin has led the investments into Fuse Energy (formerly Tesseract), Ory, Supernormal, AnyType, Clue (note: the links go to Balderton’s annoucements, interesting reading!). Colin is also part of the team at Balderton responsible for driving the firm's Sustainable Future Goals initiatives.

Chapters:
00:00:00 - Introduction to Colin Daymon Hannah
00:02:54 - Growing up in Asia & the US and transitioning to venture
00:07:28 - Taking a Leap of Faith to Berlin
00:09:51 - The Role of Luck in Decision Making
00:12:05 - Prioritization and Communication
00:14:27 - Balderton's Purpose as a Partner for European Entrepreneurs
00:16:38 - Clue: Empowering Women's Health
00:18:56 - The Local First Mentality and Censorship Resistance
00:21:31 - Lack of Empathy in VC and Overstretching
00:23:40 - Importance of Investor Alignment
00:26:03 - On Purpose and Prioritization
00:28:35 - Prioritization & Portfolio Management
00:30:49 - Transparency in Investing
00:32:54 - Building Networks with Investors
00:35:10 - The Importance of Strong Communication and Vulnerability
00:37:17 - Communication and Gratitude
00:39:12 - How Sports Shape Your Path
00:41:31 - The Importance of Trusting the Process
00:44:01 - Transparency in Achieving Global Goals
00:46:07 - Investing in companies aligned with SDGs
00:48:32 - Express Championing of Positive Externalities
00:50:26 - Tips for Emerging VCs in Europe
00:52:46 - Focusing on the Purpose, Not the Valuation

Today we have Colin Daymond Hanna with us. Colin is a Partner at Balderton. And I think it goes without saying that I need not introduce this firm; but just in case anyone listening in has just started in venture, I’ll say that in the two decades since Balderton’s founding, they have worked with hundreds of extraordinary European founders, and have raised eight funds totalling more than 3bn Euros.

At Balderton, Colin invests in purpose-driven, product-focused founders spanning verticals including Cloud, Consumer, Crypto, and Fintech. Colin has led the investments into Fuse Energy (formerly Tesseract), Ory, Supernormal, AnyType, Clue (note: the links go to Balderton’s annoucements, interesting reading!). Colin is also part of the team at Balderton responsible for driving the firm's Sustainable Future Goals initiatives.

Chapters:
00:00:00 - Introduction to Colin Daymon Hannah
00:02:54 - Growing up in Asia & the US and transitioning to venture
00:07:28 - Taking a Leap of Faith to Berlin
00:09:51 - The Role of Luck in Decision Making
00:12:05 - Prioritization and Communication
00:14:27 - Balderton's Purpose as a Partner for European Entrepreneurs
00:16:38 - Clue: Empowering Women's Health
00:18:56 - The Local First Mentality and Censorship Resistance
00:21:31 - Lack of Empathy in VC and Overstretching
00:23:40 - Importance of Investor Alignment
00:26:03 - On Purpose and Prioritization
00:28:35 - Prioritization & Portfolio Management
00:30:49 - Transparency in Investing
00:32:54 - Building Networks with Investors
00:35:10 - The Importance of Strong Communication and Vulnerability
00:37:17 - Communication and Gratitude
00:39:12 - How Sports Shape Your Path
00:41:31 - The Importance of Trusting the Process
00:44:01 - Transparency in Achieving Global Goals
00:46:07 - Investing in companies aligned with SDGs
00:48:32 - Express Championing of Positive Externalities
00:50:26 - Tips for Emerging VCs in Europe
00:52:46 - Focusing on the Purpose, Not the Valuation

If there's any market that's not slowing down, it's the secondaries market. And it’s a buyer’s market. But how do you win? We convened some of Europe's best secondaries investors to discuss the current market and how to build your investment strategy, evaluate opportunities and negotiate deals.

Expert Secondaries Panelists:
- Joe Schorge, Founding Partner of Isomer Capital
- Kemper Ahl, Vice President of Industry Ventures
- Martijn de Wever, CEO & Founder of Floww

Go to eu.vc for the write up of our key learnings and as well as the video recording 👀

Chapters:
00:00:00 - Welcome to the roundtable and introductions
00:03:02 - Solving Pain Points in the Private Markets
00:11:29 - The Rise of Venture Secondaries
00:14:20 - Creating a Systemic Approach
00:20:07 - The Need for Innovation in the Market
00:23:00 - Liquidity Solutions and the Secondaries Market
00:25:43 - The Evolution of Intermediaries in the Market
00:28:26 - Creative structuring for late-stage investments
00:33:59 - Bridging the Gap in Due Diligence for New Investors
00:39:14 - Tactics for Dealing in Secondary Market
00:41:51 - The Platform Approach to Venture Secondaries
00:44:35 - Timing the Market vs. Timing the Asset
00:47:19 - Negotiating a Secondary Transaction
00:53:00 - Strategies for Buying into Pre-IPO Companies
01:01:13 - Experts needed for private Capital markets

If there's any market that's not slowing down, it's the secondaries market. And it’s a buyer’s market. But how do you win? We convened some of Europe's best secondaries investors to discuss the current market and how to build your investment strategy, evaluate opportunities and negotiate deals.

Expert Secondaries Panelists:
- Joe Schorge, Founding Partner of Isomer Capital
- Kemper Ahl, Vice President of Industry Ventures
- Martijn de Wever, CEO & Founder of Floww

Go to eu.vc for the write up of our key learnings and as well as the video recording 👀

Chapters:
00:00:00 - Welcome to the roundtable and introductions
00:03:02 - Solving Pain Points in the Private Markets
00:11:29 - The Rise of Venture Secondaries
00:14:20 - Creating a Systemic Approach
00:20:07 - The Need for Innovation in the Market
00:23:00 - Liquidity Solutions and the Secondaries Market
00:25:43 - The Evolution of Intermediaries in the Market
00:28:26 - Creative structuring for late-stage investments
00:33:59 - Bridging the Gap in Due Diligence for New Investors
00:39:14 - Tactics for Dealing in Secondary Market
00:41:51 - The Platform Approach to Venture Secondaries
00:44:35 - Timing the Market vs. Timing the Asset
00:47:19 - Negotiating a Secondary Transaction
00:53:00 - Strategies for Buying into Pre-IPO Companies
01:01:13 - Experts needed for private Capital markets

Today we have Max Bautin with us. Max is a Founding GP at IQ Capital, a 700m€ Seed & Early Stage venture firm in London to back European Deep Tech Startups.IQ Capital is investing out of a 185 m€ Fund 4 and also has a 150 m€ Growth Opportunities fund and has an established portfolio of over 60 companies and notable investments including Thought Machine, Paragraf and Nyobolt.

Chapters:
00:00:00 - Introduction
00:01:51 - From Startups to Asset Management to IQ Capital
00:03:25 - The Cambridge Mafia in Venture Investing
00:05:05 - The Success of the Cambridge Ecosystem
00:06:49 - Why Avoiding Negative Value Added by VCs Is The Holy Grail
00:08:30 - Deep Tech vs Traditional Venture
00:10:06 - Defensibility and Scalability in Deep Tech Companies
00:11:44 - Deep Tech Investments and Hardware Integration
00:13:27 - The Growing Importance of Deep Tech
00:19:51 - IQ’s definition of Deep Tech
00:21:20 - The Productization Journey
00:22:51 - On The Duration of VC Funds
00:24:32 - Focusing on Future Opportunities
00:26:07 - Shoutout to Max's Bestie
00:27:49 - The Success of the Cambridge Ecosystem
00:29:25 - The Importance of IP and Academic Support in Innovation
00:31:05 - The Rise of Cambridge's Tech Ecosystem and Beyond
00:32:47 - Expanding into European Ecosystems
00:34:20 - Building Trust and Reputation in the European Tech Industry
00:35:54 - Quick Fire with Max

Today we have Max Bautin with us. Max is a Founding GP at IQ Capital, a 700m€ Seed & Early Stage venture firm in London to back European Deep Tech Startups.IQ Capital is investing out of a 185 m€ Fund 4 and also has a 150 m€ Growth Opportunities fund and has an established portfolio of over 60 companies and notable investments including Thought Machine, Paragraf and Nyobolt.

Chapters:
00:00:00 - Introduction
00:01:51 - From Startups to Asset Management to IQ Capital
00:03:25 - The Cambridge Mafia in Venture Investing
00:05:05 - The Success of the Cambridge Ecosystem
00:06:49 - Why Avoiding Negative Value Added by VCs Is The Holy Grail
00:08:30 - Deep Tech vs Traditional Venture
00:10:06 - Defensibility and Scalability in Deep Tech Companies
00:11:44 - Deep Tech Investments and Hardware Integration
00:13:27 - The Growing Importance of Deep Tech
00:19:51 - IQ’s definition of Deep Tech
00:21:20 - The Productization Journey
00:22:51 - On The Duration of VC Funds
00:24:32 - Focusing on Future Opportunities
00:26:07 - Shoutout to Max's Bestie
00:27:49 - The Success of the Cambridge Ecosystem
00:29:25 - The Importance of IP and Academic Support in Innovation
00:31:05 - The Rise of Cambridge's Tech Ecosystem and Beyond
00:32:47 - Expanding into European Ecosystems
00:34:20 - Building Trust and Reputation in the European Tech Industry
00:35:54 - Quick Fire with Max

Welcome to the first episode of the special series NEUVC, hosted by Freddie Macpherson, analyst at Isomer Capital, and Linda Võeras, associate at Karma Ventures. Today we have Martin Krag with us. Martin is a partner at byFounders, a seed fund looking to back the best tech founders in the new Nordics. We spoke to Martin to hear how he rose to partner in four years, the firm culture and coaching the courage to do so, and, of course, his own secret sauce of excellence.

Chapters:
00:00:00 - Introduction of Martin & byFounders
00:01:52 - Incentive alignment and portfolio assistance
00:03:24 - Joining a Startup Venture Capital Firm
00:04:44 - The importance of decisiveness for VCs
00:06:07 - Using Analysts for Understanding Spaces and Sectors
00:07:43 - Progression and Responsibility Levels
00:09:17 - The Importance of Curiosity and Quick Learning
00:10:41 - Finding Focus and Prioritizing
00:12:09 - Balancing Networking and Board Responsibilities
00:13:35 - The Fluid Partnership with Founders and Career Development
00:15:09 - Building a Strong Team and Defined Roles
00:16:42 - Calibrating New Hires for Long-Term Aspirations
00:18:04 - Transparency and Core Values in VC Industry
00:19:39 - Career Progression and Future at the Fund
00:21:18 - The Responsibility of Partners and Youngsters in Investment Decisions
00:22:40 - Avoidable Mistakes made by Junior VC Team
00:24:29 - Being Patient and Calibrating Before Making Decisions
00:25:58 - The Perspective of a Poker Player-Investor
00:27:30 - Dreaming with the Founders
00:28:57 - Diversifying Experience in the VC Industry
00:30:42 - Choosing between being a VC or Founder
00:32:19 - The Challenges of Being a VC
00:34:14 - Building a Fund and Firm
00:36:15 - Experience and Bad Judgment

Welcome to the first episode of the special series NEUVC, hosted by Freddie Macpherson, analyst at Isomer Capital, and Linda Võeras, associate at Karma Ventures. Today we have Martin Krag with us. Martin is a partner at byFounders, a seed fund looking to back the best tech founders in the new Nordics. We spoke to Martin to hear how he rose to partner in four years, the firm culture and coaching the courage to do so, and, of course, his own secret sauce of excellence.

Chapters:
00:00:00 - Introduction of Martin & byFounders
00:01:52 - Incentive alignment and portfolio assistance
00:03:24 - Joining a Startup Venture Capital Firm
00:04:44 - The importance of decisiveness for VCs
00:06:07 - Using Analysts for Understanding Spaces and Sectors
00:07:43 - Progression and Responsibility Levels
00:09:17 - The Importance of Curiosity and Quick Learning
00:10:41 - Finding Focus and Prioritizing
00:12:09 - Balancing Networking and Board Responsibilities
00:13:35 - The Fluid Partnership with Founders and Career Development
00:15:09 - Building a Strong Team and Defined Roles
00:16:42 - Calibrating New Hires for Long-Term Aspirations
00:18:04 - Transparency and Core Values in VC Industry
00:19:39 - Career Progression and Future at the Fund
00:21:18 - The Responsibility of Partners and Youngsters in Investment Decisions
00:22:40 - Avoidable Mistakes made by Junior VC Team
00:24:29 - Being Patient and Calibrating Before Making Decisions
00:25:58 - The Perspective of a Poker Player-Investor
00:27:30 - Dreaming with the Founders
00:28:57 - Diversifying Experience in the VC Industry
00:30:42 - Choosing between being a VC or Founder
00:32:19 - The Challenges of Being a VC
00:34:14 - Building a Fund and Firm
00:36:15 - Experience and Bad Judgment

Yesterday, Fred Destin shared the news with us all that he’s pausing the raise for Stride Fund III and that he’d “Take a breather and open the door to new possibilities. I have no idea if that includes more investing; what I want to do now is gain some elevation, look at my life and the world around me, and take time to see what emerges.”

The day before, David sat down with Fred for an honest conversation about the state of the current market, how to navigate as a VC, and finally ending on faith and spirituality. The conversation did not cover this hallmark decision by Fred, but certainly, you can trace the meaning and bridge narrative.

"I have to be honest that I'm in a, I'm very much in a kind of pendulum between excitement and concern. And it is difficult for me to look at the state of the world in general, between erosion of democracy, mental health crisis, climate, Ukraine and Israel, and to not take some form of pause to say: where the fuck are we going as a species?"
and Fred continued:

"I heard someone the other day describe humans as, you know; we're behaving like parasites at the scale of our planet, and I think there's something to that. So I would say that at the moment, I'm trying to sit with that and think about what is our impact and our responsibility … What I'm excited about is, I think, there is an increased level of realization that we need to reintroduce humans at the center of what we do. Community, connection, relating. And that what started as a little trickle is starting to be more of a movement. And I think it's showing up in a bunch of places." From this the conversation covered growing up professionally in an American psycho style environments where it’s all about the money as well as the role of religion.

Tune in for the full conversation here or watch it on eu.vc

Yesterday, Fred Destin shared the news with us all that he’s pausing the raise for Stride Fund III and that he’d “Take a breather and open the door to new possibilities. I have no idea if that includes more investing; what I want to do now is gain some elevation, look at my life and the world around me, and take time to see what emerges.”

The day before, David sat down with Fred for an honest conversation about the state of the current market, how to navigate as a VC, and finally ending on faith and spirituality. The conversation did not cover this hallmark decision by Fred, but certainly, you can trace the meaning and bridge narrative.

"I have to be honest that I'm in a, I'm very much in a kind of pendulum between excitement and concern. And it is difficult for me to look at the state of the world in general, between erosion of democracy, mental health crisis, climate, Ukraine and Israel, and to not take some form of pause to say: where the fuck are we going as a species?"
and Fred continued:

"I heard someone the other day describe humans as, you know; we're behaving like parasites at the scale of our planet, and I think there's something to that. So I would say that at the moment, I'm trying to sit with that and think about what is our impact and our responsibility … What I'm excited about is, I think, there is an increased level of realization that we need to reintroduce humans at the center of what we do. Community, connection, relating. And that what started as a little trickle is starting to be more of a movement. And I think it's showing up in a bunch of places." From this the conversation covered growing up professionally in an American psycho style environments where it’s all about the money as well as the role of religion.

Tune in for the full conversation here or watch it on eu.vc

In today’s episode, Chloe Dagnell from Isomer Capital speaks to Carmen Alfonso Rico, a self-described VC turned Angel at Cocoa. Having previously been at the consumer fund Felix, Series A fund Blossom, and Spanish-HQ’d Samaipata, Carmen is responsible for being the first investor into companies such as Hopin and SideQuestVR.

Now, Carmen is leading the charge at Cocoa Ventures, an angel fund providing the first checks for founders across Europe. Investing $250k-$500k angel checks at pre-seed/seed, Cocoa supports founders as their in-house VC, helping them hack the system with independent and unfiltered insights.

In today’s episode, we’re discussing everything from how Carmen actually helps founders hack the system to fund economics. And bear with us on that fund economics point, as it’s one of the most interesting and overlooked parts of being a great VC and fund manager, and Carmen claims some pretty contrarian views on how she puts her portfolio together.

And of course, we couldn't resist asking the woman behind Cocoa Ventures what her favorite chocolate is 🍫 . So, if you want the hottest tip in town for the best chocolate, then listen all the way to the end 😁

In today’s episode, Chloe Dagnell from Isomer Capital speaks to Carmen Alfonso Rico, a self-described VC turned Angel at Cocoa. Having previously been at the consumer fund Felix, Series A fund Blossom, and Spanish-HQ’d Samaipata, Carmen is responsible for being the first investor into companies such as Hopin and SideQuestVR.

Now, Carmen is leading the charge at Cocoa Ventures, an angel fund providing the first checks for founders across Europe. Investing $250k-$500k angel checks at pre-seed/seed, Cocoa supports founders as their in-house VC, helping them hack the system with independent and unfiltered insights.

In today’s episode, we’re discussing everything from how Carmen actually helps founders hack the system to fund economics. And bear with us on that fund economics point, as it’s one of the most interesting and overlooked parts of being a great VC and fund manager, and Carmen claims some pretty contrarian views on how she puts her portfolio together.

And of course, we couldn't resist asking the woman behind Cocoa Ventures what her favorite chocolate is 🍫 . So, if you want the hottest tip in town for the best chocolate, then listen all the way to the end 😁

Today we have Fady with us. Fady is a Founding GP at Cybernetix Ventures, a 50m$ pre-seed, seed and Series A venture fund in Boston to back North American and European companies within manufacturing, logistics, construction, and healthcare.Cybernetix are investing out of Fund 1 with a total 50m$ AUM and an established portfolio of 13 companies and notable investments including Realtime Robotics, AirWorks, Bionomous, and Kewazo.

Chapters
00:00:00 - Intro
00:01:42 - New Beginnings in Venture
00:03:44 - Overcoming Challenges and Achieving Success
00:05:51 - The Impact and Expectations of Gen AI
00:07:58 - The Impact of Generative AI on Industries
00:09:46 - Robotics as a Technology
00:11:50 - Manufacturing in the Age of Smart Automation
00:13:44 - Automation in Manufacturing and Healthcare
00:15:47 - Technological Capability vs. Business Model
00:17:36 - The Challenges of Humanoids in the Job Market
00:19:29 - Investing in Robotics, Automation, and Industrial AI
00:21:31 - The Success Story of Universal Robots in Denmark
00:25:31 - Considerations for Product Deployment
00:29:41 - The Rise of Robotics in Boston and Europe
00:31:47 - The Importance of Specialized People in Robotics Investment
00:33:54 - Investing in Smart Machines for the Future
00:36:11 - Investing in Robotics Solutions
00:38:27 - Building a Strong Team in Venture
00:40:21 - Robotics Revolutionizing Our World
00:42:21 - The Rise of Collaborative Robots in the Robot Cluster
00:44:04 - The Rise of Robotics in Odense

Today we have Fady with us. Fady is a Founding GP at Cybernetix Ventures, a 50m$ pre-seed, seed and Series A venture fund in Boston to back North American and European companies within manufacturing, logistics, construction, and healthcare.Cybernetix are investing out of Fund 1 with a total 50m$ AUM and an established portfolio of 13 companies and notable investments including Realtime Robotics, AirWorks, Bionomous, and Kewazo.

Chapters
00:00:00 - Intro
00:01:42 - New Beginnings in Venture
00:03:44 - Overcoming Challenges and Achieving Success
00:05:51 - The Impact and Expectations of Gen AI
00:07:58 - The Impact of Generative AI on Industries
00:09:46 - Robotics as a Technology
00:11:50 - Manufacturing in the Age of Smart Automation
00:13:44 - Automation in Manufacturing and Healthcare
00:15:47 - Technological Capability vs. Business Model
00:17:36 - The Challenges of Humanoids in the Job Market
00:19:29 - Investing in Robotics, Automation, and Industrial AI
00:21:31 - The Success Story of Universal Robots in Denmark
00:25:31 - Considerations for Product Deployment
00:29:41 - The Rise of Robotics in Boston and Europe
00:31:47 - The Importance of Specialized People in Robotics Investment
00:33:54 - Investing in Smart Machines for the Future
00:36:11 - Investing in Robotics Solutions
00:38:27 - Building a Strong Team in Venture
00:40:21 - Robotics Revolutionizing Our World
00:42:21 - The Rise of Collaborative Robots in the Robot Cluster
00:44:04 - The Rise of Robotics in Odense

Today we have Patrick Murphy with us. Patrick is the co-founder and managing partner at Tapestry VC, a 50m$ seed stage venture fund backing technical and repeat founders across Europe & US. Tapestry VC has its team spread out across the UK and USA.

Tapestry VC are investing out of Fund II with a total 100m$ AUM and an established portfolio of over 40 companies and notable investments including Hopin, Pitch, Builder.ai, Nothing and Manna.

Chapters:
00:00:00 - Introduction of Patrick Murphy and Tapestry VC
00:02:40 - From Goldman Sachs to Venture Capital
00:04:51 - Reversing Investment and Taking Risks
00:07:15 - The Challenges of Merging with a Corporate VC
00:09:03 - The Importance of Stewardship in Early Stage Venture Capital
00:11:21 - Consumer Innovation and Next Generation Users
00:13:50 - The Rise of Gen AI in Revenue Growth
00:16:04 - Scaling Software and Hiring Globally
00:18:09 - The Benefits of Repeat Founders
00:19:53 - Unboxing the new headsets and their features
00:21:10 - Investing in Repeat Founders
00:23:04 - Building a Strong Network and Fostering Global Relationships
00:25:18 - The Reality of Repeat Founders and Dilution
00:27:18 - The Advantage of Experienced Founders
00:29:25 - Building with Serial Founders and High Velocity Talent
00:31:35 - The Value of Co-Investors and Check Sizes
00:33:32 - Adding Value through Syndicates
00:35:54 - Successful Co-investing and Building Trust
00:38:10 - Life is About Picking People
00:40:24 - The Importance of Distribution and Telling Your Story
00:42:36 - Cultural Differences in Pitching
00:44:54 - Pitching Skills in US vs European Investors
00:47:11 - Prioritizing Amazing and Ambitious People
00:49:38 - The Importance of Luck in Success

Today we have Patrick Murphy with us. Patrick is the co-founder and managing partner at Tapestry VC, a 50m$ seed stage venture fund backing technical and repeat founders across Europe & US. Tapestry VC has its team spread out across the UK and USA.

Tapestry VC are investing out of Fund II with a total 100m$ AUM and an established portfolio of over 40 companies and notable investments including Hopin, Pitch, Builder.ai, Nothing and Manna.

Chapters:
00:00:00 - Introduction of Patrick Murphy and Tapestry VC
00:02:40 - From Goldman Sachs to Venture Capital
00:04:51 - Reversing Investment and Taking Risks
00:07:15 - The Challenges of Merging with a Corporate VC
00:09:03 - The Importance of Stewardship in Early Stage Venture Capital
00:11:21 - Consumer Innovation and Next Generation Users
00:13:50 - The Rise of Gen AI in Revenue Growth
00:16:04 - Scaling Software and Hiring Globally
00:18:09 - The Benefits of Repeat Founders
00:19:53 - Unboxing the new headsets and their features
00:21:10 - Investing in Repeat Founders
00:23:04 - Building a Strong Network and Fostering Global Relationships
00:25:18 - The Reality of Repeat Founders and Dilution
00:27:18 - The Advantage of Experienced Founders
00:29:25 - Building with Serial Founders and High Velocity Talent
00:31:35 - The Value of Co-Investors and Check Sizes
00:33:32 - Adding Value through Syndicates
00:35:54 - Successful Co-investing and Building Trust
00:38:10 - Life is About Picking People
00:40:24 - The Importance of Distribution and Telling Your Story
00:42:36 - Cultural Differences in Pitching
00:44:54 - Pitching Skills in US vs European Investors
00:47:11 - Prioritizing Amazing and Ambitious People
00:49:38 - The Importance of Luck in Success

Today we present Freddie, analyst at Isomer, the venture fund of funds backing Europe's VC champions early and doubling down on their breakout companies, and Linda, associate at Karma Ventures, which is a deep tech VC in Estonia, focusing on Series A companies in the Baltics.
We want to welcome you to the NEUVC podcast series, a limited edition series dedicated to those entering and on their journey in VC, sharing the insights, stories, and learnings from different voices in the industry. There are many ways into VC and a number of skills that can make you successful in this industry. Upon closer inspection, many investors possess superpowers that are super useful for finding new deals, helping portfolio companies grow and succeed, as well as getting the deal signed and sealed.
The series is dedicated to exploring those unique superpowers in some of the trailblazing venture ladder climbers in Europe, drawing out learnings about how to develop them, use them and leverage them. So to this effect, we spoke to a wide range of voices, managing partners, recruiters, principals, and even marketing specialists, to provide a diverse range of opinions on how to help you improve at your job. Hope you'll enjoy!

Today we present Freddie, analyst at Isomer, the venture fund of funds backing Europe's VC champions early and doubling down on their breakout companies, and Linda, associate at Karma Ventures, which is a deep tech VC in Estonia, focusing on Series A companies in the Baltics.
We want to welcome you to the NEUVC podcast series, a limited edition series dedicated to those entering and on their journey in VC, sharing the insights, stories, and learnings from different voices in the industry. There are many ways into VC and a number of skills that can make you successful in this industry. Upon closer inspection, many investors possess superpowers that are super useful for finding new deals, helping portfolio companies grow and succeed, as well as getting the deal signed and sealed.
The series is dedicated to exploring those unique superpowers in some of the trailblazing venture ladder climbers in Europe, drawing out learnings about how to develop them, use them and leverage them. So to this effect, we spoke to a wide range of voices, managing partners, recruiters, principals, and even marketing specialists, to provide a diverse range of opinions on how to help you improve at your job. Hope you'll enjoy!

Joining us today for a deep dive on the state of diversity in European venture, we have Kinga Stanislawska from European Women in Venture and Juliet Rogan from HSBC Innovation Banking.

Juliet works in the investor coverage team at HSBC Innovation Banking – Providing support and access to the HSBC platform to investors and their portfolio companies.
Prior to joining HSBC, Juliet spend 10 years at Barclays where she co-founded the female founders forum.

Kinga is a co-Founder of the leading CEE (Poland based) VC fund - Experior VC with investments in data driven CEE startups with global ambitions. She is also an Investment Committee Member at EIC as well as the EIC Fund, the largest deep-tech fund in Europe and board member at fast growing companies. As one of Europe's first VC funds to be befounded by women, Kinga also co-initiated the European Women in VC Community which published an annual report on the state of diversity in European Venture - which we dive into today 👀

Chapters:
00:00:00 - Introduction to The Episode
00:02:07 - Increasing Female Presence in Tech and Venture
00:04:16 - Launching the Report at TechBBQ
00:06:13 - The Foundation Of The Survey
00:08:27 - The Importance of Diversity in Funding
00:12:24 - The Performance of Mixed Teams
00:14:53 - The Importance of Getting More Women into the Industry
00:16:37 - Equity in Investments and Succession Planning
00:18:38 - Affordability of General Partnerships for Women
00:20:40 - The Importance of Diversity in Management Teams
00:22:26 - Progression and Measurement in Impact Investing
00:26:15 - Equality and Support in Venture Capital
00:28:26 - The Rise of Female Emerging Managers in VC
00:32:24 - Reflections on VC Accelerators & VC Lab in Particular
00:34:28 - Broadening Access to Venture Capital for Women
00:38:27 - Investing in Diversity for Long-Term Success
00:40:25 - Personal Choice and Taxpayer Institutions in Europe
00:42:32 - The Speed of Change and Female-led Startups
00:44:36 - Collaboration and Unity

Joining us today for a deep dive on the state of diversity in European venture, we have Kinga Stanislawska from European Women in Venture and Juliet Rogan from HSBC Innovation Banking.

Juliet works in the investor coverage team at HSBC Innovation Banking – Providing support and access to the HSBC platform to investors and their portfolio companies.
Prior to joining HSBC, Juliet spend 10 years at Barclays where she co-founded the female founders forum.

