TOP 100: Europe’s most influential women in the startup and venture capital space in 2026!

Ahead of International Women’s Day 2026 on March 8, this year’s theme, “Give to Gain”, highlights the power of generosity, collaboration, and shared responsibility in advancing gender equality. The campaign encourages individuals, organisations, and communities to contribute through mentorship, visibility, education, funding, and support networks. The idea is simple: when opportunities are shared and support is actively given, progress accelerates. Advancing women in entrepreneurship, technology, and venture capital is not a zero-sum game. When women succeed, the entire innovation ecosystem becomes stronger.

Across Europe’s startup and venture capital landscape, many women are already embodying this spirit by building companies, backing founders, mentoring the next generation, and advocating for more inclusive access to funding and leadership. Their work helps create new pathways for talent and strengthens Europe’s position as a global hub for innovation.

In recognition of their impact, we present our annual list of the 100 most influential women shaping the European startup and venture capital ecosystem in 2026. Of course, we know that this number barely scratches the surface. Europe is home to many more inspiring women driving innovation across startups, investment, and technology, and this list represents only a narrow snapshot of the talent and leadership the continent has to offer. These leaders are building companies, supporting founders, and demonstrating that when we give opportunities, knowledge, and support, we all gain.

Agate Freimane: General Partner of Norrsken VC, the first impact VC in the Nordics, and among the first in Europe. Agate is a trailblazing woman in the VC space and is passionate about impact-focused startups. She started her career working in finance in London and New York, before co-founding the edtech charity Bright Mentors.

Alice Albizzati: Founding partner of Revaia, a Paris-based firm focused on European sustainable growth investment, partnering with mission-driven entrepreneurs. Alice has participated in the financing, structuring and oversight of more than 35 growth companies throughout her career. She also sits on the boards of Deepki and Hublo.

Alice Pelton: CEO and Co-Founder of The Lowdown, the world’s first review platform for contraception. It’s now the UK’s leading contraception and sexual and reproductive health platform, used by thousands of women every day to make informed decisions about their everyday health. The company is helping lead a new generation of period empowerment.

Aline Vedder: Head of Technology Diplomacy at the British Consulate-General in Munich, she leads strategic initiatives that strengthen collaboration between the UK and Germany across areas such as AI, cybersecurity, and critical technologies. Previously a Principal at Lakestar, one of Europe’s leading venture capital firms.

Alisée de Tonnac: Founder of Seedstars, a global organisation that supports high-growth startups in emerging and frontier markets through venture investment and ecosystem-building programmes. Based in Geneva, she works to foster entrepreneurship and economic development across underserved regions. 

Alix de Sagazan: Co-founder and CEO of AB Tasty, a global leader in feature management, experimentation and personalisation solutions that enable companies to validate ideas, while maximising impact, minimising risk and accelerating time to market. She is also a board member of The Galion Project and an investor with Galion.exe and Side Capital.

Ana Barjasic: Entrepreneur, angel investor, and policy adviser. She established Connectology, a boutique agency specialising in finance access, investment readiness, and behavioural science. Among her significant roles, she serves as a Board Member of the European Innovation Council, advocating for entrepreneurs from Horizon Europe’s widening countries.

Angelica Kohlmann: Entrepreneur, investor, and board member focused on deep tech, biotech, and space technologies. With a background as a medical doctor and PhD from the University of Hamburg, she serves on the Board of Directors of Lonza, where she chairs the Strategy and Innovation Committee.

Ann Mettler: As Vice President at Breakthrough Energy, the climate-focused investment fund founded by Bill Gates, she is driving critical funding into transformative technologies. Ann previously served as Director-General of the European Commission’s in-house think tank. Her work continues to create pathways for women in tech and venture capital.

Anna Brailsford: CEO and Co-founder of Code First Girls, a social enterprise focused on closing the gender gap in technology by providing coding education and career opportunities for women. Under her leadership, the organisation has trained hundreds of thousands of women and partnered with major companies.

Aude Guo: Co-founder of Innovafeed, a startup that picked up one of the largest funding rounds in 2022 with a female leader. Based in Paris, the company is reinventing how we approach nutrition by building a circular and zero-waste agri-food chain that reflects insects’ role in true, creating a new way of living with higher quality, sustainability and resilience. 

