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Where are Berlin’s impact VCs putting their money?

Berlin has long been known as one of the top startup hubs in Europe backed by an equally vibrant community of venture capital funds.

With the rise of impact entrepreneurship across the world, Berlin has also become a hub for some of Europe’s pioneering and most active impact VCs.

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Dive into Berlin's Impact VC landscape with us. We're cutting through the noise, offering a clear look at what they are backing.

It's all about insights, no frills.
Let's explore together.

  • The analysis is based on the public portfolio disclosures of 14 Berlin-based Impact VCs (historical data).


    Data last updated: January 2024

From Berlin to the World

Berlin impact VCs have invested in startups from 22 countries.

World map with flags of various countries in Europe, North America, and Asia overlaid on a black background made up of white dots.

173 startups across the world.

Circular arrangement of red thumbtacks on a white background, forming a concentric pattern.
Earth globe illustration showing Africa and Europe

From 🏝 Palma de Mallorca to ☃ïļ Helsinki.

But there is no place like home.

Emoji collage with a bear face, a house with a tree, and a stack of euro currency notes.

36

Berlin’s impact VCs backed local startups the most.

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Top 10 Countries

Number of Investments

74

ðŸ‡Đ🇊 Germany ðŸĨ°

30

🇚ðŸ‡ļ Making Americans dream.

26

🇎🇧 No hard feelings.

5

ðŸ‡Đ🇰 Getting hygge with impact.

5

ðŸ‡Ļ🇭 Cheese, chocolate, impact.

4 ðŸ‡ļ🇊 🊑

Sweden

4 🇊ðŸ‡ļ 💃

Spain

4 ðŸ‡ģðŸ‡ą ðŸšē

Netherlands

3 ðŸ‡Ŧ🇷 ðŸĨ

France

3 ðŸ‡ĶðŸ‡đ🏔

Austria

Despite the proximity to Central and Eastern Europe, Berlin’s impact VCs only made four investments in the region ðŸ˜ą

Sectors Covered

18

There were a lot of sectors invested inâ€Ķ

🌍 🚰 🍎 📘 ðŸ’Ą ðŸŒą 🏙ïļ 💞 ðŸĪ ✊ 🔋 ⚖ïļ ðŸ‘Ĩ ðŸĨ 🔎 🌐 🎓 🛠ïļ

🌍 🚰 🍎 📘 ðŸ’Ą ðŸŒą 🏙ïļ 💞 ðŸĪ ✊ 🔋 ⚖ïļ ðŸ‘Ĩ ðŸĨ 🔎 🌐 🎓 🛠ïļ

Food

Energy

Transport

CCUS

Climate Software

Buildings & Construction

Industry

Finance

Agriculture

Plastic

Health

Waste

Education

Supply Chain

Space Tech

Biodiversity

Employment

Quantum Computers

🔋 ðŸĨ” ðŸ›ī

But nothing interested Berlin VCs more than Food, Energy, and Transportation

Animated Pikachu with brown background, smiling and blushing, with eyes closed and hands clasped.

POWERFUL 💊

Doner kebab sandwich with meat, lettuce, tomatoes, onions, cabbage, and greens inside a bun.

YUMMY ðŸĪĪ

VROOM
VROOM! ðŸ’Ļ

Dog wearing sunglasses in toy car with "They see me rollin'" caption.

Hungry? Berlin VCs seem to love novel foodsâ€Ķ

ðŸ―ïļ

🍛

🍔

🍄

🧆

What’s on the Menu?

FðŸĪĐðŸĪĪD

🍗

Plant-Based Meat

12

🧊

Cell Cultivation

6

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Animal-Free Dairy

4

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Plant-Based Egg

2

Golden trophy with handles and a base, surrounded by a circle of green leaves on a white background.

Champions of Change
Berlin’s most active impact investorsâ€Ķ

ðŸĨ‡

Stylized text logo "AENU" with bold font and angular geometric design elements.

AENU led the pack with a portfolio of 29 startups. They are on a mission to create AENU era of impact venture capitalism.