Kinga is a co-Founder of the leading CEE (Poland based) VC fund - Experior VC with investments in data driven CEE startups with global ambitions. She is also an Investment Committee Member at EIC as well as the EIC Fund, the largest deep-tech fund in Europe and board member at fast growing companies. As one of Europe's first VC funds to be befounded by women, Kinga also co-initiated the European Women in VC Community which published an annual report on the state of diversity in European Venture - which we dive into today 👀

Chapters:
00:00:00 - Introduction to The Episode
00:02:07 - Increasing Female Presence in Tech and Venture
00:04:16 - Launching the Report at TechBBQ
00:06:13 - The Foundation Of The Survey
00:08:27 - The Importance of Diversity in Funding
00:12:24 - The Performance of Mixed Teams
00:14:53 - The Importance of Getting More Women into the Industry
00:16:37 - Equity in Investments and Succession Planning
00:18:38 - Affordability of General Partnerships for Women
00:20:40 - The Importance of Diversity in Management Teams
00:22:26 - Progression and Measurement in Impact Investing
00:26:15 - Equality and Support in Venture Capital
00:28:26 - The Rise of Female Emerging Managers in VC
00:32:24 - Reflections on VC Accelerators & VC Lab in Particular
00:34:28 - Broadening Access to Venture Capital for Women
00:38:27 - Investing in Diversity for Long-Term Success
00:40:25 - Personal Choice and Taxpayer Institutions in Europe
00:42:32 - The Speed of Change and Female-led Startups
00:44:36 - Collaboration and Unity

Today’s a special day here at eu.vc as we’re announcing our investment into Nucleus Capital 🥳 and of course, we do that by sharing with you a deep dive episode with Max and Isabella, the two General Partners of Nucleus.

For those who've been with us for a while, the name 'Nucleus Capital' might ring a bell🔔. And for good reason, as we’ve been tracking the firm's journey right from the launch of Nucleus I. To big hardship, we missed the opportunity to invest in Nucleus I, so of course, we’re now buzzing with excitement as we’re binding the final knots for our Nucleus II Syndicate.

Based in Berlin, Nucleus Capital is a frontrunner in the Pre-Seed and Seed venture space, dedicated to supporting purpose-driven founders who are solving systemic challenges to planetary health.

Dive in with us 👀 and read the whole article covering Nucleus on eu.vc

Chapters:
00:00:00 - The European VC Podcast Introduction
00:04:10 - Pooling expertise and building a community
00:08:11 - The Journey of Building Nucleus
00:11:30 - Making the Decision to Work Together
00:12:56 - Isabella Realizing The Worst Decision She Could've Made
00:14:38 - Lessons Learned from Fundraising
00:16:18 - Inflection points and supporting founders
00:17:43 - Tech Bio: Software-driven models leveraging biological data sets
00:19:44 - The Importance of Meta-Level and Environmental Factors
00:21:41 - Building Relationships and Effective Decks
00:23:30 - Differentiation and Positioning in the Startup Industry
00:25:16 - Delivering Change and Driving Returns
00:27:14 - Bio-based solutions for industry decarbonization
00:29:17 - Sector Focus for Better Returns
00:30:51 - Including Sustainability and Deep Tech Premiums in Valuations
00:32:53 - Investing in Technologies for Sustainable Production
00:34:23 - Repath, Analyzing Risk Exposure and Climate Change
00:36:15 - Planet A Foods The CO2 Footprint of the Cocoa Industry
00:39:41 - Enabling a Viable Future
00:41:38 - Balancing the Portfolio

EUVC #VC #VentureCapital #Investing #TheEuropeanVC #Podcast #Tech #Startup

Today’s a special day here at eu.vc as we’re announcing our investment into Nucleus Capital 🥳 and of course, we do that by sharing with you a deep dive episode with Max and Isabella, the two General Partners of Nucleus.

For those who've been with us for a while, the name 'Nucleus Capital' might ring a bell🔔. And for good reason, as we’ve been tracking the firm's journey right from the launch of Nucleus I. To big hardship, we missed the opportunity to invest in Nucleus I, so of course, we’re now buzzing with excitement as we’re binding the final knots for our Nucleus II Syndicate.

Based in Berlin, Nucleus Capital is a frontrunner in the Pre-Seed and Seed venture space, dedicated to supporting purpose-driven founders who are solving systemic challenges to planetary health.

Dive in with us 👀 and read the whole article covering Nucleus on eu.vc

Chapters:
00:00:00 - The European VC Podcast Introduction
00:04:10 - Pooling expertise and building a community
00:08:11 - The Journey of Building Nucleus
00:11:30 - Making the Decision to Work Together
00:12:56 - Isabella Realizing The Worst Decision She Could've Made
00:14:38 - Lessons Learned from Fundraising
00:16:18 - Inflection points and supporting founders
00:17:43 - Tech Bio: Software-driven models leveraging biological data sets
00:19:44 - The Importance of Meta-Level and Environmental Factors
00:21:41 - Building Relationships and Effective Decks
00:23:30 - Differentiation and Positioning in the Startup Industry
00:25:16 - Delivering Change and Driving Returns
00:27:14 - Bio-based solutions for industry decarbonization
00:29:17 - Sector Focus for Better Returns
00:30:51 - Including Sustainability and Deep Tech Premiums in Valuations
00:32:53 - Investing in Technologies for Sustainable Production
00:34:23 - Repath, Analyzing Risk Exposure and Climate Change
00:36:15 - Planet A Foods The CO2 Footprint of the Cocoa Industry
00:39:41 - Enabling a Viable Future
00:41:38 - Balancing the Portfolio

EUVC #VC #VentureCapital #Investing #TheEuropeanVC #Podcast #Tech #Startup

Today we have Andrew Noble with us. Andrew is a partner at Par Equity, an early-stage venture fund backing health tech, climate tech and industrial tech companies. Par Equity invests in the north of the UK, applies a hybrid investment model (angel approach meets VC), and focuses on B2B IP rich companies to create outstanding results.
Par Equity has a total of £213m AUM and an established portfolio of 77 companies, 48 in the current portfolio and 29 exits, and notable investments including Integrated Graphene, AEM, Fuuse, Current Health, Delta DNA and ICS Learn.

Chapters
02:12 - From Professional Skiing to VC
05:40 - From Intern to VC - Andrew’s journey at Par Equity
07:27 - The Grit of Being a Sports Athlete in Business
09:10 - Launching a Self-Funded Search Fund
15:37 - The Role of VCs in the Startup Journey
17:43 - The Evolution of ParEquity and the Benefits of a Melting Pot Approach
19:16 - Deep dive on the North of the UK Tech Ecosystem
21:07 - Dislocation in the Funding Landscape
22:57 - Concentration of VC $$ in Capital Cities & Investing outside of them
28:45 - Success Story: Delta DNA
32:13 - Andrew’s Three Biggest Learnings from the Last 10 Years
34:01 - The Importance of Local Players and Existing Relationships in VC
36:00 - Investing in People in Your Region
37:44 - Key Advice for Emerging Managers
39:06 - Considerations for LP Makeup
40:42 - A VC firm's success indicators

Today we have Andrew Noble with us. Andrew is a partner at Par Equity, an early-stage venture fund backing health tech, climate tech and industrial tech companies. Par Equity invests in the north of the UK, applies a hybrid investment model (angel approach meets VC), and focuses on B2B IP rich companies to create outstanding results.
Par Equity has a total of £213m AUM and an established portfolio of 77 companies, 48 in the current portfolio and 29 exits, and notable investments including Integrated Graphene, AEM, Fuuse, Current Health, Delta DNA and ICS Learn.

Chapters
02:12 - From Professional Skiing to VC
05:40 - From Intern to VC - Andrew’s journey at Par Equity
07:27 - The Grit of Being a Sports Athlete in Business
09:10 - Launching a Self-Funded Search Fund
15:37 - The Role of VCs in the Startup Journey
17:43 - The Evolution of ParEquity and the Benefits of a Melting Pot Approach
19:16 - Deep dive on the North of the UK Tech Ecosystem
21:07 - Dislocation in the Funding Landscape
22:57 - Concentration of VC $$ in Capital Cities & Investing outside of them
28:45 - Success Story: Delta DNA
32:13 - Andrew’s Three Biggest Learnings from the Last 10 Years
34:01 - The Importance of Local Players and Existing Relationships in VC
36:00 - Investing in People in Your Region
37:44 - Key Advice for Emerging Managers
39:06 - Considerations for LP Makeup
40:42 - A VC firm's success indicators

Today we are happy to welcome Robin Godenrath managing director and founding partner of Picus Capital.

Picus Capital is managing an investment portfolio of more than 1bn EUR and was the first investor in European unicorns such as Personio and Enpal.

Today we are happy to welcome Robin Godenrath managing director and founding partner of Picus Capital.

Picus Capital is managing an investment portfolio of more than 1bn EUR and was the first investor in European unicorns such as Personio and Enpal.

Today we have Sarah Drinkwater with us. Sarah is the General Partner at Common Magic, a pre-seed/seed solo GP fund investing in and supporting founders building products with community at their core across Europe and the US.

Today we have Sarah Drinkwater with us. Sarah is the General Partner at Common Magic, a pre-seed/seed solo GP fund investing in and supporting founders building products with community at their core across Europe and the US.

Today we are happy to welcome Ambre Soubiran. A mathematician by training, she has spent the first decade of her career working in the equity derivatives and capital markets industry. Amber has a passion for world-changing technologies and is personally interested and invested in the digital assets space since 2012. Amber is currently the CEO of Kaiko, the reference market data provider in the blockchain industry. Kaiko is a global organisation with offices in NYC, London, Paris, and Singapore, servicing top-tier financial institutions and enterprises with reliable and actionable financial data.

Today we are happy to welcome Ambre Soubiran. A mathematician by training, she has spent the first decade of her career working in the equity derivatives and capital markets industry. Amber has a passion for world-changing technologies and is personally interested and invested in the digital assets space since 2012. Amber is currently the CEO of Kaiko, the reference market data provider in the blockchain industry. Kaiko is a global organisation with offices in NYC, London, Paris, and Singapore, servicing top-tier financial institutions and enterprises with reliable and actionable financial data.

Today we have Johannes Weber with us. Johannes is a serial entrepreneur and a pioneer in the field of impact venture capital in Europe. With his team in Munich, Berlin and London, he manages over €200M and invests in technology-based companies in areas such as climate, health and education (the so-called impact unicorns). Johannes has been interested in the interface between entrepreneurship and "personal mastery" for many years and is enthusiastic about bringing and passing on his knowledge to the companies he finances.

Ananda Impact Ventures are investing out of Fund IV with a total 200€ AUM and an established portfolio of 35 companies and notable investments including E-DNA Company Nature Metrics, New Space Company OroraTech and Education Company One Day. At Ananda Impact Ventures, Johannes Weber focuses on TechBio, Education and Climate in Europe and led the investments into Closed Loop Medicine, One Day and Auticon.

Today we have Johannes Weber with us. Johannes is a serial entrepreneur and a pioneer in the field of impact venture capital in Europe. With his team in Munich, Berlin and London, he manages over €200M and invests in technology-based companies in areas such as climate, health and education (the so-called impact unicorns). Johannes has been interested in the interface between entrepreneurship and "personal mastery" for many years and is enthusiastic about bringing and passing on his knowledge to the companies he finances.

Ananda Impact Ventures are investing out of Fund IV with a total 200€ AUM and an established portfolio of 35 companies and notable investments including E-DNA Company Nature Metrics, New Space Company OroraTech and Education Company One Day. At Ananda Impact Ventures, Johannes Weber focuses on TechBio, Education and Climate in Europe and led the investments into Closed Loop Medicine, One Day and Auticon.

Today, we have with us Saeed, Vice President of the Dubai Chamber of Digital Economy, where he works towards transforming the city of Dubai into an international technology hub. Saeed was previously the Director of Dubai Future Academy, an initiative under Dubai Future Foundation. He has also led projects for the foundation such as the Global Coders Initiative, the 1 Million Arab Coders-project as well as the foundation’s upskilling program. Additionally, he has considerable experience at the Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Center as Mission Strategist for the Emirates Mars Mission and Program Director for the UAE's 100-year space exploration strategy, the Mars 2117 Programme.

Jump to the parts that matter most to you 👀
00:00:00 - Introduction to Saeed and the Dubai Chamber of Digital Economy
00:02:10 - From the Space Program to Ecosystem Building & Venture
00:06:08 - The Mars 2117 Program
00:10:50 - The Trade & Commerce History of Dubai
00:13:02 - Dubai's Resilience and Business-Focused Mindset
00:14:51 - Dubai as a Testbed for Innovation
00:16:38 - The Evolution of the Funding Landscape
00:18:32 - The Love for Experimentation in the Government of Dubai
00:20:10 - Experimenting with Global Market Solutions in Dubai
00:23:36 - Dubai as an Location for Engineering Talent
00:25:22 - Dubai as a Gateway for Business Opportunities
00:27:04 - Support for Investors in Dubai
00:28:41 - Investing in Tech and Transforming Nations
00:30:32 - Investment Opportunities for Family Businesses in Dubai
00:32:11 - Family Business Investments and Market Access in Dubai
00:33:45 - Connecting Businesses with Dubai
00:35:37 - Expand Northstar and Market Access Opportunities
00:37:24 - Launchpad Dubai and the Benefits for Companies
00:39:09 - Creating the Perfect Ecosystem for Growth

Today, we have with us Saeed, Vice President of the Dubai Chamber of Digital Economy, where he works towards transforming the city of Dubai into an international technology hub. Saeed was previously the Director of Dubai Future Academy, an initiative under Dubai Future Foundation. He has also led projects for the foundation such as the Global Coders Initiative, the 1 Million Arab Coders-project as well as the foundation’s upskilling program. Additionally, he has considerable experience at the Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Center as Mission Strategist for the Emirates Mars Mission and Program Director for the UAE's 100-year space exploration strategy, the Mars 2117 Programme.

Jump to the parts that matter most to you 👀
00:00:00 - Introduction to Saeed and the Dubai Chamber of Digital Economy
00:02:10 - From the Space Program to Ecosystem Building & Venture
00:06:08 - The Mars 2117 Program
00:10:50 - The Trade & Commerce History of Dubai
00:13:02 - Dubai's Resilience and Business-Focused Mindset
00:14:51 - Dubai as a Testbed for Innovation
00:16:38 - The Evolution of the Funding Landscape
00:18:32 - The Love for Experimentation in the Government of Dubai
00:20:10 - Experimenting with Global Market Solutions in Dubai
00:23:36 - Dubai as an Location for Engineering Talent
00:25:22 - Dubai as a Gateway for Business Opportunities
00:27:04 - Support for Investors in Dubai
00:28:41 - Investing in Tech and Transforming Nations
00:30:32 - Investment Opportunities for Family Businesses in Dubai
00:32:11 - Family Business Investments and Market Access in Dubai
00:33:45 - Connecting Businesses with Dubai
00:35:37 - Expand Northstar and Market Access Opportunities
00:37:24 - Launchpad Dubai and the Benefits for Companies
00:39:09 - Creating the Perfect Ecosystem for Growth

Noor Sweid is the General Partner of Global Ventures, a UAE-based international venture capital firm with presence in Cairo, Jeddah, Riyadh, Tunis and Lagos. Noor was the Chief Investment Officer at The Dubai Future Foundation and Managing Partner at Leap Ventures.

Prior, Noor joined her family business, Depa, where she scaled the business tenfold, executed four cross border acquisitions and led the region’s first IPO on the LSE and the NASDAQ Dubai, achieving a billion+ dollar valuation.

Noor has also been recognized in Forbes’ World’s Top 50 Women in Tech, and the Arabian Business 100 Most Powerful Arab Women list. And to top it off, she has also received the prestigous Arab Woman Award for Finance.

Noor Sweid is the General Partner of Global Ventures, a UAE-based international venture capital firm with presence in Cairo, Jeddah, Riyadh, Tunis and Lagos. Noor was the Chief Investment Officer at The Dubai Future Foundation and Managing Partner at Leap Ventures.

Prior, Noor joined her family business, Depa, where she scaled the business tenfold, executed four cross border acquisitions and led the region’s first IPO on the LSE and the NASDAQ Dubai, achieving a billion+ dollar valuation.

Noor has also been recognized in Forbes’ World’s Top 50 Women in Tech, and the Arabian Business 100 Most Powerful Arab Women list. And to top it off, she has also received the prestigous Arab Woman Award for Finance.

Today we are happy to welcome Philipp von dem Knesebeck, Co-Founder of Blue Future Partners, a European Venture Capital Fund of Funds with a global mandate to back Emerging Managers and start-ups across the USA, Europe, Israel and Asia-Pacific.

Prior to co-founding Blue Future Partners in 2015, Philipp spent five years running the Venture Capital activities of a European Family Office from 2011 to 2015. There he started building substantial expertise in both fund and direct investments in early and growth–stage companies. His investment focus was predominantly in the software and internet space with geographic exposure ranging from the US to Europe and Asia-Pacific.

Today we are happy to welcome Philipp von dem Knesebeck, Co-Founder of Blue Future Partners, a European Venture Capital Fund of Funds with a global mandate to back Emerging Managers and start-ups across the USA, Europe, Israel and Asia-Pacific.

Prior to co-founding Blue Future Partners in 2015, Philipp spent five years running the Venture Capital activities of a European Family Office from 2011 to 2015. There he started building substantial expertise in both fund and direct investments in early and growth–stage companies. His investment focus was predominantly in the software and internet space with geographic exposure ranging from the US to Europe and Asia-Pacific.

Today we have Sam Endacott with us. Sam is a Partner at firstminute, a $400m seed-stage venture fund based in London & Berlin to back founders across Europe (and opportunistically in the US and Rest of World). The fund has invested across all sectors and is a generalist VC but has typically focused on SaaS, DeepTech, Developer Tools and FinTech. firstminute is backed by over 130 unicorn founders in addition to current and former CEOs of Global Corporates.

firstminute are investing out of Fund III with a total $100m AUM and an established portfolio of over 130 companies. Notable investments include A.Team, Storyblok, Robocorp, Engflow, Wayve, Klang, Clockwork Labs, Ramp, Element and Generation Home. The portfolio has raised follow-on financing rounds from Sequoia, Andreessen Horowitz, Atomico, Index, Benchmark, Coatue, Softbank, Tiger, General Catalyst, Northzone, Mubadala Capital, NFX, Balderton, D1, Felicis, Bain Capital and Tencent. At firstminute, Sam focuses on SaaS, Developer Tools, AI / ML and FinTech and has led investments into a number of the fund’s high performing companies such as Storyblok (raised $58m) and a number of recent deals in the AI / ML space which are not yet announced!

Today we have Sam Endacott with us. Sam is a Partner at firstminute, a $400m seed-stage venture fund based in London & Berlin to back founders across Europe (and opportunistically in the US and Rest of World). The fund has invested across all sectors and is a generalist VC but has typically focused on SaaS, DeepTech, Developer Tools and FinTech. firstminute is backed by over 130 unicorn founders in addition to current and former CEOs of Global Corporates.

firstminute are investing out of Fund III with a total $100m AUM and an established portfolio of over 130 companies. Notable investments include A.Team, Storyblok, Robocorp, Engflow, Wayve, Klang, Clockwork Labs, Ramp, Element and Generation Home. The portfolio has raised follow-on financing rounds from Sequoia, Andreessen Horowitz, Atomico, Index, Benchmark, Coatue, Softbank, Tiger, General Catalyst, Northzone, Mubadala Capital, NFX, Balderton, D1, Felicis, Bain Capital and Tencent. At firstminute, Sam focuses on SaaS, Developer Tools, AI / ML and FinTech and has led investments into a number of the fund’s high performing companies such as Storyblok (raised $58m) and a number of recent deals in the AI / ML space which are not yet announced!

This episode is a first of its kind, ‘cos we sat down one of the managers we’ve decided to back here at eu.vc for a pitch session with one of our good friends in the LP ecosystem. So in this episode, you’ll hear two voices from each side of the table: that of Marc Penkala founding GP of Altitude, a 70 M€ early stage fund to close the European SME gap, and Michael Sidgmore, Partner and co-founder of Broadhaven Ventures, a US-based global early-stage financial technology investor that invests principal capital into fintech companies, VC funds, and incubates asset management businesses. Broadhaven’s portfolio counts 20 VC funds and 100 early stage companies with notable investments including Carta, Nowports, Republic and Kovi. Michael is also the founder of alternative investments focused podcast Alt Goes Mainstream. Michael is an owner of Angel City FC, the women's soccer team in LA. So with no further ado, let’s get pitching.

This episode is a first of its kind, ‘cos we sat down one of the managers we’ve decided to back here at eu.vc for a pitch session with one of our good friends in the LP ecosystem. So in this episode, you’ll hear two voices from each side of the table: that of Marc Penkala founding GP of Altitude, a 70 M€ early stage fund to close the European SME gap, and Michael Sidgmore, Partner and co-founder of Broadhaven Ventures, a US-based global early-stage financial technology investor that invests principal capital into fintech companies, VC funds, and incubates asset management businesses. Broadhaven’s portfolio counts 20 VC funds and 100 early stage companies with notable investments including Carta, Nowports, Republic and Kovi. Michael is also the founder of alternative investments focused podcast Alt Goes Mainstream. Michael is an owner of Angel City FC, the women's soccer team in LA. So with no further ado, let’s get pitching.

Today, we're happy to feature Francesco Simoneschi, Co-Founder and CEO at TrueLayer and angel with 60+ investments.

In this episode, Francesco dives deep into his experience going from VC to angel investing, the nuances of angel investing, shedding light on some counterintuitive lessons he's learned along the way. He delves into the importance of trusting your instincts when assessing early-stage startups and why sometimes, early traction can be a red flag.

Francesco also shares his strategies for making international investments and the value of building a network of trusted insiders in unfamiliar territories. Plus, he reflects on the soft skills and leadership qualities that he wishes he had focused on earlier in his career.

Jump to the parts that matter most to you and watch our core highlights below 👀
00:02:52 - On Starting TrueLayer in Italy
00:05:54 - Francesco’s 60+ angel portfolio & striking a balance as an operator
00:07:30 - The complementarity of angel investing and being an operator
00:08:44 - Angel Investing in the FinTech Ecosystem
00:09:12 - Balancing Excitement and Discipline in Investing
00:11:00 - Reflections on Investing in a Marihuana delivery startup
00:14:16 - Investing in The Development of Wetware Computers
00:15:45 - On The Drive of Entrepreneurs
00:17:12 - Accessing European Capital for Early Stage Opportunities
00:18:34 - Investing in Various Industries
00:20:01 - Diversifying Portfolio as a Tech Entrepreneur
00:22:54 - Balancing Risk and Fun in Angel Investing
00:24:10 - Assessing Founders and Key Ingredients
00:22:44 - The Importance of Financial Savvy and Diversified Portfolios
00:24:26 - Mitigating Financing Risk
00:26:16 - Investing Based on Value and Learning
00:28:16 - Investing in Early Stages and Venture Funds
00:30:08 - The Importance of Diversification
00:32:03 - Trusting Your Instincts in Angel Investing
00:34:00 - Capturing Signals in Investment Strategy
00:35:48 - The Reality of Bridge Rounds
00:37:39 - The Importance of Discipline in Angel Investing
00:39:17 - Playing the Long Game
00:41:11 - Importance of Soft Skills and Leadership in Education

Today, we're happy to feature Francesco Simoneschi, Co-Founder and CEO at TrueLayer and angel with 60+ investments.

In this episode, Francesco dives deep into his experience going from VC to angel investing, the nuances of angel investing, shedding light on some counterintuitive lessons he's learned along the way. He delves into the importance of trusting your instincts when assessing early-stage startups and why sometimes, early traction can be a red flag.

Francesco also shares his strategies for making international investments and the value of building a network of trusted insiders in unfamiliar territories. Plus, he reflects on the soft skills and leadership qualities that he wishes he had focused on earlier in his career.

Jump to the parts that matter most to you and watch our core highlights below 👀
00:02:52 - On Starting TrueLayer in Italy
00:05:54 - Francesco’s 60+ angel portfolio & striking a balance as an operator
00:07:30 - The complementarity of angel investing and being an operator
00:08:44 - Angel Investing in the FinTech Ecosystem
00:09:12 - Balancing Excitement and Discipline in Investing
00:11:00 - Reflections on Investing in a Marihuana delivery startup
00:14:16 - Investing in The Development of Wetware Computers
00:15:45 - On The Drive of Entrepreneurs
00:17:12 - Accessing European Capital for Early Stage Opportunities
00:18:34 - Investing in Various Industries
00:20:01 - Diversifying Portfolio as a Tech Entrepreneur
00:22:54 - Balancing Risk and Fun in Angel Investing
00:24:10 - Assessing Founders and Key Ingredients
00:22:44 - The Importance of Financial Savvy and Diversified Portfolios
00:24:26 - Mitigating Financing Risk
00:26:16 - Investing Based on Value and Learning
00:28:16 - Investing in Early Stages and Venture Funds
00:30:08 - The Importance of Diversification
00:32:03 - Trusting Your Instincts in Angel Investing
00:34:00 - Capturing Signals in Investment Strategy
00:35:48 - The Reality of Bridge Rounds
00:37:39 - The Importance of Discipline in Angel Investing
00:39:17 - Playing the Long Game
00:41:11 - Importance of Soft Skills and Leadership in Education

Our next guest is Gloria Bauerlein, founder and general partner at Puzzle Ventures. Puzzle Ventures is a new pan European 21.5 million euro fund investing in super early stage B2B companies, and it's one of the solo female GP led funds. Before Puzzle, Gloria was a prolific angel investor, but that's not why we're speaking with her today. Uniquely, she has actually sat on all sides of the cap table. As an investment banker, VC investor at TCV and Index, startup operator at Kry and Back, and angel investor, and built Puzzle to continue backing Europe's top founders with larger checks but with the flexibility of an angel.
Gloria's LPs include founders and operators that you'll have heard from, from the likes of Kry, Stripe, Coinbase, and WhatsApp, and more who've tread in the founders footsteps. They offer assistance beyond capital to Puzzle Ventures portfolio and can share valuable insights and connections with founders to help them grow.
In this episode, we'll hear more about Gloria's journey into VC, her thoughts on ownership versus allocation, tips for micro funds on sorting out the unsexy side of fund management before getting carried away with deploying capital, and how to have a culture of giving first when nurturing relationships and being collaborative in VC.

Our next guest is Gloria Bauerlein, founder and general partner at Puzzle Ventures. Puzzle Ventures is a new pan European 21.5 million euro fund investing in super early stage B2B companies, and it's one of the solo female GP led funds. Before Puzzle, Gloria was a prolific angel investor, but that's not why we're speaking with her today. Uniquely, she has actually sat on all sides of the cap table. As an investment banker, VC investor at TCV and Index, startup operator at Kry and Back, and angel investor, and built Puzzle to continue backing Europe's top founders with larger checks but with the flexibility of an angel.
Gloria's LPs include founders and operators that you'll have heard from, from the likes of Kry, Stripe, Coinbase, and WhatsApp, and more who've tread in the founders footsteps. They offer assistance beyond capital to Puzzle Ventures portfolio and can share valuable insights and connections with founders to help them grow.
In this episode, we'll hear more about Gloria's journey into VC, her thoughts on ownership versus allocation, tips for micro funds on sorting out the unsexy side of fund management before getting carried away with deploying capital, and how to have a culture of giving first when nurturing relationships and being collaborative in VC.

Today we bring you a roundtable on the impact of artificial intelligence on the wonderful world of venture capital. In this episode, we bring together a stellar panel of Europe's top investors to explore the real secrets of how AI is transforming the VC landscape.
* Fred Destin, Founding GP of Stride * Claude Ritter, Founding GP of Cavalry * Ekaterina Almasque, GP of Open Ocean * Dr. Andre Retterath, Partner of Earlybird Venture Capital

In this episode, we focus on how AI is changing the way VCs invest. We chose to delve into the "how" rather than the "what" of AI in VC. We're here to uncover the real secret sauce that's driving change in the VC world. We won't waste your time with generic information you can find on the internet. Instead, we've gathered Europe's best investors to share their insights.Our agenda for today includes:
1. Where our panelists see the biggest venture opportunities in AI. 2. The debate on whether AI favors incumbents or startups. 3. Strategies to avoid getting caught up in hype cycles. 4. A philosophical discussion on AI's societal impact and how VCs should navigate it.

Enjoy!

Today we bring you a roundtable on the impact of artificial intelligence on the wonderful world of venture capital. In this episode, we bring together a stellar panel of Europe's top investors to explore the real secrets of how AI is transforming the VC landscape.
* Fred Destin, Founding GP of Stride * Claude Ritter, Founding GP of Cavalry * Ekaterina Almasque, GP of Open Ocean * Dr. Andre Retterath, Partner of Earlybird Venture Capital

In this episode, we focus on how AI is changing the way VCs invest. We chose to delve into the "how" rather than the "what" of AI in VC. We're here to uncover the real secret sauce that's driving change in the VC world. We won't waste your time with generic information you can find on the internet. Instead, we've gathered Europe's best investors to share their insights.Our agenda for today includes:
1. Where our panelists see the biggest venture opportunities in AI. 2. The debate on whether AI favors incumbents or startups. 3. Strategies to avoid getting caught up in hype cycles. 4. A philosophical discussion on AI's societal impact and how VCs should navigate it.

Enjoy!

Today we have Juliette Audet with us. Juliette is a Partner at Forbion a multi-stage venture fund in Amsterdam and Munich backing biotech companies in Europe and North America to impact the future of medicine.

Forbion is investing out of 2 separate funds: Forbion Ventures Fund VI and Forbion Growth Opportunities Fund II, of €750M and €600M respectively, with a total of 3b EUR AUM and an established portfolio of 44 companies, with notable investment including NewAmsterdam Pharma, Gyroscope and Inflazome.

