Via ID and Dealroom’s annual report, State of European Mobility Startups 2024, has found that EIT Urban Mobility is the leading investor in European mobility startups for the second year running. This finding is as a result of performing a total of 28 investment rounds in 2024 resulting in a portfolio of 135 startups. As such, EIT Urban Mobility stands out as one of the most committed investors in sustainable and socially responsible mobility solutions.  

On the investment approach and changes looking ahead, Fredrik Hånell, Director of Impact Ventures at EIT Urban Mobility: “Since 2020, we’ve emphasised broadening our investment scope to capture promising urban mobility innovations across many countries and business models. The lessons have allowed us to refine our focus on impact and gender diversity. We will continue this in 2025 while targeting larger investment rounds going forward.” 

An impact leader 

With a broad investment scope, EIT Urban Mobility led in terms of quantity but with a focus on impact, quality too. EIT Urban Mobility stands out as a leader with regard to the emphasis on impact, with a percentage of more than 75% in the investments made. This is a figure that places it well ahead of Europe’s top mobility investors, where less than half of investments are impact focused. 

To quantify the net impact of its portfolio, EIT Urban Mobility uses the Upright Project’s Net Impact Model, an analytical framework based on over 250 million scientific articles and 150,000 product and service categories. According to this model, EIT Urban Mobility’s portfolio has a 48% positive net impact score, outperforming the industry benchmark of 37%.  

A focus on geographies 

In addition to positive environmental impact, EIT Urban Mobility have also focused on the social impacts investments have, considering too fostering diversity and gender balance. The VIA ID report highlights that just 4% of venture capital funding in the European mobility sector is directed towards women-led startups. In contrast, 45% of EIT Urban Mobility’s equity investments are in businesses led by women. 

Beyond its environmental and diversity objectives, there is also a geographic element to the investments made. EIT Urban Mobility has a dedicated investment budget for European economies that require more support in the innovation sector. These regions, identified under the Regional Innovation Scheme, hold significant untapped potential. By directing resources to these areas, EIT Urban Mobility contributes to economic growth, job creation and the development of sustainable transportation systems.  

The importance of a pan-EU network  

Looking ahead to 2025, EIT Urban Mobility aims to further expand its portfolio with an investment strategy focusing on creating positive outcomes for both people and the planet while ensuring competitive market returns.  To facilitate easier international scaling, EIT Urban Mobility strengthens its collaboration with the top pan-European startup ecosystems. Collaborations are now in place with the Moove Lab (Paris), The Drivery (Berlin), Drive TLV (Tel Aviv), and OGR Torino (Turin). All of whom are vital to progressing mobility in Europe.

To find out more about EIT Urban Mobility’s support to startups: