First Momentum has always been about one thing: enabling deeply technical people to turn visions of the future from impossible to inevitable.
When we started, that meant finding founders where they are actually building: in university labs, workshops, industrial factories, not in a specialty coffee shop in Berlin Mitte. Today, it means being an active part in turning raw technology and talent into companies with explosive scaling potential.
We've been sharpening this further along two vectors. First, broadening our investment scope, beyond our core in new industrials, next-gen energy, and novel compute, we're building deeper conviction in the space frontier, AI-first software infrastructure, and engineering-enabled biology. Second, raising the bar on how we support our portfolio. Our ambition: be the investor that delivers the most leverage per € invested, whether through deeper networks, more structured support, or, where technology, talent, and opportunity don't align on their own, actually incubating companies from scratch.
To advance both of these, Maximilian Ochs and Christian Neumann are now taking on more active, independent roles as Principals. Max is leading investments in novel compute, space, and engineering-enabled biology. Christian will focus on the deployment of AI, both in software infrastructure and in concrete applications across industries.
A core belief at First Momentum: domain expertise combined with drive and curiosity will beat "VC experience", especially in the deeply technical verticals we invest in. It's significantly easier to teach a physics PhD the logic of venture capital than to teach a VC PhD-level physics. But domain expertise alone isn't enough if you can't make fast decisions under incomplete information. And at First Momentum, we expect everyone to roll up their sleeves for our portfolio and meet founders with empathy, humbleness, and intellectual openness. We don't just hunt for unicorns in our investments, we hunt for them in our team.
Max and Christian are the embodiment of this.
Max's research background - nanotechnology, optics, and photonics - maps directly onto the trends reshaping the compute stack. He led or co-led our investments in Hyperdrives, ISP Tech, Karavela, Quantum Diamonds, Roofline, Skycore, and ZuriQ, with three more unannounced investments in quantum sensing, recycling, and fusion. Max is one of the founding fathers of our incubation project, Telura. But what makes him exceptional is his range: beyond compute, he's sourced and led investments in space tech, computational biology, and deep geothermal drilling. Max is also the author behind our annual Deep Tech Napkin.
Christian brings the perspective of an operator. Drawing on his experience at several fast-growing companies, including one that became a unicorn, he knows first-hand what it takes to scale at speed. He's led or was involved in our investments in ContextSDK, Magentic, Unikraft, Zenline, and one software infrastructure company still in stealth mode. Across our portfolio, Christian has been instrumental in helping companies build the infrastructure for scale, from bringing on essential talent to standing up highly scalable GTM operations. He also transformed our internal operations, building our proprietary sourcing infrastructure from the ground up for both our investment funnel and our portfolio recruiting pipelines.
Both have built deep networks across Europe, connecting operators, founders, investors, and industry experts.
We're extremely proud to share this. Promotions at First Momentum don't change how someone operates; they recognize the work already put in. What makes us proud is what this reflects about how we build: Max and Christian have shown that venture doesn't have to be a sport played by individuals. It can be one where you grow with the team while helping others do the same. One where conviction and deep understanding matter more than hierarchy. They don't just embody these values; they push them forward and transfer them to everyone around them.
And most importantly, they bring an incredible mix to every day of my work: fun, deep knowledge, and the feeling that I always need to push harder to keep up with them.