At Forbion, Juliette focuses on the Venture strategy, investing in biotech companies from pre-clinical stage to Phase 1b and led the investments in NewAmsterdam Pharma, Mestag and Dualyx amongst others.

Jump to the parts that matter most to you 👀
00:02:10 - Transitioning from Consulting to Pharma and Biotech
00:03:44 - Discipline and Resilience in Career
00:05:18 - Recognizing the Moment to Fold
00:07:17 - The Importance of Science and Interaction in Investments
00:08:50 - The Importance of Board Dynamics
00:10:25 - Board Composition and Power Dynamics
00:12:07 - Creating Consensus on the Board
00:13:37 - The Importance of Governance in Building an Effective Board
00:14:53 - Governance and relationship building with board members
00:16:35 - The Benefits of Virtual Board Meetings
00:18:21 - The Importance of Providing Value
00:20:30 - The Value of External Perspective in VC
00:22:21 - The Unique Nature of Biotech Companies
00:23:57 - Pharma's Need for External Acquisitions
00:25:47 - The Inflection Point in BioTech
00:27:16 - Slump in M&A Activity in Pharma-Biotech & the dawning opportunity
00:28:34 - The Development Process from Preclinical to Phase 3
00:29:58 - The Dynamic between CVCs and Institutional VCs in BioTech
00:33:14 - The Predictability of Biotech VC vs Traditional Venture
00:34:54 - Shoutout to Julie Grant from Canaan
00:36:33 - Balance and Fulfillment in VC
00:38:21 - Getting to know your LPs

Today we have Juliette Audet with us. Juliette is a Partner at Forbion a multi-stage venture fund in Amsterdam and Munich backing biotech companies in Europe and North America to impact the future of medicine.

Forbion is investing out of 2 separate funds: Forbion Ventures Fund VI and Forbion Growth Opportunities Fund II, of €750M and €600M respectively, with a total of 3b EUR AUM and an established portfolio of 44 companies, with notable investment including NewAmsterdam Pharma, Gyroscope and Inflazome.

At Forbion, Juliette focuses on the Venture strategy, investing in biotech companies from pre-clinical stage to Phase 1b and led the investments in NewAmsterdam Pharma, Mestag and Dualyx amongst others.

Jump to the parts that matter most to you 👀
00:02:10 - Transitioning from Consulting to Pharma and Biotech
00:03:44 - Discipline and Resilience in Career
00:05:18 - Recognizing the Moment to Fold
00:07:17 - The Importance of Science and Interaction in Investments
00:08:50 - The Importance of Board Dynamics
00:10:25 - Board Composition and Power Dynamics
00:12:07 - Creating Consensus on the Board
00:13:37 - The Importance of Governance in Building an Effective Board
00:14:53 - Governance and relationship building with board members
00:16:35 - The Benefits of Virtual Board Meetings
00:18:21 - The Importance of Providing Value
00:20:30 - The Value of External Perspective in VC
00:22:21 - The Unique Nature of Biotech Companies
00:23:57 - Pharma's Need for External Acquisitions
00:25:47 - The Inflection Point in BioTech
00:27:16 - Slump in M&A Activity in Pharma-Biotech & the dawning opportunity
00:28:34 - The Development Process from Preclinical to Phase 3
00:29:58 - The Dynamic between CVCs and Institutional VCs in BioTech
00:33:14 - The Predictability of Biotech VC vs Traditional Venture
00:34:54 - Shoutout to Julie Grant from Canaan
00:36:33 - Balance and Fulfillment in VC
00:38:21 - Getting to know your LPs

Today, we're happy to welcome you to Renaud Visage, co-founder and ex-CTO of Eventbrite, one of Europe’s biggest tech successes and the event platform we’ve all used. Eventbrite IPO'd in 2018 and Renaud left the company in 2021 and is now investing full time out of Paris where he focuses on investing in climate tech startups and on building a ClimateTech Growth Fund where Renaud’s experience from scaling Eventbrite is one-of-a-kind.

With more than 75 angel investments to date, Renaud brings a level of operational experience and the skill to help founders solve complex technical problems like none other. On top of this, Renaud is a Venture Partner with the renowned seed firm Point Nine.

Jump to the parts that matter most to you and watch our core highlights below 👀
00:02:26 - Challenges of Building Eventbrite
00:04:20 - Renaud's Angel Investing Journey Begins
00:05:25 - Renaud's Accidental First Deal
00:06:52 - Lessons from Angel Investing
00:09:10 - Renaud’s Investment Thesis and Strategy
00:11:28 - Renaud's Value-add for Founders
00:12:48 - Evolution in Finding and Evaluating Investment Opportunities
00:14:00 - Doubling down on Impact Investing
00:16:45 - Going from early to growth stage investing
00:19:40 - Generalists vs specialists in Climate investing & investing in hardware
00:21:56 - Networks and co-investing in the climate space
00:24:55 - The lack of European growth stage financing in climate
00:25:30 - Renaud’s core learnings from Angel investing
00:27:00 - The importance of your value prop and network as an angel
00:29:10 - Follow-on investing as a venture investor
00:36:05 - Renaud’s most counterintuitive learning
00:37:30 - Top tips to angels wanting to invest internationally
00:39:30 - Advice to his own 10 year younger self

Today, we're happy to welcome you to Renaud Visage, co-founder and ex-CTO of Eventbrite, one of Europe’s biggest tech successes and the event platform we’ve all used. Eventbrite IPO'd in 2018 and Renaud left the company in 2021 and is now investing full time out of Paris where he focuses on investing in climate tech startups and on building a ClimateTech Growth Fund where Renaud’s experience from scaling Eventbrite is one-of-a-kind.

With more than 75 angel investments to date, Renaud brings a level of operational experience and the skill to help founders solve complex technical problems like none other. On top of this, Renaud is a Venture Partner with the renowned seed firm Point Nine.

Jump to the parts that matter most to you and watch our core highlights below 👀
00:02:26 - Challenges of Building Eventbrite
00:04:20 - Renaud's Angel Investing Journey Begins
00:05:25 - Renaud's Accidental First Deal
00:06:52 - Lessons from Angel Investing
00:09:10 - Renaud’s Investment Thesis and Strategy
00:11:28 - Renaud's Value-add for Founders
00:12:48 - Evolution in Finding and Evaluating Investment Opportunities
00:14:00 - Doubling down on Impact Investing
00:16:45 - Going from early to growth stage investing
00:19:40 - Generalists vs specialists in Climate investing & investing in hardware
00:21:56 - Networks and co-investing in the climate space
00:24:55 - The lack of European growth stage financing in climate
00:25:30 - Renaud’s core learnings from Angel investing
00:27:00 - The importance of your value prop and network as an angel
00:29:10 - Follow-on investing as a venture investor
00:36:05 - Renaud’s most counterintuitive learning
00:37:30 - Top tips to angels wanting to invest internationally
00:39:30 - Advice to his own 10 year younger self

Today we have Sean O'Sullivan with us. Sean is a Managing General Partner at SOSV, a global, multi-stage venture capital firm that operates early stage startup development programs, notably HAX, IndieBio, and Orbit Startups. They are the first check in deep tech, starting at pre-seed.

SOSV have a $1.5 Billion in AUM and an established portfolio of 1000+ companies including Upside Foods, Perfect Day, Opentrons, and Formlabs. Sean is on the board of Khan Academy, the Tyndall Institute, the Autism Impact Alliance, the Brain Foundation, and a number of private companies.

From serving as a janitor to embracing his passions as a musician, filmmaker, and even running a humanitarian organization in Iraq, Sean O’Sullivan’s multifaceted nature reveals a remarkable tapestry of life experiences. Among the intriguing anecdotes is his encounter with a rare viral infection that affected his eye, providing a testament to resilience and adaptability. His ventures extended to the world of television, where he enjoyed a stint as a TV star in Ireland, further exemplifying his versatility.

In conclusion, Sean O'Sullivan's venture journey offers a tapestry of experiences, showcasing the significance of perseverance, long-term commitment, and a diverse entrepreneurial mindset. These insights have molded his investment philosophy, guiding SOSV's strategic approach to support startups in their earliest stages and nurture their growth through series B and series C, while emphasizing the immeasurable value of riding the wave with successful companies for the long haul.

Today we have Sean O'Sullivan with us. Sean is a Managing General Partner at SOSV, a global, multi-stage venture capital firm that operates early stage startup development programs, notably HAX, IndieBio, and Orbit Startups. They are the first check in deep tech, starting at pre-seed.

SOSV have a $1.5 Billion in AUM and an established portfolio of 1000+ companies including Upside Foods, Perfect Day, Opentrons, and Formlabs. Sean is on the board of Khan Academy, the Tyndall Institute, the Autism Impact Alliance, the Brain Foundation, and a number of private companies.

From serving as a janitor to embracing his passions as a musician, filmmaker, and even running a humanitarian organization in Iraq, Sean O’Sullivan’s multifaceted nature reveals a remarkable tapestry of life experiences. Among the intriguing anecdotes is his encounter with a rare viral infection that affected his eye, providing a testament to resilience and adaptability. His ventures extended to the world of television, where he enjoyed a stint as a TV star in Ireland, further exemplifying his versatility.

In conclusion, Sean O'Sullivan's venture journey offers a tapestry of experiences, showcasing the significance of perseverance, long-term commitment, and a diverse entrepreneurial mindset. These insights have molded his investment philosophy, guiding SOSV's strategic approach to support startups in their earliest stages and nurture their growth through series B and series C, while emphasizing the immeasurable value of riding the wave with successful companies for the long haul.

Today we’re welcoming Jed Ng on the EUVC pod. Jed is a self-taught angel with 1x exit and has backed 2 startups from seed to unicorn. He started his own syndicate in 2020 and is backed by 1000+ investors today. He is also the Founder of AngelSchool.vc - a venture education program that helps angel investors build their own syndicates in just 8 weeks.

As an operator, Jed built the world’s largest API Marketplace with RapidAPI (an a16z backed company).

Today we’re welcoming Jed Ng on the EUVC pod. Jed is a self-taught angel with 1x exit and has backed 2 startups from seed to unicorn. He started his own syndicate in 2020 and is backed by 1000+ investors today. He is also the Founder of AngelSchool.vc - a venture education program that helps angel investors build their own syndicates in just 8 weeks.

As an operator, Jed built the world’s largest API Marketplace with RapidAPI (an a16z backed company).

Today, we're happy to welcome you to Charlie Delingpole, founder of ComplyAdvantage, an AI-driven financial crime risk and detection technology powered by Complydata. They have raised $100m from Index Ventures, Balderton Capital, OTPP and Goldman Sachs with global hubs in London, New York, and Singapore.

In this episode you’ll learn:
* The importance of being part of a strong angel community with peers you trust and whose opinion you value * How Charlie thinks about activating his network as part of his diligence process * Why Charlie is going from a more international strategy to a more nationally focused one * Why Charlie believes it’s important to impose systematic professional processes on himself when angel investing

Today, we're happy to welcome you to Charlie Delingpole, founder of ComplyAdvantage, an AI-driven financial crime risk and detection technology powered by Complydata. They have raised $100m from Index Ventures, Balderton Capital, OTPP and Goldman Sachs with global hubs in London, New York, and Singapore.

In this episode you’ll learn:
* The importance of being part of a strong angel community with peers you trust and whose opinion you value * How Charlie thinks about activating his network as part of his diligence process * Why Charlie is going from a more international strategy to a more nationally focused one * Why Charlie believes it’s important to impose systematic professional processes on himself when angel investing

Hello everyone and welcome to “At The Cap Table” podcast - the exciting new series dedicated to hearing from the top European female investors who are taking the VC industry by storm.

Our next guest is the brilliant Ruth Foxe Blader, Partner at Anthemis!

Ruth is a fintech investor, emerging technology & communications expert with 15 years-international experience at Fortune 500 companies. At Anthemis, Ruth leads strategic investment efforts across Europe and North America. Ruth specialises in technology-enabled business models, insurance technology, risk transfer, early stage investing, product strategy and digital transformation.

Prior to joining Anthemis, Ruth worked for Allianz SE, where she led digital innovation efforts. She was a founding member of the AllianzX team, where she led investments in startups including Lemonade, MoneyFarm, Argus Cyber Security and SimpleSurance.

A New Jersey native, Ruth has spent the last decade between New York, London and Paris. In 2018 and 2019, Ruth was recognized for her outstanding contribution to the global financial technology ecosystem and listed among the Women in Fintech Powerlist by Innovate Finance. She currently serves on the boards of Axle, Demex, Hokodo, Hometree, Kaiko, Proportunity and Stable.

Alongside Sophie Winwood, she is the co-founder of WVC - a movement that promotes inclusion, empowerment and integration of VC in Europe and beyond.

Hello everyone and welcome to “At The Cap Table” podcast - the exciting new series dedicated to hearing from the top European female investors who are taking the VC industry by storm.

Our next guest is the brilliant Ruth Foxe Blader, Partner at Anthemis!

Ruth is a fintech investor, emerging technology & communications expert with 15 years-international experience at Fortune 500 companies. At Anthemis, Ruth leads strategic investment efforts across Europe and North America. Ruth specialises in technology-enabled business models, insurance technology, risk transfer, early stage investing, product strategy and digital transformation.

Prior to joining Anthemis, Ruth worked for Allianz SE, where she led digital innovation efforts. She was a founding member of the AllianzX team, where she led investments in startups including Lemonade, MoneyFarm, Argus Cyber Security and SimpleSurance.

A New Jersey native, Ruth has spent the last decade between New York, London and Paris. In 2018 and 2019, Ruth was recognized for her outstanding contribution to the global financial technology ecosystem and listed among the Women in Fintech Powerlist by Innovate Finance. She currently serves on the boards of Axle, Demex, Hokodo, Hometree, Kaiko, Proportunity and Stable.

Alongside Sophie Winwood, she is the co-founder of WVC - a movement that promotes inclusion, empowerment and integration of VC in Europe and beyond.

Hi everybody and welcome to today’s roundtable on raising in a bear market. We have some of Europe’s best and most active LPs with us and actually of which three are repeat offenders on our podcast, namely:
* David DANA, Head of VC Investments at EIF * Michael Sidgmore, Co-Founder & Partner at Broadhaven Ventures by Broadhaven Capital * Joe Schorge, Founding Partner of Isomer Capital

And ONE entirely new face to our podcast audience: Christian Roehle, Head of Investment Management at KfW.

Today we're happy to welcome Agate Freimane, Founding Partner of Norrsken, one of Europe's leading impact venture capital funds born out of Norrsken Foundation, which hosts events, operates co-working spaces, and runs accelerator programmes across the Nordics, Iberia, and Eastern Africa.
Their fund is dedicated to investing in early-stage startups focusing primarily in climate tech and they've led the investments into almost 50 companies, highlights including Northvolt, Einride, 1komma5 and Matsmart.

Jump to the parts that matter to you 🎧
00:00:00 - "Tear down this wall"
00:01:04 - Disclaimer and Introduction
00:03:10 - Journey into venture
00:12:00 - Impact Investing in Europe
00:15:24 - The Decline of Opportunity Funds and LP Appetite
00:17:52 - Shifting Topics in the Impact Space
00:18:27 - LP Appetite & The Challenging Environment
00:22:09 - The Drive for ESG Reporting in Europe
00:24:49 - The Challenge of Impact as a Business Model
00:28:19 - The Importance of Finding the Right Problems
00:31:02 - Agate’s Core Learnings in Life
00:36:12 - Building Team and Culture as a VC Firm
00:38:23 - Assumptions and Feedback in Team Building and Culture
00:39:38 - Capital Deployment and Small Bad Bets
00:40:31 - Ego in VC & Professional Development
00:45:19 - Regrets and Priorities
00:45:35 - Top Tips for Fundraising In Europe

Today we are happy to welcome Niels Fritze, Head of a young Single Family Office, he oversees all aspects of the family's financial affairs, including investment management, estate planning, and wealth preservation.

Niels utilizes his expertise in financial analysis, risk management, and strategic decision-making to optimize the family's wealth and ensure their long-term financial security.

Today, we're happy to welcome you to David de Picciotto, Co-founder and CEO of Pledge, a climate infrastructure platform making it simple for businesses to integrate carbon measurement & offsetting tools into their customer experience. Founded in 2021, Pledge has raised $4.5m from investors like Lowercarbon Capital and Visionaries Club.

Before Pledge, David worked for Partners Group, a global private equity firm, where he focused on growth equity investments. Prior to this, David was at Revolut, the UK FinTech, where he led International Expansion. David is also the co-founder of media start-up iRewind where he exited in 2016.

Today is a special one as we have three guests with us, Joe Schorge and Chloe Dagnell from Isomer Capital (Europe’s hands-down best Fund of Fund — full disclaimer, we’re VP at Isomer! lol) and Benjamin Notlev, COO and CIO at TechBBQ, the leading tech conference in the Nordics - and also (announcement alert!), EUVC’s Country Ambassador in Denmark 🚀.

As anyone would expect, EUVC is a community play and part of that is being super close with the best people in each ecosystem and Benjamin is one of the best around in Denmark, so we were super excited to have Benjamin invest with us and get closer with him (as well as the TechBBQ gang) as we of course share the same passion for connecting the industry.

Today we have Chris Smith with us, a repeat offender here at the EUVC podcast. If you’re a loyal long time listener you may recall Chris from our episode #14. Chris is a Managing Partner at Playfair, a generalist VC fund with a contrarian approach to pre-seed technology investing.

Based in London, Playfair invests across the UK and Europe with an intentionally high conviction, low volume approach: making 6-8 investments a year and preserving time, capital and resource to help companies post-investment. Playfair is investing out of their $70m Fund 3 and has an established portfolio of **100+ companies across two funds including AeroCloud, Thought Machine, Andela, Mapillary, Recycleye and Orca AI.

At Playfair, Chris is focused on pre-seed opportunities in the UK, Europe and Israel. He loves finding companies operating in overlooked sectors that are ripe for disruption and is particularly interested in autonomous transportation, business and industrial automation (especially through AI, ML and computer vision), HealthTech (except diagnostics and therapeutics) and B2B SaaS.

Today, we're happy to welcome David Nothacker, angel investor, CEO & co-founder of Sennder, a digital truck freight forwarding business. Together with his co-founders, David has built up a team of over 1,000 employees across eleven offices in Europe. In the process, they have been supported by strong investors such as Scania, Accel and Project A, and have secured over €300 million in funding. They are quite active angels, particularly in the German ecosystem.

In this episode you will learn:
* Why David considers his investments into Gorillas and Cargo 1 his most memorable angel deals * David’s learnings from managing startup boards * Why David has two different, yet synergistic, investment strategies: investing early in logistics & supply chain startups and co-investing with VCs in opportunistic deals * How LP investing can complement your angel activities when starting to do more international investments * How angel investing makes you a better, more experienced business leader

Today we happy to welcome Emma Steele from Ascension VC. Emma is a Partner at Ascension’s Impact Fund a Seed-stage venture fund focused on creating resilient societies by backing impact driven founders that are driving commercial value and, hopefully, on their way to become the next impact dragons.

Ascension has an established portfolio of more than 180 companies and notable investments led by Emma including Wagestream, Credit Kudos and Tembo.

Today we are happy to welcome Ameer Awadiyeh, VP of Investments at AlphaQ Venture Capital, a founder-led VC Fund of Funds. Prior to joining AQVC, Ameer was part of the investment team at Israel-based Vintage Investment Partners, where he developed deep expertise within the global VC fund ecosystem through sourcing, conducting in-depth due diligence, and modeling primary and secondary VC investment opportunities in both established and emerging managers, overseeing the fund of funds pipeline and budget allocation, and establishing a broad network of VCs and VC allocators across the U.S., Europe and Israel.

Alph Q has 9 funds and counting, Whitestart Capital, Scale Venture Partners, Abstract Ventures, Nucleus Capital, Signature Ventures, Pale Blue Dot, Maple Capital, Symbol Ventures. AlphaQ is becoming the European gateway to a diversified venture capital fund portfolio via one single stock.

Today we are happy to welcome Simone Brummelhuis, Founding Partner & Fund Director of Borski Fund, a VC fund investing in technology leaders and diversity. Simone is Supervisory Board Member of Royal Schiphol group, Rabo Amsterdam and Media Huis Nederland. She previously founded The Next Women, providing access to capital, programs, resources and networks for female entrepreneur and is Founding Investor and Director of The Next Women Crowd Fund.

The U.S. SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission), which regulates the country's financial markets, just changed the game for private equity, hedge fund, private credit, and venture capital funds registered in the U.S.Yesterday, SEC Chairman Gary Gensler (above) announced the commission Enhances the Regulation of Private Fund Advisers, a set of rules originally proposed in February 2022. And Europe would never be “out-regulated”, so…

Dive in to learn what the meaning and implications of this is!

Today, we're happy to welcome you to Manolis Manassakis, CEO of Qogita, a leading global wholesale supplier revolutionizing the market through technology. He was formerly the Director of Operations for Europe, Middle East and Africa at Uber. Earlier in his career, he worked at Google as an Industry Manager, helping European businesses boost their online sales and make the most out of the web.
Parallel to his work, Manolis co-founded Lawspot, providing openness and transparency to the law, to all citizens. Lawspot is now Greece's no1 open online hub for all things legal, trusted by 1M monthly users. Through Cloud Nine Ventures, Manolis is also an active angel investor, passionate about the European tech ecosystem, and loves helping startups and mentoring founders on operations, scaling and international expansion.

Today we have Omar Hassan with us. Omar is a General Partner at MENA Tech Fund (MTF), a $25m, Pre-seed/Seed stage venture fund in Dubai to back Middle Eastern & North African AgriTech, FinTech & B2B SAAS businesses in Egypt, Israel, UAE, Saudi Arabia or UK tech with market fit into the MENA region.

MTF are investing out of Fund One with a total 25 AUM and an established portfolio of 9 companies including Soos Lenkie Wuilt Selectika. At MTF, Omar focuses on SAAS and AgriTech in MENA and have led the investments into Wuilt, SwftBox, Selectika, Lenkie.
As warm-up for eu.vc delegation going to Dubai for the Expand North Star Conference, we sat down with Omar for a dedicated episode on raising capital in the region.

Today we're happy to welcome Anna Brandt and Noor van Boven, two amazing angel investors, co-founders of Invested. They accelerate growth through consulting and investing, being focused on the Future of Work, specifically when Fintech meets HR Tech.

In this episode you’ll learn:
- How to think about joining forces as angels, what it takes and the superpowers it can give you

Why Anna & Noor pick their investments based on the problem the startups target, the disruption they can bring about and the connection, belief and match they have with the founding team
How Anna & Noor think about scaling their investment activity and what it takes from them as a team and individuals
Reflections on having invested through the boom and the bust cycle
How the team think about working with the European Venture ecosystem and to optimize their role in it

Today we are happy to welcome Kushal Shah, Managing Director of e&, a global technology and investment group. Previously, he was the Senior Partner at Roland Berger's Dubai office and a Managing Partner for the Middle East. Prior to joining Roland Berger, he spent 12 years with a leading consultancy in London and Dubai.

This episode is co-hosted by our good friend Omar Hassan from MENA Tech Fund.

Today, we're happy to welcome you to Michael Wax, Co-Founder and CEO of Forto, Europe's digital freight forwarding pioneer.

Forto drives the vision to deliver a highly transparent, frictionless, and sustainable digital supply chain. With more than 600m USD in funding, they are Europe's largest log-tech company.

Michael is a true entrepreneur with a strong passion for innovation in global trade and e-commerce. He was part of the founding team at KONUX, an early pioneer in industrial IoT.

Today we are happy to welcome Daniel, founding partner at Speedinvest. one of Europe’s most active early-stage investors with more than €1 billion AuM and 40+ investors based in Berlin, London, Munich, Paris, and Vienna. At Speedinvest, Daniel covers limited partner relations and fundraising both on the fund and portfolio levels.

Daniel started his professional career as a stockbroker and private banker with ErsteBank in Vienna and Credit Suisse in Zurich. In 2000, he teamed up with Oliver Holle and Werner Zahnt in their Fintech startup, offering mobile payments to the media, entertainment and information industries. In 2006, they sold their startup NASDAQ listed VeriSign in a €55 million exit.

This episode is co-hosted by our good friend Omar Hassan from Mena Tech Fund.

Today, we're happy to welcome you to Julia Morrongiello, an ex VC, turned operator, turned angel investor. She is the Head of Growth Europe for Zero Hash, a crypto-as-a-service provider who's clients include the likes of Stripe, Moonpay, Curve and Interactive Brokers. Julia spent most of her career working as a VC investor at Point Nine and GFC and now continues to invest in fintech and crypto as an angel and scout for Accel. Since starting her career as an angel investor a little over a year ago, she's invested in 10 companies and 1 fund.

In this episode you’ll learn:

Julia’s journey from VC to Operator to Angel & the value it brings to her both professionally and personally
How investing in women can be a better investment on both the hard and soft metrics
Why angel investing is the most giving hobby in the world!
Reflections on power law investing, upside maximization and why you can only get as much as you give
The importance of paying attention to unconscious biases and how to create processes that protect you

Today, we're happy to welcome Sara Rywe, partner at byFounders, a Nordic and Baltic's early stage tech investor with a difference.

They stand toe to toe with founders and have a community driven approach to investing. Founders know exactly what they're getting into when they engage with byFounders from the metrics they're looking for to ticket size, investment terms, and the fund standard term sheet. It's all published on their website.

Portfolio founders also have access to the wisdom of the byFounders collective, a group of experienced founders, tech experts, and more who can help them through the company building journey. The firm has two funds under its belt and invests across tech sectors. Sara joined in 2019 as an associate with a focus on finding funding and having the back of founders across the new Nordics.

But for someone who's had a meteoric rise through VC, Sara describes herself as someone completely ordinary. In many ways, Sara's prior experience at McKinsey, her MBA and the fact she's a Kauffman Fellow gloss over the fact she did not originally pursue a conventional path. She'll talk more about her journey starting work in her teen years at McDonald's through to her entrepreneurial journey, starting up a dance school, and how this led her to catch the founder bug and lead to opportunities in tech.

Sara's deep interest is in impact aware startups. She's mentored and invested in startups in sectors that combine profit with purpose and has a particular focus not just on responsible companies, but responsible founders. In this episode, we'll hear more about Sara's journey into VC, her path to partner, and how she's turned her interest and impact into a core pillar of the investment strategy and decision making process at byFounders.

Today we’re excited to introduce you to Stefan Walter, Co-Founder and Managing Partner at Cavalry Ventures, one of Europe’s leading early stage funds or as they say themselves:

"Rather than focusing on a particular vertical, we focus on a specific stage, which is the “as early as it makes sense for the company” stage. We invest early, often pre-product and pre-revenue."

And the Cavalry stable is full of champions, counting the likes of Afilio, Aleph Alpha, AMPECO, Anyone, BRYTER, Charm, Clarisights, Flip, Forto, Kinnu, Lhotse, Loctax, McMakler, Nory, Oblivious, Origin, Patronus, PlanRadar, Plantura, Planetly (acq. by OneTrust), REKKI, Rouvia, SERA Intelligence, ShowHeroes, Sofía, SPREAD, Upper, Usercentrics, WhenThen (acq. by Mangopay), and many more incredible companies. Check out their Crunchbase profile for a full overview.

Dive in for an episode covering:
* Stefan’s Journey into Venture * The Birth of Cavalry: A New Kind of Fund * Taking a stance on "VC is a people's business, and it's not scalable" * The Deep Dive + The Origins of the Cavalry name & how to turn your LP base into a Cavalry + The Cavalry System * Stefan’s shout-out to some special people in the ecosystem 💌 * Stefan’s Three Biggest Learnings + Team Beats Idea. + Conviction Over Hype. + If It Seems Too Good to Be True, It Probably Is * The Quickfire Round 🔫 + Think about the difference between urgent and important + Embark on your fundraise with eyes open and realistic expectations + VC can be a surprisingly tough balancing act * Vertical consumer software is super exciting.

Today, we're happy to welcome Ellen Moller, Watershed’s Head of Europe. Watershed helps companies measure, report, and reduce their greenhouse gas emissions. Some of its clients include organizations like Walmart, Klarna, and Spotify.

Prior to joining Watershed, Ellen spent a decade scaling technology businesses, including more than six years leading EMEA Partnerships and Operations at Stripe out of London. Prior to joining Stripe in 2015, Ellen worked in business development at Marqeta and at Visa.

Today we are happy to welcome Anubhav, Founder and CEO of Tactyc. Anubhav founded Tactyc in 2019 combining his passions for engineering and finance to solve the major pain points fund managers face with portfolio management and fund modeling.

They work with 250 VC clients globally and have a large and growing European presence including clients such as Anthemis and Atomico. At Tactyc they believe in empowering all GPs to be more data-driven.

In this episode we will deep dive into the exciting world of portfolio construction and best practices.

Welcome to the next episode of “At the Cap Table”! In today's episode, we are speaking with a remarkable individual who needs no introduction. Her name is Check Warner, a prominent figure in the venture capital industry in the UK.

