With the acquisition, aesco solutions strengthens its position as a growth platform in the life sciences sector.

Heilbronn, 21 May 2024 – In a successful exit process, the investor D11Z. Ventures has sold the MedTech service provider seleon GmbH, which it has developed since 2007, to the aesco solutions group. With this acquisition, aesco solutions, a provider of production and development services for medical technology companies, is further expanding its strong position in the European market. For seleon GmbH, the sale provides additional development potential within the new group. It is planned to develop the Heilbronn site into the group’s center for medical technology services.

“This exit is a great success for us,” says Tom Villinger, CEO of the Heilbronn-based venture capitalist D11Z. Ventures. “seleon was one of our first investments with the former Zukunftsfonds Heilbronn, and we look back on an extremely positive investment phase.”

In recent years, seleon has become a recognized player in the MedTech industry. Its integration into the aesco solutions group will enable it to further expand its range of services. Both companies are active in the so-called CDMO sector (Contract Development and Manufacturing Organization) and offer medical technology customers integrated services from development and prototyping to approval and series production.

“The strategic partnership opens up exciting new opportunities for seleon GmbH and enables us to offer our customers expanded services,” explains Frank-Martin Rammelt, CEO of seleon GmbH. “We are confident that this synergy will further strengthen our ability to develop innovative solutions while continuing to provide excellent service to our customers.”

The aesco solutions group already includes the brands SASSE Elektronik and FG Elektronik, two well-known names in the medical technology sector for decades. With the acquisition of further healthy medium-sized companies, aesco solutions is now developing into the growth platform in the life sciences sector of AURELIUS Growth Capital SE & Co. KG.

“We are delighted to welcome seleon to the aesco solutions group,” says Peter Molnár, CEO of the aesco solutions group. “The acquisition is an important step in the implementation of our buy-and-build strategy to create a leading company in the European MedTech CDMO market. We will be able to offer our customers even more innovative and efficient solutions. Together we want to shape the future of the industry by combining application and technology innovation.

With the acquisition of seleon GmbH, medical device manufacturers can access an integrated offering from the aesco solutions group across the entire product lifecycle. The expansion of the service offering and the strengthening of the technological competence will eliminate the complex and costly interfaces between service providers in the areas of development, regulatory affairs, industrialisation, production and after-sales services. This will enable customers to bring their medical devices to market faster and more cost-effectively.

“We are convinced that the joining of forces within the aesco solutions group will open up additional growth potential for seleon,” says Villinger, CEO of D11Z. Ventures. “The sale can create a real MedTech champion.

At the same time, the sale, which has been in the works for more than a year, fits in with the realignment of D11Z. Ventures. This year, the Heilbronn-based family office is focusing on promising investments in the field of artificial intelligence.

About seleon

Founded in 1998 and headquartered in Heilbronn, with additional locations in Dessau and Leipzig, seleon GmbH has established itself as a leading service partner in Central Europe for the development of medical technology devices and components, with a particular focus on fluidics applications and clinical and regulatory consulting. At its production site in Dessau, seleon manufactures high-quality devices for renowned medical technology companies of the highest quality.

For further information, please visit www.seleon.com

About aesco solutions

As a full-service group, aesco solutions provides comprehensive support to medical device manufacturers in the realisation of their products: from the idea phase, through the development and integration of our technologies & components, to approval and series production, as well as lifecycle management and after-sales service.

For more than 77 years, SASSE Elektronik has been known for its complex development and manufacturing services in the field of medical technology. It is known for its outstanding solutions in human-machine interaction (HMI and sensors), secure communications, and the development and production of medical devices and high-tech component solutions.

FG Elektronik stands for innovative battery solutions and components in high-end power electronics, enabling high performance and safe power supply for medical devices and complex applications in other areas.

For further information, please visit www.aesco-solutions.com

About D11Z. Ventures

D11Z. Ventures is a dynamic early-stage investor specialising in digital and AI startups in Germany and Europe. As a single family office VC, D11Z. Ventures pursues the vision of shaping the digital future as a leading European investor in AI, IoT and SaaS. With experience, expertise and agility, D11Z. Ventures drives digital transformation and has valuable relationships with technology SMEs and global market leaders. They prioritise identifying founders with visionary ideas that can sustainably shape the digital future. True to the motto “Shaping Tomorrow, Today”, D11Z. Ventures is already bringing visionary ideas to life.

For further information, please visit www.d11z.com

Press contact:

Christian Gleichauf, wortCraft Strategy | Communication
kontakt@wortCraft.de
+49 7131 6188124

Chemnitz, April 2024 – Die KI-basierte Kundendatenplattform -Innkeepr- hat mit dem Einstieg des Heilbronner Risikokapitalgebers D11Z. Ventures einen starken Partner gewonnen und kann künftig ihr digitales Geschäftsmodell weiter ausbauen. Das 2021 gegründete Start-up bietet eine KI-gestützte Lösung für die Suche nach relevanten Kundensegmenten auf Werbeplattformen wie Google, Meta, TikTok und Amazon.

