Opus acquires Embarc to accelerate early-stage entrepreneurship

OPUS, the community dedicated to supporting the next generation of entrepreneurs, has acquired embarc, a community-based business built by founders to support people getting into entrepreneurship. This strategic move underscores both communities’ shared mission to empower founders across Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (EMEA) in a new era of entrepreneurship.

Embarc was founded in 2022, with the backing of Notion Capital, with the vision of building a collaborative and supportive environment for people starting early-stage companies or working in scaling businesses. It has since become a trusted hub for peer-to-peer learning, networking, and community-driven growth.

In June 2025, OPUS announced a $2 million seed round backed by high-profile founders and investors, and is now unveiling its first acquisition. By combining forces with embarc, OPUS will integrate its vibrant community and programming into a broader ecosystem, enhancing the resources available to new and aspiring founders navigating today’s fast-changing business landscape.

Ken Donald, Managing Director at OPUS, shared:

At OPUS, we believe that founders deserve not just capital, but community, knowledge and expertise to thrive. embarc’s founder-first DNA and deep commitment to helping talented people get into entrepreneurship by building authentic networks perfectly aligns with our mission. Together, we can scale our impact for founders significantly.

The acquisition reflects OPUS’s strategy of partnering with organisations that embody its core values: collaboration, innovation and long-term support for entrepreneurial talent. By bringing embarc into the OPUS ecosystem, founders will benefit from enhanced programming, expanded reach, and a broader set of tools designed to unlock growth and resilience.

Chris Tottman, Founding GP of Notion Capital and Founding Investor of embarc, commented:

When Arya, Daniel & Matt launched embarc it was one of the easiest investment decisions we made. It was clear that for the entrepreneurial community to win, we needed to make the jump from corporate to founding much less daunting for the most talented people.

Joining forces with OPUS is a natural next step for embarc to unlock more value for the community we serve. The OPUS family are building with super impressive intent – they really want to redefine the support ecosystem for early-stage founders, and we want to be doing it alongside them.

Arya Tandon, Founder of embarc, added:

embarc has always stood for more open ecosystems – encouraging people to build the confidence, network and knowledge they need to jump into founding.

I'm very excited embarc is joining the OPUS family, bringing huge firepower to the mission I started a couple of years ago – to bring together exceptional future founders via incredible events.

The combined platform will launch new initiatives in the coming months, including expanded founder events, digital programming, and tailored support services. Together, OPUS and embarc will continue to champion a new era of founders, welcoming them into the community.

We launched OPUS to back the founders of tomorrow. Having experienced the journey of starting businesses, I know how transformative relationships are.

Alongside relationships, self-belief is a critical component in the initial stages of starting a business, and our media activities are a vehicle for us to help inspire, encourage and educate the new era of founders,

concluded Sam Tidswell-Norrish, Founder & Chair of OPUS.