BNVT Capital today announced the launch of its debut $150M fund to invest in AI-first and technology-driven companies solving humanity’s most pressing challenges.

BNVT’s approach is built on a groundbreaking study, “Benevolent Disruption: The Fortune in Solving the World’s Biggest Problems”, co-authored with Professor Josh Lerner of Harvard Business School and VenCap International PLC (a large VC allocator) and academics at MIT and Oxford University. 

Drawing on proprietary data on 500+ VC funds and 14,000 companies, over the last 40 years, the study unveils an enormous source of investment value: just 30 per cent of venture-backed companies tackle big problems and these have historically delivered 51 per cent higher returns compared to their peers.

BNVT Capital was founded by Managing Partners Rory Mounsey-Heysham (ex-Gates Foundation), Chris Corbishley (ex-Hedosophia), as well as Co-Founder Nasir Alsharif (Chairman of Sackville Capital). Sackville Capital is a London-based private markets investor and seeded BNVT Capital. 

The funds' origins stemmed from Rory observing the outsized returns Bill Gates was generating from investing in solutions to global problems, and then Chris witnessing the same pattern play out in his own portfolio at Hedosophia. 

The fund has already invested in 11 companies across Europe and the US, including Swap Commerce https://www.swap-commerce.com/ (UK), Cloover (Germany), and Dawnguard (Netherlands), co-investing alongside global firms such as TPG, Iconiq, Lowercarbon, and QED.

Rory Mounsey-Heysham, managing partner at BNVT Capital, said:  

“LPs and entrepreneurs are crying out for investors who see the world’s biggest challenges not as a moral quandary, but as vast untapped markets. A big problem is simply a big market waiting to be served.”

Nasir Alsharif, co-founder of BNVT, added: 

“This is truly a differentiated investment thesis - backed up by extraordinarily real-world data. Myself, and Sackville Capital, were excited by the countercyclical nature of the thesis - creating outsized returns from solving the biggest problems.”

Chris Corbishley, managing partner at BNVT Capital, said:

“Investors have missed a striking pattern in their own data. For too long, investors have been backing fads, not needs - distracted by incremental technologies making life marginally faster, cheaper, or easier.

Venture capital is about swinging for the fences—backing solutions that can reshape society for the better. That is what Benevolent Disruption is about.”

The fund’s thesis has garnered support from leading entrepreneurs and investors, including founders and leaders from Shopify, Google, Octopus Energy, and Remitly, as well as institutional backing from Starwood Capital, Investcorp, TPG, and other prominent investors.

As part of the announcement, BNVT Capital is launching the Benevolent Disruption platform and community. 

BNVT Capital plans to expand its portfolio to 25–30 companies globally in the coming 2 years, continuing to prove that solving the world’s biggest problems provides one of the most lucrative opportunities in venture investing.

Lead image: Chris Corbishley and Rory Mounsey Heysham. Photo: uncredited.

suena energy, a technology company specialising in algorithmic optimisation and trading for energy storage systems and renewable energies, has successfully closed an €8 million Series A funding round. 

suena energy’s proprietary Energy Trading Autopilot enables fully automated, AI-driven trading of flexibilities across all relevant power and ancillary service markets. 

Using real-time data and forecasts, the platform generates optimal dispatch schedules to maximise revenues while minimising risk and battery degradation.

A key focus of the growth strategy is the rapidly expanding market for co-located storage. These projects not only offer operational synergies and new revenue models but also require strong technological, regulatory, and economic integration. suena energy addresses this complexity with a software approach that can flexibly adapt to market and project conditions, helping customers to develop storage projects quickly, efficiently, and profitably – for a resilient, decentralised, and decarbonised power system.

Dutch energy company Eneco led the round through its investment arm Eneco Ventures. It was joined by impact venture capital fund InnoEnergy and existing investors InnoEnergy, J.O.S.S., Santander, and Energie 360°. 

“This funding round marks a strategic milestone for us, enabling us to take our business model to the next level – with strong partners at our side who share our vision”, said Lennard Wilkening, PhD, Co-Founder and CEO of suena energy.

“Eneco Ventures and 4impact are highly complementary to our existing investor base. Their strategic-operational and digital technology expertise brings us closer to our goal of becoming a leading provider of intelligent flexibility trading in Europe.”

Till Wyszynski, Investment Director at Eneco Ventures, shared:

“suena energy impressed us with its outstanding team, innovative trading platform, and clear vision.

The ability to optimise complex assets like the combination of renewables and storage in real time is a crucial element of the energy transition. suena energy has the potential to become a market leader in this space.”

According to Pauline Wink, Managing Partner and Co-Founder of 4impact capital:

“We are deeply impressed by Suena Energy’s focus on optimising co-located storage and renewable energy – an increasingly vital component of the energy transition – as well as the strength and complementarity of its founding team. 

The team has secured key customers, developed clear growth plans, and achieved significant progress.”

suena energy will use the fresh capital to strengthen its position in the rapidly growing energy storage market, with a focus on international expansion, scaling its business model, and optimising the co-location of storage systems with renewable energy assets. 

