EUVC

European VC Power Law Report: Why Revenue Beats Unicorn StatusDealroom's recently released 2025 Power Law Investors Ranking 2025 report offers a unique milestone for European venture capital: 700 companies across EMEA now generate over $100 million in annual revenue. These aren't just unicorns floating on paper valuations. These are businesses with real customers paying real money.The report introduced a new category called "thoroughbreds" to capture this shift toward fundamental business metrics. While unicorns still matter for their forward-looking promise, thoroughbreds tell us something different: which companies actually built sustainable businesses that can weather market cycles.Today, Andreas Munk Holm digs into this topic and more with Saul Klein, co-founder of Phoenix Court (home to LocalGlobe, Latitude, Solar, and Basecamp) and the #1-ranked investor in the report, alongside Yoram Wijngaarde, founder & CEO of Dealroom.⏱️ Here’s what’s covered:00:39 - Saul on what topping the ranking says about Phoenix Court's approach01:53 - Yoram explains the thoroughbreds metric03:49 - Revenue vs valuation debate, lessons from Skype07:36 - Why Phoenix Court became multi-stage13:02 - The $35-50 billion growth stage funding gap17:38 - Advice for seed firms considering multi-stage expansion22:31 - Defense of the methodology's seed weighting24:58 - Picking companies at seed vs later stages

Welcome back to another episode of the EUVC Podcast, where we gather Europe’s venture family to share the stories, insights, and lessons that drive our ecosystem forward. Today’s conversation takes us on a global journey from Croatia to San Francisco to uncover how one founder caught lightning in a bottle and is now racing to harness it.Our guest: Ivan Burazin, founder of Daytona. With a career spanning Toronto, Croatia, Infobip, Shift Conference, and now Daytona, Ivan brings a rare, global perspective on how Europe can lead in DevTools and AI infrastructure. Alongside him, our dear friend Enis Hulli from E2VC joins to spotlight Daytona’s story, the lessons from its dramatic pivot, and what it means for founders and investors navigating this new AI wave.Ivan has spent two decades at the intersection of infrastructure and developer communities. From racking servers in the early 2000s to launching one of the first browser-based IDEs in 2009 to scaling the Shift Conference to thousands of attendees, his career has consistently circled around enabling developers.Daytona’s first act was a cloud IDE provider for enterprises — “one-click setup for secure developer environments.” With Fortune 500 customers onboard, revenue flowing, and a healthy pipeline, Daytona 1.0 showed promise. But something was missing.Six months ago, Ivan and his team made a bold decision to pivot. Daytona 2.0 is no longer about provisioning dev environments for humans — it’s about powering AI agents with the computers they need.“Agents are not computers themselves. They need access to computers to run browsers, clone repos, analyze data. Daytona gives them that — an isolated sandbox with machine-native interfaces built for agents.” – IvanThe differences between human and agent runtimes turned out to be massive:Humans tolerate 30 seconds of spin-up; agents need milliseconds.Humans solve problems sequentially; agents branch into parallel “multiverse” solutions.Humans parse terminal output; agents require clean APIs.By recognizing this, Daytona carved out a new category: the computer for agents.The pivot coincided with a deliberate move to San Francisco. Ivan recalls how Figma embedded with designers at Airbnb, or how Twilio found adoption among early Valley startups. To own mindshare in a new category, location mattered.“From San Francisco outwards, adoption flows naturally. From Europe inwards, it’s like pushing uphill.” – IvanSo Daytona went all-in: presence at AI meetups, team members flying in and out, and early product evangelism on the ground.HAfter the pivot, Daytona saw extraordinary pull from the market:Customer conversations ended with “send me the API key”.Infrastructure demand showed power-law dynamics: just a handful of fast-growing customers could drive scale.Instead of polished decks, Ivan shared raw revenue dashboards with authenticity.The momentum was immediate and tangible.Ivan admits he hadn’t explicitly asked permission to pivot. He hinted at it in updates, tested the idea with a hackathon, and only later informed his cap table. The response? Overwhelmingly positive.“Almost half the angels replied. Go f***ing go. Let’s go. I should’ve told them sooner.” – IvanEnis highlights this as a key distinction: experienced angels with broad portfolios encourage bold swings, while less diversified angels may fear the risk.Catching lightning is one thing. Harnessing it is another. Ivan’s current focus:Hiring deliberately: keeping the team small and ownership-driven.White-glove onboarding: every serious customer gets a Slack channel with the whole team.Balancing speed and reliability: ship daily, but solve today’s scale problems without over-engineering.Enis introduces a new term: seed-strapping — raising a seed, skipping A and B, and scaling straight to unicorn status.Ivan is cautious. Infra is capital-intensive, and while Daytona could raise a Series A today, he’s committed to doing it on his terms.

