xdeck.ventures is the VC for early-stage B2B tech ventures that delivers what it promises. It focuses on B2B tech, especially in automation processes, applied big data & AI, and sustainability tech & apps.

xdeck.ventures

xdeck | 5,580 followers on LinkedIn. create your venture. grow it with us. | We are xdeck. xdeck is Germany’s first startup accelerator and venture capital fund from founders for founders, located in THE SHIP, Cologne (https://shipcologne.com). 
We aim to be the leading platform for early-stage European tech companies positively shaping a better tomorrow.  

xdeck is seed-funded by the founders of FOND OF and made possible through strong partners: Capnamic Ventures, Cassini AG, Cherry Ventures, considerIT, ECOVIS KSO, FOND OF, Haufe, Heuking, High-Tech Gründerfonds, Kienbaum Consultants, Köln Business, NRW.Global Business, OVHcloud, Spread Group, Techniker Krankenkasse, Volksbank Köln Bonn, @-yet.

Co-Founder @talentsconnect AG

Lars Wolfram

Co-Founder & CEO of DeepSkill • LinkedIn TOP Voice 2023 & 2024 • Thought leader in AI + Human Skills • Kellogg-WHU Exec. MBA • Female Edtech Fellow

Miriam Mertens Miriam Mertens is an Influencer

CEO and Founder

Khaleeq Aziz

Pre-Seed + Seed VC Investor | xdeck | xMcK

Dr. Nik Tavakoli

xdeck

𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐮𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐝2024 - 𝐖𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐢𝐧𝐧𝐨𝐯𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐦𝐞𝐞𝐭𝐬 𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐠𝐲 🚀 We had an incredible time at the first Startupland Conference at the iconic RheinEnergieSTADION in Cologne. The event was a true celebration of the startup spirit, bringing together over 700 participants. Here are our personal highlights: 🎉 We’re thrilled to share that ENTENDIX , one of the startups from our current batch, stood out and won a prize - congratulations to Alina Cartus and the team for this well-deserved recognition! 💡 Our founder, Oliver Steinki , took the stage to share his journey as a founder, while Markus Gick , our Managing Partner, proudly represented xdeck in the Reverse Pitch and kept the excitement high by giving away xdeck hoodies 👕 Markus also brought his insights as part of the jury on the AI-Pitch Stage, alongside a longterm xdeck friend Sophia Tran . ⭐ With this year's success, we believe Startupland has the potential to become the flagship event for NRW's startup ecosystem. We’re already looking forward to being part of it in 2025! A big thank you to deutsche-startups.de and to Alexander Hüsing & Stefan Vosskoetter for the great organization! #Startupland2024

What happens when a leading bank joins forces with a cutting-edge startup accelerator? 🚀 𝘚𝘱𝘰𝘪𝘭𝘦𝘳 𝘢𝘭𝘦𝘳𝘵: 𝘐𝘯𝘯𝘰𝘷𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘴, 𝘣𝘶𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘦𝘴 𝘨𝘳𝘰𝘸, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘳𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘨𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘣𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘧𝘪𝘵𝘴 😉 At xdeck, we believe in the power of collaboration between startups and established institutions. That’s why our partnership with Volksbank Köln Bonn eG , launched in 2020, is so special. By combining the creative agility of startups with the experience and resources of Volksbank, we’ve been able to support early-stage companies in achieving their full potential. In our latest feature with Die Wirtschaft, Jürgen Neutgens from Volksbank and our managing partner Markus Gick dive into the success of this collaboration—and how it’s changing the game for startups. 👉 Discover how this partnership is driving innovation: https://lnkd.in/erHyEYAz #innovation #partnership #startup

Last week, we had the pleasure of hosting our B2B Sales xday. Founders from our current accelerator batch had the chance to dive deep into key areas to accelerate their businesses. 🔍 We covered three insightful sessions led by experts from our alumni circle: 🛠 Outreach Automation with Daniel König from specter automation 💼 Enterprise Sales with Lukas Vogt from Sunhat 📈 SME Sales with Sebastian Wengryn from ContractHero | Digital Contract Management Each session sparked thoughtful conversations and hands-on learnings as we explored the challenges and best practices in these areas. From leveraging automation to streamline outreach, to mastering the complexities of enterprise sales, and understanding the nuances of SME sales — our founders left with actionable insights to accelerate their sales efforts. We chose an intimate setting to encourage open discussions, and our founders made the most of it with their thoughtful questions. Thank you to all the speakers for fostering such an engaging space for these conversations! Do you want to be part of the next batch? Apply here 👉 https://lnkd.in/dzZvhX5w #acceleration #startup

🚀 Welcome to the team, Benedict ! 🚀 We’re thrilled to introduce our newest team member, Benny, who joins us as a Startup Scout and Venture Associate Intern. Benny brings a unique blend of creativity and analytical thinking, making him a perfect fit for our fast-paced, innovative environment. When asked about the most important part of a startup, Benny said: “The team is the most important part of any startup. Without a strong and balanced team, nothing can function properly.” He’s passionate about finding unconventional solutions that still make sense - something we know will be invaluable as we continue to scout for the next big thing. On a lighter note, Benny confessed his guilty pleasure: “Way too many hours spent perfecting my Kickbase lineup - because strategy applies to everything, right?” ⚽️ Welcome aboard, Benny! We’re excited to see the impact you’ll make. Want to apply to our accelerator program? Get in contact with Benny through: https://lnkd.in/dzZvhX5w #team #xdeck #startupscouting

