Bill Maris, managing partner of Google Ventures, the venture capital branch of Google, has announced the creation of a new fund for European startups.
In a post on Google’s official blog, Maris revealed that the new venture would start with the initial funding of $100 million to help kick start growth in smaller companies.
“Our goal is simple: we want to invest in the best ideas from the best European entrepreneurs and help them bring those ideas to life,” said Maris.
“We believe Europe’s startup scene has enormous potential. We’ve seen compelling new companies emerge from places like London, Paris, Berlin, the Nordic region and beyond – SoundCloud, Spotify, Supercell and many others.”
Google Ventures has set up shop in London where the company’s European entrepreneurs head Eze Vidra and general partner MG Siegler are positioned. They will be joined by angel investors Peter Read and Tom Hulme along with Bottica.com co founder Avid Larizadeh.
In the US, Google Ventures has worked with more than 250 portfolio companies. These include Flatiron Health, which works to improve cancer care, SynapDx, which is working on a blood test for Autism in children, and Clean Power Finance for affordable solar energy.