ExoMatter, a software for AI-driven materials research, has raised a €1.7M Pre-Seed funding round led by ZAKA alongside Vanagon VC, BayernKapital, 212 NexT, Bloomhaus Ventures, and four female super angels from encourageventures. The Materials R&D platform enables researchers and developers to evaluate the properties of materials for their technology. The platform, which is powered by material data from a variety of scientific sources and processed through AI, provides access to a range of physical, chemical, and engineering properties, as well as sustainability metrics and cost indicators. The aim is to help companies cut their materials costs and carbon emissions. ExoMatter leverages AI and quantum chemical modeling.  Andrej Petrus, Partner & Head of Investment Committee at ZAKA VC, commented: "Recent development in AI is opening up opportunities for progress in the materials science sector – a great example how innovation on the software level we can achieve innovation on the physical level. Their platform is solving challenges of finding new types of materials for the industrial, chemical and manufacturing industry. These industries are in ever increasing pressure for finding efficiency on the cost level and environmental impact level. We are proud to be backing the Exomatter team and expanding our deep tech portfolio. Founders Barbara and Josua have proven the value of their platform even in the earliest." The founding team of ExoMatter is composed of CEO Dr. Josua Vieten, a chemist and materials scientist, and COO Barbara Bachus, former R&D Coordinator at the Munich-based unicorn Celonis. "We are thrilled to have successfully closed this funding round in close collaboration with our lead investor Vanagon. With the support of our investors, we will further automate and scale the ExoMatter platform, and we are already in talks for a follow-on funding round next year." said Barbara Bachus, ExoMatter’s co-founder. ExoMatter is working with several DAX-listed companies, including Airbus and Infineon.  

UK-based deeptech Fractile has £5M in funding from the Advanced Research + Invention Agency (ARIA) programme. Fractile is one of 12 projects to receive an award; ARIA is handing out almost £50M in total. ARIA's programme, Scaling Compute, aims to increase and open up new vectors of progress in the field of computing by reducing the cost of AI hardware. ARIA was created by an Act of Parliament and is sponsored by the Department for Science, Innovation, and Technology - funding projects across the full spectrum of R&D disciplines, approaches, and institutions looking at how technology can enable a better future and that can prove critical for the UK in the long-term. Founded in 2022 by 28-year-old AI PhD, Walter Goodwin, Fractile's team features senior hires from NVIDIA, ARM and Imagination. In July, the company raised $15M (£12M) led by Kindred Capital, NATO Innovation Fund, and OSE. The Scaling Compute programme brings together a wide-ranging group of experts in AI systems, mixed-signal CMOS circuits, and advanced networking. Their goal is to increase and open up new vectors of progress in the field of computing by bringing the cost of AI hardware down by 1000 times.

With the growth of e-commerce, various startups, including Sparqle, Starship Technologies, and Picnic, have been working to solve the last-mile delivery challenge.  Ukrainian-founded startup Yard Delivery has developed a new approach that bypasses traditional sorting centres, streamlining the process and cutting costs. It offers a variety of delivery options within urban areas in under three hours.  The Yard Delivery platform connects businesses, customers, and couriers, creating a seamless ecosystem for efficient and fast same-day deliveries. While the product ordering process remains standard, the delivery itself is entirely different.  Packages bypass traditional sorting centres, with Yard Delivery couriers - operating under a gig economy model similar to services like Glovo or Wolt — picking them up directly from stores or warehouses and delivering them to customers. In response to customer need, the startup also introduced a second option focused on local parcel lockers. Here, the sender can drop off a package, and nearby couriers pick it up and deliver it to the recipient or a specified location.  Both options ensure that the entire process takes less than 3 hours while remaining cost-efficient. Developed by a Ukrainian team, the solution has succeeded in its local market and is now planning expansion into other European markets. According to Oleksandr Korniychuk, CEO of Yard Delivery, traditional courier methods often fail to meet customer demands or come with exorbitant costs.  “Deliveries handled by our “Movers”—Yard Delivery’s couriers—are typically comparable or even lower in cost than standard solutions. Our key advantage, however, is speed: packages often reach customers in less than 2 hours, with a maximum guaranteed delivery time of 3 hours.”  In March 2024, the startup launched a pilot in Riga and has successfully delivered over 10,000 parcels.  The company is also developing partnerships with companies that manage parcel lockers and are simultaneously in the process of fundraising.  After successfully operating in Latvia since the start of the year, the company is now into new markets, including Czech Republic, Poland, Hungary, and Germany. Lead image: Yard Delivery. Photo: uncredited. 

