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Capricorn Investment Group is one of the world’s largest mission-aligned investment companies, managing more than $6bn in multi-asset class portfolios for families, foundations and institutional investors. Notably, it manages the investment portfolio of Jeff Skoll, the first President of eBay, and his charitable organization. The company has offices in Silicon Valley and New York. It has invested in 63 companies to date, many aimed at tackling key challenges facing our world today. It has managed 14 exits to date, including Tesla. Its main focus is on technology and sustainability, with a particular interest in deeptech, aerospace, transport, agtech, healthcare and energy. The firm’s most recent disclosed investments were in May 2021, via participation in the $100m Series B round of Canadian quantum computing startup Xanadu and the $28m Series B round of US geothermal tech company Fervo Energy.
Capricorn Investment Group is one of the world’s largest mission-aligned investment companies, managing more than $6bn in multi-asset class portfolios for families, foundations and institutional investors. Notably, it manages the investment portfolio of Jeff Skoll, the first President of eBay, and his charitable organization. The company has offices in Silicon Valley and New York. It has invested in 63 companies to date, many aimed at tackling key challenges facing our world today. It has managed 14 exits to date, including Tesla. Its main focus is on technology and sustainability, with a particular interest in deeptech, aerospace, transport, agtech, healthcare and energy. The firm’s most recent disclosed investments were in May 2021, via participation in the $100m Series B round of Canadian quantum computing startup Xanadu and the $28m Series B round of US geothermal tech company Fervo Energy.
Founded in 2013 by Ramanan Raghavendran and John Kim, Amasia is a venture capital investment firm based in San Francisco and Singapore. The VC promotes environmental and sustainable innovations that help to reduce consumption, boost recycling and upcycling. Eco-investments include Finch, Treedots and Joro. Finch provides information about a product’s environmental impact to consumers while TreeDots connects grocery suppliers directly with businesses and households. Joro advises users on actionable steps to reduce their carbon footprints.Amasia primarily invests in startups from seed stage up to Series B, but it has also participated in later-stage investments. The VC also aims to encourage conventional offline businesses to go online and optimize supply chain activities. In October 2020, Amasia participated in a $100m Series E round raised by Dialpad, a remote working communication software firm. In September 2021, the VC took a stake in Indonesian fintech Xendit’s $150m Series C round. Tokopedia also joined the Amasia stable in 2016 when the e-commerce platform became Indonesia’s first tech unicorn after the $147m funding round.Other investments include Super, a social commerce platform that improves FMCG distribution to tier-2 and tier-3 cities in Indonesia, online education firm SkillShare and Rainforest Life that acquires and aggregates direct-to-consumer e-commerce brands.
Founded in 2013 by Ramanan Raghavendran and John Kim, Amasia is a venture capital investment firm based in San Francisco and Singapore. The VC promotes environmental and sustainable innovations that help to reduce consumption, boost recycling and upcycling. Eco-investments include Finch, Treedots and Joro. Finch provides information about a product’s environmental impact to consumers while TreeDots connects grocery suppliers directly with businesses and households. Joro advises users on actionable steps to reduce their carbon footprints.Amasia primarily invests in startups from seed stage up to Series B, but it has also participated in later-stage investments. The VC also aims to encourage conventional offline businesses to go online and optimize supply chain activities. In October 2020, Amasia participated in a $100m Series E round raised by Dialpad, a remote working communication software firm. In September 2021, the VC took a stake in Indonesian fintech Xendit’s $150m Series C round. Tokopedia also joined the Amasia stable in 2016 when the e-commerce platform became Indonesia’s first tech unicorn after the $147m funding round.Other investments include Super, a social commerce platform that improves FMCG distribution to tier-2 and tier-3 cities in Indonesia, online education firm SkillShare and Rainforest Life that acquires and aggregates direct-to-consumer e-commerce brands.
