Deep Tech

The Armilar IV fund is positioned to back exceptional deep‑technology founders across the Iberian Peninsula, with a specific interest in companies that fuse advanced science and enterprise‑grade software. With a first close of around €120 million and an ultimate target near €240 million by late 2026, Armilar IV offers meaningful capital to support follow‑on growth and scale financing. It builds on the longstanding track record of Armilar Venture Partners—who have supported companies like OutSystems and Feedzai—from regional innovators to global platforms. The investment thesis of Armilar IV centres on B2B enterprises with robust technical moats, demonstrable product‑market fit, and the capacity to expand internationally from Spain and Portugal. The fund plans to make approximately 20 investments over its lifetime, combining cheque writing with active operational support and board participation to accelerate commercial traction. The targeting sectors span AI, cybersecurity, healthtech and spacetech—areas where scientific research meets software innovation. The fund believes that Iberia’s deep‑tech ecosystem is at an inflection point, and that institutional‑scale capital like this can bridge the gap between early research and global commercial deployment. By focusing on companies at the junction of science and software, Armilar IV seeks to partner with technical founding teams that are under‑leveraged in large European growth rounds, providing the scale and guidance needed to lead expansion rounds and become internationally competitive.

BDC Capital's Deep Tech Venture Fund is a dedicated venture capital fund established in 2021 by BDC Capital, the venture and growth capital arm of the Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC), Canada's federal development finance institution. The fund was designed to address a persistent financing gap in Canada's deep technology sector, providing capital to Canadian startups commercializing transformational technologies requiring longer development cycles and specialized expertise to reach commercial scale. The fund targeted investments across four foundational technology areas: quantum computing, advanced electronics and photonics, next-generation semiconductor applications, and foundational artificial intelligence systems. With a mandate to invest in 15 to 20 companies over at least 12 years, the fund committed CAD 200 million to build Canada's deep tech commercialization pipeline, focusing on companies at the intersection of scientific research and commercial viability, often bridging the gap between university spin-outs and Series A institutional venture rounds. The fund made 12 investments before BDC's broader portfolio review led to a strategic restructuring of its venture capital activities following a CAD 220 million write-down in the value of BDC Capital's VC portfolios in fiscal year 2024 (ending March 31, 2024). BDC subsequently wound down the Deep Tech Venture Fund after approximately four years, shifting focus to a defence-technology successor mandate. The fund achieved Closed status as BDC redirected resources toward next-generation technology investment programs, having demonstrated early commercialization potential in several portfolio companies operating in quantum, photonics, and AI infrastructure.

Boost VC Deep Tech Fund 4 is an $87 million pre-seed venture capital fund managed by Boost VC, the San Mateo-based firm co-founded by Adam Draper and Brayton Williams that specializes in investing in what it calls science fiction technology. The fund reached final close in September 2025, bringing total Boost VC assets under management to $300 million across its fund series and over 400 active portfolio companies. Fund 4 targets pre-seed founders building breakthrough technologies across aerospace, nuclear energy, robotics, biotechnology, artificial intelligence, crypto, space, materials science, and ocean technology. The fund writes standardized $500,000 checks into pre-seed rounds at $3 million to $7 million valuations, leading approximately 70-plus companies per year. Boost pioneered the institutional deep-tech pre-seed model, becoming one of the first institutional investors in Bitcoin companies in 2013 before broadening to the full spectrum of science fiction technologies. Boost's first two vintage funds (2013 and 2016) delivered DPI of 2.15x and 4.35x respectively, on early bets in crypto and hard science. The firm's portfolio includes Coinbase (early investor), Deepgram ($1.3 billion valuation), Radiant Nuclear ($300 million raise), and Grid Aero ($20 million Series A). Portfolio companies have collectively raised over $5 billion in follow-on capital. Fund 4 is the latest and largest step in Boost's mission to accelerate the arrival of science fiction technologies.

