Klaus Hommels is one of Europe’s leading
venture capital investors and business angels,
and a prominent voice within the European

technology ecosystem. He is widely recog-
nised for his advocacy of digital sovereignty,

technological competitiveness and strategic
resilience in an era of profound geopolitical
and technological change.
Repeatedly recognised as one of Europe’s top
venture capital investors, Klaus has backed

many of the sector’s most influential compa-
nies. He was an early investor in Skype, King,

Facebook, Spotify, Airbnb, Revolut, Klarna,
SumUp, Zoom, Coinbase, Isar Aerospace,
Helsing and Neko Health. He founded
Lakestar in 2012 after managing his own
venture capital firm, Hommels Holding.

A committed advocate for European innova-
tion and capital markets, Klaus works closely

with policymakers, regulators and corporates
to strengthen Europe’s global competitiveness
and ensure the continent’s technological
and strategic autonomy. In recent years, his
focus has increasingly expanded to security,
defence innovation and critical technologies
essential to Europe’s resilience.

Klaus currently serves as Chairman of
the Geopolitical and Strategic Advisory
Council of the NATO Innovation Fund,
having previously chaired the Fund itself
from 2023 to 2025. He has served on the
Innovation Board of the Munich Security
Conference and chaired Invest Europe, the
global association representing the private
capital industry. He also served on the
UK Capital Markets Industry Taskforce,
advising the Chancellor of the Exchequer
under the leadership of the London Stock
Exchange Group. Beyond his professional
roles, he is actively engaged with Ashoka,

supporting entrepreneurs who drive innova-
tion for the benefit of society.

Klaus began his career at Bertelsmann
before joining the board of AOL Germany
in 1995. He later became a Venture Partner
at Benchmark Capital Europe. He holds
a PhD in Finance from the University of
Fribourg, Switzerland.