Artur Kluz

✨ Seraphim Space Index Highlights: Taxonomy 🌌 🛰 Downlink: Historically, it has been one of the smaller investment segments. However, the current and previous quarters have seen multiple significant deals with $30m+ rounds (Armada, Second Front Systems, Skyloom Global and Skylo Technologies). As a result of these deals, the category has seen the most significant year-over-year growth in investment. Technologies related to communications and cybersecurity are key enablers for satellite communications, one of the largest markets addressed by space today. 🔭 Build: is seeing increasing investment. We attribute this to the growth in the space segment, creating a larger market opportunity for businesses providing the building blocks for the space economy in terms of satellites, payloads,  and software. This quarter saw Hadrian, which produces precision machined components, raise the second largest round at $117m. 🚀 Beyond Earth: No standout deals in Q1 24. The TTM period has seen significant activity in large rounds from Sierra Space, Axiom, True Anomaly and more. In H2 2023, this sector attracted the greatest investment as investors back the next generation of space infrastructure. The sector has shown significant growth compared to the previous TTM period. Read the full index here for more details - https://lnkd.in/e2vfgrk4

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Industrial Transformation and Supply Chain Innovation & Technology is where Great Power Competitions are won or lost.

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Pleased to share some insights into our latest fund SSV II 🛰 🌌 Following the same strategy as its original SpaceTech-focused venture fund, a top-performing fund for its vintage, SSV II aims to build a portfolio of c.30 companies. The Fund has already made nine investments. The 9 companies currently making up the SSV II portfolio are: 💫 Hubble Network – Internet of Things satellite constellation for connecting directly to billions of Bluetooth-enabled devices Delos Insurance Solutions – Space data-powered wildfire home insurance provider ATMOS Space Cargo – Space cargo return service for life sciences Auriga Space – Novel electromagnetic launch system Array Labs- 3D satellite imagery on a global scale Privateer Space - constellation of small SATs for in-Space Situational Awareness (SSA) Ubotica Technologies - Live Earth Intelligence (Space: AI) Renoster - Deep Transparency for nature-based carbon projects constellr - Space data-powered high-precision smart farming services Find out more👀 https://lnkd.in/eS_9w7c3

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Seraphim Space Ventures II (SSV II): Meet the companies 🛰 🌌 Following the same strategy as its original SpaceTech-focused venture fund, a top-performing fund for its vintage, SSV II aims to build a portfolio of c.30 companies. The Fund has already made nine investments aligned with some of our key themes via a warehouse portfolio. Hubble Network – Internet of Things satellite constellation for connecting directly to billions of Bluetooth-enabled devices Delos Insurance Solutions – Space data-powered wildfire home insurance provider ATMOS Space Cargo – Space cargo return service for life sciences Auriga Space – Novel electromagnetic launch system Array Labs - 3D satellite imagery on a global scale Privateer Space - constellation of small SATs for in-Space Situational Awareness (SSA) Ubotica Technologies - Live Earth Intelligence (Space: AI) Renoster - Deep Transparency for nature-based carbon projects constellr - Space data-powered high-precision smart farming services Take a look at our new page to find out more - https://lnkd.in/dau2tw2d

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#ProjectForABillion Today, in our regular column, I want to talk about the Cariloop project, which raised $20 million in a Series C round this spring. The lead investor was ABS Capital, which is also known for its investments in PowerReviews (recently exited) and LabConnect. But let's get back to the project in the Mental Health category. By the way, if psychologists ever asked me how to get rich and build a capitalized business, I would recommend working in their specialty and creating projects for corporations in the psychological and mental health category. In 2023, $435.2 billion was directed to this industry (this includes all project investments, not just venture capital). While there are still some managers in Russia (and elsewhere) who don't believe that a depressed employee who sleeps poorly, is torn between caring for children, and walks on the parapet at night is unlikely to create high results and a sustainable team, managers of almost all large corporations around the world are paying just as much attention to mental health as to physical health. Maybe these naive people are indeed investing half a trillion dollars so that employees can more efficiently scold their parents and school teachers? I've heard that silly version too. Cariloop is a platform where each employee is assigned a Care Coach with whom they can share or, in light cases, delegate the search for solutions to problems (although the platform indicates various types of problems, medical issues are most often mentioned in examples) not only for the user but also for their family members: children or even parents. A Care Coach can help navigate the healthcare system, provide educational support (about diseases, care methods), emotional support, and, if needed, legal or financial assistance. Special emphasis is placed on the fact that health coaches interact with each other and exchange information (how they do this without violating confidentiality, I will clarify later). I will not dwell in detail on the business efficiency claimed by the startup. It is clear that there are very beautiful infographics and analytics on the website about how much employee efficiency and, consequently, business efficiency improve when interacting with such a service solution. Check it if you want. I am skeptical about trying to measure the impact of employees' psychological health on business in numbers. However, evaluating the results of a business managed by psychologically unhealthy employees in numbers is much easier. We can start from there. *This is not an investment recommendation. **This is not a project the author has invested in (yep, it's required now). ***This is not a project I've been studying in detail for 10 years; it's just my subjective assessment of one of the most interesting projects that raised a round in the reporting period.

