Lakestar is a venture capital firm that focuses on finding and funding visionary tech entrepreneurs, enabling companies capable of shaping global modern life. The company is passionate about investing in Deep Tech, digitalization, fintech, and healthcare sectors, aiming to partner with ambitious founders from seed to growth stages.

Klaus Hommels

Lakestar

lightbank is a venture capital firm that invests in technology companies, focusing on startups in various industries.

lightbank

Puzzle-Ventures is an early-stage venture fund that partners with exceptional European entrepreneurs building transformational B2B software businesses.

Puzzle-Ventures

Gekko Capital Partners focuses on early-stage lifestyle startups across Europe and aims to invest in visionary companies by leveraging its expertise and network in hospitality, travel, fashion and beauty.

Gekko Capital Partners

Lakestar’s mission is to find, fund and grow disruptive businesses - enabled by technology - that are founded by exceptional entrepreneurs in Europe and beyond. Founded by Klaus Hommels, the team’s early investments include Skype, Spotify, Facebook and Airbnb. Since raising its first fund in 2012, Lakestar manages an aggregated volume of over €2.8bn across four funds.

The team actively advises and supports portfolio companies in marketing, recruitment, technology, product development and regulatory insight, accompanying founders from seed to early stage to growth stage or exit. Lakestar currently has the privilege of holding investments in Revolut, Blockchain.com, Opendoor, Oscar, GetYourGuide, sennder, Eigen, Public.com, SoFi, Solarisbank, Uncapped, Yapily, Terra Quantum, accuRx, Rhino, ZEBEDEE and Hometogo to name a few. Lakestar has presence in Berlin, Zurich and London.

Our portfolio company Colossyan announced today new funding totaling $22 million. We're proud to have led the round alongside Emerge Education, LaunchHub, and Day One Capital. 
 
Colossyan has developed an easy-to-use AI video platform, reshaping the landscape of L&D content creation. Major names like Porsche AG, Vodafone and Paramount are already using Colossyan to transform their ways of working. The fresh capital raised will drive Colossyan's product development and market expansion.
 
Congratulations to CEO & Founder Dominik Mate Kovacs, as well as the outstanding team at Colossyan!
 
Dominik says, “Colossyan is dedicated to democratizing knowledge with affordable, interactive video creation, rapidly responding to consumer feedback. Our partnership with Lakestar is a significant step in revolutionizing video production and doing so quickly to meet the growing demand for interactive learning."
 
Read more about the funding here: https://lnkd.in/dcqMzHsr

Akis Bratsos, Stephen Nundy, Zornitsa Zheleva
 
#EuropeanVC #AI #Video #Learning #Development

In the British Private Equity & Venture Capital Association (BVCA)’s 40th anniversary podcast, Lakestar's Partner & CTO, Stephen Nundy, joined forces with industry peers to discuss pivotal developments within the venture capital landscape. 
 
The podcast features insights from the BVCA’s Senior VC Manager, Chris Elphick, AlbionVC’s Christoph Ruedig, and IQ Capital’s Kerry Baldwin. They offer profound perspectives on the rise of AI, sectors to watch in the upcoming year, and the evolving policy environment.
 
A focal point of the discussion was the critical role of education for trustees of pension funds and investors. It highlighted the collective effort required to bridge knowledge gaps and pave the way for future advancements.
 
Listen to the full podcast here: https://lnkd.in/eheDvud4

Read more about our work as signatories of Venture Capital Investment Compact here: https://lnkd.in/eh9rS5-K
 
#EuropeanVC #BVCA #AI #Policy #Education

We are thrilled to announce the latest edition of the State of Quantum Report.
 
The State of Quantum Report 2024 draws insights from various influential stakeholders including HSBC, Dell Technologies, Citi, Moderna, as well as our portfolio companies Terra Quantum AG and QMware AG. 
 
The report reveals quantum computing has shown remarkable resilience amidst global economic challenges. Governments are now the primary early purchasers of quantum technologies, recognising its strategic importance to ensuring technological sovereignty. 
 
