Startup-Up

Name

Startup-Up

Legal name

STARTUP-UP IP

Website

https://startup-up.io

Company type

Private

Founded year

2015

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Startup Studio Services

NAICS

Software Publishers (513210), Computer Systems Design and Related Services (5415)

SIC

Services-Computer Programming Services (7371), Services-Management Consulting Services (8742)

akta.pro primary industry

Venture Studios / Company Builders (FSANAAAH)

Keywords

• Startup studio services
• AI platform licensing
• MVP development services
• Startup incubation
• Venture building

Headquarters

HQ city

Luxembourg

HQ country

Luxembourg

HQ region

Europe

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. IT for Equity (BSA Air): Core revenue mechanism. After MVP delivery, platform license (STARTUP-APP), CTO/CFO in mission, hosting, IP protection, and fundraising amplification are provided in exchange for BSA Air warrants. No cash from startup. Warrants convert to equity at next qualified raise (>=300K€). Over 80% of studio remuneration is contingent on startup success.
2. Phase Marvel (Professional Services): Maturity audit (6,000€ flat) plus à la carte modules (Finance, Technical, Commercial, Legal, Financing). First phase before IT for Equity kicks in. Financed by founder cash, public aid (BPI), or early business angels.
3. Lab IA MVP Development: MVP development by Lab IA team at 60-75% below external market rates. Specific work beyond platform is charged. Payment can be spread and financed by seed raise and public aid. After MVP delivery, complementary development remains available at same reduced rates on demand.
4. Club Deal Co-Investment Fees: Structuring and managing co-investment rounds for startups. Studio facilitates deals between Family Office partner, Business Angels, and startups. Revenue from equity appreciation when warrants convert at future raises.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

STARTUP-UP operates an AI startup studio that helps senior domain experts (15-25 years of experience) launch AI startups. The studio delivers an industrial-grade SaaS platform (STARTUP-APP) combining Oracle 23ai and Azure AI Foundry, an in-house Lab IA development team that builds MVPs at 60-75% below market rates, and externalized CTO/CFO/commercial missions, with the platform and team provided in exchange for BSA Air equity warrants. The studio also runs Phase Marvel diagnostic modules and a co-investment club deal channel with Business Angels, a Family Office partner, and Series A VCs.

Product overview

STARTUP-UP is a startup studio that supports domain experts (15-25 years experience) in building AI startups. The core offering is the STARTUP-APP Platform (Oracle 23ai + Azure AI Foundry) combined with an internal AI Development Lab (Lab IA), which together deliver production-grade AI products at 60-75% below market cost. Surrounding this are structured phases: Phase Marvel (5 onboarding modules for finance/tech/commercial/legal/funding), MVP development via Lab IA, and IT for Equity (full service package via BSA Air). Complementary services include externalized CTO/CFO missions, commercial direction with dedicated eSales team, and access to a co-investment club deal with a Family Office partner and Business Angels. The portfolio contains 6 active startups across HealthTech, InsurTech, MarTech, PropTech, LabTech, and GreenTech sectors. The AI Pitch Deck Analyzer is a separate public-facing tool that evaluates candidate pitch decks automatically on 10 criteria.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• STARTUP-APP Platform Industrial multi-tenant SaaS AI platform combining Oracle 23ai (native vector search, graph, full-text, relational) with Azure AI Foundry (GPT-4, Claude, Llama, Mistral access via Semantic Kernel and AutoGen orchestration), with sovereign European hosting in France and Germany, per-tenant encryption, IAM, and AI agent orchestration. Provided to portfolio startups via IT for Equity (BSA Air warrants).
• Pitch Deck Analyzer (AI Analysis) AI-powered automated evaluation of candidate pitch decks across 10 criteria (problem, solution, market, team, traction, model, competition, financials, ask, storytelling), returning a detailed diagnostic in 3 minutes. Serves as the entry point for domain expert candidates worldwide to apply to the studio.
• Lab IA (AI Development Lab) In-house AI development service that builds production-grade MVPs at 60-75% below external market rates, using the STARTUP-APP industrial platform and specialized AI agents. Work beyond the platform scope is charged; complementary development is available on demand at the same reduced rates.
• Phase Marvel (Maturity Audit + Modules) Structured onboarding program including a €6,000 flat maturity audit followed by à la carte modules covering finance, technical architecture, commercial strategy, legal structuring, and fundraising preparation. Financed by founder cash, BPI public aid, or early business angels; runs before the IT for Equity phase.
• IT for Equity (BSA Air) Full-service studio package in which the STARTUP-APP platform license, externalized CTO and CFO, sovereign hosting, IP protection, and fundraising amplification are provided to portfolio startups in exchange for BSA Air warrants (20% discount on valuation, 5-year maturity, 2-5M€ cap, conversion at next qualified raise ≥300K€). Zero cash out for the startup on this scope.
• Externalized CTO Mission Embedded CTO service (Xavier Chaeffer) providing architecture guidance, technical choices, Lab IA supervision, and scalability planning for portfolio startups on the STARTUP-APP platform.
• Externalized CFO Mission Embedded CFO service (Loïc Morand) delivering economic modeling, unit economics, 3-year financial projections, valuation, capital structure design, and funding round preparation for portfolio startups.
• Commercial Direction & eSales Team Strategic commercial direction (Charif Moutaki) covering business model construction, customer segmentation, pricing, positioning, and sales channel identification, combined with an operational eSales team that handles prospect identification, qualification, outreach, appointment setting, and weekly pipeline reporting. Founders retain customer relationship and focus on closing.
• Co-Investment Club Deal Co-investment club deal structure providing Business Angels (15-50K€ tickets via BSA Air), Family Offices (seed rounds 300K€-2M€), and institutional VCs (Series A 3-10M€) with access to pre-qualified AI startups that have passed the studio's Acceptance Committee. Includes quarterly deal flow, governance participation, and structured fundraising support.

