Early-stage investment, incubation & advisory

Common questions

Do you lead rounds?

We typically participate as an early co-investor or sole backer at pre-seed and seed. We can lead or follow inside our €25k–€200k ticket; ticket size depends on stage and scope. See our lead rounds guide.

Do you invest outside Germany?

Yes. We are Berlin-based but back founders across Europe and beyond when there is strong product and market fit, including founders in Greece and Athens and teams outside Europe (including the US). Living outside Germany is not a hard filter, relocation to Berlin is not required, and we do not require a local-nexus or Europe-only mandate before we read a deck. See our beyond Europe guide (also founder location vs incorporation, no Berlin relocation, and Greece and Athens).

What if we are not raising yet?

Incubation and advisory engagements do not require an active round. Acceleration can fit without a live fundraise. Describe your situation in the deck link or reach out via the form. See our not raising yet and advisory guides.

What traction should we include in the deck?

Share the strongest signal at your stage: users, pilots, revenue, retention, or LOIs. Pre-seed can be early; seed should show repeatable growth. If metrics are thin, say what you have validated and what this round will prove. See our traction by stage guide.

What deck link permissions do you need?

DocSend, Notion, Google Drive, and PDF links all work. Set sharing to view-only for anyone with the link — we do not need edit access or a named invite. Password-protected or login-walled links may delay review; we will email you if we cannot open the deck. See our view-only deck link guide.

What happens after the 48-hour pitch response?

If we are interested, we propose a short founder call to explore fit and outline next diligence steps. If it is not a fit right now, you get a clear pass with brief context — no ghosting. We sometimes ask one or two clarifying questions by email before scheduling a call. A pass does not close the form: re-submit when there is material new proof. See our founder call guide (and re-pitch after a pass).

What should our deck include at minimum?

Cover the essentials: team (why you), problem and market, product or prototype, traction at your stage, business model, and this round (amount, use of funds, timing). Ten to fifteen slides is enough; we do not need a full data room on first submit. Skip five-year models, appendix dumps, and unverifiable claims on first review. A demo video or live product link is optional context that belongs inside the deck, not a replacement for it. See our minimum deck guide (what we skip: first review skips; demo videos and product access).

Are cold submissions welcome?

Yes. You do not need a warm introduction or mutual connection: submit via the form. LinkedIn DMs are not the primary pitch channel. We review every deck personally and respond within 48 hours. For cold pitching us as a Berlin family office, see our family office cold pitch guide. Personal review (not an IC track): personal review. Not capital-only: capital-only vs studio. Form vs LinkedIn: use the pitch form.

Do you co-invest alongside other funds in the same round?

Yes. We regularly join rounds alongside angels, seed funds, and family offices, including rolling closes where capital lands investor-by-investor. Note committed or targeted co-investors and how much of the round remains open in your deck — it helps us assess fit and ticket size. See our rolling close guide.

Do you require a lead investor or can you be the sole institutional check in a round?

No — we do not require another lead investor to engage. At pre-seed and seed we can be your sole institutional check when the round size, stage, and operator fit align with our €25k–€200k ticket. Syndicated rounds with angels, family offices, or a lead fund are equally fine. State who is already committed, who you are still seeking, and how much of the round remains open in your deck. See our sole institutional check guide.

Do you invest in bridge rounds or extensions between priced rounds?

Yes: when stage, traction, and round size align with our pre-seed and seed focus and €25k–€200k ticket. Bridge and extension rounds (often convertibles or SAFEs between priced equity rounds) are welcome if you explain why you are bridging rather than running a full priced round, what milestones the capital unlocks, and your proposed terms. A cap or price below your last round is a disclosure question rather than a pass. For companies we already back, reach out directly; new submissions via the pitch form are fine. See our bridge and extension guide and flat and down rounds.

Do you invest in corporate spin-outs or academic lab spin-offs?

