Daphni secures $215M for its third fund
French VC agency Daphni is saying the primary closing of its new fund, Daphni Blue. The agency has raised €200 million (round $215 million at present alternate charges). It expects to boost as a lot as €250 million ($270 million) by the top of the yr.
A few of Daphni’s most outstanding previous investments embody Again Market, Swile, Hubcycle and Pasqal. General, the agency has invested in 70 European startups since 2015.
With its newest fund, Daphni plans to spend money on one other 40 startups. Restricted companions in Daphni Blue embody Crédit Mutuel Arkéa, Bpifrance, the European Funding Fund, PRO BTP and Swen Capital Companions.
“We have to ask ourselves how we are able to each differentiate ourselves, and help applied sciences or companies which are sustainable after we spend money on new tasks,” founding associate Pierre-Eric Leibovici advised me.
“As a result of on the finish of the day, there are cycles, and we are able to see that at a given second, both the market consolidates, or it’s dominated by American gamers, or in the long run, there wasn’t sufficient of a breakthrough to start with.”
Whereas most VC companies point out synthetic intelligence in each different sentence, Daphni desires to place an emphasis on science (at giant) as the principle issue for the subsequent wave of innovation: life sciences, biology, physics, chemistry and arithmetic.
“Once you speak about quantum computing, effectively, quantum computing is key physics mixed with {hardware} and software program,” Leibovici mentioned. He additionally mentioned that giant language fashions are arithmetic breakthroughs in the beginning.
Consequently, Daphni is recruiting totally different profiles to affix the staff. As an illustration, a PhD graduate and a PhD scholar are on the funding staff.
“There’s one other component that may be a new pattern. The brand new technology of researchers are far more open to commercializing their elementary and utilized analysis, as a result of they see all their buddies round them beginning corporations,” Leibovici mentioned.
Whereas French universities are setting apart a portion of their price range to draw American researchers, Daphni says that it didn’t select to refocus on elementary science due to that.
“It’s a coincidence. We launched this lengthy earlier than there was this pattern,” Leibovici mentioned. After all, Daphni is open to investing in American researchers who’re beginning a startup in Europe.
Up subsequent, Daphni must deploy this newly raised capital and show that it has discovered an environment friendly funding technique. “Elevating isn’t an finish in itself. What’s an finish in itself is distributing returns, and due to this fact exits,” Leibovici mentioned.
