Quantum-focused VC firm 55 North has closed €134m of its first flagship fund.
The firm is aiming to reach a final close of €300m, the company said, which would make it the largest fund globally entirely dedicated to quantum.
Anchor investors for the first close included EIFO (the export and investment fund of Denmark) and Novo Holdings, the parent company of Danish pharmaceutical giant Novo Nordisk.
The firm plans to invest exclusively in quantum technologies (including computing, sensing and communications) and back companies at all stages and globally. It has already backed Finnish quantum computing startup IQM in its $320m Series B last month, as well as Germany’s Kiutra, which builds cooling systems for quantum computers, in a €10m Series A.
“Quantum is a very exciting space at the moment,” 55 North founding partner Owen Lozman tells Sifted. “A lot of people are educated in the field and looking for ways to deploy their capital.”
While a growing number of generalist VC funds are launching quantum strategies, few firms are dedicated exclusively to the technology and only a handful in Europe. Last year Paris-based Quantonation closed €70m of its second fund, with the objective of reaching €200m by early 2025.
From R&D to commercialisation
Sifted data shows investments in quantum technologies in Europe have reached nearly €1.5bn so far this year, nearly double the amount raised in total in 2024 (€765m).
Much of this growth is driven by quantum computing, an emerging technology promising to eventually resolve problems that are impossible to run on today’s classical computers.
Lozman says quantum computing is at a “tipping point”. “We’re moving out of the research and development (R&D) phase into a more interesting area where people are developing things that can start to think about addressing real-world problems. A lot of investor value can be created on the way.”
While quantum technologies have so far largely been supported by public funding geared towards R&D-intensive projects, Lozman says it is now the right time to back the technology with private funds focusing on developing commercial outcomes.
55 North will back technologies that enable quantum computers to scale up, such as interconnects, cooling systems and design elements, as well as software companies developing the quantum algorithms needed to run the devices.
The majority of capital will focus on quantum computing but the firm will also back startups in quantum communications and quantum sensing.
Denmark’s quantum ecosystem
Quantum is increasingly becoming a strategic priority for governments around the world, with the EU, the UK, Germany, France and Denmark embedding the technology into their security and innovation initiatives.
The Danish government launched a national strategy for quantum technology in 2023, committing DKK 1.2bn (€160m) to quantum technology research until 2027.
Novo Nordisk has actively supported the development of the sector in Denmark. In 2022 Novo Nordisk Foundation announced a DKK 1.5bn (€185m) investment towards the development of a fully functional quantum computer in Denmark, while last year Novo Holdings earmarked DKK 1.4bn (€188m) to build a local quantum startup ecosystem.
