Yaron Valler, Founder of Target Global, a European venture capital firm managing more than €3 billion. With over three decades of experience as an engineer, entrepreneur and investor, Yaron has backed more than 15 unicorns, including companies such as Delivery Hero and DocPlanner.
Yaron shares the lessons he's learnt from decades of investing, why understanding people is the most important skill in venture capital and what he looks for in exceptional founders. His ideal combination is simple: low ego, high energy and an obsessive attention to detail.
The conversation also explores Yaron's new book, The New Europeans, which examines the relationship between immigration, entrepreneurship and economic growth. Yaron argues that outsiders often make exceptional entrepreneurs because they see problems differently, challenge established assumptions and take risks others might avoid.
James and Hector discuss what this means for Europe's future, the importance of integration and how governments can better harness the economic potential of migration. Yaron illustrates his thinking through investments in DocPlanner and Delivery Hero, where international founders helped build businesses across borders.
The conversation then turns to artificial intelligence. Yaron explains why he's become more cautious about traditional enterprise software, the challenges of building defensible AI applications and his growing interest in frontier technologies beyond conventional large language models.
Topics Covered
- Yaron's journey from engineering and entrepreneurship into venture capital
- Building Target Global into a €3 billion investment firm
- Lessons from backing more than 15 unicorns
- Why understanding people is the most important skill in investing
- Identifying founders with low ego, high energy and attention to detail
- The thesis behind Yaron's new book, The New Europeans
- Why immigrants and outsiders can make exceptional entrepreneurs
- Immigration, integration and European economic growth
- How DocPlanner and Delivery Hero expanded across borders
- Why Yaron is becoming more cautious about enterprise software
- Building defensible businesses in the AI era
- Opportunities in frontier AI and next-generation semiconductors
- Yaron's Future Unicorn prediction, Axonic Labs
- His dream dinner party guests: Mark Twain, Neil Armstrong and Elon Musk
After decades of investing across multiple technology cycles, Yaron's perspective brings together two important ideas: exceptional companies are built by exceptional people, and some of the biggest opportunities emerge when founders approach familiar problems from an entirely different perspective.
A fascinating conversation about venture capital, immigration, European competitiveness and the future of technology investing.