Tom Desmond

🇳🇱 Amsterdam-based fintech Duna has raised €30m to expand its AI-native business identity platform. The Series A funding round was led by CapitalG, the independent growth fund of Alphabet. Former Stripe executives Duco van Lanschot and David Schreiber founded the company to tackle the rising costs of manual compliance. The platform provides a digital passport for companies to automate verification and onboarding processes. Duna helps regulated financial institutions manage complex identity requirements through auditable technology. ▪ Total funding for the company now exceeds €40m following this latest investment round. ▪ The platform reported productivity gains of c. 4.8x for existing enterprise customers. ▪ Compliance and identity verification currently account for 10% to 20% of total costs for major banks. ▪ Key clients using the technology include Plaid, Moss, and SVEA Bank. ▪ Investors Index Ventures and Snowflake Chairman Frank Slootman also participated in the round. It is brilliant to see the team streamlining global trust infrastructure for the financial sector. -- ‼️ Do not follow aulium if you do not want more news and insights about Innovation and Investment #fintech #ai #identity #compliance #investment #netherlands #venturecapital #innovation 🔥 aulium is made possible thanks to LoanTube, Influences

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This is a useful website for teams thinking about technology in private markets. It maps out a wide range of tech tools used by investors and managers, and lets you slice the ecosystem in a few helpful ways: 1️⃣ By function / sub-sector Accounting, CRM, portfolio management, data, reporting, and more. 2️⃣ By client usage You can see which tools different firms are using. (Heavily U.S. and U.K. focused, but still indicative.) 3️⃣ Latest product updates A simple way to stay on top of new releases and feature updates from vendors. For anyone trying to understand the private markets tech landscape, it’s a great reference point. 🔗 https://lnkd.in/eiRrJ2Vb

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Deep tech is no longer a niche corner of the market; it now accounts for 28% of all VC funding in Europe, more than any other sector (Dealroom 2025). This includes areas like AI, clean energy, semiconductors, and quantum — but the bigger lesson is how investor appetite has shifted towards technologies and business models that can fundamentally transform industries. At Rex Capital, this resonates strongly. We back companies working in advanced areas like AI and biotech, but also those developing innovations that might seem simple yet have the power to disrupt entire industries. For us, it’s not about complexity for its own sake — it’s about the ability to change markets and scale impact. https://lnkd.in/eFfjFukF

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As Sifted’s editorial director John Thornhill points out, Big US Tech is increasingly raiding Europe’s AI talent. We experienced this firsthand just last month. A startup we invested in—with both a European and an American founder—received an acquisition offer from a major tech company only three weeks after launching. Fortunately, the founders turned it down because they truly believe in what they’re building, but the whole process brought up a lot of questions and created plenty of stress. My takeaway: having a strong sense of purpose as a founder really helps you stay focused when tough decisions come your way. This is why at Decelera we only work with #purposedriven founders. Curious to hear how others are navigating this dynamic.

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Great conversation with Zoe van den Bol at Alpha Partners about why we started Renegade and what we're seeing in the market right now. One thing that came up: founders don't always have the clearest view of their own pricing or value delivery. We've started spending way more time talking directly to customers during diligence to understand real usage patterns and budget allocation. The best companies we see have customers who can articulate exactly why the product matters to their business. That clarity usually translates to stronger retention and expansion over time. Always energizing to talk with other investors about what actually moves the needle for startups trying to scale.

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For this week's rising women in VC feature, I'm excited to spotlight Zoe van den Bol! 📌Title: Investor 📌Fund: Alpha Partners 📌Stage & Sector: Series B to Pre-IPO, Generalist 📌What about AI most excites you? At Alpha Partners, I am a generalist investor. What excites me most about AI is not just the technology itself, but the speed at which new categories are emerging around it. Recently, it has been fascinating to watch the next wave of startups supporting the AI ecosystem. This includes areas such as quality control for AI-generated code, workforce training for AI-powered cybersecurity threats, deepfake detection, AI governance, and SEO for LLMs, to name a few. It has been incredible to witness, and personally experience, the productivity gains from generative AI. More broadly, it is remarkable how quickly AI is creating new constraints, opportunities, and business models. The adoption of entirely new categories and approaches signals how deeply AI is beginning to integrate into real-world systems. 📌 What about AI (investing) gives you pause? When evaluating companies, I have had to become more critical around revenue quality, customer ROI, and signals of category leadership. As a growth investor, I am comfortable paying higher valuations, but only when supported by stronger business fundamentals. It can be difficult to assess the true health of a company that has grown rapidly in a nascent market, particularly when many contracts have not yet faced renewal cycles or meaningful upsells. Lower barriers to entry also make it harder to distinguish durable leaders. Moats are increasingly less about technical differentiation and more about distribution, speed of proving ROI, and high switching costs. Tech debt is another growing concern.

