As Europe accelerates investments into renewable energy, electrification, and industrial infrastructure, one major challenge is becoming impossible to ignore: the growing shortage of skilled blue collar workers needed to build and maintain that future. Electricians, technicians, and industrial workers are increasingly central to Europe’s economic transformation, yet many industries continue struggling to recruit, train, and retain qualified talent. Italian startup Gyver believes technology can help solve that problem, and investors are backing its vision with fresh funding.
The company has raised €1.4 million in pre seed funding in a round led by Brighteye, with participation from āltitude, Vento Ventures, Zanichelli Venture, and existing investor Antler. Several business angels also participated in the round.
Addressing Europe’s Skilled Worker Shortage
Gyver was founded by Francesco Defendi, Leo Acciarri, and Mattia Zarrelli with the goal of addressing one of Europe’s most pressing workforce challenges.
The company focuses on sectors linked to electrification, industrial infrastructure, and energy systems where demand for skilled labour is growing rapidly. As governments and businesses invest heavily in renewable energy projects, power grid modernisation, electric infrastructure, and data centres, the need for electricians and technical workers continues to rise across the continent.
Industry estimates suggest that while the European Union currently has around 28 million skilled blue collar workers, an additional 5.8 million workers will be required by 2030 to support ongoing infrastructure and industrial transformation.
Gyver believes traditional hiring systems are not equipped to handle this growing demand efficiently, particularly in industries where recruitment often depends on referrals, local networks, and word of mouth recommendations.
Reinventing Recruitment Through AI
To address this challenge, Gyver has developed an AI powered conversational hiring platform specifically designed for skilled trades and industrial employers. The platform aims to replicate the informal referral based hiring processes electricians commonly use while making it easier for companies to identify, access, and recruit qualified workers at scale.
Rather than relying solely on traditional job boards or manual recruitment workflows, the platform uses AI driven conversations and workflow systems to connect employers with skilled workers more efficiently.
The startup sees this as only the beginning of a broader workforce infrastructure platform tailored for electricians and industrial trades.
Expanding Beyond Hiring
Gyver plans to expand its platform beyond recruitment into areas including workforce upskilling, learning tools, and productivity systems designed specifically for electricians and technical workers.
The company’s long term ambition is to provide modern digital infrastructure for skilled trades, including tools that support electrical design, programmable logic controller workflows, and other technical operational processes. By modernising workflows and improving productivity, Gyver hopes to help skilled workers operate more efficiently while elevating the overall status of technical professions.
Francesco Defendi said electricians represent one of the most important but overlooked worker groups in today’s economy. According to him, skilled manual professions combine technical expertise and hands on craftsmanship in ways that remain difficult to replace through automation and artificial intelligence.
Defendi argued that while AI continues transforming many digital professions, the future of work will increasingly depend on skilled workers capable of building and maintaining physical infrastructure.
Strengthening the Platform
The newly secured funding will be used to further develop Gyver’s technology platform, including its AI agents and workflow systems, while supporting growth across the market. The company also plans to improve the overall experience for both electricians and employers using the platform.
As Europe’s industrial and energy sectors continue facing labour shortages amid growing infrastructure demand, Gyver is positioning itself as part of a new generation of startups focused on modernising workforce systems for skilled trades and essential industries.
