Emerald Technology Companiesa Swiss venture capital firm, has entered into a strategic partnership with DIC Corporation, a Japanese chemical manufacturer, establishing a €52 million ($62 million) investment platform focused on emerging technologies in sensing, wearables, robotics and automation.
Emerald will act as a strategic partner of DIC, supporting the sourcing, evaluation, investment and growth of startups in Europe and North America, thereby accelerating startup investment and business creation in the rapidly growing field of physical AI.
Gina DomanigManaging Partner and CEO of Emerald Technology Ventures, said: “The partnership with DIC reflects a shared belief that the next phase of innovation will be driven by technologies that seamlessly integrate human knowledge with intelligent systems. With physical AI, the real opportunity lies in technologies that work alongside people, enhancing human capabilities rather than replacing them.
Recent media coverage of EU startups highlights sustained investment activity in physical AI; such as robotics, automation and physical AI in 2025/2026.
In Switzerland, Flexion (Zurich) raised €43 million in Series A funding to develop a reinforcement learning platform for humanoid robots, while another Swiss startup Forgis has secured €3.8 million in pre-seed funding to automate existing industrial machines. In Poland, Nomadic raised €8.3 million in a Series B extension to expand AI-powered warehouse robotics internationally, while the London-based company Stanhope AI has attracted €6.7 million in seed funding to advance adaptive AI for autonomous physical systems. In Romania, .lumen obtained a grant of 11 million euros to develop in urban robotics applications.
In total, these fundraising rounds represent approximately €73 million in disclosed funding, indicating steady capital flows into the European physical AI and intelligent automation ecosystem.
In this context, the €52 million partnership between Emerald Technology Ventures and DIC Corporation further strengthens Switzerland’s position in the sector, particularly given the presence of other Swiss robotics and automation players who have raised capital during the same period.
In this context, the €52 million Emerald-DIC investment platform is positioned in an active European funding environment where significant capital is allocated to sensing, robotics and automation technologies, covering both growth-stage industrial automation providers and early-stage robotics developers.
“By helping DIC identify, invest and collaborate with advanced startups, we will help translate emerging AI innovations into practical, human-centered solutions that act as a catalyst for DIC’s long-term business evolution.” » adds Gina.
Founded in 2000, Emerald Technology Ventures is a venture capital firm with strong expertise in industrial technology, materials and cleantech. With offices across Europe, North America and Asia, Emerald has a proven track record of sourcing startups, investing and supporting growth. DIC and Emerald have built a trusted relationship through previous fund investments and joint research activities, with this partnership establishing an even deeper framework for collaboration.
DIC Corporation is a fine chemicals company and the core of the DIC Group, a multinational organization comprising more than 170 companies, including Sun Chemical Corporation, in more than 60 countries and territories. DIC Group develops a variety of products essential to modern lifestyles, including packaging materials, display materials such as those used in television and computer screens, and high-performance materials for smartphones and other digital devices, as well as automobiles.
To further strengthen its global venture capital activities, DIC plans to establish a startup investment management subsidiary in Zurich in spring 2026.
Switzerland is gradually being recognized as one of the main European DeepTech innovation hubs, offering a dense ecosystem of startups, research institutes and industrial partners in the fields of AI, robotics and advanced materials. See the 10 Swiss startups to watch in 2025as the EU-Startups team points out.
With its headquarters in Zurich and offices in Europe, North America and Asia, Emerald is well positioned to support DIC’s on-the-ground investment activities, provide local market insights and facilitate collaboration with high-potential startups.
Takashi Ikeda, Representative Director, Chairman and Group CEO, DIC Corporation states: “For many years, DIC has been committed to meeting social imperatives by leveraging the power of materials. Our role is currently undergoing a significant transformation. The field of physical AI has the potential to reshape the relationship between people and technology, making it more natural and intuitive. Our partnership with Emerald represents a major step towards acquiring world-class expertise and networks in this area.
“By working with pioneering startups, we aim to accelerate our efforts to bring new value to society. In line with our Direct to Society business creation mechanism, we will continue to work to secure much-needed technologies and deliver experiences that will enrich people’s lives in the future..”
The field of physical AI represents a rapidly expanding market spanning multiple sectors, encompassing technologies that detect, interpret and respond to human movements and environmental conditions through intelligent systems, robotics and algorithms. Solutions such as smart sensing, wearable devices, soft robotics and automation technologies offer significant potential to improve productivity and quality of life, while closely aligning with DIC’s strengths in materials science.
This collaboration also supports DIC’s “Direct to Society (D2S)” framework, which focuses on anticipating future societal challenges and translating innovative solutions into commercially viable businesses. Collaboration between startups in the field of physical AI is a key pillar of this approach, enabling the development of new value propositions that meet real-world needs.
Through this partnership, Emerald will leverage its extensive startup sourcing capabilities, cross-border investment experience and post-investment growth support to help DIC build a diversified portfolio of more than a dozen companies over the next five years.
Together, Emerald and DIC aim to create new strategic options, accelerate innovation and support the scalable growth of startups operating at the intersection of AI, hardware and advanced materials.