Presto Tech Horizons Fund has announced investment in its first three portfolio companies. The fund is backed by a unique partnership between the VC firm Presto Ventures and Michal Strnad’s industrial technology group, Czechoslovak Group (CSG) that is investing €150 million in the most promising tech projects from NATO countries and their allies. The first investments will support the following tech companies: Bavovna: the US-Ukrainian team has developed a hybrid AI-driven navigation system that allows unmanned vehicles (UVs) to operate autonomously, even in environments where remote navigation is disrupted. This applies to drone operations in areas with compromised GPS signals and, in the future, logistics such as last-mile drone delivery. The company has raised $1.7 million with PTH as its lead investor. Vidar System: the company specialises in portable AI-driven acoustic locating systems. The technology can be used on the battlefield to detect hostile attacks, as well as to enhance the protection of strategic assets and civilian objects. Their products are already being successfully deployed by the Ukrainian military to defend against artillery shelling. Tur.ai: a Dutch startup developing robotic process automation (RPA) for enterprises. Its AI tools can automate internal business operations as well as processes that involve customers and partners – and do so in real-time. This is particularly useful for financial institutions, telecom operators, and logistics companies, for instance. The company has raised $1.45 million with PTH as its lead investor. Premysl Rubes, founding Partner of Presto Tech Horizons shared:  “Since the spring, we’ve jointly evaluated over 1,200 startups from 15 countries and met with hundreds of skilled tech entrepreneurs.  We’re already assisting the founders of our new portfolio companies in overcoming major challenges on the path to global success. The business and product synergies within the group make it easier for them to access customers, open up foreign markets, and drive rapid growth.” Additionally,  Lucie Bresova is joining the Presto Tech Horizons team as Partner, and will be involved in shaping the fund's operations and working with startups.  Presto Tech Horizons also focuses on investments in innovative defence and security technologies, a topic that is becoming increasingly important today. Bresova asserts: “Security studies suggest that in the next five years, we’ll be fortunate if active armed conflict doesn’t spread to our territory.  Wishing for peace does not mean turning a blind eye to reality; rather, it requires actively participating in preparation and prevention. Just as we currently harness nuclear fusion (for now) for energy production rather than destruction, I believe our portfolio companies will contribute to keeping our world safe.” The fund is preparing further investments in general AI for industrial robots, and an intelligent system for securing railway transportation. Also shortlisted for future investment is a startup developing quantum algorithms to tackle the most complex computational challenges in cryptography, logistics, and drug development. Lead image: co-founders of Tur.au and a client. Photo: uncredited. 

VC firm General Catalyst has closed its largest global fund to date, raising approximately $8B of new capital across core venture capital and separately managed accounts to turbocharge its investments in key strategic areas. How the $8 billion commitment will be allocated: $4.5 billion for core venture capital investments across seed and growth equity stages, deployed through dedicated strategies: Ignition  (early-stage), Endurance (growth-stage), and Health Assurance.    - $1.5 billion dedicated to company creation, including "venture buyouts"    and the development of new businesses from the ground up. $2 billion in separately managed accounts (SMAs) to fuel the next generation of groundbreaking technologies and businesses. Hemant Taneja, CEO and Managing Director of General Catalyst, asserts that the company needs  to transcend the traditional definition of venture capital: "So we've broadened our founder and capital solutions to venture beyond and support founders with a broader partnership,"  General Catalyst has a deep history of hatching 45+ successful companies, including Commure, Crescendo, Demandware, Hippocratic, Homeward, Kayak, and Livongo, while investing at the earliest stage in companies with global potential, including Snap, Stripe, Mistral, Gusto, Helsing and Anduril. Beyond traditional venture capital, General Catalyst is developing new ways to support founders throughout their journey. This includes the Customer Value Strategy, which provides non-dilutive capital to accelerate growth, and the GC Transformation Flywheel, which connects innovators with adopters to drive industry transformation at scale. The Transformation Flywheel model has also recently been extended to launch the GC Institute, a pioneering organisation that connects start-ups with global governments to support transformative technologies that shape public policy.

