Capital For Founders Who Build What Matters
Altessa backs those who dare to build what does not yet exist.
We partner with scientists, engineers, and entrepreneurs who move beyond incremental progress — those who redefine industries through first-principles thinking.
We invest with conviction, not consensus.
Early when necessary. Decisively when others hesitate.
Always with a clear focus: technological breakthroughs that shape the structure of the future.
For more than three decades, Gerald Glasauer has been a pioneering voice of venture capital in the German-speaking world. Since the early 1990s, his work has contributed to shaping the early foundations of the European innovation ecosystem — backing and building more than 120 technology companies from inception through IPO, several of which have reached multi-billion-dollar valuations.
Altessa continues this legacy with a sharpened global perspective and a clear mandate:
An uncompromising commitment to founders who push the boundaries of what is technologically possible.
An uncompromising commitment to founders who push the boundaries of what is technologically possible.
Selective. Long-Term. Technology-Driven.
Our Investment Discipline
Selective Conviction
We operate on a simple principle:
One exceptional company is worth more than ten average ones.
Enduring Company Building
We believe that enduring companies emerge at the intersection of deep expertise, disciplined execution and patient capital.
Inflection Point Investing
We do not chase trends.
We identify inflection points — where science becomes industry.
Enduring Impact
We support founders who take on difficult problems and create solutions with measurable, lasting impact.
We invest only where true technological depth meets global scalability.
Our focus
Core Targets
Life Sciences, HealthTech & Precision Medicine
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Deep Tech, Advanced Engineering & New Materials
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AI, Machine Intelligence & Data Infrastructure
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Stages
Selective Series B and Series C investments, including strategic bridges to IPO.
In the Numbers
32 years of experience
Enterprises founded & invested
Lead Investor
+
Trade Sales
IPO´s
Partnership
How We Work With Founders
Depth Over Scope
Altessa operates with intentional focus.
We invest in a small number of companies each year — by design.
Our role is not passive capital allocation.
Our role is amplification:
• sharpening strategic direction
• structuring capital with precision
• opening pathways others cannot access
True Partnership
We invest our own capital.
We think in decades, not quarters.
We have stood alongside founders through cycles, crises, breakthroughs and exits.
We understand the difference between building a company — and building something that endures.
Strategic Value Creation
Value Creation — Precisely Delivered
• Strategic positioning & narrative architecture
• Capital structuring & governance design
• International scaling & market access
• Direct connectivity to global networks in science, industry, finance and policy
We bring clarity in critical moments where others bring noise.
We create structure where others create complexity.
Founders
What We Look For
We partner with founders who:
• pursue fundamental, not superficial innovation
• combine speed with discipline
• operate with equal depth in both technology and market understanding
• aim for global leadership from day one
• think in systems — and execute with intent
Above all, we look for clarity of thought and courage of execution.
Because in the long arc of innovation,
it is not ideas that shape the future —
but those who have the discipline to realize them.
Contact
Connect with Altessa via LinkedIn.