FIRSTPICK aims to write the first check for the Baltics’ future unicorns

In the venture capital economy, everything often begins with a first bet. Long before spectacular funding rounds and billion-dollar valuations, there is a moment when a startup is little more than a team, a market intuition, and a prototype in development. That is precisely the stage where FIRSTPICK positions itself. The Vilnius-based fund has launched a new €25 million vehicle dedicated to investing in Baltic startups at the moment of their creation.

With this second fund-following a €20 million vehicle launched in 2022 FIRSTPICK aims to become one of the earliest institutional investors in startups across the region, identifying promising founders before they appear on the radar of international investors.

Investing before the market is watching

FIRSTPICK’s investment model is built on the premise that the most compelling opportunities often emerge before financial metrics are visible.

The fund operates at the inception and pre-seed stages, writing checks between €100,000 and €500,000, with follow-on capacity of up to €1 million. At this level of maturity, startups typically have neither significant commercial traction nor robust financial data. Evaluation therefore relies primarily on the founding team, the clarity of the problem being addressed, and the potential size of the market.

This strategy aligns with the logic of first-check venture capital—a category of investors whose role is to write one of the very first checks in the life of a technology company.

In an ecosystem where many funds prefer to invest once product-market fit is already visible, this positioning allows FIRSTPICK to access companies that remain largely invisible to the rest of the market.

Backing founders outside the radar

At the core of the fund’s thesis lies the belief that international investors often apply standardized selection criteria that do not necessarily reflect the realities of emerging ecosystems.

In markets such as the Baltic states, founders do not always have the references traditionally valued in venture capital, such as experience at major technology companies or degrees from prestigious universities. FIRSTPICK intends to look beyond these filters to identify entrepreneurs whose potential may not immediately stand out within conventional evaluation frameworks.

The objective is to identify teams capable of building ambitious technology companies before their credibility is validated by the market.

A new stage in the maturation of the Baltic ecosystem

The launch of this second fund comes amid strong momentum in the Baltic tech ecosystem. In recent years, the region has produced several companies that have become European references, including Vinted, Bolt, and Nord Security.

These successes have contributed to a virtuous cycle in which former founders, investors, and operators are gradually reinvesting capital and expertise into the next generation of startups. FIRSTPICK is directly embedded in this dynamic, and among the fund’s backers are entrepreneurs and investors associated with Tesonet, Oberlo, and Kilo Health.

A public-private structure to strengthen the local pipeline

The fund also benefits from support from public actors, notably ILTE, which has committed around €9 million. The objective is to encourage private investment and strengthen the financing capacity available to local startups at the earliest stages.

In many emerging technology ecosystems, the presence of public investors in early-stage funds acts as a catalyst. It helps reduce risk for private investors while structuring a financing chain capable of supporting startups from seed to growth rounds.

Artificial intelligence as a field of exploration

From a sector perspective, FIRSTPICK presents itself as a generalist fund with a particular interest in startups developing software built around artificial intelligence.

This focus reflects a broader transformation in the technology sector. Artificial intelligence is no longer simply a technological layer added to existing products; it is increasingly becoming the central architecture of many software companies.

For a fund operating at the pre-seed stage, such companies offer the potential to develop products rapidly while targeting international markets from the outset.

Preparing the arrival of international investors

Like most investors operating at this stage, FIRSTPICK does not aim to finance the entire development of its portfolio companies. Its role is rather to prepare startups for subsequent funding rounds.

Some investments already illustrate this logic. The fund has invested early in companies such as Unive AI, Certific, and WhiteBridge AI. In these cases, FIRSTPICK acts as a detection investor, leaving the next stage to funds capable of supporting scaling.

The battle for the first check

FIRSTPICK’s initiative illustrates a broader shift within venture capital. As funds grow larger and financing rounds move toward later stages, competition to access the best startups is increasingly shifting toward the earliest phases of their development.

The first check therefore becomes a strategic advantage. It allows investors to establish an early relationship with founders, observe the company from its earliest stages, and identify future successes before they become visible to the wider market.

In the Baltic region, FIRSTPICK aims to occupy precisely this position. Less visible than large funding rounds, this role is nonetheless decisive: companies that become unicorns almost always begin with a discreet first be, signed by an investor capable of recognizing potential before it becomes obvious to the rest of the market.

This positioning is not unique to the Baltic ecosystem. In other markets, firms such as Kima Ventures, OneRagtime, or FJ Labs have developed comparable strategies: investing very early, diversifying bets, and building long-term relationships with founders before the arrival of larger funds.

In an ecosystem where investors now manage hundreds of millions of euros, this first layer of financing is becoming a strategic infrastructure. And it is precisely in this discreet but decisive space that FIRSTPICK intends to write the first chapters of the Baltics’ future unicorns.