Supernovas has launched a new report, developed in collaboration with the Esade Center for Social Impact and Equinox Equality Experts, which confirms that gender bias remains a significant barrier in early-stage entrepreneurship across Europe. The report is accompanied by the first dedicated tool designed to help VC firms identify, understand and mitigate gender bias across their investment processes.
The study and the tool were officially presented on 18 November at SLUSH 2025 in Helsinki, during an EIT Supernovas networking event that brought together women entrepreneurs and investors from across Europe. Supernovas also co-hosted the Women’s Power Pavilion, a two day programme exploring inclusive funding models in partnership with HER Fund, SCALE’HER, Women TechEU, WomenInvestEU, European Female Founders, Green Transition Forum and Gender Gap in Investments.
A clearer picture of persistent gender bias in early-stage entrepreneurship
The research is based on qualitative and quantitative data collected from six European VC firms, including interviews, surveys on entrepreneurial stereotypes and assessments of existing gender equity measures. The findings show that gender roles and stereotypes continue to influence visibility, assessment and decision making in Europe’s VC ecosystem.
Interviewees described how assumptions around leadership, ambition and work life balance can shape funding decisions. Differences in pitching styles also emerged as a contributing factor: men founders often present more ambitious future scenarios, while women founders tend to make evidence based claims grounded in realistic outcomes. Although this can strengthen credibility, it may disadvantage women in an environment where bold projections are frequently rewarded.
The report also highlights broader structural challenges, such as the gender gap in STEM fields, which affects the pipeline of women founders. According to the research team, this gap is reinforced by cultural dynamics within the VC industry.
Five levers for change and a practical tool for implementation
The publication identifies five key levers for addressing gender bias in venture capital. These are expanded in the accompanying Gender Bias Mitigation Tool, which provides practical steps and examples drawn from the firms that took part in the study.
Lever 1: Awareness of Gender Bias
Raising awareness is essential and requires dedicated unconscious bias training across organisations, with ongoing attention to how bias operates in each investment context.
Lever 2: Leadership Support for Inclusion
Commitment from leadership teams, including both women and men partners, is critical to driving sustained action.
Lever 3: Gender Diversity and Inclusive Working Culture
Increasing the presence of women at all levels of VC firms often correlates with greater investment in women led startups. Some firms are adopting intentional hiring practices to address imbalances in applicant pools.
Lever 4: Gender Inclusive Investment Process
Every stage of the investment cycle provides opportunities to counteract bias. Examples include the use of standardised interview questions and the involvement of scouts to source underrepresented founders.
Lever 5: Gender Inclusive Ecosystem
Actively participating in the wider ecosystem, mentoring women founders and joining collective initiatives focused on gender diversity help strengthen systemic change.
Supernovas’ commitment to gender inclusive innovation
EIT Community Supernovas commissioned the research as part of its mission to bring more women into entrepreneurship and investment. The programme is led by EIT Food, EIT Manufacturing and EIT Urban Mobility. Since its launch, Supernovas has trained 524 women in investment and supported 102 women led startups across 23 countries, resulting in 86 million euros in attracted investment. Its Data Room currently includes more than 1,150 women led and EIT supported startups.
Martin Kern, Director of the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT), said: “Innovation cannot thrive when bias determines who gets the chance to build the future. Through our work, we see the transformative power of inclusion every day, in ideas that reach markets, in teams that scale, and in solutions that change lives.”
The report and the Gender Bias Mitigation Tool are now available for download.
