Europe’s VC ecosystem faces a generational shift as Gen Z founders leverage AI and no-code tools, while serial entrepreneurs dominate funding. Data reveals contrasting strategies and investor biases.
Norway’s Pistachio, a Gen Z-led AI cybersecurity platform, secured $7M Series A funding this week, contrasting with IXI’s €36.5M raise by Varjo veterans. TechEU reports 70% of under-25 founders use no-code tools versus 22% of repeat founders.
The Experience Premium in European Venture Capital
Serial founders claimed 52% of VC-backed European startups in 2024, according to Leverage Onstage’s latest ecosystem report. This trend intensified post-2023 market corrections, with investors favoring proven operators in sectors like industrial tech and biotech.
Gen Z’s Digital-Native Edge
Pick-Roll APP’s viral growth – 8M users in 18 months – exemplifies Gen Z’s strength in AI-native platforms. ‘They’re building with ChatGPT-5 like we used Excel,’ noted Atomico partner Sarah Lin in a June 2025 blog post. However, Gen Z teams require 14 months on average to secure first institutional checks versus 7 months for serial founders.
Toolkits Divide Generations
TechEU’s survey reveals 73% of under-30 founders use no-code platforms for prototyping, compared to 19% of founders with prior exits. This efficiency enables rapid iteration but raises scalability concerns among traditional VCs.
Safety Nets and Confidence Gaps
Despite Europe’s free university programs, only 47% of Gen Z respondents expressed confidence in starting ventures per INSEAD’s 2025 Youth Entrepreneurship Index. ‘Safety nets enable risk-taking but don’t replace mentorship,’ argued Berlin accelerator NextGen’s CEO during Web Summit 2025.
2026 Horizon: Specialization and Consolidation
Analysts predict micro-VCs will drive Web3/climate tech bets while corporates target scaling deeptech. Henkel recently acquired battery-tech startup Volten, founded by ex-Tesla engineers, for €420M – a pattern expected to accelerate.
Historical context: The current generational divide echoes Europe’s 2010s fintech boom, where young founders like Klarna’s Siemiatkowski disrupted established banks. However, 80% of 2015-2020’s unicorns were led by serial entrepreneurs, per PitchBook data. Similarly, today’s AI surge combines fresh technical approaches with veteran-led scaling – Pistachio’s cybersecurity training modules build on Palo Alto Networks’ 2022 open-source AI framework, illustrating this blend.
Market parallels: The 70% no-code adoption rate mirrors 2017’s cloud infrastructure boom, which enabled non-technical founders to launch marketplaces. While those tools democratized access, scaling beyond $10M ARR still required engineering depth – a lesson current investors weigh when evaluating Gen Z’s prototype-heavy pitches.