Valencia cleantech startup Matteco has closed a €15 million Series A investment round. The company is a spin-off from the University of Valencia and is part of Zubi Labs, the impact company builder of the Zubi Group. It develops high-performance catalysts, catalytic coatings, and electrodes, key components in producing renewable hydrogen through alkaline electrolysis and AEM (Anion Exchange Membrane). It aims to solve what’s arguably the biggest pain point in green hydrogen production: high production costs, both in terms of operations and equipment investment. Its novel platinum-free materials (PGMs) enable lower energy consumption in electrolysers, higher current densities, and superior stability and durability. This increases green hydrogen's competitiveness against fossil fuels. # The closing of Series A and the joining of new investors just one year after the company's founding confirms its high growth potential within the cleantech ecosystem. Matteco is backed by a group of national and international family offices committed to impact investing, including Grupo ASV (Spain), Napali (Chile) and Zubi (Spain). According to Iker Marcaide, co-founder and CEO of Matteco:  “We look forward to this new phase of growth and scaling up with partners who strongly believe in impact investing so that together we can harness the potential of materials innovation to solve the environmental challenges we face.” Matteco already has customers in Europe, North America and Asia. It aims to grow its team from  30 to 100 in 2025. The funds will also be used for the imminent opening and ramp-up of its 10,000 sqm catalyst and electrode factory in Paterna (Valencia), which will enable Matteco to produce the equivalent of 1 gigawatt (GW) of electrodes per year. Lead image: Matteco. Photo: uncredited. 

Year after year, Spain finds itself among the top investors in foodtech. It should come as no surprise, given that Spain is the fourth agrifood power in Europe and tenth in the world, with agrifood amounting to almost 20% of the country's total exports. Spain ranks second in the European Union in terms of arable land area, and its agricultural production is extensive and diverse. Since 2014, Spain’s foodtech sector has maintained a staggering 20% Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR), demonstrating incredible resilience in the face of global economic and geopolitical turbulence, as it relates to the Covid-19 pandemic, rising production costs, and the war in Ukraine. The threat of climate change also looms large, as the country is likely to be among the most impacted. It's already dealing with recurrent adverse weather conditions and droughts, which are affecting crop production. Despite these challenges, Spain is setting new export records. And to continue staying ahead of these challenges, the country is actively developing a world-leading agrifood innovation ecosystem. In recent years, the country has overseen a concerted effort to develop a solid business ecosystem across its entire agrifood value chain, with a strong emphasis on innovation and connecting industry players both domestically and internationally. A support network spanning the entire value chain Spain's 400+ agrifood startups are in an enviable position. They're at the heart of an extensive and growing cluster of industry stakeholders geared toward supporting every stage of growth – incubation, research, development, and scaling. This includes everything from 20+ technological parks and centers to 50+ specialized universities and well over €1B allocated for public investment in the form of accelerator programs, collaboration initiatives, and other support mechanisms. These opportunities are also attracting international founders who recognize Spain's unique position in the agrifood sector. The country is actively welcoming global talent, offering them a chance to tap into its established agricultural expertise and extensive market connections. ICEX-Invest in Spain leads this international outreach, serving as a gateway for foreign founders entering the Spanish ecosystem. ICEX-Invest in Spain is a publicly owned business-oriented entity of the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Business that supports foreign founders in their ventures within the Spanish tech ecosystem, offering strategies and assistance for a successful startup. One of its flagship initiatives is the Rising Up in Spain program that seeks to attract international founders and plug them into its prolific ecosystem by assisting with legalities, connecting them with local partners, offering market guidance and visibility, and more. The program is bilingual, ensuring accessibility for both Spanish and English speakers. Rising Up in Spain: Grow and help grow Now in its 7th edition, Rising Up in Spain is welcoming interested applicants until year's end. The program has already helped numerous agrifood startups from all over the world find their footing and rise up, including: Nu Terra Labs – A Canadian startup working on two solutions critical for the agrifood industry. The first is an agritech control system for helping farmers boost crop yield and efficiency through analyzing various vital environmental conditions and leveraging machine learning to provide farmers with actionable data and self-optimize various. The second is an AI-powered wildfire detection solution called Firesafe AI that addresses the critical need for real-time, reliable wildfire detection, risk assessment, and proactive management. Agrusdata – A Brazilian agritech