Bosch Ventures, the corporate venture capital arm of the Bosch Group, has announced a new $270 million fund focusing on North America. This move signals both Bosch’s global ambitions and carries significant implications for Germany’s innovation ecosystem, industrial competitiveness, and economic strategy.
Why North America and why now?
Bosch Ventures (formerly Robert Bosch Venture Capital GmbH, RBVC), established in 2007, is one of Europe’s largest corporate venture capital investors. With a management portfolio exceeding $1.1 billion, Bosch Ventures operates globally, with offices in Silicon Valley, Boston, Frankfurt, Stuttgart, Tel Aviv, and China. Its active portfolio includes over 60 companies across key sectors, including German AI company Aleph Alpha, US battery recycling innovator Li Industries, Chinese autonomous driving firm TrunkTech, and UK quantum computing startup Quantum Motion.
The new €250 million fund — its sixth — will support early-stage and scale-up deeptech startups, focusing on artificial intelligence, energy efficiency, automation, climatetech, and quantum computing.
Despite global economic uncertainties and trade tariffs affecting target sectors, Bosch’s leadership views North America as a crucial hub for technological innovation, particularly in generative AI, advanced manufacturing, and climate technology. Ingo Ramesohl, managing director of Bosch Ventures, explains: “As a global investor, we need to be part of the local startup ecosystem so we can find startups with potential, whose innovative technologies could turn entire markets upside down.”
What about Germany?
Germany is renowned for its engineering excellence and top-tier research institutions, yet it struggles with scaling startups, especially in late-stage venture funding. Bosch Ventures’ global outreach aims to bridge this gap by importing international best practices, business models, and technical expertise while attracting international co-investors to German startups.
Stefan Hartung, chairman of Robert Bosch GmbH, emphasises the economic importance: “With disruptive technologies, startups can boost innovation in a way that delivers important growth impetus for a country’s economy. That is why we want to remain a reliable partner for the startup sector worldwide, even in an adverse business environment.”
Bosch’s global venture strategy is reinforced by major investments in Germany’s tech infrastructure. The company is expanding its semiconductor manufacturing capacity in Dresden and Reutlingen, having invested more than €400 million in 2022 alone, with an additional €250 million planned for new clean-room facilities through 2025. This expansion is vital for meeting rising chip demand in mobility and IoT, while strengthening Germany’s position in the global semiconductor supply chain.
“Open Bosch” and co-innovation
Bosch’s Open Bosch program, launched in 2018, drives co-innovation between startups and Bosch’s core business divisions. This partnership model accelerates startup growth while enhancing Bosch’s innovation efficiency, ensuring long-term competitiveness. The program enables startups to tap into Bosch’s R&D capabilities, global reach, and industrial infrastructure.
While Germany leads in patents, research, and skilled talent, its innovation momentum faces obstacles from excessive regulation and slow policy adaptation. Stefan Hartung advocates for bold reforms alongside investment, warning that overregulation threatens Germany’s global competitiveness, particularly in emerging fields like AI.
“Now is also the time to cut back on all the excessive regulations and reporting obligations that often have little substantive effect but are a sure-fire way of stifling any élan… The upcoming billion-strong package has to be more than a fleeting feel-good program. It also has to be accompanied by bold reforms – and by spending whose effect does not quickly fade, but instead pays dividends in the long term”
A blueprint for German corporate venturing?
Bosch Ventures’ investments create a multiplier effect, generating high-tech jobs and fostering regional development beyond Berlin, in cities like Stuttgart, Dresden, and Aachen. The fund’s focus on sustainable mobility, climate-neutral solutions, and connected systems aligns with Germany’s Energiewende (energy transition), Industrie 4.0, and digital sovereignty goals.
The fund’s scale and global reach help address Germany’s shortage of late-stage VC funding — a significant bottleneck for deeptech startups. By demonstrating success in international markets, Bosch Ventures can advocate for regulatory changes in employee stock options, IPO readiness, and skilled immigration — key factors in making Germany more attractive to entrepreneurs and investors.
Bosch Ventures’ €250 million fund represents a strategic lever for Germany’s innovation agenda. By uniting the resources and expertise of a global industrial leader with the agility of venture capital, Bosch is creating a model for how German corporations can drive technological leadership at home and abroad.
