Salo IoT Campus is a community of high-tech companies, researchers and educational instutitions working together on a daily basis. They have over 100 companies and 2 000 people on working and studying on their campus.
They offer versatile premises, comprehensive services and an active expert community. They are seeking more companies and partners to join them in making a smarter future.
They’re based in Salo, Finland, approximately one hour from Helsinki.
Marubeni Corporation is one of the oldest ones in Japan with over 160 years of history. Their CVC arm is looking to co-invest €0.5M – 3M tickets into companies raising rounds of €3 – 50M. They look for scalable business models, and have invested into software, ecommerce, marketplaces, among others.
They are interested in smart city infrastructure (energy, EV charging etc.) and digital solutions (cyber security, entertainment, commerce, but not specializing in communication software).
Spring Capital manages two funds: a small cap growth fund with €300k – 700k tickets, and a startup fund with €50k – 200k tickets on rounds of €300k – 1M, with a maximum total allocation of €450k into one very successful company over the lifetime. The growth fund can invest up to €1M into a company altogether.
The growth fund is focused on making solo investments into profitable companies, occasionally also co-investing on rounds of up to €2M. The startup fund makes co-investments into startups with traction, typically with €5-20k/mo in revenues, seeking to become profitable later.
The startup fund invests into software and marketplaces, and the growth fund into hardware and traditional manufacturing SMEs. They prefer applied technological solutions instead of very deep tech, but in the growth fund they also look into non-tech cases.
In their growth fund, Spring Capital is looking for innovators of traditional fields. The startup fund specializes in SaaS and marketplace solutions.
Equinor & Techstars Energy Accelerator seeks innovative startups within four critical areas of the energy sector: oil and gas, new business models, digitization and renewables. Equinor is a leading energy corporation in Norway, and the program’s physical parts take place in Oslo.
Techstars is a leading startup accelerator that has invested into over 2,100 companies and helped them raise $9.3B since 2007. They run approx. 50 programs every year, each investing into 10 companies.
Their application period for 2020 program is open until 11.10.2020, and the next application period will be open from July to October 2021, for the program that will take place in February 2022.
Techstars acceleration programs include a $20k stipend for running expenses and an optional $100k convertible loan in addition to the programs’ coaching and the network membership, in exchange for a 6% stake in the company (or higher based on the conversion rate on next round).
Techstars Ventures also does follow-on investments into their best performing portfolio companies, having co-led an investment round with Equinor of €4M. Many other funds also invest into Techstars companies.
Ericsson Ventures is the CVC arm of Ericsson, the network company. They’re interested in everything very network-related: cloud technology, cyber security, AI, 5G etc. They’re focusing on B2B software, but will look at B2G and hardware cases as well. They look especially for companies who want into the telecom market.
Vitosha Venture Partners invests into startups that have a connection with Bulgaria, or willing to establish one. For example a sales team’s office or a development unit.
They do not invest into gambling or similar types of startups.
APX invests into early stage software companies in Europe and Israel and offers them a 100-day tailormade acceleration program. After the program they usually invest more pro rata.
They’re backed by Porsche, the luxury car manufacturer, and Axel Springer, the biggest media company in Europe. They have an extensive network of industrial connections in Germany, including the globally leading companies in multiple fields.
Their main value add is in business development. They focus on companies who are ready to sell at least a pilot version to customers already.
Their initial investment is always €50k for 5% ownership stake. They also offer office in Berlin for four months for free. They invest into over 40 companies per year.
Startup Lions / Whitecoach invest into very early stage Finnish startups and helps them get more funding from banks, the state and other investors. They’re often the first investor, who helps the company get the business and further investments going.
Sector-wise they’re not investing into games, pharma or other very capital-intensive areas, but almost everything else is interesting for them.
Startup Lions and Whitecoach are two separate investment companies who share many key people and operating models. They seek a 10-50% ownership stake and board chairperson position in the companies they invest in.
Kiilto Ventures is the family office of Kiilto Group. Kiilto develops, manufactures and markets chemical industry solutions in four business areas: construction, industrial bonding and hygiene solutions, professional cleanliness and hygiene, and consumer business. Kiilto Ventures is seeking B2B and B2G companies disrupting and innovating the way things are done in these sectors.
They prefer to invest into companies they can have a business collaboration with, for example as a client, sales channel or RDI partner.
They value sustainability and appreciate alternative solutions to achieve the desired results with a better environmental impact. Other interest areas include for example hygiene validation and management with data, and identifying invisible dirt, bacteria or viruses, especially automatically from surfaces, and hygiene as a service.
Kiilto Ventures prefers ownership stakes between 10-20%. They appreciate getting a board seat.
Kiilto’s aim is to be carbon neutral by 2028.
Buildit Latvia is a hardware-focused accelerator in Riga, Latvia. They invest into many startups in their program. Among its usual benefits the program acts as a due diligence for both sides to see if it’s a good time to work together for a longer term and make and take the investment.
They invest €20-50k initially from their pre-seed fund on companies. They can later follow up with up to €250k with their seed fund. For the pre-seed investments, the teams need to incorporate in Latvia. At the seed stage, they don’t need to stay there. All the companies they take in have to be willing and able to move into Latvia.
They have a preference for B2B, but take in companies with all client types.