Briehan Burke: Briehan Burke is a General Partner at Keen Venture Partners, where she plays a critical role in identifying and supporting high-growth startups across deeptech, AI, and enterprise software. With a keen focus on fostering diverse leadership, she actively champions entrepreneurs and underrepresented founders. 

Carlota Pi Amoros: Co-founder and CEO of Holaluz, a renewable energy company working to accelerate the transition to 100% green energy. Under her leadership, Holaluz has grown into one of Spain’s most recognised clean energy companies, using technology and distributed energy solutions to transform the traditional power sector. 

Caroline Noublanche: CEO of Epoca and Femtech pioneer, she co-founded and led Apricity, the world’s first virtual fertility clinic. A board member at Bilendi and active advisor in AI and healthtech, she combines entrepreneurial leadership with a strong focus on technology-driven impact in healthcare and senior care.

Charlotte Baumhauer: In her role as Investment Manager with SquareOne, Charlotte is actively backing European tech companies that are positively influencing the world through climate tech innovation. Prior to this role, she worked with McKinsey, where she was part of the operations practice.

Chelsea Slater: Co-founder and CEO of InnovateHer, she works to empower the next generation, particularly girls and underrepresented young people, to pursue careers in technology. Based in the UK, she collaborates with companies and schools to promote digital skills, diversity and inclusion across the tech industry.

Cintia Mano: Angel investor, board member, author, and startup mentor with more than 25 years of experience spanning corporate leadership and entrepreneurship. She previously served as CEO of COREangels International, helping grow a global network of angel investors that has supported over 120 startups across multiple regions.

Claire Novorol: Trained doctor, paediatrician and now co-founder and Chief Medical Officer of Ada Health, a Berlin-based global health company built by doctors to improve human health by transforming knowledge into better outcomes. It’s now counting over 13 million users and is available to 60 million users in total, and conducted over 31 million assessments. 

Claudia de la Riva: Serial entrepreneur, and passionate about finding and building solutions that improve welfare, quality of life and the development of people. She is the current CEO of Apolo Kids, which is an exciting edtech startup based in Barcelona. Launched in 2020, the company motivates children through internet-based, autonomous and on-the-go learning.

Cristina Bentue: Co-founder and COO of IriusRisk, taking a small startup to a 150-strong team across three continents. She is also behind different initiatives and programmes to encourage more girls in STEM. An increasingly powerful voice in the cybersecurity space as both an entrepreneur and tech leader, as well as a mentor.

Cristina Fonseca: General Partner at Indico Capital Partners, she leverages her experience as Co-founder of Talkdesk, one of Portugal’s leading tech unicorns, to support high-potential startups in AI, SaaS and DeepTech. She is an active advocate for entrepreneurship and innovation across Europe’s startup ecosystem.

Dame Jessica Ennis-Hill: Olympian turned into an entrepreneur. In 2019, she founded Jennis, a femtech startup aiming to improve knowledge around women’s health and training, drawing on her own experiences with the power of hormones and just how little women understand about their cycles.

Danila De Stefano: Founder and CEO of Unobravo, a company building an empathetic, clinically backed and accessible end-to-end platform for mental health. Founded in 2019, it operates in Italy, Spain and France, with +7M sessions completed, +9K psychologists and psychotherapists collaborating on the platform, and over 435K patients supported.

Deepali Nangia: Part of the UK Government Taskforce for female entrepreneurs, working on relevant changes to make it easier for female founders to get funding. She’s a partner at Speedinvest, with a focus on investing in underrepresented and underfunded founders. She also co-founded Alma Angels.

Diliara Lupenko: Co-founder and COO of Impress, a Barcelona-based healthtech company building one of Europe’s leading networks of orthodontic clinics. Since founding the company in 2019, she has helped scale the business across multiple markets, combining medical expertise with digital technology to transform the orthodontics sector.

Ekaterina Almasque: Founding Partner at BlankPage Capital, she backs deep tech and AI-driven B2B companies. A growth-stage investor and board member at companies including IQM Quantum Computers, she focuses on scaling breakthrough technologies in areas such as quantum, semiconductors, and next-generation AI infrastructure.

Ekaterina Zaharieva: EU Commissioner for Startups, Research and Innovation at the European Commission, she leads the EU’s agenda to strengthen Europe’s startup and scaleup ecosystem, advance research excellence, and drive innovation-led competitiveness. Based in Brussels, she works on reinforcing Europe’s position in the global landscape.

