Earlybird Venture Capital

Earlybird is a venture capital investor focused on technology companies.

3.0
(6)
Recommend to another founder 55%

Independent rating of Earlybird Venture Capital VC fund

Overall rating:
3.0
(6)
Recommend to another founder: 55%
Team quality
4.3
Professionalism
Personal qualities
Integrity
Respect and decency
Experience
Relevant expertise
Investment process
4.0
Approachability
Clarity of the process
Speed of the process
Responsiveness
Ease of the process
Due diligence
Value add
2.8
Supportiveness
Value add beyond financing
Board activity
Terms
Founder friendly
Help with follow-up rounds

About Earlybird Venture Capital VC fund

Founded:
1997
Number of funds:
15
Number of investments:
271
Number of exits:
42
Headquarters:
Organization type:
Venture Capital

Portfolio - latest investments by Earlybird Venture Capital VC fund

Founders' reviews of Earlybird Venture Capital VC fund

Team quality
4.7
Professionalism
Personal qualities
Integrity
Respect and decency
Experience
Relevant expertise
Investment process
4.0
Approachability
Clarity of the process
Speed of the process
Responsiveness
Ease of the process
Due diligence
Value add
3.6
Supportiveness
Value add beyond financing
Board activity
Terms
Founder friendly
Recommend to another founder 90%
Older than a year by non-portfolio founder
Verified by BOUND
Pros
Professional team, broad network, International
Advice for management
To be more supportive
Team quality
4.0
Professionalism
Personal qualities
Integrity
Respect and decency
Experience
Relevant expertise
Investment process
4.0
Approachability
Clarity of the process
Speed of the process
Responsiveness
Ease of the process
Due diligence
Value add
2.5
Supportiveness
Value add beyond financing
Board activity
Terms
Founder friendly
Help with follow-up rounds
Recommend to another founder 20%
Older than a year by portfolio founder
Verified by BOUND
Unlock more reviews by creating a free account
The Early Bird kills the worm?
Pros
They give you money without endless negotiations. They also have a lot of funds available. They put capital into hundreds of businesses. I also have to give them credit for supporting and going into high-risk profile start-ups like crypto. They are more advanced than some more commerce banks. That comes with a price though.
Cons
They go in early (like to invest in seed rounds or later series A) as is also in their name. However they show some creditor behaviour but when it comes to following rounds, they use their power from the board to put the conditions of the next rounds that are completely only in their favour not in the favour of the start-ups. For instance they might force you to raise on an exaggerated valuation which other investors would not agree with and then when you fail to close the round and you run out of runway they would swoop in and close the round for themselves on a much favourable valuation. Be careful with giving them controlling power. My personal opinion is that they are pretty predatory and it puts a lot of stress on the organization.
Advice for management
Be more supportive of the founder's teams. The way you run Early Bird is not a nice business
Not reviewed
Team quality
Not reviewed
Investment process
Not reviewed
Value add
Not reviewed
Older than a year by non-portfolio founder
Unlock more reviews by creating a free account
Working Together with Earlybird
I've been working with Earlybird for the first time in my current company, now over 3 years. They did our Series A as lead and participated pro rata in our Series B. Most important for me was their prior experience with other financial services companies in Germany (namely Interhyp, which was on the most sucessful IPOs ever in the Internet space). What I like is their cooperative and supportive way of working together. I cannot judge the whole team, but Christian Nagel (partner) is a great strategic advisor on our board. Given my prior experience with other VCs, this is a nice surprise. Even if things get tense and problematic, they keep a cool head. Especially given the case that we were looking for someone who supports us on a mid-term strategy level. I can really recommend those guys. If you want to ask me directly, go ahead.
Not reviewed
Team quality
Not reviewed
Investment process
Not reviewed
Value add
Not reviewed
Older than a year by non-portfolio founder
Unlock more reviews by creating a free account
Very Professional, a Lot of Support
I'm a serial extrepreneur and I have done two rounds of funding with EarlyBird, with two different companies. The first company was funded by EB in 1999 and led to a successful exit. My second company was funded by EB in 2009. All in all I can say is they were extremely professional throughout the entire process on both counts. Secondly, I've always been getting a lot of support, with contacts, strategic input, and as sparring partner. They are a very enthusiastic team once they're on board. Until that point, they are very critical, selective and know how to do their due diligence but that is to be expected from a top international investor.
Not reviewed
Team quality
Not reviewed
Investment process
Not reviewed
Value add
Not reviewed
Older than a year by non-portfolio founder
Unlock more reviews by creating a free account
Very Professional
We pitched at Earlybird in Munich for our Series A. The whole process from first meeting to termsheet was very professional and well structured. Throughout the whole process, they gave honest and direct feedback. After the initial pitch they voiced some concerns and arranged follow-up meetings with other partners of the firm to clarify those questions (which we successfully did). It was a pleasure to communicate with each other in this open and constructive way.
Not reviewed
Team quality
Not reviewed
Investment process
Not reviewed
Value add
Not reviewed
Older than a year by non-portfolio founder
Unlock more reviews by creating a free account
Quite Bad Experience
At the beginning the appeared vey efficient and well organized: we had a couple of phone calls with them two weeks after sending them the first documents. After that we received a mail with some questions and requests from their side before to go pitch. We answered them and then ...nothing. No more calls mails or contacts
Similar funds