Welcome to a new episode of the EUVC Podcast, where we bring you the people and perspectives shaping European venture.

This week, Andreas Munk Holm sits down with Paolo Pio, co-founder and Managing Partner at Exceptional Ventures — a mission-driven early-stage fund investing in the future of human health, fitness, nutrition, and longevity.

Paolo shares how a personal obsession with sleep, metabolism, and fitness evolved into a structured thesis for investing in businesses and technologies that help us live better, longer — and how Exceptional Ventures plans to back over 200 founders across three funds to deliver returns that match the mission.

🎯 This Episode’s Themes:

• Why health, fitness, and prevention are ripe for VC investment
• How personalized, continuous monitoring unlocks true wellness
• The 4-pillared thesis: prevention, early detection, smarter care & delivery
• Lessons from Fund I: 3,600 companies reviewed → 37 investments
• The case for “high-volume VC” in Europe: why more bets matter
• From sleep hygiene to nanobots: the future of health innovation
• Community, LPs, and morning workouts at SuperVenture

Here’s what’s covered:

• 01:00 | The Mission: Improving the human joy path through health & longevity
• 03:00 | Why Now: Obesity, metabolic health & the need for smarter prevention
• 05:00 | The Four Pillars: Sleep, exercise, early detection & delivery innovation
• 08:00 | Exceptional’s Model: Fund I learnings, Fund II targets, Fund III ambitions
• 10:00 | The Volume Bet: Why Europe needs funds backing 50+ startups per cycle
• 12:00 | Sourcing & Screening: From 3,600 companies to 37 portfolio bets
• 15:00 | Backing Founders on the Edge: From glucose monitoring to rural US clinics
• 18:00 | The Big Vision: 200+ founders backed, 30,000+ community members
• 21:00 | Big LP Names & Co-Investors: How the wider venture stack leans in
• 24:00 | Why Community Matters: The morning workouts, the events, the energy
• 27:00 | Longevity & Fund IV: Why the best is still ahead