Robert Bosch Venture Capital

Claus Schmidt, Managing Director at RBVC, is located in the Stuttgart office and responsible for the technical strategies and decisions at RBVC. Apart from serving as a partner in RBVC he maintains the contacts to the Bosch management organisation. After 24 years in different operational jobs with IBM, DEC and including 16 years with Bosch he joined RBVC as one of the founding managing directors at the end of 2007. Claus gained insight into various markets, such as disk drives, display technology, automotive electronics and semiconductors and into different management challenges starting from research, development, quality and reliability engineering to purchasing, P&L repsonsibility and general management. He got his Ph.D. from the University of Stuttgart after staying at the Max-Planck Institute for Metal Physics in Stuttgart.

Gitte Bedford is an Investment Principal at RBVC, based in the Stuttgart office. She is involved in all stages of direct company as well as fund investments. Gitte is an experienced professional with a strong financial background. She started her career in the Corporate Treasury department at Robert Bosch GmbH and most recently held positions as Director, Finance for Bosch’s Asia-Pacific operations in Shanghai and as Managing Director of Robert Bosch Finance Plc near London. She has had extensive exposure to all aspects of corporate finance and treasury as well as tax and legal issues, from setting up new companies to expanding businesses and acquisitions and joint ventures. Gitte holds a degree in Business Informatics from HTW Berlin and a Master of Science in Finance from Strathclyde University, Glasgow, U.K..

Hongquan Jiang joined RBVC in March 2008. In his position as Senior Investment Director he focuses on evaluating investment opportunities, internal and external networking and supports transaction activities. Hongquan has been working for the Robert Bosch GmbH since 1996 and has a profound understanding of the automotive and electronics industry. His previous positions at Robert Bosch include Investment Manager at the corporate venture capital unit of Bosch, Manager Business Development to launch a new business unit in health care and Project Leader for various technological and platform developments in the automotive electronics business unit. Hongquan holds a Dr.rer.nat. (PhD) and Diploma degree in physics from the Technical University Berlin, Germany.

Dieter Kraft, Investment Partner at RBVC, is worldwide responsible for the search area Automation & Controls and the European Venture Business of RBVC. Being 19 Years with Bosch Dieter holds contacts to the Bosch management organization and is broad based in technology. Before he joined RBVC in June 2009 he was heading the Systems engineering Division of Hybrid Electric- and Electric Vehicles within Bosch worldwide. Dieter’s professional background is operational business within Hardware / Software of automotive electronics and Software for telecommunication networks. Heading a Corporate Research Division he was in charge of communication and energy networks, Software methods and architectures, electric drives, human machine interaction and new business areas for Bosch. Dieter got his PhD at University of Frankfurt in nuclear and atomic physics and got some insights to mathematics, pharmacology and nuclear medicine during his studies.

Markus Thill is Managing Director with RBVC and based in Frankfurt. He is responsible for RBVC's commercial fund and direct investment strategy, its commercial operations, as well as reporting into Bosch group management. For more than 17 years of his professional career, Markus has learned to quickly identify an organisation’s competitive position and its critical operational requirements, is passionate about people management, setting clear goals and intense, hands-on follow-through. Prior to co-founding RBVC, he worked as Vice President of Bosch's global corporate strategy department both on strategies for existing as well as for new business areas of Bosch. Before joining Bosch, Markus was a senior manager in leading strategy consulting firms, heading and implementing projects on strategic and operational issues as well as M&A around the globe. His clients encompassed Global Fortune 500, mid-caps, and start-up companies as well as private equity and venture capital firms. Markus holds university degrees in mathematics and physics, including a doctorate (summa cum laude) from Université de Paris (France), obtained with research work on statistical physics of disordered systems in Paris and AT&T Bell Labs (Murray Hill, NJ). He is fluent in English, German, and French and has a good working knowledge of several other European languages.

Bienna Chow is an Investment Director at RBVC and focuses on direct company investments as well as fund investments. Prior to joining RBVC, Bienna was part of the Robert Bosch GmbH's Corporate Treasury asset management team, covering pension investments, private equity and strategic holdings. An investment advisory specialist with extensive wealth management experience, she also has been actively involved in the promotion of science to youth and the public in Australia on a national level. Bienna holds a Bachelor of Commerce from the University of Melbourne and Graduate Diploma in Applied Finance and Investments.  She is a CFA charterholder and speaks English and German.

Constanze Kalweit is the team assistant of RBVC based in Frankfurt. She finished her university studies of business administration with major in Finance and Human Resources Management. Prior to RBVC, she gained experience with Deutsche Bank in the Human Resources Department, located in Frankfurt and New York and with an HR Consulting firm focused on Executive Search.