Munich startup Helsing raised a huge €600 million this week. Now the company is worth €12 billion. Pretty good for a startup that’s only four years old.
What does Helsing do?
Well, at first, they only made AI software to help on the battlefield. No machines, no drones, just code. But last year they decided to change things. Now they also build autonomous strike drones. Yes, real flying machines that can attack by themselves.
They also showed off a new underwater spy system. Because spying in the sky just isn’t enough anymore. Why not watch the ocean too?
This big pile of cash comes from some famous investors. Daniel Ek, the guy who started Spotify, gave a big chunk through his fund, Prima Materia. Funny, isn’t it? The man who made endless music playlists now helps make war drones. Times change.
Other investors like Accel, Lightspeed, Plural, and General Catalyst also joined in. And Sweden’s defence company Saab (not the car brand—those days are over) put money in too.
The reason for all this excitement? Europe is suddenly very serious about defence tech. Maybe because of the long, terrible war in Ukraine. Maybe because the U.S. is keeping its best military tech to itself now. Either way, European investors are throwing money at defence startups like it’s the next big thing.
And Helsing isn’t the only one cashing in. Two other drone makers, Quantum Systems from Germany and Tekever from Portugal, also became unicorns last month. It seems building war drones is cooler than building apps these days.
So what’s next for Helsing? They just opened a new factory in Germany. They plan to make 6,000 more drones for Ukraine. That’s a lot of flying robots. They’re also teaming up with a French AI company called Mistral to make smarter military software, maybe even chatty war drones? Who knows.
Helsing is working with the governments of Germany, the UK, and Estonia too. Lots of handshakes and quiet talks, probably.
Of course, no one asks the big question: is this a smart tech move, or a scary sign of where the world is going? Maybe both.
But the money is real. The drones are real. And Helsing is now one of the most valuable startups in Europe.
