Corporate Venture Capital performances in innovation ecosystems – Evidence from Startups

Corporate Venture Capital (CVC) initiatives may foster entrepreneurial outcomes adopting a strategic perspective that focuses on relational-embedded ecosystems and not only on the outputs of discrete transactions. Grounded in the Knowledge-Based View and in the Innovation Ecosystems framework, this research aims to examine how CVC operational intensity and network embeddedness may shape startup (SU) funding and innovation. Analyzing a largescale panel constructed from Crunchbase and USPTO PatentsView data, the investigation results show that startups assisted by CVC with high operational intensity and high network embeddedness exhibit enhanced entry to further funds and superior innovation performance. In addition, a moderating role of technological intensity seems to exist, meaning that CVC engagement may probably rely more on the ecosystem positioning than on the technological context. Envisioning CVC as an embedded, learning-oriented dynamics, this research aims to provide novel empirical evidence on the mechanisms of value creation management in entrepreneurial finance, highlighting the relational impact of corporate investors within broader innovation networks.