Too much research, too few startups: Noctua raises €15M to close Austria's deeptech gap

Noctua Science Ventures, a specialised pre-seed fund for research-based deeptech spin-offs from Austria, has successfully completed its first closing at €15 million and has begun investing.  First close investors include ERSTE Group, Verbund and Allocator  One.  Originally founded as a joint venture between Speedinvest and TU Wien, Noctua has now expanded its shareholder base to include further leading technical universities. TU Wien, TU  Graz, Montanuniversität Leoben, the University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna  (“BOKU”) and Johannes Kepler University Linz are now part of the operating company behind Noctua, anchoring the fund in Austria’s research system. According to Philipp Stangl, Investment Lead, Noctua Science Ventures: “Cutting-edge research only realises its full value once it finds its way to market – but private funding for high-risk deep-tech projects is often lacking. With our first closing, we are  stepping into this gap and supporting the next gene