European Investment Bank Backs Greek Foodtech Company's Expansion Plan
EU invests 20 million euros in Greek food technology firm STIQ
The European Investment Bank (EIB) has announced a €20 million investment in STIQ, a Greek foodtech company, to expand its AI-driven cloud kitchen platform across Europe. This investment is part of the EIB Group's financing in 2024, which is not specific to any one sector or category.
STIQ, founded and led by Konstantinos Davaris, plans to expand its operations to 30 kitchen hubs across Europe by 2029. This expansion will support STIQ's international rollout beyond Greece, enabling scalable, sustainable food delivery solutions across new EU markets.
The AI-powered platform integrates food production, logistics, and software to optimise demand forecasting, dynamic menu adjustments, inventory control, and smart delivery routing. These features aim to reduce food waste, cut CO2 emissions, and improve operational efficiency in the food services sector. The platform also enables grouped order deliveries and smart routing to minimise delivery time and carbon footprint.
The EIB funding, backed by the InvestEU programme under its future technologies windows, will specifically back STIQ’s technology development, digital innovation, logistics automation, and the rollout of electric delivery fleets to further enhance sustainability and waste reduction.
This investment in STIQ is part of the EIB Group's efforts to boost Europe's competitiveness and security. In 2024, the EIB Group provided a total of €89bn in new financing to over 900 high-impact projects.
STIQ currently employs 200 workers and operates a single virtual restaurant platform consisting of five kitchen hubs in Athens serving over 20 brands to a potential market of 3 million residents. The funding will help STIQ scale up its technology platform and expand into new European markets.
The investment in STIQ is one of many projects aimed at boosting Europe's competitiveness and security. For instance, €84.8m in loans were provided for Latvia solar projects by the EBRD, EIB, and SEB, which are part of the energy transition and climate & environment categories.
It's important to note that the €20m investment in STIQ is independent of other investments such as the $40m investment in a robot mushroom project co-led by Cibus Capital or the $100m loan provided by Export Finance Australia to the EAAIF.
In summary, STIQ’s expansion plan funded by the EIB entails rapidly scaling its AI-powered cloud kitchens across Europe, while leveraging advanced AI-driven demand forecasting and logistics to reduce food waste and environmental impact in the fast-casual food delivery sector.
- The European Investment Bank's €20 million investment in STIQ, a Greek foodtech company, is part of a broader strategy for blended finance, as it aligns with the InvestEU programme's focus on future technologies.
- STIQ's expansion plan, driven by this investment, includes the development of technology, digital innovation, and logistics automation, which are all key aspects of business and technology.
- As STIQ expands its AI-driven cloud kitchen platform across Europe, it aims to contribute to the energy transition by reducing food waste and cutting CO2 emissions, demonstrating a commitment to a sustainable lifestyle.
- This investment in STIQ is one of many instances where the European Investment Bank is leveraging financing to support various sectors, including food-and-drink, as part of its broader mission to boost Europe's competitiveness and security.