Yes — when the founding team has clear independence, IP is licensable or assigned to the new entity, and the venture fits our pre-seed and seed focus in health tech, AI, e-commerce, or automation. Corporate spin-outs and academic or research-lab spin-offs are welcome if you explain the parent organization, IP ownership, what stays with the lab or corporate, and your team's authority to build and raise independently. We typically pass when licensing or governance terms would block a normal startup fundraise. See our corporate spin-outs guide (academic: academic and research-lab spin-offs; independence and IP: independence and IP).

Do you participate in follow-on rounds for portfolio companies?

Yes. For companies we have backed, we often join later rounds when traction, execution, and terms warrant it. It is not automatic: we evaluate each raise on progress and fit with our ticket size. Portfolio founders should reach out directly when planning their next round (prefer app.halfmeyer.tech, not the public form as the only channel). See our portfolio follow-on guide (channel split: portfolio app vs public form).

Do you take board seats or observer rights in portfolio companies?

At pre-seed and seed we rarely take a full board seat. Our ticket size fits better as a hands-on investor with regular founder access. Observer rights are possible when they add value without board overhead. Governance terms are agreed case by case with you and your lead investors; we prioritize operator support over formal seats. A studio check does not mean Day-zero co-founder board control by default. See our operator support over formal seats guide (and board seats, observer rights).

What is the typical diligence timeline after the initial founder call?

After a productive founder call, diligence usually runs 1–2 weeks. We focus on a product walkthrough, validating key metrics, a few reference calls when useful, and aligning on terms with your co-investors. At pre-seed and seed we keep it lean — no full data room unless the round requires it, and no months of committee theater as the default path. You get a clear proceed, pass, or term-sheet direction within that window. See what we do not run as default (and the one-to-two-week window; reference calls when useful).

Do you sign NDAs before reviewing decks?

No — not for initial deck review. Like most early-stage investors, we review many submissions and cannot sign NDAs at that stage. We treat pitch materials confidentially and do not share decks externally. If diligence later requires sharing sensitive IP, we can agree a mutual NDA before deeper data access. See our how we treat pitch materials guide (and no NDA before initial review, mutual NDA in diligence, overlap with portfolio companies).

Do you invest in solo founders or require a co-founding team?

Solo founders are welcome — we do not require a co-founding team as a hard filter. What matters is execution capacity across product, domain insight, and the ability to ship and sell at your stage. Strong solo founders with a working product or validated problem–solution fit, plus a clear plan for key hires or advisors, regularly make it to a call. If you are solo, say so in the deck and explain how you cover product, GTM, and any gaps you are filling next. A technical co-founder or in-house CTO is not required either; what we underwrite is who owns the build, what has shipped, and whether code and IP sit with the company. See our solo founders guide (and do you need a technical co-founder).

Do you invest in repeat founders or first-time founders only?

Both. We back first-time and repeat founders — prior startup experience is not required, and a prior exit is not a filter. What matters is the current team, product, traction, and fit at pre-seed or seed. Repeat founders should briefly note prior ventures, outcomes, and lessons learned in the deck; first-time founders are equally welcome when execution and fit are strong. See our first-time and repeat founders guide.

Do you invest in companies where founders are not full-time yet?

Yes, when there is a clear path to full-time commitment aligned with the round. Pre-seed founders still employed elsewhere is common — that alone is not a filter. What matters is execution velocity, who owns product and GTM day to day, and when key founders will go full-time after close (or earlier). State current roles, hours per week on the startup, and your full-time transition plan in the deck. Side projects without credible transition timing or tangible progress are usually a pass for investment. See our part-time founders guide.

Do you invest in companies raising via revenue-based financing or non-dilutive structures only?