Elisa Tarzia: Co-Founder and Vice President of 351 Portuguese Startup Association, she is a startup ecosystem builder focused on scaling communities, shaping policy, and strengthening founder support in Portugal and across Europe. She also leads growth at BRIDGE IN and is building the Portuguese chapter of Founder Institute.

Erika de Santi: Co-founder & Chief of Experience of WeRoad, a Milan-based startup specialising in group adventure travel for millennials. It’s providing a service tailored to a generation that is often finding themselves travelling solo – but looking for hyper-connected, personalised and fun experiences. It’s one of Europe’s fastest-growing travel operators.

Eva De Mol: Co-founder and Managing Partner at CapitalT, she is an early-stage venture capital investor backing European software startups in climate, education and the future of work. She has spent over a decade researching entrepreneurial team dynamics and startup performance, and is a vocal advocate for more inclusive access to venture capital.

Eva-Valerie Gfrerer: Founded in 2020, Morphais is a firm based in Berlin that invests in exceptional founders, independent of their background. Morphais was launched by Eva to put the focus on the founder to build world-class companies. A behavioural scientist and entrepreneur at heart, fascinated by predicting human behaviour with data. 

Fariha Shah: CEO and founder of Cominty.ai, she is building agentic AI tools for work and advocates for responsible, inclusive innovation. A serial tech entrepreneur with two ventures and one exit, she also serves as a board member at UN Women France and holds a leadership role at CPME Nationale, championing women’s entrepreneurship in France.

Dr Fiona Pathiraja: Partner at Crista Galli Ventures, a fund that invests in Seed and Series A stages in European health tech, has worked in the NHS for over 15 years. She has firsthand seen the need for innovation and tech-driven solutions to address mounting healthcare challenges. She is committed to promoting healthcare innovation.

Francesca James: Founder of Ideas Fest, often dubbed the “Glastonbury for Business”, she built one of the UK’s fastest-growing entrepreneurship communities, connecting and championing over 100,000 founders. Through Ideas, she also powers major national programmes such as the Great British Entrepreneur Awards and the UK StartUp Awards.

Gesa Miczaika: General Partner at Auxxo Female Catalyst Fund, she invests in pre-seed and seed-stage startups across Europe with a focus on female-founded teams. She is also a founding member of European Women in VC and works to increase the participation of women as both founders and investors, supporting more diverse venture ecosystems.

Gina Domanig: As CEO and Managing Partner of Emerald, a leading VC firm focused on CleanTech, she has been instrumental in funding breakthrough solutions in energy, mobility, and the circular economy. Gina’s leadership has helped countless startups scale while promoting gender inclusivity in investment.

Grace Beverley: CEO and Founder of TALA and SHREDDY, and a renowned podcast host. At 23, she topped Forbes’ 30 under 30 in retail and e-commerce, ranked 26th among influential online creators by The Sunday Times, and was featured in Glamour with Emma Watson and Rihanna as one of ‘the 10 amazing multi-hyphenates to be inspired by’

Hélène Falchier: Partner at Portage Ventures, Hélène is an early-stage investor dedicated to backing the next generation of innovative, impact-driven companies, particularly in the financial sector. Hélène has been influencing the fintech space during her distinguished career, helping empower more female representation in this space.

Hélène Huby: Founder of The Exploration Company, one of Europe’s fastest-growing space tech companies, and former Head of Innovation at Airbus Defence and Space. Founded in 2021, her startup has already secured €47.3 million, aiming to shape sustainable, scalable, and affordable space journeys made in Europe.

Inka Mero: Inka is the founder and managing partner at Voima Ventures, a Finnish deep tech fund that’s on a mission to solve the big global challenges humankind is facing through science, entrepreneurship and capital. Inka is passionate about purpose-driven startups and how they are using digital tech to shape a better future. 

Itxaso del Palacio: General Partner at Notion, a top European B2B SaaS VC, previously served as an Investment Partner for M12 in Europe. Her notable investments include Yulife (life insurance), Orus (SMB insurance), Bound.co (currency risk management), Onfido (identity verification) and Beamery (recruitment CRM).

Jacqueline Ruedin Rüsch: Founder and CEO of Privilège Management SA, a wealth management firm, also initiated Privilège Ventures SA to back entrepreneurs. She then started the Privilège Student Ventures Initiative, an academic year program educating students to become venture capital investors or entrepreneurs.

Jacqueline van den Ende: Entrepreneur and investor. She founded Carbon Equity in 2021, a fintech platform that recently raised over €100 million, seeking to power the world’s most impactful climate technology solutions with retail capital. Previously, she was a partner at Peak Capital and an investor at HAL Investments. 

Jane Reddin: Partner, Platform and Talent director at AlbionVC. Based in London, AlbionVC is helping to build the future of enterprise and healthcare. Jane helps invest in the best founders by assessing their leadership potential and advises the leadership teams to support and accelerate the rapid organisational scaling of companies. 

Janneke Niessen: Founding Partner at CapitalT, serial entrepreneur, angel investor, board member and diversity advocate. Her expertise lies at the crossroads of technology, talent, investing and diversity. She is a prominent board member for several organisations and is often called upon by the government for advice. 

Jenny Saft: Co-founder of Apryl (acquired by Progyny), an employee fertility benefits platform that enables companies to support employees on their path to parenthood. Jenny also operates as an investor with Nucleus Capital and Atomico, looking to support impact-driven ventures. Previous to this, she worked with the likes of Adyen and Fyber.

Jessica Holzbach: Partner and CEO Germany at 0TO9 | Bank of Entrepreneurship, she is a fintech founder turned investor focused on building the next generation of regulated financial services in Europe. She co-founded Penta (acquired by Qonto) and founded Pile (acquired), and now backs fintech, AI, and deep tech as an angel.

Joana Pinto: CGO at Lampsy Health and Co-founder and CEO of Clynx, she helps healthtech teams scale through growth strategy, partnerships, and go-to-market execution. Based in Portugal, she is also active as a fractional growth leader, mentor, and advisor, with a strong focus on practical AI applications in healthcare.

Joanna Torngren Redebran: Founder of Nyfikna Investerare, a Nordic boutique media house reaching 15,000+ investors and entrepreneurs, she works at the intersection of capital and storytelling. She also produces Their Legacy, a cinematic platform exploring ownership, leadership, and next-generation entrepreneurship across Europe.

Julia Bijaoui: French entrepreneur and Co-founder of Frichti, a food delivery and grocery startup that reimagined how urban consumers access fresh food. She is now Co-founder of Climate House and Selar, focusing on sustainable innovation and new models of travel and climate-conscious living.

Julia Hawkins: General Partner at LocalGlobe & Latitude. She takes a particular interest in health, creative industries, mobility and fintech. She has backed companies such as Yulife, Vira and Fertility. Currently working with LocalGlobe and Latitude, she seeks to leave a positive impact and finds healthcare to be her number one priority. 

Karoli Hindriks: Founder at Jobbatical. In 2020, she was named by the EU Council as one of the 8 most inspiring women in Europe. She founded her first company at 16, officially becoming the youngest inventor in her native Estonia. She also led the launch of seven television channels in Northern Europe, including National Geographic Channels and MTV.

Katharina Unger: Founder and CEO of LIVIN farms, she develops industrial technologies to scale insect-based alternative proteins for the food and feed industries. Recognised as a European Young Leader and MIT Innovator Under 35, she is on a mission to transform the global food system through circular and sustainable solutions.

Kinga Stanislawska: Senior advisor on European investment and governance, she is the founder of European Women in VC and co-founder of the Bootstrap 4F initiative. A former member of the EIC Board and EIC Fund Investment Committee, she works at the intersection of institutional capital, venture ecosystems, and public–private partnerships.

Laura Modiano: Works with startups across EMEA at OpenAI, supporting founders building with advanced AI technologies. Based in London, she engages closely with the developer and startup ecosystem while also investing as an angel in early-stage companies. Previously, she worked with startups and venture capital firms at Amazon Web Services.

Laura Urquizu: CEO and President of Red Points. In 2020, Laura was named one of the 100 Leaders Transforming Business by Business Insider and among the most creative people by FORBES. Previously, Laura Urquizu held executive and management positions at Arthur Andersen, Caja Navarra & CAN Corporation. 

Lena Hackelöer: Founder & CEO at Brite Payments, a fast-growing second-generation challenger in the European payment space. Allowing consumers to make payments using their bank account, Brite employs state-of-the-art open banking technology to process instant payments and payouts across Europe across a wide range of verticals.

