Two years after securing $ 1 billion in obligations from more than 20 countries, NIF is a new chapter, which is characterized by the arrival of two new partners and the departure of a founding partner.
In the context of increasing military spending through NATO members, investment in double -use technology has increased since the first time In 2021. Once the area of non -transportation for institutional investors reached, the defense and flexibility technology last year reached the top 10 % of all VC financing in Europe, where there are almost all NIF supporters.
This mutation should have gave NIF an advantage for the first engine, but the fund was hindered through management challenges and a series of outstanding departure. After the NATO summit in 2025 in The Hague reaffirmed its importance last June, NIF now appeared with almost a new investment team.
While NIF originally had four partners and one administrative partner, it now consists of three partners, and a person familiar with NIF said that this three flat structure will remain in its place in the foreseeable future.
Two partners are two new employment: Ulrich Kawai and Sander Ferberg, who will be based in Amsterdam. Quay, a German citizen, was recently responsible for companies’ investments as a vice president at BMW, who previously established the Venture Corporaate BMW I Ventures Fund. Viroproge, a Dutch doctorate in molecular biological physics, was a partner at Deep Tech Vc Fund Innovation Industries, which he joined after working in the design and manufacturing company in the NXP semiconductors. The third partner is the London-based VC Patrick Schneider-Sikorsky, the last member of the original investment team.
In addition to the new appointments, the fund announced the departure of the partner of the founding team, Kelly Chen, who told Techcrunch to leave its decision and that it would build a new project. Chris Okonor, another founder partner, left NIF earlier this year with similar plans.
Chen is currently on the board of directors of many NIF -backed startup companies, but will transfer the responsibilities of the Board of Directors as soon as she concludes her work in NIF, techcrunch learned from the chief communications and marketing officials, Amalia Conteci.
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While some observers want the box to have published a faster capital, Contecice said NIF “on the right path to meet [its] Investment goals for this year. “Since its inception, NIF has made 19 investments: seven money such as OTB Ventures, and 12 in startups including Space Forge and Tekever, which makes bilateral unmanned aircraft.
Adding new partners who have industrial and scientific backgrounds, regardless of the impressive, may not be satisfied with those who want the fund to invest in Ukraine or pure defense, rather than double use, in response to the war economy in Russia. But the broader NIF thesis is “enabling deep technology founders to face challenges in defense, security and flexibility.”
Meanwhile, NIF also formed its efforts on the defense side. Her team strongly participated in developing A work plan that adopts fast NATOIt aims to accelerate the adoption and integration of new technological products for defense. NIF also builds a set of task platforms with strategic appointments including John Ridge, who was appointed as head of adoption in 2024 to help startups in military purchases.
As for its new partners, they were appointed again through an operation that it described by VC Michael Jackson in advance Closer to “Building a Boy Band”. They were not cooperated on the basis of joint or chemistry, in other words; They were identified by NIF and approved by LPS.
This process may be inevitable for an organization that is now 24 countries as limited partners, but it is widely believed to be one of the reasons why the previous team was not all. This time, all the three partners have managed to meet during the recruitment process and spend time together to ensure a smooth transition and the team put to succeed in the long term, “Contecice said.
In a joint statement exclusively with Techcrunch, Vice President NIF, Professor Fiona Murray, compared the starting to start. “We are proud of what we have accomplished, but like any effective team we learn, we learn, improve: accelerate our operations, expand our platform support for startups, double the construction of the ecological system, and recognize the broadest area of need to build the sector and the capital stack.”
Murray expressed his pride in gathering a qualified team that can cooperate effectively, creatively and quickly. “We will enable us to move more quickly and decisive in pushing the technological alliance’s agenda and supporting the best founders of European ecosystems,” she wrote in a joint statement with the Neve Chair, Klaus Hummel.
Hommels’s other activities were paid as a question investor About the conflict of potential interestsBut it seems that no change has been made to his role during the last LP meeting in the NIF in the Venice. Instead of the residence more than reorganizing it, NIF appears to be specific to help NATO to become more flexible.
“At this next stage, you will see us re -focus on DSR opportunities and emphasize construction companies that can push the industrial scope and really support ecosystems throughout Europe,” said Vice President NIF.
