Lucien Burm

Amsterdam-based telecom startup Firsty. app raises €5.1M in Seed funding led by Speedinvest. It has also partnered with Uber. Check out the article to understand why. Vince Vissers, Gauthier Thierens, DFF Ventures (Dutch Founders Fund), Jeroen Arts, Laurens Groenendijk

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The trend is picking up. Investing in #deterrance & #defence to further support competitiveness and resilience of #European countries. This time Netherlands Ministerie van Defensie is joining other #EU MoDs and national development agencies to facilitate access to funding for #defence #DualUse and #security innovations. Our fund Coinvest Capital was the first in the region, fully authorised to invest in pure #defense already back in March 2023, shortly joined in April by Baltic Sandbox Ventures with #DeepTech focus and the launch of dual-use accelerators by ScaleWolf in October. Just our fund alone already coinvested 6.8mEUR in #aerospace and #defense, including one of the largest regional #VC rounds in Unmanned Defense Systems. Today we will be watching and supporting two teams from #Lithuania - winners of our joint prizes with DEPO Ventures - pitching on stage at #DefSec innovation challenge hosted by Dr. Kristina Soukupova with their solutions for #cyber #security and #drone enhancement, that enables all drone makers to get faster time-to-market. Wishing the best of luck and a solid pitch to the teams of AI Drone.Tech with co-founders Laurynas Česūnas and Domantas Brucas, winners of our prize at the defence #hackathon The Flaming Shield of Lietuvos šaulių sąjunga , and CBRX with co-founder Kazimieras Sadauskas, winners of our prize at the Startup Lithuania annual event #StartupFair

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💫 New year, new initiatives! Starting the year with a recommendation for our Dutch government: a human co-pilot for our ministry, specifically designed for the government of 2025. For years, we’ve complained about the sluggishness of our bureaucratic system, but with the possibilities AI now offers, there are no excuses anymore. No more endless forms and redundant actions—just a smarter, more efficient, and leaner government. Let’s look at the numbers. The Netherlands currently employs over 485,000 civil servants. In 2020, that figure was around 402,000, a 20% increase. Nearly 70% of these employees work for central government or municipalities, where a large portion of the tasks are repetitive and easily automatable: data entry, archiving, customer contact. In a time when commercial companies use AI to maximize productivity, our government should do so as well. Anthropic recently introduced an AI model capable of performing complex PC tasks through natural language commands. The system imitates keystrokes, mouse clicks, and movements, effectively mimicking a person at a computer. This makes it ideal for automating repetitive tasks such as filling out forms. It's designed to be user-friendly for people without deep technical knowledge, making it a perfect fit for the (local) governments. What if we could eliminate 50% of these repetitive tasks using this technology? What if this allowed us not only to create more meaningful jobs but also to reinvest taxpayers’ money into sectors facing acute shortages, such as healthcare and education? Estonia has already proven that it’s possible. They appointed a Chief Technology Officer and a Chief Data Officer at the ministry level to implement a digitalization strategy using AI solutions such as the Bürokratt initiative. This project utilizes a virtual assistant to help citizens interact with government services, similar to Siri, but designed specifically for public services. Nearly 99% of public services in Estonia are available online 24/7. It’s time for the Netherlands to follow this example. With forward-thinking leadership and a firm commitment to digitalization, we can bring our civil service into the future. This role could be the cornerstone of a more efficient government. Introducing the CAO (Chief Automation Officer): - A new leadership position focused on leveraging technology and AI to improve productivity across the government. - Bridges the gap between existing technology and employee workflows. - Aims to make each employee three times more productive through automation and AI tools. Key Responsibilities - Identify repetitive, low-value tasks within the government that can be automated. - Implement AI and automation tools to streamline processes. - Train employees in the effective use of new technologies. - Collaborate closely with other executives to align automation efforts with organizational goals. Curious to hear about your thoughts! cc: Quote

