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Deep-tech and AIoT startups may choose a venture studio when they need more than a funding round: for example, help with technical development, shared infrastructure, or access to industrial customers. But the evidence does not show that startups broadly are abandoning traditional venture capital (VC). The practical choice is whether a specific studio’s resources and terms fit your company better than the capital and support available from investors.
Why a venture studio may appeal to deep-tech founders
Deep-tech companies can face a longer path from technical concept to a product customers will buy. That path may require engineering and prototyping, validation, manufacturing or deployment planning, and commercial development—all before the business is ready to scale. A studio can be attractive if it contributes relevant work or access, rather than merely adding another source of funding.
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Boston Consulting Group (BCG) reports that more than 80% of deep-tech ventures are building physical products. It identifies engineering, unit economics, commercialization, scalability, and later funding as risks. BCG also estimates that deep-tech investments take 25% to 40% longer between funding stages from seed through Series D than other technology investments. These findings help explain why hands-on resources may matter; they do not establish that studios outperform specialist funds or traditional VCs. BCG’s 2023 guide to deep-tech investing provides the sector analysis.
What the studio would need to contribute
“Support” is too broad to assess on its own. Ask what the studio will actually do, who will do it, and when. Depending on the venture, relevant contributions might include R&D capacity, prototyping or testing facilities, help finding industrial customers, or shared go-to-market and business functions. A claimed resource is not the same as a committed deliverable: get access, responsibilities, milestones, and costs into the agreement.
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Does the funding evidence show that founders are ditching VCs?
No. The available figures show that deep tech remains a meaningful VC destination, alongside financing challenges that vary by market and stage. BCG estimates deep tech represented a stable 20% share of VC funding in 2023, compared with about 10% a decade earlier. That is inconsistent with a blanket claim that traditional VC has left the sector.
Funding is not necessarily fast or easy, however. In Tesi’s Finland study, 60% of surveyed deep-tech companies said rounds in the preceding 12 months took at least six months to close, and 33% said they took more than a year. At the same time, 62% reported access to Finnish VCs without challenges, while 54% had attracted strong interest from foreign investors. Tesi describes early-stage funding in Finland as relatively bright and points to gaps at later stages. These results come from a Finland-specific study based on a survey of 79 companies and the report’s stated data sources; they should not be generalized to other countries. Read Tesi’s study, dated November 13, 2024.
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BCG also reports five-year fund-return figures, but they are not a head-to-head test of studios and VCs. Its analysis of about 1,100 funds estimates the following historical averages:
| Fund category | Weighted average five-year IRR | Nonweighted average five-year IRR |
|---|---|---|
| Traditional VC | 21% | 26% |
| Deep-tech-focused funds | 26% | 25% |
These are BCG’s historical sample estimates, not forecasts or promises of future returns. They describe fund performance, not the outcomes of studio-backed companies compared with VC-backed companies. They also do not show that a founder will have an easier or faster time raising from one type of investor.
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- Realistic Movements: 12 powerful servos enable 32 actions, including walking, sitting, standing, shaking its head, wagging its tail, and performing playful tricks, closely mimicking a real and providing an engaging experience
- Rich Sensor Suite for Interactive Experiences: features ultrasonic, touch, gyroscope, sound, camera, speaker and microphone. These provide it with advanced hearing, vision, and touch, enabling it to see, detect obstacles, respond to touch, and recognize sounds, making interactions highly engaging
- Engaging Interactions with ChatGPT-4o: with ChatGPT-4o enables voice interactions and visual recognition, making it smarter and more responsive. Users can have natural conversations, solve math problems via the camera, and interpret gestures, creating diverse and fun interactions
- Comprehensive Learning Resources and Support: offers detailed online documentation, video tutorials, prompt technical support, and an active forum community, ensuring beginners can easily complete all projects and enjoy a great experience
What an AIoT venture studio might offer
Aperture Venture Studio describes building industrial companies in areas including tracking, sensing, monitoring, control, and operations. Its page presents shared R&D, go-to-market work, and business infrastructure as part of its approach. This is a concrete example of what a studio may say it provides—not independent validation of results or evidence that all venture studios work this way. See Aperture’s description of its AIoT venture studio.
For an AIoT company, translate a studio’s broad claims into venture-specific commitments. If it promises technical resources, identify the team, equipment, and time allocation. If it offers customer access, ask which introductions or pilots are realistic and whether the studio can make them. If it provides shared services, clarify which functions are included, how long they are available, and what the startup pays for them.
