Politecnico di Milano unveiled a €60m ($70m) university venture fund this week in partnership with venture capital firm 360 Capital Partners that will invest in the institution’s spinouts.
Poli360 has attracted capital from Itatech, a $208m investment platform backed by the EU-owned European Investment Fund and Italian state-owned national promotional institution Cassa depositi e prestiti.
The fund remains open to contributions from potential business partners, though a target size has not been disclosed. Unnamed local industrial groups have committed to supporting the fund, though it is not clear if that refers to capital or another form of support.
Poli360 will tap into the university’s tech transfer office and incubator PoliHub to identify potential investees. The fund will be managed by 360 Capital Partners, whose general partners are Cesare Maifredi and Fausto Boni, in close collaboration with Politecnico di Milano.
The fund will particularly focus on the areas of industrial manufacturing and automation, energy efficiency management, civil infrastructure and telecoms, and development of advanced materials and design. It will invest from the prototyping to growth stages.
Poli360 is the first university venture fund in Italy, with previous initiatives to boost the local ecosystem including the aforementioned Itatech and Aurora-TT, an investment firm targeting biotechnology research from institutions across the country.