Lead image: suena energy. Photo: uncredited. 

Hamburg-based suena energy has raised an €8 million Series A round to boost its presence in the fast-growing energy storage sector, focusing on international expansion, scaling its business model, and optimising the co-location of storage with renewable energy assets.

The round was led by Dutch energy company Eneco through its investment arm Eneco Ventures and joined by impact venture capital fund 4impact capital. Existing investors InnoEnergy, J.O.S.S., Santander, and Energie 360° also participated.

suena energy is a fully algorithmic, AI-driven provider of trading optimisation for battery storage and renewable assets. Its proprietary Energy Trading Autopilot ingests real-time data and forecasts to generate optimal dispatch schedules and execute fully automated trades across power and ancillary service markets, lifting revenues, extending battery life by minimising degradation, and reducing risk.

The offering also covers optimised marketing for standalone storage, co-located solar and wind projects, direct renewable marketing, portfolio optimisation, and white-label partner solutions.

A core growth focus is co-located storage, an expanding segment with operational synergies and new revenue models that also demand tight technological, regulatory, and economic integration.

suena energy addresses this complexity with adaptable software that fits market and project conditions, enabling customers to develop and operate storage projects faster, more efficiently, and more profitably, supporting a resilient, decentralised, and decarbonised power system.

This funding round marks a strategic milestone for us, enabling us to take our business model to the next level – with strong partners at our side who share our vision,

said Lennard Wilkening, PhD, Co-founder and CEO of suena energy.

Eneco Ventures and 4impact  are highly complementary to our existing investor base. Their strategic-operational and digital technology expertise bring us closer to our goal of becoming a leading provider of intelligent flexibility trading in Europe.

With this funding, the company will expand abroad, scale its model, and prioritise co-located storage projects, a rapidly growing area of the energy transition.

CoreWeave and Salesforce are the latest US tech firms to pledge significant AI investments into the UK, which are coinciding with President Trump’s visit to the UK.

CoreWeave, which provides cloud computing services to companies building AI models, today announced the next $1.5bn phase of its £2.5bn investment in AI data centre capacity and operations in the UK.

CoreWeave says its investment will provide AI labs, enterprises, the public sector, research institutions and startups with AI infrastructure. It also said it will help create jobs across engineering, operations and related services.

“Our investment in the UK will establish one of the world’s largest concentrations of state-of-the-art, sustainable compute, unlocking new opportunities for innovation, economic growth, and scientific discovery,” said Michael Intrator, co-founder, chairman and CEO of CoreWeave.

As part of this investment, CoreWeave is partnering with Nvidia and DataVita, the Scottish data centre firm, in Scotland, which will deploy Nvidia GPUs, which are backed by” entirely by renewable energy, and leveraging state-of-the-art closed-loop cooling technology to minimise water consumption”.

In January this year, CoreWeave opened its first two data centres in the UK, the first outside of its native US. The US tech firm opened its European HQ in London in 2023.

Meanwhile, US software giant Salesforce, whose UK arm axed more than 450 jobs in 2024, said it is increasing its investment to $6bn in its UK business through to 2030. This marks an extension of Salesforce's $4bn five-year investment in 2023 in the UK.

Salesforce’s investment includes the UK becoming its AI hub for Salesforce UK and Europe, with new R&D teams, a previous $4 billion commitment, and the establishment of its first AI Centre in London. It is also investing in UK companies that are building in AI.

“We are doubling down on our long-standing commitment to the UK with this significant investment,” said Marc Benioff, chair and CEO, Salesforce.

Salesforce has operated in the UK for around 25 years. Google has also announced a significant investment in UK AI, with OpenAI and Nvidia also expected to confirm investments.

Valencia’s Highlight Therapeutics, a biopharmaceutical company focused on the development of next-generation immunotherapies, has raised €15 million aimed at strengthening their position in the treatment of skin tumours and accelerating its clinical development plan.

The funds were raised in part by Buenavista Equity Partners, through its specialised fund BV Healthcare Growth Innvierte I (BHG I), created in collaboration with Columbus Venture Partners.

Marisol Quintero, CEO of Highlight Therapeutics, said: “Buenavista’s investment enables us to strengthen our team and consolidate our position as a leading company in the development of treatments for skin tumours.” 

Founded in 2013, Highlight Therapeutics is a BioTech company specialising in immuno-oncology, focused on developing innovative cancer therapies. Its investigational compound, BO-112, is a double-stranded RNA immunotherapy allegedly capable of powerfully activating the immune system and enhancing the response to tumours.

In collaboration with the Spanish National Cancer Research Center (CNIO), the company is conducting clinical trials in various hospitals.

Buenavista’s investment will enable Highlight to advance its lead compound, BO-112, which is currently in a Phase 2b clinical trial for the treatment of basal cell carcinoma – the most common cancer, with over six million cases across the EU and the US. The treatment has reportedly already demonstrated efficacy against aggressive melanoma tumours, and the current study will allow its use to be extended to other tumour types.