CEO of NPAW
Ferrán Gutiérrez Vilaró has been an entrepreneur since 2008 with a successful track record in video-related technologies. Gutiérrez co-founded NPAW in 2008, where he is currently CEO; until 2014, he was Director of Product and Technology. He also co-founded video-on-demand (VOD) streaming service Wuaki.tv, now RakutenTC, in 2010. He continues to work at RakutenTV and Wuapi.com, a user-generated high-definition video site. He was also previously a senior developer at Atos Origin and Sclipo and systems architect for the Amuso project. Gutiérrez is a computer science graduate from the Autonomous University of Barcelona.
Ferrán Gutiérrez Vilaró has been an entrepreneur since 2008 with a successful track record in video-related technologies. Gutiérrez co-founded NPAW in 2008, where he is currently CEO; until 2014, he was Director of Product and Technology. He also co-founded video-on-demand (VOD) streaming service Wuaki.tv, now RakutenTC, in 2010. He continues to work at RakutenTV and Wuapi.com, a user-generated high-definition video site. He was also previously a senior developer at Atos Origin and Sclipo and systems architect for the Amuso project. Gutiérrez is a computer science graduate from the Autonomous University of Barcelona.
Co-founder of Acuilae
Pedro Diezma is an entrepreneur, author and professional speaker as well as a co-founder of AI software development company Acuilae. He previously founded Zerintia Technologies, which specializes in wearable technology, IoT and software and business processes and was its CEO until 2017. Diezma was also a senior project manager at Endesa and had developed projects for over 450 enterprises. As an author, his books include The Crown of Adam and The Rebirth of the Hero. According to Onalytica, Diezma is a top influencer on IoT and wearables. Diezma holds a degree in Business Administration and Management from Madrid's Complutense University.
Pedro Diezma is an entrepreneur, author and professional speaker as well as a co-founder of AI software development company Acuilae. He previously founded Zerintia Technologies, which specializes in wearable technology, IoT and software and business processes and was its CEO until 2017. Diezma was also a senior project manager at Endesa and had developed projects for over 450 enterprises. As an author, his books include The Crown of Adam and The Rebirth of the Hero. According to Onalytica, Diezma is a top influencer on IoT and wearables. Diezma holds a degree in Business Administration and Management from Madrid's Complutense University.
CEO and co-founder of Kobo360
In 2011, young Obi Ozor used his savings and loans from his family and friends to set up Bezmo Global to import second-hand trucks from the US and sell them in Nigeria. Despite suffering from kidney failure issues, he managed to run the business for four years to earn money to pay for his medical treatments. He fully recovered and moved to Michigan to continue his education.At the University of Michigan, Ozor met Ife Oyedele II and the two friends started an e-commerce venture to sell diapers and baby soap from the US to customers in Nigeria. Ozor moved to the University of Pennsylvania and graduated with a BA International Relations and Finance at Wharton School of Business. In 2014, he gained some work experience in investment banking at JP Morgan in New York.In 2015, Ozor returned to Nigeria and joined Uber as operations coordinator. In 2016, the serial entrepreneur and his friend Oyedele co-founded Uber-style logistics platform Kobo360 in Lagos.
In 2011, young Obi Ozor used his savings and loans from his family and friends to set up Bezmo Global to import second-hand trucks from the US and sell them in Nigeria. Despite suffering from kidney failure issues, he managed to run the business for four years to earn money to pay for his medical treatments. He fully recovered and moved to Michigan to continue his education.At the University of Michigan, Ozor met Ife Oyedele II and the two friends started an e-commerce venture to sell diapers and baby soap from the US to customers in Nigeria. Ozor moved to the University of Pennsylvania and graduated with a BA International Relations and Finance at Wharton School of Business. In 2014, he gained some work experience in investment banking at JP Morgan in New York.In 2015, Ozor returned to Nigeria and joined Uber as operations coordinator. In 2016, the serial entrepreneur and his friend Oyedele co-founded Uber-style logistics platform Kobo360 in Lagos.