Lakestar Partner & CTO, Stephen Nundy says, “To fully realise quantum's potential, we must take a strategic, full-stack approach - ensuring hardware, software, interfaces and talent develop in harmony. The chance remains to build the next era's leading multi-billion dollar quantum corporations.”
 
Lakestar Deep Tech investor, Christina Franzeskides says, "The transformative impact of quantum computing in industries from healthcare to finance is just beginning. As the advances in quantum tech and AI converge, the synergy promises to unlock countless innovations across sectors."
 
Thank you to OpenOcean, IQM Quantum Computers, and The Quantum Insider for the collaboration on this report.
 
Read more from Euractiv here: https://lnkd.in/eWjgv38s
 
Read the full report here: https://lnkd.in/eU8qwrac
 
Jan Goetz, Ekaterina Almasque, Markus Pflitsch, George Gesek
 
#EuropeanVC #QuantumComputing #QuantumTechnology #Investment

This week’s Digital-Life-Design, or DLD Conference, features some of our brilliant portfolio companies engaging in the most pressing questions on digital change.
 
If you're headed to the event this week, don’t miss out insights from Lakestar Founder & Chariman Dr. Klaus Hommels and four of our portfolio companies:
 
- Jonas Andrulis of Aleph Alpha  (Lab Stage)
The Outside Opinion: Our Responsibility to Go All-in on AI in Government, Legal, and Critical Environments (10:20 am)
The Fine Balance of Regulation & Innovation (10:50 am)
 
- Markus Pflitsch of Terra Quantum AG  (Join Stage)
European Sovereignty (12:00 pm)
 
- Dr. Klaus Hommels of Lakestar and Daniel Metzler of Isar Aerospace  (Lab Stage)
European Sovereignty (15:25 pm)
 
-  Cassi Welling of constellr (DLD School, First floor)
DeepDive – Time for Bold Solutions: How to Solve One of Humanity’s Biggest Challenges with Tech! (17.05 pm)
 
To find out more about the panels click here: https://lnkd.in/e6sPUqK
 
#EuropeanVC #DLD24 #AI #Innovation

Lakestar is delighted to have contributed to Tech.eu’s 2023 Annual Report. Providing a comprehensive review of the European tech ecosystem, the report looks at investment trends, regional performance, sector analysis, major mergers and acquisitions, and more. 
 
We are proud to contribute and be part of this evolving landscape, as we look forward to a dynamic and innovative 2024.
 
Providing insights on the rapidly developing Deep Tech sector, Lakestar Partner & CPO Steven Jacobs says, "Europe's deeptech investment proved resilient in 2023, staying relatively flat at ~$15bn YTD while the rest of regular tech fell 46 percent." 
 
"In 2024, we expect deeptech investment will continue rising, especially for founders and companies located in key hubs like Greater London, Paris, and Munich where a high density of talent creates outsized chances of success.”
 
Read Tech.eu's 2023 Annual Report here: https://lnkd.in/d9sPYUHg
 
#EuropeanVC #Tech #Innovation #2024

We are pleased Lakestar Founder & Chairman Dr. Klaus Hommels has once again been recognized in the Forbes Midas List Europe: Top Tech Investors. 
 
Forbes describes Klaus as "a champion of European tech", noting his work as Chairman of the NATO Innovation Fund (NIF) and on the Innovation Board at the Munich Security Conference.
 
As a long-standing advocate for the European tech ecosystem, Klaus has dedicated his efforts to bolstering Europe's sovereignty amidst the era of digital transformation.
 
Read the @Forbes Midas List Europe: Top Tech Investors here: https://lnkd.in/dTz2-AEf
 
#EuropeanVC #ForbesMidas #EuropeanTech #Innovation

We are thrilled to announce the launch of our 2023 European Deep Tech report. This report was developed in collaboration with Walden Catalyst Ventures and Dealroom.co, with the participation of many of Lakestar's incredible Deep Tech founders and other ecosystem leaders.
 
European Deep Tech startups are projected to raise $17.6B in funding in 2023, the largest category of funding in Europe in 2023. This underscores the resilience of DeepTech startups in a tricky macroeconomic environment.