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🛰 The Seraphim Space Index Q1 2024 is live 🛰 🌌 Since 2017, we have been producing the Seraphim Space quarterly VC investment Index , which allows us to share our unique access to knowledge and data about investing in space technology. This data is now available in an easy-to-use interactive format, allowing you to look back and track growth and trends from 2017 to today. View dashboard: https://lnkd.in/exvPuBkY Some highlights from the last quarter: 🤑 In Q1 2024, the space sector maintained its upward trajectory, with a notable $2.4 billion invested, marking a steady increase from Q4 2023’s $2.1 billion. This is part of a larger trend of $7.2 billion invested over the trailing twelve months to Q1 2024, compared to $6.6 billion in the preceding period. 🌕 Lunar Landers: Three attempts were made, with two successful landings! JAXA: Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency's SLIM made Japan the fifth country to land on the moon. NASA - National Aeronautics and Space Administration's CLPS-funded missions by Astrobotic and Intuitive Machines. Despite some tipping over post-landing, these missions mark significant progress. 🚀 SpaceX Starship Launch: March's launch showcased remarkable progress. With all 33 Raptor engines firing, "hot staging" completed, and the upper stage reaching suborbital orbit, SpaceX and NASA hailed it a success. Though the landing burn was unsuccessful, it is paving the way for future achievements. 📡 Direct-to-Cell: SpaceX initiated text messaging via Starlink satellites in January, but expansion faces challenges due to FCC spectrum denial. Meanwhile, AST received a strategic investment, and Skylo raised $37m, demonstrating growing interest in broadband coverage. 🛰️ Varda Earth Return: Varda Space Industries's successful capsule return in February, in collaboration with Rocket Lab, marked a significant milestone. Additionally, Varda's space crystallisation results of Ritanovir hold promise for drug research. 🇨🇳 China's Rising Influence: China's space endeavours continue to expand, with notable advancements in both public and private sectors. Landspace's successful rocket return and Shanghai Spacecom's massive funding highlight China's growing significance. 🛡️ Starshield: SpaceX's $1.8bn contract with the NRO for Earth Observation satellites signifies a shift in focus towards EO capabilities, leveraging the Starlink platform for enhanced satellite capabilities. 🛰️ SPAC Troubles: Astra and Momentus face financial challenges, with Astra opting for a private takeover. Terran Orbital Corporation received a take-private offer from a major shareholder, Lockheed Martin. Momentus warned shareholders it was running out of money but subsequently announced a registered direct offering (RDO) of $4m from an institutional investor.

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Regulatory clarity for responsible crypto innovation is emerging in the US and stands to catalyze the market adoption of such innovations. When regulations are clear, consumers and innovators all benefit. Financial Innovation and Technology for the 21st Century Act (#FIT21) is expected to pass with bipartisan support in Congress. FIT21 would redefine how securities issuers have to comply with existing federal law and Supreme Court precedent. The bill would create a new definition specific to digital assets, to identify when they're digital securities or digital commodities and whether the SEC or CFTC should be the primary spot market regulator. This collaborative approach signals a shift away from the current unclear, antiquated and antagonistic processes in some of the US regulatory agencies.

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Transforming investments: Goldman Sachs' tokenization projects Goldman Sachs is set to redefine investment strategies with the launch of three tokenization projects in 2024. This bold step by the $1.64 trillion asset manager signifies the growing acceptance and integration of digital assets in traditional finance. Mathew McDermott, Global Head of Digital Assets, expressed the firm's dedication to meeting the evolving needs of clients and exploring new avenues like sub-custody. With industry leaders like BlackRock already seeing significant success in this space, Goldman Sachs' entry further solidifies tokenization as a key player in the future of finance. #DigitalAssets #Tokenization #GoldmanSachs #Blockchain