Boost VC Fund I is a venture capital fund managed by Boost VC, the San Mateo-based pre-seed deep technology firm co-founded by Adam Draper and Brayton Williams. Launched with a 2016 vintage, Fund I represents the second institutional fund in Boost's series, following the firm's pioneering 2013-vintage early bitcoin vehicle. Boost's 2016 fund has delivered a DPI of 4.35x, making it one of the stronger-performing early institutional crypto and deep tech pre-seed vehicles of its era. The fund targets pre-seed founders building at the frontier of technology, applying Boost's signature $500,000 standard check into sub-$1 million rounds at $3 million to $7 million valuations. The investment mandate spans crypto and blockchain infrastructure, artificial intelligence, aerospace, robotics, biotechnology, and climate technology — the full spectrum of what Boost defines as science fiction investing. Boost has been one of the longest-running institutional pre-seed funds in the deep tech category, having backed over 400 portfolio companies across its fund series. Fund I's performance reflects Boost's early conviction in the deep tech ecosystem before institutional capital migrated en masse to the category. The firm's portfolio includes Coinbase, Deepgram, Radiant Nuclear, and Grid Aero, and Fund I's vintage and track record provided the foundation for the firm's subsequent funds, including the $87 million Boost VC Deep Tech Fund 4, which closed in September 2025 and brought total Boost AUM to $300 million across its fund platform.

CRV (formerly Charles River Ventures) is one of the world's oldest active venture capital firms, backing technology founders continuously since 1970. The CRV 20th Flagship Fund is the firm's twentieth primary fund vehicle, raised at $750 million and formally closed in August 2025. The fund represents a deliberate downsize relative to CRV's prior $1 billion flagship, reflecting the firm's conviction that early-stage returns compress at scale. Notably, CRV returned $275 million of unallocated capital from its prior $500 million Select late-stage vehicle before beginning the new raise, signaling a full refocus on early-stage opportunity and meaningful ownership in each portfolio company. The fund invests exclusively at the seed and Series A stages in the United States, organized around two founding themes: consumer companies and developer tools (devtools). These verticals distill CRV's observed edge over five decades: the firm has backed consumer-first breakouts including DoorDash and Mercury, and developer tooling leaders including Vercel and CodeRabbit. CRV leads rounds rather than following, with a stated commitment to deliver term sheets within 24 hours of meeting a founding team. No companion late-stage vehicle is being raised alongside this fund, ensuring portfolio focus and maximum ownership depth at entry. The CRV 20th Flagship Fund raised commitments from a deep institutional LP base in approximately four weeks, with investor demand reported at double the $750 million hard cap — an unusually fast close pace for a fund of this size. Since 1970, CRV has backed over 750 startups, of which at least 80 have gone public. The fund entered an active Investing phase immediately following its August 2025 close and will deploy capital over a standard 3 to 4 year investment period into seed and Series A companies primarily in the United States technology ecosystem.

Cathay InnoSquare is the fund-of-funds programme managed by Cathay Innovation, a Paris-based multi-stage venture capital firm founded in 2015 with more than €2.5 billion in assets under management across its fund family. The InnoSquare programme is dedicated to identifying and backing the next generation of early-stage venture capital managers across North America, Europe, and Asia, with a specific focus on emerging managers raising their Fund I through Fund III. The fund's strategy rests on the conviction that the most outsized returns in venture capital often originate from emerging managers with concentrated portfolios, differentiated deal-sourcing networks, and theses closely aligned with the digital revolution. Cathay InnoSquare targets fund managers investing at the seed and early stages in companies operating at the intersection of digital transformation, artificial intelligence, and healthcare technology. By backing managers early in their institutional lifecycle, the programme secures access to high-quality proprietary deal flow while supporting the development of a more globally diverse venture ecosystem. As part of Cathay Innovation's broader platform, Cathay InnoSquare portfolio managers gain access to the firm's global network spanning five continents, connecting major innovation hubs, institutional investors, corporate partners, and Fortune 500 companies across Paris, San Francisco, Shanghai, and Singapore. This value-add layer reflects Cathay Innovation's positioning as a cross-border bridge between European, North American, and Asian innovation ecosystems. Portfolio managers also benefit from Cathay's co-investment capabilities, leveraged through its flagship VC funds that invest directly in startups alongside portfolio managers. InnoSquare has participated in fundraises for several US-based climate and deep-tech venture funds, including as an LP in VoLo Earth's Fund II, a Colorado-based energy transition vehicle.

