Founder-Talks und Hafen49? Geht das zusammen? 🤔

Morgen, am 21. Mai, werden wir's rausfinden!Beim Future Founders Festival erzählen Gründer*innen von CU Mehrweg, osapiens und Stocard, wie ihre Wege wirklich aussahen.Wie wird aus einer Idee ein Unternehmen? Welche Umwege gehören dazu? Was lernt man über Markt, Team, Timing – und sich selbst?Möglich macht das NEXT Mannheim, der Treiber, hinter dem Startup-Ökosystem in Mannheim!Kommt vorbei. 👋

📅 21.05.2026 ⏰ 15–22 Uhr 📍 Hafen49 Mannheim

The real edge in venture? Being on the ground ⚓️

The Ceuta Tech Summit brings together startups, investors, and technology professionals to push new ideas, investments, and business projects in the digital ecosystem of the city. 🤝This year, our Venture Partner in hashtag#Barcelona, Josep R. Novell LL.M., was on the ground to connect with founders, investors, and local stakeholders who are actively shaping Ceuta’s next chapter as an innovation hub.Great to have a champion such as Josep representing #STYX in the local ecosystem. Having people on the ground is and will remain crucial. 🇪🇸

Earth Day - sustainable buildings in action 🌿

This April, our Co-Founder Florian Fischer joined VELUX at their LKR Innovation House, in Østbirk, Denmark.As an urban investor we are especially interested in how biodiversity and healthy materials can become part of the standard playbook in real estate, rather than the exception. As part of a panel alongside Anna Rex Elmgreen, Anna Esbjørn, Mette Skjold, Harpa Birgisdóttir, John Nordon and Peter Mørk it was great to share our perspective.Special thanks to Line Thorup Schultz, Lone Feifer, and the wider VELUX team for creating space for such an honest and grounded exchange between network partners and the Velux Senior Leadership. 🤝If we want cities to become healthier, more resilient places to live, we need more spaces like this where ideas are tested, challenged, and turned into real projects.

digitalBAU reminded us why these formats matter for the built world.🏗️

A couple of weeks ago, our Principal Erik Walkling joined #digitalBAU in #Cologne for a panel alongside Wim Schiller from GROUNDBREAKERS and Felix Zabel from TUM Venture Labs. 🎙️Across the discussion, one theme stood out clearly: innovation needs more than strong ideas, it needs clear pathways into real pilot projects. And if solutions are to move beyond the demo stage, the link between research, real-world test environments, and capital is essential.Later that day, the energy continued with another Founders Fight Night as part of the Start-up Area. Congrats to Chris Höllerer from BauByte for taking the win, as well as to the other participants in the ring for the fair fight: bimeto GmbH, Mamisch Digital GmbH, easy recycle SHOP, amberSearch &TimeLEAN 🏅With around 60 startups taking part in digitalBAU 2026 overall, it was great to see how much energy is building across the ecosystem. For us at STYX, that is exactly why it is valuable to be part of these conversations!🔋

Big milestone for our portfolio company VREY ⚡

Congrats to Julius Pahmeier, Cedric Jaeger, and the whole team on the €3.3m seed round with Rubio Impact Ventures, HTGF | High-Tech Gründerfonds, and kopa ventures.VREY is tackling a real problem in the built world: making solar power economically viable in multifamily housing. We started believing in their vision a year ago and the past 12 months have been an exciting ride: From early customer validation to roll outs within the STYX Living Lab.

Excited for what’s ahead.

Good things happen before 10am!☀️

Last week, we once again co-hosted the Investor Breakfast for the student-run Q-Summit at University of Mannheim.Together with D11Z. Ventures, we turned a shared coffee into a proper homecoming for the investor community. In our book three years in a row makes it a tradition & we look forward to keep it going.There is something special to welcoming old friends and meeting new ones right here in our home base in #Mannheim.A huge thank you to D11Z, our event-planning champion Lina Blumenstock and to everyone who joined. See you next year! 😉

Next round at Q-Summit 🚀

We’re returning this April and teaming up again with D11Z. Ventures for the #InvestorBreakfast.Once more, we’ll bring together founders, students, investors & we're excited to reconnect with familiar faces and meet many new ones from the ecosystem. 🔋

76% less CO₂ than the German average, built in Stadt Mannheim. 🏗️

In FRANKLIN-Mannheim, a new district on a former US Army base, 194 apartments with around 15,000 m² of living space are currently under construction. The area is planned to grow from 7,500 to about 10,000 residents and create roughly 2,000 jobs.

We see the same pattern across the Rhine-Neckar region:

🏗️ No ESG, no capital: institutional investors like GBG now specifically buy serial, subsidised housing portfolios with DGNB certification.

🏗️ Serial beats conventional: 361 apartments on FRANKLIN, timber-hybrid, 76% less CO₂, built below market cost.What does it take? Faster permitting, standardised building typologies, and clients who are ready to think in serial solutions. We at STYX are looking to back the technologies and teams that make this shift possible.

Meet us at Q-Summit 2026! 🚀

We’re excited to be back at University of Mannheim and back at Germany’s largest student-led startup conferenceJoin us on Friday morning at the Investor Breakfast or catch us during the conference, let’s talk startups, scale-ups and the future of innovation. 💬

See you in Mannheim! Get your tickets now. 🌟

Guests at “Kohle meets Kölsch” 🚀

Last week, our Principal Erik Walkling joined the ecosystem mixer “Kohle meets Kölsch” in #Cologne, bringing together the Ruhr area and the Rheinland under one roof.🧑🧑🧒

Following the theme “am Kranz, nicht im Konferenzraum”, startups, investors, corporates and ecosystem builders came together. The result were honest conversations & new connections all across #NRW.🍻

With Gateway Factory, BRYCK Startup Alliance and xdeck leading the way, the evening was a strong reminder of how much Factory Power there is when research, entrepreneurship and capital come together.Big thank you to Dr. Markus Gick and Dr. Dennis Zeiler for the invitation. We’ll happily be back the next time the Rhine and Ruhr startup scenes raise a glass together.

🏙 Cities don’t just need taller buildings: they need vertical neighborhoods

For years, high-rises were built as symbols: glass, steel, views. Today, the most exciting towers are something else entirely: #urbaninfrastructure.The Global Real Estate and Infrastructure Institute captured this shift in their “Vertical Virtues” feature with Cro&Co and CroMe Studio: towers as tools against sprawl, climate risk, and social isolation.When vertical buildings sit on top of strong public transport, mix uses, and open ground floors for greenery, they can:

🏞️ Free up land for parks, cooling islands, and public life

🚞 Cut transport emissions by clustering living, working, and services around transit

🧬 Build dense, human-scale communities inside one buildingWe already see this in Europe. For example, The Shard in London as a “vertical village” directly above London Bridge Station.That’s why the “virtues of verticality” resonate with us: where construction innovation, smart building design, and clean energy meet, towers become infrastructure, not icons.Happy to be part of the GRI Institute community! 🔗

From Madrid to Europe – all the way to the global stage 🌍

In the latest Founders Live competition, Gloria Torne Villasevil, Founder & CEO of Ectos, won the Founders Live Spain edition and the Europe regional finals, with just 99 seconds to pitch a new standard for circular construction sites!The global title went to a team from India, but Gloria and ECTOS walked away with something else: perspective, confidence, and a strong community of founders, investors, city shapers & global visibility for a problem every city faces: construction waste, lost materials, and avoidable emissions.As an early backer, we’re proud to see Gloria and the team carry this mission from local job sites to international stages and back into the daily reality of builders and city operators.Huge congrats to Gloria & Team ECTOS and a big thank you to the Founders Live and Sherpa Tribe teams for creating such a powerful platform for Europe’s urban innovators. 🎉

Factory x thinc! x STYX

Last Friday, around 30 students from thinc! joined us, and Carola from Factory Berlin at the STYX office. 🔗

‍Erik Walkling, our principal, shared how STYX is building a sustainable ecosystem around the built future: from our Urban Living Labs to the way we combine real estate and venture investing. 🏠Carola Bopp showed how Factory Berlin supports talent on the journey from “talent to legend”, what their community formats look like, and how a workspace can evolve into a company builder. 👐🏻

Despite the sunny weather outside, the students stayed fully focused, didn’t look at their phones once, and engaged in a really lively Q&A.For us at STYX, it’s important to foster our network not only on the professional side, but also with student communities from the University of Mannheim, a place where many of us started our own journeys.🚨

We wrapped up with more questions, plenty of networking and much‑needed energy from amazing bagels supplied by Dear Bagel.

Unicorn or camel – do you really know what kind of investor you’re talking to? 🦄🐫

This Wednesday, our Principal Erik Walkling joins the Founders Fight Club Basecamp “From Camels to Unicorns: Understand Your Early-Stage Investor” to get real about early-stage fundraising.On the agenda:Valuations vs. ego: why a 10M pre-seed can be a red flag, not a trophy.CLAs vs. equity term sheets – what they mean for your ownership over time.The VC hierarchy: decider, influencer, gatekeeper (and who you should actually pitch).What PropTech, GreenTech, and Urban Tech investors really look for in city-shaping teams.Big thanks to Founders Fight Club and #SportTechHubDortmund for hosting.Check out the Founders Fight Club page to attend the event!

Invited by „Handwerk & Haltung“ – Talking about STYX 🎤

Last week, Florian Fischer and David Zwilling had the pleasure of joining “Handwerk & Haltung – Der Podcast mit Matthias Vickermann”, hosted by our long-time friends Matthias and Jessica.The podcast dives into craftsmanship in both work and life: about values, responsibility, and the art of taking a stand, especially when things get uncomfortable. Together, they explored their entrepreneurial journey, key learnings, how to build resilient companies, and why Germany is a powerful yet sometimes tricky home base for innovation in the built world. Huge thank you to Matthias Vickermann and Jessica Sander for the invitation and the always thoughtful conversations. 🫶🏻

Episode will be out in a couple weeks, stay tuned!

Energy democracy starts where the sunlight hits: on 55,000 German rooftops. 🌇Last week, Florian Fischer and David Zwilling joined the Energie Impulse GIGA.GREEN Dinner in Frankfurt.Our partner’s model embodies what we call infrastructure entrepreneurship: turning idle roof space into local power plants, creating value for owners, savings for tenants, and independence for our cities.

1️⃣ Low-Capex for owners: GIGA.GREEN plans, finances, builds, and operates, roof owners simply share in the yield on commercial properties.

2️⃣ Win for users: tenants like logistics firms or retailers get clean power straight from the roof, without grid fees or hassle.

3️⃣ Systemic leverage: every rooftop reduces our reliance on imported fossil energy and strengthens democratic resilience.

To keep supporting real assets with lasting climate impact, we’re not only partnering with GIGA.GREEN, but have also invested in VREY. They enable shared building energy in multi-tenant residential buildings, accelerating the energy transition across our cities’ full building stock.Thanks to the whole team, especially to Sebastian Schmidt and Wolfgang Röbig for the inspiring evening and open exchange. Let’s keep turning rooftops into power for people and our planet!

🔌 From EU building rules to real renovation: where vreed comes in

From 2026 onwards, the EU’s revised Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD) turns decarbonisation from “nice to have” into a concrete requirement for Europe’s building stock.The directive accelerates three big shifts:

1️⃣ A solar rollout on new and many existing public and non-residential buildings, with milestones from 2026–2031 for rooftop and façade PV where it is technically and economically feasible.

