Project Europe; a new fund for founders “solving hard problems with technical solutions”, says it has initially pulled together $10 million from 128 different founders and tech execs from startups both in Europe and further afield. The list, which you can view here, includes the founders of Klarna, Mistral, and SoundCloud; successful recipients will each get €200,000 (around $200,000) to build out their ideas.
The companies need to be started in Europe, but there are no restrictions around moving them later. Founders also do not have to have fully formed startups to apply. You can apply with an idea or if you “have been tinkering around a thesis,” the fund notes on its site.
The criteria for Project Europe funding and support:
- You are under 25 years old.
- Solving hard problems with technical solutions.
- You have an idea or have been tinkering around a thesis.
- You start your company in Europe.
- No prior education / funding necessary.
The leading individual of this movement is Harry Stebbings, founder of 20VC, who has gathered a powerhouse of European founders to support Europe’s next generation of entrepreneurs:
Just to name a few Partners, that are included on the list; Mati Staniszewski – CEO, ElevenLabs, Rina Onur Sirinoglu – CEO, Spyke Games, Victor Riparbelli – CEO, Synthesia, Joel Hellermark – CEO, Sana, Fabian Kamberi – CEO, Slay, Max Linden – CEO, lemon.markets, Din Bisevac – CEO, Buena, Steffen Tjerrild – COO, Synthesia, Ferdinand Dabitz – CEO, Ivy.
In addition to the money, cohorts receive 1:1 mentorship from one of the nine partners in the fund, other benefits include access to the 119 others in the fund for advice. Harry Stebbings, the podcaster-turned-investor at 20VC who has built a business out of growth hacking and micro-investing, is one of the creators of Project Europe. He is offering access to his media empire as part of the deal, too.
“The world has made up its mind that Europe is not a place of innovation. That is wrong,” said Harry Stebbings. “There is a doom loop around Europe and we need to change that. The brain drain to the U.S. is very real and it’s going to really damage the future of Europe unless something changes.”
The Website of the Project Europe.
