Six deeptech startups - all finalists from the first cohort of the Ventures Thrive (VT) pan-European venture builder - have outperformed their semi-finalist counterparts across all eight KPI categories, as measured during and after their completion of a curated Growth Programme.

In various KPI categories, the startup finalists outperformed semi-finalists ten-fold.

Throughout the programme, startups tracked their metrics in a variety of areas, including Revenue, Fundraising & Grants, New Hires, Investor Meetings, and more. Benchmarked against their peers who did not attend the programme, these companies show consistently higher levels of business and product development.

The Growth Programme’s Impact

The  eight-month Growth Programme utilised a KPI-based structure, spurring the startups to set - and reach - specific goals and milestones during their tenure. Content and support, including  workshops, masterclasses, and personalised mentoring and coaching sessions, further enriched their progress and demonstrably improved  their investment readiness.

The KPI format focused on a triple-A structure: Ambitious goals (setting difficult OKRs), Access to support (funding and mentoring) and Accountability (KPIs were tightly enforced). This three-pronged approach apparently made all the difference for the companies, and remarkably, several founders have now permanently integrated the KPI process into their operations.

Antti Heikkila (Ventures Thrive Coordinator and A8 CEO), sees a direct correlation in investment readiness from all companies who participated in the venture builder:

“The VT Growth Programme has proven itself as a successful runway extension for deeptech startups across Europe. Furthermore, it was remarkable that all startups, the VT finalists and semi-finalists, demonstrated an improved readiness to meet investors. We are currently working with the second cohort, who so far are tracking just as well as the first cohort.”

Between March 2023 and January 2024, the six startups collectively close €1.7m in funding and onboarded 28 new employees - up to a ten-fold increase compared to their peers who did not pursue the programme.