Berlin Launches €10M Fund for DeepTech Startups
Berlin is strengthening its position as a hub for technology-driven innovation with the launch of B# – "be sharp" – a new pre-seed fund from IBB Ventures designed to support DeepTech founders in their earliest stages. According to the company's press release, the fund brings €10 million to the market, aiming to back around 50 startups over the next four years.
The initiative addresses a growing funding gap in Berlin's startup ecosystem. Pre-seed financing in the capital has dropped by nearly 50 percent since 2021, with DeepTech ventures facing particularly steep barriers to accessing early-stage capital. Currently, only about a quarter of these teams secure follow-on funding.
B# targets startups working on cutting-edge technologies including artificial intelligence, quantum computing, industrial software, robotics, sustainable tech solutions, and biotechnology applications in medicine, health, and sustainability. Investment tickets range from €100,000 to €400,000.
The fund's structure emphasizes speed and accessibility. Startups can submit their pitch decks at any time, with decisions made within weeks. Funded teams gain access to IBB Ventures' investment expertise and a network of over 750 co-investors and 490 business angels. The fund uses standardized convertible loans to ensure both speed and flexibility for future financing rounds.
"With B# we want to support founders who dare to do something genuinely new with their ideas – even if they don't come from the traditional startup environment," said Katrin Robeck, Managing Director of IBB Ventures, in the press release.
The ten-year fund will reinvest returns from portfolio exits, creating a sustainable model for long-term innovation support. B# is financed through the European Union's EFRE program STEP (Strategic Technologies for Europe) and the State of Berlin, and is now actively accepting applications at bsharp.vc.
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