Europe has what it takes to become a global hub for Deep Tech excellence: it’s home to 6 of the top 20 universities globally for computer science, well-educated talent (~1.5x the number of STEM graduates as the US), and large-scale government and public support - with the EU focused on strengthening Europe’s Deep Tech ecosystem. However, Europe needs to create dense talent clusters and improve its growth stage financing if it is to compete on a global stage.

Steven Jacobs, Partner and CPO at Lakestar: “Now is the time for Europe to cultivate its technology epicentres, where pioneers converge, collide, and catalyse the future of technology borne from Europe.”

Our report aims to align Europe's definition of Deep Tech, examine the characteristics of the European ecosystem, dive deep into key areas of Deep Tech, and lay out ways it can enhance its global competitiveness.

Delve into the insights of the report here: https://lnkd.in/ehQbAiGt

Lukas Leitner Christina Franzeskides.
#EuropeanVC #DeepTech #EuropeanInnovation

Our portfolio company Yapily has joined forces with Alipay+ to revolutionise open banking payments in Europe. 
 
The partnership will catalyse the deployment of an even more convenient and secure payment option for millions of European consumers, in addition to the 1.4 billion consumer accounts already connected by Alipay+ across Asia.
 
Through Yapily’s open banking infrastructure, consumers who bank with European financial institutions will be able to make cross-border payments to the worldwide network of Alipay+ merchants directly from their bank accounts with a smooth payment experience and security. 
 
For merchants, Yapily’s open banking payments structure will offer the scalability and resilience to deliver service excellence, as well as the business agility required to further innovate in the payment and retail sectors globally.
 
Congratulations to Stefano Vaccino and the whole Yapily team!
 
Read more here: https://lnkd.in/ephbbpvm
 
#EuropeanVC #Fintech #OpenBanking #YapilyAlipayPartnership

Yesterday, our portfolio company Aleph Alpha announced that it has raised $500 million in Series B funding. Huge congratulations to Jonas Andrulis and the whole team at Aleph Alpha!
 
The funding will supercharge Aleph Alpha’s research capacity, and accelerate its development and commercialisation of foundational models for applications in various sectors like healthcare and finance. 
 
A big step for European tech sovereignty, the funding will help Aleph Alpha reach the scale to compete with American and Chinese competitors.
 
Read more about the news here: https://lnkd.in/eE6tZBm9
 
cc: Schwarz Group, Ipai - Innovation Park Artificial Intelligence, Bosch Ventures SAP Steven Jacobs
 
#EuropeanVC #GenerativeAI #GermanTech

We are very proud to share that our portfolio company Aware made its product public and launched in Germany. 
 
Berlin-based Aware is a health tech company focused on eradicating chronic diseases by helping people have a transparent view of their overall health. Following a data-driven approach, the long-term mission of Aware is to build Europe’s largest health database for personalised medicine. 
 
Congratulations to Florian Meissner, Ferdinand Schmidt-Thomé and the team at Aware for this fantastic milestone!
 
Read more about the news here: https://lnkd.in/eHArzB-h
 
…and visit the app here: https://www.aware.app/
 
CC: Oliver Heimes
 
#EuropeanVC #HealthTech #Germany

Metric
Company Name	Lakestar	lightbank	Puzzle-Ventures	Gekko Capital Partners
Symbol
MSH ID	COM:LAKESTAR	COM:LIGHTBANK	COM:PUZZLE-VENTURES	PARTNERS:GEKKOCAPITAL
Market	PRIVATE	PRIVATE	PRIVATE	PRIVATE
Sector	Financial Services & Finance	Financial Services & Finance	Financial Services & Finance	Financial Services & Finance
Industry	Venture Capital	Venture Capital	Venture Capital	Venture Capital
Country		US	DE	EU
Stage
Employee Count	72
Website	lakestar.com	lightbank.com	puzzle-ventures.com	gekkocapital.partners
LinkedIn	lakestar-vc		puzzle-ventures-berlin
Founders

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Monthly Web Traffic	12.71K	2.85K
Web Traffic Growth	0.30	0.08
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COM:LAKESTAR

Lakestar

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