BO-112, a derivative of BO-110, is a compound discovered in 2009 by Marisol Soengas’s group at the CNIO and represents the institution’s first oncology candidate to reach clinical studies in patients. The compound works by mimicking a viral infection, activating the immune system to target tumour cells across various types of cancer, including those resistant to immunotherapy.

The company is also announcing the appointment of Abel Riera, who has extensive experience in Business Development and M&A, as Chief Business Officer as part of its strategy to reinforce its executive team, with plans of further additions in the near future.

Nuria Osés, Managing Partner of Healthcare Growth at Buenavista, commented: “Highlight’s strategy is fully aligned with BHG I’s vision of supporting therapies with high transformative potential, a strong scientific foundation, and a clear focus on specific medical needs. Its collaboration with leading institutions such as the CNIO and its commitment to developing accessible treatments further strengthen the project’s credentials. We are very excited to support them in this new phase.”

The transaction announced today marks the third investment by the BV Healthcare Growth Innvierte I fund, following its participation in Syngoi, a CDMO specialised in synthetic DNA manufacturing, and Quibim, a pioneer in transforming precision medicine through imaging biomarkers powered by artificial intelligence

The post Spanish cancer startup Highlight Therapeutics closes €15 million round to further skin tumour treatment appeared first on EU-Startups.

Enhanced Genomics, a British BioTech company innovating 3D multi-omics to rapidly identify high-confidence, genetically validated drug targets for common diseases, today announced it has completed a financing round, extending its total Series A funding to €16 million.

Investors in this latest funding are BGF, Parkwalk and Meltwind.

“Our Founders have led the field by developing technology to map 3D interactions on a whole-genome scale, and integrating these data with comprehensive multi-omics datasets. We now have the technological capabilities to decipher the causal biology that drives complex and common genetic diseases, with the potential to develop truly effective new blockbuster therapies.” said Dietrich A. Stephan, Ph.D., Chair, Enhanced Genomics.

Founded in 2020, Enhanced Genomics claims to be the only BioTech company able to define causal biology from disease-associated variants on a genome-wide scale, enabling the rapid identification of new, high-confidence, first-in-class therapeutic targets for common diseases, with blockbuster potential.

Unlocking decades worth of genetic data and providing unparalleled validation via its proprietary 3D multi-omics platform and data-rich human cell type-specific atlas, the Company is able to expedite drug discovery and precision medicine.

Enhanced’s 3D multi-omics platform is the only genome-wide, hypothesis-free technology able to translate massive amounts of disease-associated variant data into causal biology on a cell-type-specific basis. According to the company, this approach supports both target prioritisation, more than doubling the probability of success, and target identification, vastly increasing the number of novel disease targets that can be identified, more efficiently and in a fraction of the time previously possible.

It also allows the stratification of patients into responder groups to improve and accelerate clinical trials. 

“This puts us in a strong position to lead the next major shift in pharma. When developing a novel approach to drug discovery, clarity of thought and courage are required to build deep conviction, and we are proud to have built a team that embodies this. We thank our investors for continuing to support our vision,” added Stephan.

The funding will be used to expand Enhanced’s internal therapeutic pipeline in common diseases, including autoimmune conditions such as inflammatory bowel disease. The latest investment will enable the Company to scale its output through strategic partnerships with pharma and biotech, leveraging novel target identification and asset-based opportunities to drive long-term growth.

By translating massive amounts of disease-associated data into actionable insights, Enhanced is identifying high confidence targets with strong genetic evidence of causality, increasing the probability of success in pharmaceutical development, and in a fraction of the time and cost previously possible.

The post Cambridge’s Enhanced Genomics extends funding to €16 million to drive development of therapeutics pipeline appeared first on EU-Startups.

Workday, the enterprise AI platform for managing people, money, and agents, has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Sana, a Stockholm AI company building the next generation of enterprise knowledge tools. Since its founding in 2016, Sana has developed intuitive workplace tools that elevate humans with AI.

Sana’s core products, Sana Learn and Sana Agents, have already served over one million users across hundreds of enterprises. In addition to powering a new Workday experience, Sana will continue to develop Sana Learn and Sana Agents. As part of Workday, Sana will be able to accelerate its growth and deliver even more innovation to its customers at scale.

“Sana’s team, AI-native approach, and beautiful design perfectly align with our vision to reimagine the future of work,” said Gerrit Kazmaier, president, Product & Technology at Workday.  

“This will make Workday the new front door for work, delivering a proactive, personalised, and intelligent experience that unlocks unmatched AI capabilities for the workplace.”

“Our focus has always been on creating intuitive AI tools that improve how people learn and work,” said Joel Hellermark, founder and CEO of Sana.  

“I’m excited to bring these tools to 75 million Workday users and partner with Workday’s iconic team to launch a new era of superintelligence for work.”

