Transition Ventures Secures $150M Fund II with Olix, Applied Atomics, and Seneca
Transition Ventures, an early-stage firm based in London, led by Unity co-founder David Helgason, has successfully closed a second fund of $150 million. This brings the platform's total assets under management to over $300 million.
Fund II aligns with Transition’s investment thesis that the most impactful companies of the coming decade will be at the intersection of AI and physical technologies: power, robotics, materials, refining, and hardware-software integration. Helgason argues that the traditional venture approach of backing software-only improvements is outdated, and the future lies in combining deep-tech hardware with AI software.
The small but experienced team at Transition includes David's brother Ari (formerly Index Ventures), Kristian Branaes (ex-Atomico), Clara Ricard (ex-Balderton), and David Pacák (ex-Earlybird and Picus Capital). They claim to have founded companies worth over $15 billion cumulatively, which increases to approximately $20 billion when including Unity's equity.
The portfolio is a testament to Transition's focus:
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Olix: A Bristol-based photonics computing company developing Optical Tensor Processing Units (OTPU). Founded as Flux Computing and rebranded in January, Olix has raised around $220 million at a $1 billion valuation, led by Hummingbird Ventures.
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Applied Atomics: Built by former SpaceX engineers Ben Kellie and Paul Keutelian, this company designs small modular nuclear plants for direct electricity supply to data centers and industrial users. Their technology uses light-water reactor technology with potential US Nuclear Regulatory Commission licensing in as little as 36-48 months.
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Seneca: A wildfire suppression drone company that launched publicly last October with $60 million. Seneca's drones can be deployed within 10 minutes of fire detection. The round was led by Caffeinated Capital and Convective Capital, with Transition participating in the first venture round.
Three years after securing Fund II, Transition Ventures' investments continue to shape the future of AI-driven deep-tech. Olix, Applied Atomics, and Seneca have made significant strides, demonstrating the platform's prescient vision. Olix, now valued at over $1 billion, has pushed the boundaries of photonics computing. Applied Atomics' small modular nuclear plants have garnered interest for their potential to revolutionize energy infrastructure. Seneca's wildfire suppression drones have been deployed globally, saving lives and landscapes. This success reinforces the importance of bridging the gap between AI software and physical technologies, a strategy that has positioned Transition Ventures as a leader in the field. Learn more about AI's creative limitations and opportunities