“We already have amazing business groups in TDK that know exactly what they need to do with existing products in existing markets. And we have R&D teams and M&A teams that know how to expand: whether it's new markets, existing technology or new technology in existing markets. But exploration is actually going into the megatrends that are strategic for the corporation: new market, new application, new use cases, new technology. And that's the mission of TDK Ventures.”
– Nicolas Sauvage, president of TDK Ventures
This week's VentureFuel Visionary is Nicolas Sauvage, president of TDK Ventures — the Venture arm of Japanese multinational electronics company TDK. He oversees fundraising, portfolio investment strategy, and portfolio development for TDK Ventures and ranked #17 out of over 4,000 heads of corporate venturing units in the Global Corporate Venturing Powerlist 2022.
This episode is a masterclass in why large corporations invest in startups. The value, the challenges. Why the core must focus on exploiting competitive advantages of today, while the corporate venture capital (CVC) arm must focus on exploring the future. The balance of exploitation and exploration, of strategic and financial opportunities, why the power law means you need to unlearn the distribution law, and how many times you need to fold a piece of paper to reach the moon.
To learn more about Nicolas' work, check out the links below:
VentureFuel builds and accelerates innovation programs for industry leaders by helping them unlock the power of External Innovation via startup collaborations.