With Sana, Workday will create the work experience of the future, where enterprise knowledge, data and actions converge into one. Leveraging Workday’s unique data and context around people and money — as well as a rich ecosystem of builders and partners — the employee experience will become personalised and proactive, better anticipating employee needs based on their role, team, and projects. 

For example, hiring managers will be able to generate tailored dashboards to monitor their live recruitment pipeline, automate the end-to-end performance review process, and receive proactive suggestions on onboarding new hires based on real-time performance data.

The transaction is expected to close in the fourth quarter of Workday’s fiscal year 2026, ending January 31, 2026, subject to the satisfaction of customary closing conditions.

Early-stage investment firm Anthemis and Cambridge AI Venture Partners (CAIVP), as well as a team comprised of industry experts Sir Andy Hopper, Prof Rob Mullins, Dr Gavin Ferris and Mike Halsall, today announce the launch of CommonAI, a collaborative engineering and computing platform for AI-enabled start-ups, enterprises, engineers, academics and investors.

CommonAI combines the deep AI knowledge of CAIVP with the investment expertise of Anthemis to turbocharge the UK and European AI innovation ecosystem. 

It seeks to tackle the key challenges and barriers startups and enterprises face, allowing them to innovate safely and cost-effectively, reduce their reliance on Big Tech and secure the strategic investment critical to seizing the AI growth opportunity.

Through CommonAI membership, AI-enabled start-ups and enterprises will gain access to world-class IP, including models, weights, framework software, training data and hardware designs, while also gaining affordable access to critical GPU resources.

Together, these capabilities will allow UK and European businesses to develop AI-enabled propositions that can successfully compete at a global scale.

At the heart of the initiative is a non-profit engineering organisation – Common AI CIC – a UK community interest company that will co-develop foundational AI IP in partnership with its members.  The platform additionally provides access to CommonAI Compute Ltd – a facilitator of cost-effective GPU resource. 

Both entities will be underpinned by a shared Digital Commons repository, providing world-class resources to ecosystem members under time embargo.

According to Dr Gavin Ferris, CEO, CommonAI CIC, increasingly, AI startups and SMEs find themselves unable to assemble the computing power, technology and strategic resources necessary to successfully compete on the world stage:

“CommonAI’s innovation platform, shared IP and industry expertise will play a critical role in levelling this playing field, unlocking new growth opportunities and protecting the long-term economic future of both the UK and Europe.

‘Structuring and governing our engineering organisation as an unconflicted Community Interest Company (CIC) ensures that the interests of our members are protected while encouraging collaboration and maximising the potential of the UK AI ecosystem.’

Sir Andy Hopper, Board Chair, CommonAI CIC contends that with Big Tech’s dominance over large-scale AI models and infrastructure, startups are being denied access to this burgeoning opportunity – and even larger enterprises face the challenge of balancing their innovation agenda with the resources required to power their core business:

“By enabling ‘Virtual BigCos’ and unleashing the latent power of our entrepreneurs – and working in partnership with leading engineering talent, research institutions and universities – businesses of all scales in our economy can access the capabilities and expertise they need to thrive on the global stage.”

Following the launch of the CommonAI platform, Anthemis intends to raise a “High Assurance AI” fund to invest in UK and European startups that are applying AI in highly regulated and complex industries such as financial services, healthcare, critical infrastructure and defence. 

This is the first in a planned series of CommonAI-branded funds that aim to extend the traditional VC offering by providing portfolio companies access not only to capital but also to the transformative technology support of the foundational CommonAI platform.

According to Anthemis Founder and Group CEO, Amy Nauiokas, the platform offers a space around which stakeholders can coalesce to deliver meaningful impact. 

“We are building an AI ecosystem to drive forward action – one that clears the barriers to accessing the opportunities presented by a new wave of innovation and combines deep expertise, cutting-edge technology, cheaper compute and access to smart, supportive capital.

Getting this right is critical to the UK and Europe’s economic future and we’re excited about the prospect of working alongside our partners and members to build the next generation of industry champions.’

Romanian-founded startup DRUID AI today announced it has secured $31 million in Series C financing to advance the global expansion of its enterprise-ready agentic AI platform under the leadership of its new CEO, Joseph Kim. 

DRUID AI is an end-to-end enterprise agentic AI platform that enables rapid development and deployment of AI Agents to automate business processes and enhance access to enterprise knowledge.

DRUID Agents deliver personalised, secure, and omnichannel experiences while seamlessly integrating with existing systems, apps, and RPA technologies—empowering businesses to operate smarter, faster, and more efficiently. Founded in 2018, DRUID AI has powered over one billion conversations across more than 4,000 AI Agents and supports 300+ clients globally.

“This investment is both a testament to DRUID AI’s success and a catalyst to elevate businesses globally through the power of agentic AI,” said Kim. 

“Customer success is what it’s all about, and delivering real business outcomes requires understanding companies’ pain points and introducing innovations that help those customers address their complex challenges.

That’s the DRUID AI way, and now we’re bringing it to the world through this new phase of global growth.”

