travel tech vcs

17 Travel & Tourism VC Investors Who Can Fund Your Startup in 2024

With a recovery in full swing within the travel and tourism industry, it’s time to get back to business to meet people’s wanderlust desires. Now that things are opening up again people are more excited than ever to travel and have experiences.

Julia Simpson, president and CEO of WTTC (The World Travel & Tourism Council) says “Our latest forecast shows the recovery significantly picking up this year as infection rates subside and travelers continue benefiting from the protection offered by the vaccine and boosters. As travel restrictions ease and consumer confidence returns, we expect a welcome release of pent-up travel and tourism demand.”

Businesses have managed to survive through innovative new marketing tactics which encouraged people to travel locally and pivots to accommodate limitations. This is how Airbnb managed to overcome the toughest times of the pandemic. Their marketing strategy encouraged people to get out of the house and explore areas around them.

According to TechCrunch “High-profile funding rounds also appear to be popping up across travel and hospitality’s various sub-sectors, including bookings, activity marketplaces, short-term rental, tourism and hotel platforms. And companies are continuing to pull in funding rounds in the hundreds of millions to billion-dollar range.”

The pandemic gave rise not only to a new way of traveling but also changed the way people want to travel and gave them new opportunities to do so. Investments in alternative accommodation startups and other businesses in this area have been on the rise and seems as though the trend will continue from 2021.

With remote work now being an option to the majority of people, we’re seeing new huge growth opportunities for coworking, coliving, and traveling. Companies like HiveGeist launched last year to offer travelers stylish modern accommodations and offer a place to meet and work with other digital nomads. PhocusWire reports “other significant rounds have gone into vacation home co-ownership startup Pacaso with $125 million and Outdoorsy with $120 million while luxury rental company Kocomo with $56 million, Holidu with $45 million and Getaway with $42 million, also benefited from excitement in the segment.”. Along with large investments going to alternative accommodation, hotel technology companies have also received considerable interest from VC’s.

Skift’s report on Venture Investment Trends in 2022, revealed that “travel startups raised $8.6 billion last year, a figure that’s 90 percent of 2019 levels and a 73 percent increase from 2020.” and we predict this will continue to be on the rise. As well CNN reported , “travel and tourism could generate $8.6 trillion globally this year, according to new research by the World Travel & Tourism Council. That’s just 6.4% below pre-pandemic levels.”

According to the World Travel & Tourism Council :

• U.S. domestic Travel & Tourism spending is forecast to reach more than $1.1 trillion for the year, surpassing pre-pandemic levels by 11.3%
• International traveler spending in the U.S. could see growth of $113 billion, compared to 2020, reaching nearly $155 billion, slightly below (14%) 2019 levels
• Employment in the sector could also surpass pre-pandemic levels, reaching nearly 16.8 million jobs, above pre-pandemic levels by almost 200,000 jobs

Journey Ventures

• Location : Israel
• About : Journey Ventures is a multi-stage VC dedicated to the booming Travel Tech industry. Travel is one of the world’s fastest-growing sectors. Travel startups of the last few years have already disrupted some of the largest sectors in our industry, a momentum we expect to continue. This large market of ever-increasing Travel Tech offerings is ready for smart investments, and Journey Ventures is an expert in the field.
• Thesis: Our goal is to develop a portfolio of Israeli and international companies specializing in the fields of tourism, travel Tech and the hotel industry that have reached an advanced stage of technological development.
• Investment Stages : Pre-seed, Seed, Series A, Series B, Series C
• Roomerang LTD

To learn more about Journey Ventures , check out their Visible Connect Profile.

Related Resource: 9 Active Venture Capital Firms in Israel

MairDuMont Ventures

• Location : Stuttgart, Germany
• About : MAIRDUMONT VENTURES is the venture capital arm of the MAIRDUMONT Group and has been supporting digital travel companies in their future growth since 2015. MAIRDUMONT VENTURES uses its unique sector focus “Travel” to dive deeply into different business models and to evaluate potentials together with our portfolio companies. We have extensive know-how and can leverage the huge network of the MAIRDUMONT Group – with well-known brands such as Marco Polo, DuMont, Baedeker, Kompass or Falk – to offer our portfolio companies not only financial resources, but also strategic and operational support. We invest in fast-growing, early-stage and innovative companies that revolutionize travel. These can be solutions for end customers (B2C) as well as business customers (B2B).
• Paul Camper

To learn more about MairDuMont Ventures , check out their Visible Connect Profile.

Related Resource: 8 Active Venture Capital Firms in Germany

JetBlue Technology Ventures

• Location : San Carlos, California, United States
• About : JetBlue Technology Ventures invests in and partners with early stage technology startups improving the future of travel and hospitality.
• Thesis : We invest in and partner with early stage startups improving travel and hospitality.
• Investment Stages : Seed, Series A, Series B, Growth

To learn more about JetBlue Technology Ventures , check out their Visible Connect Profile.

500 Startups

• Location : Mountain View, California, United States
• About : 500 Startups is a global venture capital firm with a network of startup programs headquartered in Silicon Valley.
• Thesis : Uplifting people and economies through entrepreneurship
• Investment Stages : Seed, Series A

To learn more about 500 Startups , check out their Visible Connect Profile.

• Location : Venice, California, United States
• About : At Fifth Wall we are pioneering an advisory-based approach to venture capital. Full-service, integrated, operationally aligned. We are the first and largest venture capital firm advising corporates on and investing in Built World technology. Our strategic focus, multidisciplinary expertise, and global network provide unique insights and unparalleled access to transformational opportunities.
• Investment Stages : Seed, Series A, Series B

To learn more about Fifth Wall , check out their Visible Connect Profile.

Thayer Ventures

• Location : Valencia, California, United States
• About : Thayer Ventures invests in Travel Technology.
• Thesis : We invest in early-stage travel and transportation technology.
• Snapcommerce

To learn more about Thayer Ventures , check out their Visible Connect Profile.

Structure Capital

• Location : San Francisco, California, United States
• About : Structure Capital help passionate teams build great companies by investing seed-stage capital, time, experience and relationships.

To learn more about Structure Capital , check out their Visible Connect Profile.

Portugal Ventures

• Location : Porto, Lisboa, Portugal
• About : Portugal Ventures is a venture capital firm that invests in seed rounds of Portuguese startups in tech, life sciences, and tourism.
• Thesis : We invest in companies in the seed and early stages operating in the digital, engineering & manufacturing, life sciences and tourism sectors.
• Investment Stages : Pre-Seed, Seed, Series A
• DefinedCrowd
• Sleep & Nature

To learn more about Portugal Ventures , check out their Visible Connect Profile.

aws Gründerfonds

• Location : Vienna, Wien, Austria
• About : Venture Capital for Ideas and Innovations aws Founders Fund invests venture capital during the start-up and early growth phase of Austrian start-ups. We offer support for your future (financial) plans as a long-term investor and partner and believe in the additional value of co-investments.
• CheckYeti.com

To learn more about aws Gründerfonds , check out their Visible Connect Profile.

VentureFriends

• Location : Athens, Attiki, Greece
• About : VC fund based in Athens but investing across Europe, we focus on FinTech, Travel, PropTech, B2C & Marketplaces. We are entrepreneurial investors, with strong experience, network and track record. We have been entrepreneurs, founders, worked at startups or angel investors in early stages and have a founder first & value driven approach
• Thesis : We are entrepreneurial investors who love to support startups and help them become impactful companies with a worldwide presence.
• Investment Stages : Seed, Series A, Series B, Series C, Growth
• Welcome Pickups

To learn more about VentureFriends , check out their Visible Connect Profile.

Travel Impact Lab

• Location : Utrecht, Netherlands
• About : Travel Impact Lab helps start-ups to get started and sets existing travel organizations in motion.
• Investment Stages : Accelerator

To learn more about Travel Impact Lab , check out their Visible Connect Profile.

Gobi Partners

• Location : Shanghai, China
• About : Gobi Partners is an early stage to late stage venture capital firm focusing on IT and digital media investments in China, HK and ASEAN.
• Investment Stages : Seed, Series A, Series B, Series C

To learn more about Gobi Partners , check out their Visible Connect Profile.

Travel Capitalist Ventures

• Location : Irvine, California, United States
• About : Travel focused Venture Capital and Private Equity Investor.
• Thesis : We identify, invest and help travel companies rapidly and sustainably expand.
• Investment Stages : Seed, Series A, Growth

To learn more about Travel Capitalist Ventures , check out their Visible Connect Profile.

Alstin Capital

• Location : Munich, Bayern, Germany
• About : Alstin Capital is an independent venture capital fund based in Munich. We invest in rapidly growing technology companies that have the potential to leverage the significant market potential of the future and become market leaders. We not only invest in convincing technology, but above all in the entrepreneurs behind the technology. We support our entrepreneurs with capital and know-how so that they can grow faster and more successfully. Our investment is based on the conviction that entrepreneurial know-how, many years of transaction experience, international networks and sales excellence are the success factors for sustainable growth. Our team brings a variety of complementary strengths to help make any investment a success.

To learn more about Alstin Capital , check out their Visible Connect Profile.

• Location : Hamburg, Germany
• About : We believe venture capital will make the best returns if you invest in the big future markets. Therefore we are strong believers in Tech (managed by Norbert Beck), Brain Computer Interface (managed by Florian Haupt) and pharma to prevent age related disease and prolong healthy human lifespan managed by Nils Regge with the investment vehicle Apollo.vc.
• DreamCheaper

To learn more about TruVenturo , check out their Visible Connect Profile.

Howzat Partners

• Location : London, England, United Kingdom
• About : We are looking to invest in and build internet businesses that have a “HOWZAT” factor. This may sound a little trite; but we see major changes caused by the internet and the opportunities are genuinely exciting. The right idea; the right business; the right time; should generate the “HOWZAT” feeling. David felt it when he came across Cheapflights and was involved in acquiring the Company in 2000. We are seeking the same feeling again in the investments we make.

To learn more about Howzat Partners , check out their Visible Connect Profile.

Slow Ventures

• About :Slow Ventures invests in companies central to the technology industry and those on the edges of science, society, and culture.
• Thesis : Slow Ventures invests in companies central to the technology industry and those on the edges of science, society, and culture.

To learn more about Slow Ventures , check out their Visible Connect Profile.

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Top 58 Travel & Hospitality Venture Capital Firms in 2024

Description

Are you a founder building a startup in the Travel & Hospitality industry?

Whether you’re still in the early stages of your entrepreneur journey or you’ve already found product-market fit and are ready to scale your company, I think you’ll find useful this list of venture capital firms investing in your industry.

59 Travel & Hospitality Venture Capital Firms

Everything you need to raise funding for your startup, including 3,500+ investors, 7 tools, 18 templates and 3 learning resources.

Information about the countries, cities, stages, and industries they invest in, as well as their contact details.

List of 250 startup investors in the AI and Machine Learning industries, along with their Twitter, LinkedIn, and email addresses.

List of startup investors in the BioTech, Health, and Medicine industries, along with their Twitter, LinkedIn, and email addresses.

List of startup investors in the FinTech industry, along with their Twitter, LinkedIn, and email addresses.

1) Y Combinator

Y Combinator is a leading accelerator and venture capital providing mentorship and funding to companies across all sectors.

Details of the VC firm:

• Country: USA
• City: Mountain View
• Started in: 2005
• Founders: Jessica Livingston, Lucas Thomaz, Paul Graham, Raffaele Colella, Robert Morris, Trevor Blackwell
• Industries: Enterprise, SaaS, Big Data & Analytics, Productivity, DTC, Cybersecurity, Supply Chain & Logistics, Education, Consumer, Food & Beverage, Gaming, Future of Work, Social, Transportation, Travel & Hospitality, AR & VR, Healthcare, Health & Wellness, Biotech, Fintech, InsurTech, Industrial, Aerospace & Space, Climate & Sustainability, Robotics, Government Technology, Manufacturing, Infrastructure, Legal, Marketing, Agriculture, Automative, Energy
• Stages: Seed, Early Stage, Pre-Seed, Series A
• Minimum check size: $500,000
• Number of investments: 4469
• Number of exits: 444
• 3 remarkable investments: Coinbase, Twitch, Reddit

You can find their website here .