startup enabling data-driven agriculture by implementing IoT infrastructure and systems, making a farm’s field operations more targeted and efficient. The company is continuously collecting data and leveraging machine learning to transform the wealth of knowledge into actionable insights. Bluana Foods – A foodtech startup from Romania, is on a mission to alleviate the pressure on overfishing by creating plant-based alternatives for tuna and salmon. Founded in 2022, Bluana leverages its patented High Moisture, High Nutrient Injection (HMHNI) technology to produce sashimi-grade plant-based fish with unparalleled taste, texture, and a 12-month shelf life. Rich in protein and omega-3, their products offer eco-conscious consumers a nutritious and ethical choice. Bluana is expanding globally and actively pursuing partnerships to fuel further growth. As evidenced by the diversity of the alumni, Spain's agrifood industry spans farm to table and extends to every corner of the world, offering ample room for innovation across its extensive supply chain and many markets. Become a key part of tomorrow’s agrifood value chain Spain offers a unique opportunity for foodtech and agritech startups to become part of a burgeoning innovation ecosystem, while taking advantage of its well-established agrifood industry and talent pool. ICEX's Rising Up in Spain program is your chance to get your foot in the door – apply today.

This week, German eVTOL company Lilium announced that two of its subsidiaries have decided to file for insolvency following unsuccessful talks with state and federal governments to solve its financial crisis. The company previously raised €1.4 billion in funding. Subsidiaries Lilium GmbH and Lilium eAircraft GmbH told the parent company they are over-indebted and will be unable to pay its debts in the coming days. Lilium shares plunged 61 per cent following the news. Lilium is now "reviewing whether there are grounds for its own insolvency as well," it said in a regulatory filing- The filing for insolvency and application for self-administration in Germany could result in the Company's ordinary shares being delisted from the Nasdaq or suspended from trading on Nasdaq. German government says no to loan The news follows the company's failed efforts to receive a €100 million loan from the German government.  Lilium had asked the German federal government to guarantee 50 million euros €50 million guarantee of a contemplated €100 million convertible loan. The company had already secured a matching €50 million commitment from the State of Bavaria – but only on the condition that federal backing was secured.  Company CEO, Klaus Roewe, told LinkedIn at the time:  "Our private investors — mostly from the USA and China — have already financed Lilium with $1.5 billion. They would like to continue investing. But they also want a signal that investing in a German company is not a disadvantage."  He also stressed that the USA, China, Great Britain and France have long since significantly promoted Lilium's competitors and continue to support them.  "If the funding situation in Germany deviates too much from it, Germany is not competitive as an investment location. The USA has so far supported the competitor Joby alone with more than $600 million.   Lilium already has over 1,100 employees and approx. 2,000 jobs at suppliers. Lilium alone pays €50 million in taxes and social security contributions in Germany every year.A federal guarantee declaration of €50 million is therefore a very moderate investment. Bavaria has already submitted its guarantee declaration for the KfW loan in the same amount."  Divided support in the startup ecosystem for Lilium bailout Over 650 startup founders and enthusiasts signed a letter urging the government to support Lilium's government fundraising with many claiming it would do "great damage to the deep tech ecosystem" if the government did not approve the loan. However the news was also criticised by many founders and early-stage investors who questioned why earlier stage startups were left on their own once they faced financial difficulties — stay tuned for an upcoming article on the issue of bail outs. The world's first 5-seater eVTOL Lilium was founded in 2015 in Munich, creating the Lilium jet. the world's first five-seater, all-electric, vertical takeoff and landing jet.  The human-crewed emissions-free aircraft can complete journeys of up to 300 km in one hour on a single charge (far above its competitors), and has been flown at speeds exceeding 100 km/h, in increasingly complex manoeuvres. In April last year its Phoenix demonstrator achieved its target maximum speed of 136 knots (155 miles per hour) in a flight test over rural Spain. However, this test was conducted remotely without any passengers or pilots on board. Whether you believe eVTOLS are a pipedream to finance travel for rich people or the future of the next generations of aviation, today many highly skilled aerospace professionals are now out of work. This also impacts surrounding industries such as battery manufacturing, vertiports, and recharging, overall leaving a huge blow for German's mobility and aerospace industries. I'd also be remiss not to mention that this week the  US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)  released the final regulations for tiltrotors and VTOL aircraft, including electric variants, the first new class of aircraft approved in 40 years. Once, again, those wanting a new class of transportation will be looking forward the US, not Europe, at least for now. 