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Despite the intelligence we're building using the compute inside of data centers, the operations of data centers outside the computers is surprisingly manual (think big chillers, fans, water systems, etc.). There is an enormous opportunity to drive more efficiency and compute out of the thousands of data centers operating today. After doing our research in the space, Anay Shah and I have been hunting for companies that are solving this challenge. We were fortunate enough to meet Jasper de Vries and René Gompel that had solved this in global markets and worked with Digital Realty, Global Switch and T5 to validate their data models and product. Lucend turns data center operational data into trusted, human-in-control insights that help teams improve uptime and reduce waste (including lowering PUE). They have built 'transparent AI' to share an audit trail of the why behind their recommendations, and seek to never surprise a data center operator. We're excited to share this as the newest company to join the Stepchange Ventures portfolio and to collaborate with our friends at Remarkable Ventures, Mitsubishi Electric, New Climate Ventures, Avesta Fund, and 4impact capital. Big congrats to Lucend on a $3.3M seed to help fuel US expansion!

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Tech News of the Week: (This is for informational purposes only, and in no particular order) 1)RIFT: Backed by €113.8 million, Dutch startup RIFT to deliver 340 GWh of industrial heat annually and avoid over 1 million tonnes of CO₂. Source: https://lnkd.in/g7drDxCE 2) Mutable Tactics: Mutable Tactics Raises $2.1 Million for AI Drone Coordination in Satellite-Denied Environments. Source: https://lnkd.in/ggbZHNmR 3) Oxa: Oxa Secures $103 Million Series D First Close to Scale Autonomous Vehicles for Industrial Logistics. Source: https://lnkd.in/gxq7QXGf 4) Shellworks: Plastic Without Plastic: Shellworks’ $15 Million Bet on Microbe-Made Packaging. Source: https://lnkd.in/g-U3-HDZ 5) Alithea Genomics: Alithea Genomics Lands $8.9 Million to Cut Cost and Time of RNA Sequencing. Source: https://lnkd.in/gPTUSRRm 6) ROXFIT: ROXFIT Lands £1.9 Million to Build AI Training Platform for HYROX Athletes. Source: https://lnkd.in/gBdgMYse 7) Diligent AI: Can AI Save Compliance Teams? Diligent AI Raises $2.5 Million to Find Out. Source: https://lnkd.in/gfZsMK8t 8) Eight Sleep: Eight Sleep Reaches a $1.5 Billion Valuation, with Tether Backing Their Bet on Predictive Sleep AI. Source: https://lnkd.in/gTAwJ9eu 9) PLD Space: PLD Space Raises €180 Million Series C to Scale Europe’s Commercial Launch Capabilities. Source: https://lnkd.in/gezpQ2y4 10) GHARAGE: GHARAGE Spins Out €40 Million Fund for Travel Tech Across Europe and Asia. Source: https://lnkd.in/g5v5P8vZ X: https://lnkd.in/gg7x5hxu

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Last week in Amsterdam, I joined the Investors' panel at Deeptech AI Matching event (Amsterdam AI House)—a session where we’ve discussed VC investment from abroad and inside the Dutch region. One theme kept coming up: as we at Constructor Capital work a lot at the intersection of universities, research labs, and startups across Europe and US, what does a “good” academic spinout look like from an early stage perspective? When we look at academic spinouts, we try to reduce it to a few drivers: what is the core technical advantage, what has to be proven next, and what can break on the path from lab to product. The strong spinouts are disciplined about that chain. They have founders with real scientific authority and an internal technical leader who can turn research into engineering. They also have a clean, defensible IP position—ideally exclusive rights—and a roadmap that explicitly addresses translation bottlenecks like yield, integration, reliability, and cost. Red flags are usually a mismatch between ambition and evidence. Big claims without hard data, timelines that ignore the slowest constraints, or a team that stays “academic-only” with no product ownership. Weak or non-exclusive IP, no credible plan to secure non-dilutive funding, and milestones that aren’t tied to customer pull are also warning signs. The best spinouts use the university network as leverage—but they’re clearly building an independent company from day one. Big thanks to my fellow panelists for the insightful conversation  Sebastiaan Vaessen, Chantal Schrijver, Johan Stins, Sohrab Hosseini and Willem-Jeroen Stevens. And thanks to Jorn Eiting van Liempt and Peter Westerhuijs for the invitation to join the event! ROM InWest, TTT-AI | Thematic Technology Transfer Artificial Intelligence, AI House Amsterdam