Check is the co-founder of Ada Ventures, an inclusive venture firm. Ada Ventures finds and funds extraordinary talent building breakthrough ideas for the hardest problems we face. Check invests £250,000-1m in UK technology companies across climate, economic empowerment and healthcare & ageing.

One of Check's notable contributions to the venture capital industry has been pioneering initiatives like Diversity VC and Future VC. These initiatives aim to drive positive change and foster inclusivity within the industry.

Check also received an MBE for services to diversity and inclusion in Venture Capital for her work with Ada Ventures and Diversity VC in the King's New Years Honours 2022.

In this episode of At the Cap Table:
- We explore Check's journey into venture capital and what makes her excited about the current state of entrepreneurship in the UK and the opportunities it presents,

We will discuss the origins of Diversity VC and Future VC and explore the impact they have had on creating a more diverse and equitable ecosystem.
We’ll hear about Check’s work with Ada Ventures, a venture capital firm she is dedicated to right now
And finally, raising a fund can be a complex and opaque process, so we'll discuss Check's experience in starting a fund and gaining and maintaining the trust of limited partners. She'll also share key learnings from her years in the VC industry and highlight common mistakes that investors make when embarking on the fundraising journey.

Today we are happy to welcome Fred, Founder and Partner at Stride. Stride is investing out of Fund II with a total £123M AUM (Fund I was £100M) with an established portfolio of 25 companies per fund and notable investments including Triver, Conceivable.Life, TechWolf and Hofy.

At Stride, Fred focuses on late seed in London and Paris, in companies that "reinvent the UX of the world" by going deep on the areas founders care about: strategy, brand, culture, talent, leadership and fundraising.

Today we are happy to welcome you to Alexandre Berriche, one of Europe's absolute premiere Super Angels and Sequoia scout with more than 80 seed investments under his belt. Alex is also the CEO and co-founder of Fleet, a french B2B startup focused on simplifying the equipment, management and renewal of computers and cellphones for startups and SMBs.

In this episode you’ll learn:

How Alex has leveraged Fleet in his angel investing and vice versa
How humbly Alex, as one of Europe’s very top angels, present himself, his investing and thinking. Truly remarkable!
The role of round leads, trust, networks and trends in Alex’s investing
Why Alex is finding himself more focused on founder ambition level, and the ability to attract the best of the best, articulating their vision and thinking.

Today we are happy to welcome Daniel Schex, Private Equity & Venture Capital Investment Professional at FINVIA, a leading Multi Family Office in Germany, serving the special needs of high-net-worth individuals.

FINVIA has 4,5bn EUR in Assets Under Management on their platform, investing in funds and building a global portfolio across different strategies and verticals.

This episode was recorded on a very special location, our dear friend from Altitude and special co-host Mark Penkala's house, while we were at SuperVenture in Berlin.

Welcome to At The Cap Table podcast, a new series that shines the spotlight on the investors who are changing the vc industry in Europe. Today your host Savs Tan welcomes Deepali Nangia, Partner at Speedinvest. Speedinvest is a hands-on, pan-European early stage tech investor, partnering with founders from their early stages and helping them to grow game changing businesses. The Speedinvest team is one of the most active investors in Europe and last year announced 500m€ of fresh capital to invest in new ventures, and to continue to back their existing portfolio. The firm manages more than €1 billion in AuM and although it started in Austria, counts a team of over 40 investors based in Berlin, London, Munich, and Paris.
Deepali joined Speedinvest as a Partner with a focus on finding, funding, and supporting investment in underrepresented founders but the majority of her time in venture capital has been as an angel investor, supporting startups from day 1.

In this episode you’ll learn:

– About how Deepali’s thesis in investing in female founders came through her own experiences of being underestimated in the workplace

– How cleaning up the cap table is a myth: angels can continue to add value beyond capital and are a vital support for founders in a way that VCs cannot be, particularly in the early stages

– Demystifying investment for operators could create a better angel ecosystem and is just as important as access to deal flow

– Deepali’s move from independent Angel to Partner at Speedinvest was not planned - she got to know the team and look at deals together before they developed a Venture Partner role for her, and she gradually became more and more involved with the firm before joining full time

Today we are happy to have Tobias Schirmer with us, Founding Partner of Join Capital, a 150m€ early stage venture capital investor in European technology startups providing access to industrial companies.

Join Capital has an established portfolio of 20 companies and notable investments including Flexciton, Valispace, Opteran Technologies, Digital Spine, Frenetic.

Joining Tobias as a guest on this episode we have someone who'll need little introduction to all of you: Joe Schorge, founding and managing partner of Isomer Capital, one of Europe’s absolute strongest Fund of Funds.

Today, we're happy to welcome Joe Cross, early stage angel investor, with a portfolio of around 25 companies so far, and LP in Cocoa. He focusses on companies with the potential to make a positive impact at scale, and helps founders on growth & marketing challenges across a whole mix of sectors. Previously, he was employee #12 at (Transfer)Wise, where he wore various marketing & growth leadership hats from 2012-2020.

In this episode you’ll learn:

How Joe thinks about applying his ex-operator skill set to add value to founders & why it’s often operations and tactics over strategy!
Why Joe’s investment thesis is centered around Good, Big & Fast and how he thinks about impact investing.
Why Joe is changing strategy from having done 25 investments in just 2 years to doing fewer more concentrated bets in the time to come
How Joe thinks about building valuable networks to access and win the best deals

Today we are happy to welcome Sabina Wizander, partner at Creandum, one of Europe’s leading early-stage venture funds with offices in Stockholm, Berlin, London and San Francisco. Creandum backs European Enterprise and Consumer Companies and are currently investing out of a 500m€ Fund. Creandum have made more than 100 investments including notable companies like Spotify, Pleo, Kry, Depop, iZettle, Kahoot!, Vivino, and Klarna. At Creandum, Sabina focuses on Climate & Health in the Nordics and DACH region, and has invested in the likes of Passionfroot, Scapin' and Prewave.

In this episode you'll learn:

Sabina’s journey from founder to angel investor to solo GP
Europe & late-stage capital
Startup funding — a marathon, not a sprint
VC & Founder relationship misconceptions

Today we are happy to welcome Keith Grose, Head of International for Plaid, an open finance platform and data network that powers over 3,000 digital financial apps and more than 12,000 financial institutions across the US, Canada, UK and Europe. Keith leads the strategy and operations for Plaid’s international products.

In this episode you’ll learn:

How Keith thinks about solo founders and why he believes having angels & VCs around you is even more important for these
Why Keith thinks grit is the number one thing to look for and how he tests for it
Why establishing trust and psychological safety is so important to angel investing
Why Keith prefers Whatsapp and email to regular reporting and how that can save communications from going bad

Welcome to "At The Cap Table" podcast, a new series that shines the spotlight on the investors who are changing the VC industry in Europe.

Our second guest is Judith Dada, General Partner at La Famiglia. La Famiglia is a Berlin based European seed stage venture capital fund that invests in B2B technology companies disrupting or enabling large industries.

Earlier this year, La Famiglia raised €250 million for its combined third seed fund (which is €165 million) and its first growth co-investment fund (€90 million).

Judith's focus areas include the future of work, data-driven business models, and machine learning. In addition to this, she serves as an advisor to the German government on technology, diversity, and migration matters.

Before joining La Famiglia VC, Judith was at Facebook where she managed Amazon Europe's marketing strategy and worked on Facebook's VC Initiative.

In this episode of "At The Cap Table," Judith will be sharing her insights and experiences in a dynamic and wide-reaching discussion.

The topics covered will include:

Judith’s background and personal journey into investing, including her route into VC
The current state of entrepreneurship into the DACH region (Germany, Austria, and Switzerland) and Europe given the abundance of talent moving into the space solving big problems and wanting to have a bigger impact in the region
Building and strengthening a strong ecosystem in Europe
La Famiglia's investment focus
A quick fire round of final and probing questions

Stay tuned for an engaging and informative conversation!

Today we are happy to welcome Seda and Peter, from Target Global.

Target is one of the largest and most successful technology investment firms in Europe with more than €3bn AuM and a portfolio of well-known industry champions including Revolut, Wefox, Delivery Hero, Auto1 and many others.

Seda is the Head of Marketing & Comms. She joined in Jan 2022 (while 2 months pregnant) and is responsible for ensuring that Target and its portfolios shine at every opportunity. Prior to Target she spent 12 years advising private equity firms and hedge funds like Apollo and Pershing Square on their brand, positioning, and corporate reputation.

Peter id the COO of Target, joined the firm 3 years ago to build out its Middle East activity. Since then Target has made several investments in the region including Fresha & Tarabut Gateway + helped their portfolio expand to the region with companies like Rapyd opening up local offices and most recently, Target opening an official office in Abu Dhabi. Peter is an experienced operator, having held senior role at Johnson & Johnson as well as having led diversified industrials businesses in both Germany and Austria. He also had brief stints in Hong Kong, London and Switzerland and is a truly cosmopolitan individual holding down the forts in the Middle East while ensuring teams across London, Berlin, Tel Aviv and Barcelona are happy and thriving!

In this episode you'll learn:

Why parental leave policy is so important in VC
How you can learn from Target’s process and findings
The importance of building a culture to back up the policy
Why being small shouldn’t be an excuse for not having thought things through

Today, we're happy to welcome you to the second episode diving deep on the story of a Super Angel on EUVC! Say hi to Charley Ma, the man responsible for building and scaling multiple enterprise software startups and leading their marketing, sales, and customer success teams from $0 to $200m dollars as the first revenue hire for companies such as Plaid, Ramp, and Alloy. But Charley's career as an operator is definitely matched by his career as an angel having been an early investor in breakout companies such as Stytch, Unit, Codat, Moov, Finch, and many more which have gone to raise from giants like A16Z, Bain, Benchmark, Coatue, First Round Capital, Founder’s Fund, Index and Sequoia.

In this episode you'll learn:
* Charley's journey from JP Morgan to Plaid and into angel investing despite "not having that much money" at the time - in fact he decided to invest his B-school savings on building his angel career instead of academic rap sheet! * How Charley thinks about building relationships in angel investing and the importance of being opinionated and selective at the same time as maintaining a broad network * How Charley employs his experience from his angel investing to make him a better operator and how that allows him to navigate the current market better * How Charley thinks about portfolio construction, ownership and how he has gone from being purely founder centric to now being more thematically focused

Today we are happy to welcome Andreas Schwarzenbrunner, Partner at Speedinvest, one of Europe’s most active early-stage investors with more than €1 billion AuM and 40+ investors based in Berlin, London, Munich, Paris, and Vienna. Andy found his way into Venture via politics - and is always up for a debate. This gave him an exceptionally good eye for promising ideas and trends.

In this episode you’ll learn:

Andy’s journey from politics to VC and the edge having a different background gives him today
What 6000+ VCs say about how they make decisions
A discussion of how the European results differ from the US results
Where funds choose to domicile, why and the implications of this on a policy level
A discussion of why IRR and MOIC requirements are the same for US and EU VCs and why that surprises Andreas
Why 90% of EU VCs say Europe is fragmented and what the causes of this is

Today we have a special episode, because it’s the very first Super Angel episode launched on EUVC. We’ve got so much great feedback from people hearing this pod and many of them are regular EUVC listeners so we realized we had to bring it on to the EUVC main playlist.

We are trilled to welcome you to Roxanne, Director of Station F, a startup campus in Paris, where she is recognized as one of the most influential figures in the French startup ecosystem. French media have called her the "young empress of startups", the "queen of tech", and "the new pope of high-tech and startups in France." Roxanne is an Iranian-American who grew up in Silicon Valley, was formerly a journalist and startup ambassador before being personally selected by Free founder to spearhead the development of Station F.

In this episode you’ll learn:
- All about Roxanne's angel journey

What's been Roxanne's most memorable moments investing
What angel investing has given Roxanne professionally and personally
How Roxanne thinks about investing cross borders and being a "baby LP" in VC funds

Today we have a very special episode recorded live at the SuperVenture event in Berlin. This episode features two well known voices within the EUVC podcast, Chris Wade and Joe Schorge from Isomer Capital, who have just recently announced their fund III.

Today, we're happy to welcome you to Rana Yared, General Partner at Balderton Capital - one of Europe's most successful venture capital firms, that has raised almost $5BN, across 10 funds over the past 21 years. Balderton has backed some of the continent's most incredible companies including Revolut, CityMapper, Workable, Go Cardless, amongst other global tech leaders!
Before Balderton, Rana was a Partner at Goldman Sachs, first in the Principal Strategic Investments Group where she led the bank's fintech strategy and then later in GS Growth.
In the first episode of “At the Cap Table”, we discussed the state of entrepreneurship in Europe and why the startup scene is booming like never before, Balderton’s investment strategy and why being a great investor involves producing returns while also improving the world around you, how Rana has supported founders from seed to successful exit, lessons and reflections on every founder should consider, plus more!

In this episode you’ll learn:

• The thriving European startup scene and the drivers behind its unprecedented growth.

• Unveiling the distinctions between US and European investors and founders, and identifying opportunities across Europe.

• Delving into Balderton's investment strategy, emphasizing the significance of generating financial returns while creating a positive impact.

• Rana's invaluable journey in supporting companies from their early stages to successful exits.

• Lessons and reflections on driving impact as a board member and the qualities that define elite performers.

• Exploring strategies for making informed investment decisions in a highly competitive startup landscape.

Welcome to "At The Cap Table," the exciting new podcast series brought to you by your hosts, Sarah Finegan from Antler, Savitri Tan and Chloe Dagnell from Isomer Capital. Coming to you from London to showcase the top European female investors who are making waves in the VC industry.

In this episode, we want to give you a glimpse into what this podcast is all about, who it's for, and why it stands out from the rest.

As the European VC fund ecosystem evolves and diversifies, 'At The Cap Table' is dedicated to amplifying the voices of top female investors who are driving the VC industry forward.

Each episode will feature a different leader who will share their insights, experiences, and strategies for backing the next generation of unicorn founders across Europe. We aim to cover a wide range of VC profiles, including partners at established funds, emerging managers, angels-turned-VCs, operators, and family offices.

Expect fascinating stories from Balderton's Rana Yared about her invaluable experiences taking companies from seed through to successful exit, hear from industry experts like Deepali Nangia, who will share what it's like to make a move from angel investing into VC. And Check Warner who will discuss building a global movement to address barriers to entry in the industry, amongst many others.

This podcast will bring you perspectives from investors all across Europe and beyond. We'll hear from investors in the UK, Germany, France, and more!

This podcast series is proudly supported by our respective VC funds; Antler and Isomer Capital and brought to you by EUVC.

Antler is the world's leading day zero investor and the most active early-stage VC firm in Europe, making 102 investments into European startups in 2022. We are committed to further increasing our investment rate this year to support the emerging world-class founder talent in Europe.

Isomer Capital, on the other hand, is an LP supporting entrepreneurs throughout Europe through VC fund commitments, co-investments, and providing liquidity via secondary purchases of funds and companies. We’ve backed over 70 funds across Europe, and counting!
Whether you are an investor seeking to learn from top investors across Europe or a founder looking to raise capital, this podcast is a must-listen for all early-stage investing enthusiasts.

So, let's dive into the exciting world of venture capital and uncover the stories behind the success of Europe's most influential investors.
Let's go!

Welcome to a very special feature of one of our Super Angel Episodes that we did together Anthony Danon from Cocoa and have gotten so much great feedback on from VCs that we wanted to give it a special feature here on EUVC.

Today, we're happy to welcome you to Eduardo Ronzano, a Spanish tech entrepreneur and angel investor. He founded KelDoc, one of the top online booking platforms for hospitals in France and sold it to NEHS insurance group. Eduardo is the managing director of Secret Fund - an undercover entrepreneur fund based in Paris.

In this episode you’ll learn:
- How Eduardo’s mom got him into angel investing following the sale of his first company

How to stay aligned with your entrepreneurs and the importance of being authentic
How Eduardo follows a strategy of only doing initial investments and what this gives him as an angel
Why reputation is the number one thing in angel investing
The importance of asking yourself why you are angel investing and how connecting with founders has been the biggest personal take-away for Eduardo
Why angel investing is like being a boxing coach, not a football coach

This episode is sponsored by Vauban. Vauban makes it easy to launch your angel syndicate or VC Fund, check them out at www.vauban.io/euvc

Today we are happy to welcome Chris and Alexis.
Chris Wade is an all-time favorite guest here at the EUVC Podcast, the co-founder of Isomer Capital is undeniably one of Europe's true OG LPs. With an extensive career as a founder, startup mentor and LP with more than 50 Venture fund investments under his belt, Chris co-leads Isomer's fund investments and leads their co-investment program.
And we brought along for this episode Alexis Houssou, the Founder & Managing Partner of HCVC, an community-first early-stage venture capital firm that helps hardtech founders tackle problems with capital, resources and collaboration.

In this episode, you'll learn:

The origin story of the relationship between Isomer and HCVC
Reflections from both sides of the table on managing LP relations in co-investments
Why Alexis thinks it's paramount that you only do co-investments with LPs/GPs when there's a lot of trust on both sides.
Why Chris thinks the overwhelming most important thing an LP can ask of a GP is to be transparent and trustworthy.
Reflections on the inconvenient yet fundamental truth: Funds don't make money, companies make money.

Today we are happy to welcome Umerah Akram and Martijn De Wever.
Umerah is Head of Private Markets at the London Stock Exchange, helping grow the Group’s offering for private companies. Martijn is CEO & Founder of Floww, a digital platform connecting start-ups, venture capitalists, investors, and business partners. LSEG works in collaboration with Floww to create a new standard for data in private markets and connecting the innovation ecosystem to traditional private capital on a single transaction platform.

And we must say, we’ve seen quite a few firms come up in Europe lately trying to disrupt exactly this. And some have looked quite similar, if not indistinguishable. So when we first heard about Floww, we were suspicious.
But we do actually think there’s something to pay attention to here.

‘Cos Floww has partnered with LSEG, yes - that LSEG. The London Stock Exchange Group. And they’re not playing the game of building a centralized platform for private markets, but rather the game of empowering the decentralized nature of private markets.

So what’s the stock exchange getting into this for? Well nothing less than the ushering in of a new type of wholesale market in the UK. An ambition which the government is committed to and is referred to as the Intermission Trading Venue by the UK Treasury, which, in short, is about giving private companies opportunity to access periodic liquidity.

Exactly that is what the LSEG is leveraging their public market assets to deliver.

Tune in for a deep dive that will paint a journey from today's private market to the future’s.

This episode is brought to you in partnership with LSEG and Floww.

Today we are happy yo welcome Bruno Raillard, Co-founder & Managing Partner at Frst, a “Day 1” VC focused on founders building global-scale companies out of the French ecosystem. Launched in 2015, Frst now has over 200m€ under management and has invested in the likes of Payfit, Owkin, Pigment, Electra and Shippeo. Before launching Frst, Bruno has built his career in financial consulting and general management working with startups, SMBs and large enterprises across a broad spectrum of industries.

In this episode you’ll learn:

-Journey from financial consulting, to running a family office and finally launching FRST
- Bruno’s reflections on the French tech and VC ecosystem, why it’s considered closed by many and why an old adage would have said that French startups are destined to max out before unicorn status

Bruno’s reflections on pivoting from running an FO to running an independent fund
A deep dive on FRST’s recently launched paper “Appel au Génie Français” (loosely translated to “Call to French Genius”) and how it relates to their investment thesis and strategy

The paper discussed in the episode can be read in English on episode page on eu.vc and in original French on https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/appel-au-génie-français-bruno-raillard

Today we are happy to welcome Enrique Alvarado Hablitzel and Christin ter Braak-Forstinger, Co-Founders of Chi Impact Capital, the conscious impact investor that is creating strong financial returns by investing in core-regenerative business models that advance the most burning Sustainable Development Goals in Europe. Through the Burning Issues Impact Fund, Chi is scaling early growth stage companies using breakthrough technologies to transform the sectors they operate in.

In this episode you'll learn:

An honest discussion of SFDR and the reason why it’s at risk of being more red tape than real change
Reflections on the future of vertical farming and the business models and technology being applied in the space
TTying fund carry to positive impact and the design of governance bodies

Today we are happy to welcome Augustin Sayer, General Partner at OVNI Capital, a VC seed fund specialising in France-based tech startups. Based in Paris, Augustin manages the company's investments in France and Israel. He was previously Partner at Newfund, a french-american fund, overseeing 20 investments in companies such as FairMoney, the largest African neo-bank, and Umiami, a plant-based texture technology company.

In this episode you will learn:

From Banking to PE, to founder to VC to now emerging manager
How Gus’ journey as monoentrepreneur journey made him realize that VCwas the way to go
Everything about the French ecosystem and how to think about it
Why Ovni’s thesis of backing French founders who are international from day-1 positions them incredibly

Today we are happy to welcome Kim Lundberg, Senior Portfolio Manager at Vækstfonden, a Danish Growth Fund that he joined in 2017. Kin has been supporting numerous Danish startups with venture debt and growth loans in collaboration with both investors and other venture debt lenders, offering a great overview on tech lending.

In this episode you’ll learn:

Everything about tech lending in Europe, it’s history, role and who it’s for (and not!)
The core terms you need to know and how to think about them
The intricacies and nuances of Venture debt and Revenue-based financing and how to employ these services as a VC for your founders
Kim’s take on the effect of tech lenders not having an equity reward as part of their deal structure
Where to seek more knowledge and key resources about venture debt

Today we are happy to welcome Nick de la Forge, Co-Founder and General Partner of Planet A, a leading European GreenTech Fund looking to invest into scalable, sustainable innovation. Before following the calling of building Planet A, Nick worked in different roles at leading firms at European deep-tech startups and funds, his own company Scalewonder, and he has a long-ranging track record as an angel investor in the WEB2.0 and WEB3.0.

In this episode you will learn:

Nick’s surprising journey from his university studies to Web 3 to finally launching Planet A
Nick's views on ReFi as investment vertical and solution to our climate issues
How to build from a theory of change when building your fund and why causing systemic change is a success criteria for Planet A
The the importance of ensuring that prospective LPs understand and accept the core assumptions of your fund
How Planet A employ Life Cycle Assessments to measure impact and use science in your investment decision making

This is the second part of Miguel Pinho's episode. Today we will explore the common misconceptions about the VC techstack and check his top tips for emerging VCs building their techstack. Miguel is the head of technology at Seedcamp, the European seed fund launched in 2007 that helps European entrepreneurs to compete on a global scale. He works on internal and public-facing projects ensuring they leverage the right tool suite to continue to identify, invest and support the most exciting companies out there.

In this episode you will learn:

Why following the herd and FOMO is the worst, yet one of the most pervasive way to select tools for your VC tech stack
Why Airtable is an absolute power tool for VCs and Miguel’s perspectives on leveraging it’s power
Why Miguel believes there’s too little deep thinking about the VC tech stack and too many looking for a magic bullet rather than making the effort to build their own path
How to think about the organizational development to leverage the power of data and tech as a VC - when to hire a Miguel!? Should you even?
How Miguel thinks about the trend of data driven VC and if it’s more than just big words

Today we have a special episode, brought to you by Latitude 59, the flagship startup and tech event of the world’s first digital society taking place in Tallinn, Estonia, from the 24th to the 26th of May.
Latitude59, in collaboration with a syndicate by Estonian Business Angels Network and TeraVC, is looking for bold and promising startups that are shifting paradigms and changing the world for the better, to compete for €1 million in 2023. The application deadline is April 9th. Make sure not to miss it!
And on that note, we are happy to welcome Andrus, Founding Partner of Tera VC, and Martin, Head of Business Development at TEHNOPOL, member of EstBAN and co-lead of the 1M€ investment during Latitude59 conference.

In this episode you’ll learn:

– Why you should consider having Latitude59 on your event plan this year

– Why Andrus and Martin have committed to the 1m€ prize pot for the Latitude59 Pitch competition

– A look behind the scenes of the process, deliberations and decision criteria behind the 1m€ prize pot

– A discussion of the Estonian venture scene and how it’s positioned in relation to the New Nordics and Baltics

If you are a EUVC regular listener you know we've had a few of Seedcamp's stars on the show, but this will be a whole new ride. This is the first of a two-part special episode. Today we are happy to welcome Miguel, head of technology at Seedcamp, he works on internal and public-facing projects ensuring they leverage the right tool suite to continue to identify, invest and support the most exciting companies out there.

In this episode you will learn:

Miguel’s journey to becoming one of Europe’s leading voices on the VC Tech stack & the path to being a truly data-driven VC
How Seedcamp’s journey with tech took Miguel from a Fireman-phase, through a Gandalf-phase, then McGiver-phase to finally arrive at the Architect-phase
Why simple and unsexy things like Password managers are things VC managers need to think about when building their tech stack and why
Why, how and when VCs should think about hiring a head of tech
Why FOMO might be a good thing in venture, but a terrible thing in building the VC tech stack - and pervasive in the industry nonetheless

Today we are happy to welcome Bryan Duarte and Keyona Meeks, the CoFounder and Managing Partner and the General Partner of BlackTech Capital, a Toronto based pre-seed fund that invests in Black and other Underrepresented Founders focused on CleanTech, leveraging partnerships with top organizations, universities & accelerators and the managers’ expertise, networks and track record in growing several companies to 9x valuation increases.

In this episode you'll learn:

The story about how BlackTech Capital’s founders decided to build their firm together without ever having met in person
Why there’s a true need for funds focused on minorities and how doing so can give an edge to your fund
How fighting consumerism and fast fashion presents a venture investment opportunity
A discussion of how we can collaborate across the pond to promote CleanTech founders from diverse backgrounds

Luca is the Managing Partner and co-founder of Una Terra, a €200M Venture Capital fund to accelerate European scale-ups fostering solutions to climate change and biodiversity loss, and targeting the removal of 2 Gtons of CO2 and 1Mtons of plastic waste per year from the environment by 2030.

In this episode you’ll learn:

The value that the WEF network and Una Terra’s involvement in the Uplink challenge for Innovative Funds For Our Future
Why Una Terra have tied their carry to impact metrics, how they’ve thought about it and implemented it
Why Luca has dedicated himself not only to VC but also to advising the world’s leading PE funds
The importance of governance in the Climate Tech sector and how Luca and Una Terra have built their setup to protect against greenwashing

This is a special episode, recorded on the snowy mountains of Villars-sur-Ollon during the WEF's Uplink & Villars Institute Summit, where we had the pleasure to talk to Rokas Peciulaitis, Founder & Managing Partner of Contrarian Ventures, a Seed stage VC mobilising resources for climate action in Europe & Israel with a founders-first approach, and Christian Jølck, Co-founder and Partner of 2150 VC, a venture capital firm investing in technology companies that seek to sustainably reimagine and reshape the urban environment.

What you will learn in this episode:

The role of venture capital in shaping and saving the future and why impact will give birth to Venture 2.0
Reflections on the application of the VC & Startup creation playbook and it's applicability for the challenges of the future
Why the military is incredibly important for climate investing & why the next trillionaire will be made in climate
Exactly what Climate50 is and how you can get involved as a VC or LP

Today we are happy to welcome Isabelle O'Keeffe, partner at Sure Valley Ventures, an AI-focused VC firm which helps early-stage software entrepreneurs in the UK and Ireland grow and scale. Isabelle joined SVV in 2018 and was involved in building out the fund as well as relationships with founding teams innovating in immersive tech, e-sports, Metaverse, Enterprise AI and cybersecurity.

In this episode you’ll learn:

Raising fund 3 in the current market
LP environment in Europe, where it’s evolving to and the growing collaboration
How to think about balancing two funds with similar mandates but different geos
Dry powder turning wet and the timing of a new fund in today’s market

Today we are happy to welcome Eleanor Kaye, Executive Director at Newton Venture Program, a joint venture of LocalGlobe and London Business School. Newton trains aspiring and practising venture capital professionals with an explicit mission to diversify the VC Ecosystem. Previously, Eleanor worked at Palantir Technologies across multiple operational roles during Palantir’s period of hyper-growth before Direct Listing. A passionate hiker, mother and now, gardener, Eleanor also dedicates time to mentor, encourage local impact initiatives, and supporting those in need.

In this episode you’ll learn:

Why & how LSE & Local Globe are involved in the Newton Venture Program
How blind recruiting and evaluation leads to more diversity in VC
The impact of the Newton Venture Program and who it’s for
Why Eleanor believes VC could do with a little less naïvety amongst emerging managers
There’s no right way to do venture, so how does the Newton Venture Program teach?
Reflections on role models and who to learn from

Today's episode is one for the geeks! 🤓 We are happy to welcome Dmitry, General Partner at Runa Capital in Berlin. He invests in cloud infrastructure, deeptech and quantum computing. He has a PhD in physics, was a visiting researcher at the University of Ulm and Max Planck Institute for Polymer Research in Mainz, Germany. Come and join us as he discover what the hell photonics are.

