Maria Jose Alvarez
Maria Jose Alvarez
WNT Ventures Managing Partner
Maria Jose is Managing Partner of WNT Ventures, a New Zealand based deep tech Venture Capital. With over a decade of experience as a founder turned investor, Maria Jose has seen first-hand the evolution of the NZ deep tech landscape.
MJ is a Biotechnology Engineer and the Founder & CEO of VidaOx, a Chilean biotech start-up that gave a second life to wine waste. In New Zealand, MJ has invested and worked with hundreds of entrepreneurs. At WNT Ventures, MJ is focused on investing Fund 3, managing portfolio companies from Fund 2 and 3, and raising Fund 4, a $35 - $50m fund to build another cohort of world-changing, deep tech companies.
Maria Jose's passion is supporting entrepreneurs through investment, commercialisation, and growth. Besides her role at WNT Ventures, Maria Jose is an Independent Committee member in several organisations focused on science and technology ventures in Chile and NZ, such as Return On Science, and Start-Up Science, the Seed Accelerator and Investment arm of the Chilean Ministry of Science. MJ is a NZ Woman of Influence 2021 finalist in the Diversity category, a TEDx speaker, and a mentor to early-stage start-ups and entrepreneurs.
MJ is a Biotechnology Engineer and the Founder & CEO of VidaOx, a Chilean biotech start-up that gave a second life to wine waste. In New Zealand, MJ has invested and worked with hundreds of entrepreneurs. At WNT Ventures, MJ is focused on investing Fund 3, managing portfolio companies from Fund 2 and 3, and raising Fund 4, a $35 - $50m fund to build another cohort of world-changing, deep tech companies.
Maria Jose's passion is supporting entrepreneurs through investment, commercialisation, and growth. Besides her role at WNT Ventures, Maria Jose is an Independent Committee member in several organisations focused on science and technology ventures in Chile and NZ, such as Return On Science, and Start-Up Science, the Seed Accelerator and Investment arm of the Chilean Ministry of Science. MJ is a NZ Woman of Influence 2021 finalist in the Diversity category, a TEDx speaker, and a mentor to early-stage start-ups and entrepreneurs.
Related Sessions
New Zealand Venture Capital: Funding the Next Generation of Innovators
THU, OCT 19, 10:30 AM
Conference
The New Zealand innovation ecosystem has benefited from over a decade of growth. In the last 10 years we have seen the Venture Capital scene go from inception to a vibrant market with almost 30 different funds investing in the companies of tomorrow.
But after the SaaS successes of the likes of TradeMe, Xero, Vend, and Timely, investors and entrepreneurs are chasing the next unicorn company that is using science and engineering to change the world. Taking deeptech companies from lab to market, is not an easy task, and it requires large amounts of patient capital.
In this session you will hear the biggest learnings, challenges, and anecdotes from the investors backing the deeptech companies taking New Zealand to the forefront of innovation. You will hear about what investors look for when backing ambitious founders, what to think of when translating your research into a commercial endeavour, and tips and tricks from failed experiences.