No: our pre-seed and seed checks are dilutive equity instruments (SAFEs, convertible notes, Wandeldarlehen, or priced equity) in the €25k–€200k range. We do not participate when the round is exclusively revenue-based financing, grants, or other non-dilutive capital with no equity component. Mixed raises with a meaningful equity tranche can still fit; explain the full capital stack, what you are raising in equity, and instrument terms in the deck. Advisory and incubation are separate from investment and can be noted in your submission. Bootstrapped and revenue-funded companies opening a first equity tranche are welcome. An equity crowdfunding or crowdinvesting round already on the cap table is not a pass by itself: state which instrument the crowd holds, what converts at the next round, whether consent or veto rights attach, and how much allocation is still open. See our exclusive RBF / grant-only, mixed stacks, bootstrapped companies, and crowdfunding on the cap table guides.

Do you invest at idea stage or require a product or prototype?

For pre-seed and seed investment we look for at least a working product, prototype, or validated problem–solution fit — not idea-stage decks alone. That means something tangible to review: a clickable prototype, early product, or strong evidence you have tested the problem with real users or customers. Pure concept slides without validation are usually a pass for investment, though advisory and incubation engagements can start earlier. If you are pre-product but have meaningful validation, explain what you tested and what you will build with this round. How the product was built (AI coding assistants, no-code, contractors, or custom code) is not the filter (how the product was built). See our idea-stage guide and the incubation door.

Do you invest in pre-revenue companies with no paying customers yet?

Yes. Pre-revenue is common at pre-seed, especially with a working product or prototype and early users, pilots, or LOIs. Paying customers are not a hard filter: we look for the strongest traction signal at your stage. At seed we want clearer evidence of repeatability (usage, retention, pilots progressing, or first revenue), but many seed rounds close before meaningful ARR. If you have no revenue yet, say what you have validated and what this round will prove. See our pre-revenue guide (and proof that replaces revenue; pre-seed vs seed when ARR is early; open-source projects and adoption instead of revenue).

Do you prefer SAFEs and convertible notes or priced equity at pre-seed and seed?

We are flexible on instrument and align with your round and co-investors. At pre-seed, convertible instruments are typical — SAFEs, convertible notes, or German Wandeldarlehen — because they keep legal cost and closing time low. At seed, priced equity is common and we participate in both structures. Include your proposed instrument and key terms (cap, discount, or valuation range) in the deck; we confirm fit on the founder call. Instrument choice alone is not a reason to pass — clarity on terms matters more than which standard you pick. See our SAFE, convertible, or priced equity guide (valuation caps / what to disclose: valuation caps; what we want to see on the cap table: cap table).

Do you invest in companies incorporated outside Germany or the EU?

Yes. Your legal entity does not need to be German or EU-based — we back companies incorporated in the UK, US (including Delaware), Switzerland, and other jurisdictions when product, market, and round structure fit. EU and German entities are common in our portfolio; non-EU structures are workable when co-investors and closing mechanics are clear. State your incorporation, jurisdiction, and any planned entity flip in the deck so we can assess fit on the founder call. See our jurisdictions we back guide (entity flips: #entity-flip; legal form and the EU Inc question: #legal-form).

Which sectors and business models do you invest in?

We focus on software-led companies in health tech, AI, e-commerce, and automation. Adjacent verticals (including fintech, insurtech, proptech, climate and cleantech, edtech, agtech, foodtech, logistics, mobility, cybersecurity, HR tech, legal tech, regtech, martech, adtech, developer tools, life sciences, biotech, and medtech) fit when software, data, or automation is the core of the product and ties clearly to our focus sectors. We back both B2B and B2C models. We typically pass on capital-intensive hardware-only or deep-tech bets without a software surface, token-first or speculative crypto and Web3 models, and pure listing marketplaces without a technology moat. Explain your sector fit, what your software does, any regulatory path, and your traction in the deck. See our focus sectors versus adjacent guide (and fintech; climate and cleantech; clear passes; marketplace models: marketplaces; AI agents: agentic products; AI regulation: EU AI Act at pitch stage; health data and GDPR: health data at pitch stage; services-as-software and AI roll-ups: services-as-software; software surface bar: software surface).