Technology

Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) is intensifying its search for promising startups beyond Silicon Valley, with a particular focus on Europe. The venture capital firm’s partner, Gabriel Vasquez, reportedly took nine flights from Fresh York City to Stockholm in a single year, not just to check on existing portfolio company Lovable, but to proactively identify the next generation of Swedish “unicorns” – privately held companies valued at over $1 billion – before they gain widespread attention.

This transatlantic scouting mission culminated in a $2.3 million pre-seed investment led by a16z into Dentio, a Swedish startup leveraging artificial intelligence to streamline administrative tasks for dental practices. Even as a relatively small check compared to a16z’s recently announced $15 billion in new funds, the investment signals a clear intent to actively seek out deal flow outside of the United States, even without establishing local offices.

Stockholm has emerged as a key hub in this search, building on a16z’s previous success with Skype, co-founded by Swedish entrepreneur Niklas Zennström. The Swedish capital has fostered a thriving startup ecosystem, and a16z is actively mapping the networks that are producing these companies. “We spend a lot of time developing a deep understanding of specific markets and knowing where innovation is emerging,” Vasquez told TechCrunch. “In Sweden, that has meant closely tracking ecosystems like SSE Labs — the startup incubator of the Stockholm School of Economics — and the companies coming out of it.”

Dentio, like other successful Swedish companies such as Klarna, Legora, and Voi, is an alum of SSE Labs. The startup was founded by Elias Afrasiabi, Anton Li, and Lukas Sjögren, who reconnected as students at the Stockholm School of Economics and KTH Royal Institute of Technology, and received additional support from KTH’s Innovation Launch program. The founders were motivated by a problem experienced firsthand: Li’s mother, a dentist, highlighted the significant administrative burden that detracts from patient care.

AI-Powered Efficiency for Dental Practices

Dentio’s initial product is an AI-powered recording tool that automatically generates clinical notes, aiming to alleviate the administrative workload for dentists. The founders recognized the potential of large language models (LLMs) to address this challenge, validating their idea with dentists and their colleagues. However, Afrasiabi acknowledges that AI scribes are likely to become a commodity, and Dentio must demonstrate lasting value to avoid being displaced by competitors.

The company faces competition from fellow Swedish startup Tandem Health, which raised $50 million in a Series A round last year to provide AI-powered support for clinicians across multiple medical specialties, according to Observer. While Tandem Health has a broader focus, Dentio is concentrating exclusively on the dental market, believing it can achieve significant scale through international expansion.

Expanding Beyond Sweden

“Now we’re a team of seven people, and we think that it’s possible to build a unified way of handling administration all over Europe, and maybe even all over the world,” Afrasiabi said. Despite the fragmentation of European healthcare systems, Dentio believes that a solution successful in Sweden can be adapted for other EU countries. The company emphasizes its commitment to data privacy, highlighting that “all relevant data is processed in Sweden and Finland in compliance with Swedish and EU law,” a key selling point for privacy-conscious European customers.

Dentio’s “Made in Sweden” branding also appeals to investors, evoking a history of successful Swedish companies. The founders intentionally avoided traditional networking routes, relying instead on word-of-mouth to attract attention from U.S. Investors. “We went to zero meetups. I reached out to zero investors,” Afrasiabi explained. “I think it was mostly through referrals and people talking to each other that the news got all the way over to the U.S.”

This organic discovery was facilitated by a16z’s proactive network of scouts, including Fredrik Hjelm, founder of Voi, and Johannes Schildt, founder of Kry, who help identify promising local talent. According to Vasquez, this approach is part of a broader pattern of innovative companies emerging outside of Silicon Valley and scaling rapidly, citing examples like Black Forest Labs in Germany and Manus, a Singapore-based AI startup acquired by Meta.

A Global View of AI Innovation

Vasquez’s interest extends beyond Europe. Having been raised in El Salvador, he is also actively exploring the burgeoning AI scene in Brazil and Latin America. “I’m really excited about what’s brewing in Brazil and across Latin America in AI,” he wrote on LinkedIn. “I believe AI is the great equalizer,” he added, noting that widespread access to powerful AI tools is democratizing innovation. “Most people now have access to PhD-level intelligence on a phone, and Silicon Valley is a state of mind.”

As a16z continues to expand its global footprint, Dentio represents a strategic investment in a promising European startup poised to disrupt the dental technology market. The company’s focus on a specific niche, combined with its commitment to data privacy and its ambitious expansion plans, positions it for potential success in the evolving landscape of AI-powered healthcare solutions.

The coming months will be crucial for Dentio as it scales its team and expands its product offerings. The company’s ability to demonstrate tangible value to dentists and navigate the complexities of European healthcare regulations will be key to its long-term success. The broader trend of U.S. Venture capital firms actively seeking opportunities outside of the U.S. Suggests a continued focus on global innovation and a willingness to invest in emerging tech hubs.

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