#StartupTicker
+++ #StartupTicker +++ Live in STARTUPLAND: Michael Cassau (NexDash, Grover) +++ Startup of the week: Mochi +++ Pitch grows to 10 million ARR +++ Lakestar and the fund performance +++ AENU: Robert Stoecker becomes partner +++ This is how Neura Robotics became a million-dollar hit +++
What’s up New? In ours #StartupTicker we provide a compact overview of the most important startup news of the day (Monday, January 26th).
#STARTUPLAND
STARTUPLAND: Founders. VCs. Visionaries
+++ Our third STARTUPLAND Conference will take place on March 18th at the RheinEnergieStadion in Cologne. A fascinating journey into the startup scene awaits you again – with lectures from successful founders, educational interviews and pitches that inspire. More about STARTUPLAND
Live at STARTUPLAND: Michael Cassau (NexDash, Grover)
+++ The Berlin startup NexDash positions itself as a neo-carrier. Before NexDash, Michael Cassau founded the company and later Unicorn Grover, which primarily rents out consumer electronics. His topic in STARTUPLAND: Starting a series means relearning – not repeating.
#STARTUPTICKER
Mochi
+++ The young company Mochi is our startup of the week! The Berlin-based company takes care of the analysis and evaluation of food and cosmetic products. “Scan products and find out immediately how healthy they are and how good they taste to others. Mochi is the smart, social food app for everyone who wants to enjoy food consciously,” says the company. The founders of the startup are KoRo maker Piran Asci, who left the food shop in summer 2024, and Fabian Lucas (most recently 7Mind, Kitchen Stories). There are more new startups in our startup radar
Pitch
+++ Number check! Things have been extremely quiet around the Berlin startup Pitch, a million-dollar Powerpoint challenger, since the departure of founder Christian Reber at the beginning of 2024. At that time, the young company, founded in 2018, put the brakes on completely (departure from growth path, layoffs). Most recently, the small team around company boss Adam Renklint worked hard on the product. “In 2025, Pitch continued to evolve into a complete, fully connected platform for creating, personalizing, and sharing presentations,” says the startup. What’s really exciting are the company’s figures, which have raised more than $135 million since its launch. According to series founder Reber, Pitch now has 10 million annual recurring revenue (ARR). In addition, the company is now profitable. The hard change of course was the right thing to do. So far, only the annual financial statements for 2023 can be accessed in the commercial register – at that time, Pitch generated sales of around 3.7 million euros (previous year: 2.2 million). It seems as if Pitch could still be a success story. Even though expectations were certainly much higher when it started eight years ago. (Linkedin) More about Pitch
Lakestar
+++ Worth reading! The busy Swiss venture capitalist Lakestar, which is primarily backed by the well-known investor Klaus Hommels, is – as reported last year – no longer launching any more generalist venture capital funds. Manager Magazin writes: “Officially to focus on bets like Helsing or Revolut. But the fund performance is mediocre at best.” (Manager Magazine) More about Lakestar
AENU
+++ Rise! Robert Stoecker becomes a partner at the Berlin ClimateTech investor AENU, behind which the scene heads Fabian and Ferry Heilemann are. “Rob joined as our first full-time hire and has been central to shaping AENU’s early investment strategy, portfolio and reputation,” says the lender. AENU launched its first fund in 2024 (Linkedin) More about AENU
Neura Robotics
+++ Worth a listen! In the OMR podcast, Neura Robotics founder David Reger talks about his life and how he “scaled from zero to more than 1,200 employees and millions in sales within just a few years.” Neura Robotics recently raised an impressive 120 million – including from Lingotto Investment Management, BlueCrest Capital Management and Volvo Cars Tech Fund. Around 65 million had previously flowed into the young company, in particular from the American private equity company InterAlpen Partners, which got involved with Tesla early on, as well as Vsquared Ventures, Primepulse and HV Capital. (OMR) More about Neura Robotics
guide gap
+++ The young Aachen startup leitspalt is developing “next generation battery systems”. “We are planning to possibly double the team in the next twelve months,” says founder Jana Maria Weinand. More about guide gap
What else happened recently? That’s always in the #StartupTicker
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