2️⃣ A push towards zero-emission buildings, with stricter minimum performance standards and renovation triggers tied to major works and permits.

3️⃣ A much stronger link between financing and energy performance, as banks and public programmes increasingly require reliable data on building efficiency and renovation roadmaps.This is exactly where vreed. Immobilien digital. 🟢🔵, one of our portfolio companies, comes in.In Germany alone, more than 8 million residential buildings need to be upgraded in the short term and every serious renovation requires financing, documentation, and proof of impact. #vreed provides a digital-twin-based SaaS for banks to analyse and plan real estate renovations, reducing documentation costs by up to 80% and lead times by 93%. EU law sets the direction & platforms like vreed turn regulation into an executable renovation pipeline, helping homeowners, lenders, and cities move faster towards a climate-neutral building stock.

⛱️ Vienna is quietly becoming one of Europe’s most exciting hubs for serious innovation leadership!

Three days of #TheVentureMindset 2026 at WKO showed what happens when founders, studio builders, corporates and VCs drop the “innovation theatre” and focus on systematic company creation.In the whataventure track “Beyond Capital – The New Era of Company Creation”, Florian Fischer joined Matthew Burris, Michael van Lier, Dr. Felix Lau and Jonas Krensler, moderated by Stefan Peintner, to unpack how studios, funds and corporates are starting to operate as one system for building the next generation of companies.From Florians VC perspective, the key takeaway was that venture studios de-risk the zero-to-one phase with playbooks and shared infrastructure, while VCs and corporates bring capital, talent and real assets from day one.In our vertical, that makes studios less “dead equity” and more like operational partners at the intersection of digital innovation and real assets – which is very close to how we work at STYX.Huge thanks to The Alpha Omega Foundation, whataventure — New business. Powered by entrepreneurs. and all partners – WKO Oberösterreich, Vienna Convention Bureau, Wirtschaftsagentur Wien, VERBUND X Ventures, Akela Group and brutkasten – for creating an a**hole-free zone where this ecosystem can grow and collaborate across Europe.

🏠 Can you map a housing crisis without talking to a single tenant?

The ESPON #HOUSE4ALL study (“Access to affordable and quality housing for all people”) is a European research project on housing affordability and quality across the ESPON area. Using webscraping and income data, the study turns millions of listings in all 27 #EU Member States plus Norway, Switzerland, Iceland and Liechtenstein into a picture of who is being priced out, where, and under which conditions.

🏠 Unaffordability is the norm. In many regions, even a modest home means 30+ years of mortgage on a single income.

📈 Demand overheats, supply lags. Demographics, urbanisation, cheap credit and short‑term rentals push demand up, while land, planning and productivity constraints hold supply back.

🧩 Systems are fragmented. No shared EU definition of “affordable” or “social” housing, and each policy tool comes with clear trade‑offs.

➡️ The study calls for continuous monitoring and linking listings with transaction data to spot stress earlier and guide interventions.

For us, the takeaway is clear: The opportunity lies in backing founders who can read those layers, plug into local and EU policy, and use data like HOUSE4ALL to build scalable solutions that move markets.

🔥 Turning heating data into affordable living

The Austrian trade magazine TGA recently covered how our portfolio company Wohnio and the non‑profit housing cooperative BWSG are teaming up to cut heating costs in multi‑family housing using AI and IoT.In several BWSG buildings, Wohnio’s intelligent heating optimisation was rolled out under real‑world conditions: outdated pipe networks, no hydraulic balancing, and rising energy bills for residents.The results speak a clear language of scale:

🌲 Optimised around 140,000 m² of residential floor space, cutting more than 200 tonnes of CO₂, equal to 10,000+ trees.

🧾 Lower heating bills and more comfort, and short payback periods and a clear path to ESG‑aligned, climate‑friendly housing.

Wohnio’s CEO Kevin B. sums it up in the article: The vision is to make multi‑storey residential buildings more sustainable, more efficient and more affordable for everyone involved and to prove that climate protection and economics can align.For STYX, this is exactly what Urban‑Tech should look like: solving the energy transition where people actually live, building by building, data point by data point.

🧱 “El tocho no se tira” or in other words: bricks don’t belong in the trash.

The Diari de Tarragona, a regional newspaper in Catalonia, recently profiled Ectos founder Gloria Torne Villasevil and her mission to change how construction sites deal with surplus materials.In 2023, Glòria launched Ectos, one of our portfolio companies, to help construction firms stop treating leftover bricks, tiles, and steel as waste and start managing them as a strategic resource. In Spain, construction and demolition account for around 40% of total waste, yet only about 25% is handled by authorised waste managers: leaving most material underused or dumped illegally. 🇪🇸It is a founder story rooted in family-run construction businesses and local realities, but the ambition is clearly European: build the infrastructure that makes circular construction the default, not the exception.The company’s beginnings were very much a solo journey. “I learned programming by watching YouTube videos,” she says. That was when she built the first basic version of the product, and only a few months later her former high‑school classmate, Oliver Holms, joined the project after, in her words, “falling in love with the product.” Today, they are four partners plus three employees, and “the average age of the team is around 21.”At STYX, this is exactly the kind of urban‑tech story that resonates: practical, grounded in the daily life of cities and builders, and fully aligned with Europe’s push for circularity in the built environment.

🏗️ Trying to solve a housing crisis without laying a single brick?

In October 2025, Germany adopted its Housing Construction Acceleration Act (“Bau‑Turbo”), promising less red tape, shorter procedures and new optimism for urban housing. The new § 246e BauGB gives municipalities up to three months to enable additional housing on existing plots instead of going through multi‑year planning cycles.Across Germany, city planning departments struggle with staff shortages and a risk‑averse culture that often slows down decisions. IVD Bundesverband | Die Immobilienunternehmer President Dirk Wohltorf points out that it is not only the municipalities and building authorities that matter, without confidence to use the new flexibilities, and without enough skilled people willing to decide, the “turbo” will not truly engage.The law aims to open the door to building above supermarkets, faster densification and more flexible residential construction, all within existing urban structures. But expert voices like Wohltorf stress that more homes will only materialise where investors are ready to build, municipalities act pragmatically and society accepts higher density.2026 will reveal whether municipalities actually use this turbo or keep rolling slowly through familiar bureaucratic routines. Legal reforms can remove barriers, but they cannot replace the human willingness in local administrations and politics that ultimately decides whether cities grow on paper or in real streets and neighbourhoods.

Fast Forward: Nestflow 🏡

After our initial investment in 2024, Nestflow keeps proving that a new category of home equity investment can scale. The #Dutch start-up helps European elderly homeowners become financially free by trading home equity for debt-free income. 🧡

This November, multiple new investors from the Kaasstad Kapitaal network backed Nestflow’s real estate activities in the Netherlands, just four months after Kaasstad first financed the company. Receiving fresh capital from the same experienced Dutch investment group is strong market proof that Nestflow’s model is working! 💰

Nestflow was also honored to participate in the Citi SPRINT Fintech Lending and Private Credit Summit at Citi’s New York headquarters this fall, a key gathering of senior leaders across the global asset‑backed finance ecosystem. 🎤

This is the kind of #UrbanFinTech that keeps the cities going: local capital, fair housing solutions, and globally connected financial infrastructure.

Climate-Friendly Concrete from Mannheim 🏙️

Mannheim’s family company TBS Transportbeton has developed an innovative concrete that significantly reduces CO₂ emissions, thanks to a lower clinker content of just 50% and smart additives like ground granulated blast-furnace slag and limestone powder. This change means one cubic meter of their new concrete results in only around 110 kg of CO₂, compared to 300 kg for conventional concrete, making it possible to save up to 19 tons of CO₂ per average single-family house. 🧼

The #LocalGreenDeal team from the Stadt Mannheim played a crucial role in speeding up the approval process by connecting TBS with the right stakeholders and facilitating regulatory changes in Baden-Württemberg. Oberbürgermeister Christian Specht calls the new material a "win for the environment, the city, and the regional economy."This achievement shows how climate-friendly transformation can succeed when businesses, administration, and government work together. Eco-friendly building materials like this are a vital step toward Mannheim’s goal of becoming climate-neutral by 2030, without losing sight of affordable housing and quality urban development.

A new chapter for Mannheims city center! 🌱

Under the leadership of Petar Drakul, and with strong support from the #FutuRaum program and Germany’s Federal Ministry for Housing, Urban Development and Building, Stadt Mannheim is making bold moves towards a sustainable and vibrant city.Under the motto “Mannheim gemeinsam gestalten” (Shaping Mannheim together), our downtown aims to transform: sealed surfaces are turned into green urban spaces, facades are covered in plants, and new trees and raised beds create fresh oases right in the center.Smart sensors provide environmental monitoring, barrier-free transitions improve accessibility for everyone, and other green areas are being completely renewed. Thanks to strong citizen participation and Petar Drakul’s dedicated coordination, these new cityscapes are not only beautiful but also forward-thinking places for residents and visitors of all ages.This project proves: climate resilience, quality of life, and innovation go hand in hand in Mannheim. With FutuRaum as a catalyst, the STYX hometown is setting new standards for what an attractive, inclusive, and vibrant city center can look like. 🏙️

Why We Chose Stavanger 🇳🇴

‍#Stavanger is a city in transformation. Once known as a fishing village, later known as the oil capital of #Norway, it has now reinvented itself as a hub for entrepreneurship and green innovation.

💡 Innovation at the Core: Stavanger fuels national innovation clusters like Nordic Edge, making it the perfect base for STYX’s focus on PropTech, Smart City, and ConTech. Here, a forward-thinking spirit drives every conversation and collaboration.

🌍 Gateway to Europe: Our first international hub provides Norwegian startups with structured access to the German and wider European markets, bridging the Nordics with the continent’s most dynamic innovation ecosystem.

🏗️ Purpose-Built Infrastructure: Stavanger’s rugged landscape and vibrant startup spots, like Innoasis, offer founders everything they need: top-tier co-working spaces, accelerators, and an open, international community shaping real urban change.

🫂 People Over Positions: With Inger Egeland-Helgøy as our Nordics Venture Partner and the broader Nordic Edge ecosystem the right people are on site to drive true impact

STYX Nordics has just completed its fourth investment and we’re just getting started. Excited for what’s to come!

👩🏽💻 Digital by ambition, analog by reality - and why it matters as an investor

The ZIA German Property Federation and EY-Parthenon have published their 10th Digitalization Study!The result: optimism around AI collides with the harsh reality of data silos, staff shortages and outdated systems.

🔑 Key learnings from the studyAI as the silver bullet: 90% see AI as the key technology of the next yearsMany companies put a big emphasis on digital, but actual budgets and investment levels still lag behind ambitions.A persistent talent gap slows things down, especially when it comes to digital, data, and AI skills.Data Lifecycle Management is on the strategic agenda, yet governance and regular reviews are still the exception, not the rule.

💡Why this matters to us as startup investors:Startup success is all about offering solutions customers can implement towards solving their problems. Overcoming this implementation gap and meeting customers where they are is imperative; especially in the mid market of construction and real estate.

