The European Investment Fund (EIF) is investing approximately €27 million in IP Lab Ventures Fund I, a new Czech venture capital fund targeting more than €50 million to commercialize research and support the creation of deep-tech startups.
The investment, backed by the Czech Ministry of Industry and Trade through the country's National Recovery Plan, will support technology transfer from universities and research institutions, with a particular focus on AI, robotics, cybersecurity, biotechnology, and other advanced technologies.
IP Lab Ventures Fund I is the first fund of its kind in the Czech Republic, designed specifically to bridge the gap between academic research and commercial applications.
Targeting 40 deep-tech projects across Czechia and CEE
The fund aims to raise more than €50 million, including additional private capital, and support approximately 40 projects, primarily in Czechia but also across Central and Eastern Europe.
Its investment strategy will focus on university spin-offs and research-based startups developing technologies in AI, autonomous systems, robotics, smart mobility, biotechnology, cybersecurity, semiconductors, and advanced manufacturing.
Beyond providing capital, the fund will work closely with universities and research centers to identify promising technologies, support their commercialization, and help research teams turn their innovations into internationally competitive businesses.
The initiative also seeks to address a broader challenge in Czechia's innovation ecosystem: the persistent gap between academic research and commercial applications.
According to the European Commission, business-funded public R&D accounted for just 0.02% of Czech GDP in 2024, compared with the EU average of 0.06%. The Commission also identifies weak cooperation between academia and industry, bureaucratic hurdles related to intellectual property, and insufficient institutional incentives for research commercialization as key obstacles.
"Czech science and research have enormous potential, which we must be able to turn into real economic success and globally competitive companies. This new fund is precisely the missing link that will connect cutting-edge ideas from our universities and research organisations with the capital and business support they need," said Karel Havlíček, First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Industry and Trade.
Building on experience in technology transfer
The IP Lab Ventures management team has been working together since 2023 and has already supported the commercialization of seven technology projects, including the establishment of spin-offs.
According to the EIF, the team's experience in technology transfer was a key factor in its selection following a process launched in August 2025.
"We believe they will also succeed in turning more good ideas into successful companies and firmly placing the Czech Republic on the map of European leaders in artificial intelligence and related technologies," said Marek Mora, Vice-President of the European Investment Bank.
The fund has already established relationships with several Czech universities and research organizations and plans to expand these partnerships.
IP Lab Ventures is led by Filip Fingl, former CEO of Czech food delivery platform Dáme jídlo, who previously worked at BCG and Rockaway Capital. The other partners are Jiří Navrátil and Andrew Hladký, a US-born entrepreneur of Czech descent with experience at SpaceX and Tesla.
"We have excellent universities, talented people and technologies that can compete globally. We want to be their partner and offer a helping hand where capital and commercialisation expertise are lacking," said Filip Fingl, Managing Partner at IP Lab Ventures.
Part of Czechia's broader startup investment strategy
The €27 million commitment marks the second venture capital investment under the RRF Fund of Funds, an initiative financed through the EU's Recovery and Resilience Facility and managed by the EIF on behalf of the Czech Ministry of Industry and Trade.
The instrument has a total allocation exceeding €54 million and previously backed a fund managed by Czech VC firm Tensor Ventures.
With the investment in IP Lab Ventures Fund I, the resources allocated to the Fund of Funds initiative have now been fully committed.