Cipio Partners led the investment, with participation from TQ Ventures, Karma Ventures, Smedvig, and Hoxton Ventures.

Roland Dennert, managing partner at Cipio Partners, explained:

“DRUID AI aligns perfectly with our investment strategy – offering a differentiated, AI-based product in a vast and rapidly growing market. 

Our investment will help accelerate DRUID AI’s expansion into the US and elsewhere, fuel further technological advancements, and strengthen its position as a global leader in enterprise AI solutions.” 

Kim has more than two decades of operating executive experience in application, infrastructure, and security industries. Most recently, he was CEO of Sumo Logic. He serves on the boards of directors of SmartBear and Andela. In addition, he was a senior operating partner at private equity firm Francisco Partners, CPTO at Citrix, SolarWinds, and Hewlett Packard Enterprise, and chief architect at GE.

DRUID AI is trusted by more than 300 global clients across banking, financial services, government, healthcare, higher education, manufacturing, retail, and telecommunications. Leading organisations such as AXA Insurance, Carrefour, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Georgia Southern University, Kmart Australia, Liberty Global Group, MatrixCare, National Health Service, and Orange Auchan have adopted DRUID AI to redefine the way they operate.

Genoskin, a Contract Research Organisation (CRO) developing ex vivo human skin platforms capable of testing injected drugs and implanted medical devices, today announces it has raised $8.7 million in its first funding round.

Genoskin provides a scalable and sustainable alternative to animal testing.

By leveraging donated human skin and its proprietary preservation technology, the company provides live immunocompetent *ex vivo *platforms that remain viable for up to seven days post-surgery, enabling more predictive, human-relevant testing than traditional animal or engineered models. 

The models generate large-scale datasets through multiomics approaches, which are further analysed using AI and advanced bioinformatics to deliver meaningful insights into the toxicity and efficacy of tested products in humans. 

Backed by a robust IP portfolio, an established tissue sourcing network and a proven scalable service model, Genoskin’s solutions deliver translational human-relevant insights that improve predictability and regulatory acceptance. 

This combination gives Genoskin a unique competitive advantage in supplying biopharma, cosmetics and cell and gene companies with models that reflect human physiology, especially for skin-related delivery routes such as injectables, including vaccines and topically administered therapeutics.

OCCTE (FPCI Occidev Impacts) led the investment round, alongside Captech Santé, GSO Innovation and CA Toulouse 31 Initiatives. It includes 5.4 million in equity investment and with $3.3 million (€3M) in non-dilutive financing in structured bank debt, provided by Bpifrance and local banking partners: BNP Paribas, Caisse d’Epargne Midi-Pyrénées and Crédit Agricole.

“As a company built on ethical innovation, we are proud to offer sustainable, human-relevant alternatives to animal testing. This investment validates our strategy and reinforces our position as a leader in predictive immunotoxicology using live human skin models,” said Pascal Descargues, Ph.D., CEO of Genoskin.  

“With the support of our investors, Genoskin is well-positioned to drive meaningful change in how biotherapies are developed, ultimately bringing safer treatments to patients worldwide.”

“We are proud to support Genoskin, a company that perfectly embodies our mission to invest in local innovators delivering sustainable solutions with global reach. Genoskin’s technology offers an ethical, scalable alternative to animal testing and pursues a growth strategy that aligns strongly with our values of economic resilience and scientific impact,” said Julien Gomis, managing partner at OCCTE. “

Captech Santé is pleased to contribute to the financing of Genoskin, a company capable of setting new global standards in the development of injectable drugs and that already counts most major global pharmaceutical companies among its clients,” added Alexandre Demailly, investor at Captech Santé. As part of this round, Genoskin welcomes to its Board of Directors: Julien Gomis (OCCTE), Alexandre Demailly (Captech Santé), Emmanuelle Ostiari (OCCTE), and Anaïs Raluy (GSO/CAT31i).

The financing will drive Genoskin’s next phase of growth and support further staff recruitment, with a view to doubling the size of the company within the next three years and to expanding Genoskin’s commercial presence in key global markets. This will include new strategic hires in Europe and Asia by 2026.

Genoskin plans to launch new immune-centric service offerings by 2027 and strengthen its scientific and regulatory leadership with the development of biosimulation platforms and novel human immune models to reduce reliance on animal testing.

Genoskin will also scale up operations through industrial automation and increased production capacity in both the US and France, by moving into its two updated and expanded facilities - in Salem, MA, in 2026 and in Toulouse, France, in 2027. This will double the production of skin models and launch the production of fresh human primary mast cells for next-day delivery in the US.

Lead image: Freepik.

Bucharest-based DRUID AI today announced it has secured €26 million in Series C financing to advance the global expansion of its enterprise-ready agentic AI platform under the leadership of its new CEO, Joseph Kim.

The strategic investment – which will advance DRUID AI’s mission to empower companies to create, manage, and orchestrate conversational AI agents – was led by Cipio Partners, with participation from TQ Ventures, Karma Ventures, Smedvig, and Hoxton Ventures.

