Keen Venture Partners

What Keen Venture Partners does

Keen Venture Partners is a European venture capital firm founded in 2016 and headquartered in Amsterdam with a secondary office in London. The firm operates two distinct investment strategies: 'Technology for SMEs,' which backs founders building AI-native software for European small and medium enterprises (across POS, payments, accounting, HR, and CRM), and 'Defence,' which invests in European dual-use and defence-first technology from seed to Series B, focused on information superiority, cyber defence, space, autonomy, and robotics. Keen manages approximately €270 million in commitments across two funds, with the European Defence and Security Tech Fund (€150M+ at first close in November 2025) being the largest dedicated defence-tech VC fund in Europe.

The firm's core intellectual assets are proprietary sector theses developed through structured research sprints, an operator and policy network spanning NATO, European governments, and industry, and a Strategic Advisory Board of military leaders and policymakers. Investment sizes range from €1M to €10M per company across pre-seed to Series B, with emphasis on Series A. Keen has backed more than 30 portfolio companies whose aggregate follow-on capital is close to €1 billion. The portfolio includes Kelluu (autonomous airship ISR), AirHub (drone operations software), Azumuta (manufacturing software), DeltaQuad (defence VTOL drones), Tulip Tech (drone battery systems), ATMOS Space Cargo (orbital return vehicles), and Perciv AI (AI radar perception).

Keen generates revenue through the standard VC model: management fees (typically ~2% annually on committed capital) and carried interest (~20% of fund profits above the hurdle rate). Limited partners in the Defence Fund include the European Investment Fund (€40M, the first VC commitment under EIF's Defence Investment Programme), PME Pensioenfonds (€40M), ABN AMRO (€10M), and TNO. Keen differentiates itself via a 'radically human' relationship-first approach where the firm shares network and capabilities before any capital deployment, and publishes its standard Series A term sheet template publicly as a transparency measure for founders.

Name

Keen Venture Partners

Legal name

Keen Venture Partners B.V.

Website

https://keenventurepartners.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2016

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Keen Venture Partners is a European venture capital firm managing €270M across two funds, backing founders building AI-native SME software and European defence and security technology from seed to Series B, with offices in Amsterdam and London.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Venture Capital

NAICS

All Other Financial Investment Activities (52399), Other Investment Pools and Funds (5259)

SIC

Investment Advice (6282)

akta.pro primary industry

Sector-Focused Venture Capital (Vertical Specialists) (FSANAAAD)

Keywords

• Venture capital investing
• Early stage funding
• Defence tech investment
• Sme technology investment
• Growth equity capital

Headquarters

HQ city

Amsterdam

HQ country

Netherlands

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Management Fees: VC firms typically charge management fees on committed capital (e.g., 2% of AUM annually), collected over the fund lifecycle to cover operational expenses including team salaries, deal sourcing, and portfolio support.
2. Carried Interest: Performance-based carried interest (typically 20% of fund profits above a hurdle rate), paid to GPs once LPs have received their committed capital back plus preferred return. Represents the primary financial incentive for the investment team.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Keen Venture Partners is a venture capital firm that invests €1M–€10M in European tech startups from seed to Series B, with emphasis on Series A. It operates two fund strategies: (1) SME Tech — backing AI-native software for small and medium enterprises (POS, payments, accounting, HR, CRM, workforce management); and (2) European Defence and Security Tech Fund — backing dual-use and defence-first technologies including autonomous systems, cyber, AI, radar, space, and battery technologies for NATO-aligned markets.

Product overview

Keen Venture Partners is a venture capital firm that does not offer technology products or services to external customers. The company manages investment funds focused on Technology for SMEs and European Defence and Security Technology. As a VC firm, it does not develop, sell, or license software products.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• European Defence and Security Tech Fund A venture capital fund investing €1M–€10M in European dual-use and defence-first technology companies from pre-seed through Series B, with focus areas including information superiority, cyber defence, space, autonomy, and robotics. For NATO-aligned founders.
• SME Tech Fund A venture capital fund investing in European seed-to-Series-B founders building AI-native software for small and medium enterprises — covering POS, payments, accounting, HR, CRM, and workforce management.