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Dan Primack had some pointed criticism for #VC yesterday in his Axios Pro Rata newsletter (a daily must read IMO 😤). In short, the model doesn't work if it can't produce exits for LPs. Don't blame public markets (which are at all-time highs) for the lack of liquidity either. 📈 💸 Instead, this is a "liquidity drought of your making" where "...swinging for the fences on every pitch, rather than taking the single or double that's available" is the only way out when you invest at "sky high valuations." 😰 "A whopping 37% of "unicorns" are being held for at least nine years by VC funds, including 13% that are past the 12-year mark." 😳 ⌛ Is he right? Is VC at a dire inflection point? Or is Primack prematurely hitting the panic button? 🚨 https://lnkd.in/dts92pXr

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How SpaceX Revolutionized Space Travel 🚀🌌 Content: SpaceX has redefined what’s possible in space travel and exploration. Here’s a look at their incredible journey: The Vision 🌠 Founded by Elon Musk in 2002, SpaceX aimed to reduce space transportation costs and enable the colonization of Mars. Many thought this vision was too ambitious, but SpaceX has proven the skeptics wrong. Key Milestones 📅 Falcon 1: In 2008, SpaceX's Falcon 1 became the first privately developed liquid-fueled rocket to reach orbit. Reusable Rockets: The successful landing of the Falcon 9 rocket in 2015 marked a breakthrough in reusable rocket technology, drastically lowering the cost of space missions. Crew Dragon: In 2020, SpaceX made history again by launching NASA astronauts to the International Space Station (ISS) aboard the Crew Dragon, the first commercial spacecraft to do so. Impact 🌍 SpaceX’s innovations have not only reduced the cost of space travel but have also paved the way for new possibilities in space exploration, satellite deployment, and even space tourism. Lessons Learned 📚 Bold Vision: Dare to set ambitious goals. Innovation: Continuously improve and innovate. Resilience: Overcome setbacks and keep pushing forward. SpaceX’s journey from a daring startup to a leader in the space industry is truly inspiring. What other space industry successes have inspired you? Share your thoughts in the comments! 🌟 Detailed article on the Space industry coming soon!

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Interesting post by Howard (Lee) Mosbacker IV, PhD on changing VC thinking in non Silicon Valley ecosystems. And yes, things have got to change. Howard argues that we need an active secondary market for VC positions at Series A rather than wait for those companies to become Decacorns. I completely agree... to an extent. Those secondary markets already exist, however. They are called stock markets. Hear me out. The VC world is so obsessed with Decacorn NASDAQ listings, that they've forgotten what built our industry. CISCO, Nvidia, AMD, Adobe, Amazon, Intel, all IPOd at sub $500m valuations. Companies are now being advised to wait until they have $500 Million in ARR before listing. This is madness. To be fair, U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission rules and our litigious culture make a US IPO at a sub $1B valuation extremely difficult. Costs in the US are too high. Other global stock markets don't have that problem. For instance, on the LSEG (London Stock Exchange Group) AIM market companies regularly IPO doing $10-20m in ARR growing 30% a year. IPO costs are 30% vs US costs, the US has more class action shareholder lawsuits in a year than the LSEG (London Stock Exchange Group) has had in a decade. IN 2021, the LSEG (London Stock Exchange Group) had ~160 IPOs with an _average_ valuation of $100million. There's similar great small cap programs at the ASX, TSX Group and Euronext. The problem isn't the lack of a secondary market. The problem is that US VC's and board members don't look beyond the US to IPO. Maybe we should think outside of the box on this a little. BTW, I buy post Series B secondaries at Practical Venture Capital, and project manage small cap IPOs as a side hustle. You know... BYOL ( Bring Your Own Liquidity ) What would your fund's returns look like if you could get liquid at Series B?

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Space tech-focused investment firm Seraphim Space Space launched its second VC fund, SSV II, to back early-stage startups in the global space tech market. The fund aims to build a portfolio of 30 startups, investing in seed and Series A stages. The latest fund's target size is larger than its predecessor's, which closed at £70M ($90M) in 2017. The fund's investment themes include AI applications for space data, in-orbit computing, space-enabled communications, and microgravity for science. Eutelsat is one of the limited partners that contributed to the latest fund. Seraphim Space aims to stand out with its track record, having returned three times the original investment from its first fund. The first fund's returns were driven by five exits, including Siemens' acquisition of UltraSOC and four IPOs of Arqit, AST SpaceMobile, Nightingale, and Spire Global. The British firm listed its growth fund Seraphim Space Investment Trust (SSIT) on the London Stock Exchange in July 2021, getting about £250M (~$300M) in gross proceeds. The fund's market cap touched an all-time low of £130M ($162M) in July 2023. The market for space tech is expected to grow significantly, with the World Economic Forum and McKinsey estimating it could be worth $1.8R by 2035.

