Founders considering Emerald Technology Ventures funding are approaching one of Europe's pioneering climate-tech investors. Founded in 2000 and headquartered in Zurich, with offices in Toronto and Singapore, the firm manages and advises assets of over €1.3 billion across four current funds, and counts more than 90 portfolio companies since founding, over 50 blue-chip corporate limited partners, and a team of more than 50 professionals drawn from over 15 countries. In June 2026 it announced a successful exit from SewerAI, an AI-enabled smart-sewer-infrastructure platform it had backed since 2022.
Thesis and focus areas
Emerald invests in startups tackling big challenges in climate change and sustainability, with a distinctly industrial edge: target sectors include energy, water and wastewater, materials and packaging, industrial AI, mobility and food and agriculture. The firm's defining feature is corporate-connected investing — it connects corporates with the startups reshaping their industries, and its network of 50+ corporate LPs gives portfolio companies deep market insight, first-customer access and accelerated growth. The firm also runs tailored mandates for governments (its work with the Swiss government is cited as a flagship), advises institutional investors, and has extended loan guarantees to over 100 startups through third-party mandates. The firm says it has reviewed more than 25,000 deals since inception.
Cheque size and stage
Emerald invests in early- and expansion-stage startups globally, with a regional presence across Europe, North America and Asia. Specific cheque sizes are not publicly disclosed. The firm's scale of activity — hundreds of venture transactions, four current funds, and six third-party investment mandates — signals a platform comfortable both leading rounds and following across the scale-up journey.
Notable portfolio
Current portfolio names featured on the firm's site include INERATEC (synthetic e-fuels from green hydrogen and captured CO₂), KILIMO (water-efficiency for agriculture), Alitheon, THEA ENERGY and Sewts (robotic textile handling). Sector examples highlighted in the SECA impact-investing guide include Genecis (converting food waste into biodegradable plastics), XFarm (AI-powered farm management) and Indra Water (compact, energy-efficient wastewater treatment). The June 2026 SewerAI exit — an AI-enabled infrastructure platform — exemplifies the firm's strategy of scaling breakthrough technologies that strengthen industrial productivity, resource efficiency and infrastructure resilience.
Team
The firm is led by Gina Domanig, Managing Partner and CEO, one of Europe's most prominent cleantech investors. Senior leadership includes Hans Dellenbach, Senior Partner and Chief Financial Officer; Markus Moor and Charles Vaslet, both Senior Partners; and Dr. Helge Daebel, Partner, who led the firm's water practice and served on SewerAI's board through to exit.
How to apply for funding
Emerald does not publish a formal pitch-application form on its website — founders will not find an online submission portal. What the firm does publish is a direct contact channel: [email protected] appears in the firm's own press announcements as its contact address. That email is the official front door. Founders approaching should be ready to speak the firm's language — industrial innovation, measurable operational impact, and a path that can benefit from corporate co-development or first-customer relationships.
Why it matters for founders
For climate and industrial-tech founders, Emerald's edge is not just the cheque — it is the 50+ corporate limited partners that can become first customers and commercial partners. If your startup solves an industrial problem and can scale through corporate adoption, [email protected] is the published route to the team.