📮 Tensor Ventures — Decoded Newsletter May 2025 Edition
Welcome to the May edition of Decoded — your monthly download from Tensor Ventures. This spring, our portfolio is in motion: from QurieGen hitting the Draper Summit stage in San Mateo to dstack being spotlighted by EA at NVIDIA GTC, and Pointee launching a hot new webinar series on automation.
Meanwhile, Europe is turning up the heat in deep tech with bold moves from Bosch and Spain, and the AI world just got a design-forward jolt with OpenAI’s hardware play. Catch up on what’s powering our ecosystem, where we’ve been, and what’s shaping the future.
🚀 Portfolio in action
Pointee is launching a new Automation Hot Takes webinar series. Episode #1 dives into RPA, Process Mining, and the rise of AI Agents. Webinars.
dstack was spotlighted at NVIDIA GTC by EA’s central tech team. With over 100 AI projects across Electronic Arts, scalable GPU compute is essential. Case study.
Dynanic secured funding support through CzechInvest’s Internationalization Program, helping scale its global footprint.
QurieGen joined the Draper & Friends portfolio showcase during the Draper Summit in San Mateo, presenting cutting-edge work in biotech innovation.
👩🏽💻 Deep tech scene
OpenAI Acquires Jony Ive’s AI Hardware Startup 'io' for $6.5B
In a bold move to fuse cutting-edge AI with iconic design, OpenAI acquired 'io', the startup led by former Apple designer Jony Ive. The deal marks OpenAI’s first major step into hardware, aiming to bring its AI models into sleek, intuitive consumer devices—and challenge Apple and Google on their home turf.
Google DeepMind Launches AlphaEvolve: AI That Designs Algorithms
DeepMind unveiled AlphaEvolve, an agent that uses large language models to invent more efficient algorithms than any known today. After beating human records in matrix multiplication, AlphaEvolve is now being tested in cryptography and scientific computing—hinting at a future where AI engineers the very foundation of software.
Bosch Launches €250M Deep Tech Fund to Fuel Europe’s Tech Future
German industrial giant Bosch introduced a €250 million fund targeting AI, quantum, robotics, and next-gen materials. With Europe racing to retain talent and tech sovereignty, this fund signals a shift: old-world industry is now betting big on new-world innovation.
Spain Unveils €353M Deep Tech Vehicle for Science-to-Startup Translation
Spain launched a €353 million fund focused on transforming academic breakthroughs into deep tech startups. Backed by the European Investment Fund, the program bridges research and venture capital, signaling a broader European push to commercialize homegrown innovation.
💡 What we read
AI Is Becoming Boring—and That’s a Good Thing: In AI Snake Oil, Arvind Narayanan argues that AI's shift from breakthrough to boring mirrors the trajectory of past transformative tech. As AI gets folded into infrastructure and regulation, the focus is turning from hype to reliability and measurable utility.
First U.S. Hub for Experimental Medical Treatments Opens in Texas: MIT Tech Review reports on a new government-backed facility in Dallas designed to rapidly test experimental treatments for everything from cancer to long COVID. It’s a bold step toward making clinical trials faster, more inclusive, and less bureaucratic. Read more.
There Are Only Two Startup Stages: Before and After Product-Market Fit
In 99D’s sharp take, the messy middle of startup phases is a myth. There’s only before PMF (where everything’s broken and you're surviving on belief) and after PMF (where the game becomes focus, hiring, and scaling). A useful mental model for founders, operators, and VCs alike.
📣 Events We loved
🇨🇿 She Invests by Lumus Investments
What does it mean to lead a successful exit? Petr Ulvr shared insights during this powerful gathering centered on impactful investing and inclusive capital. Thanks to Lumus for curating such a meaningful event. 🙌🏼
🇱🇻 Deep Tech Atelier by Invest in Latvia
Riga check-in — Jan Faflík represented us on the ground. A great opportunity to connect with the Baltic deep tech scene.
🇩🇪 Deep Tech Momentum
Who else joined DTM? Ondrej Lipold, Martin Drdul, and Daniel Hastik were there to connect, chat, and go deep into tech.
🇺🇸 TechBio in SF
Together with QurieGen and Tensor Ventures, we co-hosted a night dedicated to the intersection of biology and computation — from virtual cells to longevity therapeutics.
🇪🇪 Latitude59
Knarik and Jan checked in from Estonia's leading tech gathering. Over 70 startup meetings and standout side events by Karma Ventures and Iron Wolf Capital.
Cheers,
The Tensor VC team