“This investment is both a testament to DRUID AI’s success and a catalyst to elevate businesses globally through the power of agentic AI,” said Joseph Kim. “Customer success is what it’s all about, and delivering real business outcomes requires understanding companies’ pain points and introducing innovations that help those customers address their complex challenges. That’s the DRUID AI way, and now we’re bringing it to the world through this new phase of global growth.”

Founded in 2018, DRUID AI is an end-to-end enterprise agentic AI platform that enables rapid development and deployment of AI Agents to automate business processes and enhance access to enterprise knowledge. It has reportedly powered over one billion conversations across more than 4,000 AI Agents and supports 300+ clients globally.

With expertise in banking, financial services and insurance (BFSI), DRUID AI serves industry leaders such as Liberty Global, AXA, Auchan, Muller Medien, and BCR – Erste Group.

In parallel, DRUID AI delivers solutions across education, healthcare, higher education, retail, and telecom for global brands including Carrefour, NHS, Orange, and Kmart Australia.

Roland Dennert, managing partner at Cipio Partners, a premier global venture capital fund, explained: “At Cipio Partners, we focus on supporting growth-stage technology companies that have achieved product-market fit and are ready to scale. DRUID AI aligns perfectly with our investment strategy – offering a differentiated, AI-based product in a vast and rapidly growing market.

“Our investment will help accelerate DRUID AI’s expansion into the U.S. and elsewhere, fuel further technological advancements, and strengthen its position as a global leader in enterprise AI solutions. We are excited to partner with DRUID AI on its journey and look forward to supporting the company in shaping the future of enterprise AI-driven interactions.”

The appointment of Kim as CEO and the new funding come on the heels of DRUID AI earning a Challenger spot in the Gartner Magic Quadrant for Conversational AI Platforms for 2025.

In 2024, DRUID AI grew ARR 2.7x year-over-year. Its platform has powered morethan 1 billion conversations across thousands of agents. In addition, the DRUID AI global partner ecosystem has attracted industry giants Microsoft, Genpact, Cognizant, and Accenture.

DRUID AI Co-founder and Chief Operating Officer Andreea Plesea, who had been interim CEO, commented: “I am delighted Joseph is taking the reins as CEO to drive our next level of growth. His commitment to customer success and developing the exact solutions customers need is in total sync with the approach that has fueled our progress and positioned us to raise new funds. Joseph and the Series C set up DRUID AI and our clients for expanded innovation and impact.”

Powered by advanced agentic AI and driven by the DRUID Conductor, its core orchestration engine, the DRUID platform aims to enable businesses to deploy AI agents and intelligent apps that streamline processes, integrate with existing systems, and fulfil complex requests efficiently. DRUID AI’s end-to-end platform allegedly delivers 98% first response accuracy.

“At Georgia Southern, we recognised that to truly meet the needs of today’s digital native students, we needed to offer dynamic and accurate real-time support that would solve their issues on the spot,” said Ashlea Anderson, CIO at Georgia Southern University. “By leveraging DRUID AI’s platform, we’ve created personalised and intuitive experiences to support students throughout their academic journeys, increasing enrollment and student retention. The result is a more efficient, connected campus where students feel supported, engaged, and better positioned to succeed.”

The post Romanian startup DRUID AI raises €26 million to accelerate agentic AI platform growth under new CEO appeared first on EU-Startups.

SEON, a Hungarian-American software provider focused on fraud prevention and AML compliance, has announced the close of its $80 million Series C round. The investment was led by Sixth Street Growth with participation from existing investors IVP, Creandum and Firebolt, and new investors including Hearst.

This round brings SEON’s total funding to $187 million and accelerates adoption in North America alongside further global expansion. SEON will advance its AI-powered product development and support strategic talent acquisition.

SEON’s fraud prevention solution analyses customer interactions daily for key fraud indicators. SEON’s platform enables customer onboarding, scalable compliance and advanced fraud prevention via its API.

"Our mission has always been clear: to enable companies to prevent fraud without impeding legitimate growth," said Tamas Kadar, Co-founder and CEO at SEON. "This investment allows us to continue serving the critical market need for fraud prevention and AML solutions that can scale at the speed of modern digital commerce. With global fraud losses exceeding billions annually, we are tackling a fundamental challenge facing businesses worldwide."

The startup's customers include Revolut, Plaid, Nubank, Afterpay, Spotify and Entain. As part of the investment, Michael Bauer, Managing Director, Sixth Street Growth, will join SEON's Board of Directors and Claire Zhang, Principal, Sixth Street Growth, will serve as a Board Observer.

"Fraud is growing at an unprecedented pace in the age of AI, and businesses need better defenses. SEON has built a command center for fraud prevention and AML compliance that empowers organisations to combat bad actors without impeding real customer transactions," said Bauer.

As fraud tactics become increasingly sophisticated and regulatory requirements intensify globally, there is a rising enterprise demand for unified solutions.

German-based BIOWEG, a company developing high-performance, biodegradable ingredients to replace intentionally added acrylic polymer based microplastics, has closed a €16 million Series A round.

