Adara Ventures Research
Investment Thesis
Adara Ventures is a Madrid-based early-stage deep-tech venture firm, founded in 2005. Its stated thesis is that as AI commoditises the surface layer of software, value sinks to proprietary data, trust, regulation, domain depth and physical systems. Moats built in software alone, such as workflow and distribution, are eroding, while those embedded in data, trust, regulation and physical systems are hardening. The firm backs founders who take difficult technical decisions to reach a position competitors cannot easily replicate.
Investment Verticals
Adara organises its work around four verticals, which it summarises as Capture, Secure, Compute and Connect:
- New Data Frontiers: companies that capture data that did not exist before. Space and Earth observation, sensing, telemetry, fibre-optic networks and web-scale extraction (SatVu, Wirescan, Seedtag, Zymvol, AdCities).
- Trusted AI Infrastructure: security and trust systems that let organisations deploy AI in sensitive settings. Cybersecurity, compliance, sovereignty, governance, model and data trust (Acoru, 42Crunch, CounterCraft, Constella, Wodan AI, Goodweek, Area2).
- Deep Domain Computation: platforms that fuse AI with deep domain knowledge and workflow (Articul8, Quibim, IOMED, BEONx, Kimera, indigitall).
- Real-World Systems: software and sensing that connect physical systems to intelligence. Industrial automation, energy grids, manufacturing, mobility, embedded hardware (Corinex, XYZ Reality, Prisma Photonics, Eluviant).
The firm says the verticals set where it looks, but the founder determines what it backs.
Stage Focus
Seed-stage specialist that stays through follow-on rounds, from first cheque to growth capital. Case studies show it leading seeds (Wirescan), following on through every round (XYZ Reality, Acoru from Seed to Series D) and joining later rounds (Articul8 Series A3). An Opportunity Fund launched in 2022 for follow-ons.
Check Size
Not published on the website. Check size fields are left empty rather than guessed.
Lead Tendency
The firm describes itself as a long-term lead investor in several companies (PlayGiga, Wirescan, XYZ Reality) and also participates in syndicates (Articul8 follow-on). Marked as both.
Recent Activity
- October 2026: published "Why we invested in Goodweek" (AI manager for businesses, founded by Nic Stehle of Scalefast).
- October 2026: published "Why we invested in Area2" (human presence layer for AI).
- September 2026: published "Why we invested in Prisma Photonics" (fibre-optic sensing for critical infrastructure).
- 2025: AV4 and AVE funds closed. Cyber Guru exited to Libraesva.
- 2023: Ross Strachan and Alberto Echeverri joined the Partnership.
- Fund history: AV1 (2006), AV2 (2013), AV3 (2019), Opportunity Fund (2022), AV4 and AVE (2025). The firm describes 2026 as the "fourth cycle", so it is actively deploying.
Portfolio Highlights
About 49 companies appear on the portfolio page, tagged Active, Exited or "We tried".
- Exits: AlienVault (AT&T, 2018), PlayGiga (Facebook, 2019), Hdiv Security (Datadog, 2022), Cyber Guru (Libraesva, 2025), plus Openbravo, Kompyte, Scalefast, Genasys, ADD Semiconductor, Elastix and EyeSquad.
- Active: Seedtag (raised EUR 250M in 2022), Articul8 (enterprise generative AI, spun out of Intel), Quibim, SatVu, XYZ Reality, Acoru, Corinex, CounterCraft, Eluviant, Constella Intelligence.
- Written off: Apres, Freeverse, Komon.
Team
- Alberto Gómez, Founding Partner
- Nico Goulet, Founding Partner
- Alberto Echeverri, Partner
- Rocío Pillado, Partner
- Ross Strachan, Partner
- Jorge Barón, Principal
- Jesús Sainz, Chairman Emeritus
- Krystal Somaza, Senior Associate
- Andrea Cabanillas, Associate
- Alexei Perley, Senior Analyst
- Operations and finance staff: Irene Alía (Head of Legal), María Alonso (Head of Finance), Mónica Navas (Head of Compliance and Investor Relations), and others.
Decision Process
Partnership model. The site does not describe a formal committee process or a timeline.
Founder Preferences
Four criteria: big vision, execution (rate of learning, what the founder has shipped across their career), technical conviction (deliberate, explainable technical choices, not a demo), and courage. Both first-time and repeat founders are backed, and several repeat founders return (Nic Stehle, Julio Casal).
Geographic Focus
Spain-headquartered with a European and US network built over twenty years. Portfolio companies are based in Spain, the UK, Israel, Europe and the US, and the firm has helped companies relocate to Silicon Valley (Acoru) and open US presence (CounterCraft).
Gaps
Check size, AUM, fund sizes and partner emails or LinkedIn profiles are not published on the site. Portfolio domains were left null because the page gives none. The about page credits Cyber Guru's exit to Meta in one card, while the milestone timeline says Libraesva; the timeline version is used.