EUVC

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 chemicals04:31 | Investor → founder pendulum — why Max went from Atlantic Labs partner back to operator06:20 | The serial founder advantage (and its hidden trap)10:17 | Building deep tech in Europe — talent constraints, optimism gaps, and moving early to the US15:30 | Multipolarity — global operations, risk appetite, and where to spend your time23:38 | Boardcraft — how to use your board (and avoid being over-managed)28:39 | On-air sparring — asset-heavy vs. platform-heavy business models33:17 | Prepping for Series B — risk, IRR, and the difference between validation and scale36:59 | Milestone-based investing in deep tech — bridges, binaries, and how to keep momentum43:12 | LPs and VCs — why deep tech is high-risk and high-alpha46:08 | Founder lessons — customer co-creation, speed, and building fast with scientists48:06 | 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 SwitzerlandNow 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 covered01:41 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 covered00:26 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 path05:00 | Why competence always comes before confidence09:15 | The five pillars of Dave’s coaching methodology13:40 | Founder Mode: planning and executing with quarterly rhythm18:25 | Why visual clarity often beats verbal reflection22:10 | The hidden link between trauma, ego, and founder drive27:45 | Product launches as a culture-shaping mechanism32:30 | How to transform board meetings into true strategic accelerators38:50 | The founder’s mindset: obsessive curiosity + conviction