Chairman and Founder of Squirrel AI
Born in 1977, Li Haoyang completed senior high school-level classes while he was of junior high school age, and was admitted into the program for gifted children at Shanghai Jiao Tong University. Li is a serial entrepreneur with more than 20 years of experience in K12 education. He co-founded Dashan Foreign Language School, a regional, K12 educational institution chain that operated from 1999–2003, and was also the school’s CEO and principal. He then co-founded after-school tutoring center Only Education International in 2004 and was CEO and Vice-Chairman of the school board. In 2015, Only Education went public, issuing A-stocks. Li then co-founded the social app Friends Impression (a literal translation of the app’s original Mandarin name) in 2014. Li founded Squirrel AI in 2015 and currently serves as Chairman of the board.
Born in 1977, Li Haoyang completed senior high school-level classes while he was of junior high school age, and was admitted into the program for gifted children at Shanghai Jiao Tong University. Li is a serial entrepreneur with more than 20 years of experience in K12 education. He co-founded Dashan Foreign Language School, a regional, K12 educational institution chain that operated from 1999–2003, and was also the school’s CEO and principal. He then co-founded after-school tutoring center Only Education International in 2004 and was CEO and Vice-Chairman of the school board. In 2015, Only Education went public, issuing A-stocks. Li then co-founded the social app Friends Impression (a literal translation of the app’s original Mandarin name) in 2014. Li founded Squirrel AI in 2015 and currently serves as Chairman of the board.
CEO and co-founder of Xendit
Moses Lo comes from an entrepreneurial family, his father acquired a failing business in Australia and turned it into a successful company. The family business inspired Lo to start his own fashion business in Australia after graduating in finance and commerce at the University of New South Wales in 2010.Lo initially gained work experience as an analyst in 2008 as part of his undergraduate finance and commerce programs in Australia. In 2011, he became an associate at the Boston Consulting Group in Australia. After two years, he was promoted to senior associate but left BCG in 2013 to focus on his menswear ventures until 2014.Lo decided to get first-hand tech startup experience in the Silicon Valley, working at Amazon while completing an MBA program at the University of California, Berkeley. In 2015, he decided to established a P2P payments platform Xendit in Indonesia. The platform has since pivoted into a payment gateway service and became a unicorn in 2021, with Lo as CEO based in California and Jakarta. He was also featured in Forbes’ 30 Under 30 list for Asian figures in finance and venture capital in 2016.
Moses Lo comes from an entrepreneurial family, his father acquired a failing business in Australia and turned it into a successful company. The family business inspired Lo to start his own fashion business in Australia after graduating in finance and commerce at the University of New South Wales in 2010.Lo initially gained work experience as an analyst in 2008 as part of his undergraduate finance and commerce programs in Australia. In 2011, he became an associate at the Boston Consulting Group in Australia. After two years, he was promoted to senior associate but left BCG in 2013 to focus on his menswear ventures until 2014.Lo decided to get first-hand tech startup experience in the Silicon Valley, working at Amazon while completing an MBA program at the University of California, Berkeley. In 2015, he decided to established a P2P payments platform Xendit in Indonesia. The platform has since pivoted into a payment gateway service and became a unicorn in 2021, with Lo as CEO based in California and Jakarta. He was also featured in Forbes’ 30 Under 30 list for Asian figures in finance and venture capital in 2016.
Co-founder of Meatable
Mark Kotter is the Austrian co-founder at Dutch cell-based meat startup Meatable, the first to use pluripotent stem cells and claim a highly scalable culture technology, which was developed by Kotter prior to founding the startup in 2018. He is also founder at his biotech startup, bit.bio, which is based in Cambridge, UK, since 2016, where he applies his cellular technological innovation to human stem cell research and has raised investments totaling $42m. His main full-time position is at the University of Cambridge, where he has worked since 2009. He has spent more than five years as a clinician-scientist in stem cell research and was previously a lecturer in neurosurgery. Kotter also lectures at Paris Descartes University and is a team leader at the UK’s National Institute for Health Research’s Brain Injury MedTech Co-operative. He also founded Myelopathy.org to raise awareness of cervical myelopathy. His past positions were as a research group leader at the Max Planck Institute for Experimental Medicine for one year, and for two years spent at the Medical University of Vienna. Kotter holds two doctorates; one in philosophy from the University of Cambridge and the other in medicine from the University of Graz in Austria. Kotter also holds a master’s in philosophy from the University of Cambridge.
