E346 | EUVC | Christoph Klink, Antler on the need for technical founders in Europe with insights from Antler's recent report

In this episode of the EUVC podcast, Andreas discusses with Christoph Klink, a Partner at Antler.He draws on his background as a Business Angel and Partner with McKinsey & Company. Before joining Antler, he served a range of leading technology organizations, amongst others in the mobility and transportation space, on disruptive strategy and building innovative business models. Building and nurturing top-talent organizations is one of his key passions and a great source of inspiration for Christoph.Christoph is at the forefront of early-stage investing, and we're thrilled to have him share his insights with us. Christoph is investing out of Antler's first Continental European fund, which has an impressive 60M EUR AUM. What sets Antler apart is their focus on investing and supporting startups from "day zero" to Series C.In today's episode, we're diving deep into a topic that Cristoph has studied recently: The Rise of the European Technical Founder. Christoph will share some insights from their recent report, and why Antler is doubling down on this area and how it could be a game-changer for European tech.Go to eu.vc for our core learnings and the full video interview 👀Chapters:00:02 Meet Christophe Klink from Antler Continental Europe00:13 Antler's Investment Focus and Portfolio00:44 The Importance of Technical Founders in Europe03:12 Christophe's Recent Study on Technical Founders04:15 Challenges in Building European Tech Giants06:54 The Rise of Technical Founders in Europe21:30 Antler's Approach to Founder Team Composition26:09 The Role of Generalists and Specialists in Startups28:53 Finding the Right Co-Founder29:13 Recap of Core Learnings29:48 European Tech Giants Dilemma29:54 Rise of Technical Founders31:14 Meet Christoph: The Investor33:23 Antler's Work Ethic and Culture36:48 Challenges of Building Antler38:24 Olympic Medalists vs. Unicorn Founders40:35 Top Lessons in Venture Capital 47:16 Advice for Emerging VCs