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Israel’s Innovation Authority also describes financing venture studios to support deep-tech venture formation and acceleration in areas with limited private capital availability. A 2025 report search-result excerpt states that Israel has 1,400 VC-backed deep-tech startups. The PDF itself was not directly inspected, so treat those details cautiously. At minimum, the excerpt is not evidence that studios replace VC; it describes studio support alongside an active VC-backed startup ecosystem. View the Israel Innovation Authority and Dealroom report.
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Venture studio vs. specialist VC vs. traditional VC
The labels do not guarantee a particular package. A studio may invest capital, but studio operating support and investor funding are distinct things to verify. A specialist VC may bring sector knowledge without building the company alongside the founders. A traditional VC may also offer operational help or customer introductions, but the extent varies by firm. Compare the actual offer rather than assuming that one category includes a standard set of services.
| What to compare | Venture studio | Specialist VC | Traditional VC |
|---|---|---|---|
| Capital | May provide or arrange capital; amount, timing, and commitment depend on the specific studio. | Investment is the core offer; terms and check size depend on the fund. | Investment is the core offer; terms and check size depend on the fund. |
| Operating input | May contribute hands-on company-building work or shared services. Confirm named people, time, and deliverables. | May contribute relevant expertise and advice; operating work varies by firm. | May contribute advice or operational help; scope varies by firm. |
| Technical resources | May provide shared R&D or other technical capacity; confirm what is available to your company. | Technical expertise may be relevant, but facilities or development work are not established by the label. | Depends on the investor; do not assume access to labs, equipment, or engineers. |
| Customer access | May offer industry relationships or go-to-market support; ask for specific, relevant access. | May offer introductions through its network; ask which customers and how introductions work. | May offer introductions through its network; customer access varies. |
| Time horizon and stage | Could be relevant before or during formation, but timing and follow-on support depend on the arrangement. | Fit depends on investment stage, fund mandate, and the company’s milestones. | Fit depends on investment stage, fund mandate, and the company’s milestones. |
| Equity, governance, and IP | Specific equity, decision rights, and IP treatment depend on the agreement; no universal terms are established. | Set by the specific investment documents. | Set by the specific investment documents. |
How to evaluate a studio offer
Before weighing a studio against an investor, map the company’s next milestones and identify what is blocking each one. Then test whether the studio closes those gaps on terms the founders can accept.
- List the milestones. Specify what must be achieved next—for example, technical validation, a working prototype, a customer pilot, or evidence of viable unit economics.
- Match resources to milestones. Ask which studio resources directly help achieve each milestone, who is responsible, and what the company must contribute.
- Verify access. Request concrete details on facilities, technical staff, customer introductions, or other promised resources. Distinguish confirmed commitments from possible introductions or informal help.
- Model the full economics. Compare capital committed, any service charges, the equity requested, and the consequences for future financing. Do not assume a studio’s operating support is free or that its equity terms follow a market-wide standard.
- Read the governance and IP terms. Establish who controls company decisions, who owns work created before and after formation, and what rights the studio retains if the company or relationship ends.
- Ask for evidence of execution. Request examples relevant to your sector and stage, with the studio’s role clearly separated from the company’s eventual results. A studio’s description of its model is not proof of outcomes.
- Compare alternatives on the same basis. Take the same milestones and funding needs to prospective specialist and traditional VCs. Compare actual commitments, timing, support, and documents—not the category names.
When a studio or VC may fit better
A studio may be a stronger fit when
- The company needs technical or operating capacity the founders cannot reasonably build or hire yet.
- Shared infrastructure or credible access to industrial customers would materially advance near-term milestones.
- The studio can make specific, verifiable commitments that justify its equity, governance, and IP terms.
An investor-led route may be a stronger fit when
- The founding team already has the capability to build and commercialize the product.
- The main constraint is capital, and a fund can provide an appropriate amount on acceptable terms.
- The studio’s proposed resources are vague, redundant with the team’s capabilities, or not worth the control and ownership trade-offs.
Neither route is inherently superior. Deep-tech funding can take time, but the evidence here does not support saying that traditional VC has disappeared or that studios consistently perform better. Choose based on the specific technical and commercial work your company needs, the quality of the commitments, and the complete terms of the relationship.
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