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The Venture Codex

Illusian

Aleksanterinkatu 11, Helsinki, Uusimaa, 00100, Finland

Overview

Illusian is the Founder Office of people who have founded and scaled companies like Supercell, Zalando, Wolt, Aiven, Pigment, and Smartly. While the group is still busy running their businesses, they've aligned their networks, capital, and expertise to simultaneously support the next generation of builders.

Total investments
10
Lead investments
0
Investments · 12mo
5
Active investors
3
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Investment portfolio

  • NewOrbit

    Participated · Series A · Jun 2026

    NewOrbit develops purpose-built satellites and proprietary propulsion technology to enable sustained operations in very low Earth orbit (200–300 km). The company says its design is intended to withstand VLEO environmental challenges such as atmospheric drag and atomic oxygen and to operate for up to five years. NewOrbit targets applications including higher-resolution Earth observation and low-latency satellite connectivity. Founded in 2021 and headquartered in Reading, the startup plans to construct the NEO Production Complex in 2027 to manufacture its first commercial satellite. It expects to launch that satellite in 2028 and increase production as operations scale. The company has raised a Series A led by Voyager Ventures and participation from angels, a family office, and existing investors.

  • CodeWords

    Participated · Seed · May 2026

    CodeWords builds Cody, a proactive AI agent that learns how a business operates and autonomously creates and runs automations across multiple integrations and workflows. The platform handles deployment, maintenance and execution on CodeWords’ own infrastructure so non-technical users can trigger and monitor outcomes without technical setup. The company originated as Agemo, an AI research lab focused on neurosymbolic reasoning, before pivoting to a product-focused automation platform. CodeWords is currently in beta and has been adding features such as contextual memory, messaging integrations and adaptive execution modes. With its newly raised $9 million seed round, the company plans to scale its platform and continue developing the agent. No revenue or user metrics were disclosed in the reporting.

  • Skye

    Participated · Seed · Dec 2025

    Skye is a Stockholm-based energy-technology company focused on reducing electricity expenditure for energy-intensive industrial customers across Europe. Its software dynamically controls and shifts factory power consumption, enabling clients with thin margins to improve profitability while lowering energy bills by 30-50%. Since launching, Skye has achieved 3× revenue growth in just three months, underscoring rapid early traction. The company positions itself as a category-defining solution for demand-side energy optimisation, delivering cost savings that can triple an industrial plant’s profitability. Skye’s team includes Tor Espen Steinvik, Linus Frosteryd, Andreas Lundgren, Caroline Vernet and Matteo Varisco, who are collectively driving quick product iterations and market expansion. The recent seed financing provides capital to accelerate rollout across additional European industrial sites and further develop its intelligent control technology.

  • Riff

    Participated · Series A · Oct 2025

    Riff, formerly known as Databutton, provides a low-friction platform that equips practitioners across an organisation to design, test, and launch AI apps and agents. The service bundles proven templates, starter apps, and expert guidance with native data connectors and production-grade, secure infrastructure, letting teams move beyond simple "vibe coding" experiments to business-ready deployments. Companies in financial services, logistics, healthcare, manufacturing, and consumer goods are already adopting the product to boost productivity and completion rates. By enabling AI solutions that work with real data under enterprise-grade controls, Riff aims to convert the rapid growth of AI tooling into measurable business impact. The company plans to use its new capital to scale go-to-market efforts and empower thousands more professionals to launch impactful AI solutions. To date, Riff has raised $21 million in venture funding, positioning it well to accelerate platform development and market expansion.

  • Vibe

    Participated · Series B · Sep 2025

    Founded in 2022 and headquartered in New York City, Vibe.co offers an end-to-end advertising platform that combines proprietary artificial intelligence with direct access to premium streaming inventory and shopper profiles. The service lets performance marketers launch and optimize CTV campaigns while removing much of the cost and complexity historically associated with television advertising. More than 5,000 brands already use the platform, and customers can create spots through Vibe Studio, the company’s AI-powered video editor. Vibe.co’s roadmap focuses on adding generative and agentic AI capabilities for media buying and creative production, as well as expanding yield-management tools for publishers. The company also plans to deepen integrations with streaming partners and measurement providers as it scales across the United States. Following its recent Series B round, Vibe.co is valued at $410 million.

Team