Mark Kotter is the Austrian co-founder at Dutch cell-based meat startup Meatable, the first to use pluripotent stem cells and claim a highly scalable culture technology, which was developed by Kotter prior to founding the startup in 2018. He is also founder at his biotech startup, bit.bio, which is based in Cambridge, UK, since 2016, where he applies his cellular technological innovation to human stem cell research and has raised investments totaling $42m. His main full-time position is at the University of Cambridge, where he has worked since 2009. He has spent more than five years as a clinician-scientist in stem cell research and was previously a lecturer in neurosurgery. Kotter also lectures at Paris Descartes University and is a team leader at the UK’s National Institute for Health Research’s Brain Injury MedTech Co-operative. He also founded Myelopathy.org to raise awareness of cervical myelopathy. His past positions were as a research group leader at the Max Planck Institute for Experimental Medicine for one year, and for two years spent at the Medical University of Vienna. Kotter holds two doctorates; one in philosophy from the University of Cambridge and the other in medicine from the University of Graz in Austria. Kotter also holds a master’s in philosophy from the University of Cambridge.
Early-stage-focused VC firm with a €24m first fund mainly investing in B2B and B2C digital startups headquartered in Spain. Initial investment amounts range between €70,000 and €300,000, and followup investment amounts go up to €1m per company. Describing themselves as “momentum investors” seeking quick time-to-market projects, Encomenda Smart Capital was founded in 2017 and managed by renowned Spanish angel investors Carlos Blanco, Oriol Juncosa and Miguel Sanz Sanchez, along with a network of angel investors Encomenda supports the growth of startups' portfolios and helps startups to scale at national and international levels. Encomenda invests 30% in SaaS and in projects with a recurring income model; 20% are fintech, and they also bet on the human resources, edtech and healthcare. Just two out of 25 investments have folded up between 2017 and 2020, with half the fund monies committed. Encomenda is seeking to launch a second fund in 2022 focusing on Spanish and Portuguese startups, of €40m–€50m, and multi-stage, by starting in the early-stage investments, with follow-through investments in subsequent stages.
Early-stage-focused VC firm with a €24m first fund mainly investing in B2B and B2C digital startups headquartered in Spain. Initial investment amounts range between €70,000 and €300,000, and followup investment amounts go up to €1m per company. Describing themselves as “momentum investors” seeking quick time-to-market projects, Encomenda Smart Capital was founded in 2017 and managed by renowned Spanish angel investors Carlos Blanco, Oriol Juncosa and Miguel Sanz Sanchez, along with a network of angel investors Encomenda supports the growth of startups' portfolios and helps startups to scale at national and international levels. Encomenda invests 30% in SaaS and in projects with a recurring income model; 20% are fintech, and they also bet on the human resources, edtech and healthcare. Just two out of 25 investments have folded up between 2017 and 2020, with half the fund monies committed. Encomenda is seeking to launch a second fund in 2022 focusing on Spanish and Portuguese startups, of €40m–€50m, and multi-stage, by starting in the early-stage investments, with follow-through investments in subsequent stages.
CEO and Founder of Didimo
Argentinian-born Verónica Costa Orvalho is a veteran in animation technology. In 2016, she became the CEO and founder of Didimo that was inspired by an earlier venture Face In Motion, established in 2007 to focus on cinematic quality and animation production of faces. Orvalho won the award for the AI and virtual reality category at a Women Startup Challenge event held in New York in 2017. Orvalho has a long academic track record in related fields, beginning with a first degree in Software Engineering from the University of Belgrano in Buenos Aires. She moved to Barcelona and obtained a master's degree in Videogame Design and Development at University Pompeu Fabra where she continued to work on creating a facial animation system “For CG Films”. She later completed her PhD at the Polytechnic University of Catalonia with her thesis: Fast and Reusable Facial Rigging and Animation to develop an application that could speed up the traditional “slowing rigging” process. She has worked at Ericsson as a systems analyst and was a producer at the Argentinian film company Patagonik Film Group that helped to produce the Oscar-winning movie El hijo de la novia. She worked for four years as the founder of Panorama Consulting, a consultancy focusing on developing systems for the medical, logistics and entertainment industries. Since 2003, she has lectured in different institutions, including Porto University's Porto Interactive Center as its specialist in facial animation since 2008.
