Ekaterina Almasque

Ekaterina Almasque is a highly esteemed General Partner at OpenOcean, a venture capital firm that invests in B2B software in Europe, with a focus on enabling technologies for the data-driven future, including artificial intelligence, quantum computing, data infrastructure, and automation. Previously, she was the Managing Director of Samsung Catalyst Fund in Europe, where she led investments in companies such as GraphCore, Mapillary, AIMotive, Sentiance, and Quobyte, as well as several venture funds.

Before joining the venture capital industry, Ekaterina worked in corporate and independent venture capital funds in Silicon Valley and Europe for over ten years. She was a software architect who launched new products and led the standardization of Java, and became an entrepreneur at the age of 17. Ekaterina holds an academic background in AI/ML and cutting-edge software solutions for data and information processing.

As a highly respected leader in European venture capital, Ekaterina is a prominent voice in the industry. She serves on the board of IQM, the European leader for superconducting quantum computers, and several other companies. Additionally, Ekaterina participated in the 'Invest in Women NOW' report, which called for the European Commission to take action to address funding inequalities for female-led firms. Her extensive experience and expertise in venture capital make her a valuable contributor to driving innovation and technological advancements across Europe.

Ekaterina Almasque is a highly accomplished General Partner at OpenOcean, a venture capital firm that invests in enabling technologies for the data-driven future, including artificial intelligence, quantum computing, data infrastructure, and automation. With a primary focus on B2B software in Europe, OpenOcean was founded by the entrepreneurs behind MySQL.

Ekaterina's background is in software architecture with a focus on emerging distributed architectures. Before becoming a venture capitalist, she launched new products and led the standardization of Java. She also became an entrepreneur at the age of 17. Ekaterina's academic background in AI/ML and cutting-edge software solutions for data and information processing further reinforces her expertise in the field of venture capital.

Before joining OpenOcean, Ekaterina was a Managing Director of Samsung Catalyst Fund in Europe, Samsung's Electronics $500M venture capital multistage investment fund focused on core technology areas, including robotics, autonomous driving, artificial intelligence, digital health, data infrastructure, and device-level technologies. In this role, she led investments across Europe in companies such as GraphCore, Mapillary, AIMotive, Sentiance, and Quobyte, as well as several venture funds.

Ekaterina has over ten years of experience working in corporate and independent venture capital funds in Silicon Valley and Europe. She has also held the position of Managing Director at several other venture capital firms.

In addition to her work at OpenOcean, Ekaterina is on the board of IQM, the European leader for superconducting quantum computers, as well as several other companies. She is a leading voice within European venture capital and was recently part of the 'Invest in Women NOW' report, which called for action from the European Commission to address inequities in funding for female-led firms.

With her wealth of experience and expertise in venture capital, Ekaterina Almasque is a respected leader in the field and is helping to drive innovation and technological advancements across Europe.

As a General Partner at OpenOcean, Ekaterina Almasque has a clear vision for the future of venture capital and technology innovation in Europe. Her focus is on enabling technologies for the data-driven future, including artificial intelligence, quantum computing, data infrastructure, and automation, which she believes are critical areas for growth and development in the coming years.

Ekaterina believes that venture capital has a vital role to play in driving innovation and technological advancements in Europe. She is passionate about supporting startups and entrepreneurs who are working on cutting-edge technologies and bringing new ideas to the market. Her experience working in corporate and independent venture capital funds in Silicon Valley and Europe has given her a unique perspective on the industry, which she uses to identify promising startups and provide them with the resources and support they need to succeed.