What you will learn in this episode:
* The importance of patience and why your career path in VC must tie closely to your expertise and background * How deep tech thesis can evolve over time to incorporate new topics and technologies as they emerge * Why the majority of VC investments in quantum computing go to creating more powerful machines, but applications remain important to keep an eye on

Today we are happy to welcome Thomas Otter, General Partner at Acadian Ventures, an early-stage venture capital firm that helps founders around the world build enduring companies. Recent European investments include Techwolf, Fifty, and Figures. Thomas has an operator background in HR Tech and the Future of Work, having been a Research VP at Gartner, and led Product at SuccessFactors.

In this episode you’ll learn:

A deep dive on The Future of Work vertical and why it’s vertical special to its own
Why there’s a need for a specialised VC like Acadian for Future of Work
How Acadian wins as a global, but small investor

Today we are happy to welcome Matthias Engel and Sven Heiligtag, Managing Partner and Partner of Vireo Ventures, an early-stage VC investing in seed and pre-seed highly scalable start-ups that drive electrification, in the energy, mobility and smart city space. Matthias has served 5 years as Managing Director of innogy’s corporate venture capital activities building and managing an investment team and portfolio with a dedicated investment volume of €130m with investment activities in Europe, Israel and North America. And Sven has been 20 years with McKinsey & Company in the Electric Power & Natural Gas practice, leading practices in Germany and Japan.

In this episode you’ll learn:

How the Vireo team think about the energy vertical and why electrification plays such a big role
The Vireo team’s take on the energy crisis and it’s affect on the startup and LP landscape
How big firms don’t always follow through as you would expect

Today we are happy to welcome Siim Teller, Founder and General Partner of Lemonade Stand. After 20 years growing products in a number of startups (most notably at Skype) in Tallinn, London and Berlin, Siim set up Lemonade Stand in 2019 to invest in early stage Baltic and East European startups. Lately he’s being looking for AI and Machine Learning applied to boring business problems.

In this episode you’ll learn:

A deep dive on the Baltic ecosystem and the VCs to know in the region
Family Office motivations to do venture and how Siim used LP investments to guard against adverse selection
Reflections on the limitations of the solo GP model

Today we are happy to welcome Carlos Eduardo Espinal, Managing Partner at Seedcamp, arguably, Europe's leading seed fund, first launched in 2007 to support European entrepreneurs truly compete on a global scale. With investments in over 460 companies including publicly listed Romanian-founded, UiPath, Wise and unicorns Revolut, wefox and Pleo. Carlos is a published author, fellow podcaster and made it onto Forbes Midas List as one of the most influential VCs in Europe in 2018, 2019, 2020 and 2021. You are in for a treat.

In this episode, you will get a rare look into the top three funniest objections that Seedcamp and Carlos have had to endure from LPs on their journey to building Seedcamp to the hallmark it is today.

Objection #1: "Your fund model will break when it goes from 5M to 20M€"
Objection #2: "You're just spraying and praying and your portfolio will be far too big for you to manage"
Objection #3: "Why don't you just invest in the winners?"
Objection #4: "Who led deal X, Y and Z and how will you retain that person and keep him/her motivated?"

And some extra reflections by Carlos on opportunity funds, VC decision-making and incentive structures and firm management.

Today we are happy to welcome José, Founding Partner of Samaipata. Before joining the early-stage pan-European VC fund, José was the co-founder of La Nevera Roja, the leading food-delivery platform in Spain, which sold to Rocket Internet for $100 million in 2015. José has also worked at PWC and Accenture in Strategy and M&A Advisory.

In this episode you’ll learn:

VC Brand building from one of the best brands in the space
Why you must build your brand for founders and not LPs & how to balance personal and firm brand
What’s behind Samaipata’s ethos of go beyond, think big and stay real
How José thinks about building LP relationships from first touch to conversion and beyond

Today we are happy to welcome Anne Solhaug Tutar, Partner at Antler Nordics, former entrepreneur and startup expert. At Antler, Anne has made more than 40 investments in early-stage startups and was named Company Builder of the Year in 2021 as well as top 10 Leadership Talents 2021 in Norway by E24. Anne's entrepreneurial background comes from Turkey where she founded one of the country's first health food FMCG with customers such as Starbucks and Carrefour.

In this episode you’ll learn:

How relocating to Turkey led Anne into entrepreneurship and then VC
How hustling as an entrepreneur carries into the hustle of being an emerging VC
How Antler Nordics has built a model to optimize collaborating with industry

Today we are happy to welcome Jon, Founding Partner of Eka Ventures, an early stage venture capital firm that invests in Seed and early Series A consumer technology companies building sustainable economy. Jon founded Eka alongside Camilla Dolan to build a leading venture firm that integrates impact investing with mainstream venture. Prior to Eka, Jon has spent 11 years at MMC Ventures, ultimately as Managing Partner and led venture investments in 17 companies, been the investor representative at the board of 21 companies.

In this episode you’ll learn:

Everything about assessing founder development capacity and the pillars of self-awareness, impact awareness, systems and process thinking and speed of self-development
Jons views on coaching and coaches in venture capital and the difference between looking for A players and Growth Mindset founders
How Jon and Eka build their founder assessment around honest interviews that uncover the story and person behind the startup
Why Jon has seen more value taken away by VCs than added by VCs

Today we are happy to welcome Diana Florescu and Piyush Puri. Diana is the CEO and Founder of mediaforgrowth, a media for equity advisory firm, specialised in Series A to pre-IPO media capital fundraising. Piyush leads the Brand Capital International team in Silicon Valley as Vice President of BWI, the strategic investment arm of The Times Group – India’s largest multimedia conglomerate.

In this episode you’ll learn:

How media for equity came to existence as a category of venture investing and why media companies are increasingly active in the space
The story of Times Group of India and it’s journey to investing media capital in more than 900 brands over the last 18 years
What the typical media for equity deal looks like and how media is priced in such deals

Today we are happy to welcome Edward van Wezel, Founding and Managing Partner of BioGeneration Ventures. Launched in 2006, BGV has managed over 250 million euros across four funds. They invest in medical and healthcare innovations that have high potential to positively impact patients.

In this episode you’ll learn:
- Edward’s route from chemical engineering to VC

How BGV thinks about sourcing from all of Europe and why certain geos have risen to be their core focus
On working with universities, research institutes, TTOs and the status of IP ownership in Europe
On building your ideal LP base and the importance of designing for diversity

Today we are happy to welcome Sara Rywe, Partner at byFounders - a €110m early-stage, community-powered, founders-led VC fund. Sara is an entrepreneur at heart with experience from a range of tech startups and has also worked as a management consultant at McKinsey & Company and led the global strategy implementation at Danske Bank.

In this episode you’ll learn:

Going from a simple town in Sweden to partner at one of the leading funds in the Nordics
The story behind the framework and building of a fund pioneering true founder friendly terms
Why impact awareness has become central to byFounders even though it’s not a full-fledged impact or climate fund
An exciting look under the hood of building and running the byFounders Collective to leverage their Angel LP base

Today we are happy to welcome Ali Karabey, Founding Partner at 212, a venture capital firm that backs B2B tech startups with 85 million dollars of commited capital and 170 million dollars in Assets Under Management. This year are launching their Fund III aiming for 70 million in size.

In this episode you’ll learn:

How the Turkish ecosystem has developed since 212 launched as the first fund in the region back in 2012
How understanding LPs and having a long-term approach to the relationship can make a real difference in your fundraise
How Ali thinks about investing in emerging markets and scale to invest outside of your region of comfort
How Ali has dealt with geopolitical risk and how - in that light - VC’s fluctuations can seem relatively small

Today we are happy to welcome Rune Hven-Jensen and Andreas Green Rasmussen, Co-Founders and General Partners of Ugly Duckling Ventures, a VC firm that invests in Nordic companies at the pre-seed, seed and early stages, currently raising their first fund and about to announce their closing.

In this episode you’ll learn:

How they pivoted their raise from the tech ecosystem to family offices
Raising through the best and the worst time possible to raise a fund
The rationale behind allocating 75% of their fund to follow-ons
Why the team targets the layer just below the consensus layer of normal VC and how this led an LP to refer to Ugly Duckling as “the PE firm of VC”

Today we are happy to welcome you to our favorite type of episode: our memo episode! That means we’ll be diving deep on a fund that the EUVC LP Syndicate is investing into together with the GP team. So, please welcome Borys and Diana, Founding Partners of SMOK Ventures, an operator-led VC fund focusing on top serial founders from the CEE region.
At EUVC, we’re hyped about this investment because SMOK Ventures have risen to become the first-choice fund among many serial entrepreneurs in less than two years of operation by delivering on their promise of connecting the CEE and Global venture ecosystems with more than 80% of the money raised by portfolio startups coming from outside the region.
What is more, Borys and Diana are amazing human beings who our syndicate investors can count on to not only deliver returns, but also insights, learnings and access to the region.
We hope you’ll enjoy meeting Borys and Diana in this episode and invite you to reach out if you wanna learn more about how to join the EUVC LP syndicate.

Today we are happy to welcome Premysl Rubes, Founder and Managing Partner of Presto Ventures, a Prague-based VC firm investing in early-stage (pre Series A) startups built by exceptional founders from Central and Eastern Europe.

In this episode you’ll learn:

Premysl’s journey from entrepreneurship, to angel investing to VC
Learnings going from a single GP & LP firm to multiple-partner team with a large LP-base
The importance of alignment of interests in a single LP set up
Why Presto Ventures double down on a high velocity investment strategy with multiple deals done per month and investment cycles of 2 years

Today we are happy to welcome Annie Theriault, Managing Partner at Cross-Border Impact Ventures (CBIV), an impact venture capital firm investing in health technology companies addressing large international markets. Cross-Border focuses on expanding access to world class technologies within North America and Europe as well as to reach people living in emerging economies. Prior to founding CBIV, Annie worked with high impact companies to mobilize more than $100 million in non-dilutive capital as a venture capital investor and advisor.

In this episode you will learn:

How come Cross-Border is one of the funds selected for the Innovative Funds at WEF and what's to come on the Program
Why the only way to make money is with great co-investors
And why any VC telling you they did it all by themselves is full of sh*t

Today we are happy to welcome Michiel Kotting, Partner at Northzone, a venture capital fund shaped by lives as entrepreneurs and investors. He leads Northzone’s investments focusing on SaaS, marketplaces, healthcare and AI.

In this episode you’ll learn:

The journey from entrepreneur into VC
How Northzone have managed to be relevant to founders as they’ve far outgrown their Nordic outspring
The importance of culture and why the art of investing lies in mentoring people
What emerging themes Michiel sees coming in VC
How Michiel thinks about the tech crash, Northzone’s role and going forward from here

Today we are happy to welcome Monik Pham, co-founder of Pact VC, an early stage tech fund backing mission driven founders with global ambitions. They have over 40 years’ experience building businesses in Asia, Middle East and India, and a strong track record investing in them in the UK and Europe. Pact invests in seed-stage companies under three themes which they call their ABCs - Access, Betterment, and Climate.

In this episode you’ll learn:

On Pact’s origin story and raising a fund, the route to their name and having Anne Hathaway as an LP
Everything about Pact’s ABC thesis and how it connects and leverages the team’s track record and experience
Why Pact enters with large initial tickets and how it impacts their operational setup
A deep dive on impact & diversity in VC

Today we are happy to welcome Fridtjof Berge, Chief Operating Officer and co-founder of Antler, a startup generator and early-stage venture capital firm. Fridtjof works with a global team dedicated to developing the next generation of world-changing technology companies. He oversees external activities across the firm globally and serves as a member on its investment committees.

In this episode you’ll learn:
- The founding story of Antler, where the name came from & where the team drew inspiration from

Why and how Fridtjof and the team built a rapidly scaled global VC firm
The Antler GP Talent Thesis
How Antler thinks about marrying local and global and the role of process and systems in doing so efficiently
How Antler thinks about building GP teams for new locations
Why Antler launched out of Singapore

Today we are happy to welcome one of Europe's true OG LPs: Chris Wade, co-founding Partner of Isomer Capital. With an extensive career as a founder, startup mentor and LP with more than 50 Venture fund investments under his belt, Chris is a guy you should want to know. At Isomer, Chris co-leads their fund investments and leads their co-investment program - and has a weekly section in the EUVC newsletter where he shares his perspectives and learnings from the week gone by. Tune in for the second of a two-part episode where we reflect on the year that has gone by and predict what is in stock for 2023.

In this episode you’ll learn:

– Why Chris believes 2022 was a year of landmark achievements in technology that we should all remember and why perseverance and necessity are key to innovation

– Why 2022 was also a year of tears, how Chris thinks about the war in Ukraine and it’s impact on society and venture capital

– What gives Chris hope going into the year of 2023

Today we are happy to welcome one of Europe's true OG LPs: Chris Wade, co-founding Partner of Isomer Capital. With an extensive career as a founder, startup mentor and LP with more than 50 Venture fund investments under his belt, Chris is a guy you should want to know. At Isomer, Chris co-leads their fund investments and leads their co-investment program - and has a weekly section in the EUVC newsletter where he shares his perspectives and learnings from the week gone by.

Tune in for the first of a two-part episode where we, in this instalment, explore .

In this episode, you will learn:
* How Chris’ path as an entrepreneur has formed his thinking and behavior as a limited partner * Why Chris chose to devote his life to found and build Isomer Capital * What guides Chris as an LP and how it informs you in your work with LPs * Why venture capital is like the road to enlightenment for a buddhist monk

Today we are happy to welcome Patrick Newton, co-founder of Form Ventures, an early-stage VC focused on investing in startups that are disrupting regulated markets, or building in new markets that will face regulation. Patrick helps founders break down policy barriers and shape winning regulatory strategies.

In this episode you’ll learn:

How Patrick got to found Form Ventures to fund the future regulated markets
The surprising story about how Form was started as a 1M€ fund I to a 30M€ fund II
How Patrick thinks about VC brand building from a strategic and tactical point

Today we are happy to welcome Sergey Jakimov founding partner of LongeVC, a venture capital company supporting early-stage biotech and longevity-focused founders that are changing the world. Sergey is a serial entrepreneur, having co-founded 3 deep-tech ventures and raised more than $40 million in venture funding for his own ventures and as an entrepreneur in residence.

In this episode you’ll learn:
- How Sergey ended up doing longevity from a non-medical background

How to think about longevity as a vertical and the frontiers of the space
A deep dive on longevity techs frontiers: 1) Consumer adoption, 2) Age-related diseases (therapeutics and non-therepeutics), 3) Systemic rejuvenation of the human-being
An usually light-hearted deep dive for the EUVC show on how we can all live longer and have better lives

Today we are happy to welcome Sasha Kaletsky, Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Creator Ventures, a firm that invests and collaborates with content creators. This year they closed their first $20m fund, to invest globally in early-stage companies innovating in consumer-internet.
Together with his partner Caspar Lee, Co-Founder of influencer.com, a content creator with an audience of over 10 million across social channels, they help founders navigate the social media and influencer marketing landscape.

In this episode you’ll learn:

All about how Creator Ventures leverages a strong network of celebrity co-investors
Why Sasha has opted for a model with celebrity co-investors rather than celebrity LPs
The direct & indirect value-add of celebrities, influencers & athletes for founders as well as VCs
What Sasha’s advice to other emerging managers is and why quality LP updates are high on his agenda

Today we are happy to welcome Enis and Kaan, General Partner and Investor at 500 Emerging Europe, who the EUVC syndicate is investing into. In this episode, we dive deep on their recent rebrand from 500 Istanbul to 500 Emerging Europe, their emerging talent thesis and the value chain drift that’s causing emerging Europe to be such an overlooked opportunity. It was an absolute pleasure to meet up with the guys at How To Web and experience exactly how hot the ecosystem and the support for what Enis is building is.

**In this episode you’ll learn:

– How to think about growing a 10M€ fund I to a 70M€ fund II

– Why brand is the only competitive advantage in VC and how to build it

– The 500 Emerging Europe Talent thesis & it’s connection to the value chain drift that 500 is leveraging

– How Enis thinks about building a truly sustaining firm that may rise to dominance

Today we are happy to welcome Jean Bourcereau, President and Managing Partner at Ventech. He has joined the company in 2000, acting as a facilitator of the Partners Committee defining Ventech’s global development strategy and is a veteran driving investments notably in hardware and communications.

In this episode you’ll learn:

The founding story of Ventech and how it grew out of a large bank
Why Jean and Ventech said no to 150M€ from a single LP but rather built a diversified LP base
The importance of having a solid shareholder agreement in place when there’s a cornerstone LP with big impact on the fund
Jean’s thoughts around the concept of CLPs vs CVCs
Why Ventech grew to China rather than the US & the centrality of being an active and relevant dealmaker in the region
How and why Ventech has expanded via a distributed partnership model

Welcome to a very special episode of EUVC where we dive deep with Oliver Holle, founding and managing partner of Speedinvest, for a one-of-a-kind (and super nerdy) discussion on Speedinvest’s newly launched fund 4 of 500M€! Speedinvest is one of Europe’s hands-down best seed stage investors and a household name in the industry that takes a perfectly oiled and scaled investing machine to be able to achieve. So stay tuned for some unique insights from the man who’s built it and who continues to pioneer innovation in our ecosystem.

In this episode, you will learn:
- Why Oliver believes a new model is needed to deliver on the promise of Seed at Scale
- A rare look under the hood of Speedinvest talking everything from carry, remuneration, decision-making structures and much more
- Why and how Oliver has built Speedinvest around five core beliefs: 1) VC is a team sport, 2) Expertise is essential, 3) Being pan-European has a lot of perks, 4) VC is more than picking, 5) Large portfolios managed well offer better diversiﬁcation and top performance.

Today we are happy to welcome David Peterson and Gil Dibner, from Angular Ventures.

Gil is the General Partner and Founder of Angular. He has been an active venture investor focused on enterprise technology companies born in Europe and Israel since 2005. As a venture investor and angel, he has backed over 30 companies. Prior to founding Angular, Gil was a Partner at DFJ Esprit and a Principal at Index Ventures in London, where he helped manage their pan-European seed portfolio.

David is a partner who, prior to joining Angular, was employee #16 at Airtable, where he led growth and partnerships, developing full-stack GTM strategies and scaling the company to over 500 employees, grew from zero to 200,000 customers, and reached a $5.77B valuation.

In this episode you’ll learn:

– The founding story of Angular Ventures and how Gil & David think about complementarity in their partnership

– How Gil & David think about navigating the current market climate & why they leaned into their biggest bet ever this July

– Why Gil advises that alignment is kept front and center for emerging managers raising their fund

Today we are happy to welcome Guillaume Fournier, partner at Credo Ventures, a venture capital company focused on early stage investments in Central Europe. His mission is to identify and back the most interesting early stage companies in the region, support them in their growth plans (including expansion to the U.S. and global markets) and help them to achieve their objectives.

In this episode you’ll learn:

The founding story of Credo, what’s behind the name and what took Guillaume from London to Prague - and what’s made him so happy about that move
Why Guillaume would rather spare on a deal that he ends up competing with than forego the honest conversations with fellow VCs
How Guillaume thinks about building strategic VC relationships and the role of strategic LP investments
All about how Guillaume thinks about succession planning in VC

Today we are happy to welcome Alan Poensgen, Partner at Antler, a global early-stage VC active in the major startup ecosystems across six continents. Alan has an extensive experience in building and scaling technology businesses. He was previously MD and Co-Founder at Westwing, a home & living e-commerce company, and one of Europe’s few e-commerce IPOs of the past years. Before Westwing, he built the software development hub at Rocket Internet, and was CEO of a SEA e-commerce company, along with working for a VC and starting his own company in Spain.

What you will learn in this episode:
- The story behind Antler Berlin & how they institutionalize the friends and family round
- How Alan found his way into venture and how he thinks about building founding teams
- Why Antler isn't a hypothesis-driven investor and what this mean for their strategy & operations
- How Alan navigates the thin line between helping and meddling
- A deep dive on the multiplier effect and flywheel of serial entrepreneurs

Today we are happy welcome Charlie Graham-Brown, CIO & Co-Founder of Seedstars, a platform that educates thousands of tech founders each year and facilitates the scale-up of high growth companies. Charlie is an investment professional and entrepreneur focused on emerging and developing markets, responsible for global seed stage VC investments.

In this episode you’ll learn:

Exactly what Seedstars is and how it’s grown to become one of the dominant global players in creating and funding entrepreneurs in emerging markets
How Charlie has put together an investment strategy to double down on the emerging markets and how that differs from developed marked investing
How Charlie thinks about geo-political and currency risks as a VC
How Charlie has thought about putting together his LP base to serve his goals

Today we are happy to welcome a real legend to the show; Reshma Sohoni, Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Seedcamp. With Seedcamp, Reshma has not only pioneered seed stage investing in Europe, but also built what’s become one of Europe’s consistently highest performing funds. Consequently, we thought we had no choice but to dive deep with Reshma on firm building to tease out some learnings from one of the greats.

In this episode you’ll learn:

Origin story, where the name SeedCamp came from
The importance of staying true to your north star and building an ever stronger flywheel around your firm
How to think about brand building, recruiting & onboarding new talent and keeping the brand lived by all team members
How Reshma thinks about their LP base, why they’ve doubled down on small ticket LPs and requiring value-add and not just money
How Reshma thinks about follow-on investments and raising opportunity funds vs single-opportunity vehicles

With a special guest on the Quick Fire Round: Jeroen van Doornik from Pacenotes

Today we are happy to welcome Romain Diaz, Founder and CEO of Satgana, a Climate Tech Venture Capital firm, investing in early-stage pre-seed with follow-on reserves for the seed round up to €500k. Romain is a passionate entrepreneur, a pragmatic idealist, and genuinely a nice guy!

In this episode you’ll learn:

How Romain’s journey into VC took him from Rocket Internet in Germany, to a venture studio in South Africa and finally now to finally land in Lisbon
How Romain thinks about the venture studio model for an emerging VC and how his own path has made him smarter
How Romain thinks about their value add to founders and ability to pick and win the best in a time with increasing competition in Climate Tech
How Romain has thought about building Satgana from scratch to now announcing it to the world

Today we are happy to welcome Frederik Groenewegen, Co-Founder and General Partner of 415 CAPITAL. He has been an investor in more than a dozen of innovative medical technology companies and currently serves as a Board Director at Cardiac Success and R3 Vascular.

In this episode you’ll learn:

How Frederik and his family’s experience and position in MedTech led them to building 415 Capital
How 415 Capital is leveraging a proprietary commercialization and distribution platform to win the best deals
What Frederik has learnt from Fund I and how the team is adapting for Fund II
How Frederik thinks about COVID as well as the current market’s impact on the MedTech space

Today we are happy to welcome Bogdan Iordache, General Partner at Underline VC. Bogdan is also the founder of HowToWeb, the go-to conference for startups and investors in CEE. This year’s event in Bucharest Romania was amazing, we were able to do a shit load of live interviews and host some of the craziest EUVC dinners. Will we be seeing you in the next ones?

In this episode you’ll learn:

– How sticking to the vision of a fund for 5 years can lead you to become one of the best emerging funds in Europe

– How asking friends “Who would invest in my fund?” can pop the “well I would!” answer if your timing is right

– How fundraising is an exercise of building trust and identifying & expanding circles

– How Bogdan’s fund is tailored specifically to access the best deals in Underline’s target geo and verticals

– Why the most important element of selection is the team and what that means in reality

Today we are happy to welcome Julia Padberg and René Savelsberg, partner and managing partner at SET Ventures. Julia's mission is to reduce the climate impact of the energy sector through digital innovation, together with industry-leading entrepreneurs. René co-founded SET Ventures in 2007. He has 25+ years of experience in technology investing in both deeptech and in energy transition with a background in corporate venturing and venture capital.

In this episode you’ll learn:

– The origin story of SET Ventures, where they got their name from

– How the climate VC landscape has evolved over time and where we are headed

– What allowed SET to survive - even thrive - through the big CleanTech wipeout in the early days

– Culture & firm building and its importance to building and retaining talent

Welcome to a very special episode where we've brought the founders of Vauban, Rémy and Ulric on for a deep dive on the story behind the acquisition of Vauban by Carta. You'll hear all about the founding story of Vauban, how they continue hustling to create the infrastructure for European venture and what's to come.

In this episode you’ll learn:

The love story of Rémy and Ulric and what the future has in store for them as founders, investors and people
The big reveal of the story behind the sale to Carta - and where Vauban will go to next
How Ulric and Rémy see the future of private markets in Europe and beyond

Today's episode is a special one, as we are happy to welcome John Dutton, Head of UpLink at the World Economic Forum, as our co-host. John will tell you all about the Innovative Funds for our Future. And as our guest, we welcome Sandra Osborne Kartt, Managing Director of Investments at ImpactAssets.

– A rare peak into how the WEF’s Uplink supports the VC ecosystem

– How Sandra as an important LP in multiple climate funds thinks about their investments

– How the funds were selected for the Innovative Funds Program and what's to come

– An opinionated but loving run-through of the selected funds by Andreas, John and Sandra

Today's episode is a special one, as we share with our audience the amazing content from Nada, from the Braving Innovation Podcast. Nada hosts conversations with global leaders in the field of Innovation, Technology and Leadership. She dives into transformational stories from startup founders and thought leaders in Innovation and Venture Capital. And this time, the tables were flipped, as David and Andreas acted as her guests.

In this episode you’ll learn:

– Why David and Andreas found their way into venture and hooked up to build EUVC

– Why we need to preach VC to the wider ecosystem more and how it might be done

– How syndicated LP investments can help build your career in venture and get you ready for greatness at any stage of your journey

– Why and how skill, network and diversification are the key factors that the EUVC LP syndicates focus on building

This is a special EUVC episode straight from the Engaged Investments conference in Prague, hosted by our friends from Depo Ventures. Shout out to Petr who was kind enough to invite us. This is the recording of the panel “Perspective of LPs and VCs on the current market situation” which had the participation of our hosts Andreas and David; Ondřej, general partner at Credo Ventures; Vuk, venture capitalist at RSJ Investments; Michal, managing partner at DEPO Ventures; and Michal, principal at VentureFriends.

In this episode you’ll learn:

– How have the panelists have adapted their thinking and actions to fit the current market situation

– Why Ondrej & Credo chose to bring their fund size down from 100M€ to 75M€ for fund IV & How Vuk as their LP thought about that

– The contrarian theses that the panel holds on how to win big in the current market

– What the panel thinks investors should be most wary of when it comes to investing into VC funds and startups these days

Today, we are happy to welcome Tim Draper, founder of the Draper Venture Network, a global network of venture capital funds. He funded Baidu, Tesla, Skype, SpaceX, Twitch, Hotmail, and numerous other well-known unicorns at the seed stage. He is a supporter and global thought leader for entrepreneurs everywhere, and a leading spokesperson for Bitcoin, Blockchain, ICOs and cryptocurrencies.

In this episode you’ll learn:

– The origin story of the Draper empire and why Tim built and scaled via a completely different model - including a TV show that now has 11 million viewers!

– How Tim thinks about succession and partnership structures as well as putting his name behind the business

– How Tim thinks about Europe and what our biggest opportunity and challenge is

– Why Tim thinks the EUVC LP Syndicate model is “very interesting”!

Today we are happy to welcome Bo Ilsoe, managing partner of NGP Capital. From his current base in Geneva, Switzerland he has developed NGP Capital from initial commitments of $25M to more than $1.6B investing in the US, Europe, and China. Bo has through his portfolio exits created more than $3.0B in shareholder value during his time as an investor. A technologist at heart, he believes in the positive transformative effects technology has on society.

In this episode you'll learn:
- The origin & development story of NGP, the highly successful global VC, backed by Nokia
- Why NGP has focused on the Series A and onwards stage
- How Bo thinks about innovation horizons and how it affects the investment thesis of NGP
- How Bo thinks about firm building, decision making and winning as a global team of 25 of which 15 are investors and 5 partners
- Why Bo believes VCs owe founders to push them and be wary of becoming too founder friendly

This is a special EUVC episode straight from the Engaged Investments conference in Prague, hosted by our friends from Depo Ventures. Shout out to Petr who was kind enough to invite us. This is the recording of the panel “Why should business Angels invest in VC?" which had the participation of our host Andreas Munk Holm; Petr Sima, partner at DEPO Ventures; Mikk Orglaan, founding partner at Fstage.vc; Vojta Rocek, partner at Presto Ventures; and Tobias Rataj, who is an angel investor.

Today we are happy to welcome Borys Musielak, Founding Partner at SMOK Ventures. They help fund top early stage entrepreneurs (checks from €50k to €1M) based in Central & Eastern Europe, focusing on software and gaming startups. We were fortunate to record live with Borys during this years edition of How To Web.

In this episode you’ll learn:

– Why Borys is in love with Bucharest and the How To Web (hint: it’s not only coffee!)

– The hilarious story behind the name SMOK and how it ties into a small kiss, a hairy ball AND a dragon

– What the Silicon Valley roots of SMOK impacts how Borys and his team acts, works and invests

– How Borys thinks about growing from a 10M€ Fund I to a 50M€ Fund II and its impact on SMOK

Borys’ views and insights on the state-backed VC programs that have been run in Poland and the CEE region.
How Borys thinks about the Russian/Ukranian crisis and how the VC market is reacting to it.