Argentinian-born Verónica Costa Orvalho is a veteran in animation technology. In 2016, she became the CEO and founder of Didimo that was inspired by an earlier venture Face In Motion, established in 2007 to focus on cinematic quality and animation production of faces. Orvalho won the award for the AI and virtual reality category at a Women Startup Challenge event held in New York in 2017. Orvalho has a long academic track record in related fields, beginning with a first degree in Software Engineering from the University of Belgrano in Buenos Aires. She moved to Barcelona and obtained a master's degree in Videogame Design and Development at University Pompeu Fabra where she continued to work on creating a facial animation system “For CG Films”. She later completed her PhD at the Polytechnic University of Catalonia with her thesis: Fast and Reusable Facial Rigging and Animation to develop an application that could speed up the traditional “slowing rigging” process. She has worked at Ericsson as a systems analyst and was a producer at the Argentinian film company Patagonik Film Group that helped to produce the Oscar-winning movie El hijo de la novia. She worked for four years as the founder of Panorama Consulting, a consultancy focusing on developing systems for the medical, logistics and entertainment industries. Since 2003, she has lectured in different institutions, including Porto University's Porto Interactive Center as its specialist in facial animation since 2008.
The European Investment Bank is a pan-European investor based in Luxembourg, and the only bank owned by European Union member states. Founded in 1958, the banks has invested in thousands of businesses and public and private infrastructure projects. It is the largest multilateral borrower and lender by volume and also now has an SME tech focus, with recipients needing to have sustainable business model and, usually, a European focus. In December 2020, the EIB launched a new €150m co-investment fund to support startups leveraging AI across Europe to address what it called “the multibillion-euro funding gap compared with the United States and China.” Its most recent investments include a €20m investment in the €32m Series C round of Portuguese international online print store 360imprimir (BIZAY) and its first spacetech investment, €20m in venture debt investment to Luxembourg-based Spire Global that is building a satellite constellation, both in December 2020.In 4Q 2020, it also invested €10m in Spanish industrial IoT startup Worldsensing, €15m in German identity verification platform IDnow and €15 in German sportstech platform KINEXON.
The European Investment Bank is a pan-European investor based in Luxembourg, and the only bank owned by European Union member states. Founded in 1958, the banks has invested in thousands of businesses and public and private infrastructure projects. It is the largest multilateral borrower and lender by volume and also now has an SME tech focus, with recipients needing to have sustainable business model and, usually, a European focus. In December 2020, the EIB launched a new €150m co-investment fund to support startups leveraging AI across Europe to address what it called “the multibillion-euro funding gap compared with the United States and China.” Its most recent investments include a €20m investment in the €32m Series C round of Portuguese international online print store 360imprimir (BIZAY) and its first spacetech investment, €20m in venture debt investment to Luxembourg-based Spire Global that is building a satellite constellation, both in December 2020.In 4Q 2020, it also invested €10m in Spanish industrial IoT startup Worldsensing, €15m in German identity verification platform IDnow and €15 in German sportstech platform KINEXON.
With currently over $21bn of AUM, Baring Private Equity Asia (BPEA) was started in Hong Kong in 1997 by Jean Eric Salata, as the regional Asian PE investment arm of UK-based Baring Private Equity Partners. With $300m in its first fund, it focused on riding China’s economic rise spurred by the country’s market liberalization. In 2000, Salata led a management buyout of BPEA and continues to head the firm today as CEO and Founding Partner. BPEA has invested in more than 100 companies, across healthcare, logistics, IT services, media, education, financial services and retail. It is one of the largest independent PE firms in Asia and has eight offices across the continent.With offices in China, India, Japan, Australia, and Singapore, it currently has around 43 portfolio companies, almost all Asia-based, across multiple business segments in tech and non-tech startups, especially in bricks-and-mortar education establishments. It also makes acquisitions, including most recently of US outsourcing services company Virtusa in February 2021.Other recent investments include in the June 2021 $85m Series C round of Portuguese home physiotherapy tech solution SWORD Health, the world’s fastest-growing musculoskeletal solution, and in the November 2020 $198m Series D round of Chinese computer coding for kids edtech Codemao.
