18 Venture Clienting as a Launchpad for Innovation Staying ahead in our fast-changing business world requires large organizations to adopt and implement innovations faster and cheaper than traditional CVC allows. Venture clienting has emerged as a key tool for doing so. It offers corporations a fast, cost- effective, and lower-risk pathway to test new technol- ogies, bring them to markets, and capture value from innovation. Unlike CVC, which involves financial stakes and requires patience as startups scale, or Accelerators and Incubators, which require physical, human and social capital, Venture clienting limits financial exposure by structuring engagements as procurement contracts rather than equity investments, avoiding the risks associated with venture capital portfolios. This flexibility allows firms to pilot multiple solutions and scale only those that prove effective. Additionally, venture clienting often proves more cost-efficient than in-house development, enabling companies to access cutting-edge capabilities without the heavy R&D investment required to build them internally. Our research shows that approximately 40% of the analyzed companies engage with startups as clients. For example, BMW adopts startups as suppliers, integrating their technologies (such as advanced sensors and artificial intelligence) into their vehicles. According to the company, this model has proven transformative, enabling advancements in auton- omous driving and connected vehicles. The BMW Garage has therefore become a model in Venturing Clienting success, exemplifying how corporations can derive substantial innovation benefits without taking equity. In another example, Bosch’s Open Bosch initiative takes advantage of venture clienting as a contribution to its innovation pipeline, introducing startup- driven solutions to the market at scale in areas like IoT, mobility, and energy. This initiative underscores the role of venture clienting in efficiently addressing complex technological challenges. Through Store No. 8, a technology incubator fostering innovation in retail, Walmart collaborates with startups to pilot and implement new technolo- gies in its stores, effectively serving as a venture client to these emerging companies. Venture clienting is beneficial for startups as well. It provides critical market validation and non- dilutive, revenue-based cash flow. However, this model is not without its challenges. Integrating a startup’s solutions into a large corporation’s infrastructure can be complex. Resource constraints on the startup’s side may lead to scalability issues, while differences in organizational cultures and engagement speeds can further complicate collaborations. Venture clienting offers corporations a fast, cost-effective, and lower-risk pathway to test new technologies and capture value from innovation. “