Leopold von Schlenk-Barnsdorf
About Leopold von Schlenk-Barnsdorf
Dr. Leopold von Schlenk-Barnsdorf is a fifth-generation shareholder and Supervisory Board member of Schlenk SE, an international manufacturer of metal powders, pigments and foils. He completed a PhD on business model innovation in family firms at Universität Witten/Herdecke in 2020.
He then helped set up the family business initiative FamilienUnternehmerTUM at UnternehmerTUM in Munich, where he has worked since 2021 and is listed as co-founder. He also co-founded the next-gen community The Next Circle and works as a Value Creation Advisor for selected startups and VC funds, including with Auxxo. He mentors at the XPRENEURS incubator and is a fellow at 10x Founders.
Public sources describe him as a Family Business Angel who invests through his family investment holding. The only dated angel investment we could confirm is Zeit AI (September 2026). Fund size, number of investments and exits are not public.
Zeit AI raised a seed round in September 2026, reported as EUR 5.0M (about $5.8M). He is named among the individual angels, alongside Christian Lindner, Mario Götze, Charlie Songhurst and Robert Fink. Institutional backers include Y Combinator, Hasso Plattner Ventures (HPVC), the Sequoia Capital Scout Fund and ACE Ventures. Zeit AI is a Y Combinator S24 company that builds an autonomous data engineer for European mid-market firms. The co-founders say the company passed $1M ARR in its first year after YC.
He describes his focus as early-stage B2B and deep tech startups. His stated edge is access to industrial know-how and family business networks, which he uses to connect founders with corporate partners. He has said publicly that the German Mittelstand is underrated as an accelerator for deep tech startups. He is based in Munich. No check size has been published.
- Zeit AI: autonomous data engineer for European mid-market companies; angel in the September 2026 seed round.
- Plato (platoapp.ai): lists him among its angel investors; the investment year is not stated.
- famcap.com/2026/07/how-entrepreneurial-families-engage-with-venture-a-
- auxxo.de/about
- forum.unternehmertum.de/dr-leopold-von-schlenk-barnsdorf
- simplify.jobs/c/Zeit-AI-YC-S24
- cbinsights.com/investor/charlie-songhurst
- linkedin.com/in/jonasotten
- de.linkedin.com/in/leopold-schlenk
- theorg.com/org/unternehmertum/org-chart/dr-leopold-von-schlenk-barnsdo
Investing activity
Leopold von Schlenk-Barnsdorf appears in 1 AI deal tracked by the Lounge deals desk. The rounds are mostly Seed, with a median round size of $6M. The most recent is Zeit AI (Seed, $5.8M (EUR 5.0M), Sep 2026).
Leopold von Schlenk-Barnsdorf most often invests alongside Martin Schoeller, Cervin Ventures, Mario Götze and Sequoia Scout, and the companies they back on Lounge are mostly in AI.
Deals
Frequently asked questions about Leopold von Schlenk-Barnsdorf
Who is Leopold von Schlenk-Barnsdorf?
He is a Munich-based family business expert and angel investor. He is a fifth-generation shareholder and Supervisory Board member of Schlenk SE and a co-founder of FamilienUnternehmerTUM at UnternehmerTUM.
Has Leopold von Schlenk-Barnsdorf invested in AI startups?
Yes. He is named as an angel in Zeit AI's seed round of September 2026, reported as EUR 5.0M (about $5.8M). Zeit AI builds an autonomous data engineer for European mid-market companies.
What stage and sectors does Leopold von Schlenk-Barnsdorf back?
He describes investing in early-stage B2B and deep tech startups. He is particularly interested in startups that can work with industrial and family business partners.
What is Leopold von Schlenk-Barnsdorf's check size?
He has not published a check size, and none of the sources we found state one.
What can founders expect beyond capital from him?
He offers connections to industrial and family business networks and corporate partners. A LinkedIn recommendation from a founder describes him as well connected in B2B, but this is one person's opinion.
How can founders contact Leopold von Schlenk-Barnsdorf?
His public profile is on LinkedIn. We found no personal website or X account.
Is Leopold von Schlenk-Barnsdorf an angel investor?
Yes. Leopold von Schlenk-Barnsdorf invests personally as an angel.
What AI companies has Leopold von Schlenk-Barnsdorf invested in?
Leopold von Schlenk-Barnsdorf's AI investments include Zeit AI. The 1 round on Lounge are listed on this page with amounts, dates and co-investors.
What stage does Leopold von Schlenk-Barnsdorf invest at?
In the rounds tracked on Lounge, Leopold von Schlenk-Barnsdorf has invested at Seed, with a median round of $6M.
Who does Leopold von Schlenk-Barnsdorf co-invest with?
Leopold von Schlenk-Barnsdorf's most frequent co-investors on Lounge are Martin Schoeller (1 deal), Cervin Ventures (1 deal), Mario Götze (1 deal), Sequoia Scout (1 deal) and ACE Ventures (1 deal).