- Alex from The Startup VC Insider
- Posts
- The AI Age, DSR Investing & the Rise of Agent-Led SaaS
The AI Age, DSR Investing & the Rise of Agent-Led SaaS
What VCs are backing, where entrepreneurs should build, and how defence is quietly reshaping tech
Alex Leigh
May 22, 2025
Dear Reader,
This week we’re bringing you straight into the heart of the new industrial revolution: AI-powered, resource-constrained, and infrastructure-led. From the frontlines of the FPC Spring 2025 Seminar in London to new perspectives on SaaS and DSR investing, it’s clear that investors are focused, entrepreneurs are energised, and the landscape is shifting fast.
Let’s jump in.
🔦 Weekly Spotlight
FPC Spring 2025 Investment Seminar - London
Back in action with Jerome Engel of UC Berkeley, we dove deep into the AI-fueled tectonic shifts in venture capital:
Venture capitalists may not be industry experts, but they lead the charge on innovation.
AI = Industrial Revolution 2.0.
VCs allocate more than capital—they allocate momentum.
57.9% of deal value in 2025 was in AI/ML, although it only made up 27.8% of deal volume.
Time is everything. Underperforming investments don’t get a second chance.
APIs and dashboards are out. AI agents running backend intelligence are in.
Meanwhile, UK Innovation & Science Seed Fund (UKI2S) is still actively investing at the pre-Seed+ in:
Fusion
Defence & Security (this is my main focus)
Space
Partner Innovation
Engineering Biology
Knowledge Assets (aka government-generated IP)
These aren’t sectors: they're cross-cutting priorities. UKI2S loves IP-rich companies built to last. If that sounds like you, submit your deck here.
Thanks to Sara Banares for the amazing photos and support as always!
🔗Check out the LinkedIn post here
💸 VC Perspective
SaaS is dead. Long live SaaS.
We’re witnessing the end of “log in and click around” software. Welcome to the Service as a Service era:
No more dashboards.
Ask → Get → Move on.
AI agents fetch, trigger, and resolve.
Who will win? Deep integrations, AI-native infrastructure, Durable IP, Backend resilience.
VCs are putting money into companies that build intelligent workflows, not pretty interfaces. So build deep, build smart, and build for what’s next.
📱 Watch & read the LinkedIn post.
@thetippytopblog SaaS is dead. Long live SaaS. We’re entering a new era where static UIs and dashboards are relics of the past, and intelligent agents do t... See more
👩🚀 Entrepreneur Corner
VCs are ready to deploy. Are you ready to receive?
The UK is buzzing. Summer is here, and so is capital. Every investor I speak with is underdeployed and actively seeking risk-adjusted bets.
📍 Europe feels close again.
📍 Great entrepreneurs have tailwinds.
📍 Be bold, build well.
And a word of caution: don’t get lazy with AI just because quantum is coming.
At The Economist’s Commercialising Quantum Global conference, I reminded the crowd:
“Quantum won’t make bad models better.”
That’s why we back teams like Luffy AI—neural nets that learn like your brain, shedding the compute weight. Up to 100x more efficient.
Efficiency still matters. So keep lean and curious.
📱 Watch the panel clip here.
UK Founders: “We’re going to the US because it’s easier to raise capital” – Fake News!
The US market isn’t what it was 6–12 months ago. In fact, it’s seized up. US founders are now reaching out to UK VCs. I’ve had three serious approaches just last week: founders ready to move to the UK, hook, line, and sinker. Let’s not forget many legendary US entrepreneurs are expats. My bet? We’ll see more top-tier talent coming to UK shores, especially with rising capital gains tax in the States. Entrepreneurs adapt. That’s what they do. So like I said before: hold the line. Batten down the hatches. Keep building. The UK is the centre of the world, summer in Europe is here, single market access could return, and the good times are just around the corner.
📱 Check out the video here. It’s certainly generating a buzz!
🧠 Common Ground / Industry Trends
Medtech meets Defence: Dual-Use in Action
Superb joining Prof Andrew Owens at the Royal College of Surgeons of England to explore how defence applications are catalysing innovation in medical tech.
Dual-use innovation thrives when:
⚔️ Defence develops and validates tech in critical conditions
💰 Steady funding supports R&D
📈 The private sector scales it globally
📱 Dual-use medtech is more than a trend. It’s a launchpad for scalable impact.
❓ Ask Alex
This week’s question: What is DSR?
Defence, Security & Resilience (DSR) investing is a thematic umbrella for areas you already care about:
Energy resilience
Climate adaptation
Food security
Advanced defence technologies
I joined a great panel introduced by Shruti Iyengar and moderated by Francis Neill of Silicon Microgravity Ltd, with:
Nicola Sinclair (Twin Track Ventures)
Nick Barsby (DASA)
Patrick P. Rose (SPRIND)
Me, of course 🎙️
The summary: Resilience covers everything investors were already doing. Energy resilience, food, climate, you name it. So DSR isn’t a new sector. It’s just growing in popularity. As investors, you can choose how much you want to dial up your appetite - full defence, a bit of security or sticking comfortably with resilience. But never offence - well, that’s my policy anyway.
Want your question answered? Reply to this email or DM me on LinkedIn or TikTok.
📅 Events
✅ Future Planet Capital Partners Day 2025 - Wrap-Up
Last week’s event was electric. Between DSR deep dives, strategic pension capital panels, and rapid-fire startup pitches, the breaks stole the show.
That’s when deals moved forward, ideas cross-pollinated, and momentum was truly felt.
Big shoutout to Sara Banares for the behind-the-scenes magic.
📱 Check out the pic of the day.
Want to pitch or partner with us? Reach out directly or visit futureplanetcapital.com.
🧭 Closing Thoughts
Thanks for being here.
If there’s one theme from this week, it’s this: innovation doesn't slow down, it compounds. Stay ahead by building durable value, understanding strategic capital, and backing smart teams solving real-world problems.
Here’s to reaching the Tippy Top, together.
Best
Alex
📩 Share this newsletter if it helped you.
🔗Subscribe here if you were forwarded this.