⛷️The Copenhagen Way

We’re proud to call #Copenhagen our Nordic home, a decision advocated by our Expansion Partner, Jens Loff.As Jens describes, over recent years, Copenhagen has elevated the dimension of urban development and planning to a whole new level. This is achieved through authentic alliances, pragmatic action, and a continuous culture of improvement.This conviction is validated by the report “The Copenhagen Way – Insight and Action at a Critical Moment for European Cities,” published in September 2025 by BLOXHUB, Ramboll, and Urban Partners. According to the article, Copenhagen’s remarkable transformation is anchored on three foundations:

♻️ Systemic innovation and visionary frameworks that turn long-term thinking into real-world action and impact.

🏙️ Cross-sector partnerships and a shared sense of responsibility shape how the city plans, collaborates, and moves things forward.

🧩 Sustainability, which is integrated into every ambition and investment, ensuring competitiveness, liveability, and long-term value.

That’s why STYX chose a location in BLOX, joining our partner PropTech Denmark right at the heart of Copenhagen’s pioneering urban ecosystem.

⚠️ Digital transformation of the real estate industry is stuck in place

According to the latest “Transform to Succeed” study by Drees & Sommer and the IIWM Institut für Immobilienwirtschaft und -management at TH Aschaffenburg University of Applied Sciences, the real estate industry’s digital maturity barely improved compared to last year.

Key findings:Only 7% of companies invest more than one-fifth of their revenue in digital projects (down from 19%).Just a third rate their in-house digital expertise as sufficient (down from 45%).One quarter of firms offer no training formats at all.The Digital Real Estate Index (DRE-i) also continues to decline, reaching just 4.0 points.

👉 Many companies recognize the potential but fail to follow through with investments, clear strategies, and implementation plans. Proof of concept remains the exception rather than the rule.

As Dr. Chris Richter of Drees & Sommer puts it: “The industry remains in a stuck position – somewhere between ambitious vision and hesitant execution.”

Fast Forward: Enzo 🙌

We’re thrilled to share some exciting news from our portfolio company Enzo! Enzo has entered into a partnership with SV SparkassenVersicherung, one of Germany’s leading residential building insurers with a strong regional presence and close customer relationships. 🤝

Through this initiative, SV Sparkassen Versicherung is taking a major step toward smart prevention as a key element of modern insurance:

🧠 Intelligent risk management through AI

🏠 Enhanced protection for buildings and customers

💡 Technology and insurance hand in hand

The innovation team at SV is booming, special congrats to Dr. Max Hartmann for driving this forward!We’re proud to support Enzo as they shape a smarter, more sustainable future for urban living and work hand-in-hand with visionary partners.

Why We Chose Copenhagen 🌊

When we looked north for our next chapter, we chose one of Europe’s most livable and innovative cities: #Copenhagen. Denmark’s capital is the perfect home for STYX Nordics and the key bridge for startups scaling towards Germany.

💧 Life by the water: Copenhagen’s clean waterways, walkable districts, and strong sense of community define a quality-of-life city where future-focused founders thrive.

🚴 Human-centered mobility: World-leading bike infrastructure and smart public transit set benchmarks for sustainable urban living.

🎨 Danish Design DNA: Simplicity, function, and beauty shape local architecture and infuse startup culture with creative confidence.

🏗️ PropTech powerhouse: PropTech Denmark unites founders, investors, and corporates in a top-tier ecosystem, accelerating real estate’s digital shift.

🌍 Gateway to North & Central Europe: International mindset and deep business ties make Copenhagen the ideal launchpad for STYX startups expansion, especially en route to the German market.For us, Copenhagen is more than a city. It’s a strategic fit for STYX Nordics, embodying the future of urban innovation.

Investing in HomeTruth 🏗️

HomeTruth, a home finance tech startup that emerged from our STYX Living Lab, has officially launched following a $4 million valuation. The company’s mission is it to bring accuracy, transparency and data intelligence to the housing market. 🏠When Founder and CEO Monty (Paul) Munford bought his own home a few years ago, he discovered how little reliable data exists for what is often the biggest purchase in someone’s life. As Monty put it in a recent Tech.eu interview:“Buying a home should be a celebration, not one of the most stressful experiences of your life. The process today is archaic and opaque. We want to bring truth and transparency into that journey — and give the property industry the data intelligence it desperately lacks.”At STYX, we’re proud to have supported Monty and his co-founder Jason Ryan from the beginning through our Living Lab. HomeTruth is a great example of how data, AI and a strong founding vision can deliver impact in one of the most complex industries. 🛠️We can’t wait to see how HomeTruth continues to reshape property ownership and empower homeowners across the UK.

🔗 Read more on Tech.eu

Smart City World Expo 🇪🇸

Great to see our venture partner Josep R. Novell LL.M. representing STYX at the Smart City Expo World Congress in Barcelona 🌇

Among thousands of attendees and innovators from around the globe, Josep joined a panel on financing the green transition, sharing how early-stage prop-tech investment can drive sustainability 🌱 and address the housing challenge 🏘️

Barcelona embodies the spirit of smart, sustainable urban transformation, one of the reasons we chose it as a key hub for STYX’s growth and innovation.

🇪🇸 Why We Chose Barcelona

Next to our home base in Mannheim, we’ve established a strong foothold in Barcelona together with our partners Josep R. Novell LL.M. and Xavier Simó.But why exactly there?

🌆 A Magnet for Builders: Barcelona combines density, cultural diversity, international connectivity, and a thriving tourism economy. It’s one of Europe’s most promising runner-up startup ecosystems, attracting countless founders and creatives, many of them already building their second or third ventures here.

📍 The Capital of Catalan: As the capital of Catalonia, one of Spain’s most dynamic and innovative regions, Barcelona embodies an entrepreneurial mindset that perfectly complements our South German maker mentality.

🌍 A City of Global Relevance: Recently ranked as the fifth-best startup ecosystem in the European Union and the leading hub in Southern Europe, Barcelona continues to prove its international appeal and potential.

⭐️ A Hub for Urban Innovation: Home to the Smart City Expo, Barcelona has positioned itself as a global leader in forward-thinking urban development.

🎓 A Pool of Global Talent: With Esade Business School, the city attracts a diverse international community of students, innovators, and entrepreneurs.

🏙️ A Vision for the Future: Barcelona’s pioneering Superblocks model is reshaping how cities around the world think about sustainable, livable urban spaces.With STYX #Barcelona, we’re operating at the intersection of a thriving startup scene and progressive urban policy. Surrounded by #PropTech innovators, co-working hubs, and accelerators, we’re in line with local pioneers like Innomads Proptech Hub and inlea to strengthen Barcelona’s position as a leading PropTech #ecosystem 💡

🎤Valencia Digital Summit 2025

Last week, our Co-Founder Florian Fischer joined Margot Roose💚, Deputy Mayor for Entrepreneurship, Innovation & Circularity in Tallinna linn | City of Tallinn, in a panel at #VDS2025 to discuss how cities like Mannheim, Valencia and Tallinn are becoming living labs, places where the innovations of tomorrow are tested today.Margot shared how Tallinn turned itself into a European test center through #TestinTallinn. Estonia‘s capital acts not as a regulator, but as an enabler for startups and innovators. A testing ground, not just an administration. 💡At #STYX, we’re deeply inspired by this approach. We believe urban living labs are key to bridging the gap between digital and physical innovation. 🚀

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🏚️ Europe’s Housing Affordability Challenge

Following up on our OECD discussion, a new study by economists at the European Commission offers a sharper perspective on Europe’s housing crisis.

🏠 Prices vs. incomes: Between 2014–2022, house prices rose much faster than household incomes. Even with a brief slowdown in 2022–23, homes remained overvalued in around three-quarters of EU countries (end of 2023).

💸 Borrowing squeeze: Higher interest rates reduced affordability. Even if prices cooled, monthly mortgage payments for the same property often grew heavier.

🧑🤝🧑 Unequal burden: Young people and lower-income households are hardest hit. In EU capitals, newcomers renting a two-bedroom flat can spend over 40% of household income on housing.🏗️ Supply bottlenecks: New construction has lagged for years. Rising costs, regulatory barriers, and historically low completion rates leave demand unmet.

🔄 Policy gaps: Short-term fixes like rent subsidies or mortgage tax relief may backfire – raising demand without fixing supply.

🌍 EU response: A European Affordable Housing Plan is in the works, aiming to boost social and affordable housing, reduce building costs, invest in skills, and mobilize both public and private capital for sustainable housing projects.

Affordable housing is not only a social necessity it’s central to Europe’s competitiveness, productivity, and social cohesion. Without structural reforms and major investment in supply, affordability will remain out of reach for many.

💧€4M for AI-powered Watertech for Europe’s Insurance Industry

Following their recent €4M seed extension, our portfolio company Enzo raises its total funding to €6.2M, backed by EquityPitcher Ventures, the MBG Mittelständische Beteiligungsgesellschaft Baden-Württemberg GmbH, joined by Silence, incredible angels from better ventures, and strong participation from our existing shareholders.The Heidelberg-based startup develops AI- and IoT-driven solutions for the safe and sustainable use of drinking water in buildings, helping insurers reduce claim ratios while making water management more efficient and environmentally conscious. ♻️With its one.drop technology, Enzo is transforming how property insurers handle water-related risks, setting new standards for sustainability and prevention.As Sascha Wolf, Co-Founder and CEO, puts it:“With the new funding, we’ll further advance our technology, strengthen existing partnerships, and prepare for international expansion.”Enzo already collaborates with major insurance players such as BarmeniaGothaer, Alte Leipziger, INTER, Hiscox, and SV SparkassenVersicherung and is rolling out its technology across several European markets.#STYXFamily #InsurTech #Watertech #AIhashtag#IoT #ImpactInvesting #SmartBuilding #STYXVentures #DoubleDown #Enzo

📊 Homeownership more affordable than in 1980?

Recent reports claimed that ”#Homeownership right now is more affordable than in 1980”. The argument is based on the #OECDaffordabilityindex, which compares house prices to household incomes. On the surface, this sounds encouraging, but the picture is misleading.The problem: the index is too one-dimensional

🚨 It only considers price in relation to per-capita income. Financing costs (interest rates, loan terms, lending rules) are completely absent.

🚨It ignores the rental market, where millions of households live and where burdens have increased sharply.

🚨National averages disguise regional realities, living in Munich or Berlin looks very different from the country’s mean.

🚨 1980 is a distorted benchmark, because conditions were fundamentally different. Looking at 1990, for example, shows a very different dynamic, especially after German reunification.

🚨Key political and economic drivers such as ECB rate hikes, energy price shocks, construction cost inflation, regulation or migration flows are left out.

Yes, housing standards have improved, larger spaces, better amenities, more comfort. But blaming today’s affordability crisis on “higher expectations” ignores deeper issues: too little new construction, insufficient social housing, and rising building costs. Innovation is essential to lower costs and ensure real affordability. The OECD index offers context but not the full picture. Claiming homes are “more affordable than in 1980” oversimplifies the problem and overlooks today’s realities.At STYX, we believe in looking at topics from multiple angles! Stay tuned for another post on the same topic next week. 🔜

🚀 Double Down on Wohnio

After our first investment in February 2025, we’re excited to double down on Wohnio as part of their seed extension.