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Most cleantech startups die in the "demo plant" phase. Caelux just decided to skip it. As start-ups lurch towards scale, patterns emerge. At first glance, the 3GW partnership between Caelux and SolX may seem to be a simple supply deal. But it is much more. It is a masterclass in side-stepping the Valley of Death. Many hardtech founders fall into the "Death by Pilot" loop: building one plant to prove buildability, then another to prove manufacturability. They chase commercial validation from brand names to pull funding forward. But, without firm contracts, the result is a stack of LOIs with little teeth for project lenders. Because buildable is not yet bankable. Searching for a path across Death Valley, even savvy teams must cobble together uncomfortable coalitions. They stack pancake-layered cap tables of VCs, private credit, and family offices to reach a scale that might satisfy a lender, a customer, or a strategic partner, rarely all involved. It is an exhausting effort that often fails slowly, because it attempts to build a bridge with divergent components rather than a sound structure. Caelux flipped the script. Instead of sinking millions into capex before firm orders arrived, they will utilize SolX’s existing production lines and balance sheet in Puerto Rico. They structured a bespoke deal mirroring the due diligence checklists of project lenders and utility customers alike. They secured domestic content, durability, and immediate volume without ever breaking ground on a demo facility. This is the leadership DNA shift hardtech needs. Those with sufficient experience to look beyond the limited options available and create solutions that meet the requisite conditions, elegantly and effectively. Leaders at Fervo and Caelux have demonstrated they can create business cases that map to a credit committee’s readout. They understand that at scale, the move-fast mindset yields to the debt-driven rigor of infrastructure. The chasm between Series B and a successful OEM is littered with casualties. Crossing it isn't about building for future demand. It is about executing a well-structured bridge that paves the road to bankability today. #HardTech #ProjectFinance #CleanEnergyInfrastructure Fervo EnergyCaelux®

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Infrastructure startups don’t get built in slide decks. They get built in supply chains, systems, factories, firmware, materials, and distribution. Great catching up with Joeri Tuijn at EMERGENCE 2026 — two founders building very different things, but with a similar thesis: Real change happens when you integrate the stack. Joeri is building vertically integrated, carbon-negative housing at scale. I am building scent intelligence as infrastructure for emotional wellbeing. Different domains. Same principle. Design the system. Control the inputs. Execute relentlessly. Good founders know: ideas are cheap. Infrastructure isn’t. Auric Wholesale Investor CAPITALHQ #CapitalRaising #VCFunding #FounderStrategy #InvestorRelations #StartupMetrics

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Every founder we invest in signs an Impact Pact. Written into our investment documents. Legally binding. Not as marketing. As requirement. Most impact funds talk about doing good. We structure it into every deal. The concept is simple: paying it forward. We share access to capital with founders the traditional VC ecosystem overlooks. In return, we expect our founders to pay it forward in three areas: Wealth sharing: How are you distributing ownership beyond the executive team? In 2024, our portfolio generated over $400 million in wealth creation—$342 million for BIPOC and women founders, plus $65 million in employee equity. Supplier diversity: How much spending goes to companies founded by people of color or women? Our portfolio directed $9 million to diverse suppliers last year—30% BIPOC-owned, 35% women-owned. Diversity goals: Not quotas. Intentionality. 92% of our founders are BIPOC. 81% of their employees are BIPOC. 77% of the $39.7 million in compensation went to BIPOC team members. Here's what makes this different: It's legally binding. Not in a deck. In the documents we both sign. It's specific. No vague language. Measurable commitments. It compounds. Year over year, these numbers grow because the structure demands it. The question I always get: "Does this work? Or is it virtue signaling?" Fair question. Here's the data: Our portfolio created 436 jobs in 2024 — a 48% compound annual growth rate since 2021. These aren't just any jobs. They're pathways to wealth in communities excluded from venture-backed opportunity. The paying-it-forward model creates a multiplier effect. When our founders prioritize diverse suppliers, those suppliers gain revenue and credibility that help them win more business. When our founders build inclusive teams, they tap talent pools competitors ignore. When our founders share equity broadly, retention improves and alignment deepens. Each company becomes a node in a network of shared access—not just a single investment, but a catalyst for ecosystem-wide change. Why structure impact this way? Because impact that isn't measured doesn't compound. When you invest in a founder, you're not just buying equity in one company. You're investing in their commitment to pay it forward — through the vendors they choose, the teams they build, the wealth they share. The Impact Pact ensures impact is intentional, measurable, and compounding. Returns are not concessionary. Our current Fund I: 34.8% gross IRR. 1.75x return multiple. More than two times above the median for comparable VC funds. The Impact Pact isn't altruism. It's a structured method for paying forward the access we provide and capturing the returns that come when overlooked founders get their shot. Fund II is open with the Impact Pact built into every deal. Same structure. Same accountability. Same thesis: that paying it forward isn't charity. It's alpha. If you're an LP who believes in compounding returns and compounding impact, let's talk.

