Nick Clegg, the former deputy prime minister of the United Kingdom and most recently a senior executive at Meta, has joined Hiro Capital as a partner.
The London-based venture capital firm announced his appointment as it prepares to raise its third fund, targeting $500 million in commitments.
Hiro Capital, founded by Luke Alvarez, Cherry Freeman, and Ian Livingstone, focuses on multi-stage investments across emerging domains including spatial artificial intelligence, robotics, longevity science, interactive entertainment, and space and defence technologies.
The firm typically deploys between €5 million and €50 million per company, primarily backing startups headquartered in the UK and broader Europe.
According to public disclosures, the founding team has been involved in exits and initial public offerings collectively valued at over €10 billion, including stakes in publicly traded gaming and technology firms.
Clegg’s appointment coincides with that of Yann LeCun, Meta’s outgoing chief AI scientist and a Turing Award recipient, who will serve as a strategic adviser to the fund.
LeCun’s involvement lends technical credibility to Hiro’s AI-focused thesis, while Clegg is expected to contribute geopolitical insight, regulatory navigation, and corporate governance experience, assets increasingly prized in a fragmented global tech landscape.
Clegg’s career trajectory, spanning frontline politics, EU institutions, and Silicon Valley-style tech diplomacy. After serving as deputy prime minister in the Conservative–Liberal Democrat coalition government from 2010 to 2015, Clegg joined Meta (then Facebook) in 2018 as head of global affairs and vice-president for global policy.
His role there positioned him at the intersection of technology regulation, content moderation, and international lobbying, a skill set now sought by investors seeking to back companies operating in heavily scrutinized sectors.
Hiro Capital’s strategic emphasis on “foundational technologies” aligns with European efforts to build sovereign capabilities in critical tech fields.
The EU and UK governments have increased funding and policy support for AI, semiconductors, and space infrastructure, creating fertile ground for institutional investors.
However, European VC remains outpaced by its U.S. counterpart in both scale and risk appetite; according to PitchBook, European venture funding in 2024 totalled $48 billion, less than half the U.S. figure.
Clegg’s presence may help Hiro bridge gaps between entrepreneurs, regulators, and institutional limited partners, a role less common in traditional VC but increasingly necessary in dual-use and high-compliance domains. Still, his move raises questions about the revolving door between public service and private capital, particularly as tech policy continues to evolve across jurisdictions.