💕

They love social impact startups, 20% of the portfolio supporting solutions that contribute to a more cohesive society.

🇚ðŸ‡ļ

They also have a soft spot for US-based startups, backing 7 startups from across the pond.

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Logo of Purple Orange Ventures with "POV" in orange and full name in purple text.
Logo with text "Blue Impact" and "Nucleus Capital," featuring abstract dot and geometric designs.

This is a tight race.
Nucleus Capital, Blue Impact, and Purple Orange Ventures are tied for 2nd place with 24 investments each.

😇

Both Blue Impact and POV are angel investors but we included them as they are very active players in Berlin’s impact VC scene.

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"planet A" stylized logo with colorful and geometric design.

Planet A took the third place spot with a portfolio of 18 startups.

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Planet A is the first European VC with an in-house science team that calculates life cycle assessments to quantify the impact of a startup

Honorable Mentions

⭐ïļ

⭐ïļ

🎖ïļ

⭐ïļ

⭐ïļ

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By portfolio size

The word 'REVENT' in stylized black letters with white outlines, slightly tilted.

15

Revent backs purpose-driven founders tackling the problems that truly matter.

Logo featuring a stylized green leaf above the text 'Green Generation Fund' in bold letters.

15

Green Generation Fund invests in disruptive technologies in food tech and green tech.

Logo featuring the word 'extantia' with a blue circular outline.

14

Extantia is a climate-first VC firm accelerating the path to a decarbonized world.

"WORLD FUND" logo with text in bold, dark font outlined in white.

12

World Fund backs founders who build climate tech for a regenerative world.

22x

☘ïļ

Number of occasions where multiple Berlin Impact VCs backed the same startup.

2 times they loved a startup so much that 3 of them invested.

Hand holding a sealed glass jar labeled "FARMLESS 230309."
Logo with text 'Farmless' and a stylized arrow symbol with TM mark.

Backed by
World Fund
Revent
Nucleus Capital

Black and white logo with the text 'one of five' in lowercase.
Four resealable stand-up pouches with colorful geometric designs in blue, green, and orange from oneâ€Ēfive brand.

Backed by
Planet A Ventures
Green Generation Fund
Revent

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âĪïļ

Which investors invested in the same startup most frequently?

  1. Planet A Ventures + Blue Impact - 3 startups

  2. Green Generation Fund + Purple Orange Ventures - 3 startups

  3. World Fund + Nucleus Capital - 3 startups

BERLIN’S VC PERSONALITY TYPE

The Mitigator

Emoji of a bear with various environmental symbols in thought bubbles, including a plane, globe with thermometer, factory, recycling symbol, and broccolli. Represents concerns about climate change, pollution, and environmental sustainability.

The Mitigator is driven by a deep commitment to environmental sustainability and combating climate change. They are passionate about finding solutions that have a positive impact on the planet and future generations. Mitigators prioritize investments in companies that prioritize sustainability, clean energy, and eco-friendly technologies.

86%

Of all investments by Berlin’s impact VCs were made in startups tackling climate change mitigation.

Mitigation startups backed by Berlin Impact VCs
Highlights

Dance logo with abstract geometric symbol

ðŸšē

Dance are on a mission to make people happier, the planet healthier and our cities more livable through their e-bike and e-moped subscription service.

The word 'traceless' in a stylized green font with leaf-like shapes incorporated into the letters.

â™ŧïļ

Traceless are tackling plastic pollution by creating fully biobased, plastic-free and home compostable materials out of plant residues from the agricultural industry.

🗓ïļ Published: March, 2024

Logo with geometric design and the numbers 44.01 in bold text, featuring black, gray, and green colors.

ðŸŠĻ

44.01 provide a safe, cost-effective way of eliminating CO2 from the atmosphere byturning it into rock using the natural power of mineralization.

Do you want the most exhaustive list of Berlin Impact VCs?

or here 🧀
Click here 🐭

ðŸĪŦ 🔑 🗄ïļ

But never here ðŸŠĪ
Maybe here? 😏