You can send them an email at [email protected] .

2) Techstars

Techstars is a global accelerator and early-stage investor since 2006.

• Country: Israel, USA, India, China
• City: San Francisco, Mumbai, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Herẕliyya, New York
• Started in: 1989
• Founders: Samuel Isaly
• Industries: Advertising, Aerospace & Space, Agriculture, AI & ML, Biotech, Crypto & Blockchain, Climate & Sustainability, Cloud, Consumer, Cybersecurity, SaaS, Big Data & Analytics, Developer Tools, E-Commerce, Education, Energy, Enterprise, Entertainment, Fintech, Sports, Food & Beverage, Future of Work, Gaming, Government Technology, Hardware, Health & Wellness, Healthcare, Human Resources, Infrastructure, Legal, IoT, Life Sciences, Manufacturing, Marketplace, Media, Mobility, Productivity, Proptech & Real Estate, Robotics, Marketing, Supply Chain & Logistics, Transportation, AR & VR, Travel & Hospitality
• Stages: Pre-Seed, Seed
• Minimum check size: $20,000
• Maximum check size: $100,000
• Number of investments: 4116
• Number of exits: 951
• Funds raised: $108,000,000
• 3 remarkable investments: Rootine, Packworks, Payymnt

You can send them an email at [email protected] .

3) Plug and Play Tech Center

Plug and Play provides an array of services including accelerators, mentorships, and capital to entrepreneurs of all backgrounds.

• Country: USA, Canada, Brazil, United Arab Emirates, Netherlands, Belgium, Spain, Switzerland, Morocco, Germany, Turkey, South Africa, Italy, France, China, Japan, South Korea
• City: Chicago, Cleveland, Detroit, São Paulo, Topeka, Toronto, Abu Dhabi, Amsterdam, Antwerp, Barcelona, Basel, Ben Guerir, Cairo, Geneva, Hamburg, Istanbul, Johannesburg, Madrid, Milan, Munich, Paris, Bangkok, Beijing, Kyōto, Ōsaka, Seoul, San Francisco
• Started in: 2006
• Founders: Ali Safavi, Jackie Hernandez, Saeed Amidi
• Industries: DTC, Enterprise, Fintech, Food & Beverage, Healthcare, InsurTech, IoT, Media, Transportation, Hardware, Proptech & Real Estate, Supply Chain & Logistics, Climate & Sustainability, Travel & Hospitality, Agriculture, Energy
• Stages: Early Stage, Series A, Series B, Series C
• Minimum check size: $50,000
• Maximum check size: $250,000
• Number of investments: 1447
• Number of exits: 140
• Funds raised: $45,500,000
• 3 remarkable investments: Truebill, Honey, Life360

You can send them an email at [email protected] .

4) Matrix Partners

Matrix Partners invest in startups across consumer technology, B2B, enterprise, fintech and many others in the USA, India and China.

• Country: India, USA, China
• City: Bangalore, Delhi, Mumbai, San Francisco, Boston, Palo Alto, Beijing, Shanghai
• Started in: 1977
• Founders: Paul J. Ferri
• Industries: Healthcare, Fintech, Enterprise, SaaS, E-Commerce, Media, Social, Gaming, Travel & Hospitality, Transportation, Education
• Stages: Seed, Series A, Series B
• Minimum check size: $100,000
• Maximum check size: $10,000,000
• Number of investments: 626
• Number of exits: 145
• Funds raised: $2,600,000,000
• 3 remarkable investments: Apple, Zendesk, Hubspot

You can send them an email at [email protected] .

5) Seed Camp

Seedcamp is a European startup fund that seeks investments in early-stage entrepreneurs who are targeting worldwide markets.

• Country: United Kingdom
• City: London
• Started in: 2007
• Founders: Reshma Sohoni, Carlos Espinal
• Industries: SaaS, Robotics, AI & ML, Crypto & Blockchain, Cloud, Infrastructure, Big Data & Analytics, Developer Tools, E-Commerce, Education, Future of Work, Fintech, Productivity, Gaming, Human Resources, InsurTech, IoT, Marketing, Advertising, Marketplace, Media, Creator Economy, Proptech & Real Estate, Cybersecurity, Social, Travel & Hospitality
• Stages: Seed
• Minimum check size: £300,000
• Maximum check size: £500,000
• Number of investments: 612
• Number of exits: 159
• Funds raised: £78,000,000
• 3 remarkable investments: Hopin, Wise, Revolut

You can send them an email at [email protected] .

6) Technology Crossover Ventures

TCV provides investment capital to growth-stage private and public companies in the technology industry.

• Country: USA, United Kingdom
• City: London, New York, San Francisco
• Started in: 1995
• Founders: Jay Hoag, Rick Kimball
• Industries: E-Commerce, Media, Enterprise, Entertainment, Proptech & Real Estate, Travel & Hospitality, Education, Marketing, Legal, Advertising
• Stages: Late Stage, Series A, Series B, Growth
• Minimum check size: $30,000,000
• Maximum check size: $400,000,000
• Number of investments: 393
• Number of exits: 194
• Funds raised: $20,100,000,000
• 3 remarkable investments: Meta, Netflix, Spotify

You can send them an email at [email protected] .

7) BGF (Business Growth Fund)

Business Growth Fund invests in small and mid-sized businesses in UK and Ireland.

• Country: United Kingdom, Ireland
• City: Aberdeen, Belfast, Birmingham, Bristol, Cambridge, Caerdydd, Cork, Dublin, Edinburgh, Leeds, London, Manchester, Milton Keynes, Newcastle, Nottingham, Reading
• Started in: 2011
• Founders: Stephen Welton
• Industries: Deep Tech & Hard Science, AI & ML, E-Commerce, Education, Food & Beverage, Healthcare, Life Sciences, Media, Climate & Sustainability, Travel & Hospitality, Consumer, DTC, Energy, Infrastructure, Construction
• Stages: Early Stage, Debt, Private Equity
• Minimum check size: £1,000,000
• Maximum check size: £8,000,000
• Number of investments: 381
• Number of exits: 70
• Funds raised: £597,300,000
• 3 remarkable investments: Miss Group, LoopMe, Trouva

You can send them an email at [email protected] .

8) Western Technology Investment

WTI is a stage-agnostic venture capital firm, that provides debt and equity capital to technology and life science companies.

• City: Portola Valley
• Started in: 1980
• Founders: Ron Swenson
• Industries: Climate & Sustainability, Consumer, Education, Enterprise, Fintech, Food & Beverage, Hardware, Health & Wellness, Travel & Hospitality, Media, Gaming, Proptech & Real Estate, Social, Transportation, Future of Work, InsurTech, Infrastructure
• Stages: Early Stage, Late Stage, Seed
• Number of investments: 380
• Number of exits: 128
• Funds raised: $375,000,000
• 3 remarkable investments: Meta, Planet, Ansys

You can send them an email at [email protected] .

9) Hiventures

Hiventures is a multistage investment firm located in Hungary.

• Country: Hungary
• City: Budapest
• Started in: 2017
• Founders: Bence Katona
• Industries: Media, Gaming, Big Data & Analytics, Consumer, Education, Fintech, InsurTech, Food & Beverage, Supply Chain & Logistics, Marketplace, Healthcare, Travel & Hospitality, Agriculture, SaaS
• Stages: Pre-Seed, Seed, Series A
• Minimum check size: €50,000
• Maximum check size: €3,000,000
• Number of investments: 280
• Number of exits: 69
• 3 remarkable investments: Briefly, Himoney, Edumarket

You can send them an email at [email protected] .

10) Revolution LLC

Revolution is a venture capital firm that works with entrepreneurs all across the US who are at the forefront of their industries.

• City: Washington, San Francisco
• Founders: Donn Davis, Steve Case, Ted Leonsis, Tige Savage
• Industries: Education, Media, Marketplace, Transportation, Travel & Hospitality, E-Commerce, Health & Wellness, Food & Beverage, Entertainment, Manufacturing, Sports, Fintech, SaaS
• Stages: Late Stage, Early Stage, Seed
• Minimum check size: $1,000,000
• Maximum check size: $12,000,000
• Number of investments: 259
• Number of exits: 55
• 3 remarkable investments: Draftkings, Sweetgreen, Lucid

You can send them an email at [email protected] .

11) Viola Ventures

Viola Ventures is a VC firm investing in early-stage technology companies in Isreal.

• Country: Israel
• City: Herẕliyya
• Started in: 2000
• Founders: Avi Zeevi, Shlomo Dovrat
• Industries: AI & ML, Biotech, Cybersecurity, Enterprise, InsurTech, Proptech & Real Estate, Internet & Mobile, Media, Travel & Hospitality, Climate & Sustainability, DTC, Automative, Agriculture, SaaS
• Stages: Early Stage, Seed, Series A, Series B
• Number of investments: 243
• Number of exits: 50
• Funds raised: $1,300,000,000
• 3 remarkable investments: Sundaysky, Ironsource, Pagaya

You can send them an email at [email protected] .

12) Eurazeo

Eurazeo is an investment firm providing initial to Series C deals to digital services and technologies companies.

• Country: USA, Brazil, United Kingdom, Spain, France, Luxembourg, Germany, Italy, Singapore, China, South Korea
• City: New York, São Paulo, London, Madrid, Paris, Luxembourg, Frankfurt, Milan, Berlin, Singapore, Shanghai, Seoul
• Started in: 2001
• Founders: Michel David-Weill, Virginie Morgon
• Industries: DTC, Cloud, Climate & Sustainability, Consumer, Enterprise, Healthcare, Fintech, Food & Beverage, Internet & Mobile, Industrial, Travel & Hospitality, Life Sciences, Proptech & Real Estate, Advertising, Marketing, SaaS
• Stages: Early Stage, Series C, Seed, Series A, Series B
• Number of investments: 220
• Funds raised: €3,250,000,000
• 3 remarkable investments: Nest New York, Deezer, Gisou

You can send them an email at [email protected] .

13) Heartcore Capital

Heartcore is a consumer technology VC investing in European B2C and B2B2C companies.

• Country: Denmark, Germany, France, USA, Austria, Sweden, Spain, Hungary, Poland, United Arab Emirates
• City: Copenhagen, Berlin, Paris, Lisbon, Stockholm
• Founders: Jimmy Fussing Nielsen, Christian Lindegaard Jepsen,
• Industries: Travel & Hospitality, Education, Entertainment, Food & Beverage, Health & Wellness, Productivity, Consumer, Gaming, InsurTech, Energy
• Stages: Early Stage, Seed, Pre-Seed, Series A
• Minimum check size: €300,000
• Maximum check size: €6,000,000
• Number of investments: 210
• Number of exits: 51
• 3 remarkable investments: Reddit, Insight, Werlabs

You can send them an email at [email protected] .

14) Project A

Project A is a European VC firm providing capital and operational support to startups since 2012.

• Country: Germany
• City: Berlin
• Started in: 2012
• Founders: Rainer Berak, Ben Fischer, Dr. Florian Heinemann, Uwe Horstmann, Thies Sander, Dr. Anton Waitz
• Industries: E-Commerce, Fintech, Cybersecurity, Supply Chain & Logistics, Marketplace, Proptech & Real Estate, Internet & Mobile, InsurTech, SaaS, Climate & Sustainability, DTC, Developer Tools, Health & Wellness, Education, Food & Beverage, Gaming, Media, Transportation, Travel & Hospitality, Manufacturing, Marketing
• Stages: Early Stage, Seed, Series A
• Minimum check size: €1,000,000
• Maximum check size: €10,000,000
• Number of investments: 201
• Number of exits: 36
• Funds raised: €375,000,000
• 3 remarkable investments: Root Global, Knowunity, Re:Cap

You can send them an email at [email protected] .

15) Partech

With offices in Europe, Africa and the US, Partech is the global venture capital for tech investments.