„Der Erfolg digitaler Werbung hängt heute mehr denn je davon ab, die richtige Zielgruppe zu erreichen“, sagt Innkeepr Co-Founder Willi Linke. „In einem Internet ohne Cookies, mehr Schutz vor Tracking und wachsender Verbreitung von Adblockern wird genau das immer schwieriger. Wir bieten eine Lösung, bei der Privatsphäre von Konsumenten und digitale Werbung Hand in Hand gehen.

Mit ihrem intelligenten Targetingansatz identifiziert das Team also nicht nur relevante Kundensegmente besser als große Werbegiganten, sondern schützt gleichzeitig sensible Kundeninformationen vor dem Zugriff der Plattformen.

„Unser Ansatz serverseitiger Bibliotheken und E-Commerce Plugins erlaubt es Unternehmen, Kundendaten dort zu sammeln, wo sie entstehen, und in nahezu Echtzeit relevante Zielgruppensegmente auf bekannten Werbeplattformen zu übersetzen“, sagt Co-Founderin
Dr. Karoline Griesbach. Die Technologie simuliert dabei den Effekt von Werbesignalen wie in einem virtuellen A/B-Test und leitet daraus relevante Käufergruppen ab.

„Jeder, dessen Geschäftsmodell heute darauf basiert, Kunden online zu finden, muss sich damit auseinandersetzen, wie er dies in Zukunft gestalten möchte“, so Griesbach. „Innkeepr ist zumindest unsere Antwort auf die Frage, wie Werbetreibende mit den Herausforderungen im Kontext von Data Privacy künftig profitabel wachsen können.“

Innkeepr wird heute vorwiegend von Händlern und D2C Marken genutzt, die auf sogenanntes Performance Marketing setzen. Zwischen 50 – 100 Millionen Impressionen platzieren Werbetreibende heute täglich auf den Kundensegmenten der KI-Plattform – vorwiegend in Deutschland, Österreich, Schweiz und USA. „Unser Ziel ist es, Unternehmen dabei zu helfen, ihre Kundendaten als Asset zu begreifen und intelligenter zu nutzen und damit letztlich ihre Geschäftsmodelle zu stärken“, erklärt Linke. „Mit der nun abgeschlossenen Finanzierung von D11Z. Ventures in Kombination mit einigen Business Angels haben wir nicht nur die Expertise eines erfahrenen Frühphaseninvestors mit KI-Fokus gewonnen, sondern ebenfalls starkes Know-how im E-Commerce dazugewonnen.“

Sebastian Pyzalski, Investment Manager bei D11Z. Ventures, ergänzt: „Während die Erstellung von Werbeinhalten mit der neuen Generation GenAI Tools bereits stark verbreitet ist, existiert aus unserer Sicht ein blinder Fleck im Markt, wenn es darum geht, relevante Zielgruppen mit diesen Inhalten zu erreichen. Und da genau das im Internet der Zukunft ohne Cookies immer schwieriger wird, sind wir zuversichtlich, dass die intelligente Infrastruktur von Innkeepr diese Zukunft mitgestalten wird.“

Über Innkeepr

Innkeepr ist eine intelligente Kundendatenplattform für das Internet ohne Cookies. Schnellwachsende Brands wie SNOCKS, Rosental oder Lillydoo nutzen Innkeepr, um ihre Nutzerdaten in intelligente Zielgruppen auf Google, Meta, TikTok und Amazon zu übersetzen und damit ihre Mediabudgets um bis zu 35% zu optimieren.

Weitere Informationen unter: innkeepr.ai

Über D11Z. Ventures

„D11Z. Ventures ist ein dynamischer Frühphasen-Investor, spezialisiert auf digitale und KI-Startups in Deutschland und Europa. Als Single-Family-Office-VC verfolgt D11Z Ventures eine klare und ehrgeizige Vision: Als wegweisender europäischer Investor in den Bereichen KI, IoT und SaaS aktiv die digitale Zukunft zu gestalten und bedeutende Meilensteine in der Branche zu setzen. Mit umfangreicher Erfahrung, Expertise und Agilität spielt D11Z. Ventures eine entscheidende Rolle bei der Förderung signifikanter digitaler Transformation. Das Unternehmen verfügt über wertvolle Verbindungen zu führenden Technologie-KMU und globalen Marktführern und positioniert sich damit an der Spitze der Innovation. Im Mittelpunkt der Mission von D11Z. Ventures steht die Suche nach Gründern, die nicht nur eine unternehmerische Vision besitzen, sondern auch bestrebt sind, die digitale Zukunft nachhaltig zu formen. Getreu dem Leitspruch “Shaping Tomorrow, Today”, ist D11Z. Ventures darauf ausgerichtet, visionäre Ideen bereits heute in die Realität umzusetzen.

