About EIT Supernovas
Supernovas exists to unlock Europe’s full potential by improving gender diversity in entrepreneurship and investment, empowering women founders and investors to drive lasting change.
Meet the Team Driving Gender-Inclusive Innovation Across Europe
Blanca ChocarroSupernovas Lead
Ana AlcaineBA Academy
Investor Community
Fundraising Support
Celeste RegláRocket Up
Celia AlijaVC Academy
Women2Invest
Paula SevillanoStakeholder Engagement
Data Room
Asier SannioCommunications Manager
Kirra PickeringRocket Up
Why do we exist?
The Supernovas Programme is an EIT Community Initiative led by EIT Food, EIT Manufacturing and EIT Urban Mobility, Knowledge and Innovation Communities of the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT). The aim of the Supernovas programme is to bring more women into the world of entrepreneurship and investment.
Women remain underrepresented in Europe’s technology and innovation ecosystem, and that imbalance results in significant economic value loss.
Although 17.4% of deeptech startups have at least one woman founder, they receive only 11.4% of venture capital, and less than 2% goes to all-women founding teams.
Gender-diverse founding teams create more value for investors, achieving a 6.5× increase in enterprise value compared with 5.5× across all scaleups.
Only 16% of European VC general partners are women, controlling just 9% of investment power.
Each 10% increase in women’s representation in venture capital teams raises financial returns by 1.3 percentage points in IRR.
Women remain underrepresented in Europe’s technology and innovation ecosystem, and that imbalance results in significant economic value loss.
Our Approach to Achieving Impact
Women2InvestTraining programme for women with STEAM background studies to break into venture capital, with potential internship matching.
• VC Fundamental Training
• Internship Matching for Top Performers
• Career Development
VC AcademyA programme for women VC investors to advance their careers with expert training in both technical and personal skills.
• Career Acceleration in VC
• Practical Tools for Everyday Investing
• Networking with Women Investors
Business Angels AcademyProgrammes for new and experienced women business angels to start or advance in angel investment.
• Deal Flow Analysis
• Due Diligence
• Portfolio Management
Rocket Up A programme enabling top women-founded technology ventures to expand successfully across Europe.
• Market Entry Strategy
• Local Validation
• Fundraising Guidance
Fundraising SupportDedicated and customized support for leading women-founded technology startups to raise funding.
• Fundraising Strategy
• Visibility to Investors
• Coaching
Data RoomA dedicated open platform that collects and analyses updated data on women-led startups supported by EIT.
• Curated Investment Opportunities
• Women Entrepreneurship Showcase
• Awareness and Inspiration
Women2InvestTraining programme for women with STEAM background studies to break into venture capital, with potential internship matching.
• VC Fundamental Training
• Internship Matching for Top Performers
• Career Development
VC AcademyA programme for women VC investors to advance their careers with expert training in both technical and personal skills.
• Career Acceleration in VC
• Practical Tools for Everyday Investing
• Networking with Women Investors
Business Angels AcademyProgrammes for new and experienced women business angels to start or advance in angel investment.
• Deal Flow Analysis
• Due Diligence
• Portfolio Management
Rocket Up A programme enabling top women-founded technology ventures to expand successfully across Europe.
• Market Entry Strategy
• Local Validation
• Fundraising Guidance
Fundraising SupportDedicated and customized support for leading women-founded technology startups to raise funding.
• Fundraising Strategy
• Visibility to Investors
• Coaching
Data RoomA dedicated open platform that collects and analyses updated data on women-led startups supported by EIT.
• Curated Investment Opportunities
• Women Entrepreneurship Showcase
• Awareness and Inspiration
Our Impact So Far
Supporting women with STEAM studies in launching their careers in Venture Capital
243 Women trained
35 VC Funds collaborating today
30 Internship/FT jobs to date
Training programme in personal and professional skills for women venture capital investors
264 Women investors trained
Training programme for new and experienced women business angels
160 Women trained
From 23 countries
A total of 18 startups participated in both Rocket Up and Investment Forums over a four-year period.
Startup programme to support women-founded ventures on their internationalisation
42 Participants
Curated events to connect investors with the best women-led startups
76 Participants
Women-led startups supported by EIT showcased in a rich & user-friendly data base
1,150+ Startups showcased
Each euro invested in the programmes generated €103 in capital raised. Refer to the EIT average for reference.
Testimonials
Don’t just take our word for it, hear from our alumni.
”The programme has allowed me to review concepts that I had learned before, but also to reflect on my own investment thesis and has made me aware of how I had readjusted it over time.”
Founder, WA4STEAM and EUcapital
Business Angels Academy 2023 graduate
”Thanks to Rocket Up, we saved €160,000 and gained world-class mentoring, a powerful network, and EU-backed support to fast-track our market entry.”
Co-Founder & CEO, agriBIOME
Rocket Up 2023 graduate
”Coming from a technical background, Women2Invest gave me the essential knowledge to kickstart my career in venture capital.”
Now a VC Investor at Crane Venture Partners
Women2Invest 2023 graduate
”Raising VC Stars facilitated the creation of a large network of women across Europe with similar interests, something that would otherwise be much more difficult to achieve.”
VC Academy 2024 graduate
Founder, WA4STEAM and EUcapital. Business Angels Academy 2023 graduate
The programme has allowed me to review concepts that I had learned before, but also to reflect on my own investment thesis and has made me aware of how I had readjusted it over time.”
Co-Founder & CEO, agriBIOME Rocket Up 2025 graduate
Thanks to Rocket Up, we saved €160,000 and gained world-class mentoring, a powerful network, and EU-backed support to fast-track our market entry.”
Now a VC Investor at Crane Venture Partners Women2Invest 2023 graduate
Coming from a technical background, Women2Invest gave me the essential knowledge to kickstart my career in venture capital.”
VC Academy 2024 graduate
Raising VC Stars facilitated the creation of a large network of women across Europe with similar interests, something that would otherwise be much more difficult to achieve.”
Access our reports
and dive into the research driving Supernovas
