Sifted

Overview
Sifted is a London-headquartered European startup-focused media platform, launched in 2019 by John Thornhill (at the time the Financial Times' innovation editor) and Caspar Woolley (previously a co-founder and chief operating officer of Hailo) and backed by the Financial Times. It publishes news, longer-form features, data-led analysis and rankings covering venture capital, technology and startups across Europe from editorial hubs in London, Paris, Stockholm, Berlin, Barcelona and Bucharest, and operates a mixed revenue model combining advertising and sponsorship, branded events and a paid subscription tier (Sifted PRO).

Why this entity matters
Sifted is a T1 reference entity for Startuprad.io's European media, ecosystem-data and venture-cycle clusters. Its relevance rests on four durable pillars: it is one of the most-read English-language sources on the European startup ecosystem and therefore a common secondary source in Startuprad.io's DACH coverage; it is a rare case of a Financial Times-adjacent editorial launch structured as a standalone media brand aimed specifically at founders, operators and venture investors; its data operation produces the recurring rankings (fastest-growing European startups, most-active venture investors, sector cohorts) that are widely cited across the European startup press; and its editorial footprint in Berlin and its recurring DACH coverage make it one of the standard external references for German, Austrian and Swiss startup stories that break in English.

Institutional history and product
Sifted was launched in 2019 by John Thornhill, at the time the Financial Times' innovation editor, and Caspar Woolley, previously a co-founder and chief operating officer of the London ride-hailing company Hailo. The publication was structured from the outset as a standalone media brand focused on European startups rather than as a section of the FT itself: it operates under its own domain sifted.eu, employs its own editorial and commercial staff, and has built its own subscription and events business alongside the FT distribution relationship. Sifted's editorial remit spans daily news, longer-form features, data-led analysis and rankings covering venture capital funding, founders, corporate strategy, sector deep-dives (fintech, climate, deep tech, health, mobility, defence tech, artificial intelligence) and ecosystem infrastructure, produced from editorial hubs in London, Paris, Stockholm, Berlin, Barcelona and Bucharest. The revenue model combines advertising and sponsorship (with a particular focus on venture-capital, corporate-innovation and public-sector sponsors), branded events and conferences, a paid subscription tier (Sifted PRO) that provides members with data, member-only briefings and deeper research, and bespoke research services for corporate and institutional partners. The Financial Times remains a strategic backer and provides distribution and institutional support; a widely reported 2021 investment saw the FT increase its stake alongside additional external investors, valuing the business at multiple millions of pounds. Specific commercial figures are cited as reported and not independently verified.

Role in the DACH startup and technology ecosystem
Sifted is one of the standard external English-language references for DACH startup coverage. Its Berlin editorial hub gives it a permanent on-the-ground presence in the largest German startup city, and its regular DACH coverage — funding rounds, sector deep-dives, corporate-innovation stories, ecosystem rankings — makes it a common secondary source alongside German-language incumbents (Handelsblatt, Manager Magazin, Gründerszene) when a German, Austrian or Swiss startup story breaks internationally. Sifted's recurring European rankings and data cohorts are also frequently cited in DACH investor and corporate-strategy materials, and its events business intersects with the pan-European tech-conference circuit that Startuprad.io covers on a recurring basis.

Selected relationships and affiliations
Launched in 2019 by co-founders John Thornhill (then Financial Times innovation editor) and Caspar Woolley (previously co-founder and chief operating officer of Hailo). Headquartered in London. Editorial hubs in London, Paris, Stockholm, Berlin, Barcelona and Bucharest. Strategic backer: Financial Times. Additional external angel investors have participated in successive funding rounds; a widely reported 2021 investment saw the FT increase its stake alongside additional external investors. Editorial and commercial products include daily news and features on sifted.eu, the Sifted PRO paid subscription, branded events and conferences, and bespoke research services for corporate and institutional partners.

Startuprad.io relevance
Sifted is a T1 reference entity for Startuprad.io's European media and ecosystem-data clusters. Startuprad.io has thirteen tagged posts referencing Sifted across DACH monthly-news, founder-interview and ecosystem-analysis formats, in most cases as an external source of European startup news and data. The Sifted entity page anchors related Startuprad.io records covering the European startup-media landscape and the FT-adjacent innovation-coverage ecosystem.

Public source context
This profile draws on Sifted's own about page https://sifted.eu/about , the English-language Wikipedia entry on Sifted, Sifted's LinkedIn presence https://www.linkedin.com/company/siftedeu/ , Press Gazette's 2021 coverage of the £4 million investment round https://pressgazette.co.uk/news/sifted-financial-times-raises-four-million/ , additional English-language press coverage of Sifted's launch and subsequent funding rounds, and Startuprad.io's own coverage archive summarised in the coverage section below.

Startuprad.io coverage of Sifted

Sifted appears in the following Startuprad.io monthly-news, founder-interview and ecosystem coverage.

This Month in German, Swiss, and Austrian (GSA) Startups — November 2022 Wrap-Up
Published: 15 March 2026
Last updated: 26 August 2026
Coverage type: News
https://www.startuprad.io/post/this-month-in-german-swiss-and-austrian-gsa-startups-november-2022-wrap-up

Germany has approved Cannabis For Medical Use, and Legalization for Recreation Is Next — Founder Interview
Published: 15 March 2026
Last updated: 14 August 2026
Coverage type: Interview
https://www.startuprad.io/post/germany-has-approved-cannabis-for-medical-use-and-legalization-for-recreation-is-next-founder-int

Michael Bloomberg Indirectly Backs Some of Germany's Most Important Fintech Startups — Founder Interview
Published: 15 March 2026
Last updated: 14 August 2026
Coverage type: Interview
https://www.startuprad.io/post/michael-bloomberg-indirectly-backs-some-of-germany-s-most-important-fintech-startups-founder-inter

Monthly Startup News from Germany, Austria, and Switzerland
Published: 10 March 2026
Last updated: 14 August 2026
Coverage type: News
https://www.startuprad.io/post/monthly-startup-news-from-germany-austria-and-switzerland

Founder Burnout & Resilience: Germany, Austria & Switzerland
Published: 10 March 2026
Last updated: 09 May 2026
Coverage type: Analysis
https://www.startuprad.io/post/founder-burnout-and-resilience-in-germany-austria-and-switzerland

About this record. This is the public Level 1 layer of Startuprad.io's entity intelligence architecture. Startuprad.io's deeper entity intelligence may include extended profiles, verified relationships, source trails, historical development, monitoring, news signals, custom entity sets, and analytical relationship mapping. These deeper layers are available through Startuprad.io's research, intelligence, and enterprise services.

Need deeper entity intelligence? Startuprad.io provides extended profiles, monitored entity sets, relationship analysis, source-backed research, and custom intelligence services for companies, investors, and institutions. → https://www.startuprad.io/become-a-partner

About Startuprad.io
Startuprad.io is a European B2B media, data and intelligence platform. It provides structured entity and ecosystem data, source-backed research, datasets and AI/training-data solutions, as well as strategic visibility and access to a professional European audience of founders, investors, executives and B2B decision-makers.

Organizations use Startuprad.io for intelligence and research, structured data and AI applications, executive and company positioning, and trusted B2B reach across Europe.

Canonical record: https://www.startuprad.io/entities/sifted