German “teledriving” startup Vay has secured €34mn from the European Investment Bank (EIB).   In January, Vay launched a commercial remote-controlled car service in Las Vegas. Now it wants to roll out the technology on its home turf. In 2023, the company successfully conducted test drives without a safety driver on public roads in Hamburg. Vay says it has been working closely with authorities to launch a commercial service in the German city.  “This investment will play a crucial role in strengthening the confidence and trust that EU regulators, partners and consumers have in Vay, paving the way for the commercial…

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In November 2023, violent Atlantic storm “Domingos” struck the northern coast of Portugal, generating record-high waves and leaving a path of destruction across much of Western Europe.  People on land were grappling with flooded homes, closed roads, and landslides. But just offshore, a potentially game-changing wave energy device was happily bobbing up and down, side to side — seemingly, in its element.  Built by Swedish startup CorPower, the giant golden buoy turns the raw power of the ocean into a clean, reliable electricity source. CorPower claims its tech is at least five times more efficient than the previous state-of-the-art. “We’ve…

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Stockholm-based node.vc has closed a €71mn fund to back early-stage startups in the Nordics. “The Nordic tech ecosystem is thriving, especially in areas like AI, gaming, fintech, and climate tech,” John Elvesjö, managing partner at node.vc, told TNW. “We’re seeing experienced talent, particularly from companies like Klarna, Spotify, Voi, Kry, and Pleo, stepping up to become founders,” Elvesjö said. The devaluation of employee stock options and increasing layoffs have sparked “fresh entrepreneurial energy,” he added. The fund is sector-agnostic. This means that any startup with “innovative technology” can apply. The size of initial investment per company will be around €1-2mn,…

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 Welcome to the new episode of the TNW Podcast — the show where we discuss the latest developments in the European technology ecosystem and feature interviews with some of the most interesting people in the industry. In today’s special episode, we’re happy to present an interview with Anita Schjøll Abildgaard, co-founder and CEO at Iris.ai. The startup has been around for almost a decade and saw several significant pivots, while Anita and the team have been through all the highs and lows imaginable, including balancing on the brink of bankruptcy. Anita and Andrii talked about it all, as well…

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From the outside, it looks like a clean, modern social housing block. You can tell it’s new — there are 84 shiny solar panels on the roof and the fresh paint has barely dried on the walls. But it’s how this 56-dwelling building in Barcelona, complete with ground floor nursery, was designed and built that really matters.  “Our software is our superpower,” says Lucas Carné, co-founder of 011h, a construction tech firm, as he describes how his company has designed digital tools to help architects plan buildings like this one. “We use a lot of prefab,” he adds. “That reduces…

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