Spotlight: BMW i Ventures Features Margret Dupslaff
Could you share more about your background before joining BMW i Ventures?
Until age 18, my whole world fit inside three square miles in a rural town outside Munich. My big family and future husband all lived happily inside this bubble. A safe, ordinary path would have been to study in Munich, yet I yearned for an adventure. I packed my things and studied aerospace engineering. I found myself addicted to the challenge of overcoming discomfort by stepping into engineering internships and study-abroad opportunities in a male-dominated industry. One of my internships at Porsche Consulting in the U.S. introduced me to the consulting world, where I finally decided to start my career. During my four years at McKinsey & Company, I collected countless airline miles and worked worldwide. I advised clients in the semiconductor, automotive, and aerospace industries and always felt personally challenged and connected to my teams. I am very grateful for the opportunity to pursue an MBA at the INSEAD Business School, where I felt intrigued by the diverse student body and formed new strong friendships. After returning home, I reflected on my goals and the impact I wanted on the world. I decided that in venture capital, I could support the right technologies and founder teams to create a better world for our children. Ultimately, I joined BMW i Ventures as Investment Associate in November 2023 to support the European Investment Team.
What do you focus on at BMW I Ventures?
Daily, I do everything from deal sourcing, screening, execution, portfolio support, and internal company building. Topic-wise, our fund focuses on auto-related areas such as sustainability, mobility, supply chain, manufacturing, and enterprise SaaS. I keep an open mind to all verticals. However, at the moment, I am focusing on two investment verticals: warehouse automation and carbon capture. Warehouse automation is a growing market due to the rise in e-commerce and the need for automation. To a large extent, warehouses are still run manually, creating an immense opportunity for greenfield automation projects. It is exciting because there is ample opportunity to make warehouse operations more efficient and build a recurring revenue business around a hardware-dominant product. Secondly, I am interested in carbon capture since the technology appeals to me. Getting negative emissions by design will help us to reach net zero. It is a fastly growing market with increasing public attention and growing start-up activity. I am actively watching out for an intriguing investment opportunity in that space.
What was your pathway into venture capital?
Few pathways into VC are linear. The same holds true for me--from my experiences spanning engineering to strategy consulting, MBA, maternity leave, and now Venture Capital. What I like about VC is that you work with driven entrepreneurs who want to build something great and have full skin in the game. The topics are fascinating, and you always stay on top of current innovations. There is not a typical workday since every day is different, and I have complete flexibility in my calendar, making the work-life balance much more manageable.
What do you look for in a potential investment?
There are multiple aspects to watch out for. Firstly, the total and serviceable market needs to be significant. Secondly, the product must bring a true value-add to its customers. Thirdly, the team must bring relevant experience in the field and be able to convey a vision for the company. Other factors, such as scalability, traction, competition, and exit opportunities, also play a vital role in my assessment. Lastly, I want to highlight that rarely does a deal tick all boxes without a blink of an eye. There is always a trade-off between risk and return.
What is your most contrarian view on an existing or emerging technology trend?
Among negative emission technologies, carbon capture is often referred to as the technology that will save our planet. Let us use direct air capture, one of the central carbon capture techniques, as an example. While direct air capture represents a promising technology to reduce carbon emissions, the current technology requires a lot of energy, which is not yet renewable and will not be fully renewable anytime soon. Projects need to be assessed case-by-case, taking renewable availability into account. More broadly speaking, carbon capture will only be a technology to solve the unavoidable emissions. It should not be mistaken as a fast track to net zero without reducing avoidable emissions. On the bright side, whoever emerges victorious truly holds the power to change the world. Regulatory clarity is key to mobilizing capital to help startups reach technical maturity.
What advice would you impart to entrepreneurs?
Most importantly, stay authentic to yourself. Finding the right fit between the founder and the VC is essential. There is a saying that founder-VC relationships last longer than average marriages. Bringing your authentic self to work is critical for building an excellent and comprehensive team that can run the extra mile. Building a great team is something that often gets overlooked when focusing on building a great product.
What’s something interesting about yourself that most people may not know?
Even though I work for a car company, I have never owned a car. I drive by bike or walk in 80% of my mobility use cases. The rest is public transport and shared mobility services. I love Munich because I can drive everywhere by bike in less than 20 minutes. Fun fact: my husband and I own 6 bikes now - 2 Gravel bikes for commutes, 2 city bikes for hop-on-hop-off trips, a cargo bike for transporting our baby, and last but not least, a Peloton bike for sweaty home workouts.