Earlybird Venture Capital

Quick read

Earlybird Venture Capital is a multi-stage VC firm founded in 1997 and headquartered in Berlin, Germany. It invests across Western Europe, Emerging Europe, and health tech via a family of independently managed funds — Digital West, Digital East, Health, the pre-seed Earlybird-X, and a Growth Opportunities fund — with €2.5 billion under management and a track record of 9 IPOs and 35 trade sales. Fund VIII, closed at €360 million in 2025–2026, is the firm's largest raise to date.

Key facts

Founded

1997

Employees

40-77

Sectors

generalist, healthcare, enterprise, ai

Website

earlybird.com

Investment thesis

Earlybird backs early-stage European technology companies across digital (Western and Emerging Europe) and health tech, writing initial checks from pre-seed through Series A and supporting portfolio companies into growth via a dedicated Growth Opportunities fund. The firm concentrates on fintech/insurtech, enterprise software, deep tech, and biotech — with a stated conviction in university spin-offs and founders building with global ambition.

Recent activity

• May 2026fundraise
  Earlybird closed its eighth early-stage fund at €360M. Backers included new and existing institutional investors and family offices. The fund targets AI Applications, Software Infrastructure, Foundation Models, and DeepTech. The Catalyst program will support founders, operators, and domain experts through community-building and hands-on support. vcwire.tech
• Apr 2026investment
  Portfolio company Aleph Alpha was acquired by Cohere, marking one of Earlybird's most recent portfolio exits. tracxn.com
• Jun 2026investment
  Bayshore, a Munich-based startup automating legal and compliance processes, raised $8M in a round that included Earlybird among the investors. tracxn.com
• Oct 2025leadership
  Christoph Massner was promoted to Partner at Earlybird Venture Capital, having joined as an Associate in January 2020 and progressed through Principal before reaching Partner level. linkedin.com
• 2025press
  Earlybird Health portfolio company Hilo by Aktiia launched its 2026 German Blood Pressure Report, highlighting widespread public misunderstanding of hypertension — 68% of respondents overestimate what normal blood pressure looks like. de.linkedin.com
• 2025press
  General Partner André Retterath discussed two strategic paths for VC firms in an interview on the Scaling Europe podcast — selling the management company or building a legacy — confirming Earlybird chose the latter. de.linkedin.com
• Jan 2026press
  Earlybird co-hosted a breakfast at its Munich office during the Munich Security Conference, signaling active engagement with the European tech and policy community heading into 2026. de.linkedin.com
• Dec 2025investment
  Earlybird backed Swiss/German AI startup Porters in a €2.7m Pre-Seed round led by the firm. de.linkedin.com
• 2026fundraise
  Earlybird closed Fund VIII (EB VIII) at €360 million, its largest early-stage fund to date, dedicated to European tech founders. linkedin.com
• 2026leadership
  Earlybird Health promoted Dr. Rabab Nasrallah and Dr. Christoph Massner to Partners, both having led the firm's biotech and data-enabled therapeutics strategy. zoominfo.com
• 2026leadership
  Thom Rasche stepped into an Operational Partner role at Earlybird Health upon the final closing of EB VIII. linkedin.com
• 2026investment
  Earlybird backed eleQtron's funding round alongside Schwarz Digits, EIC Fund, NRW.BANK, and others, supporting quantum computing infrastructure. linkedin.com

Notable investments

• BayshoreSeedJun 2026tracxn.com
• Aleph AlphaGrowthApr 2026tracxn.com
• Greenlyte Carbon TechnologiesUndisclosed2025linkedin.com
• Hilo by AktiiaUndisclosed2025de.linkedin.com
• AIPERIA (PlanerAI)SeedUndisclosedaiperia.com
• PortersPre-SeedDec 2025de.linkedin.com
• terralayrSeed2024linkedin.com
• thingsTHINKING (semantha)SeedMay 2021semantha.de
• eleQtronGrowth2026linkedin.com
• HiloSeries B2026zoominfo.com
• certivitySeries A2026zoominfo.com
• QuantumDiamondsGrowth2026de.linkedin.com

Key people

Named individuals at the firm. We don't expose direct email or phone — use their LinkedIn for outreach.

• Konstantin Guericke · Partner
  LinkedIn
• Thom Rasche · Operational Partner, Earlybird Health
  LinkedIn
• Dr. Frédéric du Bois-Reymond · Partner
  LinkedIn
• Dr. Rabab Nasrallah · Partner, Earlybird Health
  LinkedIn
• Laura Waldenstrom · Investor
  LinkedIn
• Umberto Belluzzo · Investor
  LinkedIn
• Hendrik Brandis · Co-founder & Partner
• Christian Nagel · Co-founder & Partner
• Roland Manger · Co-founder & Partner
• Fabian Heilemann · Partner
• Dr. Thom Rasche · Partner, healthcare

Sources

• Earlybird Venture Capital | LinkedIn
• Umberto Belluzzo - Earlybird Venture Capital | LinkedIn
• Thom Rasche - Earlybird Venture Capital | LinkedIn
• Earlybird - 2026 Investor Profile | Tracxn
• Earlybird - Overview | ZoomInfo
• Earlybird Venture Capital Information | RocketReach
• Earlybird Venture Capital | Crunchbase
• Dr. Frédéric du Bois-Reymond | LinkedIn
• https://de.linkedin.com/company/earlybird-venture-capital
• https://vcwire.tech/2026/05/06/earlybird-venture-capital-closes-eighth-early-stage-fund-at-e360m/
• https://www.linkedin.com/in/dr-christoph-massner-658311120

Other VCs in Germany

• Project A Ventures · Early-stage VC, Berlin·
• Cherry Ventures · Early-stage VC, Berlin·
• Point Nine Capital · SaaS-only VC, Berlin·
• High-Tech Gründerfonds · Seed VC, Bonn·
• HV Capital · Multi-stage VC, Munich (ex-Holtzbrinck Ventures)·
• 468 Capital · Early-stage VC, Berlin

Explore VCs by sector

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Globally

• Generalist worldwide
• Healthcare worldwide
• Enterprise software worldwide

Frequently asked