The round was led by Axeleo Capital - Green Tech Industry Fund, joined by the EIC Fund, NBank Capital, BonVenture, and seed investor Dr.-Ing. Frank Jenner.

To date, BIOWEG has raised €22 million to accelerate market entry and expand its footprint across Europe.

Founded in 2019 by Dr. Prateek Mahalwar and Srinivas Karuturi, BIOWEG utilises precision fermentation to convert food-industry byproducts into bacterial cellulose, which is refined using green chemistry into drop-in alternatives to fossil-based polymers. The company operates a pilot production facility in Quakenbrück with a capacity of up to six tonnes, alongside a material science, formulation, and applications lab on Bayer Crop Science’s campus in Monheim.

As Europe phases out intentionally added fossil-based microplastics, supply chains in the personal care, home care, pharmaceutical, and agricultural sectors are undergoing rapid change. Companies now require compliant, high-performance ingredients manufactured at scale within the EU, a demand BIOWEG is uniquely positioned to meet while enabling straightforward reformulation.

To support this transition, BIOWEG is designing a new plant that will scale from its current 6,000-litre fermentation capacity to large-volume production. Co-located with a major sugar producer in Germany, the facility will leverage feedstock synergies and reduce operating costs. Meanwhile, the company will upgrade its Quakenbrück pilot line to serve near-term customer orders during construction and expand its commercial, regulatory, and production teams to accelerate growth across the European market.

Dr Prateek Mahalwar, Co-founder and CEO of BIOWEG, shared:

Today’s funding allows us to move decisively into industrial manufacturing and to support customers as they transition away from microplastics. Our focus is on matching and expanding polymer-level performance with bio-based, biodegradable ingredients produced at European scale.

The newly secured funding will drive scale-up, commercialisation, and the construction of BIOWEG’s first-of-its-kind bacterial cellulose plant in Germany. This step marks the transition from pilot to industrial production and positions the company to meet rising demand from industrial customers for sustainable, microplastics-free ingredients.

Sympower, a Dutch independent flexibility services provider, has secured €19 million in funding to further roll out its battery storage (BESS) optimisation solutions and purse additional M&As – this is an extension of Sympower’s Series B1 funding, bringing the total round to €42 million.

This investment comes from pension investor PGGM, investing on behalf of PFZW, the Dutch healthcare pension scheme. Sympower is also supported by other impact investors, including A&G Energy Transition Tech Fund, Activate Capital, Rubio Impact Ventures, PDENH, and Expon Capital.

“This strategic investment allows us to unlock the next phase of our BESS vision and unlock new acquisition opportunities to strengthen our offering,” explained Simon Bushell, Founder and CEO of Sympower. “Having PGGM on board is a powerful vote of confidence from one of Europe’s most respected institutional investors. Their long-term, impact-driven investment approach is deeply aligned with our mission to build a more sustainable and resilient energy system.”

Sympower aims to accelerate Europe’s transition towards a climate-neutral future by helping to build smarter, cleaner, renewable energy systems. The company’s platform, built from the ground up, reportedly balances the supply and demand of electricity across European energy networks.

Founded in 2015, Sympower has over 200 employees active in more than ten countries and manages over 2.7 GW of flexible distributed energy assets. The company counts with a portfolio of over 170 industrial and commercial customers, who operate in a wide range of energy-intensive industries, including paper and pulp, greenhouse, data centres and wood mills, allowing us to unlock the flexibility of electrical assets and processes.

This latest investment marks a pivotal step in scaling the company’s presence in BESS, expanding its acquisition pipeline, and advancing its pan-European growth. The funding will enable Sympower to build on its track record with grid-scale battery projects in Sweden and Finland and extend its capabilities to play a central role in Europe’s evolving flexibility ecosystem.

Sympower currently manages over 0.5GW of battery energy storage assets in the Nordics, and has recently announced the rollout of its BESS optimisation services in Greece.

”Sympower has a highly skilled team that has built a leading flexibility platform. Our investment will contribute to the next phase of the company’s growth and into new markets. This investment in Sympower fits very well with the Climate and Energy Transition Solutions (CETS) mandate given to us by Pensioenfonds Zorg en Welzijn (PFZW),” said Tim van den Brule, investment director at PGGM Infrastructure.

He added: “We expect Sympower to contribute to good returns for the benefit of PFZW participants and enable further incorporation of renewable resources in the electricity mix.”

PGGM will join Sympower’s Supervisory Board to help steer the company’s long-term strategic growth and strengthen its governance.

“The next chapter for Sympower is all about scale: strategic M&A, deeper BESS integration, and new markets,” added Bushell. “This round gives us the capital and the confidence to accelerate, and with PGGM by our side, we’re better positioned than ever to help Europe build a cleaner, smarter energy system.”

The post Amsterdam’s Sympower raises additional €42 million funding to drive Europe’s energy transition appeared first on EU-Startups.

