What Emerald Technology Ventures does

Emerald Technology Ventures is a Zurich-based venture capital firm founded in 2000 that specializes in sustainable industrial innovation. The firm invests across energy, water, materials and packaging, industrial IT and automation, food and agriculture, and mobility through dedicated sector funds. It manages and advises over €1.3 billion in assets across four current funds — the flagship open-ended Industrial Innovation Fund, the Global Water Fund II (targeting €150–180M), the Energy Fund, and the Packaging Materials Fund — and operates six third-party mandates, including CVC-as-a-Service engagements for industrial corporates (Nabtesco, Sasol, SIG, Idemitsu, DIC) and the CHF 350 million Swiss Technology Fund, a public credit guarantee scheme for cleantech SMEs managed on behalf of the Swiss Federal Office for the Environment since 2014 and extended through 2030. The firm is structured through three wholly-owned regulated/unregulated entities: Emerald Technology Ventures AG (Zurich, FINMA-supervised), Emerald Technology Ventures PTE. LTD. (Singapore, MAS-regulated under Licence CMS101112), and Emerald Technology Ventures Inc. (Toronto), with 55 professionals across the three offices.

The firm's primary technology asset is Innspire, a proprietary LP-facing deal management platform built up over more than 20 years and containing over 24,000 company evaluations across seven functional modules (deal database, deal management, portfolio company news, co-investments, KPI dashboard, events and studies, and dataroom). Investment underwriting is conducted by sector-specialist teams in water, energy, materials and packaging, automation and industrial IT, and portfolio performance. The firm applies a proprietary flex-term (evergreen) fund structure, first launched in 2016, that allows limited partners to commit for a five-year minimum with continuous reinvestment from exit proceeds, avoiding the vintage lock-in of traditional 10+2 year VC funds. To date the firm has reviewed 25,000+ deals, invested in 90+ portfolio companies, and produced demonstrable exits to industry strategics including SUEZ, Xylem, BASF, and Sulzer (water fund), and JMI Equity-backed SewerAI (2026).

Emerald generates revenue through four streams: (1) management fees on assets under management across its funds; (2) professional service fees on CVC-as-a-Service mandates where investment decisions remain with the corporate partner; (3) management fees on the government-backed Swiss Technology Fund mandate; and (4) service fees from Emerald Sprints open-innovation programs. The firm serves three principal client groups: blue-chip corporate limited partners (over 50, including ABB, Chevron, Caterpillar, Microsoft, Nestlé, Michelin, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, and Henkel) using the platform for strategic venture exposure; institutional investors (sovereign wealth funds such as Temasek, foundations such as Grundfos Foundation, family offices) seeking climate tech venture exposure; and government agencies seeking tools to catalyze climate tech SME ecosystems. Marketing is thought-leadership driven, anchored by the News & Insights content hub, Emerald Sprints events, the European Venture Fair, webinars, and the Innspire platform itself.

Name

Emerald Technology Ventures

Legal name

Emerald Technology Ventures AG

Website

https://emerald.vc/

Company type

Private

Founded year

2000

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Emerald Technology Ventures is a Zurich-based venture capital firm founded in 2000 that manages over €1.3 billion in sustainable industrial innovation assets across dedicated sector funds, CVC-as-a-Service mandates, and a Swiss government guarantee program, serving corporate limited partners, institutional investors, and governments.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Venture Capital Management

NAICS

Other Investment Pools and Funds (5259)

SIC

Investment Advice (6282)

akta.pro primary industry

Family Office–Backed ETA (FSANALAH)

akta.pro secondary industry

Private Sector & Blended Finance Arms (IFC-type) (BPADACAJ)

Keywords

• Venture capital management
• Clean technology investing
• Sustainable industrial innovation
• Corporate venture capital services
• Climate tech investment funds

Headquarters

HQ city

Zürich

HQ country

Switzerland

HQ region

Europe

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Venture Fund Management Fees & Carried Interest: Primary revenue stream derived from managing multiple venture capital funds including Emerald Industrial Innovation Fund (flex-term), Global Water Fund II (targeting €150–180M), dedicated packaging, energy, and water funds, plus the Swiss Government Technology Fund mandate (CHF 350M debt guarantee program). Revenue generated through management fees on assets under management and carried interest from successful portfolio exits.
2. Corporate Venture Capital-as-a-Service (CVCaaS) Fees: Fee-based service for corporate clients such as Nabtesco, Sasol, SIG InnoVentures, Idemitsu, and DIC where Emerald manages the investment side of corporate CVC activities including deal sourcing, due diligence, transaction structuring, portfolio management, and advisory services, while investment decisions remain with the partner corporation.
3. Government Mandate Management Fees: Management fees for operating government-backed climate tech mandates, including the Swiss Federal Office for the Environment Technology Fund — a public credit guarantee scheme that has been extended through 2030.
4. Emerald Sprints (Open Innovation Programs): Time-bound corporate venturing programs (Emerald Sprints) where Emerald runs focused programs to help corporates identify startups and accelerate collaboration, generating service fees from corporate participants.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion5 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