Lina Chong: Partner at HV Capital, she focuses on investing in early-stage technology startups across Europe, particularly in AI and emerging software. Before becoming a venture capitalist, she founded and exited companies herself, bringing a hands-on founder perspective to supporting ambitious entrepreneurs.

Linnéa Kornehed Falck: Co-founder and board member at Einride, she has helped drive the shift to digital, electric, and autonomous freight. She also co-founded Navisalma, a design studio and venture partner spun out of Einride’s design team, and has been recognised by Forbes 30 Under 30 for her leadership in mobility and sustainability.

Louise Herping Ellegaard: Angel investor, board professional and founder of Clio Online, one of the early EdTech companies in Denmark and Sweden. Based in Copenhagen, she has been investing in Danish startups and scale-ups since 2014 and is known for her role as an investor on Denmark’s Løvens Hule, the local version of Dragon’s Den.

Lisa Carter: Founder and CEO of Panelle, she builds community-driven platforms that connect brands with senior women decision-makers through curated experiences and her Audience Engineering™ methodology. An award-winning entrepreneur and founder of NIKAO, she champions visibility, leadership and generational wealth for women in business.

Lubomila Jordanova: Founder and CEO of Plan A (acquired), a carbon accounting and decarbonisation platform, and Co-founder of the Greentech Alliance, she is a prominent voice in Europe’s climate tech ecosystem. She also serves as Group CEO of Diginex, working to accelerate sustainable transformation and ESG adoption across global industries.

Luciana Lixandru: Partner at Sequoia Capital, Luciana partners with impactful European founders who are pioneering impactful change. She has invested in Series A at UiPath, Series A at Miro, Series B at Deliveroo, seed stage at Hopin, seed level at Tessian and more. Luciana has also been a Board Member for companies such as Miro, Tessian and UiPath.

Lucile Cornet: Partner at Eight Roads, Lucile is an impactful investor backing promising companies, particularly in the fitness and SaaS sectors. She has an extensive career in the investment space and is currently backing companies like Reveal, Amenitiz, Spendesk, Interaction and Fuse Universal. 

Lupina Iturriaga: Co-founder of SeniorExpert and Fintonic, she is a board member, investor and former CEO with more than 20 years’ experience across banking, marketing, technology and product. Recognised by Forbes and the Financial Times as one of the most influential women, she focuses on financial well-being and innovative solutions for the senior economy.

Manon Sarah Littek: Founding General Partner at the Green Generation Fund. Manon is passionate about growing impactful ventures in the food tech and green tech spaces. She has been an active investor in shaping the food revolution across Europe and currently works with Upfield, Change Foods, Lypid and The Rainforest Company.

Marcia Kilgore: Founder of Beauty Pie, a startup revolutionising the beauty industry. Since its inception in 2016, Beauty Pie has focused on delivering high-quality beauty products, fostering self-worth, and teaching women to claim their deserved success. Having secured over €92 million million, Marcia has become a pivotal figure in the entrepreneurial world.

Margo Polishchuk: Margo is the co-founder and President of proSapient, a primary research and expert networking service for institutional investors, consultants, and corporate clients around the world. The firm aims to deliver actionable intelligence and relevant experts to clients, giving them an edge to reach their commercial ambitions. 

Marie-Helene Ametsreiter: A distinguished figure in business and venture capital, currently a General Partner at Speedinvest, leading the Industrial tech team. She advocates for diversity in the EU startup and VC sectors, supporting innovative companies like Greyparrot, Fernride, and CELUS.

Marta Krupinska: CEO and Co-founder of CUR8, a company building the infrastructure for the carbon removal market and helping scale solutions needed to reach net zero. Previously Head of Google for Startups UK, she also co-founded fintech companies Azimo and FreeUp.She serves as Chair of Youth Business International and supports climate innovation.

Melanie Gabriel: Co-Director and COO at the ETH AI Centre, she is a co-founder of Yokoy (acquired by Perk) and Follow the Gradient, a weekly podcast and newsletter on building from Europe. She also lectures at ETH Zurich and the University of St. Gallen, serves on boards including SICTIC and Moodtalk, and invests as an angel.

Mette Lykke: The visionary founder of TooGoodToGo, a leading sustainability app that fights against food waste by partnering with supermarkets, restaurants, bakeries, and hotels to redistribute surplus food. Leading a team of over 400 Waste Warriors, Mette’s impactful work follows her success.