With currently over $21bn of AUM, Baring Private Equity Asia (BPEA) was started in Hong Kong in 1997 by Jean Eric Salata, as the regional Asian PE investment arm of UK-based Baring Private Equity Partners. With $300m in its first fund, it focused on riding China’s economic rise spurred by the country’s market liberalization. In 2000, Salata led a management buyout of BPEA and continues to head the firm today as CEO and Founding Partner. BPEA has invested in more than 100 companies, across healthcare, logistics, IT services, media, education, financial services and retail. It is one of the largest independent PE firms in Asia and has eight offices across the continent.With offices in China, India, Japan, Australia, and Singapore, it currently has around 43 portfolio companies, almost all Asia-based, across multiple business segments in tech and non-tech startups, especially in bricks-and-mortar education establishments. It also makes acquisitions, including most recently of US outsourcing services company Virtusa in February 2021.Other recent investments include in the June 2021 $85m Series C round of Portuguese home physiotherapy tech solution SWORD Health, the world’s fastest-growing musculoskeletal solution, and in the November 2020 $198m Series D round of Chinese computer coding for kids edtech Codemao.
CEO and Co-founder of Plastic Bank
David Katz is the Canadian co-founder, president and CEO of Plastic Bank, a-first-of-a-kind social enterprise startup that monetizes plastic waste collection for some of the world’s poorest communities. Katz was inspired by a university seminar about recycling plastic waste in 2013 and founded Plastic Bank with CTO and brand strategist Shaun Frankson in Vancouver.In 2019, he became a fellow for the Unreasonable Group’s Impact Hub in Vancouver, an organization that supports social and environmental entrepreneurship. In 2011, he also founded Vancouver’s Core Values Institute, a consulting and global thought leadership platform for entrepreneurs.In 2014, he was also president of Vancouver’s chapter of the Entrepreneurs Organization for one year. He was named Global Citizen of the Year in 2014 by the international organization that has a network of over 10,000 business owners in 131 chapters across 40 countries. He also won the 2017 UN Lighthouse award for Planetary Health and Plastic Bank received the Paris COP21 Climate Conference Sustania Community Award in 2015.Katz completed a diploma in Hospitality Administration & Management at the British Columbia Institute of Technology in 1991 and started his own business in 1992 as founder and CEO of Nero Alarms. From 2005 to 2014, Katz worked full-time as the founder and president of Nero Global Tracking, a SaaS platform created to monitor the operations of mobile service vehicles. Nero SaaS is used in many Canadian cities and by the nation’s Defence Ministry. The company is now part of Vecima Networks Inc.
David Katz is the Canadian co-founder, president and CEO of Plastic Bank, a-first-of-a-kind social enterprise startup that monetizes plastic waste collection for some of the world’s poorest communities. Katz was inspired by a university seminar about recycling plastic waste in 2013 and founded Plastic Bank with CTO and brand strategist Shaun Frankson in Vancouver.In 2019, he became a fellow for the Unreasonable Group’s Impact Hub in Vancouver, an organization that supports social and environmental entrepreneurship. In 2011, he also founded Vancouver’s Core Values Institute, a consulting and global thought leadership platform for entrepreneurs.In 2014, he was also president of Vancouver’s chapter of the Entrepreneurs Organization for one year. He was named Global Citizen of the Year in 2014 by the international organization that has a network of over 10,000 business owners in 131 chapters across 40 countries. He also won the 2017 UN Lighthouse award for Planetary Health and Plastic Bank received the Paris COP21 Climate Conference Sustania Community Award in 2015.Katz completed a diploma in Hospitality Administration & Management at the British Columbia Institute of Technology in 1991 and started his own business in 1992 as founder and CEO of Nero Alarms. From 2005 to 2014, Katz worked full-time as the founder and president of Nero Global Tracking, a SaaS platform created to monitor the operations of mobile service vehicles. Nero SaaS is used in many Canadian cities and by the nation’s Defence Ministry. The company is now part of Vecima Networks Inc.