Aether, the cutting-edge platform for rooftop solar, has raised $2.5M in a seed funding round led by noa (formerly A/O), with participation from Y Combinator, Collab Fund, Amino Capital, and Climate Capital. The funding will be used to accelerate Aether’s expansion and introduce a native solar design tool tailored for the European market. Aether was founded with a clear goal: to create technology that advances the deployment of rooftop solar and reduces global costs. The rooftop solar industry faces a number of significant challenges, including deceptive sales practices that erode consumer trust. Without transparent software solutions that reduce misleading financial arrangements and curtail high-pressure sales tactics, rooftop solar cannot reach its full potential. Aether is developing an integrated platform that simplifies the entire solar workflow—from pre-sales and design to installation and home monitoring. After gathering insights from hundreds of installers, the Aether’s AI platform offers an all-in-one tool for solar installers, addressing inefficiencies caused by fragmented apps used in the current solar workflow. Many installers rely on disjointed software that is costly, inefficient, creates gaps and is slow to implement. By offering a single flexible platform, Aether consolidates the entire process, saving time and reducing operational costs for installers who often operate with slim profit margins. The platform is also designed to empower smaller installers, who typically struggle to innovate on their tech stack due to limited resources. The platform’s innovations, such as one-click solar design automation, are already showing significant value. Aether is on track to reach $1M in ARR (annual recurring revenue) just nine months after its initial launch. One of Aether’s key innovations lies in its handling of "solar data"—data generated during pre-sales design and engineering, which is critical to the entire solar lifecycle. Unlike many platforms that require complex custom integrations, Aether’s deeply integrated system ensures a seamless experience for both installers and homeowners. Zayne Sagar, Founder and CEO of Aether, said: “Our platform makes rooftop solar cheap and widely accessible. We’ve made exceptional progress as a team in scaling Aether since launching just nine months ago.This funding is a pivotal moment that will fuel our next wave of innovation as we continue to push the limits of what's possible in rooftop solar”  

"Open banking is a bloody awful name”, according to a fintech executive, who is one of the authors behind a new report into open banking payments. The report, entitled ‘How to take open-banking payments mainstream’ has been published by UK payments fintech GoCardless, in conjunction with fintech consultancy 11:FS. Open banking technology is loosely defined as banks and financial institutions opening up data so that fintechs and other third parties can bring new products to market to help provide competition and more consumer choice. Open banking payments are payment methods which use Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) to carry out bank-to-bank transfers. With open banking payments, users don’t have to type in card details manually and advocates say open banking payments are quicker, easier and more secure than card payments. Speaking at a conference called Open Banking Expo about the report, Benjamin Ensor, director of research & strategy, 11:FS, said: "I don't want to upset everyone at an open banking conference, but open banking is a bloody awful name. “How many of your partners, your spouses, your friends, have any idea what open banking is? Do you even bother telling them that you work in open banking? “The main issue is it’s not intuitive, it’s not obvious. Open banking? So that means everyone can get into my bank account. Do I want that? “We need to come up with a common standard name. So either call it pay-by-bank payments or call it instant bank payments. Pick a name and pick a logo. “I did come across someone calling it PIS payments. Don’t.” The report surveyed nearly 1,000 UK businesses, revealing almost a quarter (23 per cent) say they are ‘very familiar’ with open banking. Nearly half (48 per cent) cite ‘faster payments’ as the biggest advantage of open banking, followed by better visibility into payments (35 per cent) and reduced payment fraud (35 per cent). It also found that open banking payments adoption is highest in sectors with clear cost savings from card payments, such as credit and lending and others with high-value transactions, and software companies with more recurring, online payments.  The report also predicts that construction, consumer goods and media will be among the next verticals to adopt, with education, professional services, utilities and others following on. But retailers and hospitality- traditionally businesses with a higher proportion of in-person transactions- are not forecast to introduce open banking payments until at least 2027. Despite open banking users reaching 10 million earlier this year, the report says mass adoption is not yet on the horizon. The report identified key obstacles currently blocking the way, including the need to further develop open banking infrastructure and improving and harmonising the customer experience. Paul Stoddart, president, GoCardless, said: “We’ve been collaborating with regulators and other industry participants to accelerate open banking adoption since its introduction in 2018. After a slow start we are seeing increasing demand from our customers as well as other businesses in the value chain investing in ‘open banking readiness’."