• Country: USA, Germany, France, Senegal
• City: San Francisco, Paris, Berlin, Dakar
• Started in: 1982
• Founders: John Sung Kim, Thomas G. Mckinley, Vincent Worms
• Industries: Food & Beverage, SaaS, E-Commerce, Marketplace, Consumer, Fintech, Health & Wellness, InsurTech, Cybersecurity, Media, Supply Chain & Logistics, Transportation, Developer Tools, Travel & Hospitality, Infrastructure, Energy
• Stages: Seed, Early Stage, Late Stage
• Minimum check size: $200,000
• Maximum check size: $75,000,000
• Number of investments: 200
• Number of exits: 22
• Funds raised: $96,000,000
• 3 remarkable investments: Toss, Alan, Jellysmack

You can send them an email at [email protected] .

16) Backstage Capital

Backstage Capital is a VC firm focusing on diversity and inclusion by funding women, people of color and LGBT founders.

• City: Los Angeles
• Started in: 2015
• Founders: Arlan Hamilton
• Industries: AI & ML, AR & VR, Enterprise, Consumer, Crypto & Blockchain, E-Commerce, Education, Fintech, Food & Beverage, Future of Work, Government Technology, Hardware, Healthcare, IoT, Marketplace, Media, Proptech & Real Estate, SaaS, Social, Travel & Hospitality, Automative, Sports, Human Resources
• Number of exits: 3
• 3 remarkable investments: Sēkr, Mahmee, Civic Eagle

17) Kaszek Ventures

Kaszek is a tech venture capital backing Latin American entrepreneurs.

• Country: Argentina, Mexico, Uruguay, Brazil
• City: Buenos Aires, Mexico City, Montevideo, São Paulo
• Founders: Hernan Kazah, Nicolas Szekasy
• Industries: Biotech, Media, DTC, E-Commerce, Marketplace, Fintech, Healthcare, Travel & Hospitality, InsurTech, Supply Chain & Logistics, Proptech & Real Estate, SaaS, Enterprise, Transportation, Food & Beverage, Advertising
• Stages: Seed, Series A, Series B, Series C
• Maximum check size: $5,000,000
• Number of investments: 195
• Number of exits: 21
• Funds raised: $2,000,000,000
• 3 remarkable investments: Urbvan, Technisys, Pedidosya

You can send them an email at [email protected] .

18) Kalaari Capital

Founded in 2006, Kalaari Capital is an early-stage tech VC firm in India.

• Country: India
• City: Bangalore
• Founders: Vani Kola, Rajesh Raju
• Industries: Climate & Sustainability, Consumer, Creator Economy, Crypto & Blockchain, E-Commerce, Education, Fintech, Food & Beverage, Transportation, Healthcare, Social, Travel & Hospitality, Deep Tech & Hard Science, SaaS, Supply Chain & Logistics, Sports
• Stages: Seed, Series A
• Number of investments: 194
• Number of exits: 45
• Funds raised: $600,000,000
• 3 remarkable investments: Creative Galileo, Phable, Zocket

You can contact them at +91 80-6715-9600.

Strive partners with seed to series B founders across Japan, Southeast Asia and India.

• Country: Japan, Singapore
• City: Tokyo, Singapore
• Founders: Yusuke Amano
• Industries: Transportation, Travel & Hospitality, Marketplace
• Stages: Seed, Early Stage, Series A, Series B
• Number of investments: 177
• Number of exits: 44
• Funds raised: $3,800,000
• 3 remarkable investments: Grab, Galapagos, Qoala

20) Gradient Ventures

Gradient Ventures is an early-stage pre-seed to series A tech-focused venture capital firm based in California.

• City: Santa Clara
• Founders: Anna Patterson
• Industries: AI & ML, Education, Fintech, Supply Chain & Logistics, Travel & Hospitality, Consumer, InsurTech, Healthcare, Life Sciences, Productivity, Enterprise, Crypto & Blockchain, Cybersecurity
• Stages: Seed, Early Stage, Series A, Pre-Seed
• Number of investments: 163
• Number of exits: 23
• Funds raised: $6,300,000
• 3 remarkable investments: Shypyard, Mentum, Norby

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21) Earlybird Venture Capital

Earlybird is a multistage venture capital investing in European companies.

• City: Berlin, Munich
• Started in: 1997
• Founders: Benjamin Wilkening, Cem Sertoglu, Christian Nagel, Hendrik Brandis, Roland Manger, Rolf Mathies
• Industries: Biotech, Crypto & Blockchain, Cybersecurity, E-Commerce, Education, Enterprise, Productivity, Fintech, Gaming, IoT, Healthcare, Supply Chain & Logistics, AI & ML, Marketplace, Media, Proptech & Real Estate, Travel & Hospitality, DTC, Robotics, Transportation, Legal, SaaS
• Minimum check size: €200,000
• Maximum check size: €15,000,000
• Number of investments: 158
• Number of exits: 42
• Funds raised: €2,000,000,000
• 3 remarkable investments: Aiven, Lexoo, N26

You can send them an email at [email protected] .

22) Chicago Ventures

Launched in 2012, Chicago Ventures is an early-stage capital investing in overlooked founding teams.

• City: Chicago
• Founders: Stuart Larkins
• Industries: Consumer, Education, Enterprise, Entertainment, Gaming, Healthcare, Travel & Hospitality, Supply Chain & Logistics, Media, Proptech & Real Estate, Robotics, Automation, Productivity, Government Technology, InsurTech, Creator Economy, Manufacturing, Legal, Agriculture, Fintech
• Minimum check size: $1,500,000
• Maximum check size: $2,000,000
• Number of investments: 156
• Number of exits: 47
• Funds raised: $1,500,000,000
• 3 remarkable investments: Olive, NOCD, OneRail

You can send them an email at [email protected] .

23) Blume Ventures

Blume Ventures is a seed-stage venture capital firm investing in Indian tech companies.

• City: Mumbai
• Founders: Karthik Reddy, Rob Blum, Sanjay Nath
• Industries: Biotech, E-Commerce, Deep Tech & Hard Science, Education, Fintech, Future of Work, Gaming, Healthcare, Media, Supply Chain & Logistics, Proptech & Real Estate, SaaS, Travel & Hospitality, Climate & Sustainability, Agriculture
• Stages: Early Stage, Pre-Seed, Seed, Series A
• Number of investments: 154
• Number of exits: 24
• Funds raised: $280,000,000
• 3 remarkable investments: Grey Orange, Servify, Cashify

You can send them an email at [email protected] .

24) The Venture City

The Venture City is a female-founded VC firm investing in early-stage startups across America and Europe.

• Country: USA, Spain
• City: Miami, Madrid
• Founders: Laura González-Estéfani
• Industries: Fintech, Advertising, Media, Marketing, SaaS, Mobility, Marketplace, Sports, Travel & Hospitality, Cybersecurity, Health & Wellness, Proptech & Real Estate, E-Commerce, Supply Chain & Logistics, Productivity, Gaming
• Maximum check size: $4,000,000
• Number of investments: 123
• Number of exits: 11
• Funds raised: $125,000,000
• 3 remarkable investments: Bfore.Ai, Delitbee, Sturdy Exchange

You can send them an email at [email protected] .

25) Founders Factory

Founders Factory is an early-stage investor and accelerator program supporting global entrepreneurs.

• Founders: Brent Hoberman, George Northcott, Henry Lane Fox, Jim Meyerle, Julia Brucher
• Industries: Fintech, Education, Travel & Hospitality, AI & ML, Media, DTC, Healthcare, Climate & Sustainability, Crypto & Blockchain
• Maximum check size: £250,000
• Number of investments: 117
• Number of exits: 12
• Funds raised: £13,600,000
• 3 remarkable investments: Solivus, Karmacist, Wiseworks

You can send them an email at [email protected] .

26) Naspers

Naspers is a global corporate venture fund investing in internet businesses across the Americas, Africa, Europe, and Asia.

• Country: South Africa
• City: Cape Town
• Started in: 1915
• Founders: Attorney W. A. Hofmeyr
• Industries: Supply Chain & Logistics, Fintech, Travel & Hospitality, Education, Healthcare, Social, Internet & Mobile
• Stages: Early Stage, Late Stage
• Number of investments: 113
• 3 remarkable investments: Avito, Brainly, BYJU'S

You can send them an email at [email protected] .

27) Playfair Capital

Playfair Capital is a London seed-stage investor since 2013.

• Started in: 2013
• Founders: Chris Smith
• Industries: Advertising, Big Data & Analytics, AI & ML, Automation, E-Commerce, Energy, Fintech, Gaming, Healthcare, IoT, Supply Chain & Logistics, Marketplace, Internet & Mobile, Proptech & Real Estate, SaaS, Social, Travel & Hospitality
• Minimum check size: £100,000
• Number of investments: 111
• Number of exits: 29
• Funds raised: £32,000,000
• 3 remarkable investments: Omnipresent, Orca AI, Ravelin

You can send them an email at [email protected] .

28) LVenture Group

LVenture Group is a corporate venture capital firm providing accelerators and funds for pre-seed and seed-stage startups.

• Country: Italy
• Founders: Luigi Capello
• Industries: Big Data & Analytics, Education, Developer Tools, Entertainment, Travel & Hospitality, IoT, Fintech, Food & Beverage, Healthcare
• Stages: Early Stage
• Maximum check size: €250,000
• Number of investments: 91
• 3 remarkable investments: GenomeUp, Tutored, GoPillar

You can send them an email at [email protected] .

29) Expara Ventures

Expara is a Singaporean venture capital firm investing in SouthEast Asian startups since 2007.

• Country: Thailand, Vietnam
• City: Bangkok, Ho Chi Minh City
• Started in: 2003
• Founders: Douglas Abrams
• Industries: Food & Beverage, IoT, E-Commerce, Healthcare, Travel & Hospitality, Social, Marketplace, Government Technology, Cloud, Proptech & Real Estate, Fintech, AI & ML, Health & Wellness, Gaming, Climate & Sustainability, Education, Hardware, Biotech, API, SaaS, Media, Agriculture, Drones
• Number of investments: 77
• Number of exits: 9
• 3 remarkable investments: Gheorg, Systemstone, Compliy

You can send them an email at [email protected] .

P101 SGR is an Italian Venture capital firm investing in European digital and tech companies since 2013.

• City: Milan
• Founders: Andrea Di Camillo
• Industries: Cybersecurity, E-Commerce, Education, Fintech, Food & Beverage, Healthcare, Supply Chain & Logistics, Internet & Mobile, Transportation, Proptech & Real Estate, Travel & Hospitality, SaaS
• Maximum check size: €5,000,000
• Number of investments: 75
• Number of exits: 20
• Funds raised: €209,200,000
• 3 remarkable investments: Cortilia, Milkman, MusixMatch

You can send them an email at [email protected] .

Lemnos is a pre-seed and seed investor providing capital to hardware startups.

• City: San Francisco
• Founders: Helen Zelman Boniske, Jeremy Conrad
• Industries: Transportation, Travel & Hospitality, AI & ML, Automation, Hardware, Aerospace & Space, Supply Chain & Logistics, Food & Beverage, Robotics, Manufacturing, Energy, Construction, Agriculture
• Stages: Pre-Seed, Seed, Early Stage
• Minimum check size: $250,000
• Maximum check size: $500,000
• Number of investments: 73
• Number of exits: 25
• Funds raised: $71,900,000
• 3 remarkable investments: Quartz, Pico MES, Lumeo

You can send them an email at [email protected] .

32) Geodesic Capital

Founded in Silicon Valley, Geodesic Capital is a growth-stage VC firm backing founders looking to expand into the Asian market.

• Country: USA, Japan
• City: Minato, San Mateo
• Founders: John Roos, Ashvin Bachireddy
• Industries: Big Data & Analytics, AI & ML, Travel & Hospitality, Media, Marketplace, Cybersecurity, InsurTech, SaaS
• Stages: Late Stage, Growth
• Number of investments: 67
• Number of exits: 13
• Funds raised: $335,000,000
• 3 remarkable investments: Snapchat, Uber, Airbnb

You can send them an email at [email protected] .

33) 4Founders Capital

4Founders typically co-invest with angel investors and other VC firms to fund early-stage European tech companies.

