For founders
An investor for your technology company – in growth and in difficulty.
Whether your company is growing or short of funds, STI starts with what you have built. We invest our own money and bring engineers and industrial contacts from our group.
Growing companies
Capital with an engineering team behind it
Between a working prototype and serious revenue, a technology company needs more than money: a pilot site, test capacity, an industrial customer, and engineers who can turn a laboratory set-up into something a plant will accept.
STI's group includes an industrial engineering company and a certified R&D company. When we invest, the support they provide is agreed for your project.
- Seed and early-stage investment in technology companies with protectable IP
- Industrialisation: process design, instrumentation, embedded systems, software
- IP strategy: filings, freedom to operate (use without infringing third-party rights), licensing
- Introductions to industrial customers and EU programmes
- Co-investment with other investors where that strengthens the round
Companies in difficulty
Short of funds? Talk to us early.
Earlier contact usually leaves more options to examine. It does not suspend directors' duties or legal deadlines. We would rather hear from you early, confidentially, and help you see the options clearly.
Option 01
Bridge or rescue investment
Capital to reach a defined milestone – a pilot result, a contract, a financing round – usually with conditions and sometimes a change of control.
Option 02
Restructuring with an investor
A restructuring plan agreed with creditors, with STI providing new investment or buying a viable unit.
Option 03
IP purchase with licence back
One possible structure: STI buys the patents and code and licenses them back. It needs a lawful seller, fair terms and any required creditor, court or third-party approvals.
Option 04
Joining our group
The technology and, with their agreement, the people join one of our operating companies, which already has customers and infrastructure.
Option 05
Orderly sale or licence
If a restart is not realistic, a structured sale or licence to an industrial buyer can keep the technology in use.
Option 06
Purchase within a procedure
Once a formal procedure has started, the authorised seller and the required approvals determine who can negotiate and transfer assets. We deal with that seller.
Not every situation has a rescue. Where we cannot help, we tell you plainly. Any transaction before a procedure must be at a fair price and properly documented with your advisers: transactions that harm creditors can be challenged later.
Before the first call
What helps us help you
You do not need a data room to start. A short, accurate picture is more useful than a polished presentation.
- What the technology does and what it has proven (technology readiness level, pilots, customers)
- Cash position, monthly costs and the next payment or decision date
- Debts, pledges and the main creditors
- Who owns the IP – the company, founders, a university, a former employer
- Shareholders, investor rights and public funding with conditions attached
- Key people and what they need to stay
Your duties as a director. If insolvency is possible, obtain independent legal and insolvency advice promptly. Directors have legal obligations, which may include a duty to file within a fixed period, and the consequences can be personal. STI is a potential investor or buyer, not your adviser, and nothing on this site is legal advice.
What you can expect from us
- Discreet handling from the first message, and a confidentiality agreement before confidential details – subject to applicable legal duties
- A clear answer within five working days on whether we will look further
- Plain explanations of what we propose and why
- Respect for the people who built the technology – a restart usually needs them
Questions founders ask
Frequently asked questions
Will talking to you trigger anything with my creditors or investors?
A conversation with us does not by itself notify anyone. Information is handled with discretion, and under a confidentiality agreement once one is signed, subject to your own legal duties and lawful disclosures. A confidentiality agreement does not create legal professional privilege.
Do you only invest in Slovakia?
No. We are based in Košice and invest in Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Poland and across Europe. Cross-border situations are common in deep tech.
Can I stay involved if you buy the IP?
Often, yes. A purchase of the IP with a licence back to a company led by the founders is a structure we are glad to consider, where it is lawful and the required approvals are obtained. The technology needs the people who created it.
Which sectors?
Industrial and process technologies, advanced materials, applied AI and data, embedded systems and IoT, measurement and instrumentation, energy and environment, food and bio-based technologies. We look at others where our engineers can assess the technology properly.
Do you take over companies cheaply when they are weak?
We make offers that reflect the real situation and that we can stand behind. A proposal may change the ownership, the control and the roles of the founders; we explain the price and the conditions, and you should take independent advice before you decide.
A confidential first conversation
Tell us where you stand. If we are not the right partner, we will say so quickly.