💡 The Vienna-based PropTech optimizes heating systems in multi-story residential buildings through AI- and IoT-driven automation, helping tenants save energy costs, owners gain full portfolio transparency, and cities cut CO₂ emissions.In short: making housing more affordable, efficient, and sustainable.As Wohnio founder Kevin Bauer puts it:“We benefit from a strong combination of deep industry know-how, practical real estate experience, and several angels with software scale-up expertise as well as local market knowledge.”At STYX, we invest early in teams that rethink how buildings and infrastructure operate and Wohnio continues to prove that retrofitting existing buildings is key to achieving Europe’s climate goals.👏

A big thanks to all co-investors and partners supporting this journey & to the outstanding team around Kevin B. and Gabriel Brandstetter for turning data into impact, one heating system at a time.We’re proud to count you as part of the #STYXFamily. 🫂

Why We Chose Mannheim?

🏙️Back in 2017, our founders David Zwilling and Florian Fischer made a deliberate choice: #Mannheim.Here’s why the city in the southwest of Germany continues to be the right home for STYX:

🚗 A Legacy of Entrepreneurship: From pioneers like Carl Benz, John Deere, and SAP, Mannheim and its surrounding region have long been a birthplace of entrepreneurship. The city embodies a place where solid, lasting businesses take shape.

🏭 Industrial Roots: Few cities in Germany offer such close proximity to the real economy. With leading players like BASF and a strong manufacturing base, the entrepreneurial mindset remains grounded and practical.

🛠️ Entrepreneurial City: Stadt Mannheim ranks among Germany’s leading cities for economic strength, employment, and quality of life. Once a traditional industrial powerhouse, Mannheim has evolved into a vibrant hub for smart and sustainable industries.

💰 Smart Economics: According to recent rankings, Mannheim offers one of the lowest corporate tax rates among Germany’s most affordable startup cities, making it not only a great place to build, but also a smart one to scale.

💡 Innovation Hub: With strong infrastructure, supportive funding programs, and the NEXT MANNHEIM ecosystem offering spaces, mentoring, and investor access, the city provides the perfect environment for startups to grow and thrive.

🎓 University of Mannheim: Known as one of Germany’s most startup-driven universities, it provides strong academic support and entrepreneurial infrastructure through the Mannheim Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation (MCEI). With student initiatives like thinc! and Q-Summit, students gain direct exposure to the world of venture capital, founders, and innovation.

🌍 Creative and international: Mannheim is also internationally recognized for its creative industries. Since 2014, it has been part of the UNESCO Creative Cities Network as a City of Music, linking cultural innovation with entrepreneurship.

All of this makes Mannheim a place where ideas can turn into real impact. For STYX, it’s the perfect soil to grow and we’re proud to call it home. ❤️

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STYX Founders Fight Night 🥊

Last Thursday, we had the chance to host the toughest pitching competition in the universe: The Founders Fight Night!

As part of our STYX Family Day, six outstanding startups stepped into the ring to prove their ideas.

💡 The Fighters:
ECTOS – making circular construction a reality through smart material reuse 🇪🇸
HomeTruth – bringing trust and transparency to real estate via AI + blockchain 🇬🇧
Taskrunner GmbH – rethinking facility management: efficient, sustainable, and modern 🇩🇪
Telescope – helping property owners tackle sustainability and transition risks 🇳🇴
VREY – powering shared solar energy for multi-tenant buildings 🇩🇪
WePack – your 24/7 Click & Collect supermarket redefining regional convenience 🇩🇪

A big shoutout to our Haymaker Jury, Philipp Buddemeier, Stefan Merkle, Birgit Ströbel, Lea Matschke, Anna Stetter, and Sebastian Ihler, who asked the right questions, challenged every idea, and helped the crowd crown hashtag#Ectos as this year’s STYX Founders Fight Champion. 🏆

Unzer, GO7 AG, Builders Tech Club, Factory Network, Manufaktur Mannheim, NEXT MANNHEIM, BAU Insights, GROUNDBREAKERS, BUILDINX, Q-Summit, blackprint and Gründerküche.de, thank you for being part of this journey and driving innovation in the built world.

No slides, no screens, just 60-second rounds, raw storytelling, and real-time market feedback from an engaged audience.

STYX Family Day 2025 🧑

Last week, on October 9th, the STYX Family Day took place at Manufaktur Mannheim, which turned into the home base for our community. Under the motto “From Code to Concrete – where innovation meets infrastructure friction is engineered?”, we welcomed the STYX family for a day focused on fostering true connections.A special thank you goes out to Udo Schloemer, Bjarke Mikkelsen, Sebastian Schmidt, who shared their unique perspectives on stage and inspired many new conversations.⭐️

Another heartfelt thank you to our partners Unzer, GO7 AG, Thylander, Factory Network, GIGA.GREEN, and Builders Tech Club for helping us bringing this event to life and joining us in Mannheim🫂

Our Family & Friends 🫂

The support of our Network Partners fuels the #FoundersFightNight and every startup stepping into the ring. Thank you for being part of the journey! 🥊

Shoutout to Founders Fight Club, NEXT MANNHEIM, BAU Insights, GROUNDBREAKERS, BUILDINX, blackprint, Q-Summit, Factory Network, Gründerküche.de ⭐️

Meet Sebastian! 🥊

We’re excited to welcome our sixth Haymaker Judge:

🏙️ Sebastian Ihler – CPO Factory Network

Ready to dissect the pitches, cheer for the hits, and call out the weak spots.

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Meet the Jury! 🥊

The Founders Fight Night – STYX Edition wouldn’t be complete without our Haymaker Judges, who know how to spot real impact and scalability:

💼 Philipp Buddemeier – General Partner Marvelous

‍👩 Birgit Ströbel – Serial Entrepreneur & Angel Investor Founders Fight Club

‍🌍 Anna Stetter – Industrial Tech & Climate Tech VC HTGF | High-Tech Gründerfonds

‍📰 Stefan Merkle – Redaktion Ressort Innovationen Immobilien Zeitung‍

🏗 Lea Matschke - Geschäftsleitung ALHO Unternehmensgruppe

‍They’ll break down the pitches, applaud the hits, and expose the weak spots.

🗓️ 09/10/25

📍Manufaktur Mannheim

Supported by: Founders Fight Club, NEXT MANNHEIM, BAU Insights, GROUNDBREAKERS, BUILDINX, blackprint, Q-Summit, Factory Network ⭐️

Announcing our Partners! 🚀

To make the Founders Fight Night – STYX Edition as impactful as possible, we’ve teamed up with three strong partners from our network: Unzer, GO7 AG, and Builders Tech Club💥

What’s waiting for you in the ring:

🏙 PropTech × Smart City × ConTech — a pitch battle for the built future🔥 Startups solving real urban & real-estate problems, scaling across Europe

🎤 Audience decides the winners. VC pros & industry veterans give the final hits.

🥊 Only one will take the belt: Urban Breakpoint Champion 2025

After the ring: drinks, beats & deal talks. ✨

Because we believe in collaboration — and building the future together.

🗓️ 09/10/25

📍Manufaktur Mannheim

Powered by: Founders Fight Club, NEXT MANNHEIM, BAU Insights, GROUNDBREAKERS, BUILDINX, blackprint, Q-Summit, Factory Network ⭐️

PropTech Germany Award 2025 ✨

The winners of the leading innovation award in the construction and real estate sector have been announced!For the fifth year in a row, the REAL Pitches & PropTech Germany Award was presented last Thursday as the most important recognition for innovation drivers across the entire building lifecycle. The award ceremony was hosted by blackprint, the national innovation hub for the construction and real estate sector, as part of the 2nd Frankfurt School Real Estate Day.Ahead of the event, 217 PropTechs from Germany, Austria, Switzerland, and Canada had showcased their solutions across two stages during the REAL Pitches at the Real Estate Arena in Hannover.Alongside the 11 category winners, the overall award this year went to Lichtwart, a true pioneer in smart building efficiency. 🏆

With its IoT platform for intelligent lighting and energy management, reducing both costs and CO₂ emissions, LichtWART convinced the expert jury across all categories.As Orla Nolan C. Nolan, Managing Partner & COO of blackprint, puts it: “With the REAL Pitches and the PropTech Germany Award, we create a stage where innovation drivers and established players can connect in a targeted way.”This year’s winners impressively demonstrate that the real estate industry is ready to move forward: digitalization, sustainability, and artificial intelligence are already at the core of the sector.

🏡 Big plans, little impact

Germany launched #JungkauftAlt in September 2024 to support families in purchasing and renovating existing homes.The goal: reduce rural vacancies and at the same time ease urban housing shortages. Families with children and below certain income thresholds were promised low-interest KfW (Kreditanstalt für Wiederaufbau) loans if they committed to upgrading older, energy-inefficient houses.🎯

By July 2025, the outcome is sobering: only 592 approvals nationwide despite an annual budget of €350 million.

⚡Why demand remains so low:

📊 Strict eligibility: Families must stay below an income cap of €90,000 per year with one child, plus €10,000 for each additional child. This excludes many households who could theoretically afford and manage a renovation project but earn just above the limit.

💶 Limited funding: The program provides only €100,000–150,000 in loans, while purchase prices for single-family homes range between €300,000 and €500,000. Families must therefore finance the largest share of the investment through commercial banks, often at higher interest rates.

🛠️ High renovation costs: On top of the purchase price, at least €100,000 is typically needed for energy upgrades such as new heating, insulation, or roof repairs. This erodes the advantage of lower loan interest rates and makes the program unattractive for many.

📑 Bureaucratic hurdles: Applications are complex, with mandatory energy audits and strict renovation deadlines. Even the housing ministry admitted it is “analyzing the application behavior very closely”.

📍 Location issues: Many eligible houses are located in regions far from jobs, schools, or childcare. Families often prefer to stay in smaller city apartments with better infrastructure, even at higher rents.The program shows how political ambition and everyday reality diverge. While €350 million in funding is on the table, strict rules, high costs, and poor locations prevent families from making use of it.🚨

🏙️ Crowded Cities, Empty Villages – Germany’s Housing Paradox

Germany doesn’t lack #housing overall but it’s in the wrong places.

📊 Data from #Zensus2022 shows: Around 1.9 million homes across Germany stand empty, that’s 4.3% of the total housing stock. While cities like Berlin, Hamburg, or Munich face record-low vacancy rates and skyrocketing rents, rural areas in Eastern Germany, the Eifel, or Northern Bavaria report vacancy rates of 15–20% and more.This is not a shortage, but a #structuralmismatch & solving it takes more than just building new homes.

🏚️ What’s behind rural vacancies?

Demographic decline and decades of outmigration from villages and small towns

Whole buildings that are outdated, no longer rentable, or already slated for demolition

🚦What’s needed now?

A shift of perspective: From only “building more” to using smarter what already exists.Integrated strategies that combine demolition, renovation, interim use, and tenant support instead of isolated measures.Targeted public funding and regional development policies to reconnect shrinking areas with broader economic opportunities.

✅ Realizing the huge potential in aligning urban demand with rural areas will be a crucial pillar in addressing #Germany housing gap and in turning today’s paradox into tomorrow’s chance for renewal.

🚀 Our PropTech Roadmap for the months aheadWe’re heading into a season packed with events across Germany that bring together founders, investors, and industry leaders. From Frankfurt to Munich, Berlin to Karlsruhe, these gatherings are where the PropTech community shares insights, celebrates innovation, and shapes what’s next in the built world. 🌎

🚧 11 September 2025: PropTech Germany Award Finals @ Frankfurt School Real Estate Day (Frankfurt, Germany)

🚧 September–October 2025: European Sustainable Development Week (Europe-wide)

🚧 6–8 October 2025: EXPO REAL (Munich, Germany)

🚧 22 October 2025: Real Estate Forum (Stuttgart, Germany)

🚧 23 October 2025: GROUNDBREAKERS SUMMIT 2025 (Stuttgart, Germany)

🚧 5 November 2025: STARTUPLAND (Cologne, Germany)

🚧 5–6 November 2025: Sustainability Congress (Berlin, Germany)

🚧 12–14 November 2025: Klimahouse Deutschland (Karlsruhe, Germany)Any must-attend events we’re overlooking?