Draper B1 Frontier Tech is a venture capital fund focused on high-impact technologies that are reshaping the future, including artificial intelligence, spacetech, and cybersecurity. The fund has raised over 20 million euros, aiming to bridge the gap between Europe and the United States and boost the international expansion of tech companies. Tim Draper, a renowned seed investor, supports this fund, highlighting its strategic importance in the venture capital landscape.The fund has already made initial investments in nine disruptive startups, such as Sycai Medical and Collimate Space. These investments emphasize the fund's strategic orientation towards deep tech with high disruption potential. Draper B1 leverages its extensive experience and the Draper Venture Network to provide startups with necessary tools and networks for scaling globally.

FORWARD.one Fund III is a €200 million industrial technology venture fund aiming to back Europe’s next generation of breakthrough hardware and deeptech companies. With a hard cap set at €250 million, the fund will deploy initial tickets in the range of €1–3 million, reserving additional capital for follow‑on financing. The fund intends to build a concentrated portfolio of 25–30 early‑stage companies, focusing on domains such as semiconductors, robotics, sensors, advanced automation, climate tech, and industrial innovation. Its geographic focus includes the Benelux, Germany/Austria/Switzerland (DACH), the Nordics, and other European innovation hubs. FORWARD.one brings a hands‑on, commercialization‑oriented investment style. Its value proposition is rooted in bridging the “deeptech gap” by combining technical domain expertise, rapid execution, and industry networks to help founders transform advanced research into scalable products for real markets. The fund also builds on FORWARD.one’s performance track record: Fund I (launched ~2018) delivered a net IRR of ~41 % and 2× DPI, with exits such as Sensorfact (acquired by ABB) and Mayht (acquired by Sonos). Fund II (launched ~2021, ~€145 million) is mid‑deployment, targeting similar sectors. With Fund III, the firm aims to scale its backing of Europe’s industrial tech champions and deliver strong returns for LPs.

Indico VC Fund III is the third flagship venture capital fund raised by Índico Capital Partners, a Lisbon-based investment firm founded in 2017 that backs technology and sustainability entrepreneurs across Southern Europe. Launched in November 2025 with a target of €125 million, the fund secured a cornerstone commitment of €30 million from the European Investment Fund (EIF), the equity investment arm of the European Investment Bank Group, reflecting robust institutional confidence in Índico's strategy and track record. The fund also benefits from co-financing by Banco Português de Fomento under the Portugal Blue programme, extending the investment mandate to include ocean-related technology and blue economy ventures alongside the broader technology thesis. Fund III targets early-stage technology companies from Seed through Series B, with individual ticket sizes ranging from €500,000 to €10 million. The strategy centres on three core innovation verticals — Enterprise SaaS, Artificial Intelligence, and Deep Technology — alongside Spacetech and Oceantech as emerging sector extensions. Geographic coverage prioritises companies headquartered in Portugal, Spain, and Italy, as well as founders from these countries building internationally in the United States, United Kingdom, and other global markets. The fund's thesis emphasises strong product differentiation and global ambition, continuing Índico's mission of supporting "the best tech and sustainable companies going from local to global." With the EIF as anchor LP, Fund III is positioned to attract co-investors from the broader European institutional ecosystem, including funds-of-funds, development finance institutions, and leading family offices that have backed previous Índico vehicles. Índico Capital Partners manages over €240 million across five fund vehicles and has deployed €134 million into 53 portfolio companies since its 2019 first deployment, with those companies collectively raising €2.5 billion. The firm's track record spans notable portfolio companies including Preply (global language learning platform), Anchorage Digital (institutional crypto infrastructure), Remote (global HR platform), Sword Health (AI-powered physical therapy), and Superhuman (productivity email client). The EIF's commitment to Fund III comes via the InvestEU programme and marks a continuation of the Bank Group's support for Southern European venture ecosystems, signalling growing recognition of Portugal, Spain, and Italy as maturing startup markets capable of producing globally competitive technology companies.

