Elaia Secures €134M for Third Deep-Tech Seed Fund
▼ Summary
– Elaia has closed its DTS3 deep-tech seed fund at €134 million, exceeding its target due to strong investor interest and its established position.
– The fund will make early-stage investments in B2B startups across computing, future of industry, and life sciences, starting with tickets as small as €300,000.
– A key feature is its deep integration with academic institutions like Université PSL, providing privileged early access to research-born startups and spinouts.
– The fund is part of Elaia’s full-stack strategy, complementing its larger Digital Venture Fund to support companies from inception through growth stages.
– This successful close, supported by initiatives like France’s Tibi 2, brings Elaia’s total assets under management to over €850 million, solidifying its top-tier status in Europe.
A Paris-based venture capital firm has successfully closed its third deep-tech seed fund, securing a final total of €134 million and surpassing its initial target. This substantial raise underscores a robust investor appetite for European deep-tech ventures and solidifies the firm’s established role as a key financier for startups emerging from scientific research. The fund, known as DTS3, is strategically designed to support B2B companies at their inception, with initial investments starting from €300,000.
The investment strategy is built around three core technological areas. These pillars include advanced computing, which encompasses generative AI, quantum technologies, and cybersecurity. Another focus is the future of industry, targeting innovations in energy, climate technology, and advanced materials. The third pillar is dedicated to life sciences. From this new fund, Elaia intends to make roughly 40 initial investments, planning to provide follow-on capital to between 25 and 30 of the most promising portfolio companies as they progress toward their seed rounds.
A defining characteristic of this fund is its deep integration with leading European academic institutions. Developed in partnership with Université PSL, a premier French research university, this model builds on Elaia’s longstanding approach. Similar collaborations, such as with the national computer science institute Inria for its second fund, grant the firm early and privileged access to spin-out companies and founding teams long before they consider open market fundraising.
This unique pipeline has already yielded significant successes. Notable portfolio companies sourced through these academic channels include Aqemia, an AI-powered drug discovery platform, and Alice & Bob, a quantum computing startup that has developed fault-tolerant qubits and attracted major international funding. Another success story is Mablink Bioscience, a biotechnology firm specializing in cancer treatments that was later acquired by pharmaceutical giant Eli Lilly.
The firm’s co-founder has often described Europe’s current deep-tech surge as a fundamental, structural shift. This momentum is fueled by world-class academic research, increasingly patient capital, and growing institutional support. Key public entities, such as France’s public investment bank Bpifrance, a major participant in the DTS3 fund, exemplify this supportive ecosystem. The successful final close of DTS3 contributes to an active fundraising period for Elaia, following the first close of its fifth generalist Digital Venture Fund earlier in the year.
That separate fund aims to support European B2B tech startups from pre-seed through to Series B stages with larger investment tickets. Together, these two funds demonstrate Elaia’s ambition to operate as a full-stack investor, guiding companies from the earliest research-driven phase with DTS3 and continuing to support top performers through their growth journeys with its digital venture series.
Initiatives like France’s Tibi 2 program, which directs institutional capital into venture and deep-tech funds, have been instrumental. This program has enabled Elaia to engage with institutional investors as long-term partners at a significantly greater scale than previously possible. With the closure of DTS3, Elaia’s total assets under management now surpass €850 million, firmly positioning the firm among Europe’s most prominent early-stage investors in technology and deep science.
(Source: The Next Web)