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My newest column in Quote Magazine: Dutch Dynamism 🇳🇱 💡 Inspired by Andreessen Horowitz’ “American Dynamism” and the Not Boring newsletters of Packy McCormick about why tech is going to be much bigger, I realized there is a momentum in the Netherlands to become one of the European leaders to lead this new industrial revolution - if we double down. 💻 Historically, the Netherlands was strong in trade and banking. However, the country now leads in technology with companies like ASML, Adyen, and NXP Semiconductors as the top 10 most valuable companies, replacing former giants like Shell, Unilever, ING and ABN AMRO Bank N.V 💶 Fueled by capital, according to the latest report of Techleap; 48% Venture Capital investments in 2023 the Netherlands went to deeptech companies. 🤖 While the latest AI innovations have enhanced office jobs, the fusion of software and hardware, like physical robots, is set to revolutionize all types of labor, making tasks scalable and more manageable and cheaper. Two great examples of Dutch robotics companies are Monumental and family business Lely, that are automating less attractive jobs, like bricklaying and milking cows. ⚡ The insight is that the world's largest tech companies of the next decade will likely surpass today’s giants, and for the first time in a long time, tech companies have the opportunity to rebuild the world’s industrial base and tap into huge, existing pools of revenue at higher margins than incumbents can. Assuming the same revenue but structurally higher margins will create more valuable companies than the incumbent comps. 🇳🇱 In the Netherlands, we have access to incredible research institutes, top technical universities like Delft University of Technology, Eindhoven University of Technology, Wageningen University & Research & University of Twente, (which has its own Robotics Centre University of Twente) - incredible talent and more and more hardware friendly VC funds, (incl the support of Invest-NL) and recently the NATO Innovation Fund (NIF) with an office in NL, so I don’t see why we can’t punch above our weight and become one of the leaders to reshape the industrial foundation in Europe. Curious to hear your thoughts, what's needed to make this happen? Dutch Dynamism 🇳🇱 , het bekt toch lekker (Thanks Salar :-)). Link to article (for translation) in the comments. #HardTech #AI #Robotics #Innovation #DutchDynamism #AIRevolution #DeepTech #FutureOfWork #Netherlands #Technology

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We're doubling down! Join us for the Re-Industrialize Europe Meetup 👩‍🏭 We’re bringing together leading minds in HardTech, TechBio, and DeepTech to discuss what it will take for Europe to lead the next wave of industrial innovation. Learn more about: ➡ Farmless’ fermentation platform that allows for local protein production independent from climate and agricultural land, increasing food security. 🎤 Adnan Oner ➡ Cradle’s design platform that uses generative AI to help biologists design improved proteins and accelerate research and development, making it easier, quicker and more cost effective to create bio-based products for human and planetary health. 🎤 Jelle Prins ➡ Monumental’s AI-driven electric construction robots that are capable of building walls autonomously, solving the labour, cost and sustainability challenges crippling the global construction industry. 🎤 Salar al Khafaji ➡ ASML's involvement in the European startup ecosystem and the biggest challenges we need to tackle. 🎤 Evelien de Vries Connect, collaborate, and be inspired by ambitious founders shaping the future. Sign up here: https://lu.ma/de2uprl2 NP-Hard Ventures #FoundryMeetups #HardTech #Deeptech #TechBio #Founders #Hiring #Startups #Europe

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Vijen Patel is the founding partner of The 81 Collection, a VC fund that invests in unsexy industries. Before that, Vijen founded Pressbox, a dry cleaning startup, in 2013 and sold it to Procter & Gamble in 2018. In our conversation, Vijen shared: → What defined his upbringing → Journey with Pressbox → Building The 81 Collection → Investing in Hard Industries → The Power of Patience and Purpose → India opportunity → Sports & family & much more! Listen now 👇🏼 Youtube: https://bit.ly/3XujEs2 Spotify: https://bit.ly/3Tjeah5 Some key takeaways: 1. Breaking the Mold: Coming from a family of physicians, I chose a different path—entrepreneurship. Sometimes, success means stepping out of the expected and embracing your unique journey. 2. The Power of Risk-Taking: American culture's risk-taking spirit played a crucial role in my career. Being the first in my family to venture into technology, I realized that risk is often the bridge between dreams and reality. 3. From Actuarial Science to Building an Empire: My entrepreneurial journey started with a failed attempt at being an actuary. Yet, that experience led me to finance and eventually to founding a dry cleaning startup that grew to 1200 locations. Don’t fear pivots; they might lead you to unexpected success. 4. Investing in ‘Unsexy’ Industries: While many chase the next big tech startup, I found value in overlooked sectors. Investing in what others ignore can yield the most significant returns, both financially and socially. 5. Purpose-Driven Success: For me, entrepreneurship isn’t just about profits. It’s about creating jobs, lifting communities, and making a lasting impact. When your work aligns with a deeper purpose, the rewards are far beyond financial. What risks have you taken that changed your life or career? Share your thoughts below! #investing #entreprenurship #indiandiasporas