Startmate is an accelerator program for tech-enabled Australian and New Zealand start-ups. It also operates a seed fund backed by venture capitalists and established entrepreneurs. The organisation was established in 2011 by Niki Scevak, founder of Blackbird Ventures, and a team that included the founders of Australian enterprise software company Atlassian. Since its inception in 2011, Startmate has invested in more than 150 startups with a combined valuation of more than A$1 billion. Startmate runs two accelerator cohorts a year, usually from January–April and July–October. This accelerator program is open to a wide range of entrepreneurs, from idea-stage groups and pre-Series A startups, to solo founders and complete teams. Companies participating in Startmate’s accelerator program each receive A$75,000 from Startmate’s community of mentors, in exchange for 7.5% equity. In 2019 Startmate launched a dedicated Climate Cohort, which runs parallel with the standard program and focuses on startups in cleantech and climate-tech. Startmate also runs a First Believers program twice a year, which trains future or aspiring angel investors from Australia and New Zealand by building their confidence and networks and refining their investment strategies. In addition, the organization runs a coaching and mentorship program and holds other networking programs, like a Founders’ Fellowship, Women Fellowship, and Student Fellowship, at various dates throughout the year.
Startmate is an accelerator program for tech-enabled Australian and New Zealand start-ups. It also operates a seed fund backed by venture capitalists and established entrepreneurs. The organisation was established in 2011 by Niki Scevak, founder of Blackbird Ventures, and a team that included the founders of Australian enterprise software company Atlassian. Since its inception in 2011, Startmate has invested in more than 150 startups with a combined valuation of more than A$1 billion. Startmate runs two accelerator cohorts a year, usually from January–April and July–October. This accelerator program is open to a wide range of entrepreneurs, from idea-stage groups and pre-Series A startups, to solo founders and complete teams. Companies participating in Startmate’s accelerator program each receive A$75,000 from Startmate’s community of mentors, in exchange for 7.5% equity. In 2019 Startmate launched a dedicated Climate Cohort, which runs parallel with the standard program and focuses on startups in cleantech and climate-tech. Startmate also runs a First Believers program twice a year, which trains future or aspiring angel investors from Australia and New Zealand by building their confidence and networks and refining their investment strategies. In addition, the organization runs a coaching and mentorship program and holds other networking programs, like a Founders’ Fellowship, Women Fellowship, and Student Fellowship, at various dates throughout the year.
Co-founder of Psquared
Argentinian native Jorge Araujo Müller is co-founder and investor at Psquared, Spain’s first flexible workplace management and design company, Psquared, for hybrid workspaces, where he has worked since its foundation in April 2019. Psquared is a spin-off of startup innovation hub CoBuilder, founded one year earlier and which Araujo co-founded. He has several other roles. Since 2020, he is a co-founder at startup development agency We Are Grit and advisor of a talent agency for Latin Americans in Spain, Base España. He is also an investor and advisor at e-commerce recruitment agency RSV Outsourcing. Araujo also holds part-time educational roles, speaking on innovation at Barcelona’s ESADE institution to MBA students and as a mentor at Mexico’s chapter of the MassChallenge accelerator. Earlier, Araujo worked as a business advisor to the digital agency JustDigital, and was co-founder and sales director at the digital talent agency Bandit, for a year. Before that, from 2012–2016, he was CSO and co-founder of Barcelona-based startup Nubelo – a tech recruitment agency for freelancers – until it was acquired by Freelancer.com. Prior to this, Araujo worked for two years as a business researcher at JP Morgan Chase and for almost two years at West Side Consultants, both in Argentina. Araujo holds a business administration qualification from CEMA University, Buenos Aires.In 2013, Araujo and his brother were named in Forbes Argentina’s 30 Promesas list of young entrepreneurs.