• Country: Spain
• City: Barcelona
• Founders: Javier Perez-Tenessa
• Industries: Fintech, SaaS, Travel & Hospitality, Crypto & Blockchain, Gaming, Education, Climate & Sustainability, Entertainment, Marketplace
• Minimum check size: €100,000
• Maximum check size: €4,000,000
• Number of investments: 65
• Funds raised: €62,000,000
• 3 remarkable investments: StockAgile, Improfit, Banktrack

You can send them an email at [email protected] .

Kibo Ventures is a Spanish venture capital firm financing tech startups in Europe.

• Country: Spain, Portugal
• City: Madrid, Lisbon, Barcelona
• Founders: Aquilino Peña, Javier Torremocha, José María Amusátegui
• Industries: Social, API, Fintech, Travel & Hospitality, Transportation, SaaS, Cloud, AI & ML, Big Data & Analytics, E-Commerce, Consumer, Enterprise, Proptech & Real Estate, Marketplace
• Minimum check size: €2,000,000
• Number of investments: 63
• Funds raised: €1,500,000,000
• 3 remarkable investments: Trip4real, Jetlore, Captio

You can send them an email at [email protected] .

35) Bonsai Venture Capital

Bonsai Venture Capital has been investing in early-stage companies since 1999.

• Country: Turkey, Belgium, Spain, Saudi Arabia, Colombia
• City: Riyadh, Brussels, Madrid, Istanbul, Bogotá, Medellín
• Founders: Alfonso De León
• Industries: Gaming, Fintech, Healthcare, Cybersecurity, Travel & Hospitality
• Stages: Early Stage, Growth
• Minimum check size: €250,000
• Maximum check size: €2,500,000
• Number of exits: 38
• Funds raised: €3,500,000
• 3 remarkable investments: Frenetic, Signaturit, Miss Tipsi

36) Chile Global Ventures

ChileGlobal Ventures has been investing in entrepreneurs making an impact in Chile and around the world since 1982.

• Country: Chile
• City: Santiago
• Started in: 2008
• Founders: Felipe Matta Navarro
• Industries: Entertainment, Education, Fintech, Food & Beverage, Supply Chain & Logistics, Proptech & Real Estate, Robotics, Climate & Sustainability, Travel & Hospitality, Agriculture, SaaS, Healthcare
• Maximum check size: $1,500,000
• Number of investments: 60
• Number of exits: 17
• Funds raised: $120,000,000
• 3 remarkable investments: BePretty, Cleevy, Izit

You can send them an email at [email protected] .

37) Reinventure Group Venture Capital Firm

Reinventure partners with Westpac Banking Corporation to fund fintech companies targeting the Asia-Pacific region.

• Country: Australia
• City: Sydney
• Started in: 2014
• Founders: Danny Gilligan, Simon Cant
• Industries: AI & ML, Proptech & Real Estate, Crypto & Blockchain, Education, Gaming, Enterprise, Travel & Hospitality, Social, Cybersecurity, Big Data & Analytics
• Number of investments: 58
• Funds raised: $137,300,000
• 3 remarkable investments: Coinbase, SocietyOne, Hmlet

You can send them an email at [email protected] .

38) Icebreaker

Icebreaker Ventures is an early-stage venture capital firm investing in Estonia, Finland and Sweden.

• Country: Estonia, Finland, Sweden
• City: Helsinki, Tallinn, Stockholm
• Started in: 2016
• Founders: Lasse Lehtinen
• Industries: Cybersecurity, IoT, Travel & Hospitality, Advertising, AI & ML, Big Data & Analytics, Proptech & Real Estate, AR & VR, Automation, Developer Tools, Media, Entertainment, Automative, Energy, Human Resources, Legal, SaaS, Hardware, E-Commerce, Education
• Stages: Pre-Seed, Early Stage
• Minimum check size: €150,000
• Maximum check size: €800,000
• Number of investments: 54
• Funds raised: €126,000,000
• 3 remarkable investments: HoxHunt, Logmore, Flowhaven

You can send them an email at [email protected] .

39) Venture Friends

Venture friends is a seed and series A venture capital firm backing founders in Europe, MENA and Latam.

• Country: Greece
• City: Athens
• Founders: Apostolos Apostolakis, George Dimopoulos
• Industries: Proptech & Real Estate, Fintech, Travel & Hospitality, Marketplace, SaaS, Other
• Number of investments: 50
• 3 remarkable investments: Blueground, Belvo, Plum

You can send them an email at [email protected] .

40) Practica Capital

Practica backs Baltic entrepreneurs primarily in the seed stage.

• Country: Lithuania
• City: Vilnius
• Founders: Silvestras Tamutis
• Industries: Fintech, Supply Chain & Logistics, Travel & Hospitality, Healthcare, Proptech & Real Estate, Robotics, SaaS, InsurTech, Education, E-Commerce, AI & ML, Aerospace & Space, Agriculture, Advertising
• Stages: Seed, Series A, Growth
• Maximum check size: €2,000,000
• Number of investments: 45
• Number of exits: 10
• Funds raised: €46,000,000
• 3 remarkable investments: Eneba, Billo, TransferGo

You can send them an email at [email protected] .

41) Skalata Ventures

Skalata Ventures provides capital, education and network access to Australian founders.

• City: Melbourne
• Started in: 2018
• Founders: Rohan Workman
• Industries: AR & VR, Productivity, Education, Entertainment, Fintech, Health & Wellness, Travel & Hospitality, Supply Chain & Logistics, Marketplace, Proptech & Real Estate, SaaS, Crypto & Blockchain, E-Commerce, Agriculture
• Stages: Early Stage, Seed
• Maximum check size: $200,000
• Number of exits: 0
• Funds raised: $50,000,000
• 3 remarkable investments: Strength by Numbers, Tablogs, ParentalEQ

You can send them an email at [email protected] .

42) Great North Venture

Great North Ventures is an early-stage venture capital investing in tech founders across US and Canada.

• City: St. Cloud
• Founders: Rob Weber, Ryan Weber
• Industries: Enterprise, Consumer, Proptech & Real Estate, Healthcare, Life Sciences, Transportation, Education, E-Commerce, Supply Chain & Logistics, Travel & Hospitality, Fintech
• Stages: Seed, Series A, Early Stage
• Minimum check size: $10,000
• Number of investments: 44
• Number of exits: 8
• Funds raised: $40,000,000
• 3 remarkable investments: Iralogix, Branch, TeamGenius

43) Stride VC

Stride.VC is a London-based VC firm that prefers to invest in British and French startups.

• Founders: Fred Destin
• Industries: SaaS, Marketplace, Enterprise, Travel & Hospitality, Productivity, Media
• Stages: Seed, Pre-Seed
• Minimum check size: £250,000
• Maximum check size: £2,000,000
• Number of exits: 1
• Funds raised: £100,000,000
• 3 remarkable investments: Accountable, Linktree, Kolleno

44) Axivate Capital

Axivate Capital is an investment firm backing Dutch and European founders building companies in the fields of digital media, e-commerce, the Internet and leisure.

• Country: Netherlands
• City: Amsterdam
• Founders: Bas Rasker
• Industries: Media, E-Commerce, Travel & Hospitality, Internet & Mobile
• Stages: Seed, Early Stage
• Number of investments: 41
• 3 remarkable investments: Jmango360, Neurocast, Dealconomy

You can send them an email at [email protected] .

45) Byfounders

Based in Denmark, byFounders is a community-focused early-stage venture capital investing in Nordic entrepreneurs.

• Country: Denmark
• City: Copenhagen
• Founders: Tommy Andersen, Eric Lagier
• Industries: Crypto & Blockchain, Healthcare, Food & Beverage, InsurTech, Gaming, Proptech & Real Estate, IoT, Climate & Sustainability, Fintech, Travel & Hospitality, SaaS, Legal, Marketing
• Minimum check size: €500,000
• Number of investments: 40
• Funds raised: €100,000,000
• 3 remarkable investments: Vibrant, Qvin, Smitten

You can send them an email at [email protected] .

46) Cradle Fund

Cradle provides early-stage funding and programmes to support founders building businesses.

• Country: Malaysia
• City: Kuala Lumpur
• Founders: Norman Matthieu Vanhaecke, Juliana Jan, Ahmad Kashfi, Eliza Elias, Harmender Singh
• Industries: Fintech, IoT, Internet & Mobile, Supply Chain & Logistics, Media, Automation, Cybersecurity, Travel & Hospitality, Future of Work, SaaS
• Minimum check size: RM 100,000
• Maximum check size: RM 1,000,000
• Number of investments: 36
• Number of exits: 2
• 3 remarkable investments: Kumoten, Pandai, Cidekick

You can send them an email at [email protected] .

47) NEXEA Venture Capital

Nexea Angels is a venture capital and startup accelerator backing Southeast Asian entrepreneurs.

• Founders: Ben Lim, Noomi Fessler
• Industries: Travel & Hospitality, Marketplace, E-Commerce, Education, Big Data & Analytics, IoT, Fintech, SaaS
• Minimum check size: RM 50,000
• Number of investments: 35
• 3 remarkable investments: Hauz, Plush Services, Lokein

You can send them an email at [email protected] .

48) Assurance Mezzanine Fund

Assurance Mezzanine is an American investment firm providing funding to late-stage private and public companies in the US.

• City: Orlando
• Founders: Alex Brown, Anthony Yanni, David Ellis, Jeffrey Phillips, Robert Whittel, Seth Ellis
• Industries: Healthcare, E-Commerce, Government Technology, Travel & Hospitality, Construction
• Minimum check size: $3,000,000
• Maximum check size: $20,000,000
• Number of investments: 31
• 3 remarkable investments: Contractor Connect, Visual Connections, Pawz.Com

You can send them an email at [email protected] .

49) Volta Ventures

Volta Ventures is a seed investor for SaaS in the Benelux region.

• Country: Netherlands, Belgium
• City: Amsterdam, Gent
• Founders: Frank Maene, Sander Vonk
• Industries: Deep Tech & Hard Science, Fintech, Devops, Healthcare, Proptech & Real Estate, Gaming, Cybersecurity, Travel & Hospitality, Hardware & Industrials, SaaS
• Number of investments: 30
• 3 remarkable investments: Cashforce, TerminusDB, Sentiance

You can send them an email at [email protected] .

50) Fitz Gate Ventures

Fitz Gate Ventures is a Texas-based venture capital firm investing in early-stage startups.

• City: Houston
• Founders: Jim Cohen, Mark Poag
• Industries: SaaS, E-Commerce, AI & ML, Media, Travel & Hospitality
• Number of investments: 29
• Funds raised: $25,000,000
• 3 remarkable investments: Realworld, Cartful Solutions, Blockapps

You can send them an email at [email protected] .

51) Nation 1 VC

Based in Prague, Nation 1 VC is an accelerator program, pre-seed and seed investor.

• Country: Czechia
• City: Prague
• Started in: 2019
• Founders: Marek Moravec, Martin Bodocky, Petra Koncelikova
• Industries: Healthcare, Travel & Hospitality, SaaS, Hardware, AR & VR, DTC, Enterprise, Supply Chain & Logistics, Cloud
• Maximum check size: €1,500,000
• Number of investments: 22
• Funds raised: €35,000,000
• 3 remarkable investments: Vrgineers, Daytrip, Mindpax,

You can send them an email at [email protected] .

52) Oasis Capital

Oasis capital is an investment firm financing African companies since 2009.

• Country: Ghana
• City: Abidjan, Accra
• Started in: 2009
• Founders: Matthew Boadu Adjei Adjei
• Industries: Education, Travel & Hospitality, Proptech & Real Estate, Food & Beverage, Healthcare
• Number of investments: 19
• 3 remarkable investments: Axis Pensions Group

You can send them an email at [email protected] .

53) Acronym VC

Acronym VC provides late seed and series A to New York founders with at least $1M ARR.

• City: Palm Beach Gardens, New York
• Founders: Joshua B. Siegel, Mat Kaliski
• Industries: SaaS, Travel & Hospitality, DTC, Productivity, Enterprise, Fintech, Proptech & Real Estate, Food & Beverage
• Stages: Series A
• Number of investments: 15

54) Battle Born Venture

Battle Born Venture is a government-backed venture capital fund to invest in Nevadan enterprises.

