StartupLab

Investment decisions are led by Gisle Østereng, Head of Investments, reporting to CEO Marie Mostad. Co-founder Per Einar Dybvik remains closely involved as Partner. The investment team operates within Startuplab Ventures, the firm's direct-investing entity, which evaluates pre-seed and seed-stage companies, typically those already admitted to the incubator or accelerator programs.

StartupLab operates a hybrid model: an incubator providing workspace and services to more than 100 startups, a three-month accelerator program for selected teams, and a direct-investment vehicle — Startuplab Ventures — that writes equity checks. This three-layer structure allows the firm to support companies with non-financial resources early and invest selectively, without operating as a limited-partner fund marketing to external LPs in the traditional venture sense.

Available sourcing describes StartupLab executing direct pre-seed and seed investments through Startuplab Ventures. There is no public indication that the firm commits as a limited partner to external venture funds. Its capital deployment is concentrated on companies within its own incubator and accelerator pipelines, plus select external Norwegian startups that fit the sector focus.

Deal flow originates primarily from the incubator — which houses over 100 active startups at any time — and the accelerator program, giving the investment team multi-month visibility into founding teams before a formal raise. Additional sourcing comes through the firm's corporate-partnership network involving large Norwegian energy, construction, and financial-services companies that refer startups for industry-specific tracks.

The firm publicly signals active focus on enterprise software, AI/ML, fintech, climate tech, energy transition, construction tech, and hardware. StartupLab has not published explicit exclusion criteria, but its industry programs and portfolio density suggest a preference for B2B and deep-tech verticals over consumer internet, social platforms, or life sciences.

StartupLab's physical operations are concentrated in Norway, with hubs in Oslo and Bergen. While its programs and investment activity are Norway-centric, the firm explicitly targets companies capable of scaling internationally. Its corporate-partnership model is designed to give Norwegian startups access to global enterprises and later-stage capital networks outside the Nordics.