Startup Europe — The Sifted Podcast

This week we discuss:02:55 Mobility giant Bolt likely to acquire rival Tier in weeks05:00 Northvolt to build German and US factories10:13 ETH spinout ANYbotics raises $50m for AI-led robo workforce 13:54 Startup valuations continue to plummet in 202317:52 It’s not just the CFO who’s quit: Meet the people left with power at Revolut23:26 A taster of the foods of the futureListen to Sifted's new podcast series sponsored by EQT Ventures: "Downturn Survival Guide."

This week we discuss:01:30 German startup Blinkist acquired by Australian content company Go105:39 Proposed EU net neutrality 'paywall' for internet access spooks founders09:55 Micro-ticket investment platform Odin raises $3m following public launch13:45 Outperforming doctors and dealing with hallucinations — how GenAI will transform healthtech18:37 What the 'Father of Alexa' did nextListen to Sifted's new podcast series sponsored by EQT Ventures: "Downturn Survival Guide"

This week we discuss:01:20 Investors say new UK listing rules might not be enough to entice tech companies05:24 German startup Prematch raises €2.4m to build 'Fifa for amateur football' 09:22 Mental health therapeutics startup HelloBetter raises €7m for further US expansion14:17 Can France save the metaverse?

This week we discuss:01:27 Northvolt to confirm US expansion plans within weeks, cofounder says04:07 Leaked deck raises questions over Stability AI's Series A pitch to investors08:16 The call for a CERN-like AI supercomputer11:16 This startup has raised $31m to turn wood into glass14:10 IV infusions and blood purification: Inside one of Europe’s first longevity clinics20:30  Meet the startup sending scientists around the world to build a database of all lifeListen to Sifted's new podcast series sponsored by EQT Ventures: "Downturn Survival Guide"

This week we discuss:Shareholder upheaval and a $630m debt burden: end of the road for Cazoo?How a corruption scandal has left dozens of Polish startups facing bankruptcyThe Family Files: Inside France’s ugliest startup fightToxic bosses and unhealthy cultures: Why Europe’s VCs are tired and burnt out

This week we discuss:01:18 Checkout.com faces exec team exodus and makes layoffs ‘by stealth’05:30 ‘Mini-revolt’ as TravelPerk U-turns on remote work08:26 Founders had to wait ‘far too long’ for EIC Fund cash, admits chair11:09 YC alum SolarMente raises for subscription solar panel service17:57 Coworking retreats and hiking holidays: Inside the biggest startup community you’ve never heard of

This week it’s another long form interview and we’re joined in the studio with Johannes Schildt from Stockholm-based digital healthcare provider Kry. After a tough 2022, the founder reflects on dealing with layoffs at the company, pausing operations in Germany and the challenges of working with disjointed healthcare systems. He also looks ahead to how exciting technologies like large language models (which power the likes of GPT-4) could supercharge healthcare in the future, and tells us what he’s like as a boss. 

This week we discuss:03:54: Starting to take off: German rocket maker Isar Aerospace raises $165m06:43: Europe’s spacetech report06:59: Climate tech Agreena raises €46m Series B to fight climate change with carbon sinks09:52 Channel 4-backed fintech shuts down, searches for buyer12:39: ‘We are super, super fucked’: Meet the man trying to stop an AI apocalypse19:11: Gloria Bäuerlein closes one of Europe’s first female solo GP funds

This week it's a longer form interview with Matt Clifford, founder of early stage investor and startup builder Entrepreneur First. He's also recently been appointed as an AI advisor to the UK government, so we brought him into the Sifted studio to ask him how the UK and Europe can have an AI strategy that moves the needle, as companies like Microsoft and Google increasingly dominate the space.

This week we're doing a special episode looking at the Silicon Valley Bank crash, why it happened, why the tech sector was so exposed and how the government stepped in to help save the UK subsidiary of the business.We’re joined by special guests Dom Hallas, from UK tech lobby group Coadec, and Benedikt von Thüngen, cofounder of diagnostics startup Sanome which had 85% of its cash in SVB.We also analyse what the UK budget means for startups, including big spending on quantum research and more support for AI innovation, plus cut to R&D tax credits.The articles we discuss this week:- UK Spring budget: R&D cuts but huge quantum spend- SVB UK: the latest on the startup bank’s collapse — and sale to HSBC- SVB UK still funding loans after HSBC buyout, say sources- SVB: Why did so many UK startups only have one bank account?- ‘It was terrifying’: 48 nightmare hours for European tech founders as SVB collapsed- VCs are ‘absolutely to blame’ for SVB chaos, says Seedcamp’s Reshma Sohoni- Opinion: UK government should not bailout SVB UK