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Sebastian Peck, KOMPAS VC: Europe’s Industrial Tech Moment: Decarbonisation, AI & the Risk Appetite Gap

30 October 2025 49:40 The European VC

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About this episode

This week on the EUVC Podcast, Andreas Munk Holm sits down with Sebastian Peck, Partner at KOMPAS VC, Europe’s leading specialist in industrial tech and the decarbonisation of manufacturing and the built world.

KOMPAS VC is an early- and growth-stage venture capital firm backed by leading corporates, focused on transforming how the world builds, moves, and powers itself. With offices in London, Amsterdam, and Copenhagen, KOMPAS partners with startups and industrial leaders driving efficiency, automation, and decarbonisation across sectors like manufacturing, construction, energy, and mobility.

With the firm gearing up for major announcements, Sebastian unpacks why industrial tech is finally having its moment in European VC — and why resilience, regulation, and risk appetite will determine whether Europe leads or lags.

Here’s what’s covered:

  • 00:20 Defining Industrial Tech - Decarbonisation, productivity, and resilience: the three pillars driving transformation in Europe’s industrial base.

  • 03:30 The Energy Debate: Transition vs pragmatism, nuclear’s comeback, and Europe vs US vs China

  • 09:14 Fragmented Corporate Commitments: Nordics doubling down, US ambivalence, China scaling renewables fast

  • 11:21 AI in Industrial Tech: From power-hungry models to agentic AI: where real productivity gains are emerging and what’s still hype.

  • 16:02 Robotics: Hype vs. reality: Why humanoid robots won’t take over factories (yet) — and where automation truly moves the needle.

  • 21:57 Adoption Hurdles: Why industrial tech moves slower than SaaS, and how smart VCs help bridge the gap between pilots and production.

  • 24:37 AI & Jobs: Creative destruction or just destruction? How Europe, the US, and China are charting radically different paths.

  • 33:18 Regulation: Europe’s protective instinct: how the EU’s AI Act balances innovation with oversight - for better and for worse.

  • 40:27 Startups × Corporates: Why pilots fail, and how KOMPAS VC brokers real commercial traction

  • 44:48 KOMPAS VC Fund II: New bets, Makersite’s standout Series B, and how the firm is deepening its industrial tech thesis.

  • 45:54 Specialist vs Generalist VCs: Why Europe needs deep domain VCs working alongside generalist syndicates to build lasting industry platforms.

  • 48:52 Magic Wand Policy: Pension capital reform and risk appetite as Europe’s bottlenecks

  • 51:09 It’s Not Founders, it’s the Ecosystem: Employees, customers, regulators, and LPs — everyone needs to lean in if Europe is to lead.

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