Balderton Capital — Europe's largest VC firm dedicated exclusively to backing European founders — has launched 'Built in Europe', a six-figure pan-European advertising campaign backed by over 100 founders and CEOs, including leaders from Revolut, Mistral AI, Wayve and ElevenLabs, to challenge the narrative that European startups must look to Silicon Valley to succeed.
The Campaign: Shifting the Narrative
Described as the first large-scale brand campaign ever run by a European venture capital firm, 'Built in Europe' spans London, Paris, Stockholm, Berlin and Munich through out-of-home billboards and digital advertising. Conceived and executed in-house by Balderton in collaboration with design firm UTILE, the creative centres on portrait photography of Europe's most recognisable founders — putting people, not logos, at the heart of the message.
The campaign spotlights 14 of Europe's most successful tech companies, including Revolut, Wayve, Mistral AI, ElevenLabs, Lovable, Beauty Pie and Synthesia. More than 100 founders and CEOs from across the wider ecosystem are participating in the digital activation — a show of collective confidence in the region's ability to build globally significant companies.
Who Is Behind It — and Why Now
Balderton Capital, fresh off a $1.3 billion fundraise, has invested in European tech for over two decades — with a portfolio spanning Revolut, Wayve, Darktrace, Depop and MySQL. The firm believes the moment has arrived to tell a different story about the region.
The campaign comes amid growing concern from European investors and governments that top founders feel compelled to relocate to Silicon Valley to access capital and scale. Both the EU's €5bn Scaleup Europe Fund and the UK government-backed Sovereign AI Fund reflect policy-level efforts to retain talent and capital within the region — and 'Built in Europe' is the private sector's answer to the same challenge.
The founders backing the campaign represent the full breadth of the European ecosystem: AI leaders such as Mistral AI, ElevenLabs, Lovable and Synthesia; deep-tech names including Wayve, Quantum Systems, Proxima Fusion and The Exploration Company; and consumer brands like Revolut, Voi and Alan.
"For too long, the narrative around European tech has been stuck on all the things that need to change. Built In Europe aims to shift the conversation from potential to proof."— Suranga Chandratillake, General Partner, Balderton Capital
Beyond Billboards: The Jobs Platform
At the core of the initiative is BuiltInEurope.com, a jobs platform built in-house by Balderton using direct data feeds and API integrations. The site aggregates open roles from Europe's top 1,000 tech startups — positioning itself as the continent's largest startup talent hub.
Unlike the advertising elements, the jobs platform is designed to deliver long-term utility: connecting ambitious candidates with high-growth companies, and helping European startups compete for the talent they need to scale without requiring a transatlantic move.
"If you think about what's going to matter in the next 100 years, it's the really hard, deep technology, and startups are where that's built. It's the most adventurous, exciting thing you could do — build or join a startup in Europe."— Alex Kendall, Co-Founder & CEO, Wayve