When Hampus Jakobsson and Romain Diaz took the stage at EUVC Summit 2025, the conversation wasn’t about convincing people that climate matters. That part’s done.This was about the harder bit:→ How do we fund the climate transition without compromising ambition?→ How do we handle LPs who see impact as indulgence, or carbon reporting as box-ticking?→ And how do we build conviction-led portfolios in a world that wants both velocity and virtue?One of the most powerful reframes came from Hampus:“Climate is like mobile or AI—it’s not a virtue, it’s a vertical. The difference is: in AI, we don’t know the problem. In climate, we do—we’re just figuring out the solutions.”That means climate investing is not philanthropy. It’s not reputation management. It’s venture—with a horizon, a thesis, and real outcomes.“If you're just looking to carbon offset with our fund, I’m fairly uncomfortable taking your money.”As Romain and Hampus both pointed out, climate LPs today fall into three broad groups:Impact-maximizers – want carbon reporting, ESG scoring, metrics.Return-seekers – want DPI, not data tables.Narrative-driven LPs – want the signal value of “being in climate.”A good fund has to navigate all three—with alignment being more valuable than agreement.“We had an LP walk away from Fund I because we wouldn’t do their carbon reporting. And we were okay with that.”Instead, Pale Blue Dot found alignment with LPs like IIP, the pension fund for Denmark’s nurses:“I sometimes ask myself—will this startup help deliver a pension to Danish nurses in 10 years? That’s the kind of alignment I want.”From methane-reducing agtech to fintech disruptors, the pair underscored the importance of building for what the world will need—not just what it rewards today.“We’re backing founders who are asking: will this still make sense in 2050?”The subtext: stop treating the climate transition as a hypothetical. It’s already here. And it’s reshaping everything from agriculture to infrastructure to insurance.“We don’t need everyone to believe. We just need to keep showing portfolio wins. The returns—and the reality—will take care of the rest.”The closing message from Romain and Hampus was clear:We don’t need more virtue. We need more velocity.Velocity in:Deploying capitalBacking bold foundersScaling actual solutionsAnd reshaping LP mindsets—one fund, one return, one story at a timeThe climate transition isn’t waiting. Neither should we.Climate Is Not a Virtue Signal—It’s a SectorThe Tension: Impact vs Reporting vs ReturnsOn Methane, Neobanks & the Year 2050Climate Investing Is Growing Up

Andreas Munk Holm, co-host of EUVC, dives into the current landscape of European venture capital. He discusses Nvidia's recent slowdown and Apple's regulatory battles in the UK, questioning if it's a sign of outdated regulations. The conversation shifts to how government interventions, like Trump's stake in Intel, can impact corporate trust and innovation. Andreas also highlights Europe's challenge in achieving tech sovereignty amid heavy dependencies on US firms, urging for local investments to empower startups and bolster self-sufficiency.

Europe has just gained its first unapologetically defense-first venture fund. Archangel Ventures, led by Nicholas Nelson and Daniel Carew, is not here to hedge, not here to play dual-use semantics, but to put defense front and center.Nic brings the lived experience of government, strategy, and deployments, with the policy networks to match. Daniel comes from a deep tech/DARPA-inspired investing background, obsessed with the frontier of what technology can achieve. Together, they’re building a fund that rejects the hype cycle and instead anchors itself in Europe’s sovereignty, resilience, and the urgent reality of our geopolitical moment.Why Estonia? Why now? Because the frontier matters. From Tallinn to Vilnius to Warsaw, the tyranny of geography makes defense personal. Partnering with Superangel, Archangel is embedding itself in the heart of the Baltics—a region that already knows what it means to digitize, mobilize, and defend.Archangel Ventures is a platform, a coalition of the willing, a bet that Europe can and must build its own defense ecosystem. As they put it, defense is not a bubble, not a passing Ukraine-driven hype cycle. It’s the crucible where the next generation of European technology—and deterrence—will be forged.We’re proud to have launched this journey with them on the pod. Tune in: 01:00 Origins of Archangel — Nic on why he wouldn’t start with just any partner.04:00 Why they teamed up — Daniel recalls NATO roots and complementary skillsets.08:30 Why defense-first matters — Nic explains why dual-use doesn’t work at seed.11:00 The timing challenge — Daniel on NATO’s long horizon investing.14:00 Portfolio construction — Nic’s three buckets: unmet needs, future needs, unknown unknowns.20:00 Filling the ecosystem gap — Daniel on bridging startups and primes in Europe.27:00 Why Estonia — Nic on geography and teaming with Superangel.33:00 Personal ties — Daniel on his Estonian family and NATO links.41:00 On working with primes — Nic pushes back on the “dinosaurs” narrative.53:00 Risks ahead — Nic on what happens if the war in Ukraine ends tomorrow.

