I think this might be some of the best news for the European tech scene in a long while. Sure the new Google Ventures Europe fund isn’t the biggest, but having seen how they work in the US, I think it’s going to really change how investment works over here. There will be no thick carpets in Mayfair. No investing in stuff that doesn’t have the potential to change the world. No trying to screw founders over with funny terms.
Even better GV is truly about ‘more than money’ which I think is sorely needed in Europe and will hopefully mean that other investors up their game and start hiring more diversely. As the release says, “Startups need more than just capital to succeed: they also benefit from engineering support, design expertise, and guidance with recruiting, marketing and product management.” Amen to that.
So huge congratulations to Eze, Tom, Avid and Peter. Please do things differently. Don’t accept that startup investment has to be done the way it is now. Then we’ll really start motoring.