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Portfolio reporting is still way too manual in venture. Even in 2026 😵‍💫   We’ve tested a bunch of setups: Affinity (pipeline) Fundrbird (fund reporting) Evertrace (sourcing)   And while they solve parts of the workflow… portfolio reporting is still messy.   The core problem:   Most tools rely on founders to: → manually input data → upload reports → understand accounting practices   Which means: → inconsistent data → manual checks → constant follow-ups   Not exactly scalable.   Feels like we’re still half in spreadsheets half in systems   There has to be a better way.   Curious to hear from other VCs / operators:   How are you solving portfolio reporting without creating more work for founders? And keeping data quality intact?

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We at Nauta follow a resilient, non-fragile investment thesis. How? We aim at maximising the Expected Enterprise Value at Exit of our portfolio companies. For that, we invest in great potential, capital-efficient companies that always strive for the Maximum Sustainable Growth (MSG). We analyse sectors, companies, and business models in detail and with patience to understand the probability of outsized success and the probability of survival. Afterwards, we work tirelessly to improve both probabilities in our portfolio companies.   Why do we follow this strategy? In venture capital, surviving is winning. To survive the inescapable Power Law in the long term, VC investors must focus on both the probability of outsized success and the probability of survival of their portfolio companies. This strategy better aligns all the main stakeholders in VC: fund managers, LPs, founders, and employees. We encourage our team and portfolio to adhere to the more economically sustainable model we believe Venture Capital should be.   I expand on the above and suggest how to maximise your company's growth sustainably in a blog post on Nauta's website (find the link in the comments). Any feedback is welcome.   #Nautawisdom #weareNauta #innovationbringsprogress

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Quality > Speed. 🇨🇼 ☀️⚡🔋🏡 We took a strategic pause on our Week 1 video for the #ReplitBuildathon. Why? Because in Curaçao, building the future of energy means building with the Regulatory Authority of Curaçao, not around them. They’re working on a broader framework for the end of the year, and we’ve decided to align our full integration with their vision. But the building never stopped. While the paperwork moves at its own pace, the community is moving faster. I’m thrilled to share that a local community association has signed on to deploy 2,000 Solar DERs/BESSaaS for residents and small businesses. The Pivot: We are now onboarding a dedicated UI/UX team to transform our MVP into a full-scale institutional portal. The Roadmap: Next Weeks: Pitching our "Virtual Private Networked" energy architecture to key investors. Q4 2026: Target launch for Version 1.0. A huge shoutout to the Replit community. This Buildathon has been the ultimate catalyst—not just for the "Vibe Coding," but for seeing how other builders are solving complex UI/UX problems. Learning from your designs has refined our "End Game." The mission remains: One solar panel, one token, one rooftop, one prosumer, one community at a time. #EnergyTransition #Curaçao #DePIN #FinTech #Replit #Buildathon #SustainableInvestment

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The first class of the Beyond Venture VC Training Program is today at 6PM WAT live on Zoom. (Recording will be made available right after class). Today’s class is focused on one of the most misunderstood parts of venture capital: VC Fund Economics. We’ll be breaking down: • How VC funds are actually structured • What “2 and 20” really means • Management fees vs deployed capital • Carried interest (carry) and GP economics • LPs, GPs, fund lifespan, and capital flows • How returns are distributed in real VC funds • Why a $100M fund doesn’t actually invest $100M into startups • Gross vs Net Returns, MOIC, and IRR explained simply We’ll simplify how institutional venture capital actually works in practice and how funds really make money. If you want to understand venture capital properly, whether as a founder, aspiring VC, operator, angel investor, lawyer, finance professional, or simply someone curious about the industry, this will be valuable. It’s not too late to register. Use the form below. See you at 6PM WAT. https://lnkd.in/d5mStkJ6

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