At the EUVC Summit 2025, Cherry Ventures’ Christian and Elsa Deseilligny from Cambridge Associates offered a behind-the-scenes view of what it takes to stay true to your mission while building a firm that lasts. At the center of it all? The founder.For Cherry, “Founders First” isn’t just a slogan. It’s a system.“Putting the founder at the center—doing everything to make them thrive—that’s the foundation of how we build.”– ElsaThat principle doesn’t stop at deal selection or portfolio support. It shapes how Cherry builds its own team, firm, and platform. Every strategic decision—from hiring to productizing services—is filtered through one lens: Will this help our founders thrive?And when it comes to fundraising?“Your right to win with LPs ultimately ties back to that clarity of mission.”Christian addressed a tension many top-tier funds face: how big is too big?He acknowledged the importance of honest, iterative conversations with LPs—but also highlighted a view shared by allocators like Cambridge Associates:“There’s a sweet spot—where a strategy is still repeatable, but hasn’t lost its edge.”In VC, scaling up can mean professionalization—but it can also lead to dilution of edge. The best funds find the institutional footing they need without drifting into sameness.“You want to reach a size where you're clearly outperforming with discipline… but then stop there. That’s where true long-term relationships are built.”The insight many LPs quietly share?They’re often betting on managers before they peak.“Ideally, we find the manager early. We scale with them to that sweet spot—and then, no one else can get in.”It’s not just about performance. It’s about conviction. The best LP–GP relationships are forged when the firm still feels like a startup—when the ambition is high, but the capacity is still intimate.Cherry’s message was clear:If you want to build a lasting firm, don’t chase scale for the sake of it. Build around your mission. Build with intentionality. And stay small enough to stay sharp.The founders will notice. And so will the LPs.A Platform Built Around “Founders First”Scaling with Intention (and Limits)The Emerging Manager Advantage

Welcome to a new episode of the EUVC podcast, where Andreas Munk Holm explores the cutting edge of European venture capital. Today’s guest is Louis Dussart, Partner at RTP Global.Louis entered venture at just 20 years old with White Star Capital, built a startup bridging Europe and China, and now helps lead RTP Global’s European strategy. In this conversation, he shares why Europe faces a political wake-up call on tech, what we need to fix in talent, growth capital, and IPO markets, and why founders are not just entrepreneurs—they’re geopolitical assets.From emerging managers to sovereign LPs, from tech transfer to liquidity, Louis lays out the hard truths and actionable priorities for Europe to compete globally.Here's what's covered:02:12 Louis’s Path: From White Star Intern to RTP Partner06:01 What Makes RTP Global Different: A Truly Global, Debate-Driven DNA10:14 The Political Wake-Up Call: Why Tech Must Sit at the Top of Europe’s Agenda12:48 Talent, Visas & Education: The Dual Strategy for Closing the Skills Gap15:32 Sovereign LPs, Emerging Managers & The Role of Fund-of-Funds19:20 Tech Transfer in Europe: Why Our Universities Still Struggle25:40 US Growth Funds in Europe: Selling to America vs. Selling Out of Europe29:12 The Liquidity Problem: Why Capital Markets Union Is an Elephant in the Room34:45 Founders as Geopolitical Assets: Lessons for Europe’s Leaders38:55 The VC Role: Echo Chambers Between Founders, LPs & Policymakers44:20 Why Europe Needs Risk-Taking Politicians as Much as Risk-Taking Founders

