WhatAVenture 2023 in numbers: Celebrating a decade of success with innovation

5 ventures built up with our partners feature in Austria's top 2023 investments

In 2023, we proudly continued our tradition of building successful ventures, collaborating with partners on five new ventures that made it to the list of Austria's top investments. Notably, Metaloop (formerly Schrott24) secured an impressive €16 million, underscoring the financial success of our ventures.

We believe investment is one of the key factors when it comes to measuring the success of new ventures for three reasons. Firstly, investment provides the financial fuel needed to power a venture's growth engine. It's the catalyst for expanding operations, entering new markets, and investing in product development. Secondly, investment often brings expertise, mentorship, and valuable networking opportunities. These resources can be game changers in a venture's journey. And third, success attracts top-tier talent. Experienced professionals are drawn to ventures with substantial investments, strengthening the team's capabilities.

€3 million in investment for Heylog as it establishes itself on the market

We added Heylog to our portfolio in 2022, after partnering with KUBIKx, the venture builder of Schmitz Cargobull Group and the VC, ninepointfive, to develop a solution for the problem of fragmented communication within logistics.

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The SaaS tool helps dispatchers save time and effort by integrating messaging services like WhatsApp, Meta Messenger, and Viber on one platform and combining them with additional features, especially for dispatching. Investors have reacted positively to the solution, as demonstrated by the €3 million investment we were able to secure.

2 ventures came to an end, reinforcing the importance of having a balanced portfolio

Venture building comes with its challenges, and last year, we had to say goodbye to two of our ventures, GLEAM and Pixofarm. The closure of GLEAM was a result of severe disruptions in the supply chain combined with the challenges of the capital-intensive hardware sector. For Pixofarm, it was a change of direction by the corporate that was the main investor which signaled the end.

These events reiterated for us the importance of thinking in terms of a portfolio when it comes to venture building. It is key to build a balanced portfolio of opportunities, just as venture capitalists and private equity firms do. Since 2018, we’ve built a successful portfolio of seven ventures at WhatAVenture, not to mention the many corporate ventures we’ve built for our customers. Our portfolio ventures have created more than 100 jobs and generated a combined revenue of around €20 million last year. As we start 2024 with the learnings from these experiences, we’re also mindful that it is ultimately experiences like this one that make us better at what we do.

400% increase in capacity enabled Wood_Space to produce up to 250 modules annually

Wood_Space, another gem in our portfolio, achieved significant milestones by setting up a new production hall in Lower Austria. With a 400% increase in capacity, the facility aligns with our commitment to sustainability, incorporating wooden structures and solar panels. Partnering with Tauros Capital, Wood_Space secured a 7-digit investment, propelling its journey towards sustainable living concepts in Austria and Germany.

9 top innovation units in Germany, and PowerLab is one of them

In the realm of intrapreneurship, PowerLab, part of TenneT's program, achieved recognition by ranking among Germany’s top 9 innovation units by the renowned Capital Magazine and Infront Consulting & Management GmbH. We’ve been running the PowerLab with TenneT for the last three years and have received 67 applications from 100+ employees to date. We’ve coached multiple teams, helped validate 7 projects and successfully established 4 of them. We can’t wait to see how the 5th edition of the program continues to showcase real impact in disrupting the energy market.

2 ventures supported in Miele’s new venture building unit, Pioneering GmbH

Last year, we were proud to work alongside Miele on their next exciting step – the establishment of Pioneering GmbH, a venture arm dedicated to discovering new business models. This venture building incubator, launched in January, marks Miele's commitment to leveraging the power of intrapreneurship to turn innovative ideas into viable ventures. At Pioneering GmbH, teams experience the best of both worlds – the freedom and autonomy of a startup combined with the backing and resources of a global family company. This unique fusion reflects the essence of our beliefs at WhatAVenture. The incubator's primary focus is to bring ideas to life that complement Miele's core business, giving the company a competitive edge in the market.

100 NPS score from our customers

In reflecting on the past year, we want to thank our customers for entrusting us with something as pivotal as shaping their future. Our Net Promoter Score (NPS) of 100 reflects their confidence and the positive feedback we've received throughout our journey together. We take pride in the diversity of topics we explore, evaluating and bringing projects to life on behalf of our clients – from advancing the circular economy and navigating the energy transition to driving business model transformations and harnessing disruptive technologies like Gen AI.

10 years of WhatAVenture 

2023 marked our 10th birthday, and to celebrate, we invited our colleagues (past and present), ventures, clients, friends, and family to an anniversary party. We toasted to a decade of success with innovation with great food, drinks, and music. Reflecting on the past and looking forward to the future, we're grateful for the support of the 160 guests who joined us for this memorable event.

As we head into 2024, we're excited about the future. WhatAVenture is dedicated to delivering impactful solutions and transformative ventures for you, our partners, and our clients. So here’s to another decade of collaboration, growth, and shared success! Thank you for being part of our story.