#StartupTicker
+++ #StartupTicker +++ Startup of the week: monco.ai +++ Ex-Cherry partner Thomas Lueke starts AI investor futurepresent +++ FORWARD.one: Millions for German hardware ideas +++ A look at the startup scene in Hamburg +++ Event tip: Hinterland of Things +++
What’s up New? In ours #StartupTicker we provide a compact overview of the most important startup news of the day (Monday March 30th).
#STARTUPLAND
STARTUPLAND: Founders. VCs. Visionaries
+++ Our fourth STARTUPLAND Conference will take place on March 10, 2027 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
#STARTUPTICKER
monco.ai
+++ The young company monco.ai is our startup of the week! Behind the startup from Munich, which was founded by Victor Dzhagatspanyan, Ashot Martirosyan and Tigran Hovhannisyan, there is an AI co-pilot for construction companies. “Construction teams use Monco.ai to compare planned installations against actual executed work, detect issues instantly, and generate proof for faster, more accurate billing,” it says about the concept. There are more new startups in our startup radar
futurepresent
+++ A strong team is now investing millions! Former Cherry Ventures partner Thomas Lueke starts investor futurepresent. The partner team also includes David Meiborg (most recently First Momentum Ventures), Johnson Yang (General Catalyst) and Locarta founder Jan Rettel. “futurepresent is a venture capital firm investing in AI platforms and infrastructure across the United States and Europe,” says the investor about the orientation. The team has been investing in up-and-coming startups for around a year and is now officially out of cover. futurepresent’s first fund is worth 300 million US dollars. The young investor’s investments include: “We partner with founders as early as possible, at pre-seed and seed, supporting from day 0, while developing the relationships to back a very concentrated number of transformative companies at later stages,” writes founder Lueke on Linkedin at the beginning of 2023, where he had been active since 2016.
FORWARD.one
+++ Millions for German hardware ideas! The Dutch IndustrialTech investor FORWARD.one is increasingly discovering his preference for German startups. The backer from Amstelveen currently has a stake in driveblocks (8%), Voltfang (17%) and Nuventura (10%). Regarding the direction, the venture capitalist says: “We invest in European hardware innovations in the fields of Semiconductors, Climate Tech and High Tech. We are looking for entrepreneurs who are passionate about solving complex problems with innovative technologies.” driveblocks from Garching near Munich, founded in 2021, focuses on “autonomous driving in the off-road sector” (agricultural machinery, construction machinery but also defense). Voltfang from Aachen, founded in 2021, develops battery storage for industry, commerce and grid applications. The Berlin startup Nuventura, founded in 2017, positions itself as a provider of sustainable power grid technology. More about FORWARD.one
Hamburg Startup Monitor
+++ Worth reading! The Hamburg Startup Monitor 2026, which was published jointly by the Hamburg Chamber of Commerce and the Startup Association, takes an intensive look at the startup scene in the Hanseatic city. Hamburg is and remains the third largest startup ecosystem in Germany after Berlin and Munich. At the same time, access to growth capital remains a key challenge. This looks similar in other metropolises. (Startup Association)
Hinterland of Things
+++ Event tip: The fantastic Hinterland of Things Conference will take place again in Bielefeld on June 18th. The conference is aimed at founders, decision-makers and investors who do not want to discuss innovation, but rather implement it. In addition to content-related impulses and networking, the focus is on partnerships and deals. This year’s speakers include investor Carsten Maschmeyer, Empion founder Annika von Mutius and JobRad founder Ulrich Prediger. The leitmotif of Hinterland this year is ACTION. So: off to Bielefeld!
Hormonella
+++ Everyday life for a founder – does that even exist?” “Before my working day starts, I try to prepare my body for the usually full and intense day,” says Felicitas Dammertz, founder of the Berlin startup Hormonella. More about Hormonella
#DEALMONITOR
Investments & Exits
+++ Eversports and MATCHi merge +++ Minimist receives 1 million +++ Financial injection for Zerothird +++ Julian Teicke invests in Agent F +++ Michelle Calios invests in NALU +++ Diana zur Löwen invests in AV8. More in the deal monitor
What else happened recently? That’s always in the #StartupTicker
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