Wayra UK

This week, we hosted our Founders Day. At Wayra, we don't just back startups for their strategic fit; we back founders for their vision, grit, and capacity to reshape industries. Founders Day was all about creating a space to connect, listen, challenge and inspire. We designed this gathering to level up our portfolio founders as they navigate the incredible challenge of scaling their businesses. Big thanks to our speakers: - Bruno Moraes, Wayra UK Managing Director, for sharing how founders can leverage CVCs more in their strategies to scale. - Ann Hiatt, who worked closely with Jeff Bezos and Eric Schmidt, for giving us a unique set of leadership principles from Silicon Valley scaling playbooks. - Tamara McMillen, reputable CRO executive, for taking our founders through your sales operations playbook and your insights on scaling sales operations.  - Sergio Budkin, our Wayra friend and former Telefonica and Virgin Media O2 executive, for your openness and practical advice on navigating enterprise sales. Events like this go beyond the metrics—they reinforce that success is as much about building communities as it is about building companies. To our founders: You are the heart of what we do. Your ambition inspires us every day. Telness Tech Ohalo Honest Mobile Aura Vision GiveVision minicabit Valerann Sensing Feeling Medwise AI Strawberry energy Red Sift Hubbub Fundraising Just Move In Backtrack - AI Booth Sales Assistant Policy in Practice Lucida Medical Ltd Rap Tech Studios Ltd. (Rap Fame app) Night Zookeeper We Are Group #CorporateVentureCapital #CVC #startups #scalingup #leadership #sales #founders #Wayra #WayraUK #FoundersDay

🚀 𝐈𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐂𝐕𝐂 𝐎𝐟𝐟𝐢𝐜𝐞 𝐇𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐬: 𝐀 𝐍𝐞𝐰 𝐖𝐚𝐲 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐮𝐩𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐀𝐜𝐜𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐒𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐠𝐢𝐜 𝐆𝐮𝐢𝐝𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞 Since starting in CVC, I’ve noticed a significant disconnect between CVCs and founders: Founders often find it challenging to navigate the corporate venture world, while CVCs struggle to communicate their evolving investment strategies. To bridge this gap, I decided to team up with bright minds from across the CVC ecosystem—talented individuals from 24 leading CVCs worldwide—to create something truly impactful. Together, we’re launching a unique initiative to connect high-potential startups with corporate investors, providing strategic insights that go beyond fundraising. Whether you’re seeking guidance on fundraising, exploring strategic pivots, or diving into market insights, Office Hours connects you with experienced CVCs ready to support your journey. Who Should Apply? We’re looking for startups that: ✅ Are in the Late Seed to Series B stage ✅ Have post-MVP traction and an active user or client base ✅ Focus on key AI areas, such as: • Safe AI: Security, transparency, and ethical AI practices • Model Lifecycle and Operational Scalability: Efficient deployment and management of AI models • AI Applications: Solutions for productivity, automation, and sustainability across industries Why Join? 🔍 Direct Access to Experts: Get actionable advice from CVCs who understand scaling challenges. 💡 Variety of Topics: Discuss funding, market trends, and strategic shifts for growth. 🌐 Global Connections, Real Impact: Gain insights from a global network to navigate local and international markets. Office Hours is more than a chance to meet investors; it’s an opportunity to gain the strategic insights you need to thrive in a competitive market. 👉 Ready to explore new opportunities? Apply at the link below by November 24th and take your startup to the next level! https://lnkd.in/g2hJJPmy #corporateventurecapital #venturecapital #startup #officehour

