🔥Second day in Berlin and it’s been an inspiring mix of inspiring chats, best practices, and a few unforgettable locations!
We kicked off with HEARTFELT_, where Joerg Rheinboldt (early N26 and DeepL investor!) and the team gave us a peek into their no-nonsense approach to venture investing: kill ideas early and stay laser-focused on the go-to-market. Their “no data” approach to very early-stage investing is bold and refreshing, and it’s clear their process has been streamlined for a reason. Next up was Antler, the Global Operating VC which does not scout for startups, but rather looks for resilient founders, giving them an intensive 11-week program to overcome common hurdles in a people-first approach that builds strong foundations from the start.
EWOR rounded out the day, showing us how they tap into talent early and support founders with an impressive community of 1,000+ mentors. They’re building a uniquely scalable program in Europe, aiming for the impact of YC.
Day Two gave us some real food for thoughts too:
1️⃣ Germany’s ecosystem feels like a cross-European accelerator on its own, with talent flowing out from the local scale-up success stories (like the Rocket Internet experience, that gave birth to Zalando, Hellofresh, Foodpanda..)
2️⃣ Angel groups are rare here, with successful former founders acting as super angels - a different model from ours but a promising perspective for growing international ties.
3️⃣ Simplifying processes and building quality relationships could be crucial to attracting top-tier international funds into Italy.
Berlin keeps raising the bar!
Elisa Biava, Frederik Brandis, Felix W. Schmitt
Carlo Tassi, Riccardo Vanelli, Giorgia Spagnuolo, Anna De Stefano, Valentina Ferretti, Massimiliano Perletti, Giorgio Gulienetti, Giulio Ambrosi, Paolo Marzetti, Silvia Pugi, Renato Cifarelli, Piergiorgio Segre, Cosimo F. Biliotti, Giacomo Bider, Growth Capital
