Earlybird VC has closed Fund VIII for €360 million, making it the largest fund in the Berlin-based firm’s nearly 30-year history. Backed by leading institutions and family offices, Earlybird currently manages total assets of €2.5 billion
Founded in 1997 by Dr. Hendrik Brandis and Dr. Christian Nagel, Earlybird is one of the oldest early-stage VC firms in Europe. Its portfolio includes nine IPOs and 41 trade sales, as well as investments in N26, Trendyol, and Snyk. The investment team is led by Mr. Brandis and Mr. Nagel, along with partners Paul Klemm, Tim Rehder, and Dr. Andre Retterath, who joined in 2017 to lead the AI and infrastructure practice.
Fund VIII will focus on three key areas: AI applications, software infrastructure and foundation models, and deep tech and hardware. The fund has already invested in companies such as Black Forest Labs, SpAItial AI, Sintra AI, Arago, Porters and Rivia.
Earlybird has a strong track record in deep technology, investing in Isar Aerospace before European space technology was widely recognized and Marvel Fusion when fusion was still largely academic, giving it credibility in this space.
With Fund VIII, Early Bird introduced what it calls a perpetual active ownership model. Only active partners own the firm, and when someone retires, ownership passes to the next generation of partners. There are no outside sales, no outside investors, and no equity structure that benefits the original partner more than the new partner.
The company says this approach removes the usual barrier of requiring new partners to have significant personal assets. Instead, ownership is based on merit and contribution.
The company has also created its own AI platform, EagleEye. It is used internally to identify and evaluate transactions and support portfolio companies post-investment. Leteras, who is leading the project, said it aims to strengthen belief rather than replace judgment, and enable teams to more efficiently identify Europe’s top early-stage founders.
Twenty-nine years later, many VC firms have sold, stalled, or disappeared. Earlybird has raised its largest fund, passed ownership to the next generation, and invests in AI infrastructure from a position of strength not found in many European start-up funds.