The Danish challenger bank Lunar says its GenAI-powered voice assistant will handle around 75 per cent of customer calls over time. Lunar, which has over 950,000 customers across the Nordics, launched its new chatbot today, hoping to improve the customer service process, but says the move will not lead to job cuts. The challenger bank is one of several fintechs, including Klarna and Bunq, which are using GenAI to help streamline their customer service offering. Lunar’s voice assistant moves beyond traditional voice support systems by using a voice native AI model instead of the conventional voice-to-text-to-voice approach. Kåre Kjelstrom, CTO, said: "The speed of replies will be better. It is available also 24/7, 365, so you call at 3am in the morning, it will still be available”. Lunar, last valued at $2.2bn, says the bot has “advanced conversational abilities, including handling interruptions, repeating information, and managing more natural dialogues”. Lunar customers will still have the option of talking to a human customer agent. Kjelstrom added: “The AI is able to handle the more basic things at this point. As soon as customer queries become more complicated, humans are involved. “But it is also the case of those who simply don’t want to talk to an AI. It is still early days and people are trying to learn this new technology and adopt to it.” Kjelstrom said introducing the voice assistant had not led to any job cuts, but meant that Lunar was not hiring as fast.

As Europe embarks on a journey toward greener technologies and aims to reduce carbon emissions, transportation companies are at the forefront of this movement by developing electric vehicles, improving public transit, and adopting smart logistics solutions. The growth of electric vehicle manufacturers and charging infrastructure providers is essential for achieving the European Union's ambitious climate targets, which include having at least 30 million zero-emission vehicles on the roads by 2030. This goal necessitates significant investment in both technology and infrastructure. In addition, the mobility-as-a-service (MaaS) model is transforming urban transportation by offering flexible and integrated solutions that meet consumer demands while alleviating congestion and lowering emissions. Companies focusing on drone logistics and advanced air mobility are also poised to revolutionize last-mile delivery and urban air transport, showcasing the innovative drive within Europe’s tech ecosystem. Here are ten companies that are driving technological advancement and promoting sustainability across Europe. ACC is a forward-thinking company focused on advancing the modern energy industry, particularly in electric vehicle (EV) battery technology. With an R&D Expertise Center in Bruges (Bordeaux) and a cutting-edge Pilot Plant in Nersac, France, ACC began production at its first Gigafactory in Billy-Berclau Douvrin, Hauts-de-France in late 2023. As production ramps up through 2024, the company is refining its strategy to incorporate cost-effective cell chemistries that minimize cobalt and nickel use, aiming to make EVs more affordable. Committed to global growth, ACC is building a network of R&D associates, industrial partners, and suppliers, and invites individuals passionate about cleaner transport to join its mission to accelerate sustainable mobility. In February, the company secured €4.4 billion in debt raising, which will be used to construct three gigafactories for lithium-ion battery cell production in France, Germany, and Italy, as well as, for R&D. Wayve is a leading developer of embodied intelligence for autonomous vehicles, pioneering the next-generation AV2.0 technology that enables fleet operators to scale autonomous driving. Founded in 2017, Wayve consists of a diverse team of machine learning and robotics experts and was the first to deploy AVs on public roads using end-to-end deep learning. Driven by a vision for a smarter, safer, and more sustainable world, Wayve seeks passionate individuals to help tackle some of the world’s most critical challenges. Earlier this year, the company closed a $1.05 billion Series C investment round led by SoftBank Group, with contributions from new investor NVIDIA and existing investor Microsoft. After a few months, the company has announced a partnership with Uber which will see their software integrated into Uber's taxi network. Uber has also agreed to make a strategic investment in Wayve as an extension of the company’s previously announced Series C fundraising round. Polestar is a global manufacturer of premium electric performance vehicles. The company plans to offer a lineup of five performance EVs by 2026, with the ambitious goal of producing a climate-neutral car by 2030. Polestar’s current models include the Polestar 1, a hybrid GT with 609 HP and an electric range of 124 km, and the Polestar 2, an