• City: Las Vegas, Reno
• Founders: Erik Lee
• Industries: Healthcare, Government Technology, Travel & Hospitality, Gaming, Climate & Sustainability, Supply Chain & Logistics, Energy, Manufacturing
• Stages: Early Stage, Pre-Seed, Seed, Late Stage, Growth
• Minimum check size: $40,000
• Number of investments: 14
• Number of exits: 5
• Funds raised: $5,000,000
• 3 remarkable investments: Semi Exact, Circlein, BaseVenture

You can send them an email at [email protected] .

55) ESP Capital

ESP Capital is a sector-agnostic venture capital firm investing in SouthEast Asian startups.

• Country: Vietnam, USA, Singapore
• City: Ho Chi Minh City, Dover, Singapore
• Founders: Nam Nguyen
• Industries: Proptech & Real Estate, Healthcare, Education, DTC, Transportation, Travel & Hospitality, Entertainment
• Funds raised: $1,500,000
• 3 remarkable investments: TaleCity, WeFit, Cooky

You can send them an email at [email protected] .

56) GE Ventures

GE Ventures is a German-focused venture capital firm investing in technology start-ups.

• Country: Liechtenstein, United Arab Emirates
• City: Dubai, Fürstentum
• Started in: 2020
• Founders: Dominik A. Lener, Shailesh Nair
• Industries: E-Commerce, Fintech, Food & Beverage, Crypto & Blockchain, Proptech & Real Estate, Enterprise, DTC, SaaS, Travel & Hospitality
• Stages: Late Stage
• 3 remarkable investments: Klarna, Kraken, Incard

You can send them an email at [email protected] .

57) MGH7 Venture Capital

Founded in 2015, MGH7 Venture Capital is a seed investor for consumer-focused lifestyle businesses such as tourism, fashion, sport, food and design.

• Founders: Francesco Mantegazzini, Andrea Mantegazzini
• Industries: SaaS, Media, Travel & Hospitality, Food & Beverage, Consumer, Entertainment
• Number of investments: 10
• 3 remarkable investments: The Gira, WeShort, Qurami

You can send them an email at [email protected] .

Exor is a corporate venture capital firm investing in early-stage private and public companies.

• City: New York
• Founders: Diego Piacentini
• Industries: AI & ML, Education, Travel & Hospitality, SaaS, Fintech, DTC
• Minimum check size: $150,000
• Number of investments: 9
• 3 remarkable investments: Futura, Nova, Nebuly

59) Tera Capital

Tera Capital is a Singaporean investment firm funding real estate and tech companies since 2003.

• Country: Singapore, China, Peru
• City: Beijing, Shanghai, Singapore, Lima
• Founders: Ted Fang
• Industries: Proptech & Real Estate, Media, Government Technology, E-Commerce, Travel & Hospitality
• Stages: Other
• Number of investments: 1

You can send them an email at [email protected] .

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16 Best Venture Capital Investors in Travel Tech (in 2024)

The Travel Tech sector in Europe is seeing true innovation. At the heart of this story are investors who recognize the transformative power of the industry and are keen to champion the companies working on problems worth solving.

This list is the result of tracking investment activity across +2,500 venture capital investors in Europe, and only includes funds that have invested in at least 5 Travel Tech startups in the past 12 months. If you're a startup in th space, an investor diversifying into new sectors, or someone keen on tracking the pulse of industry-specific investments, this list is a must-see.

Last update to the database: April 9, 2024. See changelog .

List of 16 top VCs in Travel Tech

Heartcore is a venture capital firm that invests in founders building category-defining consumer internet brands.

Copenhagen (HQ), Berlin, Paris, Stockholm, Lisbon

Seed, Series A, Series B, Series C, Series D, Series E, Series F, Pre Seed

$300k - $6M

Ecommerce, Manufacturing, Proptech & Real Estate and 34 more.

K Fund is a venture capital fund backing founders across Southern Europe and Latin America, from Seed to Series B.

Madrid (HQ)

Seed, Series A, Series B, Series C, Pre Seed

$100k - $10M

Fintech, Mobile, Business Intelligence and 35 more.

Kima Ventures investes $150k in 100 new deals per year.

$0k - $150k

Fintech, Ecommerce, Mobile and 61 more.

Speedinvest is a venture capital fund investing in Pre Seed, seed, and early-stage tech startups.

Vienna (HQ), Berlin, London, Munich, Paris

Seed, Series A, Series B, Series C, Pre Seed, Angel

$700k - $3M

Fintech, Mobile, AI and 57 more.

Notion is an early-stage venture fund that focuses on technology and cloud computing markets.

London (HQ)

Seed, Series A, Series B, Series C, Series D, Pre Seed

Fintech, Data and Analytics, Business Intelligence and 41 more.

Bonsai Partners is a technology venture capital firm investing in both primary and secondary opportunities in tech startups from Europe

Ecommerce, Fintech, Travel Tech and 24 more.

Battery Ventures is a global technology-focused investment firm.

Seed, Series A, Series B, Series D

Travel Tech, Service Industry, Business Intelligence and 4 more.

Coparion provides venture capital to accelerate momentum and growth.

Cologne (HQ), Berlin

Seed, Series A, Series B, Series C, Series D, Series E, Pre Seed

$500k - $8M

Manufacturing, Ecommerce, Health Tech and 36 more.

Y Combinator is a startup accelerator that invests in a wide range of startups twice a year.

Mountain View (HQ)

Seed, Series A, Series B, Series C, Series F, Pre Seed

$500k - $375k

Data and Analytics, Business Intelligence, Fintech and 66 more.

HV Capital is a venture capital firm that supports founders in developing their internet companies.

Munich (HQ), Berlin

$500k - $100M

Fintech, Ecommerce, Mobile and 52 more.

Kinnevik is an entrepreneurial investment group focused on building digital consumer businesses.

Stockholm (HQ)

Series A, Series B, Series C, Series D, Series E

Foodtech, Ecommerce, Mobile and 23 more.

Series A, Series B, Series C, Series D, Pre Seed

Travel Tech, Community & Lifestyle, Ecommerce and 7 more.

DN Capital operates as an early-stage venture capital firm.

Menlo Park (HQ), London, Berlin

Ecommerce, Proptech & Real Estate, Fintech and 40 more.

Bstartup is designed to support entrepreneurs so their projects can be developed with maximum guarantees of success.

Sant Cugat Del Vallès (HQ)

Seed, Series A, Series B, Series C, Pre Seed, Debt Financing

Ecommerce, Travel Tech, Health Tech and 29 more.

Atlantic Labs is an early-stage venture capital investment firm that is based in Berlin, Germany.

Berlin (HQ)

Mobile, Health Tech, Fintech and 53 more.

Seed, Series A, Series B, Pre Seed

Manufacturing, Climate Tech & Green Tech, Hardware and 51 more.

The curated list of the most valuable private companies in the world | Learn More

Travel Demand Is Up, But What About VC Funding To The Sector? 

Jan Seale and Cobai Kastan started their travel planning company Out of Office in March 2020—right when the pandemic hit and international borders closed down.

While travel companies, along with businesses in the live events and fitness industries, bore the brunt of the COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns, Out of Office, which helps users source travel recommendations from friends, pushed through. It launched its app in August 2021 and most recently raised a $3.5 million seed round of funding in April.

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“If you fast-forward to today, you’re seeing people are traveling more than ever despite the economic conditions looming,” Seale said.

Seale is correct. For the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic began more than two years ago, travel spending surpassed 2019 levels in April 2022, according to a report released earlier this month by the U.S. Travel Association .

But that doesn’t necessarily mean venture investment in travel companies is keeping up, especially with as investor fears about a recession rise. Funding to VC-backed companies in the travel and tourism industry group is at around $3.2 billion globally so far this year, according to Crunchbase data.

This is slightly behind where it was at the same time last year when investment into the travel sector rebounded to pre-pandemic levels. In 2021, VC-backed travel and tourism companies raised $10.7 billion. That was close to where funding was in 2019, which saw peak funding for the sector of the past five years.

“With so much pent-up demand for travel during the pandemic, the travel sector was really recovering quickly and growing, and yet people are trying to do things a little differently as a result of the pandemic,” said Steve Taub of Jetblue Technology Ventures of investment in 2021.

Jetblue Technology Ventures invests in early-stage companies innovating in the travel and hospitality space.

“It was sort of a reset,” Taub said.

Looking back

Last year laid the foundation for the travel industry’s recovery. The widespread rollout of the COVID-19 vaccines helped restore a sense of normalcy to the world, and travel restrictions eased up.

Simultaneously, VC funding to the sector picked up, and companies in the space made big moves of their own. Airbnb and Vacasa , for example, both went public last year, along with aviation companies Frontier Airlines and Sun Country Airlines.

But volatility in the public markets have caused investors to pause. VC funding as a whole is down, and travel is no exception.

So far in 2022, about a third of the companies in the travel and tourism sector that have raised funding were seed-stage companies. This includes Localeur , Out of Office and Showplace . Several are in the travel planning space, while others are in the hospitality or aviation tech space.

What’s next

It’s too early to say if funding to the travel sector as a whole will pick up. It’s somewhat dependent on the macroeconomic environment. Many VCs are waiting to see what happens in the broader market.

Especially with a recession looming, travel in general is expected to come down following this year’s “supercycle,” according to Hopper CEO Frederic Lalonde . In terms of funding, “I don’t think, travel or not, there’s a founder that can raise on an up round right now,” he said

But according to Samantha Patil, founder of Los Angeles-based travel planning startup Well Traveled, even a recession doesn’t mean that people will stop traveling altogether.

“I think as long as people can remember the point of time in their life that they couldn’t travel, which wasn’t that long ago, they’ll want to travel,” Patil said.

That might mean more local trips rather than a multicountry tour of Europe, she said

Seale of Out of Office, expressed a similar sentiment, pointing to the increased flexibility many people have with work-from-home policies.

“People have had more flexibility than they’ve ever had before, so regardless, people will get out,” Seale said.

Crunchbase Queries Used In This Article:

• Funding to VC-Backed Travel and Tourism Companies

Illustration: Dom Guzman

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The most active VCs in travel tech and their investments in one infographic

So far this year, travel tech startups have raised over USD 2.5 billion across 198 deals, and an increasing number of those deals are moving outside the United States.

So far this year, travel tech startups have raised over USD 2.5 billion across 198 deals, and an increasing number of those deals are moving overseas. In keeping with this, we’re also seeing that top investors in travel tech are becoming a more cosmopolitan crowd. We used CB Insights data to rank VCs by their unique travel tech investments (i.e., number of portfolio companies) since 2012, and found that among the top 11 VCs in travel tech featured in our infographic, four are located outside the US, including Index Ventures (UK), Caixa Capital Risc (Spain), Blume Ventures (India), and Gobi Partners (China). The rest of the VCs on the list are all based in California. We define travel tech as tech-enabled companies offering products and services focused on tourism, including booking services, search and planning platforms, on-demand travel, and recommendation sites. Car-hailing services are excluded from this analysis. Read original article

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Big tech, VCs and start-ups get ready for Virtuoso’s second annual Travel Tech Summit

Post date: Aug 8 2023

Date: Aug 8 2023

By: Travelweek

NEW YORK — Virtuoso will host its second annual Travel Tech Summit during the 35th annual Virtuoso Travel Week this month.

Taking place Aug. 12 at ARIA Resort & Casino, the summit will be led by tech entrepreneur, investor and Virtuoso board member, Gilad Berenstein, with a focus on innovation in the travel industry with insight from including Microsoft, Hopper and Deloitte and more. The summit will also feature a showcase of 20 startup businesses in the travel tech space.