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Are Dutch and European founders not ambitious enough? 🤔 I just read Techleap's latest report: "AI Scaling Challenges for Dutch Founders." (Okay, I got AI to read it and share the highlights with me. 😜) This quote caught my (& Claude's) eye: "𝘞𝘦 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘥𝘦𝘢𝘥 𝘰𝘯 𝘢𝘳𝘳𝘪𝘷𝘢𝘭 𝘪𝘧 𝘰𝘯𝘭𝘺 4% 𝘰𝘧 𝘋𝘶𝘵𝘤𝘩 𝘈𝘐 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘱𝘢𝘯𝘪𝘦𝘴 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘯𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘰 𝘳𝘢𝘪𝘴𝘦 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘯 10𝘔. 𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘱𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘧𝘶𝘭 𝘢𝘮𝘣𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯..." Almost every day, I see posts and jokes about European founders thinking too small. As someone who works with Euro-founders everyday, I have a different view. I see: - Massive visions - Global mindsets from day one - Founders ready to take on the world It's not the founders who lack ambition. They're just working within the realms of what's possible in Europe. That's why many of them get funded from and/or move to the US. 💰 The real lack of ambition? That's from investors and governments in Europe. 🇪🇺 I'm still working on an article, "The Case for European Optimism." And I think it will show that European founders are just as ambitious as their US counterparts. The real question we should be asking is: - How can we create an environment that allows founders to dream bigger and reach higher? 🚀 And yes, I know this quotes mentions deep ecosystem issues... --- ↳ What's your take? Are European founders thinking too small, or is it the ecosystem that's holding them back? 👇

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Netherlands based Innovation Industries recently launched their third fund to back deep-tech start-ups and scale-ups. 💸 €500M Innovation Industries Fund III, with backing from PME pensioenfonds, Pensioenfonds Metaal en Techniek ( PMT ), bpfBOUW, Pensioenfonds ABP, KPN, Pensioenfonds TNO, ABN AMRO Bank N.V., Athora Netherlands, Rabobank, Oost NL, InnovationQuarter, Brabantse Ontwikkelings Maatschappij (BOM), Wachstumsfonds, Invest-NL, European Investment Fund (EIF) and KfW Capital 💡 Innovation Industries Fund III invests in technology companies that offer innovative solutions to societal challenges, including #energysupply, #circularity, #healthcare, and #agrifood. The fund generally invests between €10 million and €30 million in each company over multiple funding rounds. 🌍 #Benelux and #Germany 📈 Innovation Industries has invested into more than 30 #deeptech companies including beeOLED, Battolyser Systems, EnOcean, Carbyon, Pharrowtech, Protealis, Onera Health, Axelera AI, among others. 💭 "Investing in deeptech is very attractive from various perspectives. Nevertheless, deeptech companies still face significant challenges in raising capital. With our third fund, combined with the Strategic Partners Fund, we are taking an important step in addressing this issue for Dutch deeptech companies." - Nard Sintenie, partner at Innovation Industries. 💭 “Our investment in the Innovation Industries Fund III underlines our commitment to highly innovative companies in the Netherlands.” - Nicolaas Heij, Senior Investment Manager, Invest-NL. 🗞️By Vigneshwar Silicon Canals - European Technology News https://lnkd.in/dabHmYQA 👏 For the #AudaciousInvestors unleashing innovation and empowering tomorrow🚀 Chris I Harm I Nard I Sander I Caaj I Tom I Vincent I Pleuni I Margherita I Rogier I Tobias I Tom I Claire I Team Innovation Industries … #venturecapital #vc #funds #startups #entrepreneurs #funding #tech #entrepreneurship #technology #innovation #Netherlands #dutch

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Interesting post about the difference between the big upstarts in the US versus the EU. I think regulation is indeed one of the killers. I have been setting up some new startups in the Netherlands recently. Even before we set up an entity, I got nausea from the way the tax system works. Trying to tax 'value growth' of an early stage startup, making it practically impossible to transfer shares without paying taxes is not a great incentive. Another problem besides the regulations is the mindset of Europeans. I think we're simply lazier and more risk averse than the US. https://lnkd.in/gUjkrwPm