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🛰 The Seraphim Space Index Q1 2024 is live 🛰 🌌 Since 2017, we have been producing the Seraphim Space quarterly VC investment Index , which allows us to share our unique access to knowledge and data about investing in space technology. This data is now available in an easy-to-use interactive format, allowing you to look back and track growth and trends from 2017 to today. View dashboard: https://lnkd.in/exvPuBkY Some highlights from the last quarter: 🤑 In Q1 2024, the space sector maintained its upward trajectory, with a notable $2.4 billion invested, marking a steady increase from Q4 2023’s $2.1 billion. This is part of a larger trend of $7.2 billion invested over the trailing twelve months to Q1 2024, compared to $6.6 billion in the preceding period. 🌕 Lunar Landers: Three attempts were made, with two successful landings! JAXA: Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency's SLIM made Japan the fifth country to land on the moon. NASA - National Aeronautics and Space Administration's CLPS-funded missions by Astrobotic and Intuitive Machines. Despite some tipping over post-landing, these missions mark significant progress. 🚀 SpaceX Starship Launch: March's launch showcased remarkable progress. With all 33 Raptor engines firing, "hot staging" completed, and the upper stage reaching suborbital orbit, SpaceX and NASA hailed it a success. Though the landing burn was unsuccessful, it is paving the way for future achievements. 📡 Direct-to-Cell: SpaceX initiated text messaging via Starlink satellites in January, but expansion faces challenges due to FCC spectrum denial. Meanwhile, AST received a strategic investment, and Skylo raised $37m, demonstrating growing interest in broadband coverage. 🛰️ Varda Earth Return: Varda Space Industries's successful capsule return in February, in collaboration with Rocket Lab, marked a significant milestone. Additionally, Varda's space crystallisation results of Ritanovir hold promise for drug research. 🇨🇳 China's Rising Influence: China's space endeavours continue to expand, with notable advancements in both public and private sectors. Landspace's successful rocket return and Shanghai Spacecom's massive funding highlight China's growing significance. 🛡️ Starshield: SpaceX's $1.8bn contract with the NRO for Earth Observation satellites signifies a shift in focus towards EO capabilities, leveraging the Starlink platform for enhanced satellite capabilities. 🛰️ SPAC Troubles: Astra and Momentus face financial challenges, with Astra opting for a private takeover. Terran Orbital Corporation received a take-private offer from a major shareholder, Lockheed Martin. Momentus warned shareholders it was running out of money but subsequently announced a registered direct offering (RDO) of $4m from an institutional investor.

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Dual use is such a pointless thing to obsess over 🤦‍♂️ 👉Defence market is giant enough ($2.4tn) and growing, with a new wave of rearming focused on new technologies. Why distract yourself with other uses when there is such a massive opportunity at hand? 👉Novel defence technologies are usually inherently dual-use. What we do these days is apply tech advances from civilian sectors in defence. For example, industrialising military drone production requires mostly the same production processes as consumer electronics. The supply side can scale and contract very robustly because of this. Unlike artillery production. Why bring something from civilian sectors to defence and then think about bringing this back? A distraction. 👉So many “civilian” technologies can be and are used to harm people. Like knives. Or different gas emissions. AI in general. Cameras. Why don’t investors shy away from those sectors? I smell hypocrisy here. Wimp behaviour. Thanks Sifted for making this conversation public in Europe. https://lnkd.in/dQqJxbBd

