Jacob Bro

Having already evaluated a multitude of outliers in the current AI-driven innovation cycle at MDSV, we’ve distilled our learnings into three important takeaways for investors: 1. With more startups than ever, investors must take a different approach to navigating an increasingly larger herd to find great investments.  2. The Power Law of Venture Capital rings truer now more than ever, with fewer and faster growing companies driving all returns. 3. With revenue growth fueled by newfound operating leverage from AI and automation technologies, startups may not require as much growth capital as before, making the early stage potentially THE ONLY access point for investors. Learn more about the MDSV strategy to navigate the coming disruptions in venture capital: https://lnkd.in/g7ZWBwXS #VentureCapitalInvesting #Investments #AIInvestments #Strategy

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Exciting to see the growing landscape of early-stage climate tech investors supporting Dutch and European startups! Connect with these any many more investors (700+) for free on the Startup Fountain website. (Feel free to tag any climate startup that is raising in the comments) This investor map from Startup Fountain highlights over 60 firms and angels investing €50K-€5M in climate solutions. Key players include: • 4impact VC • ABN AMRO Sustainable Impact Fund  • ASIF Ventures • Cottonwood Technology Fund • Energy Transition Fund Rotterdam Many anonymous angels are also active in this space. The diversity of investors - from corporate VCs to university-linked funds - shows the momentum building in climate tech. Founders working on climate solutions in the Netherlands and across Europe, there's capital out there to support your vision! Let's connect if you're working in this space. #ClimateInvesting #StartupFunding #Sustainability #DutchStartups Jorn Eiting van Liempt Eline de Haan Sybo Zijlstra Elizabeth Kleinveld Dorus Olgers Victor Straatman Tommy Hurley Claire Tange Joyce Houterman Abdul Afridi Alex Menn Martin Schreurs Sem Foreman Stefan Bary Thorsten Wittmuetz Emily Kegels Therese Angel François-Xavier Fanard Bart van den Heuvel Filip Celen Rob Haenen Alain le Loux Andy Lurling Max Schalow 👨‍🚀 Chingiskhan Kazakhstan 🤠"

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Question. Who should we meet about climate hardware exits or more specifically M&A . We have IPOs and private secondaries pretty well covered, but happy to learn more. We’re now approaching 10x in climate investments since 2021 compared to cleantech 1.0. We’ve unfortunately repeated some of the mistakes and there are some signs that large bets will fail. But there are also some fast growing, even profitable climatetech startups. The problem is we don’t have many exits to confirm that this time is different. The last required step is to turn paper gains into cash. Unfortunately, as we learned about fundraising, the software playbook isn’t reusable because so many of the companies include hardware. So who has figured this out? Could be founders, investment bankers or folks who’ve led corp dev. Main specific qualification is they’ve worked on deals involving hardware or climate, or both. Please add to the comment s (if you prefer email or DM, that works too).

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Since there is currently speculation about whether the "Valley of Death" for European climate tech startups even exists (the investment gap in Series B): unfortunately it does, the data is clear. 📊 The numbers are based on the most extensive database about European climate tech companies (i3 Connect; part of the Cleantech Group). Read more about it in World Fund's whitepaper "Investing in Climate Tech - An Opportunity for Europe" 🌍 https://lnkd.in/ehJK2Twu 🌍

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Interesting analysis on the current Climate tech environment and learnings

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In the Norrsken Accelerate Fund we have made 20 investments this year in super exciting impact tech startups that are tackling some of the big issues on the planet.🌍 I’d like to the spotlight on the amazing founders behind these companies. 📸 First out are Sébastien Fiedorow and Steven Bardey, PhD who are the founders of Aerleum. What they are doing is defossilizing heavy industries which is crucial for reducing GHG emissions globally. Sectors like shipping, road transport, and aviation need clean fuels with high energy density, cost-efficiency, and supply chain compatibility. How they address this is be having a unique technology that produces e-methanol from captured CO2 and low-carbon hydrogen. It burns cleanly, has high energy density, and integrates with current supply chains. By doing this they strive to remove giga-tons of carbon dioxide from the air and transform it into clean alternatives for fossil-based products which will be massive win for the planet.💚 Read more about Aerleum here: https://www.aerleum.com/ and ping me if you want to get in touch with them.

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The last post in this 3-part mini series. We’re at the beginning of the most important economic experiment of our lifetimes: a $6 trillion carbon economy. Europe is leading the way with the most robust carbon market today, but the implications are relevant beyond its borders. We will be looking at how Europe is transforming into a low-carbon economy. Many doubt it’s possible. Others are concerned it will cost too much. Doubters aside, using a market-based approach will chart the most efficient way to get there. As with any market reshuffle of this magnitude, it’s an opening for startups to build massively successful companies and help define the shape of low-carbon economies. https://lnkd.in/gGXdcED8