In this episode, we’re happy to welcome Juan Alonso-Villalobos, Partner of Startup Wise Guys. This year, we had the pleasure of recording with Juan at How To Web in Bucharest.

In this episode you’ll learn:
– How the SWG accelerator works and interplays with their funds

– How Juan thinks about LP profiling and why nailing this is so central

– How SWG builds their ecosystem around verticalized accelerators and funds

– What FinTech solutions Juan sees coming to the venture industry and how it’ll impact us

Today we are happy to introduce you to Mick Halsband, Founding GP of Lunar Ventures, a deep tech seed stage investor, backing technical founders solving problems in big markets.
Mick is a past CTO and a software architect. He has two decades of key roles at startups and multinational leading tech firms. Led software development for embedded mobile, realtime systems, computer graphics, computer vision, and trading infrastructure.

In this episode you’ll learn:

– What's happened at Lunar Ventures since their launch last year and how founders have reacted to their position as the most technical VC in Europe

– How Mick thinks about the state of deeptech in Europe and the technologies he’s most excited about

– Why Mick sees Bucharest and Romania as one of the most promising deeptech hubs in Europe

Today we are happy to welcome Marvin Liao, Partner at Diaspora VC and Board member at Game Groove Capital, an International Gaming Holding Company. He was previously a Partner at VC Fund 500 Startups. Marvin has invested in over 414 Pre-seed & Seed stage startups and we were lucky enough to record this episode with him during How To Web.

In this episode you’ll learn:

– Why Marvin as a successful Silicon Valley investor doubles down on Europe and what he brings to his founders

– A very honest conversation about the collaboration environment in Europe and the US

– How the best European founders can get juiced up by seeing the US ecosystem and experiencing that they're just as good as those backed by the world renowned firms

– Learnings from investing in 414 pre-seed & seed startups over the last decade and why Marvin calls himself the Forest Gump of Silicon Valley

Today, we are happy to welcome Hampus Jakobsson, General Partner at the early stage climate tech venture fund Pale Blue Dot. Prior to co-founding Pale Blue Dot, Hampus was a Venture Partner at science fund Blue Yard and a prolific angel investor with more than 100 angel investments. He is a software engineer turned founder, turned angel investor, turned VC. When not working with ambitious climate people Hampus cooks and reads.

In this episode you’ll learn:
– The hilarious story behind Hampus’ first entrepreneurial ventures and route into venture, all the way to founding one of the signature climate funds in Europe
– The magic of being focused and absurdly curious as a VC
– How Hampus walked into his first VC meeting dressed up in a suit thinking he’d fit in, only to be proven that VC is actually a group of cool people doing amazing things
– How Hampus thinks as a thesis driven investor, first with BlueYard and then with Pale Blue Dot

This is the last of a four episode long special on the MENA region here at The European VC. This special series of episodes focuses on everything MENA VC, bridging the gap with its European counterparts. We intend to shed light on the ins and outs of venture in the region and promote collaboration between Europe and MENA.

For this special series of episodes we welcome our dear friend and special co-host Mostafa Gado.

And as a guest, we welcome Sharif, Chief Executive Officer of the Dubai Future District Fund, the evergreen venture capital fund of funds of Dubai, anchored by the Dubai International Finance Centre and the Dubai Future Foundation with an initial 1 billion Dirham in committed capital.

In this episode you’ll learn:

– How Sharif built a stellar operator career in Silicon Valley and came back to the MENA region with the ambition, skills and network to make a true difference

– The most complete overview of what Dubai Future District Fund as one of the region’s most powerful LPs have in store for us

– Sharif’s views on the state of VC in MENA, where we’re headed and how European VCs should think about raising from MENA-based LPs

Today, we are happy to welcome Peter Sandberg, Founding Partner & Managing Director of Nordic Secondary Fund, the first and only fund in the Nordics to exclusively invest in secondaries. Peter has 35 years’ experience from investments and asset management; 5 years’ experience as an early-stage investor and 30+ investments in a.o. LegalDesk & Sky. We had the pleasure to be together with Peter, recording this episode during TechBBQ in Kopenhagen.

In this episode you'll learn:

– The origin story of Nordic Secondaries Fund

– The inner workings of one of Europe’s first secondary funds and how they think about pricing, investment strategy and negotiation

– Why Peter Sandberg sees a future with much more secondary activity in Europe

– Fundraising advice from a natural talent solidly rooted in the angel world

– The importance of karma in venture capital and especially the secondaries market

Welcome to yet another Memo-episode where we dive deep on one of the funds that we’re raising an EUVC community syndicate for - in other words; one of the funds that you can join us in backing, with minimum tickets at just 1k€.

For this, we’re talking to Cristobal Alonso from Startup Wise Guys. You’ve met him before in past episodes, so you know he’s quite a personality and that it’s an incredible mission they’re in. Join us as we look behind the scenes of the Startup Wise Guys investment into Fractory and the journey from pre-seed to series A leading to a 120x multiple.

This episode is completely different. Actually, it’s not even an EUVC episode! We’ve just launched a new partnerpodcast “The UrbanTech VC” which is hosted by KJ and Mark. This is the go-to podcast for European Founders in the UrbanTech space. So give it a listen and if you don’t think it’s for you - share it with someone else!

For this debut, we're happy to welcome you to Thibault Chavanat, Senior Project Manager at the SIGNA Group. He is in charge of the development project ‘Karstadt am Hermannplatz’ in Berlin and shared some super interesting insights about the project, Circular Construction and sustainable buildings.

In this episode you’ll learn:

– Why “waste” in old buildings is of surprising high value

– How challenging it is to find architects who don’t see the re-use of materials from the building itself as limitation, but as opportunity

– How discussions about future regulations like the outlook of the CO2 tax coming can lead to creating something new beyond known paths

– How the availability of historical, detailed plans of a building can come with both advantages and disadvantages for developers

Today we are happy to welcome Audrey Soussan, General Partner at Ventech in its Paris office. The firm is deeply implicated in the evolution and diversity of European tech. Audrey focuses on Product Led Growth, Retail Tech, HR Tech and Marketplaces. She has unique insights on entrepreneurs’ business development, impact investing, and women in tech. She has joined the company since 2011, starting as an analyst and grew all the way through to General Partner.

In this episode you’ll learn:

– All about Audrey’s journey from analyst to partner inside Ventech

– How long term orientation has shaped every part of Audrey’s life and path as a VC

– How Audrey thinks about culture, carry and leadership in VC

– Succession preparation in VC firm-building

This is the third of a four episode long special on the MENA region here at The European VC. Today, we’re welcoming Laila Hassan, General Partner at Algebra Ventures. She has joined their second, $90 million fund, and her appointment marks progress in Egypt’s VC ecosystem, becoming the country’s second female partner at a VC.

This special series of episodes focuses on everything MENA VC, bridging the gap with its European counterparts. We intend to shed light on the ins and outs of venture in the MENA region and promote collaboration between these two beautiful regions.

For this special series of episodes we welcome our dear friend and special co-host Mostafa Gado.

In this episode you’ll learn:

The conditions that give the Egyptian Market a kind of crystal ball effect
The trends and opportunities in the MENA region through the eyes of a first-time fund manager
Why relationship-building is key in such a small ecosystem like VC
Laila's values, core learnings and suggestions for emerging managers

Today we are happy to welcome Maria, founding managing partner of Beacon, a London-based fund that invests with a laser-sharp focus in enterprise tech venture across Europe. Maria is an Entrepreneur-in-Residence at INSEAD Business School and serves on the Committee of the Chairs in Emerging Technologies as well as the Enterprise Hub of The Royal Academy of Engineering. She is also angel investing and on the board of a number of fast growing companies. This greek engineer used to fence the foil so watch out for her ripostes!

In this episode you’ll learn:

– How Beacon accelerates the J-curve by focusing on capital gap of founder secondary investments at pre-series B to complement their pre-series A primary investments in enterprise tech

– Why off-cycle founder secondaries are an integral part to build a strong ecosystem that can generate 1 bn€ exits - and why the big sovereign LPs need to wake up to this

– How Maria thinks the preference stack, discounts and terms for secondary transactions

– The three core stakeholders of putting together a secondary transaction and how to make them reach an agreement that all see as a win-win

– Why the founder CEO is central to putting together a secondary transaction

Welcome to another hot-off-the-press episode in our special series on navigating the current market with Europe's absolute VC elites.

Today, we welcome back Lindsay and Kemper from Industry Ventures. They certainly had a lot more to share.

Lindsay is the Managing Director at Industry, and focuses on originating, valuing and managing primary fund commitments and direct co-investment opportunities for the Tech Buyout team.

Kemper is the Vice President at Industry and focuses on the firm’s Secondary and Tech Buyout investments, as well as driving business development efforts across their platform.

Brace yourselves for some new and exciting advices.

Today, we are happy to welcome Francisco, Partner and Executive Director of Bynd Venture Capital, an Iberian VC investor with more than 30 active investments in the portfolio in different funds. Bynd is dedicated to seed / early stage technology companies in different verticals strongly connected to Iberia.

In this episode you’ll learn:

– All about Francisco and Bynd’s journey from being an angel club to a VC firm

– Why Bynd focuses on all of Iberia & the Iberian diaspora

– How Francisco thinks about divesting and sourcing buyers for partial exits

– Why Francisco thinks consistency is central to being a successful VC

This is the second of a four episode long special on the MENA region here at The European VC. This special series focuses on everything MENA VC, bridging the gap with its European counterparts. We intend to shed light on the ins and outs and promote collaboration between these two beautiful regions.

For this special series of episodes we welcome our dear friend and special co-host Mostafa Gado.

And as our guest, we're happy to welcome Omar Almajdouie. He is the founding partner and CEO of Raed Ventures, a Saudi venture capital firm that invests in seed and early stage startups. Raed has invested in more than 40 companies. Omar believed early on that corporations must adapt in order to survive in the digital age, and that tech startups will have a transformative and disruptive impact on the traditional business landscape.

In this episode you’ll learn:

– The founding story of Raed charting the path from family office to CVC to finally become a strictly financial and independent VC

– An insider’s view on VC in MENA and specifically Saudi Arabia - and what’s going on with market there these days?

– How Omar has devised their strategy to double down on the strongest tech hubs in MENA

– Omar’s advice to European managers learning how to navigate geopolitical risk

Today we are happy to introduce you to Gesa, General Partner of Auxxo Female Catalyst Fund and Board Member of the German Startups Association. Auxxo is a venture capital firm co-investing into startups with at least one female founder in Europe. Besides that, Gesa founded the Evangelistas, a network of female business angels with more than 170 members in Germany.

In this episode you’ll learn:

– Gesa’s perspective on the biases for and against female focused funds

– Why Auxxo invests in female founders and how that focus gives Auxxo a competitive advantage in winning competitive deals

– How Auxxo is thinking about their co-invest strategy in the light of the new market

– How Auxxo managed to raise their fund with more than 50% of their LPs being women (in terms of €€ as well headcount)

– How Gesa thinks about firm development, fund II, and what’s in store for Auxxo

In today's episode you will meet Daniel Tomov, Founding Partner of Eleven Ventures. Daniel is a pioneer in seed investments in Bulgaria and an entrepreneur in technology, cleantech, and consumer retail. Following his passion for building successful companies, he co-founded Eleven together with Ivaylo Simov in 2012.

We first met Daniel at HowToWeb last year and can’t wait to reconnect for this year’s event on the 21st and 22nd of September in Bucharest, Romania. Will we be seeing you there?

In this episode you’ll learn:

– Reaching escape velocity and the story behind the name “Eleven Ventures”

– The story of how Eleven Ventures have grown from being an accelerator to fund III of 60M€

– Daniel’s eye on the the LP scene in Eastern Europe and how it’s developing

– Why Eleven Ventures are investing out of their own pocket to double down on building their value add platform

– Why emerging managers must be wary with overpromising to founders

In this episode, we're happy to welcome Rando Rannus, General Partner of Siena Secondary Fund. Rando is a founding member of Estonian Startup Leaders Club, a leading figure in EstBan, and is an exited entrepreneur an exit and a portfolio of 30+ startups. And on the contrary to typical early stage VC funds, Siena Secondary is focusing on later stage startups which have already solid business models and growing exponentially.

In this episode you’ll learn:

– The founding story and opportunity that led to the raise of Siena Secondary Fund - and the surprising story behind the name

– Juxtaposition of the early stage market and secondaries market - and why defaults in the portfolio are a complete no-go

– Why Rando prefers to buy secondaries off of founders, early employees or local champions

This is the first of a four episode long special on the MENA region here at The European VC. This special series focuses on everything MENA VC, bridging the gap with its European counterparts. We intend to shed light and promote collaboration between these two beautiful regions.

For this special series we welcome our dear friend and special co-host Mostafa Gado - Venture Builder, Innovation Strategist and Tech Enthusiast. Mostafa has led the Project Management and Business Development for Fetchr, the #1 MENA startup in 2017 according to Forbes, in Saudi Arabia. He is a former Innovation Strategist at Accenture Middle East and Advisory Manager at PWC Middle East.

Our first guest is Kenza Lahlou, co-founder and General Partner at Outlierz Ventures, an early-stage Africa-focused VC fund dedicated to Seed and Pre-Series A companies.

In this episode you’ll learn:
– How Kenza broke into VC in the first place and how the journey into VC in MENA differs from that in Europe

– Why the rise of certain startup ecosystems is promising in the Morocco region

– How Kenza thinks about helping take MENA startups go global

– Why Africa's near-boundless VC opportunities if approached in the right way

Today's episode marks the 100th episode of The European VC so we’ve shifted things up and turned the tables on your usual hosts. This time, David and Andreas are the interviewees, lifting the covers on the vision behind The European VC and how an incurably optimistic former Danish bodybuilder and over-thinking Portuguese VC protégé ended up betting everything and tying themselves and their families’ fortunes together by the hip. To interview them, nobody better than Tom, Affinity's European Regional Director and one of EUVCs long-standing supporters and friends. Besides that, Tom is a Data and Technology leader with 18 years experience in the European Venture Capital and Private Equity industry. We cannot wait to bring you this story and hope you’ll enjoy hearing a bit more about your usual hosts.

In this episode you’ll learn:

– The vision and origin story of The European VC

– Why angels, VCs and ecosystem champions should connect around LP syndicates

– What’s been learnt from 100 interviews with European VCs and which episodes are the hottest!?

– How the team behind The European VC is working to connect and democratize European VC - and what the pitfalls are.

Today we are happy to welcome Jamie, CEO and Founder of Creator Fund - Europe’s leading university student focused fund. Jamie launched the fund in 2019 and has since grown its presence to more than 25 UK universities. The inspiration for the model came from his time at Stanford where he was an investor at Dorm Room Fund. Jamie is a true thought leader in the space and is leading the charge pioneering a new generation of funds that we expect to see from in the future! Buckle up, ‘cos Jamie is going places - fast.

In this episode you’ll learn:

– Why the Creator Fund is investing in top European universities and the new founder's profile coming out of those academic environments

– Their strategy of not just backing great founders but supporting a generation of student investors, leaders and technology talent

– How can phD founders have more ownership of the IP in their universities with Creator's alternative negotiations

– Why transparency is a key value on a VC's relationship with its LPs

Today we're happy to welcome John Frankel and Maciej Skarul.

John founded ffVC back in 2008. ffVC is a leading New York City-based VC firm which has demonstrated success scaling global tech business. And you might be asking: “A US based fund in The European VC pod?!”. Listen to this episode and you’ll understand why.

Maciej, our other guest, is a partner at ffVC and has over 12 years of experience in investment banking and M&A. Based in Poland, he is one of the two partners leading ffVC’s European arm in Warsaw. ffVC Warsaw works in conjunction with the rest of the ffVC network to bring to Poland everything that ffVC has done over the past twelve years in the US.

In this episode you’ll learn:

– Why a US focused VC decided to invest in Poland and the ecosystem challenges they are facing with more conservative investors

– How the European culture can grow from million to billion-dollar exits

– How their early investments are turning into a global seed stage footprint

– The attraction of building US focused businesses using European tools and teams, since CE startups are 3x more cost efficient than their western pears

In today's episode, we're talking to Anthony Danon, co-founder of Cocoa, one of the hottest emerging managers in Europe these days pioneering a strategy of being VCs turned angels. Cocoa are deliberately small (17 M€ and nearly 3x oversubscribed). They are backed by some of Europe's top decacorn and unicorn founders. Prior to launching Cocoa, Anthony has been with Anthemis and Speedinvest and his partner Carmen Alfonso Rico with Samaipata and Blossom. They’ve both led high-profiled investments into companies like Hopin, TrueLayer, Primer, Wayflyer, Tide, and many more.

In this episode you’ll learn:

– The investment thesis of being VCs turned angels and Anthony’s reflections on the rise of micro funds

– The fundraising tactics and narrative excellence that allowed Cocoa to close their fund in record time and heavily oversubscribed

– Why Cocoa said no to VC money in their LP base and prioritized founders and operators

– How Anthony thinks about the current market and the need to adapt as VCs

In this episode, we're happy to introduce you to Lindsay and Kemper, the UK-based team from Industry Ventures, a global 5 bn euro Fund of Funds. Lindsay is the Managing Director at Industry, and focuses on originating, valuing and managing primary fund commitments and direct co-investment opportunities for the Tech Buyout team. Kemper is the Vice President at Industry and focuses on the firm’s Secondary and Tech Buyout investments, as well as driving business development efforts across their platform.

In this episode you’ll learn:

– All about Industry Ventures, the 5 bn € quiet giant investing into early stage funds

– Why Industry run 4 strategies in parallel and how they work together to yield a competitive edge for their LPs as well as managers

– The state of the secondaries market and how Industry navigates it in Europe

– What the future holds for Industry in Europe

Today, we're happy to welcome Apostolos Apostolakis, founding partner of VentureFriends, a leading European VC firm based out of beautiful and sunny Greece. Apostolos is a founder, turned angel, turned VC and has been investing and supporting startups since 2010, and focuses on consumer software and marketplaces.

In this episode you’ll learn:
– Why tech plays such an important part in the democratization of venture
– All about the thesis and strategy of VentureFriends and why they focus globally
– An insider's view on the Greek Market and the effects of the pandemic
- The essential value of having people on the ground, cultivating a network and creating awareness

Join us as we're talking to Laurens Groenendijk, co-founder of Dutch Founders Fund, an founder-led early-stage venture capital firm from Amsterdam and focuses on marketplace businesses and products or services with strong network effects. Just as the rest of the founding team behind Dutch Founders Fund, Laurens is a successful entrepreneur having previously founded Just-Eat, Treatwell, Miinto and nano-satellite challenger Hiber.

In this episode you’ll learn:
– Why Laurens love markets that are considered unorthodox or unusual
– What’s behind Laurens’ thesis of letting crazy ideas flourish and why it’s important to remember that just 1 line item can make all the difference
– Why Laurens built an LP base 100+ founders and operators
– How Dutch Founders Fund manages and serves their LP base via weekly updates and whatsapps

Welcome to another hot-off-the-press episode in our special series on navigating the current market with Europe's absolute VC elites.

For today’s episode, we sat down with Tom Wilson, Partner at Seedcamp. Seedcamp requires little intro, so suffice it to say that he team has backed more than 430 companies and are early investors in European successes like Hopin, Wise, Revolut, Sorare, wefox, Pleo, UiPath, viz.ai and Grover. So with that, let’s dive in!

In today’s episode, we’re talking to Jimmy, co-founder and partner of Heartcore Capital. He founded Heartcore in 2007 to challenge the traditional venture landscape which today’s conversation will also show you is still very much on his mind as we’ll be talking about the macro trends driving European VC today and how Jimmy thinks about how to navigate these.

In this episode, you'll learn:
- Where Jimmy sees the venture capital market going long-term
- Why the LP/GP model is an era of the past
- How globalization and the entry of players will affect European venture
- Why the time of illiquidity will come to an end
- Why being small and nimble will become more difficult
- Jimmy's key learnings from founding Heartcore

For today’s special series episode on navigating the current market with Europe's absolute VC elites we’re talking to Chris Wade, Founding Partner of Isomer Capital - The O.G. of European LP investing. With investments in more than 50 European early stage VC funds counting anything from first time managers to the known greats like Seedcamp, Semantic, Hoxton, and Kindred, we thought Chris would be the perfect guest to dive deep on the effects on the current market on VC fundraising.

On a final note, we should say that this episode is an edited version of a virtual event earlier hosted on LinkedIn, so in case you missed it; enjoy! and in case you’re part of the 5.000 VCs that have seen it thus far; we hope it’ll be worth revisiting.

Today we’re talking to Alex Santos, founding partner of Chamaeleon, an early stage fund based in Silicon Valley doing first checks between 1 and 5 million primarily in the US and Europe but can invest globally. Chamaeleon invest on the basis of a thesis revolving around product-led companies, with technology differentiation and clear end-user flows that the team can test.

Alex is an experienced investor and operational handler having spent 15 years in telco and tech and 6 years as an angel & VC. Alex has also co-founded the Portuguese corporate venture builder studio Bright Pixel.

In this episode you'll learn:
- How to raise successfully from corporates and use them actively afterwards
- How Alex and his team have innovated on the LP value add model
- Why Alex never reached out to FoFs and large institutional investors
- A sneak peek into Chamaeleon's quant and tech stack strategy

Welcome to another hot-off-the-press episode in our special series on navigating the current market with Europe's absolute VC elites. For today’s episode, we sat down with Jimmy Fussing, founding partner of Heartcore - one of Europe's leading consumer VCs. Heartcore has invested in more than 90 companies counting the likes of Templafy, Podimo, Peakon, Reddit and many more. What a team. Let's dive into it!

Today we’re happy to introduce you to David Braga Malta, a Life Sciences Entrepreneur, Inventor and Investor, currently managing the health focused fund of Pictet Group, one of Europe’s largest private banks. He was previously a Venture Partner of Vesalius Biocapital III, one of Europe’s leading Life science funds and got his experiences in VC with Caixa capital investing in a mix of funds and startups.

What you'll learn in this episode:
- How being an LP formed the foundation for a solid VC career and why everyone should seek to get VC LP exposure in their own wealth management
- David's reflections on fund investment policies in Europe and why reformation is integral to reduce societal asymmetries
- The business case for life sciences in Europe and David’s reflections on why we’re not capturing the opportunity

For this episode of our special series on navigating the current market, we’re talking to an old friend of The European VC; Oliver Holle, founding and managing partner of Speedinvest. As one of Europe’s leading seed funds with 6 teams investing across as many verticals and great exposure to both the early and the late stage in their portfolio, Oliver has the perfect vantage point to comment on the status of the current market.

Join us as we're talking to Tom Wilson, Partner at Seedcamp and recovering lawyer. Seedcamp requires little introduction to most, but let’s do it anyway; Seedcamp was founded in 2007 with the strong belief that exceptional talent can come from anywhere, a belief that remains deep-rooted in the firm’s DNA and actions today. The team has backed more than 430 companies and are early investors in European successes like Hopin, Wise, Revolut, Sorare, wefox, Pleo, UiPath, viz.ai and Grover. In otherwords; say welcome to one of the greats.

In this episode, you'll learn:
- Tom's route into venture as a lawyer and how his background has helped him as a VC
- How Seedcamp pioneered the investment strategy of building a large portfolio of small tickets & ownership in European VC
- What's behind the concept of "Seedcamp Nation" and how network effects help drive the outlier performance that Seedcamp has achieved
- What Tom misses from the early days of Seedcamp and where he sees opportunity in the future
- Tom's best advise for emerging managers raising their capita for their first funds.

Today, we’re excited to bring you the first episode of a Special Series on navigating the current market. For this episode, we sat down with Shmuel Chafets, Chairman and Founder of Target Global, one the largest and most successful venture funds in Europe with more than €3 billion under management. They invests in companies across all stages, from pre-seed to pre-IPO and have backed global winners including Delivery Hero, Revolut, Auto 1 Group, Copper, Rapyd, Wefox, Flink, Cazoo, and many others. Their portfolio includes 15 unicorns, 19 exits and 7 IPOs - a European force to be reckoned with. So listen up, ‘cos Shmuel knows what he’s talking about.

Welcome to yet another Memo-episode where we dive deep on one of the funds that we’re raising an EUVC community syndicate for - in other words; one of the funds that you can join us in backing, with minimum tickets at just 1k€.

For this, we’re talking to Cristobal Alonso from Startup Wise Guys. You’ve met him before, in episode 49, so you know he’s quite a personality and that it’s an incredible mission they’re on with Startup Wise Guys. Today, we’re zoning in on the fund we’re investing in; Challenger Fund II, a 20 M€ fund to back and double down on the amazing startups coming out of the Europe-wide Startup Wise Guys accelerator program.

We’ve assembled a panel of LPs to discuss the current turbulent climate and give some insight into how they advise their VCs to act and react. Please welcome Marcus Börner, founding partner of AlphaQ, João Vale de Almedia, Investment director at August and an old friend of EUVC; Jeroen Van Doornik from Pacenotes.

We hope you’ll enjoy this roundtable and invite you to DM us with topics you’d like us to bring for future LP roundtables. We’re here to serve you.

Today we’re joined by Maria Palma, the latest addition to the famed Kindred partnership. She joined Kindred from NY-based VC fund RRE, where she spent five years, both building their platform team from scratch and leading investments into some of their most exciting break-out companies. Prior to that she had a decade long operating career spanning roles in startups and large corporations.

In this episode you’ll learn:
– How Maria broke into venture by creating FOMO and going deep
– All about Kindred’s founder carry sharing scheme and how it helps drive 40% of their top of funnel deal flow and 60% of their end of funnel!
– A deep dive on how Maria and Kindred works with founder community development as a core value add
– Marias views on the current market and what she feels most VCs are missing out on in crypto!

Dilek is the founding and managing partner of ScaleX Ventures, a 30M€ Turkey-based pan-European fund investing in B2B software, AI, bioinformatics, robotics, cyber and focuses her value-add on scaling and growing globally. In this episode we dive deep with Dilek on ScaleX’ founder carry sharing scheme, how they thought about initially, its reception with founders as well as LPs and how they optimize their founder portfolio community.

What you’ll learn in this episode:
- All about why and how the ScaleX team built their founder carry sharing scheme
- How ScaleX works to build founder community in their portfolio and how the carry sharing scheme connects with that
- Dilek’s learnings from the first years with the founder sharing scheme and how her narrative has changed towards LPs

Today we're happy to introduce you to Stephan Heller, founding partner of AlphaQ, a newly launched Fund of Fund in Berlin. The team is raising a 1 bn euro fund to back both emerging and established VCs in Europe and beyond. We dive deep on their model and mission to democratize access to the asset class, what they look for and what you can expect from them. So strap in and welcome Stephan and his team to the European VC scene.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

All about the on-going journey of raising a 1bn€ FoF
What AlphaQ are looking for in managers
What mega trends Stephan see changing the world (and have the most potential!)
What AlphaQ are bringing to the table besides capital

The hosts of The NextGen VC, Audrey and Ved, are joined by Michelangelo Valtancoli of Stride VC. The Stride team have invested in the likes of Cazoo, Zefir and Unibuddy. Before Stride, Michelangelo interned at PayPal and Wayra, Telefonica’s accelerator, and was also a student partner at Entrepreneur First. With his contagious energy and love for acting, Michelangelo is one of the few people we know that broke into VC straight out of university.

In this episode you’ll learn:

How Michelangelo broke into VC straight out of university
How his acting career made him a better VC
Michelangelo’s advice for those who want to break into venture

Breaking news: First time Isomer Capital talks openly about their emerging manager cornerstone program. For our in-person interview with Joe Schorge, founding and managing partner of Isomer Capital, at TEDxAthens, Joe Schorge revealed yet undisclosed details about their cornerstone program for emerging managers.

In this episode you'll learn:
- How Joe thinks about being an optimist in the current market
- What advice he gives to managers
- A first-ever lift of the curtain for a sneak peak into Isomer’s extremely selective cornerstone program for emerging managers

We also want to give a huge shout out to Dimitris Kalavros-Gousiou, founding of Velocity Partners for having invited us to host this talk with Joe Schorge at TEDxAthens this weekend.

Today’s episode is a bit different as we’re joined by Catherine Dupere, Partner at Isomer Capital and John Dutton, head of the World Economic Forum’s Uplink to talk about the Forum’s “Innovative Funds for Our Future”-challenge which calls for innovative VC funds who invest in people and planet-focused entrepreneurs that can strengthen innovation ecosystems and strive for the achievement of the 2030 Global Goals. Selected funds will receive the magical recognition and visibility that only highly acclaimed organizations like the WEF can give you. So pay attention to see if this challenge is something for you and apply here 👉 https://uplink.weforum.org/uplink/s/uplink-issue/a002o0000136S2vAAE/innovative-funds-for-our-future

In this episode you’ll learn:
– Why and how the WEF is involved in startup and VC finance
– Exactly what is WEF’s “Innovative Funds for Our Future”-challenge
– How the challenge can give GPs recognition, visibility, access to LPs and deal flow
– A deep dive on the application process and the thinking behind it
- Why Isomer Capital is supporting the project

Today, we're happy to welcome Will Klippgen, Managing Partner and Co-Founder of Cocoon Capital, a Singapore-based venture capital firm focusing on early-stage enterprise tech companies across Southeast Asia, specifically focused on B2B enterprise and deep tech. The fund prefers to act as lead investor and normally takes a board seat. Will has also invested in over 35 companies since 2004 after co-founding Zoomit.com which was sold to Yahoo in 2004 through Kelkoo.com in one of Europe’s largest internet transactions to date.

