Investors from leading European funds joined this year’s discussions, including Jakob Stein (Creandum), Louis Frach (Left Lane Capital), Ska Sijia Du (Karma Ventures), Peter Lasinger (3VC), and Petr Šmíd (Rockaway Ventures). They agreed that venture capital is undergoing a fundamental shift. Rather than chasing rapid, top-line growth and wide expansion, investors are focusing on technologies that create long-term value, economic resilience, and Europe’s industrial sovereignty.
„Europe has more and more investors who look beyond quick returns and consider how their capital shapes the world around them. Investing is becoming a tool of economic, social, and technological change and is resonating with a new generation that weighs values and the impact of its decisions,“ said Petr Šíma, Partner at DEPO Ventures.
AI, defense tech, and science as keys to Europe’s innovation edge
Panel discussions showed that AI is moving from horizontal platforms into specialized verticals where unique data and deep domain expertise make the difference (healthcare, energy, etc.). At the same time, Europe faces a significant “AI adoption gap”, a mismatch between the rapid development of AI and its real-world deployment across industry and services. Half of all VC investment worldwide now targets AI startups. Yet Europe faces a major funding gap: European AI companies have raised around 9 billion euros, while investments in the United States have surpassed 120 billion euros.
Defense tech has become one of the fastest-growing markets. Today they account for roughly 4% of all European venture investments about 2 billion euros annually even though just a few years ago the segment was almost marginal. Space engineer and scientist Jan Lukačevič noted that modern space tech is built on data that can strengthen the resilience of Europe’s economy, from energy and transport to crisis management and agriculture.
While Czech and European universities and research institutions keep developing cutting-edge deep-tech, only a small portion reaches the market. Limited tech-transfer capacity, differing speeds between academia and business, and a more complex regulatory environment compared with the U.S. slow commercialization. Finnish deep-tech investors and defense accelerators shared their successful model for linking the military, academia, research, and private capital into a functioning ecosystem – significantly speeding up the creation and deployment of strategic technologies.
From an underdog to one of Europe’s fastest-growing ecosystems
In recent years, Central Europe has rapidly progressed from an underrated market to one of the most dynamic tech hubs. Contributing factors include strong technical talent, capital efficiency, a growing number of successful exits, and increasing interest from Western funds. EU innovation programs also play a major role. „Today, Central and Eastern Europe has enormous innovation potential and is attracting more foreign capital. Conferences like Engaged Investments are important because they give people space to meet, share experience, and move the entire market forward,“ added Adam Kočík, Managing Partner at J&T Ventures.
Day 2 showcased 50 selected startups to investors
Engaged Investments presented 50 investment-ready startups to investors across stages – from pre-seed to Series A. The lineup included space projects involved in the European CASSINI program run by the EUSPA agency and Ukrainian defense startups. Sourcing new opportunities and cross-border co-investing are integral parts of supporting the European startup ecosystem. „Engaged Investments is valuable for connecting an international network of investors with startups and expert partners. It creates new business opportunities and concrete collaborations that help startups scale, succeed on foreign markets, and enable investors to share know-how, for example in deep-tech or cybersecurity,“ said Petr Chládek, CEO of the JIC innovation agency.
The program also featured practical workshops and expert consultations, covering regulatory topics, led by the law firm Bird & Bird. The legal framework is often a crucial challenge for startups and investors in tech sectors. „Many startups and investors operate in highly regulated industries such as defensetech, fintech, healthtech, or regtech. While these ‘rules of the game’ may seem limiting at first glance, understanding them, especially with an advisor who knows the terrain, clearly defines each player’s room to maneuver. For investors, it enables choice in structuring transactions with bounded risk; for startups, it provides flexibility in identifying opportunities and paths to growth,“ said Ivan Sagál, Partner at Bird & Bird.
Engaged is primarily financed by organizations that have long supported the development of Europe’s startup and investment environment. The main partners of this year’s edition were JIC Ventures, the fund of the South Moravian Innovation Centre, and the international law firm Bird & Bird. Additional supporters included VC funds Warsaw Equity Group, 3VC, Purple Ventures, Tilia Impact Ventures, Credo Ventures, Soulmates Ventures; the agencies CzechInvest, CASSINI #EUSpace, ESIL; and private companies Spyrosoft, VESTA Software Group, and Jonas Software.