“Integrating the Travel Tech Summit as a recurring session at Virtuoso Travel Week supports our mission to constantly discover the newest technology solutions for our members and partners, allowing for efficiencies so that they can focus on what they do best – serving clients and creating exceptional travel experiences,” says Virtuoso Chairman and CEO, Matthew Upchurch. “Bringing together established and emerging tech companies during a larger event solely focused on furthering luxury travel provides us and our network with the invaluable opportunity to be at the forefront of innovation – something that is imprinted in Virtuoso’s DNA.”

Businesses participating in the Startup Showcase will be divided into four groups based on respective focus areas: Advisor & Agency Tech; Hotel, Cruise, Tour & Transportation Tech; Sustainability Tech; and AI & Emerging Tech.

Here’s a closer look at the participants in the Advisor & Agency Tech showcase …

•  HyperGuest – HyperGuest is an end-to-end technology platform that facilitates seamless direct connectivity between hotels and travel companies.
• Tern Travel – Tern is a platform that purports to bring together everything advisors need to run their business with comprehensive technology.
• TravelWits – TravelWits built the first AI-enabled travel search engine to find door-to-door trips fully optimized around various user criteria while integrating the availability and prices of flights, hotels, car rentals and more.
• Tres Technologies – Travel advisors use the Tres software for integrations, automations and workflows aimed to achieve maximum benefits with minimal work.
• TripSuite – TripSuite is a VC-backed startup building the core operating system for travel agencies.

Tags: Lead Story, Virtuoso

Velocys Raises $40 Million for Jet Fuel Tech: Startup Funding Roundup 

Justin Dawes , Skift

February 17th, 2024 at 9:00 AM EST

More renewable jet fuel companies are raising money to develop products, but a lot more money is needed to reach the industry's zero-emissions goals by 2050.

Justin Dawes

Travel Startup Funding This Week

Each week we round up travel startups that have recently received or announced funding . Please email Travel Tech Reporter Justin Dawes at [email protected] if you have funding news.

Three travel startups have announced fundraises of nearly $90 million over the last week. 

>> Velocys , which develops tech to enable renewable jet fuel production, has raised $40 million from a new group of owners and investors. 

The company previously traded on the London Stock Exchange but became a private company last month with funding from Carbon Direct Capital, Lightrock, GenZero, and Kibo Investments. 

The England-based company said it makes reactors that clients can use to convert a number of products into jet fuel, known as sustainable aviation fuel. The company says its technology is compatible with a number of feedstocks, including municipal solid waste, woody biomass, carbon dioxide, and green hydrogen

The company last October opened a 52,500-square-foot factory in Ohio. The factory can initially produce 12 reactors per year, which the company said is the typical requirement to operate a renewable fuel facility at commercial scale. There are plans to expand capacity as demand grows.  

The funding will go toward product manufacturing, scaling, hiring, and training. 

Henrik Wareborn is continuing as the company’s CEO. 

Bob W: $43.1 Million

Bob W , a short-term rental company, has raised $43.1 million (€40 million) in a series B funding.

Evli Growth Partnership led the round. Taavet+Sten, the investment arm of online bank Wise’s co-founders, also participated, along with Flashpoint, Supercell co-founder Mikko Kodisoja, and others.

The Denmark-based company operates properties under its own brand, which it typically secures through rental or management agreements. It has its own app for booking and guest management. 

The rentals contain furniture and decor by local brands and artists, the company said. Bookings can include features like breakfasts, gym access, and local experiences.

The company said it has now secured over €70 million in funding to date.The company last raised €21 million in 2022. 

Bob W has rentals in 10 countries and 17 cities in Europe. 

Explurger: $4.5 Million

Explurger , a social media platform meant for travelers, has raised $4.5 million in series A funding. 

Affle (India) Limited led the round in exchange for 9.03% ownership in the company, with support from a group of angel investors. 

India-based Explurger said the app allows users to share photos and videos, track past travels, and make future plans. 

Skift Cheat Sheet

Seed  capital is money used to start a business, often led by angel investors and friends or family.

Series A  financing is typically drawn from venture capitalists. The round aims to help a startup’s founders make sure that their product is something that customers truly want to buy.

Series B  financing is mainly about venture capitalist firms helping a company grow faster. These fundraising rounds can assist in recruiting skilled workers and developing cost-effective marketing.

Series C  financing is ordinarily about helping a company expand, such as through acquisitions. In addition to VCs, hedge funds, investment banks, and private equity firms often participate.

Series D, E, and, beyond  These mainly mature businesses and the funding round may help a company prepare to go public or be acquired. A variety of types of private investors might participate.

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Our daily coverage of the global travel industry. Written by editors and analysts from across Skift’s brands.

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Tags: funding , vcroundup

Photo credit: Three travel startups raised nearly $90 million this week. Pixabay / Pixabay

VCs are obsessed with vector databases. Here are seven AI startups in the space that have raised millions from investors.

• VCs are hungry to back vector database startups and other behind-the-scenes tech that improves AI.
• Vector databases store and structure data that LLMs can then pull from.
• Business Insider has idenfied seven vector database startups that have been early winners.

Vector databases don't get as much love as their flashier counterparts, large language models (LLMs). But the startups building them are still crucial to the current AI revolution, and investors are eager to back the next big thing — to the tune of hundreds of millions of dollars.

Text, images, and videos are all examples of unstructured data. Vector databases capture and store the essence of a particular piece of data that a machine-learning program or LLM can then pull from.

Without a vector database, which can efficiently catalog vast amounts of unstructured data by their actual content, LLMs would have to rely on a human-generated tag or label when parsing through documents and data.

"You literally cannot use OpenAI on its own," explained Tim Tully, a partner at Menlo Ventures . "You have to have a vector database because something has to push context into the query to OpenAI. And where does that context come from? Always a vector database."

As AI startups continue to pique the interest of investors and command sky-high valuations , VCs are hungry to back the "picks and shovels" of AI that operate in the background but are integral to making the tech more powerful and easier for consumers to use.

Vector database startups fit squarely into that remit — and some startups in the space have already raised hundreds of millions of dollars from investors. Early leaders include Pinecone, which Tully has backed, as well as Chroma and Qdrant.

Business Insider has identified seven key players in the vector database arms race. These startups are organized by the amount of VC funding they have received.

Year founded: 2011 HQ: Mountain View, California Total VC funding: $357 million Notable investors: Bain Capital Investors, Tiger Global Management, TCV, SoftBank, Uncorrelated Ventures

Founded more than a decade ago, users can use late-stage startup Redis as a vector database to map otherwise unstructured data. The company most recently raised $110 million in Series G funding in April 2021, valuing the company at $1.89 billion, according to PitchBook.

Year founded: 2019 HQ: San Francisco Total VC funding: $138 million Notable investors: Andreessen Horowitz, Menlo Ventures, ICONIQ Growth

Pinecone went all-in on vector databases years before the generative AI boom. Founder Edo Liberty, who helped build Amazon's machine learning platform SageMaker, said he was inspired to start Pinecone when he went looking for a dedicated vector search solution and couldn't find one.

Year founded: 2020 HQ: Remote Total VC funding: $116 million Notable investors: Coatue, Felicis, Lightspeed, Elad Gil, Mozilla

Supabase launched in 2020 as an alternative to Google's Firebase that uses a relational database management system instead of a document database. It offers AI vector embeddings and other developer tools including storage, real-time updates, and an auto-generated API.

Year founded: 2017 HQ: Redwood City, California Total VC funding: $113 million Notable investors: Prosperity7, Pavilion Capital

Zilliz runs the open-source vector database Milvus and positions itself as one of the "most popular" options on the market — being used by 5,000 enterprises. The Chinese company most recently raised $60 million in Series C funding in August 2022, led by Prosperity7 Ventures, which coincided with the startup's relocation to the Bay Area.

Year founded: 2021 HQ: Berlin Total VC funding: $37 million Notable investors: Spark Capital, Unusual Ventures, 42CAP

Qdrant recently launched its Hybrid Cloud offering, which its says is the industry's first vector database that can run seamlessly across any cloud provider as well as on-premises. While not the largest company on this list, Qdrant boasts some high-profile customers, including consulting firms Accenture and Deloitte and Elon Musk's xAI.

Year founded: 2019 HQ: Amsterdam Total VC funding: $67 million Notable investors: Battery Ventures, Index Ventures, New Enterprise Associates

After Weaviate raised $50 million in 2023 (a relatively modest sum compared to some on this list), CEO Bob van Luijt told The Information that he met with only three firms before closing the round and was uninterested in eye-popping valuations. Van Luijt, who, before founding Weaviate, spent 13 years at a Dutch nonprofit, also says he's committed to transparency and cooperation. Accordingly, Weaviate's software is completely open-source.

Year founded: 2022 HQ: Total VC funding: $18 million Notable investors: Sequoia Capital, Jack Altman, Bloomberg Beta

One of the youngest companies on this list, Chroma refers to itself as an "AI-native open source" database. Though only two years old and still technically a seed stage company, Chroma has achieved notable traction and boasts an impressive slate of investors including Jack Altman, brother of OpenAI CEO Sam Altman.

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I've Been a Digital Nomad for 8 Years. 8 Unusual Gadgets I Always Pack

Commentary: If you want to cultivate a work-and-travel lifestyle, you need the right gear without being bogged down. Here's what I bring.

• Publisher's Weekly bestselling author with over 2,000 articles published in 100 publications and magazines.

I vividly remember the first time I traveled. I was 10 years old when my mother sent my brother and I to Mombasa, Kenya. She's Kenyan and wanted us to experience our culture and meet family. She couldn't travel with us because of work, so my brother and I traveled from Milwaukee as unaccompanied minors. I was just old enough to be amazed by the experience of flying, walking through airports and landing in a country where English wasn't the primary language.

Decades later, in 2013, I had my first big work trip as an adult. I'm a consultant who owns a software company, and a corporation in Sydney hired me to come to its offices and train its team.

Flying to Sydney was a surreal experience. The client paid for Premium Economy seats on Virgin Atlantic, and the plane had a full bar. My hotel overlooked Sydney Harbour and the Sydney Opera House. It was on this trip that I realized how much I loved working abroad, and the nomadic lifestyle began to call me.

The author in Sydney in 2013.

But I couldn't be a digital nomad yet; three young children waited for me stateside, where I had a home, cars and everything else that comes with a "normal" life. I continued to travel for my business, but they were shorter trips, which piqued my interest in what it would be like to live in Tokyo, South Korea, London, Dublin, Cairo and other places I visited. From 2013 to 2016, I traveled to 38 countries for corporate consulting training contracts. 

Later, when my children were older and living with their mom, I got serious about being a digital nomad. As the possibility of nomadic life became increasingly real, though, moments of excitement were quickly overtaken with the sinking feeling that I was abandoning my children and family. 

Therapy helped me understand that two things can be true: I can live a nomadic lifestyle, and I can still be there for my children. My kids were supportive of my lifestyle as a digital nomad. So, in 2016, I sold all my material possessions, sold my home and relocated to Medellin, Colombia, to embrace full-time digital nomadism. 

Since then, I've lived and worked in Mexico City, the UK, Paris, Madrid, Nairobi, Bangkok, Manila, Kuala Lumpur, Cape Town, Rome, Lisbon, Nice and Barcelona.

Digital nomadism has allowed the author to visit nearly 90 countries.

What I like and don't like about being a digital nomad

What I like most about being a digital nomad is how freeing the lifestyle is. I like having fewer material possessions and the ability to travel anywhere, anytime. I enjoy experiencing new cultures, history and the foods of other countries. Consulting and digital nomadism have allowed me to travel to 88 countries and live in over a dozen. I've been able to build my business and be touristy; I work Monday through Friday, then explore whatever country I'm in on the weekends.

What's hard about being a digital nomad is being far away from my family. Technologies like FaceTime, Zoom and social media make connecting more accessible, but it's not the same as hugging my kids and hanging out with them in person. Luckily, my nomadic lifestyle means I can travel to them whenever I want. 

8 unusual gadgets I always pack

As a digital nomad, tech is essential for both work and life. I need to be able to do everything I would do if I had an office, but in an Airbnb, hotel or apartment rental instead. Some of my gear is obvious, like my laptop ( M3 MacBook Pro ), smartphone ( iPhone 15 Pro Max ) and tracking tags ( AirTags ). 

