Keen Venture Partners Research
Investment Thesis
Keen Venture Partners is a European early-stage venture firm based in Amsterdam and London that describes itself as "radically human" — it invests time and network before capital, running founder relationships well before any term sheet exists. Keen operates two parallel, thesis-driven investment programs run out of the same partnership: Technology for SMEs and Defence. Both are grounded in "thesis sprints," a research process borrowed from the developer playbook that combines desk research, operator conversations and expert input into living investment theses that are revisited as the team learns.
In SME Tech, Keen backs founders building AI software that makes Europe's small and mid-sized businesses "absurdly more productive." The team is explicit that SMEs feel AI-driven productivity gains immediately (no procurement department, fast P&L impact), which it sees as a structural edge for Europe's SME-dense economy. In Defence, Keen backs founders building the future of European defence and security, on the thesis that commercial, software-enabled, dual-use technology (not bespoke, siloed systems) will define the next generation of defence capability, and that Europe must build sovereign, interoperable, multi-country defence tech rather than single-flag point solutions.
Sector Focus
SME Tech sub-theses: AI for the Physical Economy (job/crew/asset orchestration for construction, logistics and manufacturing SMEs); Embedded finance and autonomous back-office (bookkeeping, payroll AI, embedded compliance, SMB ERPs); and the SME-Native Builder Stack (composable agents and no-code tools letting SME teams build their own workflows without an IT department).
Defence sub-theses: Swarming software and communications for unmanned systems (UAVs, UGVs, UUVs); Ultra Rapid Deployment Capacity software and comms; and AI-enhanced command-and-control systems for warfare. The defence fund's stated focus areas are cybersecurity, autonomous systems, deterrence technologies and space applications.
Stage Focus
SME Tech invests from seed through Series B. Defence invests from pre-seed through Series B, with the defence fund's own materials stating an emphasis on Series A within a broader seed-to-Series-B mandate.
Check Size
The defence fund discloses investment sizes of €1 million to €10 million per company, targeting more than 25 companies. SME Tech check sizes were not separately disclosed on the site but span the same seed-to-Series-B range.
Lead Tendency
Keen both leads and follows. It led Cato's €6M seed, Azumuta's €8M Series A, and AirHub's €4.4M Series A; it co-led/strategically invested alongside Parcom in DeltaQuad and Tulip Tech; and it participated as a returning, non-lead investor in larger rounds such as allO's $14M Series A (led by Zigg Capital) and Kelluu's €15M Series A (led by the NATO Innovation Fund).
Recent Activity
Fund status is actively deploying. Most recent disclosed investment: led Cato's €6M seed (announced September 7, 2026) to bring AI to Italy's public-sector sales market — Keen's third bet on Italian SMB software after Sibill and Fiscozen. In May 2026, existing investor Keen (in since pre-seed) participated again in allO's $14M Series A. In November 2025, Keen led Azumuta's €8M Series A. Keen also completed the first close of its European Defence and Security Fund at more than €150M, backed by the EIF, pension fund PME (€40M each), TNO and ABN AMRO (€10M) — the largest defence-tech VC fund in Europe at the time, with EIF's first-ever commitment to a European VC fund under its Defence Investment Programme.
Portfolio Highlights
The portfolio spans 39+ active and exited companies across both theses, with close to €1B raised collectively. Defence/dual-use: ATMOS (orbital return infrastructure), Kelluu (autonomous ISR airships, NATO DIANA alumnus), AirHub (drone operations software), DeltaQuad (VTOL defence drones, with Parcom), Tulip Tech (UAV battery systems, with Parcom), Intelic (command-and-control software; signed a >€30M, three-year strategic partnership with the Dutch Ministry of Defence), EclecticIQ (threat intelligence). SME Tech: Cato, allO, Azumuta, Sibill, Fiscozen (Italian SMB software), Feather (insurance), Lucinity (financial-crime AI), mika (SME accounting automation), Bodyguard, Crisp, Nextail, Teamleader, Lendis, Beekeeper. Notable exits: Plan A (acquired by Diginex), Impraise (acquired by BetterUp, combined with Motive), Beekeeper (merged with LumApps in a Bridgepoint-backed deal valuing the combined company above $1B), plus Teamleader, Dreamquark, Fiscozen, VonWood and Farewill.
Team
- Briehan Burke — General Partner, SME Tech
- Alexander Kremer — Partner, SME Tech
- Giuseppe Lacerenza — Partner, Defence
- Alexander Ribbink — General Partner, Defence & SME Tech
- Ben Verwaayen — General Partner, Defence & SME Tech
- Robert Verwaayen — General Partner, SME Tech
- Joost Doense — Adoption Partner, Defence
- Nesbit West — Advisor, Fund Compliance
- Sara McMunn — Operating Partner, SME Tech
- Gonçalo Lopes — Finance Manager
- Juliette Petit — Chief of Staff
- Djoni de Vos — Principal, SME Tech
- Tomek Lepka — Investment Manager, Defence
- Stephanie Davis — Associate, SME Tech
- Ties Klinkhamer — Junior Associate, Defence
- Angad Singh — Junior Associate, Defence
Defence is additionally supported by a Strategic Advisory Board of 15+ retired military leaders (including former NATO Secretary-General-adjacent officials), industry veterans (e.g. Thales, KNDS) and policymakers (e.g. former UK Minister for the Cabinet Office David Lidington, former Dutch Minister of Defence Kajsa Ollongren).
Decision Process
Multiple General Partners across both strategies (Burke, Kremer, Lacerenza, Ribbink, Ben Verwaayen, Robert Verwaayen) indicate a partnership-style decision process rather than a solo GP model.
Founder Preferences
SME Tech: founders with lived experience of SME/logistics/manufacturing/services pain points, building AI-enriched (not just AI-demo) software with clear defensibility and a feel for Europe's fragmented markets. Defence: mission-driven founders with defence, security or intelligence backgrounds, software-first even in hardware-heavy domains, with clear commercial (not bespoke R&D) paths to product and multi-country scalability from day one.
Geographic Focus
Pan-European, headquartered in Amsterdam and London. SME Tech references backing founders "from Spain to Iceland." The Defence fund explicitly notes exposure to the UK, Turkey and Norway alongside EU NATO members.