Welcome back to the Impact Highlight Series, powered by EUVC, Impact VC, and Impact Supporters.Over the past months, we’ve hosted ten conversations with some of the most thoughtful GPs, LPs, and unicorn founders shaping the impact investing landscape. In this special capstone episode, August Solliv (Impact Supporters) and Dougie Sloan (Impact VC & Better Society Capital) sit down to unpack what we’ve heard and distil the lessons into four big themes.🎧 Here’s what’s covered:01:00 Impact driving returns: from the founder lens to the “lockstep” model where impact and profits reinforce each other.04:00 Shared value in practice: how impact-native companies scale impact and profit — and why this creates resilience and de-risks venture.07:00 Proving performance: what LPs at EIF, Isomer, and BSC are seeing in their data, and why DPI still matters.09:00 Great vs. good funds: LP perspectives on partner skills, GP thesis fit, and “edge” in impact venture.12:00 Specialist vs. generalist: why even generalist impact funds must go deep in certain verticals.14:00 Overlooked opportunities: adaptation, circularity, first-of-a-kind plants, and where impact capital is most needed.17:00 Innovating the VC model: evergreen structures, impact-linked carry, and the tension between GP innovation and LP appetite.20:00 Democratizing LP capital: why both institutional and retail channels are needed to scale impact VC.23:00 It all comes back to people: values, motivation, and the dual lens of commercial and impact acumen that defines the unicorn founders of tomorrow.26:00 Closing reflections: what we’ve learned from 10 conversations, and what’s next for the Impact Highlight Series.

Welcome back to another episode of the EUVC Podcast, where we gather Europe’s venture family to share the stories, insights, and lessons that drive our ecosystem forward.Today we welcome David Vlerick, Founding Partner at Bluegrass Ventures, to discuss how LP capital can be mobilised with meaning, why a platform approach makes venture more accessible, and what it takes to shift mindsets in a conservative market like Belgium.Bluegrass Ventures backs top-decile, small-to-mid-sized VC funds globally, while giving investors flexibility and transparency through a platform model. In this conversation, David shares his journey from law and private equity into venture, the philosophy behind Bluegrass, and why he believes primary capital is one of the most powerful forces for shaping a brighter future.🎧 Here’s what’s covered:01:00 David’s Path: From law and private equity to launching Bluegrass Ventures.05:00 Building Bluegrass: Why a platform, why small-to-mid-size funds, and why top-decile track records matter.08:00 Fund Selection: Unfair advantages, avoiding hype cycles, and sector-focused funds.15:00 The Person Behind Bluegrass: Travel, poetry, and how fatherhood shapes perspective.22:00 Risk in VC: Why startups ≠ diversified funds, and what the data says.27:00 Primary Capital: Fueling the future vs. parking money in secondary markets.31:00 Belgium’s Culture: From conservatism and PE comfort to embracing venture.36:00 Platform Model: How Bluegrass balances investor choice with portfolio discipline.42:00 Venture as Community: High-calibre people, collaborative networks, and optimism.43:00 Bluegrass’s Mission: Delivering Belgium’s best financial product and moving more money with meaning.

Welcome back to another episode of the EUVC Podcast, where we bring together Europe’s venture family to share the stories, insights, and lessons that drive our ecosystem forward.This week, we sit down with Will Wells, founder-turned-VC, and now Partner at Speedinvest, where he leads deep tech and supports the firm’s growth strategy.Will’s journey spans building Hummingbird Technologies, an AI-powered agtech company exited to Agreena in 2022, to leading frontier tech at Firstminute Capital and Lightspeed Venture Partners. Now at Speedinvest, he’s focused on backing European founders working on sovereign compute, defense, energy resilience, biosecurity, and the “picks and shovels” of the next decades.🎧 Here’s what’s covered:01:00 From founder to investor: lessons from building Hummingbird Technologies and the empathy it gave Will as a VC.05:00 Learning venture at Firstminute and Lightspeed: what “good” looks like in deep tech investing.07:00 Beyond buckets: why the biggest opportunities lie in combining AI, hardware, defense, and science into multi-sector platforms.10:00 Big bets in deep tech: Europe’s challenge at pre-seed and why bold consortium funding matters early.12:00 Defense tech & geopolitics: reconciling economic opportunity with moral responsibility.15:00 Strategic sovereignty: compute, semiconductors, energy resilience, and why Europe needs its own infrastructure.17:00 Thesis-building: inevitable truths, technical stacks, and where customers will actually buy.20:00 Agtech, climate, and humility: what Will learned from being early in robotics and regen agriculture.24:00 Leveraging Speedinvest’s platform model: why deep vertical teams and operational scale matter in frontier tech.29:00 Looking ahead: biosecurity, autonomy, energy resilience — and why Europe must back multi-generational deep tech companies.