The author's work hardware for nomadic travel.

Below are a few of my more nomad-specific gear picks.

iPad Magic Keyboard Folio

I spend a lot of time on airplanes, and a laptop is not always convenient to use, especially on local carriers in Europe. I travel with an iPad Air because I use it to work on planes, watch movies and streaming series and take video calls. Apple's Magic Keyboard sleeve is an iPad cover, but I also use it for the keyboard functionality in tight spaces.

Audio Technica ATR2100x-USB Cardioid Dynamic Microphone

Since I own a business, I do a lot of media interviews. Good sound is essential, so I travel with an Audio Technica ATR2100x-USB Cardioid Dynamic Microphone. The microphone is portable and has multiple ports so that I can connect it to my laptop or iPad.

Anker MagGo Power Bank

Early in my digital nomad life, I learned that I can't depend on airports, hotels or other places for power. I travel with an Anker MagGo Power Bank to power my gadgets when wall outlets are unavailable. I like this power bank (versus the others I've tried) because it has a usage indicator and 15x fast charging. 

AirFly Bluetooth Adapter

This Bluetooth wireless audio transmitter receiver works with AirPods or wireless headphones. You plug the gadget into an airplane or train's entertainment center, allowing you to pair your wireless device. It creates a Bluetooth connection anywhere there's a regular headphone jack.

Bose Noise Cancelling Headphones 700

I've been a fan of Bose headphones and bought a pair of the Bose Noise Cancelling Headphones 700 a few years ago. I use these headphones to watch entertainment on flights and at the places I'm staying. The Bose Headphones fit more comfortably than AirPods.

Read our Bose Noise Cancelling Headphones 700 review .

Apple EarPods

I like to also pack a set of wired headphones just in case something happens with my regular AirPods or I can't get my Bluetooth devices to work. If you scoop these up, make sure you have the necessary dongles for both your phone and computer.

Anker 332 USB Power Strip

I have all the international adaptors, but there can sometimes be a shortage of outlets where I'm staying, so I always travel with an extension cord -- it's an underestimated item in my opinion. This Anker power strip lets me use one international adapter with the extension cord and then plug in all my other cables. Surge protection is also important because every country regulates power differently.

Kings Loot Wallet with AirTag Holder

I travel mainly with credit cards, but also some cash, which is always helpful in other countries. A good RFID wallet brings me peace of mind. The Kings Loot wallet has RFID protection, but is also slim and comfortable, and there's also a slot on the front to slide in an AirTag.

Make your travel tech work for you

Whether you're embarking on a long remote work trip or exploring digital nomadism, the right gear makes the journey easier and more enjoyable along the way. Experiment with your setup on your next work trip to find what works best for you.

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Travel Tech Essentialist

Venture Capital in Travel Tech

Tens of billions of dollars are flowing to travel startups from venture capital, cvc and travel players. let’s find out who, what, when, where and why..

Travel startups are on the rise. There is a growing number of startups encompassing a wider range of travel subcategories and attracting a greater share of venture capital investments. These are some of the reasons that explain this trend:

A greater challenge . We are moving from the transaction era, where OTAs ruled, to an era where the traveller is demanding a seamless experience in the various phases of the travel journey: planning, booking, during the trip and post-trip. This is a tremendous challenge and entrepreneurs are focusing on the opportunities to add value throughout the chain.

An expanding market . Travel’s sphere of influence has expanded well beyond its traditional borders. Transportation is migrating towards integrating various modes of transportation, which is why subsectors such as ride-hailing or micromolity can be associated to the overall travel experience. Now we can see travel-related startups in real estate, social networking, media, robotics, security, connectivity, mobility, logistics, etc…

A greater interest by corporates . Suppliers and travel operators have realized that business as usual will no longer cut it. They are investing heavily in innovation to compete more effectively against new entrants, increase direct bookings, provide more unique experiences and increase revenues. This means that some of the world’s largest travel brands are now not only actively working with B2B and B2C startups, but actively investing in them as well.

Rise of the Rest. Investors and entrepreneurs are no longer concentrated in Silicon Valley, nor in the United States as a whole. New tech hubs are enabling entrepreneurs to launch companies all over the world, closer to wherever business opportunities exists.

Unicorns. A significant number of travel startups have joined the unicorn ranks in the last couple of years. A certain level of success (if measured by valuation) breeds additional interest in the space from both entrepreneurs and investors.

Megarounds. Funding rounds are getting larger as VC firms successfully raise larger funds from investors wanting to benefit from the possibility of finding the next unicorn, and as travel startups expand their scope into neighboring sectors and new markets.

In this post, I will explore the Venture Capital activity in the travel startup ecosystem (section 1) and then I’ll analyze some findings from a subset of 62 VC fundings in travel startups in 2019 and 2020 (section 2).

__________________________________________________ Sign up to Travel Tech Essentialist , my brief newsletter sent every two weeks with my pick of the top 10 news on the online travel ecosystem. __________________________________________________

1. Evolution of investments

Venture Capital investment in Travel & Mobility has skyrocketed. In the 6 years from 2013 to 2019 venture capital funding has multiplied by 22, from $1.4 billion to $30.3 billion, according to data from the Lufthansa Innovation Lab.

Data from Lufthansa Innovation Lab, Pitchbook, Crunchbase as presented at DLD Conference

VC money to travel startups is increasing, and so is the share that Travel & Mobility Tech represents in overall VC funding. In the 5 years from 2013 to 2018, Travel & Mobility’s share of total VC funding has gone from 2% to 18%.

VC Investments by geography

US travel startups received 68% of the aggregated VC funding in travel & mobility in the 2010–2014 period, followed by Asia with 20% and Europe with 9%. In the period between 2010 to 2019, we see a very different story. Asian travel & mobility startups took 56% of VC funding (vs 20% in 2010–2014), US 38% (vs 68% in 2010–2014) and Europe 5% (vs 9%). The decade ended with China as the largest destination of VC funding to Travel and Mobility startups. This is according to data from the Lufthansa Innovation Lab, and I am just looking at the universe of the top 15 countries receiving the most VC investments.

Data from Lufthansa Innovation Lab, Pitchbook, Crunchbase. Taken from LIH infographic

The Growth of Travel Unicorns

The last two years have seen a large number of new travel unicorns (valuation > $1 billion). 13 of the 34 travel and mobility unicorns that exist today reached unicorn status in 2019, and 23 reached it in 2018 and 2019.

A geographical breakdown of the number of unicorns, their % share of the unicorn’s total combined valuation and the average valuation per unicorn shows interesting regional differences. China’s average unicorn valuation is $10 bn, while Europe’s is $1.8 bn, although both have a median value of $1.5 bn:

Source: Travelandmobility.tech and CB Insights Note: I am excluding autonomous vehicle unicorns.

Here is the full list of travel and mobility unicorns:

Some of the data coming from Travelandmobility.tech and CB Insights , in addition to my own research. Note: I am excluding autonomous vehicle unicorns.

Corporate Venture Capital and travel players are increasingly participating in travel startup financing rounds

Startups can be a source of acquired innovation for large companies. Incumbent companies in the travel space have realized the value that startups can bring to their businesses, both in terms of potential commercial and investment opportunities.

Corporate Venture Capital (CVC) activity has boomed as a result. Lufthansa Innovation Hub produced an analysis showing that almost half of travel & mobility investment rounds had at least one CVC in 2017, and 42% in 2018. On those two years, CVCs have had a greater share of participation in travel & mobility investment rounds than across the rest of sectors.

Data from The State of Travel & Mobility Tech, elaborated by Lufthansa Innovation Hub using sources: Lufthansa Innovation Hub / travelandmobility.tech, PitchBook, Crunchbase, Press Research (Note: this analysis includes autonomous vehicles)

Airlines are actively investing in startups and many of them have launched innovation platforms through which they work closely with the travel startup ecosystem. The top 5 most active airlines (and their investment vehicle) are JetBlue’s JetBlue Technology Ventures with investments in 23 startups, KLM’s Mainport Innovation Fund (19 startups), Hahn Air’s HR Ventures (15), Air Asia’s RedBeat Ventures (13) and Japan Airlines’ JAL Ventures (12).

Note: Qantas dropped its venture activity at the end of 2018

Hotels, GDSs, OTAs, and others are also accessing innovation and growth through startup investments. Some of the most active have been AccorHotels (18 startups), Booking Holdings (15), Amadeus’s Amadeus Ventures (14), Expedia Group (13) and Boeing’s HorizonX Ventures (13). Airbnb also shows a startup investing appetite with 9 startups mostly in the hospitality and local activities space.

I am certain that the list of startups and corporates mentioned in the previous two tables is incomplete so please let me know of any missing startups so that I incorporate them.

2. Analysis of 62 VC funding rounds in travel startups

Since I started sending my Travel Tech Essentialist newsletter, I’ve gathered a list of 62 travel startup funding rounds from January 2019 to February 2020, for a total raised of $6.8 billion, equivalent to close to 25% of the VC funding in the travel & mobility sector in 2019. I have only tracked rounds of at least $1 million. This list is by no means exhaustive but it does represent a sizeable share of VC investments in travel tech startups, so hopefully the conclusions can be directionally relevant.

VC funding in travel startups by stage

This table shows high median values for each stage for this sample of 62 VC fundings. These are some of the megarounds behind: seed round of $14 million for Paris-based app Leavy.co (helps millennials pay to travel) was a record for travel tech seed rounds; early venture round of $9.8 million for Refundit , an israeli startup that automates VAT refunds for travelers and retailers; Series A round of $300 million for Chengjia (short-term rentals of apartments); Series A round of $42 million for Beyond Pricing (dynamic pricing tool for vacation rentals); Series C of $590 million for Joby Aviation (electric air taxi); Series C of $319 for Vacasa (vacation rental).

Analysis of 62 VC rounds in travel startups in 2019 and 2020 reported in Travel Tech Essentialist newsletter *Note: does not add up to 62 because I have excluded 1 PE round and 4 rounds with unspecified stages

VC funding by startup country and city of origin

40% of the VC financing rounds in this sample go to travel startups in the United States. Europe is also well represented, with 23 startups (37% of the total), led by Spain (8 startups), Germany (6) and France (4). There are vast differences in the median values (although not statistically significant given the insufficient data points). On the lower end we see median rounds of $3.4 million rounds in Spain, $10 million in Israel and $11 million in France, and on the higher end we have $250 million in China, $65 million in “other countries”, $49 million in Germany and $48 million in the USA. Countries with significant megarounds include Germany with FlixMobility ($500 million) and GetYourGuide ($484 million), and China with Chengija ($300 million) and Mafengwo ($250 million).

Analysis of 62 VC rounds in travel startups in 2019 and 2020 reported in Travel Tech Essentialist newsletter

Zooming in to a city level, San Francisco (including Silicon Valley) leads the chart with 11 startups, but five of the top eight cities with the largest number of financing rounds are European cities: Paris, Barcelona, Berlin, London, and Madrid. Same as with the country table and with the same caveats, the cities show different dynamics in terms of median size of funding round. At $3.3 million, Madrid has the lowest median round and New York the highest with $85 million.

VC funding in travel startups by sector

We’ve all seen the explosion in investments and startup creation around the accommodations space and in tours & activities. Something less discussed is the growth of startups around transportation. The 62 travel startup funding rounds shows that, indeed, the accommodations category is the largest one, with more than 50% of the VC rounds in the travel space. Transportation startups however, have already surpassed tours & activities ones in terms of investment received. We are seeing an increasing diversity in transportation options that result from looking at the transportation challenge with a “getting the job done” lens. Travellers want to get from A to B, not necessarily from the airport closer to A to the airport closer to B. This is why businesses based on interlining and multimodal transportation are emerging as big opportunities. We also see that corporate travel has become an important target of VC investment.

VC funding in travel startups by VC or corporate investor

As travel startups tackle greater markets and problems, we begin to see VCs that specialize in the travel and hospitality space. A few examples: Mairdumont Ventures , a German VC that only invests in travel, with 12 investments so far; Convivialité Ventures , Pernod Ricard’s venture arm, investing in services and experiences within the “conviviality” space, including hospitality and entertainment; Thayer Ventures , based in San Francisco and investing in only travel startups, with 26 investments so far.

