Insights
Every story from the Sesamers desk — funding rounds, data, interviews and opinion across European tech.
The best events for fundraising in Europe, ranked by investor density
We rank Europe's flagship startup events by investor density - computed from each event's own published figures - and explain why that number beats headline attendance for founders raising a…
How to raise a pre-seed round in Europe
The mechanical guide to raising pre-seed in Europe: when to start, what to prepare, how to build the investor list, and how to close - calibrated against real round data.
What is a seed round? The European founder’s guide to seed funding
A seed round funds the search for repeatable demand - here is what European seed rounds look like, what happens to your cap table, and the honest odds of reaching…
The best startup events in Europe 2027: the complete calendar
Every major European startup event in 2027, organised by quarter - with verified dates clearly separated from expected slots, and a framework for picking the ones worth your badge.
European accelerators and incubators: the complete guide
What accelerators, incubators and studios actually cost, why Europe's equity-free programmes change the maths, and how to evaluate any programme before you sign.
What is pre-seed funding? Cheque sizes, investors and how it works in Europe
Pre-seed funding is the first outside capital a startup raises to prove the team and the problem - here is what European rounds look like, who writes the cheques, and…
QuantumLight Closes $500M Fund II – and Algorithmic VC Stops Being an Experiment
Fifteen months after its first fund, Nik Storonsky's QuantumLight has closed an oversubscribed $500M Fund II - deployed by an algorithm, not a partnership. LPs have repriced systematic venture at…
The EIF’s €15B ETCI 2 Is Europe’s Biggest Bet Yet on Fixing the Scaleup Gap
The European Investment Fund's ETCI 2 is a €15B fund of funds built to back around 100 growth-stage VC vehicles and unlock up to €80B in scaleup financing. The ambition…
Composites Are About High Performance. So Are Events.
A startup event strategy needs the same discipline. Spend enough time around (deep-tech) startups and you start noticing a familiar pattern. The same founders appear at event after event: a…
The most digital companies in the world are opening coffee shops
The AI industry runs on GPUs, APIs and Discord servers. So why is an AI insurance startup valued at $4 billion signing a lease for a 24/7 café in Shoreditch?…