What you’ll learn in this episode

What made Will double down on Southeast Asia
What trends and verticals to watch in SEA
Key learnings from raising a fund in emerging markets
How Will has adapted his investment thesis and ops to the SEA markets

Today, we're happy to welcome you to Danijel, founding partner at the World Fund. The fund was launched just this October 2021 focusing on funding climate-tech companies and has the ambition to be there largest climate-focused VC fund in Europe at 350M€. In their investment criteria, they have the amazingly ambitious rule of only backing startups that have the potential to save at least 100Mt CO2e per year. The fund focus on the key emitting sectors Energy, Food & Agriculture, Manufacturing, Buildings and Transport aiming to fill two significant investment gaps for climate tech: when it goes from lab to market and when it leaves the pilot stage to scale.

What you’ll learn in this episode:

Why Danijel and his team believe the time is right for a 350 M€ climate fund in Europe
The origin story of World Fund and key learnings from their fundraise
Where the World Fund team sees the biggest climate opportunities in Europe
What metrics really matter when it comes to climate and sustainability

Today we’re happy to welcome Pedro Ribeiro Santos, Partner at Armilar Venture Partners, a Portuguese VC firm with a history of more than 20 years, a high-performance track record and an international footprint with 300 million under management. Pedro leads Armilar’s sustainability investments and has a strong focus on enterprise software, SaaS and IoT technologies. Pedro has a BSc in Physics Engineering from Instituto Superior Técnico and started his career as a Researcher in Physics for the University of Oxford (UK), and holds an MBA and an MSc in Economics from Universidade Nova de Lisboa.

In this episode you’ll learn:
- All about the MBO story of Armilar and how you can think of spinning out of a corporate/captive VC
- How to think about putting together a syndicate for a big secondary transaction and balancing the interests on both sides of the deal
- The journey of Armilar from founding in early 2000 when Portugal could hardly be placed on a map by international VCs to today where Portugal seems to be on the lips of almost everyone.

Today, we're happy to welcome you to Mathias Ockenfels and Julian Blessin, general partner and partner at Speedinvest’s Marketplaces & Consumer team. Speedinvest is one of Europe’s most active early stage investors with more than €600m of assets under management and Mathias’ and Julian’s investment team focuses on backing startups who are shaping the future across B2B and B2C at the intersection of marketplaces, eCommerce 2.0 and consumer subscriptions. Not only are Speedinvest one of Europe's top VC players, they're also experts in building community and network effects which is something we can't get enough of here at The European VC!

What you’ll learn in this episode

What Mathias & Julian believe is the secret behind Speedinvest’s success in the consumer & marketplaces vertical.
Where Mathias & Julian believe the next great European marketplace & consumer startups will spawn.
How Speedinvest evaluates early stage deals and how they think about evaluating and committing to startups prior to traction.
A deep dive on the cold start problem and how to overcome it.
How the team thinks about Web 3.0, DAO and the crypto-hype.

Today, we're happy to introduce you to Mads Jensen, managing partner of SuperSeed, a UK-based fund seed fund backing B2B software startups that use software and machine learning to automate the way the world does business 🤖 Mads and his partner Dan Bowyer are doing amazing work and we love them for the fact that they’ve democratized access to their fund by listing it on the stock exchange 😍 So effing awesome!

In this episode, you’ll learn:

All about SuperSeeds journey listing on the Aquis Stock Exchange
How SuperSeed thinks about differentiating themselves in one of Europe’s most competitive places and spaces
How Mads thinks about the adjusting to the market - higher ticket sizes? Lower equity stakes? Early stage investments? 🤷‍♂️
How Mads thinks about funding hardware startups and overcoming the problems of securing financing for CAPEX heavy business models.
Why Mads believes in the statement “sales solve all problems for early stage startups” and how it informs their value add strategy.

Today, we're happy to introduce you to Andris Berzins, Managing Partner at Change Ventures, the first and largest truly pan-Baltic pre-seed/seed fund. Change Ventures backs ambitious Baltic founders and are searching for founding teams that have the "grit" to succeed. Andris was also recently awarded the Human Development Award by the President of Latvia for an outstanding contribution to the future of the nation, what a guy 😍.

What you’ll learn in this episode:

All about the Baltic ecosystem - what’s happening, what to look out for and how to approach the market
Why Andris sees many commonalities between the Baltics and the Israeli ecosystem and how this informs Change Ventures’ thesis & strategy
How Andris collaborates with Angels in the region and have brought them into his fund for a close and vested relationship
Important reflections on building a remote-first VC firm, living on slack and key learnings for anyone looking to grow their firm internationally.

Today, we're happy to introduce you to David Ventzel, formerly a founder and the GP of not one, but TWO VC funds, Accelerace Invest and Overkill Ventures 👏 In this episode, we dive deep on Accelerace Invest, being the pre-seed fund backing Denmark’s leading startup accelerators’ amazing alumni. Accelerace has helped spawn more than 800 Danish and international startups and David’s learnings from being an integral part of the team cannot be overstated.

🚨 Do tune in for one of the best “breaking into venture”-stories on the pod so far 😍 and an amazing walk-through of David’s framework for diligencing founding teams pre-traction.

In this episode you’ll learn:

How David has transitioned from being a founder to a VC and key learnings from going through this - including how to build a GP team that can complement each other.
Key learnings from having accelerated >800 startups and all about the “Accelerace Invest Framework” distinguishing between entry criteria and the excellence criteria of Impact, Smartness, Leadership and Crazy.
The importance of having original insight and the difference between investing in beta and alpha growth.
All about the “momentum-framework” and how to track progress in startups pre-revenue.

Today we’re joined by Mike Suprovici, Head of Acceleration at VC Lab, the 16 week VC Accelerator spun out of Founders Institute with a vision to help launch no less than 1.000 enduring VC firms by 2025. We’re excited to bring you this interview as Mike and his partner in crime Adeo Ressi have made quite a splash worldwide with their program helping more than 100 firms be launched across 5 cohorts and make important VC conceptual innovations like the Proof of Concept-fund, Fund-in-a-box and LP Love be disseminated in the ecosystem.

Go register your application for the 7th VC Lab cohort on vcl.to/VC

Today, we're happy to welcome you to Andrea Traversone, Managing Partner at Amadeus Capital Partners. Since 1997, the firm has raised over $1bn for investment and used it to back more than 180 companies. Andrea’s experience as a VC is something to envy, having lived and invested through the boom and bust of three bubbles!

What you’ll learn in this episode:

The views and reflections on the current market - by a man who has lived and invested through the boom and bust of three bubbles!
Why Andrea loves their operational model of having a strong in-house backoffice, involving them early and creating cross-fund deal teams for each investment.
Andrea’s thoughts on carry distribution in VC funds, why junior personnel should be included in the scheme and how they’re setting aside significant carry reserves for employees growing in the firm
Why they define DeepTech on the company level and what’s behind the three core pillars of 1) tech must be a key differentiator, 2) the startup must own the IP, and 3) tech must be the key to the company’s operational leverage.
How the 3 P’s of Power dynamics, Post-rationalization and Persistence creates a virtuous cycle for VCs building their fund narrative

Today we’re welcoming Johan van Mil, co-founder and managing partner of Peak to The European VC 😍 Johan is a life-long entrepreneur, who has built, bought, and sold over 11 companies, from data marketplaces and social marketing software, to email marketing platforms, and more. Making the move from founder to investor, Johan founded Peak with 5 fellow entrepreneurs in 2008, which now invests in fast growing marketplace, platforms and SaaS companies.

And what we REALLY love, their LP base is all operators putting their money to work to change the world - absolutely amazing 💕😍

In this episode you’ll learn:

All about Johan and Peak’s journey from their first fund to today.
How Johan thinks about brand building in VC (and they’re great at this! So pay attention! 👀)
What’s behind the quote “Don’t try to please everybody, look for alternative ways to get things done, give 100% on one big goal – and do not move on before it is done.”
Why Johan and Peak have chosen to build an LP base of operators and founders, what value that brings and how they use them to deliver value to founders

Today we're happy to introduce you to Mike Reid, Founder and senior partner at Frog Capital, a growth stage fund focusing on the opportunity emerging between venture capital and private equity. Mike brings perspectives on a part of VC that we rarely speak about, but many founders need; the intersection point between VC and Private Equity.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

All about Mike and Frog’s focus on risk capital without the pressure to grow at all cost
Why Mike bets on M&A deals of 150-250 M€ rather than unicorns and how this relates to building a portfolio of Ferraris, Landrovers and BMWs
Deep dive on Mike’s and Frog’s scale-up methodology

We’re excited to bring to you the EUVC LP roundtable! We’ve gathered three of Europe’s master minds in VC fund investing for a candid, upfront discussion about topics core to European VCs. In this episode, we’re joined by Chris Wade, exited entrepreneur and founding partner of Isomer Capital, David Dana, head of ICT Investments at the EIF, and Ertan Can, founding partner of Multiple Capital.

In this episode you’ll learn:

What the GP of the future will look like
What trends are driving the EUVC landscape today
Why secondaries are on the rise and likely to grow stronger
What bad LP behavior our panelists see in the market and which GPs should pay attention to and be wary of

Today we’re happy to welcome you to Radu and Andrei, founders of SeedBlink - one of Europe’s upcoming platforms enabling investors to easily syndicate and participate in deals. Radu has a 30 year long experience founding and developing companies and have exited to companies like Microsoft, Naspers and Fitbit. Andrei comes from 20 years in banking but with the insights and ambition to build new experiences and solutions for the financial world - and what better place to do that than by democratising access to VC?

In this episode you’ll learn:

The mission of Seedblink and what made Radu and Andrei bet on building a platform for deal syndication in Europe
What learnings Radu brings with him from his time as a founder and VC to building Seedblink
Where Seedblink are in journey to democratize access to VC, where they see the platform in 10 years and what benefits building out of Romania gives them.

With this special memo episode we’re launching the 3rd investment opportunity in the EU🔵VC Investment Club 👉 As always we dive deep with the GP team going through all the specifics of their fund - investment thesis, strategy, team, track record, deal flow, value add, etc. 🕵️‍♀️

The TL:DR just for you is 👇

Acrobator Ventures is an operator-led fund backing Eastern founders building global software companies. Focus is on arbitrage opportunities in data heavy B2B pre-seed/seed companies sourced by a combination of proprietary tech & insider networks in the tight-knit Eastern diaspora tech founder communities.

The mix between operator experience and AI-expertise, allows the team to be a constructive partner and earn the trust of founding teams quickly which grants the team unparalleled access to these initially undervalued, yet proven unicorn builders.

The team has an absolutely sick track-record of 70+ investments over more than 15 years in the Baltics/CEE/CIS-region yielding a double digit DPI and TVPI from another world [won’t spoil the fun here! You’ll have to listen to the episode or join our investment club to get those details 🤐 !] Suffice it to say that pitchbook rated Acrobator as the #2 Dutch fund by IRR in 2021 📈

We love their investment strategy focusing on early access by allocating significant capital to acquire defendable entry ownership positions in target startups and retaining relevance across stages by allocating super-pro-rata rights via SPVs for the LP-base. Backed by institutional LPs, the fund has been actively investing through the fundraise with called capital already marked-up significantly.

Intrigued? Join us in backing this amazing team in the EU🔵VC Investment Club at http://theemergingvc.substack.com ✊ We’re always looking for new amazing operator LPs to join our syndicates 💪 Minimum commit at 1k€ 💸

We're psyched to introduce you to Marc McCabe, founder of Nomad Capital and one of the latest and greatest European micro VCs in our opinion. We love Marc and are sure you will too. Marc has done angel investments for more than a decade in consumer tech and has held operating roles at AirBnB and been part of the team at SV Angel as well as a Sequoia Scout. He has worked on investments in Stripe, Pinterest, Kaggle, Hipmunk, ElaCarte and many more. Marc has also co-managed a Y Combinator focused micro-fund where he invested in 50 companies across 3 funds including 6 Unicorns and leading their seed investments to be followed by many great funds like A16Z, Founder's Fund, Tiger and Spark Capital.

With Nomad Capital, Marc focuses on finding SaaS tools built by incredible teams that can help the next generation of companies build better products, faster and more effectively. We hope you will come to love Marc as much as we do.

In this episode you'll learn:
- What Marc learned at AirBnB and SF Angels and how he applies it in Nomad today
- Marc's take on scout models and reflections from having been one for years
- All about the thesis behind Nomad Capital and how he as a solo GP executes multiple deals per month
- Why Marc doesn't lead rounds with Nomad and what kind of value he as an Operator and hyper connected investor brings to the table

In the 61st episode of The European VC, we're introducing you to Sapphire Ventures’ founding partner Andreas Weisskam and general partner Kevin Diestel.

Many newcomers to European VC don’t know this, but Sapphire was actually originally established as the corporate VC arm of German software giant SAP, before becoming an independent VC in 2011. They now have $8bn funds under management. Andreas led the launch of Sapphire's first European office last summer, bringing the fund back to the continent 💞 and they've been busy since 💪 having established a team of 7 investors and having invested in companies like Cazoo, Wise, Monday.com and CurrencyCloud and many more household names.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

What drove Sapphire’s decision to double down on Europe and what learnings Andreas & Kevin have made leading the charge
How the European Sapphire team leverages the connection to Silicon Valley to deliver their value add
What the team thinks they’ve brought with them from the Valley that’s especially valuable and what has surprised them in the European ecosystem
Why consensus decisions don’t always make for the best investment decisions and how the team thinks about the necessity to be make non-consensus decisions to make non-consensus investments.

It is with great excitement that we announce the second investment by The European VC Operator LP Syndicates 😍 In this special “Memo episode” we’re diving deep on Pacenotes with the founding team: Jeroen Van Doornik and Menno Rijnsburger. The TL:DR being 👉 Pacenotes gives us access to a proven strategy of investing in top tier funds and co-investments in the winners of their portfolio for strong risk-adjusted returns.

To sprinkle some hotness on it, Jeroen is an exited founder and tech investor who, together with Menno, has built two tech funds of €285 M, which gives them a much coveted skillset of the next generation of FoF investors.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

How a top-tier fund of funds strategy leverages direct investing to create strong risk-adjusted returns that actually rival top-quartile VC funds.
What Pacenotes looks for in their managers and why they focus on the more established VCs with a proven ability to replicate multiples of 3x and above.
How Jeroen thinks about diversification in their strategy.
How Pacenotes use SPVs to expand beyond the fund’s main strike zone on direct investments.

Today, we're happy to welcome you to a slightly provocative episode on VC Memes and well-intentioned founder-advise from VCs. It all started with David and I wanting to bring Julius Bachmann on to shed some light on the world of a founder coach who had formerly been a VC. But he declined! However, a couple of months later, Julius came back with something to say to the VC ecosystem 👉 Think less about doing VC memes and consider staying quiet a bit more often! We hope you’ll enjoy this episode as much as we did making it.

In this episode you’ll learn about:

What problems Julius most often have founders coming to him with as a coach.
Why VCs should recognize that they can’t always be as good a friend to founders as they want to be (and pitch that they are).
How Julius would wish more VCs would behave in the board room and how they can make room for founders to be more candid.

Today we’re excited to introduce you to Vlad Tropko, Partner of Digital Horizon, a multi-stage VC fund investing in immigrant founders globally but with a special focus on Europe. Vlad is a seasoned VC/PE executive with over 15 years of experience investing in European and American startups. Vlad has closed more than 50 deals and is an active member of international VC communities like On Deck, 2hearts, and Alma Angels.

In this episode you’ll learn

How Vlad with both Ukranian and Russian heritage thinks & reacts to the current geopolitical developments
How Vlad and his team have used late stage deals to hack traction with LPs
Why Vlad and Digital Horizon have built their thesis around backing immigrant founders and how that gives them an edge

Today we’re happy to introduce you to Dick Sietses, founding and managing partner of Health Innovations, an early stage fund for Dutch healthcare innovations.

Dick has been in VC since 2000 and founded Health Innovations with a strong eye to the market rather than the technology and thereby brings a different vantage point to the VC-world of healthcare than most funds in the space. We hope you'll enjoy this episode as much as we did making it.

In this episode you’ll learn:

Why having a market-driven thesis rather than a tech-driven thesis is a differentiator for Health Innovations and how it unlocks new opportunities
How Health Innovations have made the notoriously heavy regulatory space a strength rather than an obstacle and how they work with founders to scale out of their homemarket
Dick’s learnings from going from Fund I to Fund IV, what they’ve changed in their initial thesis and what they’ve doubled down on.

The 56th episode of The European VC is out and we’re talking to Matthew Le Merle, co-founder & managing partner of Blockchain co-investors, a blockchain FoF investing in the leading pure-play blockchain VCs and managing partner of Keiretsu - one of the biggest and most active angel networks in the world.

What you’ll learn in this episode:

Learnings on community building from building Keiretsu up to have global coverage and be one of the premier global angel clubs.
How Keiretsu collaborates with VCs and how Matthew has taken that to the next level with his blockchain co-investors’ fund.
What led Matthew to founding Blockchain co-investors, what they’re looking for in VCs and how they pick them.
Why Matthew believes specialization is coming for the blockchain investment landscape and how he pursues this thesis
Exactly what are the key learnings from Matthew’s book “The Fifth Era” and what it means to VCs

Today we’re hyped to be introducing you to Sean Seton-Rogers, Partner and co-founder of PROfounders Capital. PROfounders invests 500k to 2M$ tickets into young digital startups that fix broken customer experiences. They’ve supported and invested in Made.com, GetYourGuide, Unity/Applifier, Small Giant Games, and others. Sean also happens to be a recurring name on the Forbes Midas list, so if you need more than our validation that he’s worth taking cues from, there you go.

In this episode you’ll learn:

How Sean has built pro-founders as a pan-European fund from day-1 and it’s impact on their operations
How Sean thinks about the entry of the bigger American VC firms in Europe
What’s the thinking, strategy and tactics behind PROfounders PROmoter strategy to source and win deals across Europe
Sean’s take on different scout models and learnings from himself as well as the market.

Today, we're happy to welcome you to Sam Cash, newly named Partner at Project A, a pan-European focused seed and Series A fund, with $600m under management and offices in London and Berlin. Sam is heading the company’s London office and has helped build up its investment activities in the UK. He has written about technology entrepreneurship for TechCrunch, VentureBeat and occasionally shares his thoughts in his newsletter, Socratic Tech, which is well worth a read!

In this episode you’ll learn
- Sam’s route into venture and making partner
- How Sam thinks about fintech, crypto and communications and how to leverage being part of a platform VC with a huge operations team
- How to think about the last couple of year’s markets, new dynamics and the introduction of more US capital in Europe and phenomena like micro-VCs, super angels and the tiger cubs

Gary Leyden, co-founder and GP of Leyden Ventures an early stage fund operating out of Dubai and have invested in breakout companies like Coinbase, Superhuman, and Instacart long before they occupied the front page of TechCrunch. And importantly, he’s also the host of 🌮⭐ TacoStars, the largest founder social community in the UAE and is hands-down one of the funniest guys we’ve brought on to the show 😍

In this episode you’ll learn

What has Gary so excited about the MENA region’s ecosystem and what he thinks everyone gets wrong
Gary’s views on fundraising in the MENA region and
The story behind Tacostars, Leyden VC and Gary’s love for rolling funds, SPVs and plug and play fund admin

Claus Rehfeld is a Danish Business Angel with a unique thesis around health tech and some strong contrarian perspectives. Claus sold his company that did business intelligence for the health care sector in 2018 and has since made 8 investments. Join us for an episode that’s certain to lift your mood.

In this episode, you'll learn:

Why the Nordics is a perfect sandbox for VCs in HealthTech and a deep dive on importance of collaboration between hospitals, universities and the tech world.
The primacy of data in the future of health care and why many VCs struggle to capture the opportunity it holds
Why HealthTech should be perceived as distinct from from biotech, medtech, and digitalhealth
What’s behind the quote “founders want the glamour of startups, but not the sweat and tears” and how Claus thinks about investing and mentoring early stage founders.

Today, we’re happy to introduce you to Winter Mead, co-founder of oper8r, one of the world’s leading VC accelerators and which, since recording, has rebranded to now be operating under “Coolwater Capital”. So sorry for the confusion this might cause!

Winter has also authored the book “How To Raise A Venture Capital Fund: The Essential Guide on Fundraising and Understanding Limited Partners” which is a thorough and enlightening read for any emerging VC. So do go and check that out!

In this episode you’ll learn:

The amazing journey he’s been through to write his book “How To Raise A Venture Capital Fund”
Winter’s take on good practices for GPs trying to raise their first fund
His take on the skills of a good founding managing partner
The incredible process of co-founding Oper8r, where they strive to build the next generation of institutional VCs with their amazing program

Meet Finn Murphy, newly-named GP at Frontline Ventures, one of Europe’s leading B2B Enterprise VC firms. Finn is a true “Product-&-Growth-Marketing-Person” turned VC - Looking to find and help grow the best new business ideas in Europe & the US. As a teenager, Finn wanted to be a professional ocean racer after which he went on to ace Engineering & Maths at Trinity College, then start a series of startups and finally go into VC with Frontline Ventures.

In this episode you’ll learn:

Finn’s journey and learnings with Frontline drawing key lessons for VCs aspiring to make partner
How Finn and Frontline adapted to the bull market that has been characterising the last few years and extenuated during Covid.
How Finn thinks about collaboration in VC, how to foster it with fellow co-investors and his analysis of why collaboration seems to come and go as markets go up and down
Why being a junior in the industry can actually be a strength and why you should remember that your relationships are yours, not your fund's... until you make partner that is.

Episode #49: Cristobal Alonso, Startup Wiseguys

Today, we're happy to introduce you to Cristobal Alonso, founder and CEO of Startup Wiseguys, one of Europe’s leading and ambitious B2B accelerators. Cristobal and his team have made more than 180 investments into early-stage SaaS, Sustainability CyberSecurity, and Fintech B2B startups and are set to scale their accelerator model in globally in the coming years. Welcome to an episode packed with Cristobal’s knock-out energy and bold thinking.

In this episode you'll learn:

How Startup Wiseguys contrast to YC, Tech Stars and Startupbootcamp
How Cristobal leverages the accelerator model to hack VC and employ a contrarian investment strategy involving bagging early wins at Series A.
How Cristobal thinks about building a culture and org that can grow to become “YC of the rest of the world”
Why the legal team is loved by founders, what the secret is behind getting to an 80% survival rate in the accelerator portfolio and what has got Startup Wise Guys to a 50% follow-on rate.
Most importantly, where and when the Startup Wiseguys Party will be this coming year

The Power Law by Sebastian Mallaby has been capturing headlines in the VC community lately. We sat down with him at The European VC to dive into his book and shed light on some of the stand-out quotes and stories from the book. If you love VC, you’ll love this book (and hopefully also our interview with Sebastian 🤣)

Join us to learn the story behind the quotes:

Vinod Khosla: Most people think improbable ideas are unimportant. The only thing that’s important is something that’s improbable.

Matt Clifford: Silicon Valley is gripped by the cult of the individual. But those individuals represent the triumph of the network.

Michael Moritz, Sequoia: The great challenge at venture partnerships is that the principals must refrain from killing each other.

Paul Graham, Y Combinator: Spend as little as you can, because every dollar of the investor’s money you get will be taken out of your ass.

Andy Grove, Intel: John [Doerr], venture capital, that’s not a real job. It’s like being a real estate
agent.

Today we're talking to Contrarian Ventures’ founding partner Rokas Peciulaitis and GP Tomas Kemtys. Contrarian focuses on Energy tech and smart mobility at the seed-stage and by doubling down on community their reputation and brand has far outgrown Fund 1’s modest 12.5 M€ AUM allowing them to punch far above their weight class and raise for a many times bigger Fund II. We have to say, this episode is an amazing inspiration for any emerging manager thinking about new ways to cement their presence in European VC.

In this episode you'll learn:

How Rokas & Tomas has built a brand and community that far outweighs their fund size.
How Contrarian balances investing in the notoriously difficult interface of hardware and software & what they think about solving for frontier VC verticals
How Contrarian plans and builds the fund narrative to go from a tiny fund I to a many times bigger fund II and how they prepare for the changes it will bring to the firm.

Welcome to the inaugural launch episode of The EUVC Investment Club where we’re bringing everyone in our beautiful ecosystem together around backing emerging managers. We’re honored and hyped to bring back to the show Enis Hulli, General Partner of 500 Istanbul, one of the best performing funds in the 500 Global fund family. Join us as we dive deep on Enis’ fund and explore why we’re so hyped about Enis and his thinking.
We’ve long been wanting to democratize access to invest into European VC and this episode marks the true beginnings of this.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

The investment thesis and strategy that has led to Fund I’s massive success yielding a 4.7x Gross TVPI & 53% IRR
What has allowed Enis and his team to execute 40 investments in founders from 11 countries with a cumulative 500M$ annualized revenue (97% from foreign markets) and 3000 people employed.
What Enis has learned and adapted from Fund I to Fund II & why Enis doubles down on talent arbitrage and tech transfer.
How Enis thinks about firm building, why he is so wholly dedicated to deal sourcing and what his strategy is to access the best deals in Turkey and Eastern Europe

Daniela is a PhD-trained Biomedical Engineer with more than 10 years of experience in venture capital and building early-stage biotechnology companies, such as Staten Biotech - resulting in a $485 million transaction at the pre-clinical stage. Science has been at the core of Daniela's career and she's now making a true difference at BGV by coupling that with her entrepreneurial experience and eye for judging people as well as investments.

In this episode you’ll learn:

Daniela’s story transitioning from founder to VC
The importance of having a strong entrepreneurial & scientific background as a #biotech investor
The growth story of @BGV from 17M€ AUM in Fund I to 140 M€ AUM in Fund IV
The amazing outcomes from the companies BGV has invested in

We're joined by the famed Al Ramadan, author of the seminal book “Play bigger: how pirates dreamers and innovators create and dominate markets” which first introduced Category Design to the world. The book has since sold more than one hundred thousand copies and been heralded by people like Marc Benioff of SalesForce and Jim Goetz of Sequoia. We’re diving deep on category design, how it has evolved since inception in 2016 and how it’s being applied by forward thinking VCs throughout Silicon Valley and the world.

In this episode you’ll learn:

– What is Category Design and why it’s so central to creating the major outcomes we’re all chasing in VC

What Al Ramadan would wish he had done differently when first launching the book and category of “category design”
How some of the best VCs employ category design in their work with startups
What’s next for the category of “category design” and what we should be keeping our eyes peeled for.

Today we’re talking to Luis Shemtov and Elad Verbin are two of the three founding partners behind Lunar Ventures - Europe's hands-down most technical early stage VC investing in frontier computer science deep tech. The result was an episode full of learnings packed in great one-liners for emerging managers - from a team that closed 4 Fund of Funds.

In this episode you’ll learn:

What made Lunar so sexy that they managed to land four European Fund of Funds & bounds of established GPs
How months of iteration around European deep tech founders’ problems led to the founding of Lunar Ventures
Why emerging managers need to solve for the question of why LPs should invest in the first close & how Elad thinks about it.
Why raising SPVs is a poor entry route into deep tech VC & what it means to be trailblazing in the VC Twilight Zone.

Denny Chared is the founder and CEO of The DC Finance Family Office and High Net Worth Community which has more than 2 thousand high net worth individuals, family offices, and investors who collaborate with each other worldwide. In this episode, we’re diving deep on how he has built this network and learnings for VCs fundraising and engaging with family offices and High Net Worth Individuals.

In this episode you'll learn:

Denny’s journey into the wonderful world of Family Offices
Understanding Family Offices from a VC perspective and do’s & don’ts in working with them
The importance of respecting privacy in the Family Office world
Why VCs need to understand that talks with Family Offices can’t be all about money

Viktor is an entrepreneur turned venture-builder turned venture investor and has hands-on experience from - as he says himself: "making all the classic mistakes" with his own startup to founding a highly successful venture builder (called VNTRS) across 4 countries and now also launching VEQ to fund pre-seed/seed founders in the Nordics and Baltics.

In this episode you'll learn:
- What Magic the Gathering, Kebnekaise, Fasting & VC has in common
- The path from founder to venture builder to Venture Capitalist
- The do’s and don’ts for venture builders
- How VCs should collaborate with Venture builders
- The investment strategy of VEQ & how they’re using their background as venture builders to create a competitive advantage

We're diving deep with Ron Diamond on the future of family offices, their interaction with and impact on VC. Ron is the Founder of Diamond Wealth representing more than 100 Family Offices ranging from $250 million to $30 billion AUM. Center stage for our conversation today, Ron is on the Advisory Board of the Digital Cities and Disruptive Technology Program at Stanford and is helping to launch the Family Office Initiative at Stanford to help bring together the heads of billions of family office assets to charter the future of family office investing.

