360 Capital
360 Capital is a Franco-Italian venture capital firm built around a simple but demanding thesis: Europe's best technical founders can turn research, engineering depth, and industrial know-how into global companies when they receive patient early capital. Founded in 1997 and operating from Paris and Milan, the firm invests from pre-seed through Series B across Deep Tech, Climate Tech, and Digital-First startups, with about EUR700M in assets under management.
The reason 360 Capital matters is not just its longevity. It has spent nearly three decades backing companies where proprietary technology, defensible intellectual property, and technical execution carry more weight than short-term market noise. That positions the firm in the less theatrical part of venture capital, where category creation often starts in labs, factories, energy systems, robotics stacks, and software infrastructure before becoming a headline.
A Thesis Built for Technical Founders
360 Capital's investment strategy is concentrated around companies that need both capital and time. The firm backs founders working across robotics, AI, cybersecurity, advanced sensing, energy infrastructure, climate technologies, digital platforms, and industrial innovation, with a focus on European teams that can translate technical insight into scalable products.
That approach gives the firm a clearer profile than a generalist fund. In practice, 360 Capital looks for founders with domain depth, technical differentiation, and a path to a durable market position. It is not trying to be everywhere at once, and that restraint is part of the signal for founders evaluating whether an investor understands technically complex markets.
Paris, Milan, and a European Operating Map
The firm operates through two important European innovation hubs: Paris and Milan. Its current partner group includes Alessandro Zaccaria, Alexandre Mordacq, Cesare Maifredi, Fausto Boni, Francois Tison, Lucrezia Lucotti, and Thomas Nivard, supported by a broader team spanning investment, finance, ESG, investor relations, marketing, and community.
Founded in 1997, 360 Capital has evolved into an institutional venture platform with a broad partnership model. That matters because the firm's strategy now depends on repeatable sourcing across deep tech, climate, software, and technology transfer networks rather than a single personality or investment style.
Specialized Funds Instead of Generic Capital
One of the strongest signals in 360 Capital's model is its specialized investment vehicles built around distinct European innovation systems. 360 LIFE II is the firm's Climate Tech strategy, with a EUR140M first close toward a EUR200M target and an Article 9 SFDR structure focused on the energy transition, circular economy, and urban sustainability.
Poli360 2 extends the firm's technology-transfer strategy. The fund has raised EUR85M toward a EUR100M target, is structured as Article 8 SFDR, and focuses on early-stage deeptech and university spinouts. Its backers include the European Investment Fund, CDP Venture Capital, Brembo, MBDA, and Lucchini RS, giving the vehicle an industrial and institutional foundation for helping research-backed companies reach the market.
The firm also launched 360 Digitaly, a EUR30M Article 8 fund with CDP Venture Capital focused on Italian digital innovation. Together, these vehicles illustrate a venture platform built around specific European strengths: climate transition, university research, industrial technology, and digital company formation.
Portfolio Signals That Match the Thesis
The portfolio reflects the firm's investment philosophy. Preligens is one of the clearest examples. 360 Capital says it led the company's seed round in 2017 before Safran acquired the business for about EUR220M. That is the kind of long-cycle outcome venture firms point to when arguing that technical conviction can compound before the broader market recognizes the opportunity.
Exotec adds another robotics signal, while Energy Dome demonstrates the firm's climate and infrastructure exposure through long-duration CO2 energy storage. Additional portfolio companies such as Alsid, Isaac, Phononic Vibes, PhotonPath, Inxpect, and Equixly reinforce a consistent focus on cybersecurity, industrial systems, photonics, advanced sensing, and university-linked deeptech.
The throughline is not hype. It is a portfolio built around technically demanding markets where commercialization takes longer, buyers require proof, and the strongest companies often look too specialized before they look inevitable.
Why Founders and Operators Should Pay Attention
For founders, 360 Capital's relevance comes down to fit. A deeptech or climate founder does not just need capital; they need investors who understand long product cycles, scientific risk, industrial buyers, regulatory friction, and the gap between laboratory validation and commercial adoption. The firm's fund architecture suggests it is intentionally built to operate in that space.
For operators and technical talent, the portfolio also serves as a hiring signal. 360 Capital maintains a dedicated portfolio careers platform at jobs.360cap.vc, highlighting active opportunities across the companies it backs. That makes the portfolio more than a list of investments. It becomes a map of where European deeptech, climate tech, and digital infrastructure companies are scaling next.
What This Signals for European Venture
360 Capital reflects a broader shift in European venture capital. The next wave of company creation is becoming less dependent on copying consumer internet playbooks and more focused on technology transfer, climate infrastructure, industrial software, energy systems, robotics, and defensible AI-enabled products. Those markets require investors with patience, sector expertise, and enough specialization to recognize quality before consensus forms.
That is the real story behind 360 Capital. The firm is not simply another early-stage investor with offices in Paris and Milan. It is a long-running European venture platform placing concentrated bets on founders building at the intersection of technical depth, industrial relevance, and climate urgency.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does 360 Capital invest in?
360 Capital invests in early-stage European startups from pre-seed through Series B, with a focus on Deep Tech, Climate Tech, and Digital-First companies. Its thesis centers on technical differentiation, technology transfer, industrial innovation, and long-cycle markets where engineering depth matters.
Why does 360 Capital matter for European venture capital?
The firm has operated since 1997 and has built specialized vehicles around climate tech, university spinouts, and digital innovation. That makes 360 Capital a useful signal for the shift in European venture toward technical founders, industrial markets, and research-backed company formation.
Which 360 Capital funds are most relevant to founders?
360 LIFE II focuses on energy transition, circular economy, and urban sustainability, while Poli360 2 backs early-stage deeptech and university spinouts. 360 Digitaly adds a dedicated strategy for Italian digital innovation.
Where can operators find jobs at 360 Capital portfolio companies?
360 Capital maintains a portfolio hiring hub at https://jobs.360cap.vc. The roles represent a practical view into where its portfolio companies are scaling across deeptech, climate tech, software, and industrial technology.
What domain should be used for 360 Capital?
The canonical website for the European venture firm is https://www.360cap.vc. The original intake domain 360capital.com was not used for the public draft because the source audit identified it as the wrong domain for this VC profile.
