The Dawn of Applied Innovation—Fueling a Smarter, Greener, More Connected Future
As the sun rises on a new era of technology-driven transformation, the stories of SkyNRG, Outter, and Sylvi offer more than headlines—they serve as signals of deeper shifts rippling across energy, commerce, and education.
From the skies above Europe to the online stores of tomorrow and the voices echoing in digital classrooms, these startups are reimagining legacy systems with purpose-built innovation:
- SkyNRG isn’t just building refineries; it’s refining our relationship with the planet by tackling one of aviation’s toughest climate challenges.
- Outter isn’t just coding smarter features for ecommerce; it’s giving independent merchants a fighting chance in an AI-dominated economy.
- Sylvi isn’t just another language app; it’s a conversation catalyst—reshaping how we learn to speak, connect, and belong across borders.
Though their missions differ, their stories share a common thread: a belief that technology, when thoughtfully applied, can empower real people in real ways.
The road ahead won’t be free of friction. Sustainable fuels must scale. AI infrastructure must remain ethical. Language learning must stay human. But if these companies succeed, they won’t just disrupt industries—they’ll redefine what progress sounds like, looks like, and feels like in the everyday lives of global citizens.
Reimagining the Skies: SkyNRG Secures €300M to Propel Sustainable Aviation Fuel Industry
In a bold move to decarbonize the aviation sector, Dutch sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) pioneer SkyNRG has secured a staggering €300 million in funding to scale up the production and accessibility of clean fuel alternatives for commercial airlines. The capital injection signals a major vote of confidence in the potential of green aviation and marks one of the largest investments in SAF to date.
The funding round was led by Macquarie Asset Management, which committed to backing SkyNRG’s ambitious plan to build dedicated SAF production facilities across Europe and North America. The investment also attracted support from other key stakeholders in aviation, infrastructure, and climate finance.
A New Chapter in Green Aviation
SkyNRG, founded in 2010, has long been at the forefront of efforts to reduce the aviation industry’s carbon footprint. The company has supplied SAF to over 40 airlines and has partnerships with global leaders like KLM, Microsoft, and Shell.
This latest funding round is intended to accelerate the construction of Europe’s first dedicated SAF plant in the Netherlands, with an annual production capacity of 100,000 tonnes. That’s enough to reduce CO₂ emissions by up to 270,000 tonnes annually, equivalent to removing nearly 100,000 cars from the road.
CEO Philippe Lacamp emphasized the urgency and scale of the mission.
“Aviation accounts for around 2–3% of global emissions, but demand is growing fast. With this investment, we’re moving from ambition to execution—turning our pipeline of SAF facilities into reality and providing airlines with cleaner fuel at scale,” he said.
What Makes SAF So Promising?
Sustainable aviation fuel is made from renewable feedstocks like used cooking oil, waste fats, algae, and non-food biomass. Unlike traditional jet fuel, SAF can reduce lifecycle greenhouse gas emissions by up to 85%.
Crucially, SAF is “drop-in” compatible, meaning it can be used in existing aircraft engines and fueling infrastructure with little or no modification—making it a practical decarbonization tool in an industry where full electrification remains decades away.
Challenges Ahead
Despite its promise, SAF currently makes up less than 1% of global aviation fuel usage due to high production costs and limited supply. SkyNRG’s €300M funding aims to tackle this head-on by unlocking economies of scale and driving down prices.
However, industry experts caution that policy support and international collaboration will be critical to SAF adoption. EU regulations are already beginning to mandate SAF usage through programs like ReFuelEU, but scaling globally will require similar policy momentum.
A Glimpse into the Future
With air travel projected to double by 2050, the pressure to green the skies is intensifying. If successful, SkyNRG’s initiative could set a new standard for how aviation can balance growth with sustainability.
The company plans to break ground on its first plant by early 2026, with commercial production targeted for 2027.
About SkyNRG:
SkyNRG is a global leader in sustainable aviation fuel solutions, supplying SAF to airlines and corporations committed to reducing aviation emissions. The company is headquartered in Amsterdam and operates with a strong commitment to sustainability, circular economy principles, and transparency.
Exclusive: Outter Raises Its Sights with €1.2M Fundraising Goal to Build Europe’s AI Infrastructure for Ecommerce
German startup Outter, a rising force in the AI SaaS landscape, is setting the stage to raise €1.2 million in funding to scale what it calls the “Shopify for AI features.” With ambitions to become Europe’s central AI infrastructure for ecommerce, Outter is positioning itself as a transformative player in the race to democratize artificial intelligence for digital businesses.
Founded in 2023 and based in Berlin, Outter offers a plug-and-play AI platform that enables ecommerce brands to seamlessly integrate smart features—like dynamic pricing, personalized search, AI-driven product recommendations, and customer behavior analytics—without building their own models from scratch.
Powering AI for the Next Generation of Online Stores
As artificial intelligence becomes a core engine for ecommerce growth, small and medium-sized retailers are increasingly left behind due to the cost and complexity of building AI systems. Outter aims to close that gap.
“Our mission is to give ecommerce businesses the same AI superpowers as Amazon or Zalando—without needing a data science team,” said co-founder and CEO Maximilian Köhler in an exclusive interview with Blacksolvent.
The platform provides a modular library of AI features that can be instantly embedded into online stores. Think of it as a low-code, backend AI toolkit built specifically for ecommerce use cases—automating everything from search bar optimization to churn prediction, A/B testing, and real-time user segmentation.