📸Photo credits: Blackprintpartners GmbH, GROUNDBREAKERS

🙌Fast Forward: Bakerix

A few weeks after expanding to Mannheim, the Dortmund-based start-up Bakerix - Bakeries United has now entered the Austrian market. The company specializes in connecting local bakeries with business customers, managing logistics through its own fleet and streamlined digital ordering system.This allows Bakerix to reach new customers and local bakeries and to gain a wealth of new insights🇦🇹

And that’s not all! Since July, there has also been the new digital order shop for business customers. Bakeries, gastronomy businesses, catering companies, and care facilities can now order fresh baked goods online 24/7 and rely on just-in-time delivery.📲

Here’s to even more success! Keep it up, Mirco Grübel & Team! 🌟

🌡️Germany’s hottest city: Mannheim

According to the Heat Vulnerability Index of the Deutschen Umwelthilfe e.V (DUH), Stadt Mannheim ranks as the city where the most people are affected by summer heat. Here a particularly large share of residents are exposed to extreme conditions. ☀️

The city has been responding decisively for years:

🌳 In 2021, the city council adopted a Heat Action Plan: 1,000 new trees, new green islands & redesign of the station square.

💨 A fresh air corridor developed from the #Bundesgartenschau (BUGA) 2023 area now helps cool the city and shows how innovative planning can directly improve the microclimate.

🌿 An exemplary façade greening on Mannheim’s Planken added 113 m² of plants across 19 species, enhancing the pedestrian zone while improving the microclimate through water storage and evaporation.

🏢 The Sparkasse Rhein Neckar Nord is transforming its new downtown branch with a 300 m² green façade, a green roof terrace, heat pumps, photovoltaics, and a cistern irrigation system

🤝 At the first #Begrünungsforum in 2025, organized under the #LocalGreenDeal, more than 100 experts from business, academia, and administration discussed solutions like green roofs with solar, biodiversity, and the “sponge city” principle.

Mannheim shows: greening, de-sealing, and innovative construction concepts are not “nice-to-have” projects but a matter of survival. Urban spaces need to become innovative, sustainable, and climate-resilient! ♻️

🙌 Fast Forward: Enzo

Our portfolio company Enzo is on track to become the trusted standard for water damage prevention in German property insurance. 🚀

Following our investment, the Heidelberg-based startup, which specializes in the early detection of water pipe damage, has announced multiple new partnerships, including the ALH Gruppe, RheinLand Versicherungsgruppe, and INTER Versicherungsgruppe. 🌟

By combining enzo’s one.drop sensor technology and data-driven monitoring with the strong market position of leading insurers, enzo enables early leak detection and helps homeowners protect what matters most.Together, countless houses will avoid renovation costs and reduce drinking water waste. Together, they are setting new standards in damage prevention and are actively shaping the future of building insurance.This collaboration underlines a shared commitment to innovation, efficiency, and sustainability in the PropTech sector. ♻️

🚀 Tallinn x Heidelberg: A Strong Signal for European Innovation

Our neighbouring city Heidelberg has launched a two-year collaboration with the Estonian capital Tallinn, positioning the Rhein-Neckar region as one of Europe’s leading innovation hubs.A key element: “Test in Heidelberg”, which inspired by Tallinn’s proven #TestinTallinn model and supported by the #Tallinnovation platform.💡 The programme empowers start-ups to test new technologies in real urban environments, while both cities share expertise, infrastructure, and networks to foster sustainable, citizen-focused development

Heidelberg has set specific priorities for its testing environment:

🤖 Artificial Intelligence

🚘 Mobility

🔋 Energy Efficiency

☀️ Renewable Energy

In doing so, the city plays a key role as a driving force in making the #RhineNeckar metropolitan region one of the most economically dynamic, innovative, and livable regions in Europe.🪐And if the future really looks like the picture below, we might just be a few steps ahead already.Similar to this initiative, our #UrbanLivingLab approach also turns cities into testbeds for real-world solutions. Find out more on our website: Link in Comments!

🏆 PropTech of the Year: syte

We at STYX love seeing bold visions turn into real impact and syte is a prime example. At this year’s Tag der Immobilienwirtschaft, the team around Lena Lüpping, Matthias Zühlke, and Daniel Gistschak was awarded PropTech of the Year 2025 by the ZIA German Property Federation.

syte is an AI-powered platform that links building and land data and instantly uncovers infill development opportunities. The startup is sustainable, in line with local building regulations, and economically viable. It supports authorities, developers, planners, and investors in accelerating housing creation, streamlining approval processes, and reducing land consumption by making smarter decisions based on existing building stock and urban context. 📈

Huge congrats to the whole team for this milestone.🙌

📸 Photo credits: ZIA

🙌 Fast Forward: Catching up on Mateo’s journey

We’ve been proud backers of Mateo from day one, watching them evolve from a property management platform into an AI-powered assistant for SMEs. Their solution acts as the AI assistant for customer loyalty, automating communication in a GDPR-compliant and industry-specific way across WhatsApp, email, and even traditional mail.

Mateo helps mid-sized companies redefine customer engagement by leveraging WhatsApp, Facebook, and Instagram. The platform turns everyday communication into AI-driven omnichannel marketing, giving SMEs a real edge in connecting with their customers – and potential buyers.

The recognition speaks for itself: #18 in this year’s Top 100 Software Tools in DACH by OMR Reviews. With more than 100 glowing reviews and top scores like 9.7 in customer support and 9.4 in meeting requirements, the market clearly agrees: Mateo delivers.

🔍 If you’re curious how AI assistants can transform customer relationships in industries like real estate, finance, or retail, we’re happy to connect you with the team.

Big thanks to OMR Reviews for the market snapshot – and congrats to Mateo’s founders Christian Strauch, Domenik J. FOX 🦊, and Philipp Steinrötter for this well-deserved recognition! 🚀

🚀 Fast Forward: Telescope

Big news from our portfolio company Telescope!
They’ve just dropped their new YouTube series: The Hubble 🔭
Instead of endless webinars, 50-page reports, and buzzword bingo, this is something else:
✅ Unfiltered insights from the people tackling issues from climate and financial risks to the EU Taxonomy.

In the first episode of The Hubble, Isak Oksvold of Møller Eiendom explains how the company drives its sustainability strategy and navigates EU taxonomy, CSRD, and Omnibus regulations, sharing industry reactions and key risks.

The playlist is already packed with 7 episodes! So dive in, learn something new, and keep an eye out for what’s next.

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🇪🇺AI in the Energy Sector: How Europe Is Leading the Shift

AI is transforming industry after industry — and energy is next.
The European Union is investing heavily to make energy infrastructure more efficient, resilient, and sustainable. ♻️

Through initiatives like the Common European Energy Data Space and AI-EFFECT, the European Commission aims to:

⚡ Provide high-quality, real-time energy data
⚡ Enable precise control of consumption & production
⚡ Improve renewable energy design & performance
⚡ Use AI for better management of grids and assets

A major milestone: GE Vernova, the energy spinoff from GE General Electric, is acquiring Alteia, a French AI-vision startup helping utilities detect grid defects, vegetation risks, and maintenance needs. This will give utilities greater transparency, control, and predictive capabilities to manage increasingly complex energy networks. 🙌

Just as AI is revolutionizing energy, it’s transforming real estate. At STYX, we see AI as one of the most powerful trends shaping real estate. It is enabling the industry to tackle regulatory challenges and plan, adapt, and act with greater agility and resilience in dynamic market environments.

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🏢The PropTech Germany Study 2025: What It Takes to Build a Successful PropTech Startup

The PropTech Germany Study 2025 by TH Aschaffenburg University of Applied Sciences and blackprint shows: while the challenges for startups in realestate have grown, the path to success has become more fragmented and harder to define.

What does it take to build a winning hashtag#PropTech startup today?
🧭 A clear positioning with a compelling mission
📈 A scalable business model that signals long-term potential
🚀 Strong founder personalities with drive and clarity
🎯 Targeted visibility and sharp brand identity
📊 Reliable KPIs, exit strategies & experience — still relevant, but losing weight

Ultimately, success in PropTech depends on more than just product and funding. It takes an understanding of how the industry works and how to navigate it.

And one insight stands out:
👉 40% of PropTech founders say that a strong industry network is decisive for growth.

At STYX, we see this confirmed in every pitch and every partnership. That’s why we invest more than capital, we invest our network. We bring PropTech founders into the right rooms, at the right time, with the right story.

🏙️  The PropTech Germany Study 2025: A Clearer View of the Challenges Ahead

Since 2020, the #PropTech Germany study series has offered insights into key factors of the construction and real estate sector. For the sixth year in a row, TH Aschaffenburg University of Applied Sciences and blackprint present the study about the PropTech market in #Germany.The findings show that across all phases, from market entry and sales to implementation, the hurdles within construction and real estate companies have intensified compared to 2021.

📌 Slow decision-making structures due to lack of pressure to digitize

📌 Low risk appetite

📌 Accessing the right decision-makers

📌 No clear project ownership, leading to unclear responsibilities

📌 Insufficient budgets often stall progress📌 A lack of prioritization during implementation

📌 No C-level sponsorship to drive decisions

We at STYX believe that overcoming these barriers requires more than just capital. It takes deep sector expertise, close partnerships, and the courage to challenge the status quo. That’s why we back PropTech founders who are ready to rethink #urbanspace and build a more resilient #future.

🌟Milestone for climate-positive building in Mannheim

Last month, our co-founders Florian Fischer and David Zwilling joined an inspiring event hosted by 3iPro GmbH and the Stadt Mannheim to celebrate the topping-out ceremony of the new Hitachi Energy headquarters.

🏙️Alongside Hitachi Energy, Köster GmbH, AllesWirdGut Architektur ZT GmbH, Mayor Christian Specht, and many other guests, we marked the progress of a true lighthouse project: a 9,000 sqm campus built with sustainable timber construction, powered by solar and geothermal energy, and equipped with cutting-edge fire prevention systems.The project has already received the DGNB Platinum pre-certificate and the Local Green Deal plaque from the City of Mannheim, a strong signal for climate-conscious construction and innovation in real estate.🎖️

Thank you to Davut Deletioglu and Klaus Helmrich for the warm welcome and inspiring exchange.Congrats to the whole 3iPro GmbH team and all partners on reaching this milestone!

The construction efforts reflect exactly what matters to us at STYX: building urban spaces that are bold, sustainable, and ready for the future.♻️

🎤Our Co-Founder on Stage: Florian Fischer at VDS 2025

We’re excited to announce that our Co-Founder and Chairman Florian Fischer will be speaking at Valencia Digital Summit 2025 this October 22–23!