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📰 Great to be featured on the latest Sifted article by Amy Lewin Joe Schorge, Maria Rotilu and I share our thoughts on the topic of ''How many new #VC funds does Europe need?'' and the ''rise in solo GPs across Europe'' 💭 TLDR: In my opinion, Solo GPs are fantastic! They truly do care and are super useful with great networks, hunger and high-speed. However many solo GPs don’t lead deals at pre-seed, and the European ecosystem could do with a few more funds that do. But there are exceptions, such as Germany’s Gloria Baeuerlein, Finn Murphy, and Max Claussen, to name a few. Full article here: https://lnkd.in/dWXUFsWb

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Data from the International Energy Agency (IEA) illustrates the current "readiness" of #ClimateTechs + their potential impact on carbon reduction. As shown, many techs are at an early stage of being able to have a material impact. Concerningly, some tech funds recently returned capital back to investors recently + closed their funds - citing inability to fund capital intensive techs, found in areas like ClimateTech. This in part may be contributing to the $2 trillion shortfall in ClimateTech, that Deloitte estimates. What this may mean for the future? - The migration of LPs to global, super VC funds within ClimateTech, given the large capital pools needed to fund tech development - Greater specialization from smaller funds, energizing more niche elements of the ClimateTech market - but also altering their / LP's risk profile - A greater role to be played by debt financing in funding growth entities at an earlier stage - impacting cashflow dynamics Will be an interesting space to watch moving forward. We at The Proptech Connection are constantly working with all parts of the Proptech ecosystem. From the leading LPs, funds, techs and adopters in market, providing an independent view. Reach out to us today to find out how we can help. #InvestorTrends #Strategy #Global Ivo van Breukelen Stuart Daun Kiki C. Ethan Ward

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At our VC firm, we don't just fund companies, we fund your existential crises. Every investment comes with a complimentary philosophy book. #vc #startups #investment

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20 years in VC. Going from CVC to VC. Here's the story of Rainer Märkle, General Partner at HV Capital. 1/ Engineering roots: His journey began in electrical engineering. Working on exciting projects like mobile and fiber communications. 2/ A twist of fate. By chance, he landed a role at a corporate VC arm of Siemens. Investing in the very tech I helped build. 3/ VC journey: That's where the VC journey began! He discovered a passion for nurturing innovation. So, he knew his mission was to help promising startups. What inspired your VC journey? Share your thoughts with us in the comments. #venturecapital #angelinvesting #startupfunding #europe

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When in Rome… write a blog Since changing the side of the table from entrepreneurship to VC I long resisted the established practice of content generation. After a year and sharing similar stories and tips with dozens of start-ups time to scale the approach   Time for Barbarians at the (Golden) Gate blog. This is a practical guide of scaling to the US by companies rooted in the CEE (Central and Eastern Europe). Loosely inspired by Booksy experience and discussion with leaders from other companies who are scaling successfully from the CEE    I start with structural advantages of CEE start-ups that make conquering global tech markets possible. Next episodes go through the lists of hoops and traps (in most of which you fill find my footprints 😱 ) – I will do my best to warn and give my $0.02 on these.   Many thanks for those of you have contributed to this (often unknowingly 😉 ) by sharing your experiences, thoughts, comments or reviewed early drafts. The list clearly includes Booksy mafia (Stefan Batory, Konrad Howard Dorota Machaj), those who built even bigger tech businesses out of CEE (Peter Bialo), those who will soon make it (Agata Mroczkowska, Wojtek Rokosz, Dhruv Agrawal), and shepherds of other cohorts of global challengers out of CEE (Andris K. Berzins).   Episode 1 here. The only rosy episode in the season. Enjoy responsibly, comment, disagree, trash or encourage

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Climate tech investing in Europe is on the rise and I have to say that it's more fund than I ever expected. If you are curious about the stage of climate innovations and the most promising approaches to lowering global greenhouse gas emissions, we will be discussing a few learnings at the DDC Investor Summit in the beautiful city of Prague.

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Honoured to be featured in the latest Tech Funding News article discussing Germany’s role as a leading tech hub. 🚀 I’m also proud to see standout companies from the Earlybird Venture Capital portfolio—N26, Marvel Fusion, Isar Aerospace, and others—highlighted alongside my alma mater, Technical University of Munich, which is another key driver of innovation in the country. While Germany is often dubbed the ‘Silicon Valley of Europe,’ there’s still much to do, such as overcoming regulatory challenges and channeling more growth funding into promising startups. My advice for those navigating the Central European startup landscape: Leverage government-backed funding, connect with business angels, and build relationships with established companies. Do not wait to build a global network early on. Together we can strengthen this ecosystem so that one day it can truly live up to its nickname. Read more by Sofia Chesnokova here: https://bit.ly/404yyXr Cc: Dr. Hendrik Brandis, Paula Wehmeyer, Mario Kohle, Filip Lukac, Benjamin Berényi, Elisheva Marcus #Innovation #DeepTech #VentureCapital #GermanyTech

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Our mission is clear: to make top-tier services affordable and accessible to the mid-market. Freelancers were often the only viable option in the past, while consultancies came with high costs and other downsides. Our experience shows that a small integrated team of senior operators delivers the best results. A rapidly growing number of repeat customers agrees. Reach out to learn how we can help you accelerate growth affordably yet through a best-in-class delivery model. #operatingpartner #commercialexcellence #privateequity #freelancer #managementconsultant Mitul Ruparelia Pedro Correia Krishna Chaitanya Simon Blackburn

