How one company invests in an increasingly fragmented world

The world today is plagued by cultural divides, political divides, and national conflicts – a challenging environment for any investor looking for startups that can grow large enough to deliver venture-scale returns.

Kompas VC has developed a regionally sensitive strategy to help it navigate, and invest in, this diverse world. And it’s putting new money in this direction with a new fund of 160 million euros ($187.5 million), the company told TechCrunch.

“We see the world really falling into three main economic, political sectors – the US, Europe, and China,” Sebastian Peck, a partner at Kompas VC, told TechCrunch. “We certainly see today that these three domains are following very different paths.”

Kompas has built its reputation on supporting startups that address the core challenges of industrial competitiveness, from manufacturing and logistics to critical infrastructure and sustainability. Those themes have not disappeared, but different regions emphasize them to varying degrees.

“There was a lot of excitement about these themes back in 2021,” said Peck. “In 2026, we’re in a very different situation. It’s all about AI, it’s about rapid growth, very big growth. A lot of the big topics we’re playing in part but they’re not part of what we stand for.”

“Our focus is on the physical world, anything that surrounds the production of physical goods,” he added, saying that Kompas is focused on effective implementation of decarbonization, productivity, and risk management. “We found our place.”

That niche seems too broad. Reshoots are a thing in vogue in almost every market, and depending on the startup, those markets are often more than adequate for a company like Kompas.

Although reduced by some venture capital these days, Kompas’ newly raised second fund should give it enough opportunity to lead the first rounds with checks ranging from €3 million to €5 million.

As a European fund, Kompas has access to a range of founders and startups in the region. But it should weigh how global fragmentation can reduce the ability of others to deliver corporate returns. Peck cites prefab housing as an example. This method is widely used in Scandinavian countries, but is not common in Germany or the rest of Europe, let alone the United States.

“It sounds like a smart solution. It’s an industrial product. You have to grow a lot,” he said. Ultimately, the reason it hasn’t caught on outside of Scandinavia has more to do with the “cultural environment” than the technology itself, he said. “In that sector, if the US is not the market you can go to, you need to look carefully if there is a big enough market to look at.”

Segregation extends beyond housing. For example, in Europe, sustainability is still broadly attractive, unlike in the US, where the theme lacks the cachet it did a few years ago.

Still, a lot can change quickly, Peck admits. “We’re investing over 10, 15 years. That’s a few legal shutdown periods, and sometimes things go the wrong way.”

Global volatility poses a challenge, but also an opportunity for a small investor like Kompas. “I think there’s a good space for more focused, more specialized, smaller funds like ours to be the first to come in and sweep certain themes and certain founders,” Peck said.