Weitere Informationen unter: d11z.com

Kontakt

Willi Linke, Co-Founder

E-Mail: willi@innkeepr.ai

Here is an image of the akirolabs team
  • Founded in 2021, Berlin-based akirolabs empowers procurement organisations to unlock 4-5x higher sustainable business value beyond traditional cost savings.

 

  • The funding round was led by HTGF, OTB Ventures and D11Z. Ventures and strengthened by angel investments from industry leaders Fredrick Spalcke, Heiko Schwarz, Markus Ehrle, and Detlef Schultz.

 

  • The funds will be used to evolve akirolabs SaaS product and enhance its AI capabilities, as well as to further scale customer growth and business operations.

 

Berlin, January 29, 2024 – akirolabs, a Berlin-based ProcureTech startup, enabling enterprises worldwide to augment strategic procurement processes, announced that it has raised $5M in its recent seed funding round.

Investors in this round included HTGF, OTB Ventures, D11Z. Ventures, and Switzerland’s Serpentine Ventures, alongside angel investments from industry leaders such as Fredrick Spalcke (ex-CPO of Phillips & Huawei), Heiko Schwarz (CEO of riskmethods), Markus Ehrle (VP and General Manager EMEA at ServiceNow), and Detlef Schultz (former CEO of the Vodafone Procurement Company).

Notably, akirolabs has also appointed Jens Rassloff as the Chairman of the Advisory Board. Jens holds similar roles at Coparion, Parloa, and d.velop and brings a wealth of knowledge and experience in the tech industry, specifically in the areas of growth, innovation, and investment strategies.

akirolabs’ large corporate customers across the globe and across various industries, as well as internationally leading analysts, appreciate and recognize akirolabs’ innovation power and uniqueness. The startup’s recognitions include Gartner “Cool Vendor”, Gartner’s “Hype Cycle Sample Vendor”, “IDC Innovator 2023”, Spend Matters “Future 5”, and ProcureTech’s “Top 100 Pioneers”.

akirolabs highlights that while digitalization in procurement in the past was primarily focused on operational and tactical solutions for efficiency and savings, industry benchmarks indicate a much higher value potential in strategic procurement. This potential is often untapped due to capability gaps. Also, the current macroeconomic challenges and recent black swan events have amplified and accelerated the need for more strategic procurement. To address this challenge, akirolabs offers an AI-powered strategic procurement SaaS solution, enabling its customers to unlock and achieve 4-5 times higher value from procurement, – beyond savings.

“We’re very grateful for the trust placed into akirolabs in this funding round. It emphasizes the imperative of advanced strategic procurement software in today’s economic environment. In these challenging times, akirolabs does not just facilitate savings on price.”, says Michael Pleuger, CEO of akirolabs. “Much more, our solution delivers tangible improvements in total cost and supply chain resilience, sustainability and agility, strengthening the competitiveness of our customers.”

“…What you have created is significant… there is no doubt in my mind that this is a breakthrough innovation. akirolabs is on a trajectory to eliminate much of the category management function as we know it. today.”, says Elouise Epstein, KEARNEY Partner & best-selling author on Digital Procurement.

Christian Arndt, Senior Investment Manager at HTGF, added“We are convinced that akirolabs builds an international category leader in strategic procurement and we are looking forward supporting the team on its path.“

With the advent of LLMs, there is an opportunity to transform the strategic aspects of procurement decision-making. Founding teams that combine a deep domain expertise with technical prowess will thrive in this environment.”, says Mateusz Lukasik, Investment Director at OTB Ventures. “akirolabs fits the bill and we are excited to support them.”

Adding value beyond cost savings, akirolabs will set new standards in strategic procurement management.”, says Thomas R. Villinger, Managing Director at D11Z. Ventures.

About akirolabs:

akirolabs, founded in 2021 by Michael Pleuger, Detlef Schultz, Christoph Flöthmann, and Tim Ergenzinger, develops and provides an AI powered SaaS platform for collaborative strategic procurement. akirolabs is based upon a world-class and industry proven strategic procurement process, methodology and toolkit, embedded into an intuitive cross-functional collaboration workflow and enriched with all relevant internal and external business insight. akirolabs’ unique approach delivers “Procurement Strategies with Value & Purpose” and a significantly broader and 4-5 times higher value contribution than traditional souring solutions.

Press Contact:

akirolabs GmbH
Greifswalder Str. 208
10405 Berlin
hello@akirolabs.com
Tel:+49 30 754 384 66