As we enter the last quarter of 2024, our goal is clear: help our portfolio companies close strong. We're brought into cap tables as a strategic investor because we have a track record of supporting companies navigating corporate structures and securing commercial opportunities. And at this time of the year, it's more important than ever. Here is how we help 💪: • Regular Check-ins: We’re increasing the frequency of check-ins with portfolio companies to ensure alignment on top priorities and challenges as we approach year-end. 📅 • Evaluate KPIs & Milestones: It's essential to identify which companies are on track 📈 and which are falling behind on key metrics like revenue, customer acquisition, or burn rate. We focus on those needing immediate support to hit their year-end targets. 🎯 • Quick Wins: For companies close to securing major deals with corporates, fundraising, or launching key products, we're providing extra support to close those deals, make those deals happen this year. 🚀 • End-of-Year Opportunities: Sometimes, budget leftovers 💰 create unexpected opportunities. We’re staying alert for these when engaging with internal stakeholders, as they can open doors for additional growth. 🚪✨ We speak to as many people as possible to source any of those open opportunities. • Next Year Positioning: The last few months are critical for corporate budgeting. Ensuring the right teams allocate budget to commercial opportunities that have been in negotiation for the last few months is crucial for closing deals 💼 and securing future growth. 🌱 • Tailored Support: Every company has unique needs—whether it’s strategic advice, talent acquisition, or capital. We’re tailoring our approach to meet the specific challenges and opportunities of each portfolio company. 🔍 🤝 What do you think? 🤔 Founders and other portfolio managers, what is most valuable to startups in these final few months of the year? Let’s ensure we finish 2024 on a high note and set the stage for an even stronger 2025! 🌟 — I’m Victoria, Head of Finance and Portfolio at Wayra UK. Always looking to improve the support we provide to our portfolio companies. 👩💼 #founders #portfolio #StartupSupport #InvestorInsights #CorporateGrowth #StrategicInvestor #2024Goals #YearEndStrategy #PortfolioManagement #wayra

It's out!! Proud to announce our recent investment in Perplexity. 🔥 We're excited to integrate Perplexity's real-time information access and this enables us to deliver immediate and accurate responses via text or voice input, enhancing customer satisfaction, engagement, and experience. Kudos to the team — looking forward to being part of more exciting AI journeys! Pablo Moro Belén Pérez Santolaria

💼✨ Closing the Year Strong: How Startups Can Leverage Q4 to Secure Corporate Deals After 5+ years in business development between startups and enterprises, I can confidently say this is the most critical time of year for securing corporate partnerships. Why? It’s the 'magical cycle' corporates follow every year—finalising budgets and strategy for this year and setting the stage for the next. Here’s how to make the most of it. 💡 How do you think you could capitalize on this crucial moment to close deals with corporates? Here are some ideas: 🔍 Strategic Alignment: Now is the perfect moment to revisit your partnerships with corporates. Ensure your goals align with theirs and look for ways to help them achieve their 2025 objectives. Start by understanding their pain points for next year—if you know your product can solve a key issue, focus on that. 📊 Push Open Conversations: If you’re already in talks with a corporate partner, this is the time to advance those discussions. Review their strategy, evaluate where they stand, and make sure your product is positioned as a solution for their upcoming challenges. It’s a perfect moment to adapt your product to their evolving needs and show why you’re the best partner for their journey. 🚀 Secure Quick Wins: Corporates are closing out this year’s budget while preparing for next year. Whether you’re finalising a deal or securing your spot in their 2025 plans, now’s the time to act. This could be the difference between ending 2024 on a high and entering 2025 with more momentum. 💡 Leverage Year-End Budgets: End-of-year budgets often leave room for last-minute opportunities. If you’re in advanced talks, find the teams with unused budgets and help them see how your product can fill an urgent need now or next year. Position yourself as a critical partner. 📆 Plan for 2025: These final months will shape how corporates view your partnership next year. Help them see how your solution can position them for growth or solve long-term problems. One year from now, they should feel like they’re in a different, better place because of your product. 🎯 Prioritize and Listen: You can't do everything—focus on the clients where you can deliver the most value. If you have internal info on a corporation’s plans, use it to your advantage and craft tailored, meaningful content that speaks directly to their needs. If not, listen closely. Don’t just sell, try to understand their needs and customise your solution to help them reach their goals. What are you focusing on as we close out the year? Let’s set the stage for an even bigger 2025! 💥 #BusinessDevelopment #CVC #Innovation #BusinessSolutions #Wayra #CorporateVentureCapital #Growth #Strategy #Tech Wayra UK Wayra

