How to hire deep tech leaders across the Atlantic

What to think about when it comes to deep tech leadership

 

Leadership in deep tech requires a different mindset from traditional startups. Founders are building companies, commercialising complex technologies, navigating long development cycles, and operating in rapidly evolving AI-driven markets.

The strongest leadership teams combine technical depth, commercial thinking, and adaptability.

Grant Hayward, Partner at Erevena, comments in a new Drumbeat Capital survey on deep tech and transatlantic recruiting.

“The deep tech founders we’ve worked with who’ve built successfully across the Atlantic understand something their peers often miss. That accessing the best talent, regardless of geography, is not a cost to be managed but an investment to be maximised.

Those who invest in expertise, relationships, and cultural understanding gain hard-to-replicate advantages. Those who treat it casually pay a price beyond the financial.

The Atlantic is not a barrier. For the founders willing to cross it properly, it is the opportunity.”

3 takeaways for deep tech in 2026

 

Our report with Drumbeat Capital brings together perspectives from across the deep tech landscape. The full report explores a range of insights, which you can download here.

Grant Hayward highlighted three takeaways that capture the report’s most important conclusions – insights we believe every deep tech leader should keep in mind.

Deep tech’s next winners won’t be regional, they will be transatlantic

 

The data highlighted in the recent deep tech report shows the best deep tech companies won’t be built in regional silos. Outside China, the winners will be those that successfully bridge two worlds: the capital and commercial scale of the US with Europe’s engineering excellence and industrial heritage.

Deep tech is no longer a niche

 

As software moats erode, fresh capital is flooding into physical technologies across defence, quantum, semiconductors, and advanced manufacturing. Deep tech is no longer a niche; it’s the next dominant cycle.

Europe’s engineering depth is a structural advantage – not a funding gap

 

Europe produces proportionally more STEM graduates than the US, and this shows in the quality of deep tech companies emerging from places like Delft, Cambridge, Paris, and Munich. So, the gap has never been about talent. It’s been capital and commercial scale, and this is where the transatlantic bridge closes.

Making your first external leadership hire in deep tech? Here is what to consider:

 

In the report, Erevena explores several key considerations around transatlantic hiring, including the critical question of who to hire first in deep tech. For European deep tech founders expanding into the US, the first hire is often either commercial or technical.

A commercial-first hire, typically a VP of Sales or Head of North America, works when the technology is mature enough to clearly demonstrate value. This hire can generate early revenue, build customer relationships, and validate demand while the core team remains in Europe.

A technical-first hire is more appropriate when the product requires localisation, regulatory adaptation, or deep integration with US-specific infrastructure, particularly in sectors like medtech, fintech, or aerospace.

This is not an emotional decision. It is determined by product readiness, customer proximity, regulatory context, and the founding team’s own strengths and weaknesses.

US founders making first European hires

 

For US founders expanding into Europe, it is important to recognise that Europe is not a single market. It consists of distinct labour markets, each with its own legal, cultural, and operational realities, from contracts to payroll and benefits.

For the first one to five hires in a new country, using an Employer of Record (EOR) or Professional Employer Organisation (PEO) is usually the most practical option.

This is more cost-effective than setting up a legal entity, which is slower and more complex. Once a company reaches five or more employees in one country and has long-term conviction, establishing a local entity becomes more viable.

Co-founder at Qblox, Niels Bultink, reinforces this point: “When opening your first US office, cultural fit isn’t a nice-to-have, it’s the foundation. Choose wisely as that first person sets the tone, the norms, and the DNA of your transatlantic organisation for the years ahead.”

European founders making first US hires

 

The US market moves faster, compensation expectations are higher, and leadership profiles that worked in the past may not fit today’s AI-driven environment.

Founders need leaders who combine technical credibility, commercial execution, and adaptability at scale.

You can read more about considerations European founders should keep in mind when making their first US hires here.

Deep tech leadership hiring overseas is not simply an operational exercise

Consider a leading search firm for deep tech and AI sectors

Companies building globally in AI and deep tech face a unique challenge: they are competing for a relatively small pool of highly specialised talent on an international stage.

Successful founders treat transatlantic hiring as a strategic capability, not an operational exercise. They invest accordingly through local expertise, trusted advisors, or partnerships with leading deep tech and AI recruiting firms that provide access to hard-to-reach talent.

Those who build these capabilities early create harder-to-replicate organisations.

To read the full report in collaboration with Drumbeat Capital, please see here. The report also features insights from deep tech industry leaders on the sector’s evolution, including coMind, constellr, Cradle, Spore.Bio, Qblox and Jua.ai.

Erevena supports deep tech and AI start-ups with international hiring as they scale into new markets overseas.

If you are looking for a search partner to assist you on that journey, you can get in contact here.

FAQS:

 

What should the first hire in a deep-tech startup be?

 

Your first key hire is usually either technical or commercial, depending on the company’s stage. Early product development often requires strong technical leadership, while startups entering the market may benefit more from a commercial hire focused on customers, partnerships, and growth.

What to look out for when looking for the leading recruiting firms for deep tech and AI sectors?

 

Look for firms with proven experience in deep tech and AI hiring, strong networks across the US and Europe, and an understanding of highly specialised technical roles. The best recruiters combine technical fluency with commercial insight, move quickly, and know how to attract senior talent in competitive markets.