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scale up: The Systematic Approach to Breaking Growth Barriers for High-Performing Companies Recently, I came across a post that questioned the innovation behind frameworks like the 4D Scaleup Framework. Here's a quick summary of the post: "The framework consists of four steps: Direction, Design, Delivery, and Development. While this sounds familiar — goal setting, strategy, execution, and continuous improvement — is this really innovative? I’ve approached challenges similarly before." I love this kind of discussion, so I wanted to share my take, particularly in the context of how we help companies at scale up. While the steps themselves may seem familiar, the real innovation lies in how we execute them at ScaleUp. Our approach isn’t just theoretical—it’s practical and designed to help already successful companies break through the barriers they face when scaling. We focus on: 1) Data-driven diagnostics to pinpoint exactly where the bottlenecks are and prioritize impactful actions. 2) Live interaction with experienced entrepreneur coaches who have faced the same challenges and provide real-world insights. 3) Turning strategy into daily operations, ensuring that it’s not just a leadership conversation, but one that’s lived by the whole team. 4) Building scalability into your core, making sure your teams, culture, and processes grow smoothly, without friction. Sustainable, long-term solutions, so you don’t just fix today’s problem, but create lasting growth without constant fire-fighting. At ScaleUp, we work with businesses that aren’t failing—they’re successful, but they hit a ceiling. Our process helps them break through that ceiling with a systematic and repeatable approach that works across industries. It’s not about intuition alone; it’s about executing growth through a structured, proven method.

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✨ Breaking: ECFG Growth Ventures Announces New Fund.- ECFG Growth Ventures Netherlands Enterprise Agency invested into ECFG Growth Ventures seed fund focused on high-tech manufacturing and SMEs in B2B sectors. https://ecfg.nl/ Please share to let other #Founders know For the ❤️ of Startups #Fusion42 #Startups#Venturecapital

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New name. New guts. More glory? You bet.   Today, we announce our new name and brand: DFF Ventures (Dutch Founders Fund) Ventures—or simply 'DFF' to most.   📍 We’ve been first-cheque partners for founders building marketplace or vertical SaaS/AI solutions across Europe and MENA since 2018. Over the years, our portfolio has grown to 36 companies, spanning 20+ nationalities. From Mehmet and Zeynep, who are building Turkey's leading trade-in infrastructure at Getmobil, to Sebastian and Rafael, creating a global recycling marketplace for scrap metal out of Germany and China, and Florian, developing an employee compensation OS much closer to home – we’ve always had an international focus. Our new name fits that global footprint slightly better 🤝   And although our name and brand might have changed, our ethos has not. We continue to invest in founders building digital solutions for non-digital industries with a 0-bullshit, all-in approach. We move at your speed: no jargon, murky terms or long-winded processes. Hopefully a quick 'yes', but otherwise a candid "no'. We tell it like it is. Just like founders, and just like the Dutch 🧀   👉🏻 Come and check us out at www.dff.ventures   w/ Laurens, Patrick, Hidde, Mart, Federico, 🤖Tom, Maarten, Maarten, Remco & Sjoerd

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Since 2019 more than 250 startups and scaleups have prepared their company for raising external capital by doing The Investment Readiness Process by Beels®. Our data shows that no-one has chosen a smaller ticket size than € 5K. What consequences does the ticket size have for you as a Founder? AND what does it mean for you who are an Angel Investor? 💡 If you are a Founder and want to learn more on why it is more important than ever to plan you financial journey - watch our introduction video here: https://lnkd.in/djK-5VdA 💰 If you are an Angel Investor and want to elevate your skills on financial design when investing in startups - watch our introduction video here: https://lnkd.in/dMFjKDuM #startup #investments #raising