Applications closing Tuesday 15th October! I’m excited to be participating in Europe-wide Female Founder Office Hours on 7th November 2024, hosted by Playfair in collaboration with Microsoft for Startups and Carta, alongside 200 VCs from leading funds. If you’re a female founder and would like the opportunity to meet investors for pitching or mentoring, register here: https://lnkd.in/eRM9Nv-Q #officehours #femalefounders #ffoh #diversity #inclusion #founders #vc #technology

When organisations come together we can achieve so much more. Working with Crystal Palace Football Club and Shared Access has been game changing. Selhurst Park is now the first stadium in the world to offer GiveVision headsets as a permanent feature for visually impaired fans, with Shared Access' 5G network enabling both home and away supporters to use the headsets anywhere in the stadium. A special thanks to the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology for helping us share this exciting news. #football #innovation #innovativetech #accessibility #premierleague

Founders always have to pitch their value proposition to us. So it's only fair we do it in return What You Get When We Invest (Yes, even if you don't believe it, we’re way more fun than we look in photos!) Wayra isn’t just a fund—we’re people. When we invest in you, you get our team’s experience, support, and commitment. 💡 I’ve been at Wayra longer than anyone, and I’ve seen our culture evolve. We’re a diverse team of entrepreneurs and operators, with a shared mission: we’re here for the founders. ✨ We’ve lived both sides— we are just the right mix between entrepreneurs and corporate people to support our companies with their scaling challenges. 🌱 Young talent brings fresh optimism, while seasoned pros bring hard-earned wisdom. 🤝 We invest in what we genuinely believe in and work closely to help you grow. 👫 We care about founders as individuals, not just numbers. 📊 For those founders who value the people behind the capital—this is us. If you partner with us, you're getting more than funding—you’re getting a team that will always be in your corner. — Hi, I'm Victoria, the Head of Finance and Portfolio at Wayra UK. If we sound like the right fit, comment or reach out! #VentureCapital #VC #CVC #TechStartups #AI #Networks #Connectivity #Cloud #Sustainability #ML #Wayra #Fundraising #Founders

🚀 I'll be at Expand North Star in Dubai, and here's why:   I believe the UAE is on the verge of becoming a major global venture hub, and Expand North Star by GITEX offers a unique opportunity to explore that potential firsthand.   🌍 Why the Middle East?   While the region is still behind markets like the US and Europe in some ways, there's incredible tech here with a big gap in scaling outside the region. That’s exactly why I'm excited to meet with investors and founders—hear how they approach the same challenges with different perspectives.   The UAE is committed to innovation, from its $100B AI Investment Fund to its welcoming stance on international talent. Its non-biased position, between Europe and APAC, allows for a collaborative and globally-minded approach that’s hard to find elsewhere.   💡 Why Expand North Star?   It’s not just another EU or US-centric event. Investors and founders from all over the world come together, making it truly global. It’s a huge opportunity, but it’s all about who you meet and what you make of it.   If you are investors with the same belief, or founders looking to expand your business to Telefonica's global footprint… Let's connect!   #ExpandNorthStar #GITEX #UAE #venturecapital #globalecosystem #AI #innovation

I had rented the tiniest office space in Singapore. Man, this country was expensive. Sulma Mahdiyah would put SIM cards in boxes. Sometimes I would find her sitting on the floor and organizing next day's delivery with boxes around her at 1am. Go home! I would beg her🙂 Ali Ozdemir, my dad then would stack those SIM cards in his backpack and walk around the ports of Singapore. Under scorching heat. At the age of 60. He had come to Singapore to make sure I was not lost. To make sure I felt supported❤️ We were all trying to survive the pressure of Singapore. I had the honor of working with the two most selfless human beings I know. That small business - Sim4crew - put food on the table for a lot of people. It led me to the idea of Airalo. I'm forever grateful for it. We kept thousands of seafarers connected for years. And today we are shutting down Sim4crew - The Global Mobile Operator for Seafarers. Goodbye my lover. Goodbye my friend. You have been the one. You have been the one for me😊 To all maritime folks that supported us during Sim4crew journey, we'd love to keep you connected with Airalo. I promise you'll enjoy the convenience of eSIMs💪