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Artwork for Startuprad.io™ – Europe’s Voice on Startups, VC, Innovation & Growth

Startuprad.io™ – Europe’s Voice on Startups, VC, Innovation & Growth

Startuprad.io™ – Europe’s Voice on Startups, VC, Innovation & Growth
Artificial Intelligence
Germany
Fintech
Venture Capital
Quantum Computing
Switzerland
Austria
Deep Tech
European Union
Entrepreneurship
AI Employees
German Startups
Funding Challenges
Zenjob
B2B Models
Openmind
Operational Efficiency
AI Technology
Lilium
Scrap Metal Industry

Startuprad.io™ is Europe’s English-language podcast for startups, venture capital, innovation, and growth. Hosted by Joe Menninger, Startuprad.io™ provides regular analysis and in-depth interviews with founders, investors, venture capitalists, operators, policymakers, and ecosystem builders shaping Europe’s startup economy. The show covers European startups, venture capital trends, startup funding... more

476 ratings
PublishesTwice weeklyEpisodes374Founded11 years ago
Number of ListenersCategories
InvestingTechnologyBusiness

Listen to this Podcast

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Artwork for Startuprad.io™ – Europe’s Voice on Startups, VC, Innovation & Growth
 Guests Host Reviews Charts Talking Points

Latest Episodes

Germany's VC Market After the Correction: Stable Is Not Strong

As of 2026, German venture capital investment has stabilized after a multi-year correction but remains highly concentrated. AI, defense technology, biotech, energy infrastructure, and robotics account for an increasing share of investment activity. G... more

25 Jun 2026 • 21 min
YouTube

Europe's Scale-Up Gap Isn't Capital — It's Demand

Europe doesn’t just have a capital problem — it has a customer problem. In this scale-up series episode, Joe Menninger argues that even with funding fixed, European startups struggle to scale because institutions buy slowly: fragmented, risk-averse p... more

18 Jun 2026 • 19 min

European VC: The IPO Myth and the AI Wrapper Trap

Europe’s venture market has matured — but the IPO dream still misleads founders, and “generative AI wrappers” may soon struggle to raise. Partech partner Simone Riva on where European VC actually works, the costliest founder mistake, and what makes a... more

17 Jun 2026 • 24 min • Most popular
YouTube

When to Raise VC — and When It Destroys Discipline

Capital accelerates everything — including your problems. Partech partner Simone Riva on when European startups should raise venture capital and when it quietly destroys discipline. Using Emma Sleep (≈€950M revenue, minimal funding) and Flix (capital... more

11 Jun 2026 • 44 min
YouTube

Key Facts

Accepts Guests
Contact Information
Podcast Host
Number of Listeners
Find out how many people listen to this podcast per episode and each month.

Similar Podcasts

People also subscribe to these shows.

FT News Briefing
FT News BriefingFinancial Times

Recent Guests

Thomas Jatzombek
Parliamentary State Secretary for Digital and State Modernization (Germany)
German government
Episode: Europe's Scale-Up Gap: Why Capital Isn't the Problem
Nikolaus D. Bayer
Deputy Chairman of the German Business Angels Association (BAND), Founder of BAI and Iris Analytics
BAND, Iris Analytics (acquired by IBM)
Episode: Can EU Inc Become Europe's Delaware?
Marcus Berger
CEO and partner at Aviloo since 2020
Aviloo Battery Diagnostics
Episode: Aviloo and the Used-EV Battery Trust Problem
Tomasz Mazurek
Co-founder and CEO of Fundingbox; EU-funded project coordinator
Fundingbox / Keep Safe Project
Episode: Europe's Hidden Growth Tax: Regulatory Fragmentation
Mykola Myksymenko
Guest from Haiqu AI, quantum computing startup
Haiqu AI
Episode: Quantum's Real Bottleneck Is Data Encoding, Not Hardware
Thomas Jarzombek
Parliamentary State Secretary for Digital and State Modernization in the German Federal Government
German Federal Government
Episode: Thomas Jarzombek: Inside Germany's DE Hub Blueprint
Thomas Jatzambeck
Parliamentary State Secretary for Digital and State Monetization, Germany
German government
Episode: Europe's Scale-Up Gap: System Defect or Deliberate Design?
Stephan Wirries
General Partner at Ventech, European early-stage venture capital firm
Ventech
Episode: AI Agents and the End of Seat-Based SaaS
Wolfgang Weingräber
Co-founder and CEO of ByeAgain
ByeAgain
Episode: ByeAgain: Why Returns Are Retail's Next Infrastructure

Host

Joe Menninger
Lead host with long-running analysis on Europe's startups, VC, and policy. Focused on scale-ups, innovation policy, and ecosystem dynamics.

Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars from 476 ratings
  • Voices of misery brought me here

    Great show and very informative!