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How to structure your venture studio SaaS portfolio company right from the start Venture studios are keen on creating SaaS portfolio companies. If structured right, SaaS companies can become profitable cash machines for venture studios. Combining fifteen years of experience with SaaS business models and researching venture builders for a PhD project, these are my five major learnings: 🔗As most SaaS products may be copied. Excellent distribution and long-term customer relationships are crucial. Long-term and strong relationships impact many important KPI's including ARR growth, Churn, NPS and eNPS. ➡️For venture studios, that means building on the existing network to creating legitimacy for the portfolio start-up. ---- 🚥A streamlined organization where everyone knows what to do makes recruiting during scaling much easier. Hiring too fast, before the need of more team members occurs, may hinder efficiency. Create job descriptions, routines and procedures for the organization open enough not risking losing founder mode. ➡️For venture studios, that means knowing what competence to look for in different states. Use accumulated knowledge timing and managing recruitment as best as possible. ---- 📈 Keep track on the blended CAC ratio. Inefficiency and high cost in acquiring new ARR will eat up your EBITDA margins. Most B2C SaaS gets scalable through higher numbers of customers. In B2B SaaS, expansion, cross-selling, and price increases are fundamental for fast growth. ➡️For venture studios, that means share customer databases, cross-sell as much as possible, and develop a value-based pricing structure as soon as possible. ---- 🔁 Having routines and procedures in place capitalizing from a management quality system (we used ISO) helps bringing your start-up from a healthy creative chaos to an efficient scale-up. ➡️For venture studios, that means creating a management quality system and put it in place in each portfolio company will help increase speed of development and growth. ---- 💻 An understanding that an intuitive and ‘friendly’ user interface with few bugs in the product, allow support and customer success to be part of the sales organization focusing on the core product, rather than being a business unit trying to help customers handle an in-efficient product to avoid churn. ➡️For venture studios, that means accumulate knowledge in software development in relation to user friendliness and learn from previous start-up attempts to avoid churn. From your experience, what other learnings should be added here? #venturestudio #venturebuilder #entrepreneurship #scaling #saas ________________________________ Did you like this post? Connect or Follow @john-erik hassel

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👉 𝐐𝐮𝐢𝐜𝐤 𝐁𝐲𝐭𝐞𝐬: Dutch startup Odd.Bot - "Robotics for a Sustainable Future" has secured €2 million in pre-Series A funding to advance its autonomous weeding robot, Maverick. This investment, led by Iconic Ventures with contributions from PolKa Capital Management, regional farmers, private investors, and Horizon, the development agency of Flevoland, will support the development of sustainable robotic solutions for agriculture. The Maverick robot offers a chemical-free alternative to traditional weeding methods, promoting healthier crops and soil. With the first 16 units for 2025 already sold out, Odd.Bot is poised to make a significant impact in the AgriTech sector. #AgriTech #SustainableFarming #Robotics #Innovation #StartupFunding #OddBot #AutonomousWeeding #GreenTechnology #Agriculture #TechNews | Martijn Lukaart

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Highly recommended to attend: Unlock the Potential of Carbon Removal with Tracer’s Innovative Blockchain-based Ecosystem. Join Gert-Jan Lasterie and Philippe Tarbouriech tomorrow, July 10, for a webinar where they will explore the global standard for carbon removal credit trading and the key factors driving a successful Carbon Dioxide Removal (CDR) economy. Launching in 2024, Tracer offers an exciting opportunity to join the rapidly expanding carbon dioxide removal industry, projected to grow into a $1.2 trillion market by 2050. Why watch: ✔️ Learn how Tracer aims to become the global standard for carbon removal credit trading. ✔️ Explore 5 key factors driving a successful CDR economy. ✔️ Learn how Tracer solves the liquidity-traceability paradox. ✔️ Uncover the power of decentralized governance in climate action. ✔️ Special token purchase opportunity: Secure your initial purchase in Tracer at an early bird price. Don’t miss this exclusive opportunity to understand Tracer’s innovative approach to tackling climate change. Register now and be part of the future of carbon removal! https://lnkd.in/eUnKFuqM

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“When you invest in venture actually matters.” Jaap Vriesendorp is a legend. There’s no doubt about it. Whether you believe me or not, Episode 6 of this season of Superclusters is a must-watch. By far, one of the most deliberate guests I’ve had on the podcast so far. Not only does he break down the three pillars of building a community of entrepreneurial LPs, but also shares 3 facts that led him to create Welt Ventures’, now Marktlink Capital’s portfolio construction model. My 3 biggest takeaways: 🚪🏃 Exit windows matter more than entry windows. “The truth of the matter, when we look at the data, is that entry points matter much less than the exit points. Because venture is about outliers and outliers are created through IPOs, the exit window matters a lot. And to create a big enough exit window to let every vintage that we create in the fund of funds world to be a good vintage." 🏆 The Champion's League Effect “85% of returns flow to 5% of the funds, and that those 5% of the funds are very sticky. So we call that the ‘Champions League Effect.’" Jaap and his team constantly spend time looking at the data behind venture and is probably one of the most data-informed teams out there. He breaks down in the episode as well why his portfolio construction is 80% established, and 20% emerging managers. 🤗 Great communities all have 3 things: fun, value, uniquely organized knowledge. You need all three to create a community where each node of the network creates compounding effects. And much much more, including how much individual LPs often allocate to venture. Full episode in the comments!

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