Indico VC III is a €125 million venture capital fund raised by Índico Capital Partners, a Lisbon-based independent VC manager founded in 2017. The fund launched in November 2025 and secured a €30 million anchor commitment from the European Investment Fund (EIF), reflecting strong institutional confidence in Índico's track record across Southern Europe. The fund targets early-stage technology companies at the Seed to Series B stages, writing initial cheques between €500,000 and €10 million, with a focus on founders with roots in Portugal, Spain, and Italy — including those who have relocated to the United States, United Kingdom, or other major innovation hubs. The fund's investment thesis is concentrated on four high-conviction verticals: Enterprise SaaS, Artificial Intelligence, Deep Tech, and emerging frontier sectors such as Spacetech and Oceantech. This sector selection reflects Índico's observation that Southern European founders are increasingly building globally competitive products in deep-tech and AI, benefiting from world-class engineering universities and growing R&D ecosystems in Lisbon, Barcelona, and Milan. The fund also considers opportunities in Cybersecurity and advanced software, areas where Portuguese and Spanish talent pipelines have shown consistent quality. Índico Capital Partners has managed five prior funds totalling over €240 million in assets under management and has backed 53 portfolio companies, which together have raised over €2.5 billion in follow-on financing. Managing General Partner Stephan de Moraes leads the investment team. The EIF's €30 million anchor commitment under the InvestEU Programme underscores the fund's role in channelling institutional capital toward Southern European deeptech innovation.

The Invest-NL Deep Tech Fund (DTF) is a €250 million government-backed co-investment fund established in March 2022 by Invest-NL, the Dutch national development finance institution, in close partnership with the Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Policy. Of the total €250 million, €175 million was contributed by the Ministry and €75 million by Invest-NL itself, with additional co-investment support from regional development agencies (ROMs) active across the Netherlands. Invest-NL is wholly owned by the Ministry of Finance and was established specifically to address market failures in financing innovative Dutch companies. The fund operates as an independent unit within Invest-NL with a dedicated fund management team and an independent Investment Committee providing binding investment advice.The Deep Tech Fund invests in knowledge-intensive Dutch start-ups and scale-ups operating in sectors characterized by high innovation risk, long development cycles, and significant capital requirements — conditions that traditionally make these companies difficult to finance through conventional venture markets. Investment focus spans photonics, quantum technology, nanotechnology, microelectronics, high-tech materials, and medical technology — eight of the ten key technology categories identified in the Dutch National Technology Strategy (NTS). The Fund's independent Investment Committee includes Frits van Hout (Chairman), Hans Büthker, Aruna Subramanian, Eline Vrijland, and Steven Tan, bringing together expertise across technology, finance, and deep tech commercialization.Since its launch in 2022, the Invest-NL Deep Tech Fund has made multiple investments deploying capital across the Dutch deep tech ecosystem, including a €5 million commitment to the VCC Deep Tech Fund, a €10 million investment in the Innovation Industries Fund II, and a €10 million commitment to the Forward.One Deep Tech Fund. This co-investment model complements direct investments in individual deep tech companies, leveraging existing fund manager networks for deal flow validation and technical due diligence. The Fund aims to strengthen the Netherlands' international competitive position in strategic technology sectors while reducing the financing gap faced by capital-intensive, high-risk deep tech companies during critical growth phases.

Iron Wolf Capital has announced the first close of its second fund, securing $32.7 million with a target of $109 million. The fund focuses on early-stage investments in deeptech and AI startups across the Baltic region and its diaspora. Initial investments range from $545,000 to $2.18 million, with the firm often leading or co-leading funding rounds. The firm is recognized as one of the most active investors in the Baltics, having supported over 20 companies in the past five years. Its portfolio spans various sectors, including robotics, photonics, AI-driven education technology, pharmaceuticals, and climate technology. Iron Wolf Capital emphasizes backing exceptional founders with global ambitions and disruptive technologies. Beyond capital, Iron Wolf Capital contributes to the ecosystem through initiatives like the Baltic Deep Tech Report and the Deep Tech Breakfast Series, fostering collaboration and growth within the region's innovation landscape.

The fund is designed as a European closed‑end venture capital vehicle managed by Kibo Ventures. It aims to back early‑stage software businesses with global ambition, leading or co‑leading pre‑series A and series A rounds. Its investment policy places a geographic emphasis on companies whose center of operations, management or strategic base is in Spain, with the intention that at least two‑thirds of invested capital goes into Spanish companies. The duration of the fund is estimated at ten years from the first close, extendable by up to two additional one‑year periods, and it targets a portfolio of B2B software companies with differentiated technologies and scalable international models. Typical checks are in the order of ~€2 million into early‑stage rounds, seeking minority positions (~10‑20%) in companies ready to scale, demonstrating product‑market fit and growth potential.

