At EUVC Summit 2025, Reece Chowdhry from Concept Ventures made a bold claim:
Pre-seed isn’t just a quirky corner of venture. It’s the layer that will define the future of European tech.
“Pre-everything. Backing crazy people. No product. No traction. Just vision.”
And if that makes your IC uncomfortable? Good.
Defining Pre-Seed: Where the Real Risk Lives
Reece laid it out clearly:
No product
Often no team
Up to €3M raises
Entry valuations where true upside is unlocked
This is not a place for 60-page memos. It’s a place for conviction, operating instincts, and guts.
“If you’re running a market-sizing exercise at pre-seed, you’ve already missed the point.”
The UK Is (Still) Leading—Sorry, Everyone Else
With a wink, Reece shared some hard truths:
“Sorry to our French and German friends—but the UK is trouncing you.”
From unicorn creation to capital deployed to founder density, London continues to pull ahead.
Backed by data (and a few cheeky slides), he reinforced that high-density talent hubs are gravity wells—and London’s orbit is strong.
Pre-Seed is High Risk, High Volume—and High Reward
Reece didn’t sugarcoat it:
“Pre-seed is also about luck. Let’s just say it.”
And that’s why portfolio construction matters.
→ Too many GPs still run over-concentrated portfolios at pre-seed.
→ The layer needs larger portfolios, faster deployment, and more acceptance of variance.
“You want your winners to carry the fund? You better give yourself enough shots.”
The AI Effect: Shrinking the Stack
One of the most striking trends?
“Founders can now go straight from pre-seed to Series A.”
Why?
AI tools let solo operators do more with less
MVPs are faster, GTMs are leaner
Seed rounds are getting compressed—and sometimes skipped entirely
This means pre-seed is becoming a more critical entry point than ever, and if Europe wants to compete, we need more risk-on LPs and ICs willing to lean into the earliest bets.
Final Advice? Just Write the Damn Check.
“If you’re in an IC meeting with a 60-page memo for a pre-seed deal, please… just remember this talk.”
Pre-seed is where the crazy ideas live. It’s where the upside is wild. It’s where founders take real swings—and where GPs must be brave enough to back them.
“We need more European GPs to take more risk, earlier.”
Thank you Reece for the reminder: you don’t de-risk the future by waiting—you do it by backing the people building it.
No product? No problem. Just conviction.