From MVP to Market Traction
Since launching its MVP in mid-2024, Outter has onboarded over 150 ecommerce clients across Germany, France, and the Netherlands. Early adopters have reported significant gains: up to 30% increase in conversion rates, 40% faster product discovery, and 20% reductions in cart abandonment.
The startup is now seeking €1.2 million in pre-seed funding to accelerate hiring, scale its feature library, and expand its go-to-market strategy across Europe. The funding round has already drawn early interest from several European venture firms and angel investors with a focus on retail tech and AI infrastructure.
A Strategic Bet on Europe’s AI Future
Köhler and co-founder Lena Hartwig, a former machine learning lead at Delivery Hero, believe that Europe is ripe for an AI-first retail transformation—but that homegrown tools need to be tailored for the continent’s regulatory, linguistic, and cultural complexity.
“We’re building the Shopify of AI, but with a European soul. That means privacy by design, multilingual capability, and tools optimized for local commerce behaviors,” Hartwig said.
The founders believe that by offering pre-built, customizable AI features through APIs and no-code dashboards, Outter can become the go-to backbone for Europe’s independent online merchants navigating the AI shift.
What’s Next?
The company plans to use the new funds to:
- Expand its engineering and product teams in Berlin and Warsaw.
- Launch native integrations with Shopify, WooCommerce, and PrestaShop.
- Roll out AI models optimized for specific verticals like fashion, beauty, and consumer electronics.
- Introduce an analytics suite to measure ROI from AI features in real-time.
With a growing waitlist and strong early adoption, Outter is already in discussions with strategic partners to co-develop industry-specific AI modules and prepare for a larger seed round in 2026.
About Outter:
Outter is a Berlin-based SaaS startup building a modular AI infrastructure platform for ecommerce. Its mission is to empower every online merchant—no matter how small—to compete with big tech by embedding powerful, intuitive AI features into their digital storefronts.
Sylvi Raises £350K to Challenge Duolingo with AI-Powered Language App Focused on Real Conversation
British edtech startup Sylvi has secured £350,000 in pre-seed funding as it launches a bold challenge to language-learning giants like Duolingo and Babbel. But Sylvi isn’t trying to compete with gamified streaks or virtual leaderboards—instead, it’s betting on what most language learners truly want: the ability to speak confidently and fluently in real conversations.
Described by early users as the “AI tutor that talks back,” Sylvi leverages generative AI to simulate real-life, voice-based conversations, adapting to the user’s speaking ability, pronunciation, vocabulary gaps, and emotional tone. The platform’s goal is simple: move users beyond passive learning and into active fluency.
From Passive Practice to Fluent Speech
While language apps like Duolingo and Rosetta Stone focus heavily on vocabulary and translation, Sylvi flips the model by placing emphasis on spoken interaction from day one. The app offers a fully voice-interactive experience powered by natural language processing and speech recognition, creating dynamic, scenario-based conversations—from ordering food in Paris to interviewing for a job in Berlin.
“People don’t learn languages to tap on screens—they want to talk,” said co-founder and CEO Amira Kingsley. “Sylvi is the first app designed to get you speaking in full sentences and thinking in your target language, not memorizing isolated words.”
Who Backed the £350K Raise?
The £350,000 pre-seed round was backed by several UK-based angel investors with backgrounds in AI, education, and SaaS, along with participation from Founders Factory and NexEd Ventures. The funding will be used to expand Sylvi’s engineering team, grow its voice model training dataset, and launch full beta access to public users in Q3 2025.
Already, over 10,000 learners across English, Spanish, and French have signed up for early access, with pilot users reporting a 70% increase in speaking confidence after just four weeks.
How Sylvi Works
Sylvi’s app centers around AI-powered voice tutors that simulate back-and-forth dialogue in practical situations. Learners receive instant spoken and written feedback on grammar, pronunciation, and natural phrasing. Users can select difficulty levels, conversation types, and learning goals (e.g., travel, business, dating).
The app’s core features include:
- Conversational AI trained on diverse accents and global dialects.
- Real-time feedback with corrections and suggested alternatives.
- Progress tracking based on fluency milestones, not points or streaks.
- An optional human tutor assist layer for premium users.
A Vision for Language Learning That Sticks
Kingsley, a former speech therapist turned AI linguist, believes the edtech market is overdue for a paradigm shift.
“The problem with most language apps is they treat users like trivia players. We treat them like future fluent speakers,” she said. “Fluency is built through speaking, not swiping.”
Sylvi’s long-term roadmap includes:
- Expanding to 10 languages by 2026.
- Integrating with wearable tech for hands-free practice.
- Developing a Sylvi for Schools platform targeting international classrooms.
Can Sylvi Out-Talk Duolingo?
While Duolingo dominates the language-learning market with over 85 million monthly users, critics have long argued that the app’s game-like design doesn’t translate well into real-world fluency. Sylvi’s founders believe the time is right for a “fluency-first” alternative—especially one built with AI at its core.
With a fresh funding round, a growing waitlist, and a laser focus on speaking proficiency, Sylvi just might be the voice-based revolution the language-learning world didn’t know it needed.
About Sylvi:
Founded in 2024, Sylvi is a UK-based AI language learning startup that helps users build real conversational fluency through interactive voice dialogue. By combining generative AI, speech recognition, and linguistics expertise, Sylvi delivers a more immersive and effective way to learn to speak new languages.