Miriam Wohlfarth: A serial entrepreneur, she established one of Germany’s pioneering fintech firms, Ratepay, a payment service provider. In 2020, she launched her latest venture, Banxware, which is transforming the European lending industry by enabling platforms to provide banking products.

Montse-Suarez: Founder of IRIS Ventures, Montse is an experienced industry expert with a distinguished career in the VC, private equity and investment banking industries on a global level. She previously founded Vaultier7, a consumer-focused private equity firm that’s backed success stories like French fashion unicorn Vestiaire Collective. 

Namrata Sandhu: Co-founder and CEO of Vaayu, a startup that is helping retailers track and cut their carbon emissions. She has over 17 years of international experience building, developing and implementing sustainability strategies across companies – focusing on climate change, carbon emissions, human rights, ESG reporting and ethical supply chains.

Nicola McClafferty: Partner at Molten Ventures and a board member for several startups, is also the founder of Covetique, a curated online marketplace for pre-owned luxury fashion. Her prior roles include serving as an investor at Ravensbeck and Balderton Capital, where she focused on cross-platform media and e-commerce. 

Nicole Büttner: Founder and CEO of Merantix Momentum and Founding Partner at Merantix Capital, she focuses on advancing AI innovation and supporting deep tech startups across Europe. She is also a World Economic Forum Digital Leader for Europe and an active advocate for strengthening the continent’s AI ecosystem.

Nora Bavey: General Partner at Unconventional Ventures, an Impact fund focused on early-stage impact tech companies built by diverse founders in Europe. She is also the co-founder of the UV Accelerator, an 8-week digital program aimed at supporting tech startups by underrepresented founders in the Nordics, focusing on sustainable business growth.

Nikita Thakrar: Co-Founder & CEO of Included VC, pioneers the first global, fully funded Fellowship targeting diverse and often marginalised communities, aiming to democratise access to the venture capital industry through education and opportunities. In three years, nearly single-handedly, Nikita established a globally recognised brand.

Rachel Delacour: A prominent figure in European tech, founded Sweep in 2020 to combat climate change. Sweep, a B2B software, helps companies manage and reduce their carbon footprint. Previously, she co-founded BIME Analytics, acquired by Zendesk, and serves as a business angel and board member for various US and French startups.

Rafaela Andrade: Partner at Mundi Ventures, where she focuses on growth investments and fundraising from institutional LPs, supporting fintech and insurtech companies across Europe, the US, and Latin America. She combines investment expertise with board-level experience, including serving as a Non-Executive Director at Pharol SGPS.

Raja Skogland: An angel investor in over 70 startups, has advised thousands of founders since 2015. In 2020, she founded The Visionary Company, providing founders with resources to boost their fundraising and scaling efforts. Previously, she was CEO at TheFactory, a leading accelerator in Norway, and launched thehub.io in 2016.

Rebecka Löthman Rydå: General Partner at Norrsken Evolve, a pre-seed venture fund supporting founders building resilient and sustainable companies across Europe. Before venture capital, she held operational leadership roles, including CFO and CEO, bringing an operator’s perspective to supporting ambitious founders.

Roberta Lucca: Roberta is the Co-founder and Board Director of Bossa Studios, an angel investor and keynote speaker on the future of games, entrepreneurship and leadership. BOSSA is a BAFTA-winning independent games developer and publisher based in London. Driven by creativity, it takes a community approach to content and game development.

Roxanne Varza: Director of Station F, a worldwide startup campus based in Paris. She’s also a scout for Sequoia Capital and a board member of NRJ Groupe and Le Fonds pour l’Indépendance de la Presse. Among her previous roles, Roxanne led Microsoft’s startup activities in France and co-founded Tech.eu.

Sana Afouaiz: An award-winning gender expert, advocate for women, public speaker, the person behind Womenpreneur, and author of “Invisible Women of the Middle East”. Sana has advised entities like the United Nations and the European Commission on gender issues and co-founded Womenquake, a movement challenging and re-examining gender notions.

Sara Resvik: Sara is an experienced early-stage investor and leader with experience from BackingMinds, Industrifonden, Schibsted and Axel Johnson. Founded in 2016, BackingMinds was built on the thesis that the next unicorn will come from looking to the overlooked parts of Europe’s startup ecosystem. Sara is currently a partner at Endeit Capital.