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The participants and speakers at our FoF & FO Online Conference manage over $1.6 Trillion USD in AUM. This data is based on the 33% of registrants who provided their AUM. RSVP – Zoom on June 20th: inniches.com/conf Currently, we have 1,636 registrations, with 1,500 participants willing to share their profiles and open to networking. Among the audience: – 139 Single Family Offices – 48 Multi Family Offices – 168 Limited Partners – 105 Funds of Funds – 598 VC funds – 88 Other VC firms – 274 Venture Studios – 106 PE funds – 251 Advisors to Family Offices & HNWIs – 123 exited founders – 299 angel investors – 101 corporations (each registrant could choose several options while registering) New speakers & topics since the last announcement: – UHNW Family Office Report Insights by Bill Ringham and John Gerold from RBC Wealth Management, part of the Royal Bank of Canada (RBC), one of the largest banks in the world, with a global presence and over $1.02 trillion in AUM. – Why did the Uber founder launch a venture studio, Expa, and why should founders join? – Milun Tesovic, Partner @ Expa ($8B in value created). – Insights from our report based on 100+ VC Fund-of-Funds: Jonathan Hollis, Managing Partner @ Mountside Ventures, a Fundraising Accelerator and early-stage advisory firm, has reviewed 1000+ VC decks in the last 12 months and hosts the leading Limited Partner and Family Office events in Europe. Jonathan was previously at PwC, co-founding its Corporate Accelerator and Early stage fundraising practice, working with 400 startups whose alumni are now valued at £3bn+. – How do family offices make investment decisions & why do they invest in growth VC? – Gayatri Sarkar, Founder and CEO @ Advaita Capital, a growth VC fund with checks of $10-50M+. The portfolio includes Stripe, Epic Games, Neuralink, and Cohere. Gayatri is managing $500M across the funds and her Single Family Office. – Startup Investment Trends in Silicon Valley - AI, Deep Tech, and Beyond by Grace Gong, Founder & CEO @ Smart Venture Media. – How we have built 60+ companies and why it's more profitable to build them in-house? – Priscilla J. Guevara, General Partner @ Science – Tracy A. McWilliams, CEO & General Partner @ Inspire Global Ventures. Topic TBD. – Stephen Deadmon, Associate Partner / Growth & Innovation Practice Lead @ Sia Partners, will join Chris Golden, Founding Partner @ Sterling Select Group, with the topic "Why Do FOs and Large Corporations Struggle with Venture Development? How to Partner with Them to Launch New Businesses?" – Cultivating Clarity: The Art of Discerning What Matters Using Contextual Intelligence – Ian Timotheos-Pilon, Author of the book on Contextual Intelligence, Founder of Ian Pilon Innovation. $1.6 trillion USD in AUM – if we all agree together, we could buy out controlling interest in NVIDIA and define the future of AI, AGI & humanity 😁 The topics may be updated or corrected soon.

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Can Sovereign chains be interoperable? or do you need to pick being sovereign or interoperable?

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VC world can be cruel and unforgiving. With LPs more and more pushing for distribution and liquidity, fund managers in the mid-tenure of their fund with zero DPI and TVPI around 1.0 would have much more difficulty to raise new fund. The ability to fundraise is one of the crucial indications and validation of the job for VCs. Key highlights from the article below: Thirteen percent of venture General Partners (GPs) no longer plan to raise another fund due to LP pullback. This rate has doubled since H1 2023 when only 6% of GPs had no plans for another fund. Nearly 44% of venture firms surveyed in mid-2023 had previously postponed their fundraising plans due to concerns about overexposure to the asset class. Many emerging managers entered venture capital in 2019 or 2020 when the LP market supported more funds. However, slow exits in the first half of 2024 have led to challenges in raising second funds without significant cash distributions to LPs. Some venture GPs are now actively participating in the secondaries market to demonstrate returns. Despite the challenges, GPs who secured fresh capital remain optimistic. They expect the 2023 and 2024 vintages to be the strongest return years since 2019. 🚀📈 #VC #VentureCapital #Fundraising #LPs #EmergingManagers #TechInvestment #MarketTrends #CountdownCapital #IndustryInsights #JetVentures #JetInvestment‍‍‍‍‍‍

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Defense tech and the dual-use market have seen incredible growth in the past three years, thanks to consistent investment. To strengthen our industrial base and national security, the Department of Defense and Defense Innovation Unit are funding and integrating commercial technology, bridging the gap between private and public sectors. The Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering and the Office of Strategic Capital have pinpointed 14 critical technology areas vital to U.S. national security. These areas, shown in the graphic below, represent the cutting edge of tech and strategic importance. We believe in the potential of these technologies and the opportunities they offer to founders and investors. From advanced materials and quantum science to AI and hypersonics, each sector promises transformative innovation. Collaboration between the government and private sectors is crucial. Combining the agility of the private sector with public resources will keep the U.S. at the forefront of technology and innovation. Looking ahead, these critical technologies will enhance national security and open new avenues for growth and investment, and I couldn’t be more excited. Stay tuned for more updates!

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Pervasive AI Disruption Knows No Bounds Emerging technologies are now built almost exclusively around the diverse cognitive capabilities of Integrated AI (what I call Multiple Intelligences for Machines). This is creating a world of Pervasive AI, spanning across and uniting the world of both physical and digital. in this world, constantly emerging new products, processes, experiences and ventures create massive increases in productivity, democratization and speed / adaptability / agility. This is how emerging technology can be used to create the kinds of game-changing asymmetries that overturn markets. And those that transform history. https://lnkd.in/dwSbuzwF

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