... venture divisions, and investment firms are mastering unconventional financing instruments. For example, Analog Devices (a major microchip manufacturer) has established its own fund to invest in breakthrough projects in robotics, climate and medical technologies - industrial players are directly investing in deeptech startups. In Europe, a group of funds launched Orbit Capital, a €100 million venture debt fund focused on supporting high-growth companies in Central and Eastern Europe through hybrid financing. New specialist funds are also emerging in many regions....

... mitigation when investing in promising projects. Main risks of investing in startups 1. Financial risk Financial risk is associated with the possibility that the startup will not be able to achieve positive cash flow and will become unprofitable. Since startups often operate in a highly competitive market and use innovative technologies, they may face a lack of funds or failure to attract additional investment. An example is Open Oil Market, a startup in the field of oil products trading, which aims to make the market more transparent and efficient. The company is developing ...

... Skolkovo resident helps companies like Open Oil Market benefit from tax breaks and grants. We'll also look at examples of successful startups that have come through Skolkovo, such as Motorica and VisionLabs. Skolkovo is the largest innovation center in Russia, actively supporting startups and technology companies. The Skolkovo incubator provides startups with access to infrastructure, financing, and expertise, helping them grow and enter new markets. The center focuses on supporting projects in areas such as information technology (IT), biomedicine,...

... dual-use projects (drones, AI, robotics, and other high-tech fields). Besides government institutions, private players are also becoming active: for instance, venture firm Kama Flow launched a new fund of 10 billion rubles for investments in mature startups. Even in the face of sanctions, the market is seeking opportunities to finance priority technologies and striving to nurture its own successful unicorns. At the same time, some regional startups are moving to the next level. For example, the Krasnodar food tech project Qummy raised 440 million rubles at a valuation of ~2.4 billion rubles ...

... strategic deals by major tech corporations and industry leaders. After a pause in 2022-2023, Big Tech companies are again prepared to spend billions on promising startups. A classic example is Google's announced acquisition of the cloud cybersecurity startup Wiz for $32 billion—one of the largest M&A deals of the decade, illustrating that competition for technologies in cloud and security is peaking. Simultaneously, these giants are pursuing significant minority investments: Meta invested $14.8 billion for a 49% stake in Scale AI, effectively becoming a co-owner of one of the market leaders in data for AI. This format—where ...