Inside Kinisis Ventures’ US Roadshow for Cypriot Startups

When four Cypriot startups landed in New York this May, they weren’t just pitching products. They were out to change perceptions.

Mixed-reality firm Ascanio, sports-tech player Darefore, robotics and haptics startup IREROBOT, and IoT cybersecurity specialist Intellectra Technologies took part in a tightly curated US roadshow, designed not by a trade body or government agency, but by a group of seasoned, demanding insiders.

The instigator was the Kinisis Ventures Fund, the first Cyprus venture capital fund with a specific mandate to back local innovation. Formed by Cypriot expats in the US, the VC fund wasn’t content waiting for local startups to be discovered, while similar US-bound events left them uninspired. As Kinisis co-founder Andreas Panayi put it, “We wanted to create a new way of presenting Cypriot innovation in the US. So we took it upon ourselves to deliver these startups to the right audience – functionally and productively.”

From Pitches to Panels

The three-day roadshow started with the four startups demoing to an invitation-only audience overlooking Midtown Manhattan; some 60 business executives, Cypriot expats and a carefully curated mix of angels and institutional investors.

For the founders, the experience was equal parts exposure and education. “US investors adopt a business-first mindset,” said Evagoras Xydas, CEO of IREROBOT. “It’s all about sales, scaling, and exit strategy, with profitability front and centre.” George Tziazas, CEO of Ascanio, echoed the sentiment, “This experience has not only broadened our network but reaffirmed the global relevance of our vision.”

The event also had a diplomatic spirit. The US Embassy in Nicosia was a supporter while Theodoros Loukaidis, Director General of Research and Innovation Foundation – Cyprus’ body for disbursing grants – joined the delegation to frame the startups within Cyprus’ broader innovation ecosystem. New York-based Trade Commissioner Aristos Constantine, who moderated a panel on evolving smaller ecosystems, called the evening “an example of how impactful and effective our engagement with the US market can be.”

The Trade Commissioner wasn’t just a supporter – he was a sponsor, alongside the Cyprus-US Chamber of Commerce. The Chamber’s President, Demetrios A. Comodromos, was enthusiastic in his praise. “They each embodied the spirit of the current startup climate in Cyprus, wherein comprehensively developed technology is coupled with a very market-ready application,” he said.

Deals in the air

The next two days were dedicated to investor meetings. These encounters were targeted and pragmatic, Panayi said, matching Cyprus’ early-stage capital needs with American firepower. For US investors, a US$1 million ticket is closer to angel or seed money, but for Cyprus startups, it can be nice growth boost capital. As the programme allowed for company specific activities, IREROBOT’s Xydas broke away to hold separate meetings with Google Research in San Francisco.

Steven Dyer, Chairman of the Jumpstart NJ Angel Network, described the visiting startups as “promising early-stage ventures with interesting technologies.” Edward Reitler, Founding Partner at Angel Round Capital Fund, went further, “Each presenter had developed cutting-edge solutions to pressing problems.”

In addition to Angel Round and Jumpstart NJ, the startups met with VC Laconia Capital Group and several individual investors. According to Panayi, interest was high enough that some are already waiting for a lead investor to set the pace, which is typical in angel investing. Private early-stage investor Ken Silbert was among those. He said, “I was thoroughly impressed with each of their accomplishments to date and the applicability for each of their technologies for the US market.”

More roadshows to come

The travelling startups were showered with the fast-paced energy of the American business and investor milieu. As Michalis Kyriacou, co-founder and CEO of Intellectra, noted, “It was a refreshing dive into a high-velocity ecosystem where ambition is met with readiness, and ideas are rapidly assessed for impact and scalability.”

Beyond the investor meetings, the roadshow had another, unexpected outcome. Panayi reveals that several investors are now eyeing participation in Kinisis’ second fund.

Panayi is clear-eyed about the long game. He stresses that the roadshow was not to promote the VC fund – Intellectra, after all, is not a portfolio company – but instead to create a repeatable template. “We wanted to take this first roadshow on ourselves to move quickly and leverage 40 years of relationships,” he explains. “We now invite others in the Cyprus ecosystem to help us refine and scale it.”

The next edition is already in the works, with potential tweaks including adding a dedicated 5-minute pitch segment for each startup before the panel discussion. “We should be showcasing more of what we’ve got, instead of just talking about it,” Panayi stresses.