UVC Partners

UVC Partners Research

Investment Thesis

UVC Partners is a Munich- and Berlin-based venture capital firm investing in European B2B tech startups, with roughly €800 million in assets under management. The firm typically invests in DeepTech, ClimateTech, Mobility, and Software/AI, and describes itself as "the VC behind Europe's leading startup ecosystem" thanks to its deep ties to UnternehmerTUM, Europe's largest startup and innovation ecosystem (based at the Technical University of Munich). All portfolio companies get access to the team's investment and exit experience plus the UnternehmerTUM network to accelerate market entry. UVC has made over 100 B2B investments and seen more than 30 exits since its founding in 2011, including several of its own portfolio companies.

Sector Focus

UVC's four core verticals are:

• DeepTech: quantum computing (planqc, HQS Quantum Simulations), photonics/computing (Q.ANT), fusion energy (Proxima Fusion), aerospace/defense (Isar Aerospace, INLEAP Photonics), materials science (alqem, Biomatter)
• ClimateTech: renewable energy and decarbonization (Reverion, Reel, Molten Industries, Cyclize, Radical Dot, Tanso, Metafuels)
• Mobility: electric vehicles and fleet/transport tech (FINN, DeepDrive, ChargeX, TWAICE, VEACT, historically FAZUA, Blickfeld, Vimcar)
• Software/AI: enterprise software, AI agents, and vertical SaaS (Aleph Alpha, Tacto, Synera, Atira, Cirql One, kausable, Certivity, Rencore, paretos, Sonia)

Stage Focus

UVC partners with B2B startups across Europe from their earliest stages (pre-seed) up to Series A, and continues supporting them with follow-on capital through later rounds and growth stages. The firm states it initially invests up to €10 million per company but stays involved "for the long haul," participating in later growth rounds (e.g., Isar Aerospace's €270M Series D, FINN's €140M Series D, Proxima Fusion's €411M Series A2).

Check Size

Initial checks range from roughly €1-2 million at pre-seed/seed up to €10 million, with substantial reserves for follow-on participation in growth rounds alongside co-investors.

Lead Tendency

Mixed: UVC frequently leads or co-leads at the earliest stages (seed rounds for companies like Cyclize, Scenarium AI, Tanso) but is typically one of several participants in later, larger growth rounds led by larger growth investors.

Recent Activity

UVC closed and expanded a large new fund in 2024-2026: it announced "record fundraising for Fund IV" in August 2024 and expanded that fund to €400 million (adding growth capital) in March 2026. The firm has been very active through 2025-2026:

• September 2026: Backed Atira's $17.5M round (B2B manufacturing commercial-ops AI) and INLEAP Photonics' €20M raise (laser-based drone defense)
• July 2026: kausable's €12M seed (frontier causal AI), alqem's €8M raise (AI materials discovery), and participation in Proxima Fusion's €411M Series A2
• June 2026: FINN's €140M Series D (surpassing €1B valuation), Isar Aerospace's €270M Series D, and a successful exit of VEACT (acquired by Australia's Infomedia)
• Earlier 2026: Reel's €15M Series A, Cirql One's €5M seed, Patronus's €11M round, Synera's $40M Series B, and an exit of AMW GmbH

Portfolio Highlights

Notable current and past portfolio companies include Aleph Alpha (leading European LLM company), Isar Aerospace (first privately funded European orbital launch provider), Proxima Fusion (Max Planck Society fusion spin-out), planqc (neutral-atom quantum computing), FINN (car subscription unicorn, >€1B valuation), and TWAICE (AI battery software). Notable exits include FAZUA (acquired by Porsche), Vimcar (acquired by Battery Ventures), GNA Biosolutions (acquired by HP), Orpheus (acquired by McKinsey & Company), Carjump (acquired by PSA Group/Free2Move), Fos4X (acquired by Polytech), and VEACT (acquired by Infomedia).

Team

UVC Partners is led by a team with deep technical and operating backgrounds:

• Johannes von Borries, Managing Partner — architect of UVC's evolution into a leading European deep-tech investor; industrial engineering (TU Berlin) and MBA (UC Berkeley); prior founder/exit (Nanda Technologies)
• Dr. Ingo Potthof, Managing Partner — 25+ years in high-tech venture capital across Europe, Israel, the US, and Asia
• Prof. Dr. Helmut Schönenberger, Managing Partner — co-founder and CEO of UnternehmerTUM, TUM Vice President Entrepreneurship
• Andreas Unseld, Partner & Co-Founder — over a decade in VC, focused on B2B software, deep tech, and mobility (Aleph Alpha, Vimcar, DeepDrive, Blickfeld)
• Benjamin Erhart, General Partner — deep tech and engineering software investments (Tacto, Proxima Fusion, planqc, TWAICE, FAZUA)
• Dr. Oliver Schoppe, Partner — AI, enterprise SaaS, data-driven business models, digital health (Aleph Alpha, Patronus, Reel, paretos, Rencore, Biomatter); former AI research group lead at the Helmholtz Center
• Amanda Birkenholz, Partner — deep tech and climate tech (Cyclize, Radical Dot, DeepDrive, planqc, STABL); co-founder of B2B startup VISN
• Dr. Alexander Huber, Partner — newly appointed partner (September 2026)
• Alexander Kiltz, Principal — enterprise software, vertical SaaS, go-to-market (leads the Berlin office)
• Sabine Mattern, Head of Investor Relations — LP relations and fundraising since 2019
• Alexander, Partner & CFO — finance, operations, legal, and compliance across the platform since 2020

Decision Process

UVC operates as a multi-partner partnership with several Managing Partners, General Partners, Partners, and Principals collaborating on investment decisions, alongside a dedicated Value Creation team that supports portfolio companies post-investment.

Founder Preferences

UVC's team members frequently describe themselves as technical ("rocket scientists, CS geeks, electrical engineers, AI researchers, mechanical engineers, materials scientists"), and the firm gravitates toward technical founders solving hard deep-tech, climate, mobility, or AI/software problems, often with strong academic or research pedigrees (Max Planck Society, TUM, university spin-outs).

Geographic Focus

Primarily Germany (Munich and Berlin) and the wider European B2B startup ecosystem, with select investments in the broader European DeepTech and ClimateTech space.