In this episode you'll learn:
- What’s behind The Stanford Family Office Initiative and how they managed to bring thousands of family offices together
- Why Ron sees an explosion of Multi Family Offices around the corner
- Why Ron believes the venture industry is poised for disruption by family offices
- How VCs should think about family offices, the importance of trust and ways to collaborate in the future

This is the second part of “Grilling & Myth-busting with the EIF” where we’re talking to David Dana, head of ICT investments at the EIF. In this episode we cover more wide-ranging topics and questions that our community and former guests requested.

In this episode you’ll learn:
– Why the EIF is raising their own private funds and how they fit in the market
– Why the EIF serves to stimulate skew the market, how they do so & avoid competition with private actors
– How the EIF picks emerging managers (team size, track record…) when evaluating new GPs. Notice! Herein lies the answer to why the EIF doesn’t invest in solo-GPs!
– EIF’s views on GP compensation & carry distribution when evaluating VC funds
– How the EIF thinks about their response times & recommendations to plan for a raise involving the EIF as an LP
– How investors are chosen for the EIF’s angel program
– What we can expect in the future from the EIF and David Dana

This is a very special edition of The European VC called "Grilling & Myth-busting with the EIF" as we're talking to David Dana, head of ICT investments at the EIF. The episode builds on (tough!) questions sourced from our community and former guests and the lines were hot, so the episode ended up as something truly special.

In this episode you'll learn:
- The EIF's investment strategy, what they look for and what they shy away from.
- To what extent do member country contributions impact EIF allocation
- The interplay with the EIB - the European Investment Bank and how the EIF manages their (many!) different mandates
- The gaps that EIF seek to fill in the European capital market and what they're doing to improve university tech transfer - as well as what David personally loves
- What the EIF is doing to solve the lack of LPs with risk appetite and understanding of VC also touching on their initiative of raising their own private Fund of Funds.

Oliver Holle is the founder and managing partner of Speedinvest with a whopping 600M€ AUM. We're diving deep into Oliver's investment strategy, his thinking behind vertically focused teams, talent development, the state of the current market and what's next for Speedinvest. All in all, an episode packed with learnings for anyone aiming to build a true VC franchise that's recognized and sought after by founders all across Europe.

In this episode you'll learn:
- The origin story of Speedinvest & how Oliver’s thinking has evolved as he has grown the firm from 10M€ AUM in fund 1 to now 600M€.
- Oliver’s take on the current market, why he’s bullish on the future of VC & why there’s plenty room for growth
- How Oliver thinks about firm brand, talent development and incentives with the firm
- Oliver’s reflections on portfolio construction – everything from stage, ownership targets, price sensitivity, etc!
- Why Oliver believes in the value of the Platform VC and how he thinks about building it

Enis Hulli is General Partner of 500 Istanbul. Enis has founded and manages the best performing fund in the 500 Global fund family. In this episode, we're diving deep with Enis on his experience founding a 500-fund and how he has grown it from 10 to 50 M€ and exactly what Enis believes is his secret behind his fund's stellar performance.

We're of course also getting into Enis' views on the potential of the Turkish and Central & Eastern European ecosystems and his super intense approach to deal sourcing requiring all on his team - including the CFO - to source deals 50% of the time.

In this episode you’ll learn:
- How the 500 Global fund origination scheme enabled Enis to rapidly advance up the learning curve when he launched his first fund
- How Enis has built out his fund, firm and strategy from 10M€ in Fund I to 50M€ in fund II
- All about the Turkish VC & Startup landscape and how Enis thinks about winning deals by always having a prepared mind and executing with incredible speed
- Enis thinking around portfolio mix and price sensitivity and how it has changed over the last few years.
- Why Enis doesn't want more inbound and everyone at 500 Istanbul must dedicate at least half of their time to deal sourcing

Jeroen van Doornik is the managing partner of Rabo Frontier Ventures, a €200M FoF and co-investment fund with Rabobank as the sole LP. With Rabo, Jeroen leverages his unique access to tier-1 VCs like: Balderton Capital, NorthZone, HV Capital, Speedinvest, and Seed Camp as well as his ability to identify and move quickly on co-investment opportunities in breakaway portfolio companies.

Prior to joining Rabobank Frontier Ventures, @Jeroen was an investment director at the VC firm StartGreen Capital, managing its €250m venture fund providing equity, debt and project finance. He has also held investing roles at growth stage tech investment firms in energy, mobility and software and has founded a motorsports startup for eight years after a four-and-a-half-year stint at Accenture.

In this episode you'll learn:
- How Jeroen has built his investment strategy around co-investing with European tier-1 VC firms
- Why Jeroen believes venture is all about access & speed - for VCs as well as LPs.
- What Jeroen believes are the defining characteristics of good VC firms and what mistakes he sees GPs do too often
- What gets Jeroen excited about a VC

Ulla Brockenhuus-Schack is the managing partner of the Danish seed fund "Seed Capital." To many international VCs, Seed Capital is the local deal flow partner in Denmark, a result of Ulla's untiring work to champion Danish startups on the European Venture scene for more than 15 years. Seed Capital is on their 4th fund, have invested in 47 companies and their portfolio counts greats like TrustPilot, Vivino, Lunar, Cardlay and Templafy. And their exit track counts notable companies like Endomondo, Libratone, and Mofibo.

You'll learn in this episode:
- Why Seed capital has doubled down on a narrow vertical and geographic focus
- What COVID taught Ulla & Seed Capital and how they adjust going forward building in a post-COVID world
- How Ulla has managed to attract international Top VCs like General Atlantic to their portfolio companies
- What has allowed Ulla to achieve a whopping 70% graduation rate from Seed to Series A - a stark contrast to the average rate of 20% in Europe!

Cristina Fonseca is a Venture Partner at Indico Capital Partners and one of Portugal's most successful tech entrepreneurs and a true pioneer in the ecosystem. Cristina has co-founded Talkdesk, a cloud-based help desk software that became Portugal's third unicorn and is valued at over 3 billion euros. In Cristina's own words she has: "worn various hats, be it engineering and coding, design and user experience, product management, customer relations, processes or knowledge management." And, in fact, the list could go on.

In this episode, you’ll learn:
- How Cristina has transitioned from founder to VC & why she believes there are no shortcuts
- What Cristina's startup experience brings to Indico and how the team at Indico complements each other.
- What Cristina has learned from Indico's move into new geographies and what to expect and invest & how to avoid getting the bad apples

We're doing something different for this episode as we dive deep with James Vanreusel, CEO & founder of Vanreusel Ventures CFO-advisor to a whole string of venture-backed startups. James resides in Silicon Valley but heralds from the Netherlands and we focus on teasing out learnings for VCs helping startups prepare for funding rounds and get ready to cross the Atlantic.

In this episode, you’ll learn:
– How to think about building out the finance department in the early stages where hustling is key
- How to help early-stage companies get funding ready from a CFO-perspective
- How to think about landing in the US and the importance of partnering with local firms
- Why it's so important to be prepared for the worst ahead of funding rounds and how to be so.

In this episode we dive deep on the wonderful Romanian ecosystem as we try to understand if Romania really is going to repeat the UI Path-success or if they were a one-trick unicorn-pony. We're talking to two of the country's favourite sons; Vlad Sarca from Sparking Capital and Cristian Munteanu from Early Game Ventures.

In this episode, you’ll learn:
- Romania is poised to deliver many more unicorns than just the famed UI Path
- Where to look next in Romania, who to partner with and what you should keep in mind when thinking about Romania
- Why Cristian & Vlad are bullish on Romania and all of CEE as the driving force of the next wave of VC tech success stories
- Why Cristian doesn't want to hear about founders' passions or high-browed thoughts about work/life-balance

This is the second part of our interview with J Skyler, the founder and general partner of Venture University, the world's leading investor accelerator & VU Venture Partners, a multi-stage venture capital fund focused on Consumer, Enterprise, Fintech, Frontier, Healthcare, and PropTech.

With $1.8 Billion invested in more than 250 companies, including greats like Beyond Meat, Facebook, Uber, Twitter, Wish and the list goes on, we're excited to bring you the second part of our interview with Skyler.

In this episode, you’ll learn:
– Why Skyler is hoping to see European founders focus more on what's unique to Europe, impact being a pillar example
- Why Skyler thinks European startups actually have a better global outlook than what he typically sees in the US
- How Skyler thinks about partnering with the best VC funds from a co-investment as well as LP perspective
- Why Skyler would rather have an A-market with a B-team, than an A-team with a B-market & why he doesn't think operator experience is core to being a good VC

J Skyler is the founder and general partner of Venture University & VU Venture Partners, a multi-stage venture capital fund focused on Consumer, Enterprise, Fintech, Frontier, Healthcare, and PropTech. VU Venture Partners has offices in San Francisco, New York City, and Hong Kong.

Skyler is also the Founder & CEO of Venture University, the world's leading investor accelerator for individuals breaking into venture capital, private equity, and angel investing.

The team have invested over $1.8 Billion in more than 250 companies, including Beyond Meat, Facebook, Uber, Twitter, Venmo, FabFitFun, Oculus, Oscar, Wish, and other great tech success stories.

In this episode, you’ll learn:
– How J Skyler has built one of the world's leading investor accelerator programs as well as a top performing fund yielding 4x net cash returns to LPs.
- Why VC must be learnt on the job and university education is a lame duck to entrepreneurial innovators
- How VU thinks about the European opportunity & how they're approaching their expansion to our continent
- Why J Skyler is 100% satisfied with the current female & minority representation in their cohorts

Christian Hernandez is a founding partner of the newly launched VC firm 2150, a climate VC fund focused on technology companies that seek to sustainably reimagine and reshape the urban environment by solving major problems across the Urban Stack. With a whopping 270 M€ raised in just one year, 2150 is the biggest VC fundraise for a European first-time fund ever and we're diving deep on exactly what allowed them to do that.

In this episode, you’ll learn:
- How a mid-life crisis led to the formation of Europe's biggest first-time fund ever
- What made the difference for 2150's founding team when fundraising
- How 2150's LP-base is much more than financial investors looking for returns
- What's a Gigacorn, why Christian made up the term and how he hunts for them

Kjartan Rist is the founder and managing partner of Concentric, a UK/Denmark based Seed+ and Beyond fund focusing on B2B and B2B2C startups building software companies solving nontrivial problems in traditional sectors. Kjartan has been in VC for 20 years so naturally, we dive deep with him on how the European startup & VC scene has changed over the last two decades as well as his firm, his thesis and his vehement belief in being a hands-on investor.

In this episode, you’ll learn:
- How the European VC scene has changed over the last 20 years & why the perception of Spaniards being on siesta and the French on strike no longer applies to Europe.

Why the best founders are like cockroaches and what's underlying the current growth in European entrepreneurship
Why Kjartan hunts for startups that solve non-trivial problems in traditional sectors
What's causing the funding gap in seed+ to series B and how Kjartan & Concentric delivers value to founders in this space

In this episode we shed light on the growing phenomenon of Venture Builders in Europe which is becoming an ever more used entry path into VC for emerging managers & thus also a more common co-investor for early stage VCs to work with. We're talking to two seasoned vets from the VB world, Stephane Guinet and Michael Niddam founders of Paris/Tel Aviv/London-based Kamet Ventures.

In this episode, you'll learn:
- What are the strengths & weaknesses of different Venture Builder models
- How Kamet thinks about idea origination and founder team creation
- How VCs should think about having venture builders on the cap table
- How VCs should work with venture builders both prior to and after an investment in a VB portfolio company

At just 25 years of age, Simão already has the achievements of a lifetime under his belt; Found a watch brand, check. Join corporate bank and rise to become sub-director, check. Co-found Portugal's strongest Fintech association, check. Raise VC Fund to invest in blockchain startups. Well of course! In this episode we dive deep on the ever-changing blockchain space & Simão's strategy to capitalize it.

In this episode, you'll learn:

How blockchain is more than million-dollar-cyberpunks & meta-verses
Why & how blockchain is changing the traditional VC model
Why Lightshift is part VC fund, part hedge fund
Raising for a crypto fund, how to approach LPs & Simãos learnings for other emerging managers raising

Ertan Can is the founding managing partner of Multiple Capital, one of Europe's truly visionary Fund of Funds pioneering micro-VC and Seed fund investing. Prior to founding Multiple, Ertan was Investment Director at a Family Office, which led to developing his thesis for Multiple. Ertan has invested in 30 funds with a portfolio of 500+ early-stage tech companies in Europe across more than 50 sectors and hubs.

In this episode, you will learn:

Why many emerging managers should think twice before raising
How to communicate to limited partners & why Ertan misses differentiation from GPs
Why Ertan really loves solo-GPs & micro VCs and how Ertan hunts for new managers across Europe
How Ertan develops his thinking around new markets & upcoming funds
Why Ertan is the opposite of a good fundraiser and what he has learned about the effect of outreaches in fundraising.

Ertan Can is the founding managing partner of Multiple Capital, one of Europe's truly visionary Fund of Funds pioneering micro-VC and Seed fund investing. It's no coincidence that Ertan has named his fund Multiple, as the word holds the key to his strategy; democratize access to a diversified portfolio of multiple managers across multiple geographies, multiple sectors, and multiple vintages.

In this episode you'll learn:

Why Ertan started Multiple & what it's like to raise for an FoF in Europe
Why Ertan focuses on emerging managers and what he looks for
Why track-record cannot be your main criteria when evaluating Emerging Managers
The role of KPIs and reporting for emerging managers
Why investing is more about being a cockroach than a hero

Cyrus Shey is the managing partner of Bregal Milestone, a 500 M€ growth fund investing all across Europe. Bregal Milestone pioneers a sourcing strategy focused on people, process and technology that allows them to engage nearly 100 companies weekly & has resulted in Bregal having closed all deals without a competitive process. Bregal Milestone stands out as a value-add investor with a hands-on team that Cyrus refers to as both a SWAT-team and in-house M&A department.

In this episode you’ll learn:
– The differences between the EU and US growth-stage markets
– The benefits of raising a fund embedded in an established investment firm
– Bregal Milestone’s use of data to create a competitive advantage
– Bregal Milestone’s endemic diversity and how that helps scale-ups grow in Europe
– M&A as a core tactic to fast-track European expansion.

Vinoth Jayakumar is a Partner at Draper Esprit - one of Europe's very few publicly listed VC firms. They were first founded in 2006 and now manage more than a billion euros, they've made more than 125 investments and have created more than 5 billion in returns for their investors. At Draper Esprit, Vinoth focuses on the future of finance, Insurance, fintech, proptech and cybersecurity. He's interested in all of it, but what gets him truly excited is companies that aren't afraid of targeting the whole stack of financial products and services. No easy pickings for Vinoth.

In this episode you’ll learn:

The anatomy of Draper Esprit, why they IPO’d their fund and the benefits it brings
Why Draper Esprit’s investment strategy includes a FoF & secondaries focus
Vinoth’s take on the recent changes in the European VC market
Why ESG is more than a box ticking exercise to Vinoth and how to work with portfolio companies on it.

Lara Koole is the co-founder of Carbon Equity, the first global alternative climate investment platform and one of the most ambitious attempts to democratize access to VC investing. In this second part of our talk, Lara Deep dives with us on the plans to make Carbon Equity a force to be reckoned with, aimed at helping to re-define the Climate VC space.
Lara shares with us how she draws on her experience at Phillips to make her vision and dream job come true, what she looks for when evaluating funds to invest in, or how the European Union is helping to pave the way to more transparent climate investing.

In this episode you’ll learn:
-How evaluating funds in the climate VC space is influenced by the sense of purpose of the team
-How Lara views carry distribution models and other alignment tools
-Carbon Equity’s plans to become a beacon in the LP community
-The GP commit controversy and Lara’s take on it
-Greenwashing in the VC scene and the European Union’s contribution to end it.

Lara Koole is the co-founder of Carbon Equity, the first global alternative climate investment platform and one of the most ambitious attempts to democratize access to VC investing. Lara is also a former partner of Phillips Ventures where she set up their Corporate Venture fund, doing both direct investments and Fund investments.
Lara and her team have just closed their first financing round and are in the midst of building their first Fund of Funds-feeder fund. In this first part of our talk, Lara takes us behind the scenes of Carbon Equity and to how they’re changing the way VC works.
In this episode you’ll learn:
-How Lara and her team are unleashing the power of VC to tackle climate change
-How retail investors are going to be able to invest in VC through Carbon Equity
-Why and how the VC model is adapted by Carbon Equity, including a “no carry” policy (!)
-Perspectives on Feeder Funds and why Carbon Equity are using them

Joe Schorge is the founding and managing partner of Isomer Capital, one of the most formative Fund of Funds in the European ecosystem. This is the second part of a two-part episode and this episode focuses on Joe’s views on disruption in the VC space, the current state of The European ecosystem and how he assesses emerging managers. To top it off, Joe also left us with some clues of what’s coming next for him and for Isomer Capital.

In this episode you’ll learn:
- What it takes to start a VC firm and get interest and money from the best LPs.
- Why GPs attempting to disrupt VC rarely catches Joe’s interest.
- Why being the first and the only is a bad strategy to be fundraising on in VC
- How and why Joe and the Isomer team worked close with the founders of First Entrepreneur.
- Why LPs should consider investing in a Fund of Funds instead of directly into VC funds.

Joe Schorge is the founding and managing partner of Isomer Capital, one of Europe's absolute strongest Fund of Funds. Joe started his career in technology management positions that got him up close with M&A which led Joe to a whole string of accomplishments in PE and VC doing direct as well as fund investments. To top it off, Joe has also made Angel investments. In this first part of a two-part episode we're truly talking to one of the greats as we dive deep on the origin story of Isomer Capital, Joe's investment thesis and what it takes to be a great VC.

In this episode you’ll learn:
- What made Europe so unique that Joe, as an American, had to start his fund here.
- What profiles make up the VC dream team – the VC hackers, hipsters and hustlers.
- Why innovation requires an open minded attitude while searching for past patterns.
- How Isomer Capital creates value for their portfolio of VC funds.

Chris Smith is the managing partner at Playfair Capital investing in seed & pre-seed in the UK, Europe and Israel. This is the second part of a two-part episode with Chris. If you haven’t done it yet, we strongly recommend you go back and listen to episode 14 with Chris on being a single-LP firm, post-Covid market dynamics . In this episode we dive deep on deal flow, founder profiles, and Playfair’s value add strategies.

In this episode you’ll learn:
– Ways to get privileged access to stellar first-time founders.
– How Playfair’s value add strategy goes way beyond the ordinary and draws on every partner at their team.
– Why and how Playfair goes beyond the headline grabbing capital injections and actually cares for their founders’ well-being.
– What led to the creation of the female founder office hours and its impact in Playfair’s deal flow so far.

Ryan Floyd is a Founding Managing Director of Storm Ventures based in Silicon Valley but investing globally. He focuses on early stage enterprise SaaS and has a true love for applications and cloud/infrastructure related companies. Ryan is dedicated to making VC more accessible and is doing important work on this via his YouTube channel Ask A VC. In this episode we put the spotlight on how to think about startup advisors and strategies for breaking into VC.

In this episode you’ll learn:
• The role of advisors and how to use them best in building success
• How to think about compensation for advisors
• What skills are most important in a venture investor and how to build and prove it
• Strategies for breaking into venture, including shadow portfolios and angel investing
• How Storm Ventures think about go-to-market strategies for early stage companies

Chris Smith is the managing partner at Playfair Capital where he focuses on seed (and pre-seed) deals in the UK, Europe and Israel. Chris is particularly interested in autonomous transportation, business and industrial automation (especially through AI, ML and computer vision), HealthTech (except diagnostics and therapeutics) and B2B SaaS. But what gets Chris truly excited is when he can find companies operating in unloved/overlooked sectors that are ripe for disruption.

In this episode you’ll learn:
•The impact of being a 1-LP fund & how Playfair brings their heart with them into VC.
•Strategies for VCs and founders to win in the current bull market
•Why globally distributed teams are more resilient than traditional businesses
•The post-COVID effects on deal sourcing strategy and VC operations
•How PlayFair thinks about value add as a hands-on pre-seed & seed investor

Nico Goulet is founding and managing partner of Adara Ventures where they focus exclusively on B2B startups solving complex problems with breakthrough solutions. Adara are behind 36 investments and are responsible for the exit of AlienVault - the largest Spanish deep tech exit ever. Nico is a world-class thinker whose teaching at INSEAD and IE Business School has inspired VCs across all of Europe.
In this episode you’ll learn:
• Why dragons are often a better bet than unicorns.
• The difference between pickers and allocators and what each strategy’s strengths and weaknesses are
• How to craft a strategy and story that will convince investors to invest and stick with you through three busts and booms.
• How Nico thinks about portfolio strategy, modelling and the importance of staying coherent

Yuri Navarro is the founder and managing partner at Kanata Ventures. At Kanata they invest in promising B2B Enterprise technology startups and help them enter the North American market through Canada. Kanata Ventures operates out of Toronto and is attracting the best global founder teams to help them settle and grow out of Canada.

In this episode you’ll learn:
•How to hustle your way to raising a fund
•How to hack public programs for increased deal flow
•Why European startups should attack North America through Canada
•Why Yuri believes in the power of community and cooperation in the VC Industry.

Pedro Vieira is a founding and managing partner at newly launched Shilling Founders fund. We dive deep with Pedro on everything from raising the fund, how they’ve strategically designed their LP-base for a superior value add to their investment & portfolio management strategy. We also featured Pedro in our 8th episode where we dived deep with him on his time as Europe & Africa Lead at 500 Startups and creator of West to West.

In this episode you’ll learn:

•Why Pedro and Shilling share their profit with founders
•Shilling’s SLA to founders: in thirty days you’ll have money in the bank or a no-go.
•How to handle the pre-seed space as an institutional investor
•How to think about partnering with founders and other VCs for a competitive edge

Itxaso Del Palacio is a Partner at Notion Capital, one of Europe’s strongest early-stage SaaS and enterprise tech investors. Notion Capital was founded in 2009 and has invested in more than 60 startups and has more than €500 M assets under management. Itxaso joined the team of entrepreneurs and operators turned investors with a laser focus on product led growth and a truly founder-centric perspective that has quickly made her a central figure in the SaaS space.

In this episode you will learn

•What is product-led growth and why it’s one of the best growth routes for B2B SaaS in Europe.
•Why product-led growth companies are extra resilient during hard times.
•How Itxaso views startups advisors and best practice for working with them.
•Key lessons from Itxaso’s work with some of Europe’s best SaaS success stories.

Kate Talbot is Senior Forbes contributor and Marketing strategist for great VC firms such as Plexo Capital, Community Fund and Flybridge. Kate has a background from working directly with none other than the famed Richard Branson, in startups backed by revered firms such as Andreesen-Horowitz and has now started her own consultancy where she works with VCs on developing and executing their marketing strategy.

In this episode you will learn

• The importance of saying "Yes!".
• The strength of a well-crafted content marketing strategy & how to build it.
• Why marketing needs to be top of mind of any VC firm.
• How to humanize VC & make it leverage the power of community.

Pedro Vieira is Europe & Africa Lead at 500 Startups where he is working with governments in building up their ecosystems and training & aligning all relevant stakeholders. Pedro is a scientist, turned founder, turned investor, with deep experience in the tech world. He is also the creator of West to West, a not-for-profit that helps create and support a thriving environment for Portuguese entrepreneurship in the San Francisco Bay Area.

In this episode you will learn

• The contrasting characteristics of the European and US ecosystems from the perspective of someone connecting the West Coasts of these two geographies.
• The differing profiles of European and American founders.
• How 500 startups creates synergies to help countries across Europe build stronger and more robust innovation ecosystems.
• The value perceived by LPs in aligning and training all stakeholders of the ecosystem.one thing

Andrés Dancausa is EMEA Partner at The Venture City. The Venture City helps diverse founders achieve global impact through a unique model bringing together a product-led acceleration program and an early stage venture capital fund Head Quartered in Madrid, Spain but operating all around the globe. Andrés is a true operator turned investor, a friend of founders for his constant readiness and good advice. Something you’ll surely experience throughout the episode.

In this episode you will learn

• Why Andrés thinks diversity is imperative for generating VC & LP returns.
• How Andrés and TVC build with a true operator mindset.
• What TVC, as a truly globally diverse VC firm, brings to its founders.
• What product-led growth is and why it’s part of their secret sauce.

William McQuillan is a founding partner of Frontline Ventures. This is the second part of a two-part episode with William. If you haven't done it yet, we strongly recommend you go back and listen to our previous episode with William on Frontline's investment theses and how they support founders. In this episode we focus on firm building. Specifically how William built Frontline and took it from an Irish focused firm to a firm for globally ambitious B2B companies on both sides of the Atlantic.

In this episode you will learn

• How William perceives the funding environment in Europe, compared to the US.
• How Frontline collaborates with its LPs in adding value to their portfolio companies.
• The importance of VC firm building from William's perspective and how he believes it contributed to Frontline's success.
• Why William believes VCs should be more rigorous in their use of data to find deals

William McQuillan is a founding partner of Frontline Ventures. Prior to starting Frontline, William was a founding employee at Ondra, an award-winning startup investment boutique that went from a 4 person team to 70+ employees across London, New York and Paris in only 18 months. When Frontline was founded, William was 27 years old, making him the youngest VC ever to have raised a fund at that time (2012). Shortly after recording this episode William announced Frontline Fund III.

In this episode you will learn

•How William has built a truly differentiated investment thesis for Frontline’s two funds.
•What William looks for in seed stage startups and why he believes integrity is all important and money cannot be the founder’s main driver.
•How William perceives the effects of Brexit and its implications for their investment strategy and work with startups.
•Why William and Frontline are strong supporters of founders taking a small bit of secondaries in each round.

LINK https://www.frontline.vc/library/the-usa-playbook/
LINK https://www.frontline.vc/expanding-to-europe/

Episode 4 runs contrary to what the European VC stands for and features an American VC from the Valley. However, the focus is on looking from the outside in, as well as carving out lessons learned from decades of collaboration across the Atlantic. Shomit Ghose is a seasoned VC with multiple IPOs under his belt - both as an investor and an entrepreneur.

In this episode you will learn

How the European and American VC landscapes differ and what we can learn from both.
How to increase your presence and establish collaborations with VCs in the US.
How to approach building a country-agnostic fund and the roles of VCs, LPs and Institutions.

Episode 3 features Michael Hansen, the CEO of DanBAN, Denmark's leading Business Angel Association. DanBAN consist of more than 200 active Angels who collectively invest in more than 30 M€ on an annual basis. Prior to joining DanBAN, Michael was the chief architect behind the sprawling investment environment around the Danish Robotics Cluster which is broadly recognized as one of the very strongest clusters for Robotics companies in Europe, if not the world.

In this episode, you will learn from a true investment cluster builder

The importance of politicians making brave strategic decisions in promoting cluster development.
The story of the Danish Robotics Cluster, the cluster in which the first collaborative robots were hatched by Universal Robots, with two acquisitions at a joint valuation of nearly 1 billion EUR.
How to work with national clusters to generate deal flow and fast track deals.
Collaboration models between Business Angels and VCs.

Episode 2 features Stephan Morais, founder and Managing Partner of Indico Capital Partners, a leading early-stage deep tech VC firm based in Portugal. With a diversified background as an investment banker, consultant, entrepreneur and CEO, he has lived in 8 countries and 4 continents over the last 24 years, and acted as and advisor to politicians and pan-European institutions. Prior to founding Indico, Stephan was an Executive Board Member at Caixa Capital, where he led investment rounds of many Portuguese global tech success stories.

In this episode, you’ll learn

– How Stephan tackled raising a VC fund and what to should look for in LPs

– How European VCs can push for policy developments that allow for more capital to be deployed into VC

– What Europe can learn from other countries and regions

– What learnings Stephan has drawn from running an iberian fund vs a single-country fund

Episode 1 features Marc Lohrmann, Managing Partner of Vesalius Biocapital III, a 120 €M venture capital fund investing in late-stage companies in drug development, medical devices & diagnostics and eHealth / mHealth, across all of Europe. Prior to joining the fund, Marc started eight life sciences companies, worked as an investment manager at one of Europe’s leading corporate VCs and worked with several corporate finance boutiques focused on life sciences M&A transactions.

In this episode, you’ll learn

– How VBC III works as a country-agnostic VC fund and what Marc believes are the main barriers to more funds investing across Europe.

– How investors without a natural sciences background can create value in Life Sciences companies and why technical founders often find this type of investor a refreshing element in the board room.

– What Marc would love to change about the European VC scene, what’s important to remember when investing across European borders and what’s next for Marc and Vesalius.

In this teaser episode, Andreas and David briefly explain what The European VC is all about. It's short and straight to the point. You'll also get a chance to listen to snippets of some of our guests from Season 1. You might even know who they are.

Follow us and join the discussion at Linkedin, using # EUVC.