Quantifiable outcome

• 90% of AI startups fail within 5 years; 42% fail due to lack of product-market fit (CB Insights)
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability8 records

Feature6 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• OraclecoreTechnology or IntegrationOracle ISV Partner status gives portfolio startups access to Oracle 23ai database platform with enterprise pricing unavailable to solo startups. Oracle 23ai provides native vector search, AI-first architecture, and unified data management replacing multiple point solutions (PostgreSQL, Pinecone, Neo4j, ElasticSearch). Partnership enables 60-75% development cost reduction vs external alternatives.
• Microsoft AzurecoreTechnology or IntegrationAzure AI Foundry (formerly Azure AI Studio) provides unified access to all major AI models (GPT-4, Claude, Llama, Mistral) via single Microsoft partnership. Includes Semantic Kernel and AutoGen orchestration tools. Sovereign European infrastructure in France and Germany per data residency requirements. Negotiated pricing via STARTUP-UP enables portfolio startup access.
• Village by CAminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerFrench startup incubator/accelerator network listed as part of the startup studio ecosystem. Provides local support, network, and legitimacy for French market operations.
• eSalescoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorOperational commercial team partner providing prospecting, qualification, outreach, appointment setting, and weekly reporting for portfolio startups. Closes deals alongside founders (relationship stays with founder). Differentiates STARTUP-UP from venture builders that only advise on commercial strategy without operational delivery.
• Microsoft Ireland Operations LimitedcoreTechnology or IntegrationAzure cloud hosting provider. Site hosted on Microsoft Azure infrastructure in European regions (France and Germany). Contact: One Microsoft Place, South County Business Park, Leopardstown, Dublin 18, D18 P521, Ireland. Strict European data sovereignty maintained with no transatlantic replication.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Techstars: Global accelerator running 3-month programs with mentorship and seed investment in exchange for equity. Comparable as a structured accelerator with equity-for-support mechanics, but a much larger, US-rooted incumbent with a 13-week cohort model rather than an ongoing studio.
• Y Combinator: Pioneer US-based accelerator providing seed funding and mentorship in exchange for equity, the benchmark for accelerator-style equity-for-support. Comparable in the equity-for-support mechanic but very different in scale, geography, and selection approach (generalist, batch-based).

Others

• BPI France: French public investment bank providing funding, guarantees, and innovation support to French startups and SMBs. Comparable as a public funding source for French startups and is referenced by STARTUP-UP as a financing channel for Marvel phase and MVP development.
• Village by CA: Network of French startup incubators run by Crédit Agricole, providing local support and connections to regional startups. Comparable as a French startup support ecosystem, and explicitly listed by STARTUP-UP as a partner, but is an incubator/ecosystem player rather than a venture studio.

Direct peers

• Hexa: European startup studio (formerly eFounders) that builds B2B SaaS companies from scratch, providing founders with operations, engineering, and go-to-market support in exchange for equity. Closely comparable as a Paris-based studio that co-founds companies and takes equity, with similar IT-for-equity mechanics and European enterprise focus.
• Antler: Global venture studio that recruits and supports founders from day zero, providing capital, mentorship, and a global network. Directly comparable as a startup studio model that backs founders before product, though with a broader sector mandate and global footprint versus STARTUP-UP's EU/regulated vertical focus.
• Entrepreneur First: Talent-first venture builder that assembles co-founder teams and supports them from pre-idea through seed, with a strong European presence in Paris and London. Directly comparable as a talent-first builder taking equity in return for structured support.
• Founders Factory: Venture studio and accelerator that builds and scales startups, often in partnership with corporates. Comparable as a venture studio with corporate-affiliated capital and operational support, though typically larger and corporate-backed.

Emerging players

• The Family: European support platform for early-stage founders offering education, community, and operational support. Comparable as a European founder-support organization, though its model is more community/education-led than venture studio equity-for-services.

Regional players

• Samaipata: European pre-seed venture fund that supports early-stage tech founders with capital and operational help. Comparable as a European early-stage backer with operator support, though structured as a fund rather than a pure studio.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/startup-up

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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

M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about Startup-Up