E637 | Anders Kjær, PSV Hafnium: Building Denmark’s First Deep Tech Fund & the New Nordic Innovation Advantage
Description
In this episode, Andreas Munk Holm speaks with Anders Kjær, General Partner at PSV Hafnium, Denmark’s first dedicated deep tech fund. Together, they explore the evolving role of technical founders, the Nordic research-industrial complex, and how early-stage deep tech capital needs to work differently to unlock tomorrow’s transformative companies.
Here’s what’s covered:
01:30 Why PSV Hafnium Was Built—and the Deep Tech Opportunity in the Nordics
04:13 PSV Hafnium as a Symbol of Deep Tech: The Element & the Brand
08:24 Turning Research into Portfolio Power: DTU's Role in Diligence & Support
10:19 Can a Copenhagen-Based Fund Compete Across the New Nordics?
14:26 Nordic Tech Clusters: Are There Regional Strengths or Pure Serendipity?
19:43 Bio Solutions, Green Energy & Industrial Legacy: Why Deep Tech Thrives Here
21:15 Sciencepreneurs Rising: Shifting Founder Mindsets in Deep Tech
24:52 How PSV Hafnium Gauges Entrepreneurial Readiness in Deep Tech Teams
27:44 What Generalist VCs Get Right—and Wrong—About Deep Tech
30:18 What “European Resilience” Actually Means at the Early Stage
36:18 The Common Thread in All Deep Tech Bets (Hint: It’s Not Sector)
42:09 Bridge Rounds in Deep Tech: A True Test of Conviction
45:53 Rapid Fire: Nordic Bets, Myths to Kill, & Advice to Scientist Founders
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