The Venture Codex

Led · Series A · Dec 2022

3Bee is based in Fino Mornasco, Como, Italy and develops IoT and AI systems to monitor and protect pollinators. Its core products include HiveTech, a 4.0 beehive with IoT sensors to monitor bee health and reduce treatments and visits; BioScan, an AI-based automatic pollinator counting system; and Terra, a neural network that analyzes vegetation biodiversity across three European states in collaboration with ESA. The company has built a network of over 5,000 beekeepers, farmers and companies and employs 42 people. 3Bee raised €5M in a Series A round. It plans to use the funds to expand further around the EU and to multiply its impact capacity from 1 billion protected pollinators in 2022 to 10 billion in 2023. Since its 2017 founding by Niccolò Calandri and Riccardo Balzaretti, 3Bee has focused on combining sensor hardware and AI to optimize pollination and reduce bee mortality.

Participated · Seed · Dec 2021

StartupGym operates as an operator-led studio that develops, launches and scales next-generation digital businesses, providing prototyping, validation, team building and fundraising support. Founded in Milan in 2021 by Enrico Pandian, Tarek Fahmy and Giuseppe Balzano, the company scouts impactful ideas across European tech markets. Its stated aim is to speed capital allocation toward new impact ventures and to mitigate market risk around product adoption. The founders describe the model as a modern 'Renaissance Bottega' focused on scouting international talent and building worldwide companies. StartupGym raised an oversubscribed €1.5 million pre-seed round to fund these activities. The company plans to support tech disruptors across Europe in launching products that deliver societal value.