On Friday, Amsterdam-based QDNL Participations, a quantum-focused VC firm, announced the first close of its new fund at €25M, targeting €60M for the fund.
The fund’s investors include family offices, high-net-worth individuals, funds-of-funds, and endowments, along with continued support from the Quantum Delta NL Foundation.
The new fund broadens the firm’s active investment approach to include quantum startups worldwide.
“Our aim is to invest in, and help shape, category-defining quantum technology companies,” says Ton van ‘t Noordende, General Partner at QDNL Participations.
While few VC firms invest globally, QDNL Participations has identified a lack of specialist investors as a significant inhibitor in the development of quantum technologies.
The VC firm will announce the deals from the new fund in due course.
Bolstering in-house expertise
To support this, QDNL Participations has expanded its team.
Last year, they hired Chad Rigetti, a quantum computing expert from Silicon Valley, as a venture partner.
Recently, Kris Kaczmarek joined as an investment director after working at the quantum VC firm 2xN in London.
The firm has also bolstered its in-house expertise with the appointment of two special advisors, Nadia Carlsten (CEO of the Danish Centre for AI Innovation) and Charles Marcus of the University of Washington.
QDNL Participations: Backing Dutch quantum startups
Founded in 2023 and led by General Partner Ton van ’t Noordende, QDNL Participations was established to accelerate the Dutch quantum technology ecosystem with a €15M fund.
The fund has invested in nine of the Netherlands’ most high-potential quantum startups, including Qblox, QuantWare, QphoX, and Q*Bird.
“We at QDNLP believe now is the optimal window for early-stage quantum investments, with maturing technology and markets combining with significant non-dilutive capital tailwinds to create ideal conditions for new and early stage ventures,” continuous van ‘t Noordende.
The firm’s ultimate goal is to become the definitive investor in quantum technologies globally, at a time when fields like quantum computing and quantum security are increasingly expanding beyond the lab and into early commercialisation.
“Our goal is to help identify and build the next wave of global leaders in quantum technology, and become the best performing quantum-specific venture firm,”
Quantum Delta NL: Developing quantum ecosystem
Founded in 2020, Quantum Delta NL links the Netherlands’ key knowledge institutions in the field of quantum technology and implements the Dutch National Agenda for Quantum Technology.
Its goal is to further develop the Dutch quantum ecosystem so that it can dominate Europe.
Pieter de Witte, Director of Research Programmes & IP at Quantum Delta NL, says, “Securing access to capital is essential for scaling our startups. We are thrilled to continue our support by backing QDNL Participations with an anchor investment to develop this specialized quantum investment fund. Building a sustainable quantum industry in the Netherlands for the long term is the key pillar of our foundation, and the launch of this fund is a part of our strategy.”
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