Unlocking Europe’s deep tech potential from Day Zero

Our Story

Ruya Ventures backs deep tech founders building what others consider impossible.

We focus on a very small number of companies, working closely with a highly concentrated portfolio to provide deep, sustained support over time.

From shaping ideas at day zero to navigating the transition from research to real-world deployment, we support the hardest parts of company building, including commercialisation, manufacturing, and supply chains.

We are most engaged at the moments that matter: forming the initial strategy, building early teams, setting up global supply chains and expanding into global markets.

Deep tech is inherently global - our work is supported by a trusted network across industry, academia, and capital, spanning Europe, the US, and Asia.

Rick Hao

Founder and Managing Partner

"Rick is exactly the kind of investor you hope for as a founder - honest when it matters, genuinely supportive, and always in your corner. He embodies a true founder-first mindset and brings an incredible network to back it up."
Dr Gideon Schwich
Co-CEO & Cofounder
"Rick is exactly the kind of investor you hope for as a founder - honest when it matters, genuinely supportive, and always in your corner. He embodies a true founder-first mindset and brings an incredible network to back it up."
Dr Gideon Schwich
Co-CEO & Cofounder
"Beyond his strong conviction in our vision, Rick is a thoughtful partner, bringing strategic perspective and making helpful introductions at key moments. Founders seeking a founder-friendly investor with sharp judgment would benefit greatly from working with him."
Dr. Alexander Glätzle
CEO & Cofounder
"Beyond his strong conviction in our vision, Rick is a thoughtful partner, bringing strategic perspective and making helpful introductions at key moments. Founders seeking a founder-friendly investor with sharp judgment would benefit greatly from working with him."
Dr. Alexander Glätzle
CEO & Cofounder
"Rick is one of the best deep tech investors we met, whose excellent network and positive reputation precedes him. He took time to truly understand our business and is a fantastic resource along our journey. We look forward to becoming LPs in Rick's fund."
Talmon Firestone
CEO & Cofounder
"Rick is one of the best deep tech investors we met, whose excellent network and positive reputation precedes him. He took time to truly understand our business and is a fantastic resource along our journey. We look forward to becoming LPs in Rick's fund."
Talmon Firestone
CEO & Cofounder
"We had multiple term sheets at Seed. We picked Rick. Not just because of the terms, but because of how he thought about our business. At Series B, his fund couldn't follow on. We kept him on the board anyway. That should tell you everything about the kind of investor he is."
Dr Yan Zhao
CEO & Cofounder
"We had multiple term sheets at Seed. We picked Rick. Not just because of the terms, but because of how he thought about our business. At Series B, his fund couldn't follow on. We kept him on the board anyway. That should tell you everything about the kind of investor he is."
Dr Yan Zhao
CEO & Cofounder
"I believe Rick is the best Deep Tech investor in Europe. He has been completely irreplaceable on the board and as my trusted advisor. He is always my first recommendation as an investor or board member to any founder."
Dr Tongtong Zhu
CEO & Founder
"I believe Rick is the best Deep Tech investor in Europe. He has been completely irreplaceable on the board and as my trusted advisor. He is always my first recommendation as an investor or board member to any founder."
Dr Tongtong Zhu
CEO & Founder
"Rick brings a wealth of expertise and experience to new startups, providing extremely helpful guidance in building a sustainable business. He has a strong network and is able to connect the dots to accelerate his portfolio companies."
Sebastian Wolf
CEO & Founder
Stealth
"Rick brings a wealth of expertise and experience to new startups, providing extremely helpful guidance in building a sustainable business. He has a strong network and is able to connect the dots to accelerate his portfolio companies."
Sebastian Wolf
CEO & Founder
Stealth
"Rick is the investor you want before you know what you need. He backed me when I had only conviction but not yet the language or the playbook, and he helped build both. There's no better first cheque."
Edan Wang
CEO & Founder
Stealth
"Rick is the investor you want before you know what you need. He backed me when I had only conviction but not yet the language or the playbook, and he helped build both. There's no better first cheque."
Edan Wang
CEO & Founder
Stealth

Our Thesis

[01]

We go deep, not broad

We focus on specific deep tech value chains where we have already built conviction from academic research and commercialisation from our past investment experience.

[02]

We are partners from day zero

We often invest in the first funding round and even before incorporation, working alongside founders from the earliest stages to help turn breakthrough ideas into companies.

[03]

We accelerate the path to market

Deep tech doesn’t fail in the lab, it fails in scaling, so we actively support manufacturing, supply chains, and go-to-market to help companies become global leaders.

[04]

We are global by design

Rooted in Europe, with deep networks across the US and Asia, we help founders build globally from day one. We believe deep tech is a global play.

[05]

We back hard problems

We are technology-agnostic across software and hardware. What matters is ambition: solving meaningful, difficult problems that others won’t tackle.

Investment Focus

We take a specialised approach to scaling deep tech companies, investing only in value chains where we have deep expertise, conviction, and access.

Battery

[01]

Artificial Intelligence

[02]

Robotics

[03]

Materials Science

[04]

Novel Computing

[05]

Semiconductors

[06]

Companies

MegaCool Technologies

Cooling the AI Revolution

Artificial Intelligence

Stealth

Artificial Intelligence

Next-gen speech interpretation

Stealth