Sarah Barber: Managing Partner at Jenson Ventures, she helped launch the first Jenson SEIS Fund in 2012 and has since led fundraising, deployment and portfolio management. A Chartered Accountant who qualified with Deloitte, she combines venture capital leadership with deep expertise in finance, turnaround and business operations.

Selma Prodanovic: Social futurist, global keynote speaker and private board-level advisor, she has spent over 30 years shaping Europe’s startup and angel investing ecosystems. She is the creator of “The Selma Effect” and works with leaders and policymakers at the intersection of power, leadership and societal impact.

Shrestha Chowdhury: Co-Founder and Chief Product Officer at GeneralMind, she is building AI systems that automate complex enterprise operations. Previously Co-Founder and CTO of Razor Group, she led technology and data science at scale across global e-commerce operations, and holds a Computer Science degree from Stanford University.

Simone Brummelhuis: Founding Partner and Fund Director at the Borski Fund, a VC fund investing in technology leaders and diversity. Simone is a supervisory board member of Royal Schiphol Group, Rabo Amsterdam and Media Huis Nederland. She previously founded The Next Women, which provides access to capital, programs, resources, and networks for women.

Sophie Hersan: Co-founder and Fashion Director of Vestiaire Collective, the leading global online marketplace for preloved fashion. It counts over 23 million buyers and sellers and has a global reach with offices in Paris, London, Berlin, NY, Hong Kong and beyond. Sophie founded the firm in 2009 and is passionate about creating a more sustainable future.

Susanne Najafi: Entrepreneur and Founding Partner of BackingMinds VC, she focuses on investing in overlooked founders and underinvested markets. A serial entrepreneur with several successful exits, she is known for challenging traditional venture capital models and expanding access to funding across Europe’s startup ecosystem.

Talia Rafaeli: General Partner at KOMPAS, an early-stage venture capital firm that focuses on investing in startups that will lead the digital transformation and sustainability revolutions in major industry verticals. She backs ambitious founders who develop technology to transform buildings into more sustainable and healthy spaces.

Tessa Clarke: Co-founder and CEO of Olio, the community-powered platform helping redistribute surplus food and household items to reduce waste. Based in the UK, she is a TED speaker, Sifted columnist and sustainability advocate focused on circular economy solutions and mission-led businesses tackling food waste at scale.

Vera Elizabeth Baker: Partner at 4P Capital, she leads early-stage investments across sustainability transformation sectors. Active angel investor with 30+ investments across Europe and North America, she also mentors at Techstars Sustainability Paris and founded For Colored Girls Who Tech, supporting Black and Brown women in entrepreneurship.

Vidya Peters: CEO of DataSnipper, the Amsterdam-based unicorn transforming audit and finance workflows through AI-driven automation. With experience across global technology and SaaS companies, she focuses on scaling high-growth teams and building products that help organisations improve accuracy, transparency, and efficiency.

Vivienne Hsu: With over 20 years of strategic communications expertise in B2B and B2C organisations, she is the co-founder and CEO of Anasbasis Partners and a Founding Member of Chief. Hsu also mentors in the fintech sector, focusing on advancing women to leadership positions and enhancing their skills and influence.

Yonca Braeckman: Founder and CEO of Impact Shakers, fosters societal and environmental solutions through inclusive entrepreneurship. Committed to mission-driven initiatives and supporting underrepresented founders, she contributes to diversifying the Belgian and European tech ecosystems and mentors startups and entrepreneurs.

Yvonne Bajela: Partner at LocalGlobe, and previous founding Member and Principal at Impact X Capital, a UK-based venture capital fund founded to invest in companies led by underrepresented entrepreneurs across Europe. Recognised by ‘Forbes 30 Under 30′ in 2020, she has invested over €230 million in startups around the globe. 

Congratulations to all the amazing women trailblazing and breaking barriers across Europe. We’ll see you all again next year with the 2027 edition! To keep your finger on the pulse of Europe’s entrepreneurial stories, tech events and funding opportunities, make sure to sign up to the EU-Startups CLUB!

Also, as a small symbolic gesture, since women are still strongly underrepresented in the startup and VC world, we decided to give away 10 tickets for this year’s EU-Startups Summit specifically to some great women in tech!

If you’re a woman who would like to join us on May 7-8 in Malta and you haven’t secured your event ticket yet, you can apply here (takes less than 1 minute) until March 10 at 10 AM (CET). Good luck!