Sandwater
Sandwater is a Norwegian early-stage venture capital firm founded in 2021 that invests €2M–€10M from Seed to Series B in climate, energy, healthcare, and resource efficiency startups across the Nordics and Northern Europe, with offices in Oslo, Stockholm, and Munich and ~€400M AUM.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2021
- HeadquartersOslo, Norway
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Sandwater does
Sandwater is a Norwegian early-stage venture capital firm founded in 2021 and headquartered in Oslo, investing across climate, energy, healthcare, and resource efficiency in the Nordics and Northern Europe. The firm deploys initial tickets of €2M–€10M from Seed to Series B into companies such as 1X Technologies (humanoid robotics), Mantle8 (natural hydrogen), Nofence (virtual fencing), Cytovation (oncology immunotherapy), Enduro Genetics (synthetic biology), Filics (warehouse robotics), FarmInsect, Soil Capital, and XO Life, and provides hands-on support covering strategy work, key hires, customer introductions, governance, and follow-on capital.
The firm manages two core venture funds — Fund I (€125M / 1.4bn NOK final close in January 2024, one of the largest first-time Nordic funds) and Fund II (SFDR disclosure published June 2026) — plus the Gardar defence tech fund (€80M) operated on behalf of Ferd and Munkene. LPs in Fund I include the European Investment Fund, AP1, LGT, Nysnø Climate Investments, Investinor, and family offices Canica and Lærdal, with 60% institutional and 50% international composition. Both funds are classified Article 8 under EU SFDR with a thematic mandate spanning Resource Efficiency, Energy Transition, Impact Enablers, and HealthTech.
Operationally, Sandwater runs "The Sandbox," an internal AI and data platform integrating AI-driven deal scoring, portfolio monitoring, market intelligence, and firm-wide knowledge search. The team of ~12 is organised across Oslo, Stockholm (since 2025), and Munich (since May 2026, led by Partner Alexander Domin). Revenue is generated through management fees and carried interest on portfolio exits, and the firm co-invests with a high-calibre syndicate including Breakthrough Energy Ventures, Bpifrance, Amazon Industrial Innovation Fund, OpenAI Startup Fund, and EQT Ventures.
Sandwater firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Sandwater
- Legal name
- Sandwater AS
- Website
- https://sandwater.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2021
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Sandwater is a Norwegian early-stage venture capital firm founded in 2021 that invests €2M–€10M from Seed to Series B in climate, energy, healthcare, and resource efficiency startups across the Nordics and Northern Europe, with offices in Oslo, Stockholm, and Munich and ~€400M AUM.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Where Sandwater is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Oslo
- HQ country
- Norway
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices3 records
Markets served
Sandwater business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Venture Capital Fund Management: Sandwater generates returns through equity investments in early-stage companies across climate, energy and healthcare sectors. They manage venture funds (Fund I and Fund II) and earn returns through portfolio company exits via IPO or acquisition.
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels4 records
Sandwater product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Sandwater is a venture capital firm that deploys early-stage equity capital (€2M–€10M, Seed to Series B) into startups addressing climate, energy, and healthcare challenges across the Nordics and Northern Europe. The firm operates multiple venture funds (Fund I, Fund II, and Gardar) and provides hands-on support including strategy work, key hirings, customer introductions, and fundraising preparation. Returns are generated through portfolio company exits via IPO or acquisition.
Product overview
Sandwater is a venture capital firm offering investment funds rather than traditional products. The firm operates two primary venture funds (Fund I and Fund II) focused on early-stage climate, energy transition, and healthcare companies, and operates a third fund (Gardar) focused on Ukrainian defense technology. Fund I closed at €125 million, making it one of the largest first-time Nordic venture funds. The firm typically invests €2M to €10M from Seed to Series B across the Nordics and Northern Europe.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Sandwater Fund I
- Sandwater Fund II
- Gardar
Quantifiable outcome
- Fund I raised €125M, doubled from target - one of largest first-time funds in Nordics
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use Sandwater
Customer profileNamed customers13 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Sandwater technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature1 record
Sandwater partnerships and signals
Strategic signalScale indicators5 records
Recent moves11 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Sandwater competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Speedinvest: European early-stage sector-focused VC; has co-invested with Sandwater in Nofence. Comparable Seed-B ticket sizes and climate/industrial tech focus.
- Trill Impact Ventures: Nordic/European early-stage impact VC investing across climate and health; has co-invested alongside Sandwater (e.g., Soil Capital Series B). Closely comparable by geography, stage, and impact Article 9/8 alignment.
- Summa Equity: Nordic thematic investor focused on resource efficiency, energy transition, and societal health. Comparable thematic mandate and Nordic footprint, though typically larger growth-stage checks than Sandwater's Seed-B range.
- Alven: French early-stage VC investing across digital, climate and deep tech; co-invested with Sandwater in Filics. Comparable stage and European footprint.
- Northzone: Pan-Nordic early-stage VC investing from Seed to Series B across tech and climate. Most comparable on stage, check size, and Nordic origination model.
- Breakthrough Energy Ventures: Bill Gates-backed climate VC investing Seed-to-early-growth globally; co-invested with Sandwater in Mantle8. Direct peer for climate/hydrogen opportunities despite significantly larger fund.
- Nysnø Climate Investments: Norwegian state-backed climate investor focused on early-stage climate tech in the Nordics. Direct peer given identical Nordic climate mandate, similar ticket sizes, and shared LPs with Sandwater.
Broad incumbents
- Atomico: European late-stage VC founded by Skype's Niklas Zennström. Larger incumbent in the same European tech ecosystem; less direct climate/health thematic overlap but competes for the same founder mindshare.
- EQT Ventures: European early-to-growth VC arm of EQT; co-invested alongside Sandwater in 1X Technologies. Larger fund size, broader sector mandate, but comparable European Seed-B positioning.
Emerging players
- Norrsken Foundation / Norrsken VC: Swedish impact-focused venture builder and fund manager. Comparable Nordic impact/early-stage orientation, though more early-stage founder-incubation focused than Sandwater's pure financial investment model.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Sandwater social profiles
Digital presenceSandwater compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance1 record
Sandwater financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Sandwater leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles12 records
Sandwater funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Sandwater M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments20 records
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Sandwater
What does Sandwater do?
Sandwater is a venture capital firm that deploys early-stage equity capital (€2M–€10M, Seed to Series B) into startups addressing climate, energy, and healthcare challenges across the Nordics and Northern Europe. The firm operates multiple venture funds (Fund I, Fund II, and Gardar) and provides hands-on support including strategy work, key hirings, customer introductions, and fundraising preparation. Returns are generated through portfolio company exits via IPO or acquisition.
Is Sandwater a public or private company?
Sandwater is a private company. It is classified as private equity controlled and is currently operating.
When was Sandwater founded?
Sandwater was founded in 2021. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Sandwater based?
Sandwater is headquartered in Oslo, Norway, in the Europe region.
How does Sandwater make money?
One revenue line is on record: venture Capital Fund Management.
Who are Sandwater's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Speedinvest, Trill Impact Ventures, Summa Equity, Alven, Northzone, Breakthrough Energy Ventures and Nysnø Climate Investments. Broad incumbents are Atomico and EQT Ventures. Norrsken Foundation / Norrsken VC is listed as an emerging player.
Does Sandwater have an API?
No public API is recorded for Sandwater.