Mark your calendars for the Global Tech Event for Leading Startups, Corporates and Investors, it will inspire you once again. 🌟

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The Spanish Solar Boom Is Turning Into a Fire Sale ☀️

Over the past years, billions in venture and growth capital have poured into Spain’s photovoltaic sector. Everyone raced to build capacity, driven by hype and the promise of fast returns.Now, a large number of solar projects are up for sale. Prices have collapsed from €200,000 per megawatt to €80,000 or less, while capture prices have dropped below break-even. Demand is flat, storage is scarce, and delayed auctions plus inconsistent incentives have added to the chaos. 💰

This isn’t a failure of solar itself. It’s a clear warning: when capital floods in without proving unit economics, overcapacity and write-downs are inevitable.We’ve seen the same pattern in other sectors like e-mobility, battery recycling, or AI. At STYX, we’re entrepreneurs first, not hype investors. Sustainable growth needs patient capital, proven models, and realistic assumptions & our Urban Living Labs provide exactly that! 🌇

🇪🇸 Big moments for Ectos!

A couple weeks ago, our venture partner Josep R. Novell LL.M. had the fantastic opportunity to attend the leading entrepreneurship event in southern Spain, Alhambra Venture.The conference is dedicated to supporting startups in reaching their growth milestones and securing investment. 🌟

As a highlight, our portfolio company ECTOS from Spain had the chance to present their idea! Many thanks to Alhambra Venture for offering Ectos this wonderful platform, the event was a great chance to build new connections within the Spanish startup ecosystem.

At STYX, we’re proud to be the first to back this promising project and thrilled to see them taking the stage at one of Spain’s major startup events. ☀️

🙌 Fast Forward: Catching up on Wohnio’s Journey

In Austria’s capital, Vienna, Wohnio is proving how existing heating systems can become powerful levers for decarbonization, ESG compliance, and cost reduction. Just a few months after our investment, they started their collaboration with ÖSW AG and it turns out to be a great great success. Retrofitting Wohnio’s product, they transformed a 1986 multi-family building with 47 units and over 3,200 m² of space from unbalanced district heating to a more sustainable asset. The results speak for themselves:

♻️ Heating energy savings of 30.2%

♻️ Over 21 tons CO₂ saved per year

♻️ Return on investment period of 1.4 years

Across other projects, Wohnio supports housing companies and cooperatives in lowering costs, improving tenant comfort, and preparing existing buildings for the transition to sustainable heating systems. From district heating to gas, oil, or renewable energy, Wohnio has the right solution for every central heating system.Keep in mind that Wohnio is preparing to enter the German market, so keep in touch or reach out to Kevin B. or Gabriel Brandstetter directly. ✅

📊 Tracking European UrbanTech Acquisition

TrendsFrom real estate and construction tech to energy and climate platforms, the European UrbanTech sector is maturing, and exits are following. A new analysis by Axeleo Capital (AXC) provides a comprehensive overview of recent M&A activity in Proptech, Contech, and EnergyTech, tracking more than 150 exits from early 2023 through Q1 2025.So what’s happening under the surface of Europe’s UrbanTech dealflow? Let’s take a look what the team around Dimitri Kremp has found:

💵 Deal volume has remained stable, with around 60 transactions annually in 2023 and 2024, followed by a strong Q1 2025 (28 deals). Notably, 40% of exits come from startup-to-startup consolidation, with corporates and private equity firms equally accounting for the remaining 60%. These dynamics reflect both market maturity and growing strategic appetite for UrbanTech innovation.

🌍 Geographically, 70% of transactions occur within local ecosystems, mostly within Europe or North America, highlighting regional consolidation as a key driver. Cross-border interest is rising, particularly from Asia and the Middle East.

🛠️ In terms of sectors, real estate leads with 49%, followed by energy and environment, making up 27% and construction tech with 24%. Digital twins, ESG tracking, IoT, and predictive analytics are among the most commonly targeted technologies.

Huge props to the Axeleo Capital (AXC) team for publishing this insightful and on point market overview!

🔍 Venture Dates 2025 in Kaiserslautern: Spotlighting regional strengths and bridging ecosystems

Last month, Erik Walkling and Friedrich Droese joined Venture Dates 2025 organized by the Chair of Entrepreneurship | RPTU Kaiserslautern-Landau, an inspiring gathering of founders and investors, where they had the chance to engage directly with the teams and learn more about their products and visions in a dynamic speed dating format.Both of them were especially impressed by the founders’ creativity and inventive spirit: from inflatable bicycle helmets and AI-generated audio guides to circular systems for climbing holds and asparagus harvesting machines, the variety was noteworthy. Those diverse ideas are a testament to the creativity and builder’s mindset at RPTU Kaiserslautern-Landau 🫆

In contrast to the University right at our offices doorsteps, University of Mannheim, one particular insight stood out:While here, events like Q-Summit and the student initiative thinc! bring together students with strong business skills and the main challenge when building teams is often finding the right technical expertise. In Kaiserslautern, many founders are actively looking for commercial and business talent to complement their technical backgrounds.This contrast is a great reminder of how important it is to connect ecosystems and help founders find the right mix of skills.Thank you to RPTU School of Business and Economics Kaiserslautern-Landau, especially the Chair of Entrepreneurship, Dennis Steininger, Paul Dillmann, and Frank Petry 🦊, for the excellent organization and warm welcome.

Congratulations to all founders and to the finalists Inflabi, GenioGuide, and Pigtie. We look forward to seeing your ideas grow.💚

From decarbonizing cities to shaping Germany’s role as a leading economy - an insightful dinner in Berlin🔋

Last week, our co-founders Florian Fischer and David Zwilling had the pleasure of attending an exclusive dinner event in Berlin, hosted by our partner GIGA.GREEN and Stoke Park Capital. Together, STYX and GIGA.GREEN share the vision of decarbonizing cities and making buildings greener and more sustainable and that’s what the event was all about. 🏙️

A highlight - Germany’s former Federal Minister of Finance, Christian Lindner, joined the evening for an inspiring exchange of ideas around the future of the German economy.Special thanks to Sebastian Schmidt and Wolfgang Röbig from GIGA.GREEN for the invitation and for creating such a unique setting for dialogue and collaboration.We are proud to be part of a strong network driving innovation and sustainability forward! ♻️

🚨Proptech Denmarks Q&A: The future is retrofit

As a proud member of PropTech Denmark, our co-founder Florian Fischer had the opportunity to partake in the latest edition of Proptech Denmarks Q&A series. There he shares our perspectives on why digital transformation in real estate needs to go beyond technology adoption.

A big thank you to Proptech Denmark for the invite! 🤩

🙌 Fast Forward: Catching up on Nestflow’s journey

The Nestflow team around Ben Myers and Edgar Alexander Kooter is reimagining home equity as an asset class that works better for both homeowners and institutional investors.Their latest strategic step: welcoming Michael Bristow as advisor.As co-founder of CrowdProperty, Michael scaled one of the UK’s leading specialist property development lending platform and led the company in funding almost £1bn of residential property projects since 2014. He brings deep domain expertise and knows what it takes to structure, grow, and communicate an alternative real estate investment product.We’re convinced that makes him a strong fit for Nestflow’s next chapter: untapping institutional capital sources to fuel further growth, while improving the life of Elderly across Europe.Congrats to the Nestflow team, and welcome aboard, Mike! 🚀

🌍 Shaping the Future at the Ludwig Erhard Summit

Last month, David Zwilling joined leading minds from business, politics, and academia at the #LudwigErhardSummit at Lake Tegernsee. The annual gathering is one of Germany’s most prominent economic forums, a space where decision-makers come together to discuss the future of innovation, sustainability, and competitiveness in Europe. ✅

A big thank you to our partner GIGA.GREEN for the kind invitation. We’ve had the pleasure of collaborating on several impactful events in the past, and it was great to continue the exchange at the summit. Special recognition to Sebastian Schmidt, founder of GIGA.GREEN, who shared his perspective as a speaker on the Energy & Sustainability panel.Also, kudos to the organizers for creating such a high-caliber platform for dialogue. We left inspired, and even more committed to supporting the next generation of entrepreneurs and leaders shaping the future from the ground up. 🔥

🏡Affordable housing is one of the most pressing challenges cities face today.

At this year’s ISHF - International Social Housing Festival 2025 in Dublin, industry leaders gathered to explore the future of housing affordability and social impact. 🌎

Our venture partner Josep R. Novell LL.M. joined an inspiring panel alongside experts in housing economics and representatives from local governments to discuss the direction the sector is heading, and what needs to be done to make real progress.A big thank you to Francesc Martí for the invitation and the chance to share the STYX perspective on the broader ecosystem.🌟

Josep is already looking forward to reconnecting with his fellow panelists to keep learning and to many more Guinness while working together to solve these challenges. 🍻

🏗️ A revolution in the real estate sector - powered by ESG

With a contribution of roughly 35% of global emissions, half of all material used, and 60% of waste generation, real estate is one of the biggest environmental drivers worldwide. However, CO₂ is becoming a new currency in real estate financing. ESG criteria are now shaping valuation, investment, and development decisions at every level. 🌱So where does ESG become tangible in real estate and how are companies responding?

Across our portfolio at STYX, we see bold answers emerging:

→ ECTOS tackles material waste by enabling construction companies to track, manage, and repurpose leftover building materials. Their platform also includes a marketplace where surplus materials can be traded sustainably.

→ Telescope enables commercial real estate owners to assess ESG and climate risks efficiently. By translating climate risk into financial risk, they create much-needed transparency for investors and lenders.

→ vreed. Immobilien digital. 🟢🔵 supports banks in green real estate financing. Their SaaS platform, built on digital twins, cuts renovation documentation costs by 80% and lead times by 93%, helping accelerate building upgrades across Germany.

The integration of ESG into financing and project development presents a real opportunity. Those who act now can unlock new value, drive innovation, and lead the transformation of the built environment. 🧱

Shout-out to the PropTech Powerhouse e.V. team for addressing this topic with such clarity and depth in the latest PropX Magazin. Great work!👏

🚀 Fast Forward: Catching up on Bakerix’s journey

‍Bakerix - Bakeries United is building the digital B2B backbone for bakeries across Germany - enabling hotels, care facilities, caterers and canteens to source fresh products from local bakers, reliably and daily.After expanding to our neighbour cities Frankfurt and Heidelberg in recent weeks, we’re especially excited to see Mannheim, our home base, on the map now. With more cities to follow soon, Bakerix is helping close the supply gap between professional kitchens and fresh regional quality.Huge respect to Mirco Grübel and the whole Bakerix team for scaling this across Germany!

Curious? Check them out at www.bakerix.de

🇮🇪 The International Social Housing Festival kicks off today in Dublin, bringing together experts and changemakers to explore how we can build more inclusive, sustainable cities. From land use and housing to climate adaptation, the festival dives deep into the systemic shifts needed to address today’s urban challenges.🌍

We’re excited that our Venture Partner Josep R. Novell will be joining the conversation later this week, speaking on a panel about building climate-resilient communities. Alongside the moderators Francesc Martí and Nader Afzalan, Ph.D., and fellow panelists Sebastien Delpont, Francesca Bodano, and Sven Van Elst, he’ll be exploring how innovation, policy, and investment intersect to shape the future of affordable housing 🏘️.

🙌 Looking forward to the dialogue, and to learning from an incredible lineup of voices at #ISHF2025.

