Exclusive Interview with Til Klein, General Partner & Co-founder Identity.vc

Europe’s first venture capital fund backing LGBTQ+ entrepreneurs. The €50 million impact fund invests in start-up with LG

Photo by Ramsey Cardy / Web Summit 2025

Your philosophy, '#Born2Disrupt,' highlights the LGBTQ+ community's natural ability to challenge norms. How do you evaluate this disruptive potential in founders during your investment process? Could you share an example where this mindset led to a breakthrough in one of your portfolio companies?

Absolutely. Our entire thesis is built on the belief that disruption is in our DNA. As LGBTQ+ people, we have always had to question norms because they were not designed with us in mind. That mindset is incredibly valuable when it comes to building transformative companies. We are not looking for founders who follow the rulebook. We are looking for those who are writing their own.

To truly understand how a founder thinks, we go beyond the typical investment process. We conduct structured case interviews, similar to those used at firms like McKinsey or BCG. We present real startup challenges and observe how founders approach them. Do they focus on the customer? Do they take calculated risks? Do they prioritize speed and results?

This mindset matters far more than simply having a big idea. It is about how you execute day by day. For example, Omni is rethinking pet nutrition with novel proteins that reduce allergies and extend lifespan. Frontnow has created an AI co-pilot for e-commerce that increases conversion by a factor of four by replicating the in-store experience online. iliAD is building the advertising infrastructure for the next generation of virtual and mixed reality environments. These companies reflect the kind of thinking we seek.

You emphasize that 80 percent of your deal flow is inbound, driven by the LGBTQ+ startup community. How do you actively nurture and grow this ecosystem, and what role do you see founders playing in strengthening it further?

The LGBTQ+ community is our greatest asset. It spans borders, industries, and organizational levels. This network gives our founders what we call an „unfair advantage“: access to talent, corporate introductions, peer support, and mentorship that are often hard to find in traditional networks.

We nurture this by building connections, both online and in person. We host meet-ups in all major startup hubs across Europe, support peer-to-peer founder networks, and help our founders meet investors, clients, and role models. That last element is especially powerful. When you see someone like you leading a company, raising millions, or scaling internationally, it reshapes what you believe is possible.

As for the role of founders, it is simple. Pay it forward. Share your story. Support the next generation. That is how we move from individual success to collective impact.

As Europe's first LGBTQ+-focused VC fund, how do you differentiate yourself from other diversity-focused funds or generalist VCs? What unique value do you bring to founders beyond capital?

We provide everything you would expect from a top-tier VC. That includes support with fundraising, strategic guidance, and real operating experience. My co-founder Jochen Beutgen has two decades of venture capital experience and strong LP relationships. Our Principal, Mari Luukkainen, scaled a startup to over ten million euros in annual revenue. I have built and exited a FinTech company and was a partner at BCG. We understand what it takes to grow a business and we are deeply hands-on.

What truly sets us apart is our community. Our founders receive more than capital. They gain access to a network that offers a real competitive edge. That might mean hiring a world-class CMO who also identifies as queer, securing a warm introduction to a Fortune 500 company, or having a peer group that understands their lived experience. These connections build over time and create exponential value.

And let us be clear. An estimated 17.5 percent of startups have an LGBTQ+ co-founder. That is not a niche. It is on par with the scale of the FinTech sector. Yet in Europe, no one else is focused on serving this group with dedicated capital and tailored support. We are.

The LGBTQ+ community has historically influenced culture, art, and social movements. How do you envision leveraging this cultural capital to create economic power at scale over the next decade?

First and foremost, we are a venture capital fund. Our mission is to deliver strong returns to our investors, and we believe our community gives us a unique advantage in doing so.

But identity.vc is more than a fund. It is a platform for consolidating the economic power of the LGBTQ+ community. We have long shaped culture, fashion, art, and activism. What we have not done is fully own our economic impact. That is about to change.

We are no longer asking for a seat at someone else's table. We are building our own and welcoming others to join us. This is how we create generational wealth, reinvest in our community, and drive change from positions of power.

And we do not just talk about reinvestment, we build it into our model. We commit 10 percent of our management fees and performance fee back to the LGBTQ+ community, supporting ecosystem-building efforts that strengthen our shared future.

Given the rise of AI and your interest in media, how do you view the potential for LGBTQ+ founders to innovate in these spaces? Are there specific trends or gaps you are particularly excited about?

AI is revolutionizing the media industry, making content faster, smarter, and more personalized than ever. It’s removing gatekeepers, empowering creators, and reshaping how stories are told and who gets to tell them.

AI will undoubtedly replace many low-value jobs in the industry, but it will not replace the creative minds driving innovation. This is where our community’s strength lies. I expect the LGBTQ+ community to lead this change, not be a victim of it.

But the real challenge is ensuring that these new systems remain inclusive, representative, and free from bias. LGBTQ+ founders bring a unique perspective here. We understand the urgency of building platforms that reflect the world’s true diversity.

About Til Klein

Til Klein (he/him) is the co-founding partner of identity.vc, Europe’s first venture capital fund dedicated to backing LGBTQ+ founders. identity.vc invests in early-stage LGBTQ+-led startups across Europe. Prior to this, Til was a FinTech founder, a Partner at BCG, and a banker at UBS.