Lakestar Early IV is an early-stage venture capital fund managed by Lakestar. The fund is domiciled the United Kingdom. The fund will focus their investments across geographies, with a focus on Europe in sectors such as AI, digitalisation, deep tech, healthcare, and fintech. The funds are aligned with Lakestar’s commitment to forge a stronger future for Europe by nurturing the region’s innovation and tech ecosystem through the funding of business models which support economic growth and social prosperity. The fund closed in April 2024 together Lakestar Growth II with $600 million.

Lakestar Growth II is a growth venture capital fund managed by Lakestar. The fund is domiciled the United Kingdom. The fund will focus their investments across geographies, with a focus on Europe in sectors such as AI, digitalisation, deep tech, healthcare, and fintech. The funds are aligned with Lakestar’s commitment to forge a stronger future for Europe by nurturing the region’s innovation and tech ecosystem through the funding of business models which support economic growth and social prosperity. The fund closed in April 2024 together Lakestar Early IV II with $600 million.

The firm’s second flagship vehicle, MVP Ventures II, is a $125 million early‑stage deep‑tech venture fund from MVP Ventures that expands the firm’s strategy to back founders at the intersection of AI, hardware and software. With this enlarged war chest, the fund emphasises a founder‑first philosophy: putting operations, recruiting, go‑to‑market strategy, regulatory navigation and follow‑on capital access at the centre of its support model. MVP Ventures II leverages a demonstrated track record (including top‑5% performance for Fund I and a 1.45× TVPI for this fund) to secure LP commitments and deploy capital into seed through early‑series rounds where the firm can become a persistent partner. The vehicle targets companies that are building differentiated and defensible technology in large markets, enabling meaningful value creation by pairing modest early checks with high‑impact operational backing rather than chasing only larger ticket sizes.

Mayfield Select III, also known as Mayfield Spring, is a $375 million venture capital fund launched by Mayfield in May 2023. This fund is designed to invest in Series B rounds, focusing on both follow-on investments in breakout companies from Mayfield's existing portfolio and new opportunities outside of it. The fund aims to support companies that have demonstrated early product-market fit and are poised for significant growth. The fund targets sectors at the intersection of technology and biology, including human-centered AI, the data economy, developer-first technologies, semiconductors, cybersecurity, deeptech, Web3, and human and planetary health. Mayfield's investment philosophy emphasizes a people-first approach, partnering closely with founders to build enduring companies. With Mayfield Select III, the firm continues its tradition of backing visionary entrepreneurs during pivotal growth stages, providing not just capital but also strategic guidance and support. The fund reflects Mayfield's commitment to fostering innovation and addressing some of the most pressing challenges and opportunities in today's rapidly evolving technological landscape.

MMC Innovation Fund is a corporate venture capital vehicle co-established in 2019 by Mitsubishi Materials Corporation (MMC) and JMTC Capital. One of Japan's leading diversified industrials companies, Mitsubishi Materials operates globally across copper products, electronic materials, superhard tools, and cement. The fund bridges MMC's century-long industrial expertise with the innovation economy, targeting materials-focused technology companies that can accelerate the firm's strategic transformation and sustainability agenda. The fund targets early- to growth-stage companies developing advanced materials solutions, next-generation manufacturing processes, and enabling clean technologies. Core investment themes include novel battery and energy storage materials, perovskite and thin-film solar technologies, industrial process innovation, and sustainable specialty chemicals. Portfolio companies benefit from MMC's capital alongside its scientific and engineering knowledge, global manufacturing infrastructure, and established customer relationships across electronics, automotive, and clean energy end markets. Since 2023, a strategic partnership with Pegasus Tech Ventures has broadened MMC Innovation Fund's global deal sourcing pipeline across North America, Europe, and Asia Pacific, extending the fund's reach beyond Japan's domestic startup ecosystem. MMC Innovation Fund has completed four investments since its 2019 launch. Its most notable publicly disclosed commitment is a Series B participation in Enecoat Technologies, a Japanese developer of next-generation perovskite solar cell materials targeting high-efficiency photovoltaics. The fund continues to evaluate co-investment opportunities alongside the Pegasus Tech Ventures global network and MMC's in-house research centers.