Stockholm-based Norrsken is increasing impact investing with a €57 million fund aimed at early-stage startups pushing solutions in green energy, biotech, supply chains, and more. Companies now receive €250,000 upfront, twice what Norrsken’s previous accelerator offered.
This way, Norrsken Evolve is building a cross-Europe network, expanding beyond its Nordic base into rising tech hubs like Tallinn, Barcelona, and Kigali.
“With Europe in the midst of environmental, geopolitical and financial turmoil, many feel demoralised. Yet there is a rising wave of pioneers in the fields of science and technology who have the vision to tackle the severe challenges we face head-on with groundbreaking solutions,” states Rebecka Löthman Rydå, General Partner at Norrsken Evolve.
A new model for a fragmented European startup scene
European tech remains heavily concentrated in a handful of cities, leaving founders and ideas scattered and underfunded. Norrsken’s fund tarreceives this gap head-on with intensive, in-person “sprints” designed to guide founders through critical development phases. The fund’s backers include the European Investment Fund, plus tech royalty like Klarna’s Taavet Hinrikus and Sten Tamkivi through their firm Skaala.
The first batch of portfolio companies reveals the breadth: New Dawn Bio grows wood alternatives 10,000 times rapider than trees, while Bubble Robotics deploys underwater robot swarms for climate resilience. Jälle Technologies turns battery waste into lithium and graphene-like materials.
“When we launched Norrsken Accelerator four years ago, our mission was clear: to build a pipeline of emerging impact-tech unicorns. We’ve proven the model works. Now, with the €57m Norrsken Evolve fund and a world-class team behind it, we’re doubling down,” explains Funda Sezgi, co-CEO of Norrsken Foundation.
The fund plans to back 20-30 companies annually, operating from an expanding network that now includes a new tech hub in Tallinn called Kasvuhoone.
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