Emerald Technology Ventures is a venture capital firm that invests in sustainable industrial innovation through multiple specialized funds (Industrial Innovation, Global Water, Energy, Packaging) and offers Corporate Venture Capital-as-a-Service to industrial corporates. The firm also manages the Swiss government's CHF 350 million Technology Fund, runs Emerald Sprints open-innovation programs, and provides its Innspire deal management platform to limited partners.

Product overview

Emerald Technology Ventures is a single unified venture capital platform offering sustainable industrial innovation investment services through a coordinated suite of specialized funds, mandates, and innovation programs. The core platform is the Industrial Innovation Fund (an open-ended flex-term fund backed by 50+ corporate LPs), complemented by the specialist Global Water Fund II (water-focused), Energy Fund (decarbonization), and Packaging Materials Fund. Emerald also operates CVC-as-a-Service mandates (Nabtesco, Sasol, SIG, Idemitsu, DIC), manages the Swiss Technology Fund on behalf of the Swiss government, runs Emerald Sprints (corporate-startup collaboration programs), provides the Innspire LP deal management platform, and hosts the European Venture Fair. This integrated platform-plus-modules architecture enables Emerald to invest across energy, water, materials, automation, food & agriculture, and mobility while serving corporate, institutional, and government clients.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Innspire: Emerald's proprietary deal management and LP platform, providing access to over 24,000 company evaluations, deal flow, portfolio news, co-investments, KPI dashboards, events/studies and datarooms for limited partners.
• Emerald Sprints

Products and services

• Industrial Innovation Fund Emerald's flagship open-ended flex-term venture capital fund that invests in sustainable industrial innovation across energy, water, materials, automation, food & agriculture. Backed by over 50 blue-chip corporate limited partners including ABB, Chevron, Microsoft, Michelin, Nestlé, and others.
• Emerald Global Water Fund II Specialist water-focused venture fund targeting €150-180 million total size, which reached the €100 million milestone in March 2026 with investors including Temasek, Grundfos Foundation, Veralto Corporation, Ecolab, SKion Water, and Oxy Technology Ventures. Invests in early-to-growth-stage water infrastructure, treatment, reuse, monitoring, and automation companies.
• Swiss Technology Fund Public Credit Guarantee Scheme (PCGS) managed by Emerald on behalf of the Swiss Federal Office for the Environment (FOEN) since 2014. CHF 350 million debt guarantee program for climate-tech SMEs, extended through 2030. The portfolio has reduced 8.7 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent (2014-2023).
• CVC-as-a-Service (Corporate Venture Capital-as-a-Service) Service offering where Emerald provides technology and investment expertise to corporations seeking to access startup innovations, including deal sourcing, due diligence, transaction structuring, portfolio management, and advisory services. Mandates include Nabtesco (since 2018), Sasol (2023), SIG InnoVentures (2023), Idemitsu (2026), and DIC (2026, $62M Physical AI platform).
• Emerald Sprints
• Innspire Deal Management Platform Emerald's proprietary and customizable deal management platform for limited partners, providing a window to Emerald's entire deal flow and investment evaluations. Includes a deal database covering 20+ years and over 24,000 company evaluations, deal management tools, portfolio company news, co-investments directory, KPI dashboard, events & studies, and a dataroom.
• European Venture Fair Industry event that brings together corporates and startups to catalyze collaborations around common themes, providing an ecosystem advantage for Emerald's corporate investors.
• Emerald Packaging Materials Fund Dedicated packaging fund launched in 2022, targeting plastic replacement and sustainable packaging innovations.
• Emerald Energy Fund Dedicated energy fund launched in 2021 to capitalize on the $4 trillion annual investment needed in energy-sector decarbonization by 2030.

Quantifiable outcome

• 8.7 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent reduced through the Swiss Technology Fund portfolio (2014–2023)
• +6 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability3 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and flagship.

