Antonio Avitabile: The Strategic Angle of Investing in Complementary Companies | Main Episode 9

Nothing Ventured

English - December 07, 2023 06:00 - 36 minutes - 33.1 MB
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Previous Episode: Antonio Avitabile: Bridging the Gap Between Startups and Established Companies | Primer 9

Next Episode: Josh Bell: Founding Partner at Dawn Capital | Primer 10

In this transcript of a podcast episode, host Aarish Shah interviews
Antonio Avitabile, the Managing Director for Sony Ventures Corporation
in Europe. They discuss the shift in Sony's investment approach, moving
from off-balance sheet investments to a more formalized fund structure.
Avitabile explains that the shift was driven by the need for speed and
the challenge of convincing engineers within the company to buy into
external technologies. The goal of Sony Ventures is not just to find
technologies that Sony can potentially acquire or use, but also to
generate returns for their LPs.

🕒 Time stamps -
00:02:28 Shift from off-balance sheet to traditional fund structure.
00:07:24 Investing in deep tech requires upfront capital and a longer time horizon.
00:12:52 Cultural barriers hinder Italian startups.
00:18:24 Deep tech investment has high risk and high potential.
00:24:29 Investing in African creativity and building partnerships.
00:30:15 Invest in African innovation now.