Paris-based venture capital firm Elaia announced that it has closed its third deep tech seed fund, DeepTech Seed 3 (DTS3), at €134 million. According to the firm, the new vehicle is twice the size of any deep tech seed fund it has previously raised and is designed to back early-stage European startups developing breakthrough technologies.
The fund is already active, with 11 companies backed across France, Germany, Spain, the UK, Switzerland, and other European markets. Elaia said the portfolio spans computing, life sciences, and industrial innovation, highlighting companies such as Proxima Fusion, which is developing stellarator-based fusion power plants; GetVocal AI, which is building auditable conversational AI agents for enterprise; and BIOPHTA, which is developing a topical ophthalmic insert designed to replace daily eye drops for conditions such as glaucoma.
DeepTech Seed 3 focuses on pre-seed and seed-stage investments, with ticket sizes ranging from €1 million to €13 million. Elaia said the fund has been built in close partnership with leading European research institutions, including Université Paris Dauphine – PSL, Inria, CNRS, the Barcelona Supercomputing Center, and the Max Planck Institute, providing early visibility into scientific breakthroughs before they reach the commercial market.
The firm emphasized that Europe’s deep tech ecosystem is reaching a pivotal moment as research quality, talent, and startup infrastructure continue to mature. Through the new fund, Elaia aims to support founders working to transform world-class European research into globally competitive companies.
KEY QUOTES
“European deep tech has never been better positioned. The research (and talent) is world-class, ecosystems are maturing, and the window to build category-defining companies is wide open. DTS3 is how we’re backing it. Elaia’s third deep tech seed fund has closed at €134 million, twice the size of any deep tech seed fund we’ve raised before, with 11 companies already backed across France, Germany, Spain, the UK, Switzerland, and beyond. The portfolio spans computing, life sciences, and industrial innovation: from Proxima Fusion building stellarator-based fusion power plants, to GetVocal AI developing fully auditable conversational AI agents for enterprise, and BIOPHTA replacing daily eye drops with a topical ophthalmic insert for conditions like glaucoma. What they share is the same underlying bet: that world-class European research, given the right support at the right moment, can become world-class companies. DTS3 invests at pre-seed and seed, with tickets from €1 to 13 million, built in close partnership with Université Paris Dauphine – PSL, Inria, CNRS, the Barcelona Supercomputing Center, and the Max Planck Institute, giving us early visibility into breakthrough science before it reaches the market. Thank you to our investors for their continued trust & conviction in our vision for the future of European deep tech. If you’re building Europe’s next generation of deep tech, we’d like to meet you.”
Elaia — Venture Capital Firm
