Uplift Ventures, the Hamburg- and Berlin-based venture platform, has launched its inaugural €100 million venture capital fund to back Europe’s next generation of DeepTech founders.
The fund is backed by Jungheinrich, the German intralogistics group that founded Uplift Ventures. It will deploy the €100 million across up to 20 startups and selected DeepTech funds, primarily in Europe and the US, building what it calls a global network that continues to support founders after the initial investment.
“DeepTech requires patient capital and partners who understand both industrial challenges and entrepreneurial ambition. Uplift Ventures invests in the next generation of industrial leaders, making them an important partner for Jungheinrich, firstly with world class financial returns and with immense value for our 2030+ strategy,” said Dr. Lars Brzoska, CEO, Jungheinrich.
Founded in 2025, Uplift Ventures operates as an independently run venture platform backed by Jungheinrich. It has already built the compliance-automation startup turnus.ai in-house and invested in several European DeepTech funds.
With Europe being home to legacy industry players such as ABB, Siemens, Schneider Electric, and Rolls-Royce, Uplift Ventures wants to use it as a foundation for a new generation of globally relevant technology companies.
Uplift Ventures says its €100 million DeepTech fund aims to close one of the biggest financing gaps in the European tech ecosystem: the shortage of capital for ambitious DeepTech companies at the late Seed and Series A stages.
The fund will target four sectors: physical AI, energy, enterprise AI and logistics. The firm plans to take a flexible approach to each deal, acting as a lead, co-lead, or participating investor, depending on what best serves the founders and the round.
To lead the new fund, Christian Noske has joined Uplift Ventures as Founding General Partner, joining a leadership team that already includes Kerk Wichmann, Christina Hammes, and Maike Steding.
Noske brings more than ten years of Deep Tech investing experience, having led European investments at NGP Capital and served as a founding partner at BMW i Ventures and Alliance Ventures. His past backing includes The Exploration Company, ANYbotics, Tekion, Dataloop and WeRide, and he hosts the podcast “DeepTech Unleashed”.
“We’ve spent years investing in Deep Tech and have seen both the many ways these companies can fail and what it takes to build exceptional outcomes. I’m excited about launching Uplift Ventures’ new fund: Europe needs dedicated Deep Tech investors who are in it for the long run. Founders build great companies—we’re here to have their backs and provide resources, experience and a global perspective,” said Noske.
Noske is joined by an investment team of Katharina Schild, Lukas Böttcher, Susan Suzart and Helge Jelinski, who together have previously worked at firms including Cathay Innovation, Speedinvest, Mimic Robotics and Start Global, and have collectively backed more than 30 startups across various technology sectors.
The firm plans to keep growing its team over the coming months as it makes its first investments in 2026.
Source: EU-Startups
