RYSE

The Mittelstand will shape Physical AI. We invest in the transformation that makes it happen.

Build European Momentum

AI is moving into the physical world. Few shifts will define the coming decades more.

This will be an evolution, not a revolution.
Built on the machines, factories and infrastructure already installed around us.
Shaped by long investment cycles. Driven by decades of hard-won know-how.

That is where Europe has mass.

We have the engineers.
We have the designers.
We have the customers.

And in the Mittelstand, we have what no model can emulate: the knowledge of how the physical world actually works.

What Europe needs now is velocity.

Faster adoption.
Faster decisions.
Bolder ambition.

Mass times velocity equals momentum.

At Ryse, we build it.
Company by company.
As investors.
And as operators.

What we do

Invest in the pillars of Europe’s future.
We invest where Europe’s structural growth themes meet durable moats, focusing on three pillars:

  • Electrification

    The world will be powered by electrons
    The EU aims to double electricity’s share of final energy to 46% by 2040.

    1. Generation & storage

      Optimise how power is produced and stored

    2. Distribution

      Build out and digitise the grid

    3. Efficiency

      Manage energy demand

  • Automation

    Demography and competition redesign work
    Germany runs 449 robots per 10,000 factory workers: well ahead of the US and China.

    1. Factory

      Roll out robotics at scale

    2. Buildings

      Automate how real assets are run

    3. Transport

      Orchestrate road, rail, air and sea

  • Resilience

    Europe is building its strategic autonomy
    Europe targets to invest €750bn a year; Germany alone commits €500bn to infrastructure.

    1. Compute

      Develop a sovereign compute stack

    2. Components

      Strengthen Europe’s industrial supply base

    3. Critical materials

      Build secure supply chains

Our principles

We want to be the partner of choice for high-quality businesses and ambitious talent, giving them the resources and support to reach their full potential.

  1. Talent compounds

    We bet on talent
    We identify early-career talent and make Ryse the best place for them to take responsibility and build their careers.

    We align incentives
    We share equity broadly and generously, so the people who build the company also own part of it.

    A lecture hall seen from the back rows, the audience facing a lecturer beside a large projection screen

  2. Learning compounds

    We build an operating system
    We drive every transformation with data, AI-native tools and repeatable processes.

    We play in the markets we know best
    We stay within the circle of competence we have built as investors and operators.

    A white industrial robot arm drawing circles into a floor of sand

  3. Trust compounds

    We do the work
    We pitch in alongside management on recruiting, sales calls and customer issues.

    We create accountability
    We connect directly with the frontline so ownership is felt on the shop floor.

    A worker in a high-visibility vest walking across a sunlit loading yard, his long shadow behind him
The two founders sitting on a sofa in front of a plastered wall, laughing
Max-Otto Griesam
Martin Vieider

Who we are

We are investors and operators. We back one or two companies a year with high conviction.

Portfolio

Where we are doing it.

Every company starts with strong fundamentals.
Our role is to unlock the next chapter through operational leadership, AI adoption, and long-term thinking.