🚀 Welcome to the team, Susanna ! 🚀 We’re excited to welcome Susanna, who is joining us remotely from Portugal as a Visiting Analyst while she completes her master’s degree! Her passion for startups and previous experience with Venture Capital makes her a fantastic addition to our growing team. When asked what’s the most important part of a startup, Susanna had a clear answer: “100% the team! The market, product, and business model may change, but in the ideal case, the team remains the same and therefore deserves the greatest attention.” Beyond startups, Susanna is obsessed with fitness and health. She loves trying new workouts like Pilates, bootcamp, and barre. And when she's not experimenting with healthy recipes, she has a soft spot for a classic Bavarian treat: Brezn with Obazda after a night out (yes, she is from Bavaria 😃). We can’t wait to see all the amazing things you’ll bring to the team, Susanna! #teamtuesday #xdeck #ventureanalyst

🚀 Key learnings from our OKR session with our 10th batch! 🚀 On monday we wrapped up our very first OKR session with our 10th batch of startups, and we’re excited to share our top takeaways: 1️⃣ 𝐒𝐌𝐀𝐑𝐓 𝐢𝐬 𝐬𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐭 – Clear, measurable goals are the foundation of success 2️⃣ 𝐋𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐢𝐬 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 – Focus on fewer objectives to maximize impact 3️⃣ 𝐓𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐤 𝐢𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐧𝐞𝐰 𝐛𝐥𝐚𝐜𝐤 – Regular tracking is essential for staying on course 4️⃣ 𝐑𝐞𝐭𝐫𝐨 𝐢𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐚𝐲 𝐭𝐨 𝐠𝐨 – Reflecting on past efforts helps us learn and improve 5️⃣ 𝐂𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐛𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐬𝐮𝐜𝐜𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐞𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬 – Recognizing wins and lessons learned is crucial for growth A big thank you to Till Hess from FOND OF for introducing us to this powerful framework and guiding our batch through the session. We’re excited to see how these insights will help our startups thrive! #OKR #keylearnings #acceleration #goalsetting

🚀 Mark your calendars! On November 6, 2024, we will be at the first-ever Startupland Conference at RheinEnergieSTADION in Cologne. This is a fantastic opportunity to showcase the strength of the startup ecosystem here in NRW💡 The conference will bring together over 800 participants from the startup world, with 50+ speakers, 25 sessions, 25 startup pitches, 20 VC pitches, 10 masterclasses, and 10 roundtable discussions. 🎤 Our Founder Oliver Steinki will be a speaker, while our Managing Partner Markus Gick will be pitching xdeck during the Reverse Pitch. Markus will also be part of the jury and featured on the AI-Pitch and Proptech stages. Join us! 🎟️ Founders, don’t miss out! Use the discount code XDECKFOUNDERS for 25% off your ticket. Book your tickets now: https://lnkd.in/dUv2CSRC Join us for a day of networking, knowledge-sharing, and innovation! 🗓️ Event: Startupland 2024 📍 Location: RheinEnergieSTADION, Cologne #Startupland #SL24 #germanstartups #Cologne deutsche-startups.de

We’re excited to announce that we’ll be attending Stage Two for the fourth time - and this time, we’re offering a €500k investment prize*! 💰 As a VC fund focused on early-stage B2B-Tech startups, we at xdeck are dedicated to empowering founders with the financial and operational support they need to succeed. This investment prize is a fantastic opportunity for one exceptional startup to elevate their business with the full backing of our powerful xdeck community. Want to have a chat? Lucia and Dennis from our team will be attending the competition and are eager to meet inspiring founders and fellow investors! 🚀 *Pending due diligence. #ForOurBeyond #StageTwo24

🚀 Let’s welcome mysupply to the 10th batch at xdeck! Mysupply is an AI-enabled buying and negotiation platform that helps businesses streamline procurement. Their AI Buying Assistant simplifies purchasing and integrates seamlessly with SAP, even enabling Self-Service Sourcing. Additionally, their Autonomous Sourcing solution automates the entire sourcing process, including competitive negotiations, leading to an 8% increase in spend savings and a 50% reduction in effort. Why xdeck? The xdeck acceleration program provides the perfect boost for sales and funding, helping mysupply scale their AI-powered platform even faster! Welcome, founders Ronny and Andreas to xdeck! #startup #procurement #AI #sourcing #mysupply

🚀 Excited to welcome Qualimero to our 10th batch at xdeck! Qualimero is transforming sales and customer service by deploying AI workers—offering a sales force that never sleeps, talks to thousands at once, and improves conversions by 6x. They solve the challenge of scaling teams with AI-driven efficiency. Why xdeck? After hearing great experiences from fellow WHU startups Ciunti and Specter Automation, Qualimero saw the value in xdeck’s local connections and expert support, crucial for their growth as a bootstrapped company. Warm welcome to the founders Marco, Lasse, and Kevin ! #startup #AI #sales #customerexperience #Qualimero

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xdeck.ventures