Amid Increased Momentum For Defense, The Nato Innovation Fund Refreshes Its Investment Team

Two years aft securing $1 cardinal successful commitments from complete 20 countries, nan NATO Innovation Fund (NIF) is entering a caller chapter, marked by nan presence of 2 caller partners and nan departure of its penultimate founding squad partner.

In a discourse of accrued subject spending crossed NATO members, finance successful dual-use exertion has skyrocketed since nan inaugural was first announced in 2021. Once a no-go-zone for organization investors, defense and resilience tech past reached an all-time precocious of 10% of each VC funding successful Europe, wherever astir each NIF’s backers are located.

This booming liking should person fixed NIF a first-mover advantage, but nan money was hampered by guidance challenges and a bid of high-profile departures. After nan 2025 NATO Summit successful The Hague reaffirmed its value past June, NIF is now emerging pinch an almost wholly caller finance team. It is composed of 3 partners.

While NIF primitively had 4 partners and 1 managing partner, a personification acquainted pinch NIF said that this flat, three-partner exemplary will beryllium nan building successful spot for nan foreseeable future, suggesting that nary caller hires are to beryllium expected. These 2 appointments had antecedently been rumored, but nan identities of nan caller partners had not been confirmed.

Two of nan partners are caller hires: Ulrich Quay and Sander Verbrugge, who will beryllium based successful Amsterdam. Quay, a German national, was astir precocious successful complaint of firm investments arsenic a vice president astatine BMW, wherever he antecedently founded and led firm task money BMW one Ventures. Verbrugge, a Dutch PhD successful molecular biophysics, was antecedently a partner astatine heavy tech VC money Innovation Industries, which he joined aft moving astatine semiconductor creation and manufacturing institution NXP. The 3rd partner is London-based VC Patrick Schneider-Sikorsky, now nan past remaining personnel of nan original finance team. Alongside nan caller hires, nan money announced nan departure of founding squad partner Kelly Chen, who confirmed to TechCrunch that it was her determination and that she will beryllium stepping distant to build a caller venture. Chris O’Connor, different founding squad partner, departed earlier this twelvemonth pinch akin plans.

Chen presently sits connected nan committee of respective startups backed by NIF, but will modulation her committee responsibilities erstwhile her employment astatine nan NIF has wrapped up, TechCrunch learned from its main communications and trading officer, Amalia Kontesi. 

While immoderate observers wish nan money had deployed superior faster, she said NIF “is connected way to meet [its] investing goals for nan year.” Since its inception, NIF has made 19 investments: 7 into costs specified arsenic OTB Ventures, and 12 into startups including Space Forge and Tekever, which makes dual-use drones.

Still, adding caller partners pinch business and technological backgrounds, nary matter really impressive, whitethorn not fulfill those who wish that nan money could put successful Ukraine aliases axenic defense, arsenic opposed to dual use, successful consequence to Russia’s warfare economy. But it is besides successful statement pinch NIF’s broader thesis to “empower heavy tech founders to reside challenges successful defence, security, and resilience.”

However, NIF has besides ramped up its efforts connected nan defense side. Its squad was heavy progressive successful nan improvement of NATO’s Rapid Adoption Action Plan, aimed astatine accelerating nan take and integration of caller technological products for defense. NIF has besides been building up its Mission Platform Group pinch strategical hires including John Ridge, who was hired arsenic main take serviceman successful 2024 to thief portfolio startups navigate subject procurement.

As for its caller partners, they were erstwhile again hired done a process antecedently described by VC Michael Jackson arsenic akin to “building a boy band” — identified by NIF’s committee of board and approved by LPs, alternatively than having teamed up based connected shared history aliases chemistry. 

This whitethorn beryllium inevitable for an statement that now counts 24 countries arsenic constricted partners, but was often pointed arsenic 1 logic nan erstwhile squad didn’t gel. This time, each 3 partners sewage to meet passim nan recruitment process and walk clip together since past to “ensure a soft modulation and to position nan squad for agelong word success,” Kontesi said.

In a connection shared exclusively pinch TechCrunch, NIF’s vice chair, professor Fiona Murray, compared nan statement to a startup. “We are proud of what we accomplished but for illustration immoderate effective squad we are learning, experimenting, improving:  speeding up our processes, expanding our level support for startups, doubling down connected ecosystem building and much broadly recognizing nan request to build nan assemblage and nan superior stack.” 

Murray expressed pridefulness successful having brought together a qualified squad that tin collaborate effectively, creatively and quickly. “They will alteration america to move moreover much quickly and decisively to thrust nan Alliance’s technological schedule and support nan champion founders crossed European ecosystems,” she antecedently wrote successful a associated connection pinch NIF’s chair, Klaus Hommels. 

Hommels’ different activities arsenic an investor person prompted questions about imaginable conflicts of interest, but nary alteration appears to person been made to his domiciled during NIF’s caller LP gathering successful Venice. Rather than dwelling further connected its reorganization, NIF seems group connected helping NATO go much resilient. “In this adjacent phase,” NIF’s vice chair said, “you’ll spot america refocus connected DSR opportunities and stress building companies that tin thrust business standard and really support ecosystems crossed Europe.”