Let’s now look at the VCs and corporates with multiple investments within our 62 VC funding round subset:

Invested in 5 startups - Airbnb (San Francisco): OYO, Lyric, Zeus Living, Tiqets, Atlas Obscura

Invested in 4 startups - SoftBank (Tokyo) : OYO, FlixMobility, Klook, Domio

Invested in 3 startups - JetBlue Technology Ventures (Silicon Valley): Joby, Flyr, Stride - Prime Ventures (Amsterdam): Blueground, Holidu, Leavy.co - Thayer Ventures (San Francisco): Life House, Beekeeper, Meus - K Fund (Madrid): Exoticca, Bob, BeOnPrice - Sequoia Capital (Silicon Valley): OYO, Klook, Tourlane

Invested in 2 startups 3L Capital , Amadeus Capital Partners , Andreessen Horowitz , August Capital , Benchmark , Booking Holdings , Comcast Ventures , Convivialité Ventures , DST Global , GGV Capital , Greenoaks Capital , Harbert Growth Partners , Highland Capital Partners , Holtzbrinck Ventures , Lightspeed Venture Partners , Index , Mairdumont Ventures , NFX , Qiming Venture Partners , RXR Realty , Spark Capital , Swisscanto .

I hope that this analysis is useful for you. Please feel free to share your thoughts, feedback, suggestions or corrections.

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As VCs slow gaming investments, Frost Giant turns to community for fresh capital

Video games haven’t been a niche hobby for ages now, but the scale of the industry built around gaming is still not as well known as it deserves. Revenue from video games totaled some $39.4 billion in the United States during the first three quarters of 2023 . Meanwhile, the box office for films in the United States was worth a comparatively modest $9 billion in all of last year.

Big, global revenue numbers have not saved the video game industry from layoffs, but people around the world are still spending on new titles and hardware. It’s a great time to be a gamer, but is it as good a time to be a gaming studio? One gaming startup is shaking up its fundraising approach in a way that could chart a new path for studios that are seeing reduced appetite from traditional, private investors.

Frost Giant, a venture-backed startup building a real-time strategy (RTS) game called Stormgate , is turning to its community to top up its coffers ahead of the game’s launch this year. The company’s decision to test the waters for an equity crowdfunding round comes after it sold millions of dollars’ worth of goodies to supporters on Kickstarter earlier this year .

TechCrunch caught up with Frost Giant’s CEO and production director, Tim Morten, about the company’s choice to pursue community capital, which they said could bring more marketing and operating capital.

It’s not hard to see the logic behind the choice to raise more funding before returning to venture capitalists. The venture capital market for gaming companies has retreated sharply since Frost Giant last raised money ( a $25 million Series A back in 2022 ). And with Stormgate expected to launch this year (an early access launch is pegged for Q3 2024), more funds could give the company enough leeway to launch its game and collect early revenue from its release. That may even be enough to entice another tranche of traditional venture funding for its enterprise.

Gaming, venture and the state of RTS

Esports has received much press over the last decade, often centered around multiplayer titles like League of Legends, Dota 2 and Counter-Strike. But in the early days of competitive esports, RTS titles like StarCraft and StarCraft II were trailblazers. That part of the video game industry has grown a lot since those games were released, but RTS games were critical to the early development of esports .

Frost Giant has already gained some credibility, thanks to its pedigreed team, some of whom worked on acclaimed games like StarCraft II and Warcraft III. Stormgate is a spiritual successor to the StarCraft franchise in many ways , and the studio is not afraid to show that off. Fans of those storied RTS titles will therefore find that this new game feels familiar, and that promise is proving to be a boon for Frost Giant: The company’s Kickstarter event sold $2.4 million worth of bonuses to over 28,000 backers, who paid for things like entry to an upcoming “preview week” for the game, access to its Discord server, beta access, and even physical items.

Morten said that his team was “positively surprised” by the amount of interest the Kickstarter engendered. But it was not designed as a fundraising effort; instead, the company pitched the event as a way to offer its fans something special before the game launched.

The company had also seen interest from some folks regarding investing directly into the company both before and after its Kickstarter campaign, he added. While Frost Giant expects that the audience for its upcoming community raise, structured as a Reg CF (regulation crowdfunding) offering , won’t match perfectly with the gamers it attracted to its Kickstarter, Morten does expect some overlap.

Thus far, Frost Giant has picked up $611,421 in reservations for its community fundraise on its Start Engine page. That’s a good start and the momentum implies that the company will be able to raise some operating capital when its equity crowdfund does go live.

Reg CF offerings are limited to $5 million, so Frost Giant has a hard cap on how much it can raise. But such offerings require financial disclosures. We got a similar peek into Substack’s financials when it raised capital from its community last year, and we’ll get a similar influx of data from Frost Giant.

Frost Giant has said publicly that “Stormgate is fully funded to release,” which means that the new capital could extend its post-launch runway, affording it more time to grow its revenue and better attract venture dollars should it need to. Still, if the Stormgate crew decides to look to traditional private-market investors, it could face an uphill battle: Venture investment into gaming companies declined 79% globally and 86% in the United States last year compared to 2022.

Stormgate will be free to play at launch but will let gamers spend money inside the game. Per Morten, fans of StarCraft II liked the increased amount of campaign content, cosmetics, and heroes they could choose in co-op modes in that game, so expect to see similar products from Stormgate in time. As someone who owns a chest of Caitlyn skins for League of Legends and has spent more time than I want to admit redressing my Tiefling paladin in Baldur’s Gate 3 to ensure that her armor all matches, I can assure you that gamers can get pretty damn fond of their digital avatars and are willing to invest money and time into them.

Of course, no amount of Kickstarter wins, equity crowdfunding or low-pressure monetization will be able to make Stormgate a success if it doesn’t attract an active and passionate player base. How well is the title doing in that regard? The company points out that it is the 36th most wishlisted title on Steam today, and it has racked up more than 50,000 followers on that platform.

That’s a good start, but the proof will be in the early access pudding.

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How I’d Spend $1,000 at Home Depot

We initially published this story as an exclusive for our newsletter subscribers on April 22, 2024, but we liked it so much we’re putting it up on the site, too. If you’d like to sign up for the Strategist newsletter,  you can do so here .

Welcome to  How I Pick My Picks  — a kind-of-regular newsletter series where we check in with the Strategist staff on the stuff they’re using day to day, the products they’re testing for stories, and the things their friends and family won’t stop asking them about. Consider it a peek into the always whirring brain of a Strategist writer. Today, we talk to home-décor, gardening, and clothing-care writer  Erin Schwartz .

I’m  a home-décor writer  at the Strategist, so I’m always tweaking things in my apartment. I don’t like to spend a ton of money on these projects — in part because  I’m a renter  and want to be able to pack everything up and move it someday and because the cost of living in New York has gotten insane. If I want cool  furniture , I need to get creative with what I already have or can find for cheap.

My current  home-DIY  project is a  mirror . Months ago, I found a Craigslist post for “PORTHOLE with many uses, wooden, sturdy, beautiful,” listed for $7 with a few grainy photos of a roughly four-foot square of honey-colored plywood with a large circle cut out of the center. I had to buy it. (The seller, it turns out, was moving to Florida; his husband had decorated their Hell’s Kitchen apartment in a nautical theme years ago, lots of blues and grays and two custom-cut wooden portholes.)

I’m using four metal brackets to sandwich a piece of mirror between the porthole and the wall — the porthole becomes a way to fake a circular mirror, a similar theory to  a popular Gustaf Westman mirror  that nests a rectangular mirror inside a custom-cut wiggly wooden frame. Plus, doing things with my hands — both home DIYs and tending to my two-dozen-ish  houseplants  — is a good break from working with text on screens all day. It’s like crop rotation of the mind; if something I do often depletes one resource, I look for a hobby with different requirements to balance it out. (And the Craigslist adventures are worth it alone.)

What’s the product that friends and family always ask for your advice on?

A lot of people ask me for advice on altering and repairing clothing, which I love to talk about. When in doubt,  add a patch , and check out the book  Creative Mending,  by Hikaru Noguchi , for knit-mending ideas. If you’re in New York City, I’d also recommend  Eva Joan Repair .

The one thing I recommend to everyone is getting a soft tailor’s tape measure. They’re  $3 on Amazon , but you can also find them at any craft store or dollar store. It will unlock a world of great-fitting clothing to buy online and dramatically reduce the number of things you have to return because they fit weird. Most vintage sellers list measurements, but, if not, it’s normal etiquette to send the seller a message asking for specific dimensions. (As a short king, I often ask for the sleeve length, shoulder width, and total length.)

Do you have any strongly held opinions that changed after testing?

I’ve become sort of obsessed with what I call “solved products,” categories in which there’s already an item on the market that’s affordable, reliable, and would only get worse with tweaks or upgrades. (The  Lodge   cast-iron pan  is a classic solved product; ditto  Felco   garden pruners .) I used to think every category had its solution, even if it hadn’t been invented yet. But when working on  our article on bar carts , I realized that it’s more fun when that’s  not  the case. I talked to a ton of drinks and design people about bar carts, and each of them had a different answer, some of which weren’t even furniture; gin distiller Morgan McLachlan uses the top of her piano. I think we will never solve bar carts, and that’s okay — beautiful even.

What’s the least amount of money you should spend on, for example, a dining chair?

If you’re buying new, I’d say you can get a pretty solid dining chair for $60 — that’s the price of the  Article Svelti , my  best-in-class pick — if you’re buying vintage or secondhand, $20, or free! You can find great free furniture on the street or on Craigslist. Just look for something sturdy and trust your intuition.

What are you currently testing and researching?

I’ve been deep in a quilt hole for the past week — I love all the different things a quilt can be made of and used for. While trying to ID some patchwork-quilt patterns, I found this great resource from Michigan State University called  the Quilt Index , which has been online since 2003.

What’s the last thing you purchased?

I bought a few things at the Baserange archive sale, which had some incredible deals;  I mentioned it to deals editor Sam Daly  because I’ll never gate-keep a good sale. I got a  knit polo  and one of the  brand’s lettuce-edged long-sleeve tees  with a yawning hole just south of your right nipple. The shirt wants to ride up, which is why, I imagine, it was on sale. But since I got top surgery six months ago, I am going through the canon event of wearing a ton of artsy nipple-baring tops, so it’s perfect for me.

What’s the most expensive product you own?

My  sofa  and  coffee table . They’re secondhand  Gae Aulenti for Knoll  that I got from Aran Simi, a.k.a.  The Fetish Priest , a vintage seller who is incredible at historicizing his stock and is just a really nice person. I got a good deal in exchange for being able to pick it up ASAP — it was about $2,100 for both the three-seater sofa and the coffee table. It was worth it; both the couch and table are well made and durable, with a heavy metal frame. I’m still kind of mystified that I found it at a price I could afford. Thinking about anything happening to my couch and table is the only reason I have renter’s insurance.

If you had to spend $1,000 at Home Depot, what would you buy?

I’d get a  Makita drill  and a  jigsaw , a  shop vac , some  limewash paint , a  36-inch square panel of mirror  for the porthole thing, and some  oriented strand board (OSB)  for a shoe rack I’m working on.

What are some open tabs on your computer right now? What’s on your list but you can’t bring yourself to buy it just yet?

I keep my shopping list on Airtable to avoid tab clutter (here’s a  link ). Some things I wish I could justify buying right now: a  latex polo shirt  from British company Libidex in the “translucent natural” color (I picked up its button-down shirt last year, but it didn’t fit right, so I resold it on Depop; I’m hoping the polo will fit better), an  undyed wool rug  from Hook & Loom, and a  photo-printed-fire pillowcase  from the brand Serapis.

The Strategist is designed to surface the most useful, expert recommendations for things to buy across the vast e-commerce landscape. Some of our latest conquests include the best acne treatments , rolling luggage , pillows for side sleepers , natural anxiety remedies , and bath towels . We update links when possible, but note that deals can expire and all prices are subject to change.

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