This article is a part of Poland Unpacked. Weekly intelligence for decision-makers
Polish venture capital fund Montis VC has invested in Finnish startup Ambio. Its AI-powered platform helps European manufacturers source recycled plastics. Although Ambio operates in the raw materials market, its investors believe it can scale like a software company.
Polish fund Montis VC has joined the investors backing Finnish startup Ambio, which has raised EUR 5.1m to automate the procurement of recycled plastics. The funding will support further expansion across Europe, the growth of its sales team and the development of technology that matches materials to manufacturers' specific requirements. Ambio currently operates in several European markets, including Germany and the Nordic countries. Polish companies also use its platform.
The seed round was led by b2venture, a European fund investing in early-stage companies. Alongside b2venture and Montis VC, existing investor Lifeline Ventures, a Finnish venture capital firm, also participated.
Europe's supply chains need strengthening
Ambio is developing a platform designed to make trading in recycled plastics more efficient. Its technology uses agentic artificial intelligence to help manufacturers that need to increase the share of recycled materials in packaging production but face considerable technical challenges in doing so.
For Polish fund Montis VC, the investment fits a strategy focused on two areas: identifying AI-native companies and backing businesses operating in industry, energy and supply chain resilience.
"Ambio fits this strategy because it operates at the intersection of industry and raw material security. We do not view this market solely through an ESG lens. Above all, we see an opportunity to build more stable and resilient supply chains in Europe," says Michał Baś, investment director at Montis VC, who led the transaction on behalf of the fund.
Montis VC wants to offer more than capital
Launched in March 2026, Montis VC plans to make individual investments of between EUR 500,000 and EUR 2m in startups at the pre-seed and seed stages.
The investment vehicle is run by a team previously involved in developing Montis Capital. The fund is headed by Łukasz Dziekoński, with Michał Baś, Wojciech Szwankowski and Michał Gawęda also involved.
Montis VC is supported by venture partners, including Tomasz Misiak, founder of Mizyak Fund and Work Service, and Taavi Rõivas, Estonia's former prime minister and one of the architects of the country's digital transformation.
In March 2026, Montis VC announced a first closing of EUR 50m. It raised the capital from the European Investment Fund (EIF), PFR and more than 20 private investors.
Beyond providing financing, Montis VC aims to help companies scale more rapidly and access additional sources of capital across Europe. It intends to offer this broader support to Ambio as well. The fund has not disclosed the exact amount it invested in the company.
"What I can say is that our investment in Ambio falls within our standard ticket range. We are also keeping open the possibility of providing further capital in subsequent funding rounds," says Michał Baś.
Buying recycled plastic can be a lottery
According to Montis VC, another reason for investing in Ambio is the EU's growing emphasis on recycled materials. Manufacturers, however, face substantial challenges in meeting these requirements.
"With virgin plastics, manufacturers know exactly what they are getting. With recycled materials, they often only discover whether the material is suitable once it reaches the production line. Our goal is to predict that earlier, before samples are even taken," says Tommi Bergström, CEO and co-founder of Ambio.
Founded in 2023, Ambio has developed a platform connecting European manufacturers with suppliers of recycled plastics. Its technology allows companies to assess the properties of the materials they intend to use.
The platform helps manufacturers identify materials that meet specific requirements, supports quality verification and organizes procurement and delivery.
Ambio works with materials including polyethylene, polypropylene and polyamide, which are used in industries such as packaging, construction and automotive manufacturing.
The startup purchases material from recyclers and resells it to customers, taking responsibility for subsequent stages of the transaction. Data on material properties, suppliers and the outcomes of previous orders feed into its AI-powered technology.
Expert's perspective
Polish funds investing abroad is a positive development
Investing in leading foreign startups gives us an opportunity to participate in some of the biggest technological success stories. When investments succeed, the capital and returns generated can flow back to Poland and be reinvested.