Designed as a high-impact business hub, Innovation Park at ISE 2025 offered startups strategic exposure, investor access, and critical visibility on the global stage. Located in the heart of Congress Square, Innovation Park featured 80 promotional pods for startups to present their ideas, offering a way for new businesses to establish a presence at ISE. Following an application process, selected startups were chosen based on their adherence to relevant criteria for attendance at ISE.

It served as a crucial catalyst for future business growth by providing direct access to investors, partners, and industry experts. In addition to the promotional pods, Innovation Park featured a dedicated Pitching Stage, Matchmaking Area, and an exclusive Investor Forum. This dynamic setting offered a unique opportunity for startups to present their solutions, secure funding opportunities, and build long-term relationships with a high-calibre audience.

Following its success, Innovation Park will return to ISE 2026, taking place in Barcelona from 3–6 February. With an expanded floor plan, it will offer even more startups the chance to present and promote their innovations to experts, investors, and business professionals. Click here to register.

Mike Blackman, Managing Director of Integrated Systems Events, said: “The enthusiasm on the floor and the quality of the partnerships demonstrated this platform’s importance in shaping our industry’s future. The diverse solutions, from acoustic simulation and spatial audio to digital signage and intuitive UI tools, addressed real-world problems effectively. The market response showed readiness to embrace these next-generation AV pioneers.”

For Innovation Park’s return to the show floor, the criteria to exhibit has been broadened to include any first-time ISE exhibitors or companies returning after three or more years away.

At the same time, the number of stands has increased to 144. Of these, 80 are Pioneer Pods (3 sqm, exclusively for startups), while the other 64 are Breakthrough Pods (6 sqm). Once again, Innovation Park will feature a Pitching Stage, programmed by startup incubator Plug and Play, and will be supported by the Investor Forum on the first day of ISE 2026.

Success Showcases 

The diverse range of exhibitors at Innovation Park was a testament to ISE’s ability to bring together brilliant minds from across all sectors.

Treble Technologies – Iceland: A pioneer in next-generation acoustic simulation and spatial audio software, used its presence at Innovation Park to demonstrate the power of its advanced sound modelling tools. The company’s solutions enable engineers and designers to simulate and analyse how sound behaves in any environment with exceptional precision.

“Innovation Park was a fantastic opportunity for Treble Technologies to showcase our groundbreaking advancements in acoustic simulation and spatial audio. One of our standout moments was participating in the Investor Forum panel, where we shared insights on navigating growth – from initial concept to acquisition – highlighting the pivotal challenges and strategic decisions that have shaped our success,” said Guillaume Demerliac, Senior Marketing Specialist with Treble Technologies.

Losonnante – France: A unique, multisensory sound experience through bone conduction technology. Their “Whisper Box” lets users listen by touch, transmitting sound through the body rather than the air. The result is a memorable, emotion-driven experience that promotes attention, curiosity, and engagement.

“ISE marked a significant step for Losonnante. Over the four days, we had the opportunity to meet with producers, integrators, and distributors to discuss potential new applications for our bone conduction sound device and to develop strategic partnerships,” said Gaëlle Dubois from Losonnante in France

Hive Streaming – Sweden: They equip organisations to deliver seamless, high-impact live video events by ensuring stable video infrastructure, maximising video experiences and providing insights that drive strategic impact.

“During ISE, we connected with 21 partners, 12+ clients and prospects from eight different countries, making it an incredibly valuable event for us. It was by far our most successful trade fair,” said Igor Murphy from Hive Streaming.

Be a part of the Innovation Park at ISE 2026 and get the opportunity to pitch, shine and grow. Click here to register and join a unique, innovative and entrepreneurial environment at ISE 2026!

The post Showcase your startup on the global stage: Apply today for Innovation Park at ISE 2026! (Sponsored) appeared first on EU-Startups.

Italian startup Pack has closed a €3.5 million funding round to strengthen its product, add new AI-driven features, and expand its team.

The round was led by Rialto VC, the Italian venture capital fund which combines strategic expertise in corporate governance, digital innovation, and scaling technology companies. The round was also supported by the team led by Giulia Bianchi Frangipane of Bonelli Erede, with senior associate Enrico Goitre assisting Pack in the legal structuring of the transaction.

Pack is an HR tech startup that helps companies develop and enhance human capital through its all-in-one platform. Founded in 2022 by Pietro Maria Picogna and Giacomo Gentili, it already partners with more than 80 multinationals.

Pack was created to address the growing complexity of people development by mapping skills, fostering agile and aware teams, and preparing organisations for future challenges. Its platform integrates skill mapping, digital assessments, and personalized growth paths, including coaching, mentoring, and targeted training, supported by an AI-driven monitoring system that continuously measures progress and business impact.

Its mission is to empower organizations to grow by building more agile, aware, and future-ready teams.

Giacomo Gentili, Pack’s co-founder, noted that companies everywhere are confronting, or soon will confront, the complex challenge of managing human capital, and what they need is not just a supplier but a genuine partner to support them through this transformation.