Brighteye Ventures lands $72M first close to back the future of learning and work

Brighteye Ventures has successfully closed its first Fund III with a substantial $72 million investment, raising the firm's total assets under management (AUM) to $245 million. The venture capital firm focuses on early-stage European companies driving advancements in learning, work, and human capability in the global market. Over the years, Brighteye has backed more than 50 companies, collectively raising over $1 billion in funding, with several now generating annual revenues exceeding $100 billion.

New investors in this latest round include Lumina Foundation, Zanichelli, and PI Impact, joining existing Limited Partners (LPs) such as the European Investment Fund (EIF), Jacobs Foundation, and various European family offices. The European Learning & Work Funding Report 2026 reveals a significant surge in venture capital (VC) funding for European companies in this sector, growing from €710 million in 2024 to €1.6 billion in 2025, marking the highest funding total since 2021.

Brighteye's latest report, for the first half of 2026 (H1), confirms this trend, with European companies in the space raising $1.63 billion (€1.4 billion) so far, on track to nearly double the 2025 total. The new Fund III broadens Brighteye's investment focus to encompass companies expanding human capability, driven by the belief that AI's economic potential hinges on effective human-machine collaboration.

Among Brighteye's initial investments in this fund are imagi, a platform aiding schools in building AI fluency, and NEX Health Intelligence, which provides augmented intelligence for infection-control teams in hospitals. The firm plans to make up to 35 investments across AI, learning, productivity, and labor infrastructure, focusing on sectors such as healthcare, education, infrastructure, cybersecurity, and climate.

Notable early investments from Fund III include Gyver, an enhanced marketplace for electricians to meet growing demand for energy infrastructure in Europe. Ben Wirz, Brighteye's Founding Partner, emphasizes the firm's core belief that "the defining opportunity of the AI era is not replacing humans with machines, but expanding what humans can do with machines.

Autonomous intelligence multiplies the potential value of human skills, judgment, and talent. The next generation of category-defining companies will use technology to redefine human capability."