The first Techshop fund, launched in 2022, is operating a year ahead of schedule, and the investment company’s team is preparing to launch a new fund dedicated to the AI-driven transformation of B2B software solutions that will redesign business processes. Techshop II will maintain the founder-to-founder approach and the same vertical focus on B2B tech, but will have a larger capital allocation and a European profile.
The objective of the first fund was to invest approximately €53 million raised in the best innovative Italian entrepreneurs active in the B2B software sector, with a lead investor approach, operational and focused on supporting high-potential projects in their commercial growth. Less than four years after its launch, the fund has invested in 19 pre-seed and seed stage start-ups, which today employ almost a thousand talented individuals and have achieved a cumulative ARR of over €80 million. The fund, which has been operational since 2022 but was presented in 2021, aims to make at least three more investments and has reserved a significant portion for follow-on transactions.
The graduation rate in Serie A of the portfolio is over 50% (compared, for example, to 45% for Y Combinator startups), and the IRR has reached the first decile, the top 10% at European level. Some companies invested in by Techshop are recognised at Italian and international level, such as Shopcircle, Smartness. Qomodo. Hlpy, Syllotips, Tot, AxionAI. The Fund’s performance has confirmed the soundness of its investment strategy as a specialised vertical fund: Europe, and Italy in particular, can generate B2B SaaS start-ups capable of competing internationally, in which to invest at the outset at low initial valuations as lead investor to support them in their development phase. This vertical is now undergoing a profound transformation and further expansion in value: while the first generation of SaaS initially digitised processes and workflows, the next generation, based on AI, will rewrite them from scratch. say Gianluca D’Agostino and Aurelio Mezzotero, who launched and manage the fund, joined a few months ago by Giovanni Strocchi, who adds: “Techshop II was born out of the conviction that we are entering a new era of B2B software solutions: the transition from SaaS (“Software as a Service”) to SaaS (“Service as Software”). Agentic systems capable of operating, deciding and interacting in partial autonomy with users, data and other applications that will completely rewrite entire processes. A change that is based on the redefinition of the entire B2B software stack and will open the way for a new generation of entrepreneurs and products.”
The new fund will maintain its focus on early-stage investments, with a target of €80 million and a geographical scope that, while remaining centred on Italy, will be extended to the rest of Europe, where it will ideally invest around 30% of its resources. The investment strategy continues to focus on B2B software, with an even more specialised approach centred on seven investment theses, as well as differentiated investment strategies for pre-seed and seed stages. According to plans, the fund will carry out an initial closing at €40 million and then aim for €80 million, without ruling out a possible extension to €100 million.
The operational approach, which is close to entrepreneurs and aimed at supporting growth, from product validation to commercial scale, will remain the hallmark of the Techshop way. The fund is expected to launch in early 2026 upon reaching its first closing.
In order to further strengthen the team in view of the new fund and therefore growth, Giovanni Strocchi (previously working at Blacksheep and Eden) joins Gianluca D’Agostino and Aurelio Mezzotero as a partner at Techshop II, bringing to the founding duo and investors a wealth of expertise in innovation, AI and marketing, as well as extensive experience in mentoring talented entrepreneurs.
“We are looking at initiatives that involve innovation in areas such as AI consultancy, healthcare, AI tech operation frameworks, AI customer conversations, embedded finance, and physical AI/robotics in terms of software,” say the three partners (pictured). “We have defined and tested a thorough evaluation process and are building a community among all the entrepreneurs we have invested in. We are convinced that the B2B software sector is not only highly promising but also evolving very rapidly. This applies to technologies and applications, but also to the speed with which the world of investment is moving, where operational expertise and the ability to activate co-investors, including international ones, with increasing frequency, is fundamental. Our job is to identify all the early-stage initiatives that will transform the SaaS sector one process at a time and to invest in those we believe are the best, supporting them in their rapid evolution: the opportunity is definitely promising, and we want to be the benchmark fund in this area.
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