🙌 Fast Forward: Catching up on Keyota’s journey

In the heart of Mannheim, keyota brings quiet innovation to life. Together with Christusgemeinde Mannheim, they’ve implemented a secure digital access system that respects the church’s historic architecture while offering modern functionality. The previously fragmented and unclear key setup has been replaced by a 5G-connected system that works reliably even through thick stone walls, without the need for Wi-Fi. Access is now simple and flexible: virtual tokens provide entry for volunteers, guests, and groups, while physical tokens ensure inclusion for those without smartphones. Even remote access is now possible, when handling spontaneous deliveries for instance. 🔐

A standout detail: the gold-brushed hardware from Uhlmann & Zacher GmbH, tailored to blend seamlessly into the church’s historic setting.This project shows how tech can be both respectful and revolutionary.

Frontline of Innovation: A night to remember 🌟

Yesterday we had the pleasure of attending the Frontline of Innovation Dinner at the breathtaking Christuskirche here in Mannheim. A huge thank you to Matthias Storch and Süleyman Acar for organizing this outstanding event! 🙌Bringing together over 150 handpicked guests from across all industries, the evening celebrated innovation, entrepreneurship, and regional collaboration at the highest level. After an insightful keynote by Judith Williams, the evening continued with a panel discussion featuring Simon Engelhorn, Johann Fitz, Manuel J Niederhofer, Christian Huf, and Ulrich Spindler. They shared authentic insights and their forward-thinking perspectives. The formal part of the evening flowed into dinner and networking. Events like this are crucial for fostering dialogue and driving bold ideas forward in the Rhine-Neckar region. 🚀

Special thanks to the partners who helped bring this night to life: Aston Martin Mannheim, Huf Haus, Unzer, BW-Bank, LB-BW Asset Management, Aachener Grundvermögen, and Good Brands.

🙌 Fast Forward: Catching up on SoliDrip’s journey

Business amidst uncertainty is definitely never easy, especially so in regions facing ongoing geopolitical challenges. However, SoliDrip has shown impressive resilience, continuing to build and expand their vision.The company develops an autonomous, plant-level irrigation system that optimizes water use by responding in real time to each plant’s needs. It’s already transforming outdoor environments like rooftop gardens and courtyards, as well as indoor spaces such as office planters and vertical walls. 🌱

Beyond urban use, SoliDrip is also working with smallholder farmers in Africa, supporting climate resilience and food security in regions facing severe water scarcity and climate pressures.💧

Now, with a brand-new website and fresh energy, SoliDrip is stepping into the next phase to grow even further. Props to Gad Marton for pushing through!

🔗 Curious? Explore more on the new site: https://solidrip.com

💡Big ideas start with small conversations

Two weeks ago Q-Summit brought the startup world back together at the University of Mannheim and we loved every minute of it. From inspiring panels and sharp speeches to deep conversations about tech trends, venture dynamics, and especially sustainable entrepreneurship, one of this year’s hot topics, the energy over the two days was unmatched. 🚀Our personal highlight: We had the pleasure of co-hosting the investors breakfast with our friends at D11Z.Ventures GmbH & Co. KG . More than 50 investors gathered for coffee, croissants, and open exchange in a relaxed setting where meaningful connections could thrive and ideas flowed freely. ☕️Massive thanks to everyone who joined us for the breakfast and the D11Z.Ventures GmbH & Co. KG team. As a University of Mannheim alumni led company, we’re impressed by the professionalism and the great work a new cohort of students pulls off every year. Kudos to the entire Q-Summit team - it’s been a blast.

We’re already counting down the days until the next one! 🙌

🎙 Innovation in the built world - rethinking the rules

At BUILDINX, the leading trade fair for logistics and industrial real estate, David Zwilling joined the Builders Tech Club podcast to discuss a different approach to real estate and construction investment: investing early and growing the right way. 🎯What does that look like in practice?→ Early-stage investing & real-world testing - Why real innovation in logistics and real estate needs practical application, not just big visions.→ Sustainability & decarbonization - How transforming existing assets is key to a climate-friendly future, and where the real opportunities lie.→ Market dynamics & new investment models - Why traditional VC expectations don’t fit this industry and what kind of strategy leads to sustainable success.→ Hands-on support, not just capital - How STYX helps startups grow through testing in our own portfolio and direct operational support like interim management.A big thank you to Jan C. Küster for hosting and the insightful discussion! We appreciate the opportunity to contribute to this important conversation. 🙌

A must-listen for anyone driving transformation in the built environment! Listen to the full episode!

🤖 🧠 Artificial Intelligence in Real Estate: Between Innovation and Regulation

AI is without a doubt the topic of the moment across industries, headlines, and boardrooms. And while the real estate sector isn’t typically known as a digital frontrunner, it’s catching up fast. But what exactly does that mean for companies, startups, and the broader ecosystem?The article ’The Use of Artificial Intelligence in the Real Estate Sector – Opportunities and Risks’ in the latest PropX Magazin provides a clear and structured overview. It outlines how AI is already being used today: generating exposés, streamlining inbox workflows, supporting legal document checks, and even enabling smarter property valuations.But beyond the use cases, the piece also takes a closer look at the legal side. With the EU AI Act having partially entered into force, companies are already facing new obligations around transparency, risk classification, and data protection, with further regulations set to follow over the next months and years. Especially in real estate, where AI often handles sensitive information, compliance is no longer optional, but critical.

Kudos to the PropTech Powerhouse e.V. team for addressing this topic with such clarity and depth! Great work!👏

🚀 Exploring the VC landscape with thinc!

Last week, we had the pleasure of hosting a workshop in collaboration with the student initiative thinc! from the University of Mannheim – diving deep into the world of Venture Capital as part of their thincubator by thinc! program.

‍Erik Walkling kicked things off by introducing STYX’s investment strategy, highlighting that compared to the ‘traditional VC’, an evergreen fund model isn't bound by a fixed fund lifecycle. We also discussed how STYX differentiates itself through a broad network of real estate owners, offering startups unique strategic advantages.Together with the students, we explored a Convertible Loan Agreement and an Equity Term Sheet. In hands-on sessions, they identified founder-friendly terms and key negotiation points from an investor's and founder’s perspective.To round it off, we challenged the common narrative: not every startup needs VC funding. Sometimes, bootstrapping or loans can be smarter paths to growth, depending on the context. 💡Huge thanks to all the engaged participants, it was great to see so much energy, curiosity, and thoughtful discussion.

Big shoutout also to the thinc! board Simon Hipp, Vincent Sagerer, Mathilde van Echelpoel, Franziska Knirsch, Titus Sequeira, and Amelie Brune, as well as Fabian Kolb, for organizing the amazing event. 🙌

🏗️ Where ConTech is headed next

With bauma taking place this week, we’ve taken a fresh look at where construction tech is going. Based on over 50 early-stage startups we've reviewed in our Q1 dealflow, we found that ConTech is evolving fast and differently:

1. Physical innovation leads the way 🧱

53% of the startups we analyzed are focused on hardware and new materials, a much higher share than in the broader European startup ecosystem. Whether it’s for better insulation, waste reduction, or low-impact construction methods, the message is clear: physical solutions remain essential to solving the industry’s toughest challenges.

2. AI adoption is rising quickly ⚙️

27% of the startups are already integrating AI, nearly double the European average. AI isn’t always the headline, but from workflow optimization to predictive maintenance and smarter design tools it’s increasingly embedded.

3. Sustainability is a core priority 🌱

Across emissions reduction (27%), resource conservation (27%), and certification tools (20%), sustainability was a recurring theme. Whether driven by regulation or market expectations, these startups are prioritizing environmental impact from day one.This sector isn’t just going digital, it’s staying physical, going greener, and thinking ahead. For VCs and industry leaders, that means a massive opportunity to invest in innovation that scales and matters. What trends do you see defining the future of ConTech? 🚀

‘Accelerating Europe – It’s Now Or Never'

At last week’s Tech.eu Summit in London, this one panel with insights from Adine Tjeenk Willink, Benoit Vandevivere, Cristobal Alonso, Monty Munford, and Patrick Newton especially caught our attention.Here are three insights that stuck with us:

🔁 Copy with pride - Across the EU, good solutions already exist. Instead of reinventing the wheel 27 times, let’s scale what works and start treating best practices like shared infrastructure.

💸 Investment of savings capital - In the US, around 85–90% of household capital is actively invested in capital markets, with less than 15% held in bank deposits. In Europe, the picture flips: over 40% of private wealth sits in low-yield savings accounts, and only 15–20% flows into market-based investments. There’s huge untapped potential, but it needs better incentives and frameworks.

🌍 Capital markets union - Europe is a single market for goods and services, but when it comes to capital, it still operates like 27 fragmented systems. A functioning capital markets union isn’t a nice-to-have, it’s essential to unlocking growth, scale, and innovation across the continent.

👉 In short: Europe has the tools, now it’s about the will to use them.

🏠 German PropTech in 2024: resilient, maturing, and more vital than ever

2024 was a challenging year for the construction and real estate industry: economic downturn, political uncertainty, and increased climate pressure put the sector to the test. But amidst all the turbulence, Germany’s PropTech ecosystem is showing remarkable resilience. 🚀According to the latest blackprint PropTech Report, the number of active PropTech startups in Germany hit an all-time high of 1264, a +41% increase YoY. Founders and investors alike doubled down on the sector, with 196 new startups and €1.018 billion in VC funding. Pre-Seed and Seed made up around 50% of all funding rounds, reflecting a continued strong momentum for early-stage innovation.The dominant theme? Energy efficiency. 81% of total VC volume flowed into startups tackling decarbonization, highlighting the urgent demand for scalable climate solutions in real estate. ConTechs and retrofitting-focused solutions gained momentum too, showing that the future of real estate must be both smart and sustainable.

💡Beyond the headline figures, compared to the previous year the blackprint team documented:→ A 73% increase in funding rounds, especially in Pre-Seed and Seed.→ A decline of -21% in insolvencies.→ A growing international investor interest, especially from the UK and US and across capital-intensive segments like solar and heat pumps.The PropTech sector may still face headwinds, but clearly, it's no longer just emerging – it’s accelerating. For us, these numbers are signals confirming what we already believe: the built world is being redefined by tech and the time to invest is now. Therefore, we're excited to back the next generation of PropTech innovators that turn regulatory pressure and energy challenges into scalable business models.

Props to the blackprint crew for making sense of a fast-evolving space - great work! 🙌

🌍 Earlier this month, Florian Fischer attended the Nordic PropTech Awards 2025, an exciting gathering where innovation and sustainability in real estate tech take center stage.

🏆The event brought together leading startups and experts from the Nordic PropTech ecosystem. For us at STYX, it meant a few inspiring days in Copenhagen filled with great conversations, new connections, and valuable exchanges with those driving real change in the real estate sector. The energy and openness of the community made it a truly special experience. A huge thank you to Michael Ambjorn and Laura Katzensteiner from PropTech Denmark, Daniel Butenschøn from Proptech Norway, PropTech Sweden, and PropTech Finland, as well as everyone else who contributed! 🌟A special highlight: Florian had the honor of participating in a reverse pitch session, alongside fellow investors Fabian Koenig from PT1 and Sebastian Peck from KOMPAS VC. In an exclusive session, we shared with the finalists, what makes us unique and how we support visionary founders driving the next wave of PropTech innovation.

🚀We were impressed by the innovative solutions emerging from the Nordic region and how they are pushing boundaries to drive real change in the real estate industry.

