In this EU25 interview, Valentin Menedetter, General Partner at Vektor Partners, offers a deep dive into the growing relevance of dual-use and defense technologies in Europe’s venture landscape. He explains how Vektor began backing companies in this space as early as 2020—well before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine or today’s geopolitical urgency brought the sector into the spotlight.
Menedetter outlines why technologies with both commercial and defense applications are attracting new attention from limited partners (LPs) globally, including those from the U.S. and Asia. He emphasizes Europe’s unique advantages: top-tier engineering talent, relatively low valuations, and increasing regional urgency around sovereignty, resilience, and technological independence.
The conversation also explores how specialized knowledge and experience are crucial for identifying genuine innovation in a complex and often under-the-radar sector. Menedetter advocates for more private capital in defense tech, warns against hype-driven investing, and calls for a long-term approach to building critical infrastructure in energy, AI, edge computing, and battlefield technologies.
Ahead of her appearance at 0100 DACH in February, Daisy Cai, General Partner at B Capital, reflects on deep tech beyond the label—and where frontier innovation becomes enduring value.
AI is no longer a fringe technology—it is rapidly reshaping entire industries, from climate and energy to industrial operations and enterprise software. Yet as competition intensifies and barriers to entry fall, the question facing venture investors is no longer whether to invest in AI, but how to identify companies capable of generating durable, long-term value. In this interview, Jeremy Brown, Principal & Head of Climate at Anthemis, shares his perspective on evaluating AI businesses beyond the hype, drawing on his experience at the intersection of AI, climate, and complex industrial markets, and setting the stage for a broader discussion with fellow investors on where real opportunity—and real risk—now lies in AI venture capita
he third edition of 0100 International — organized by Zero One Hundred Conferences in partnership with the Milan City Council’s Department of Economic Development and Milano&Partners — brought together the global private markets community for a high-signal, execution-focused gathering held from October 27–29.