Building relationships with leading international funds is equally important. We gain trust, access to top funding rounds and valuable knowledge. In the future, this could also make it easier to attract foreign capital to Polish startups.
We should not restrict ourselves to the domestic market if we want Poland to become an important player in Europe's technology ecosystem.
The EU introduces new packaging requirements
The requirement to use recycled materials in production is governed by the EU's Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR). The legislation changes the rules for designing, labeling and placing packaging on the EU market. It has been in force since August 2026.
Among other provisions, the PPWR requires recycled materials to account for at least 10% of the content of non-PET packaging – packaging that does not use polyethylene terephthalate, one of the most common plastics – by 2030. For other packaging categories, the minimum share is 35%.
Separate regulations introduce requirements for the automotive industry. Plastics used in newly approved vehicle types from September 2032 will have to contain at least 15% material recycled from post-consumer waste, rising to 25% from September 2036.
Yet these regulations are running up against market realities. According to Plastics Europe's report The Circular Economy for Plastics 2026, circular plastics, including recycled and bio-based materials, accounted for 15.8% of European plastics production in 2024.
The report also finds that demand for high-quality recycled materials at competitive prices exceeds European production.
Expert's perspective
PPWR represents a major overhaul of the packaging industry
The regulation covers packaging regardless of the material used and affects virtually the entire supply chain: packaging manufacturers and producers of packaged goods, suppliers, importers, distributors, retailers and e-commerce businesses, as well as municipal waste companies and recyclers.
The first provisions have applied since August 12, 2026, with further requirements coming into force in stages.
For businesses, this means reviewing existing packaging, working with suppliers, preparing documentation and planning the necessary investments. Some requirements will entail changes to existing technological and logistical processes, and implementation could affect product prices, business competitiveness and supply chain operations.
Businesses support the regulation's environmental objectives but emphasize that the new obligations must be technically feasible, environmentally justified and proportionate to their costs.
The aim is not to weaken environmental ambitions but to ensure that the rules genuinely reduce packaging's environmental impact rather than generating unnecessary costs and new operational problems.
Given the broad scope of these changes, legal certainty, clear guidance and consistent enforcement across all EU member states are also essential.
Europe sets the agenda but lags behind in technology
"Europe has shaped the global narrative around sustainability, but it is losing the global race for leadership in sustainable technologies. Its share of global plastics production has nearly halved since 2006. And from 2030, the PPWR will make the use of recycled materials a prerequisite for doing business," says Michał Baś, investment director at Montis VC.
According to Ambio's founders and investors, the gap between EU regulatory requirements and the current level of recycled material use means technologies such as Ambio's could play an increasingly important role.
Baś adds that another decisive factor in the investment was Ambio's ability not only to provide tools for verifying materials but also to manage the entire business process involved in purchasing them. This, he argues, gives the company the potential to scale in a way more commonly associated with software providers.
"Tommi Bergström and Elmo Pakkanen, Ambio's founders, have chosen a more difficult path than many of their competitors. Rather than building another marketplace, they have created an AI-powered platform that manages the entire transaction process, from logistics and material quality verification to sampling, complaints and financing.
"AI agents oversee the entire process. As a result, Ambio is not merely an intermediary but takes responsibility for executing the transaction," explains Michał Baś.
Key Takeaways
- Polish venture capital fund Montis VC has invested in Finnish startup Ambio. The fund participated in a seed round in which the Finnish company raised EUR 5.1m. According to Montis VC, Ambio has the potential to scale like a software business despite operating in the raw materials market.
- The EU wants to increase the use of recycled materials in packaging production. One challenge for manufacturers is that recycled plastics are much less predictable in terms of their properties and performance. Ambio's AI-powered platform aims to address this problem while streamlining the entire procurement process.
- The EU needs innovative solutions to meet its own targets. As Montis VC points out, the challenge extends beyond environmental ambitions to Europe's industrial independence and the resilience of its supply chains.