Silicon Roundabout

Silicon Roundabout Ventures Research Investment Thesis Silicon Roundabout Ventures is a community-driven, solo GP deeptech venture capital fund founded by Francesco Perticarari in 2023. The firm positions itself as a bridge between Europe's largest technical community (15,000+ founders and engineers) and early-stage deeptech innovation. Their core thesis centers on backing "sub-0.1% of the population" type exceptional founders building fundamental, infrastructure-level technologies in critical sectors reshaping civilization during this century. The fund operates with extreme conviction at pre-seed and seed stages, providing not just capital but hands-on technical expertise and community access. Francesco's background as a computer scientist who built the Silicon Roundabout community since 2011 gives the fund unique founder-friendliness combined with technical credibility. They explicitly reject the notion of "deeptech = crazy stuff" and instead focus on foundational computing, defence, and energy technologies with clear improvement curves and 10+ year revenue potential. Their mission statement is clear: "Building a new kind of financial institution at the intersection of Venture Capital, Science and Community." The fund emphasizes "writing first cheques" in pre-seed and angel rounds, leveraging their proprietary deal flow from the 15,000+ community network to discover exceptional technical founders before they're obvious to the broader VC market. Stage Focus Silicon Roundabout Ventures maintains a strict early-stage focus with primary focus on Pre-seed, Seed, and selective Series A follow-ons. Pre-seed investments range £150K-£500K for exceptional teams with early technical validation. Seed stage is their primary deployment vehicle with typical investments around £1M-£3M (£6.68M average), with recent large seed rounds at £8.7M. They also make strategic angel investments in exceptional founders from their 15,000+ community network. Francesco explicitly stepped away from engineering in 2022 to focus entirely on building the fund and discovering early-stage founders. The fund's approach is to lead or co-lead first institutional investment rounds, providing founders with technical mentorship and community connections alongside capital deployment. Check Size Silicon Roundabout Ventures' investment range reflects their early-stage focus: minimum £150K-£250K for exceptional pre-seed rounds, typical seed investments of £1M-£3M with some larger seed rounds at £6.68M average, and maximum observed of £8.7M for large seed/Series A opportunities. The fund size of £5.05M (Fund I, closed 2024) enables deployment across 10-15 companies per fund with meaningful follow-on capacity. The fund operates as a solo GP structure with institutional-grade administration and back-office management. They maintain reserve allocation for follow-on investments in breakout portfolio companies, with average seed round participation at £6.68M indicating substantial follow-on capacity from Fund I deployment. Lead Tendency Silicon Roundabout Ventures demonstrates a strong lead tendency, particularly at seed stage. The fund actively leads seed and pre-seed rounds, taking the leading investor position in most portfolio companies. They co-lead selectively when strategic partners add value, and take board seats or observer participation in select portfolio companies. High-touch founder support includes technical mentorship, network introductions, and strategic guidance. Notably, founders credit Francesco with exceptional support—one portfolio founder tweeted that Francesco personally rode the train to the airport to support him before a fundraising round, exemplifying the fund's commitment to founder partnership beyond capital deployment. This founder-friendly approach combined with lead position demonstrates strong engagement model. Recent Activity Silicon Roundabout Ventures has been actively deploying capital throughout 2024-2026 with 14 total investments to date (January 2026). Recent 2025 investments include Swisspod Technologies (£8.7M large seed, April 2025) in logistics/hyperloop and Kaikaku (June 2025) in robotics/AI for kitchen/restaurant operations. 