Quantifiable outcome

• Portfolio companies have raised close to €1 billion in follow-on capital
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers11 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered secondary and core.

• ATMOS Space Cargo (ATMOS WORKS)secondaryStrategic or Co-development Partner · 22 April 2026Keen co-invested in ATMOS Space Cargo's €25.7M Series A (co-led by Balnord and Expansion), including the launch of ATMOS WORKS dedicated entity for European governmental and defence customers, deepening Keen-connected companies' presence in strategic defence markets.
• NATO DIANA ProgrammecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 14 April 2026Kelluu has been a member of NATO's DIANA (Defence Innovation Accelerator for the North Atlantic) programme since 2024, selected as one of 15 companies from over 2,600 applicants. This validates the technology for national trials and operational use, and Keen has invested in multiple DIANA programme participants.
• VDL GroupsecondaryTechnology or Integration · 14 April 2026Tulip Tech has a close collaboration with VDL for higher-volume, more standardised battery production programmes, supporting quality, delivery reliability, and repeatability as production scales.
• Atlas Copco, Toyota Motor Europe, Sioux TechnologiescoreOthers · 13 November 2025Azumuta's platform is used daily by tier-1 manufacturers including Atlas Copco, Toyota Motor Europe, and Sioux Technologies, validating the platform's effectiveness in demanding manufacturing environments.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Creandum: Leading Northern European VC firm that led Sibill's €12M Series A alongside Keen. Comparable as a broader incumbent investing in European technology from seed to Series B, with overlapping deal flow in SME software.
• Catalyst Investors: US-based growth equity firm where Keen's GP Briehan Burke previously worked. Comparable as a multi-stage investment firm with operator support capabilities, though Catalyst operates at a different stage and geography.

Direct peers

• OTB Ventures: European deep tech and defence-tech focused VC firm based in Poland. Keen Investment Manager Tomek Lepka previously worked at OTB Ventures, making it a directly comparable specialist peer in the European defence-tech early-stage market.
• Gungnir Capital: Swedish early-stage defence-focused VC firm that co-invested alongside Keen in Kelluu's €15M Series A. Directly comparable as a Nordic/European defence-tech specialist competing for the same deal flow.
• Picus Capital: European early-stage VC focused on Gen AI and Frontier Tech where Keen's Partner Alexander Kremer previously served as Partner. Comparable as a European specialist VC targeting founders building AI-driven software businesses.
• Parcom: Dutch investment firm that co-invested with Keen in DeltaQuad and Tulip Tech. Comparable as a Dutch-headquartered growth investor with overlapping defence-tech and European industrial technology focus.
• Expansion: European defence-tech focused early-stage VC that co-invested with Keen in ATMOS Space Cargo's €25.7M Series A. Junior Associate Angad Singh also previously worked at Expansion, making it a directly comparable peer targeting the same European defence-tech founder pool.
• Balnord: European defence-tech focused VC that co-led ATMOS Space Cargo's €25.7M Series A alongside Keen. Directly comparable as a specialist investor in European defence and security technology companies.
• Prime Ventures: Amsterdam-based European B2B software and marketplace VC where Keen's GPs Alexander Ribbink and Robert Verwaayen previously served. Directly comparable Dutch VC investing in European technology from seed to Series B, with overlapping thesis and LP networks.

Others

• NATO Innovation Fund: Venture fund backed by 24 NATO Allies investing in European defence-tech and dual-use companies; led Kelluu's €15M Series A with Keen participation. Not a direct competitor (NIF operates as a fund-of-funds and direct investor with deeper pockets) but a key ecosystem participant that co-invests alongside Keen and validates the same thesis.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/keenvp
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/keen-venture-partners

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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

M&A

Investments55 records

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

Frequently asked questions about Keen Venture Partners