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New AI-driven fund is targeted specifically at European tech start-ups.
London-based venture capital firm InReach Ventures has closed a new fund worth €53m to invest in European tech firms, ahead of the original €50m target.
The fund is being launched with the aim of creating a more successful European tech scene, and will be underpinned by the firm’s proprietary AI investment platform.
‘Entrepreneurs can found companies anywhere in Europe, from Helsinki to Barcelona, from Warsaw to Rome, and yet many fail to get noticed at the right time’
– ROBERTO BONANZINGA
Yes, you read that right: InReach Ventures is pioneering the use of software and AI to discover, evaluate and support investments in the most promising early-stage start-ups.
The firm’s mission is to uncover and fund game-changing tech start-ups from all over Europe, without geographic boundaries. It claims that its proprietary software-based approach, underpinned by machine learning, generates and evaluates deal flow significantly more efficiently than traditional venture firms.
European tech is underrepresented
Since inception in 2015, InReach has already invested in eight start-ups from across Europe, including: Oberlo (Lithuania) subsequently acquired by Shopify, Soldo (Italy/UK), Tutorful (UK), Shapr3D (Hungary), Traitly (Sweden) and Loots (Germany).
“We are very excited by the opportunity for European technology entrepreneurship,” said Roberto Bonanzinga, investment partner at InReach Ventures.
“However, if we look at the biggest tech companies in the world today by market capitalisation, European companies are significantly underrepresented. We need to adopt an approach which is tailored for Europe, or we will continue to fall behind. Entrepreneurs can found companies anywhere in Europe, from Helsinki to Barcelona, from Warsaw to Rome, and yet many fail to get noticed at the right time.
“As European venture capitalists, we need a new approach that is distinct and tailored to deal with this geographic fragmentation and economic reality. We believe the only way to achieve this is through a software-based approach, powered by AI.”
InReach was founded by Bonanzinga, a former general partner at Balderton Capital (formerly Benchmark Europe), along with Ben Smith from Yammer (Microsoft) and John Mesrie, former general counsel at Balderton.
“When we started InReach, people didn’t believe that AI could be applied to venture capital. We are here to prove them wrong,” said Bonanzinga. “With this new fund closing, we are now leading the way in European VC innovation and we aim to help entrepreneurs across Europe innovate and disrupt as many industries as possible.
“And, because we develop proprietary technology ourselves, we understand deeply the way tech companies work, how they can grow to meet the demands of their market and how they can scale up to reach their full potential.”