2024 saw significant deployment with Astral Systems (December 2024) in nuclear fusion/energy, Hippos Exoskeleton (October 2024) in health/robotics, Gama (September 2024) in space/aerospace, Origin Robotics (August 2024) in defence/AI, and Finchetto (July 2024) in semiconductor/photonic computing. Fund I (£5.05M) closed above target in December 2024 and is currently deploying actively. Fund II is launching soon as announced in recent blogs, signaling strong LP validation. The fund maintains monthly "Building in Public" updates via blog sharing fund highlights and deeptech market insights. Portfolio Highlights Silicon Roundabout Ventures has backed 18+ companies across critical deeptech sectors. Seed stage investments include Anaphite (graphene batteries), Panakeia (AI-powered molecular diagnostics), Archangel Lightworks (space connectivity), and NuQuantum (quantum networking). Large seed/Series A follow-ons include Swisspod Technologies in hyperloop logistics. Pre-seed/Angel stage includes multiple stealth companies in manufacturing, space/aerospace, semiconductors, and quantum computing. Portfolio characteristics show heavy focus on hardware and deep science (batteries, quantum computing, semiconductors, nuclear fusion) with strong representation in defence and energy for critical national infrastructure. Companies span computing, space & aerospace, health, energy, defence, robotics, and semiconductors. Portfolio companies have raised from tier-1 investors including Amadeus Capital, IQ Capital, and ecosystem includes Molten Ventures, Multiple Capital, and 50+ active angel investors. Team Silicon Roundabout Ventures operates with a lean but deeply technical team. Francesco Perticarari is the General Partner & Founder, a computer scientist who founded Silicon Roundabout community in 2011 and angel invested in 17+ companies. He left engineering in 2022 to focus entirely on the fund, with background including angel investments in Ori Industries (edge/GPU computing), Aegiq (quantum photonics), and Vivid-Q (holography)—companies now generating £40M+ revenue. Venture partners provide technical expertise: Olivia Nicoletti (PhD Nanophysicist, spinout expert, ex Cambridge Enterprise), Ralph King (Exited CTO & technical architect), and Maria Grazia Vigliotti (PhD AI & Cybersecurity expert, angel investor, entrepreneur). The team structure is intentionally lean with institutional-grade back-office management and deep technical expertise across computing, physics, and cybersecurity. Geographic Focus Primary geography is London/UK with strong team presence and portfolio concentration. Secondary focus is pan-European with founder base across UK and Europe. The fund explicitly positions itself as "pan-European" and "UK-Europe focused" serving as the search function to discover exceptional technical founders across the continent. Selective international expansion is emerging for deeptech founders globally. The fund's London base reflects Francesco's community hub in Old Street Roundabout area (founded 2011), though they actively source founders across Europe through their 15,000+ network, monthly pitching events, and community competitions spanning UK and continental Europe. Decision Process Decision structure is solo GP model with Francesco Perticarari making investment decisions and venture partners providing technical diligence and strategic input. Investment committee approach is used for larger follow-on rounds. Typical early-stage decision timeline is 2-4 weeks for pre-seed/seed decisions, with existing community relationships accelerating decisions to 1-2 weeks. Deal sourcing leverages proprietary pipeline from 15,000+ community network, monthly pitching events and competitions, technical founder networks across UK/Europe, and open application process via website. Warm intros are not required but advantageous. Portfolio involvement is high-touch with hands-on technical mentorship from GP and venture partners, weekly/bi-weekly support for challenged companies, board-level or observer participation in select investments, and network access plus strategic guidance. Founder Preferences Silicon Roundabout Ventures explicitly targets technical depth (computer scientists, physicists, engineers with deep domain expertise), track record (founders with exits, published research, or proven backgrounds), obsessive builders committed to long-term technology development, science background (PhDs, researchers, academics), non-traditional paths (athletes, artists, engineers from diverse backgrounds), and community participation (Silicon Roundabout founders have advantage). They explicitly avoid pure consumer/SaaS plays without fundamental technology, entrepreneurs without hands-on technical involvement, founders pursuing hype-driven categories without genuine innovation, and teams lacking obsessive commitment to long-term building. Their model emphasizes backing founders before they're obvious winners, with conviction in foundational technology development. Summary Silicon Roundabout Ventures represents a new model in European deeptech venture capital: a community-driven, technically-grounded solo GP fund combining hands-on founder support with institutional rigor. Francesco Perticarari's unique position as founder of Europe's largest technical community (15,000+ members) provides proprietary deal flow and deep technical credibility. With £5.05M in Fund I, they deploy efficiently across 10-15 companies focusing on foundational technologies in computing, quantum systems, nuclear fusion, defence systems, and aerospace. Fund II launching signals strong LP validation and institutional interest in their approach.