AV8 is the world’s first coconutwater with added fiber, available in mango, pineapple, and watermelon flavors, vegan and with no added sugar
Many people struggle with digestive issues and weight or metabolic challenges, often due to a lack of fiber in their daily diet. At the same time, most ready-to-drink beverages are loaded with sugar and artificial additives. In the coconut water market, standard products dominate with little real innovation. What’s missing are functional, natural alternatives with clear benefits.
That’s exactly why we founded AV8: functional coconut water with no added sugar, natural, innovative, and delivering real value.
Many people today struggle with digestive issues, weight fluctuations, and an unbalanced metabolism , often because they consistently consume too little fiber in everyday life. At the same time, consumers increasingly rely on ready-to-drink beverages for convenience, yet most of them are packed with sugar, artificial flavors, and additives that ultimately do more harm than good.
Even the coconut water market, although generally perceived as “healthy,” lacks true innovation: the category is dominated by standard products with no functional benefit, interchangeable flavors, and little real differentiation. What’s missing is a brand that rethinks coconut water, not just as a refreshing drink, but as a smart, modern functional beverage.
That’s exactly why we founded AV8: we combine 100% natural coconut water with functional fiber (prebiotics), vegan, no added sugar, and designed to deliver real benefits. AV8 represents a new generation of coconut water: better for the body, better for everyday life, and built for a consumer who expects performance, taste, and clean ingredients at the same time.
How did you get together as a team?
We’ve known each other for over 23 years and have been best friends since early childhood. From kindergarten, elementary school, and high school all the way through university, we’ve grown up and built our path together. This long-standing connection has created deep trust and a shared mindset: ambitious, fast, and solution-oriented. Even before AV8, we founded and worked on ventures together. AV8 is the result of a friendship that has evolved into a highly aligned founding team over many years.
How did you come up with your idea?
The idea for AV8 originally came from our plan to move to Brazil together and start a food truck there. However, the project turned out to be logistically difficult to execute.
For Luca especially, coconut water has a real cultural meaning: his mother is from Brazil, he has been visiting every year since childhood, speaks the language, and grew up with coconut water as a natural part of everyday life. While coconut water is a true staple in Brazilian culture, in Germany it is still too often seen as just a “trend drink” and the category has hardly been innovated.
That’s how AV8 was born: from a personal connection to the product and the ambition to rethink coconut water in Europe.
What are you studying/working or what have you studied?
We combine two perspectives: physics and business administration. This allows us to unite scientific expertise in product and functionality with strong business, brand-building, and scaling know-how.
Funfact
Luca’s nickname is “Luca Kokos.”
How did Gateway help you?
Gateway helped us develop AV8 from a strong idea into a clearly structured venture. The sparring sessions with experienced coaches and mentors were particularly valuable, helping us to sharpen our positioning, challenge assumptions and clearly prioritise the most important growth drivers. The programme enabled us to significantly professionalise our go-to-market strategy and pitch deck, while also gaining important insights into pricing, distribution channels and scaling.
In addition, the network was extremely helpful: exchanges with other founders, access to relevant contacts and an environment that promotes performance. We would recommend Gateway because it not only imparts knowledge, but also actively encourages founders to take action with honest feedback, a clear structure and a community that really pushes you forward.