As European dynamism gathers momentum, Elaia and partners double down with new deep tech fund
Deep tech is on the rise in Europe, fueled in part by the match between AI and a local flavor of math excellence. But it’s also benefiting from a growing community, public support and increasing amounts of funding. Elaia‘s third deep tech seed fund, DTS3, is an example: “It is double the size of the two previous funds,” Anne-Sophie Carrese, a managing partner at the French VC firm, told TechCrunch. With a first closing at €60 million, it is set to reach €120 million by the time its fundraising is complete, which she said should happen by early 2025. It’s already identified the first three startups to join its portfolio. While other deep tech funds have emerged across Europe since Elaia’s creation in 2002, the firm puts relationships it built with research institutions over the years to good use. Building these partnerships has proven to be a solid source of dealflow for Elaia — in some cases, it has even gotten priority or exclusive access to projects coming out of certain labs. For instance, partnerships …
