Why Female Founders Are Still Overlooked

EU-Startups Podcast · Apr 2, 2026 · 44m

Interview with Ropa Popat, Founder & Managing Partner at Arāya Ventures In this episode, Rupa Popat, founder of Arāya Ventures, shares her vision for redefining early-stage venture capital. Rupa discusses the persistent under-allocation of capital to diverse founders, highlighting that female-led teams in the UK still receive less than 1% of VC funding - even though data shows diverse teams consistently outperform. Rupa also dives into the world of AI investing, focusing on workflow-native, human-centred AI rather than headline models. She shares her perspective on the UK’s positioning as a…