Argentinian native Jorge Araujo Müller is co-founder and investor at Psquared, Spain’s first flexible workplace management and design company, Psquared, for hybrid workspaces, where he has worked since its foundation in April 2019. Psquared is a spin-off of startup innovation hub CoBuilder, founded one year earlier and which Araujo co-founded. He has several other roles. Since 2020, he is a co-founder at startup development agency We Are Grit and advisor of a talent agency for Latin Americans in Spain, Base España. He is also an investor and advisor at e-commerce recruitment agency RSV Outsourcing. Araujo also holds part-time educational roles, speaking on innovation at Barcelona’s ESADE institution to MBA students and as a mentor at Mexico’s chapter of the MassChallenge accelerator. Earlier, Araujo worked as a business advisor to the digital agency JustDigital, and was co-founder and sales director at the digital talent agency Bandit, for a year. Before that, from 2012–2016, he was CSO and co-founder of Barcelona-based startup Nubelo – a tech recruitment agency for freelancers – until it was acquired by Freelancer.com. Prior to this, Araujo worked for two years as a business researcher at JP Morgan Chase and for almost two years at West Side Consultants, both in Argentina. Araujo holds a business administration qualification from CEMA University, Buenos Aires.In 2013, Araujo and his brother were named in Forbes Argentina’s 30 Promesas list of young entrepreneurs.
Francisco Polo: The former entrepreneur heading Spain's Digital Advancement
He's been charged to transform Spain into an entrepreneurial nation, and a technological and innovation frontrunner
A Q&A with the Veniam founder and CEO
2gether: The world's first crypto-collaborative financial platform
Banking on the opportunities afforded by blockchain, 2gether is owned by its customers who get commission-free financial services in euros and cryptocurrency
Tiantian Xuenong: China's first pay-for-knowledge agricultural platform
Capitalizing on a deep understanding of Chinese agriculture, this startup is building an online school where farmers can learn agricultural and business skills
Bob Xu, one of China's first and most successful angel investors
Known for his whimsical investment style, Xu has caught a number of unicorns
Payfazz aims to be Indonesia's first on-demand financial services company
Handling transactions averaging over IDR 1tn monthly, Payfazz hopes to bring the benefits of banking to all Indonesians
HumanITcare: The first real-time symptom tracker for mental illness patients
FollowHealth’s HumanITcare app combines wearables, analytics and AI to monitor and improve outcomes for sufferers of depression, schizophrenia, alcoholism and more
RecyGlo, Myanmar's first circular economy waste management system, targets regional growth
Turning trash into cash, Yangon-based recycling pioneer RecyGlo wants to extend its zero-waste circular economy model to the rest of Southeast Asia
Bound4Blue’s aeronautical tech propels first sustainable shipping vessel in the Pacific
Winning €5m fresh funding, Bound4Blue also scores with its EC-backed pilot, the first of its kind, offering new possibilities to cargo vessels seeking sustainable transportation
Neil Shen: The super unicorn hunter
His bet on ByteDance, the startup that gave the world TikTok, helped Neil Shen top this year's Forbes Midas List. But for Shen, even in that deal he once made the wrong call
Farm Friend: World’s first agri-drone sharing platform wins over users, investors
Gone are the days of the lone Chinese farmer toiling under the sun. Now drones are here to help – and there’s even a drone sharing platform too
Backed by Kleiner Perkins, Spotahome clinches Spain’s first Silicon Valley-led funding
Now in Europe’s US$500 billion home rental market, the Spanish proptech will soon expand to LatAm, the US and Asia
Kibus Petcare: World's first auto-cook and -dispense healthy pet food device
Kibus Petcare applies the healthy eating revolution to the ever-growing pet-care business, eyes sales in 25 countries after crowdfunding launch
SoccerDream: World's first VR soccer training platform to launch in China, US
SoccerDream uses virtual reality to boost trainee players' performance on the field by 36% compared to their peers
FROGS: Overcoming challenges to launch Indonesia's first drone-taxi for daily commutes
The Yogyakarta-based startup backed by UMG Idealab seeks more technical resources to launch Indonesia's first homegrown “flying taxi,” after the success of its agritech drones
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