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The #German government’s decision to deny Lilium’s request for 100 million euros in aid marks a significant moment for the country’s innovation landscape. Bavaria’s conditional offer of 50 million euros, reliant on federal support, was also withdrawn. Co-founder Daniel Wiegand indicated that without this critical funding, Lilium may relocate its operations to #France, which has expressed interest in providing financial support. #Germany possesses tremendous talent and potential, but to fully capitalize on this, we must protect and foster our most valuable assets: #SMEs and #innovation. Was Lilium the perfect candidate for government support? Opinions are divided. What is clear, however, is that Germany has much to learn from #Israel, the ‘Startup Nation,’ and the #UAE, where the first $100,000 in profits are exempt from corporate tax. Entrepreneurship must be incentivized—otherwise, we risk following in the footsteps of neighboring countries, where a significant portion of the educated youth aspires to civil service roles. #Germany must make the necessary adjustments to become the “Grow-Up Nation” that #Europe needs, driving growth and innovation across the continent. At TACTICAL MANAGEMENT, we continue to believe in the future of #innovation in #Germany. One of our investment vehicles is focusing on developing security robots in the #BlackForest—a testament to our commitment to pioneering technologies. TACTICAL MANAGEMENT THE ABRAHAMIC BUSINESS CIRCLE ⭕️ Quarero Robotics Marcus Köhnlein Dr. Tillmann Lauk (LL.M.)

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🔬 Excited to launch 𝐒𝐜𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐬𝐭 𝐅𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬 interviews on Substack! This series will showcase scientists who transition into founders, spotlighting their journey from academic research to launching startups. 🥼The inaugural interview features Stefan Müller, co-founder and CTO of Ferroelectric Memory Company (FMC). This interview is special as Stefan represents my first VC investment. His journey from lab research to securing support from top investors like M Ventures ,imec.xpand, Bosch Ventures, Air Liquide, TEL Venture Capital, and SK hynix is truly inspiring. 𝑲𝒆𝒚 𝑰𝒏𝒔𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕𝒔: Persistence Pays Off: Unwavering commitment to research. Strategic Partnerships: Collaborations with industry giants. Industry Impact: Revolutionizing semiconductor memory solutions. Read the full interview and subscribe for more inspiring stories. Let's continue transforming scientific research from university labs into startups. 🚀 💡 Calling All Scientist-Founders: Have you made the leap to entrepreneurship? I’d love to connect and explore your journey! #Scientist #Founder #VentureCapital #PhD #Spinoff #Lab #Startup #Research #Univeristy

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Sharing a few thoughts from my annual migration for #SuperReturn #SuperVenture in Berlin. 1) This continues to be the best VC/LP/PE event annually. Many are at the conferences, and almost everyone has a representative in town. Any managers or LPs not in attendance should consider it next year. 2) The European emerging manager scene is on fire. I met with almost a dozen, some old friends, some new, all as sophisticated as their US counterparts with thoughtful strategies and impressive growing portfolios. 3) Europe lacks the concentration that SF provides the US. Many startup hubs, some larger, but everyone in Europe is spending way more time on planes than their US counterparts. 4) Nobody knows where the market is going, and fundraising has been tougher in the last 18 months than before, but most agree a lot of money is still being put into the venture ecosystem. That's resulting in a return to deal pace & valuation acceleration -- is FOMO back? TBD 5) In an ironic twist, there seems to be strong interest from US LPs in European managers, and from European LPs in US managers. What did you see? What interested you this year? Welcome thoughts. P.S. the conference logistics were tough this year. To all those that shared the burden, thank you. Let's hope next year is better. cc: Dale Chang Stephan Eberle Patrick Murphy Carmen Alfonso Rico 🍫Jaime Novoa Sebastian Blum Paul Pruijmboom Jasper Masemann Marie Schildt David York Lior Litwak Karey Barker Maximilian Claussen Ameer Awadiyeh Jonathan Heiliger Oana O. Philipp Moehring

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A big day for us at Contrarian Ventures, as we launch The Climate Brick alongside our friends at EQT Ventures, and 50+ investors, founders and experts joining our mission to create the missing manual for the climate journey.     90% of CO2 emissions are estimated to be abatable by technology over the next 25 years. However, most innovations that shape modern life were built on common frameworks.    Climate doesn’t have one, yet. Today marks a call to change that, with the creation of a new initiative, involving a wide range of stakeholders.    Decarbonisation is the greatest economic transition in a century – the signatories of our open letter have pledged to create The Climate Brick, the missing manual for scaling climate technologies.    The Climate Brick's co-builders include several of Europe’s largest climate technology companies and financial institutions, as well as leading academic experts and policymakers.    The manual comprises seven playbooks, that we call ‘Bricks’: from Gigascaling to Product Disruption.    We’re only getting started, and The Climate Brick is an open community being co-built by members together.   Join us – become a co-builder and check the Bricks out!   Read our open letter via the link in the comments below. https://climatebrick.com/

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