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

Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa

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