    Apple Podcasts
    5
    WillviciousMyrtleBeach
    United States4 years ago
  • Gabe

    Startup radio rules!!!

    Apple Podcasts
    5
    Hfhfjfnrbfj
    United States6 years ago
  • Love it!!

    Super amazing podcast with the best host!! Highly highly recommended!

    Apple Podcasts
    5
    mommalabs
    United States6 years ago
  • Nice!

    iend told me about podcast, sounds great, good host and amazing intro!

    Apple Podcasts
    5
    Irene T. Vice
    United States7 years ago
  • Spot On

    This podcast nails it on the head for what it’s like for first time entrepreneurs – especially ones in tech. Keep up the good work!!

    Apple Podcasts
    5
    Leonel Ashley
    United States8 years ago
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Listeners Say

Key themes from listener reviews, highlighting what works and what could be improved about the show.

Excellent host storytelling and thoughtful guests.
Consistently practical and honest about funding challenges.
Insightful, data-driven discussion on Europe's startup scene.
Great for executives looking to understand EU market dynamics.

Chart Rankings

How this podcast ranks in the Apple Podcasts, Spotify and YouTube charts.

Apple Podcasts
#120
Ukraine/Business/Investing
Apple Podcasts
#219
Austria/Business/Investing
Apple Podcasts
#225
Netherlands/Business/Investing

Talking Points

Recent interactions between the hosts and their guests.

Why Quantum Middleware Matters More Than Qubits
Q: Where do you see the biggest barriers today for enterprises wanting to experiment with quantum computing, and how does Haiqu address them?
The biggest barrier is the integration of hardware realities with productive workflows. Haiqu's middleware abstracts away low-level noise tuning and hardware details so teams can design, test, and run experiments more like standard software projects, reducing cost and time to insight while enabling more experiments per budget.
Quantum's Real Bottleneck Is Data Encoding, Not Hardware
Q: What is Rivet and why open-source this layer instead of keeping everything proprietary?
Rivet enables partial compilation so you can train neural networks by compiling only parts of the circuit as parameters update, dramatically reducing classical compute. The guest explains that Rivet fits into a broader stack of tools and accelerates development, while also fostering community contributions and experimentation.
Quantum's Real Bottleneck Is Data Encoding, Not Hardware
Q: Why is embedding classical data into quantum computing systems such a difficult problem?
Embedding data is a fundamental bottleneck because real-world data requires many features; with hundreds of qubits you can handle only a subset, and adding more features increases circuit depth, which amplifies noise and degrades performance. The guest argues that efficient embedding is essential for scaling quantum machine learning and that current algorithms must balance feature count with noise limits.
Europe's Scale-Up Gap: System Defect or Deliberate Design?
Q: Where does the European scale-up system break down, in your view?
The guest argues that while Germany's model has produced durable industrial strength, the bottleneck is capital architecture: insufficient long-horizon institutional capital, a small number of mega funds, fragmented fund structures, and shallow public markets that fail to provide the runway needed for scaling, especially beyond early stages. This structural misalignment drives European growth-stage companies to relocate capital or even headquarters to the US, rather than a lack of talent or invention.
ByeAgain: Why Returns Are Retail's Next Infrastructure
Q: How do you handle brand premium positioning when selling refurbished goods?
Brand premium is maintained by choosing appropriate marketplaces that align with the brand's positioning; high-end marketplaces support premium branding while other channels can handle lower-grade items, ensuring consistent brand perception across channels.

Audience Metrics

Listeners, social reach, demographics and more for this podcast.

Listeners per Episode
Gender Skew
Location
Interests
Professions
Age Range
Household Income
Social Media Reach

Frequently Asked Questions About This Podcast

What is This Podcast about and what kind of topics does it cover?

A Europe-focused tech business podcast featuring in-depth interviews with founders, investors, policymakers, and ecosystem builders. Episodes frequently cover European startup ecosystems, venture capital trends, and policy issues shaping scale-ups, with a notable emphasis on Germany, cross-border funding, and AI/tech infrastructure. A distinguishing aspect is the practical, policy-aware approach to Europe's scale-up challenges, including commentary on regulatory fragmentation, EU funding instruments, and public-private partnership models. The show often blends market signals, company stories, and governance insights to help international founders, investors, and corporate innovators navigate Europe's venture landscape.

Potential listeners ... more

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1. FT News Briefing

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this podcast launched 11 years ago and published 374 episodes to date. You can find more information about this podcast including rankings, audience demographics and engagement in our podcast database.

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What guests have appeared on this podcast?

Recent guests on this podcast include:

1. Thomas Jatzombek
2. Nikolaus D. Bayer
3. Marcus Berger
4. Tomasz Mazurek
5. Mykola Myksymenko
6. Thomas Jarzombek
7. Thomas Jatzambeck
8. Stephan Wirries

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