• MicrosoftcoreTechnology or Integration · 10 March 2026Microsoft is a current Emerald LP and corporate collaborator — Microsoft has accomplished key collaborations with Emerald portfolio companies Kilimo (AI for smarter irrigation in Chile) and FIDO (AI to drive down water losses). Highlighted as a key example of corporate-startup collaboration facilitated by Emerald's water fund.
• DIC CorporationflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 17 February 2026Emerald and DIC Corporation (Tokyo-listed chemicals and materials company) partnered to launch a $62M (also reported as €52M) investment platform focused on Physical AI technologies including sensors, wearables, robotics, and automation. Emerald serves as DIC's strategic venture partner, handling startup sourcing, due diligence, investment execution and post-investment support across Europe and North America over a five-year period. DIC plans to establish a startup investment management subsidiary in Zurich in spring 2026.
• Idemitsu Kosan Co., Ltd.coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026Emerald scored an exclusive investment mandate with Japan's Idemitsu to identify and manage industrial sustainability investments aligned with Idemitsu's decarbonization strategy. Idemitsu is a Japanese petroleum and advanced materials company.
• Sasol VenturescoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2023Emerald won a CVC-as-a-Service mandate to manage Sasol Ventures (South African chemicals and energy company) to accelerate Sasol's fossil-free future. Sasol is among the corporate partners displayed on the CVC-as-a-Service mandate page.
• SIG InnoVenturescoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2023Emerald won a CVC-as-a-Service mandate to manage SIG InnoVentures (SIG Group's venture arm, focused on sustainable packaging innovation). SIG is a major player in aseptic carton packaging.
• Nabtesco CorporationflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2018Emerald has engaged in a corporate venture capital (CVC) mandate for Nabtesco since 2018, managing all the investment activities of Nabtesco's venture arm (Nabtesco Technology Ventures). Nabtesco is a major Japanese industrial player with 40% global market share in engine remote control systems for maritime vessels, aiming to be carbon-free by 2050. Notable deal: Nabtesco acquired portfolio company DeepSea.
• SulzercoreTechnology or Integration · 1 January 2016Sulzer is among the portfolio of successful exits from Emerald's first water fund — portfolio companies have been successfully exited to industry giants including Sulzer (alongside SUEZ, Xylem, and BASF), validating Emerald's industrial water thesis.

Scale indicators12 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights7 records

Direct peers

• Prelude Ventures: Prelude Ventures is a US-based early-stage venture capital firm focused on industrial and climate-tech startups. Most direct peer to Emerald's Industrial Innovation Fund thesis, with comparable focus on sustainability and deeptech applied to industrial markets.
• Breakthrough Energy Ventures: Founded by Bill Gates, BEV is a multi-billion-dollar climate tech venture fund investing across energy, transportation, agriculture, and industrial decarbonization. Direct peer in climate-tech industrial innovation investing, but with materially larger AUM and broader sector coverage.
• Energy Impact Partners (EIP): EIP is a global venture capital firm partnering with utilities and energy corporates to invest in decarbonization. Closely analogous to Emerald's corporate-LP-led model and CVC-as-a-Service offering, with a strong overlap in industrial energy and grid-adjacent startups.
• S2G Ventures: S2G is a multi-stage venture firm investing in food, agriculture, oceans, and clean energy. Overlapping coverage in food & agriculture, industrial biotech, and energy — and a comparable corporate-LP model (e.g., Beyond Meat, Indigo).
• Sofinnova Partners: Paris-based European venture capital firm with deeptech and industrial biotech funds. Comparable in geography (European), stage (early-to-growth), and the recent co-investment alongside Emerald in P2 Science signals deal-flow overlap in green chemistry and industrial biotech.
• Capricorn Partners: Belgium-based independent venture capital firm managing several cleantech and sustainability funds (Capricorn Cleantech Fund, Capricorn Sustainable Chemistry Fund). Direct peer in European cleantech venture investing with comparable fund size, sector specialization, and LP base.
• Obvious Ventures: San Francisco-based venture firm investing in companies addressing systemic sustainability, health, and economic inclusion. Overlapping industrial-climate thesis, comparable fund size, and similar LP base (corporates, family offices).

Broad incumbents

• Khosla Ventures: Khosla Ventures is a large US-based venture capital firm with significant cleantech and deeptech exposure across energy, materials, and sustainability. Comparable sector overlap with Emerald, but at materially larger AUM and broader sector mandate.
• B Capital Group: B Capital is a global venture firm with a Climatech strategy and corporate LP base. Broader geographic and sector mandate than Emerald, but overlapping climate-tech industrial innovation thesis and similar institutional-LP distribution model.

Emerging players

• Piva Capital: Piva Capital is a venture firm investing in industrial innovation and the energy transition, with strong corporate LP partnerships. Comparable sector and stage focus to Emerald, though smaller and earlier-stage in AUM trajectory.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses3 records

Competitive moat7 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutu.be/xszqOdM7DY4
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/emeraldvc/jobs
• Xx.com/emeraldVC

Compliance6 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles13 records

Subsidiaries2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments101 records

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Emerald Technology Ventures