Startup Europe — The Sifted Podcast

This week we've got a bonus episode for you, recorded while Amy was off at the Slush startup conference in Helsinki. It's a conversation with veteran tech investor and Index Ventures partner Danny Rimer, who's sat on the boards of household name companies like Dropbox, Etsy, Farfetch and Discord. He also led Index's early investment into design software product Figma, which got acquired by Adobe this year for a cool $20bn.In this episode Danny and Amy discuss layoffs, pay rises, crypto and that Figma deal, plus much more. This podcast is brought to you by Zendesk for Startups. Zendesk helps startups build lasting customer experiences from day one. With the Zendesk for Startups Program, startups get Zendesk customer support software and CRM for six months FREE of charge. You’ll get access to expert advice and a community of likeminded founders and CX leaders to help you build the foundation for long-term growth. Learn more and claim your 6 months free at zendesk.com/sifted.

This week we discuss:(04:24) Starling Bank blocks crypto payments in wake of FTX collapse(06:01) Are we about to see another dot com crash?(12:27) Tech event Slush revokes award for Russian founder after backlash(20:47) How has Theranos affected biotech startups?This podcast is brought to you by Zendesk for Startups. Zendesk helps startups build lasting customer experiences from day one. With the Zendesk for Startups Program, startups get Zendesk customer support software and CRM for six months FREE of charge. You’ll get access to expert advice and a community of likeminded founders and CX leaders to help you build the foundation for long-term growth. Learn more and claim your 6 months free at zendesk.com/sifted.

This week we're bringing you the second in our new series of extended interviews with the big names and rising stars of Europe's tech and startup scene.This episode features a conversation with Timmu Tõke, founder of Ready Player Me — an Estonian company that recently won investment from legendary VC firm Andreessen Horowitz to develop its metaverse-ready avatar technology.Recorded in the midst of a turbulent time for the metaverse and all things Web3, in this interview Timmu shares his thoughts on what the metaverse might look like, who should govern it and why he thinks Mark Zuckerberg might be barking up the wrong tree.---This podcast is brought to you by Zendesk for Startups. Zendesk helps startups build lasting customer experiences from day one. With the Zendesk for Startups Program, startups get Zendesk customer support software and CRM for six months FREE of charge. You’ll get access to expert advice and a community of likeminded founders and CX leaders to help you build the foundation for long-term growth. Learn more and claim your 6 months free at zendesk.com/sifted.

This week we discuss:03:35 Anything World raises $7.5m06:16 Crypto payment startup Ramp raises $70m08:15 Solar startup Alight wins $150m in buyout to scale up its ambitions10:04 Spotify's Daniel Ek has a new startup in the works16:53 What's gone wrong for UK battery startup Britishvolt?

This week we discuss:00:53 Kry lays off 300 employees03:52 Monzo staff unionise07:33 Flying taxi startup raises $30009:53 Robots in demand as energy prices soar12:57 What's been going down at Web Summit?

This week we discuss:01:58 Will Rishi Sunak, the UK’s new prime minister, be good for startups?05:56 Damning stats reveal gender pay gap at European startups09:18 Daye raises £10 for vaginal microbiome testing12:20 H2 Green Steel secures €3.5bn in debt to build hydrogen steel plant14:47 Alt meat startup Heura raises €20m16:52 Paebbl raises €8m to turn captured carbon into cement18:42 Can private jets really be good for the environment?19:50 A lack of lab space is threatening UK biotech

This week, we're treating you to something a little bit different. Eleanor's joined by EQT Growth partner Carolina Brochado, who recently launched a new €2.4bn fund to back later-stage European startups. That's not her only heavyweight credential: before joining EQT, Carolina was a partner at both the SoftBank Vision Fund and Atomico.They talk about how she’s works with her portfolio companies, how far European tech has come and how she tried (and failed), somewhat creatively, to win a spot on Deliveroo’s cap table back in the day.

This week we discuss:02:01 Who would lose most in a Gorillas sale?04:41 N26 reports widening losses06:57 Amazon aggregators get sued09:55 AI investment is down13:02 Tech to make us age slower19:30 Spain gets its 10th unicorn

This week we discuss:03:19 Metaverse platform Improbable has raised $100m10:15 Faux foie gras startup Gourmey raises €48m13:15 New Paris-based VC fund Sista Fund launches26:55 How can all startups help the green transition?The carbon-light website agency mentioned by Tessa Clarke: Wholegrain

This week we discuss:02:34 Italy gets its second unicorn in Satispay04:56 Sequoia gets its fifth partner in Europe 06:40 Phagos raised €2.4m to fight antibiotic resistance08:43 Wayve announces big breakthrough for self-driving cars