Congratulations to all the winners of the Nordic PropTech Awards 2025! 👏

🙌 Fast Forward: Catching up on Nestflow’s journey

At STYX, we seek investments that are not only financially attractive but also create a real impact on society. That’s why nearly a year ago, we invested in Ben and Edgar. With Nestflow they aim to help solve a major financial challenge for Europe’s elderly homeowners. Too many are “house rich, cash poor,” with over 80% of their wealth tied up in their homes and few ways to access it without taking on debt or selling outright. Nestflow offers a fair, flexible alternative: a platform that empowers homeowners to unlock their housing wealth by selling a share of their home’s future value, giving them financial freedom while staying in their homes. At the same time, investors gain access to a stable, high-return asset class, owner-occupied real estate. The challenge of home equity access is only growing, and Nestflow is proving that financial innovation can be both impactful and investable. Since our investment, Nestflow has gained significant traction. Their home portfolio has been growing at a double-digit rate month-over-month. They now also offer a secure investment backed by mortgage rights, providing investors with a fixed return.We’re proud to be part of this innovative solution with great co-investors such as EWOR, Birdhouse, and Oliver Mickler.

We can't wait to see how they continue scaling to reshape home equity across Europe. 🏡

🎙 Venture Capital & Construction Tech - What’s Next?

At BAU 2025, Florian Fischer joined the Builders Tech Club Podcast for a deep dive into the future of construction tech and investment.Together with Richard Luetzner (REHAU New Ventures), Dr.-Ing. Mark Windeknecht (World Fund), Conrad Peto-Madew (Futury), and Christoph Baier (Ambivation), they explored:💡 Which innovations have real market potential?💰 How can venture capital accelerate change in the built world?🏗 Why is now the right time to invest in ConTech?A big thank you to Jan C. Küster for hosting and to everyone on the panel for the insightful discussion! We appreciate the opportunity to contribute to this important conversation!

Listen to the full episode!

📢 Great news from our portfolio company Telescope!

The Oslo-based PropTech startup has raised €3.7M in a seed round to help real estate companies turn sustainability risks into strategic advantages.The round was co-led by Scale Capital and Dreamcraft Ventures, with participation from Curiosity VC and OBOS Oppstart.Congrats to Marit Bjerkreim, Gustav Haaland, Mathias Wahl, and the entire Telescope team on this milestone! Excited to see what’s next. 🚀🙌

🚀 Exploring Barcelona’s thriving startup ecosystem with Q-Summit

This week, we had the pleasure of hosting a group of students from Q-Summit at the University of Mannheim in Barcelona, offering them a deep dive into the city’s dynamic startup ecosystem. Barcelona is not only emerging as a European tech hub, it's also driving innovation, particularly across the sectors of MedTech and FinTech.To provide a well-rounded perspective, we brought together industry experts with various backgrounds for a panel discussion:💸 Josep R. Novell LL.M. provided the investor's viewpoint💡 Xavier Simó shared insights from the corporate world👥 Olivia Harrower ACMA AMCT spoke from a business angel’s perspective📈 Xavier Estanyol, co-founder of ECTOS, shared his experience of building and scaling a hashtag#contech Startup in Barcelona - more exciting news to come, so keep an eye out!Following the event, we had some valuable networking opportunities where ideas were exchanged and new connections were made. It was inspiring to see so much curiosity and enthusiasm from the next generation of entrepreneurs and investors.

A huge thank you to Q-Summit for visiting us in Barcelona. We truly enjoyed the exchange and look forward to continuing the conversations at the conference in Mannheim this April! 🌍

🏗️🔗 𝐁𝐀𝐔 2025 - 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐟𝐮𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐢𝐬 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐠𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐝

‍Florian Fischer and Erik Walkling were on the ground at 𝐁𝐀𝐔 𝐢𝐧 𝐌𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐜𝐡 to capture the pulse of the industry and here is what they take away:

👉 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐯𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐜𝐚𝐩𝐢𝐭𝐚𝐥 𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐬𝐜𝐚𝐩𝐞 𝐢𝐧 𝐔𝐫𝐛𝐚𝐧𝐓𝐞𝐜𝐡 𝐢𝐬 𝐛𝐞𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐞𝐝 𝐛𝐲 𝐚 𝐩𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐟𝐮𝐥 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐠𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞.

At the heart of it lies the "magic triangle" - an interplay between (i) construction innovation, (ii) smart building design, and (iii) cutting-edge energy solutions. This triad is not just attracting investment, it is laying the foundation for resilient, efficient, and livable urban spaces. As we navigate the complexities of ESG requirements, it's clear that integrated approaches addressing all three aspects simultaneously are poised to lead the charge in creating the future proof cities of tomorrow.

🙏 Props to Jan C. Küster and Founders Fight Club for bringing together a great group of people in the boxing ring for key notes, panel and ultimatively the Founders Fight Night.🥊

🏚️ As administrators in city halls across Europe grapple with the complexities of urban development and the housing crisis, PropTech emerges as a powerful tool to create sustainable, economically viable solutions at the local level.🌱 🤝

At the 9th European European Cities for Sustainable Public Finances (CSPF) meeting this week Florian Fischer shared STYX's perspective on the matter with 20 European city CFOs among them Barcelona, Hamburg and Bordeaux.

Wrapping up the year with a BANG!

Asociación Internacional de Startups has put together another amazing event to showcase the #Sevilla ecosystem.

Great panelists, great pitches and the connection to #LATAM that always brings a happy twist.

I was honored to share the stage with the great Rene de Jong and the amazing Sascha Badelt in order to share our insights as BAs and early stage investors. From STYX and Now and Beyond Consulting we always try to feed as much knowledge to entrepreneurs as possible.

And of course plenty of time to catch up with old and new pals Anmol Goel Anindya Saha Adrián Crovetto

This is a 2024 wrap up. Enjoy the holidays and festivities ecosystem, see you next year with more and bigger news.

PS: we did have a massive audience. Pic was pre-panel 🤣🤣

The 𝐅𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐅𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐍𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 by FoundersFight.Club might just be the coolest pitch format in the German startup ecosystem.🏆

🥊𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐒𝐞𝐭 𝐔𝐩The competition pits startups against each other in boxing match style direct face-offs. Each startup is matched with a worthy opponent, creating a series of one-on-one battles. Yes, this includes walk on songs and ideally a boxing ring.🎶

⏱️𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐑𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐬

1️⃣ Opening Pitch: Each entrepreneur has one minute to present their case

2️⃣ Attack and Defend: The red corner attacks while the blue corner defends for one minute

3️⃣Role reversal: Roles switch, with blue attacking and red defending

⚠️𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐓𝐰𝐢𝐬𝐭What makes Founders Fight Night truly unique is the absence of traditional pitching tools. There are no screens, no slides, and no visual aids. Contestants must rely solely on their words, passion, and entrepreneurial spirit to make their case.

🎖️𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐃𝐞𝐜𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧After the initial bout judges ask a single "haymaker question" to each contestant and an expert influencer gives a preference trying to sway the crowd in one direction.Ultimately, the audience votes publicly by holding up colored cards to determine the winner.

🕶️ 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐂𝐨𝐨𝐥 𝐅𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐨𝐫This format ensures high audience engagement and mimics the real startup world, where the market (represented by the audience) ultimately decides a startup's success. The set up transforms the often dry pitching process into an adrenaline-pumping spectacle, testing not just ideas but also the entrepreneurs' resilience, quick thinking, and ability to inspire under pressure.

Thanks for Jan C. Küster for inviting us to take part in Novembers BUILDINX edition and congrats to figth champion Anna Dieckhöfer from SLAPStack.

What is your favourite pitch event and format?

💥The 6th of November was indeed a political watershed!

⏩ What can we expect going forward, and what does 2025 hold for the German Startup Ecosystem in particular?

🔭In his opinion piece on Business Punk, STYX Co-Founder Florian Fischer ventures a look into the crystal ball.

link to the article: https://lnkd.in/epaEai2E

Autumn update from STYX 🍁 🎃 🏙️

🇪🇸 📈 🚀 Our branch in #Spain is growing. Together with Inger Egeland-Helgøy and Josep R. Novell LL.M., we had a blast at events including The District Show in #Barcelona, where we hosted a side event together with Xavier Mayo and Xavier Simó. Another personal highlight was VDS in #Valencia - a big shoutout to Krloos Rivera, Marcus Hølland Eikeland, Sabine Schoorl MBA 🏳️‍🌈, Jason Scott and many more who made this event a blast!

🇳🇱 🏡 👨🦳 Our portfolio company Nestflow secured funding from Europe's leading #agetech investor Birdhouse Ventures, kicked off by two weeks of insights and learnings in Antwerp, Belgium.

🏦 🚀 🏆 Jury duty in my home ecosystem #rheinneckar - Frederik Haas and his team at Volksbank Kurpfalz eG hosted one of the cooles startup festival in our region attracting more than 300 attendees. I had the pleasure to join the jury of the pitch competition together with Fjolla Myftari and Luis Langner. This was a great opportunity to see again how much this ecosystem has to offer!

😉What do Mercedes-Benz, IKEA and our portfolio company Telescope (Former Ei Solutions) have in common?

All three of them have had first-hand experience with the importance of cross-cultural brand naming!🌏

🚘 When Mercedes-Benz first entered the Chinese market, their brand name was initially translated as 奔死 (bēn sǐ), which unfortunately meant "rush to die". Realizing this was not an ideal message for a car brand, they quickly changed it to 奔驰 (bēn chí), meaning "to run quickly (as if flying)".

🛋️ IKEA, known for its Swedish product names, released a workbench called "FARTFULL" in 2005. While the name made sense in Swedish, with "fart" meaning "speed" or "fast", it had an unfortunate connotation in English. The product was eventually removed from the market.

🌱 Telescope, our Norwegian portfolio startup helping companies to navigate sustainability risk in real estate finance, began its journey under the brand name EiSolutions (Eiendom translates to property/ real estate in Norwegian). In German however, "Ei" translates to "egg" and even more ironically, at last year's Slush conference in Finland, Marit and Gustav introduced themselves as "NoSolutions".

💡Curious about Telescope? check out their new branding in action here: https://www.telescope.eco

With autumn in full swing, Inger Egeland-Helgøy and Erik Walkling went to attend Nordic Fund Day in Amsterdam last week.

What memories does the team take home?

🌟Witnessing Marit Bjerkreim from our portfolio company Telescope (Former Ei Solutions) rock the stage with her pitch as well as meeting Nestflow founder Edgar Alexander Kooter on his home turf.

💭 A harbour tour through Amsterdam's old town on a former refugee ship. We sat tightly packed with a group of 30 on a vessel that, just a few years ago, carried over 200 migrants across the Mediterranean.

👐 Catching up with the vibrant community Emilie Christensen and Nordic Edge have built over the last years. It is always a pleasure!

Our investment in Edgar Alexander Kooter, Ben Myers and their mission to make home equity release fair and accessible dates back not even four months and already their web domain can no longer be found?🤯

No need to worry, the two are alright, and NestEgg is now Nestflow, new name same mission!😉

🚀 Why the rebranding? Check out their official announcement and their new website (👉 www.nestflow.com) to find out more.

Who will we meet at the GROUNDBREAKERS Summit in Stuttgart this Thursday?

🏗️🌿The event will host a wide array of stakeholders in the construction world from leading universities and emerging startups to established industry players and research institutions. Our highlights?

👉 Keynote by Sika Germany GM Daniela Schmiedle

‍👉 Startup pitches from the first Groundbreakers batch and further promising ConTechs like HeatPump23 GmbHIf you're interested in joining, there are still a few tickets available and Johannes Felden is your go-to guy for any questions.