42 Questions with BMW i Ventures — The Ultimate Investing Machine?

BMW i Ventures has been actively investing since 2011. For the first five years, they were a $100 million fund focused solely on mobility services. However, in the last year, there have been a lot of changes, spurred by the desire to “take things up to the next level.” I Ventures moved their offices from New York to Mountain View, increased their fund to $500 million, and expanded their mandate as well. Now, in addition to mobility, they invest in the areas of automotive technology, production, Industry 4.0, and autonomous driving.

As managing partner Dr. Ulrich Quay explains, “[Our interests include] anything around the vehicle from the production stage to building the vehicle, to sales… FinTech is definitely an area we’re also looking at. If you look at the BMW group as a whole, in theory we could do an investment in every single unit.”

Of i Ventures’ 11 person team, eight are in California, one is still in New York, and two are in Munich. Four partners do the investing, but, as Quay explains, “We typically do deals in teams of two,” i.e. a partner and someone else on the i Ventures team. This allows for flexibility and additional insights. “For the startups it’s really useful, because they have four eyes helping them, with different skills and backgrounds,” Quay said. Another advantage for founders stems from the fact that i Ventures is co-located with the BMW Technology Group offices. According to Quay, it’s often the first place to look at startups that come through i Ventures. And all it takes is a short walk down the hall.

Investments at i Ventures are usually Series A and B. Check sizes typically range from six to ten million dollars. BMW is the only LP, but i Ventures doesn’t have to go back to the mothership for permission to make a deal. They make their investment decisions in-house, and can move as fast as an institutional investor. However, to be invited into the i Ventures family, a startup must be a good fit both financially and strategically. “Our goal is to engage [our portfolio companies],” Quay said. “We’re successful when a company excels financially, and when we connect the company to our corporation.”

Watch the full “42 Questions” interview between Dr. Ulrich Quay and Sean O’Sullivan of SOSV below:

You can click the 👏 icon so other people can enjoy this article too!