electric fastback launched in 2019. The Polestar 3, an electric SUV, debuted in 2022, while the Polestar 4, an SUV coupé, is being launched through 2024. Upcoming models include the Polestar 5, a four-door GT, and the Polestar 6, an electric roadster. In the beginning of the year, the company secured $950 million as a three-year loan facility. The company intends to use the raised funds to finance its next development stage, which covers its financing requirements. Volvo Cars is a Swedish luxury automobile manufacturer, renowned for its commitment to safety, innovation, and sustainability. Founded in 1927, the company produces a range of premium vehicles, including SUVs, sedans, and electric cars. Volvo Cars is a leader in automotive safety technology and is transitioning towards electrification, with the goal of becoming a fully electric car company by 2030. Known for its Scandinavian design and focus on sustainability, Volvo Cars continues to push boundaries in creating safer and more eco-friendly vehicles worldwide. In January, the company entered into a €420 million financing agreement with the European Investment Bank (EIB) with the aim of supporting Volvo’s commitment to becoming fully electric and carbon neutral. Zunder is a leading Spanish electric vehicle (EV) charging company. It specializes in ultra-fast charging infrastructure. Zunder operates over 150 charging points, with ambitious plans to scale up to 4,000 by 2025. The company is recognized for its user-friendly service and premium charging locations, selected through a proprietary algorithm. With significant backing from well-known investors, Zunder aims to support the decarbonization of mobility in Southern Europe by making EV charging more accessible and efficient The company has secured a €225 million loan from Spanish bank Santander, which will help finance plans to install more than 3,000 new charging points in European countries such as France, Portugal and Italy. Bolt is a rapidly growing European mobility company offering a variety of services, including ride-hailing, scooter and bike rentals, car-sharing, and food and grocery delivery. Originally launched in Estonia in 2013 as "Taxify," Bolt now serves over 100 million customers globally across more than 45 countries. Its mission is to make urban transportation more affordable, accessible, and sustainable by providing eco-friendly and convenient solutions. The company is committed to innovation in the mobility space, including exploring self-driving car technologies. Bolt's core focus is on reducing congestion and emissions in cities while offering diverse transportation options. In May, the company has closed a debut €220 million syndicated revolving credit facility (RCF). HYSETCO is an innovative start-up specializing in hydrogen mobility, helping customers transition to zero-emission transportation. In just three years, the company has established the first hydrogen distribution network in France and offers integrated hydrogen vehicle rental services. With rapid growth, HYSETCO now distributes over 23 tons of hydrogen per month and manages a fleet of more than 550 hydrogen-powered vehicles, positioning itself as a leader in sustainable mobility solutions. This year, clean hydrogen investor Hy24 has partnered with HysetCo. Together, they have raised nearly €200 million in funding to accelerate the shift towards more sustainable transportation options. Lilium is a German aviation company specializing in developing electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft, aiming to revolutionize regional air mobility. The company’s innovative technology, which includes ducted electric vectored thrust (DEVT), allows for quiet, vertical take-offs and landings. Lilium is working toward creating a global network of vertiports to support its air taxi services, collaborating with industry leaders to bring this vision to life. This year, the company has announced the successful pricing of a $114 million financing round, with significant participation from existing shareholders and company insiders. This funding will help accelerate progress towards the first manned flight of the Lilium Jet, which is anticipated to take place in late 2024. Skyports is a leading provider of infrastructure for the Advanced Air Mobility (AAM) industry. The company specializes in developing and operating landing infrastructure for electric air taxis, alongside utilizing drones for various business applications. Skyports play a vital role in the Urban Air Mobility ecosystem by designing, constructing, owning, and operating vertiports that facilitate eVTOL (electric vertical takeoff and landing) operations in urban environments worldwide. Additionally, Skyports Drone Services leverages drone technology to enhance logistics, data collection, and operational efficiency across sectors such as rural deliveries, surveying, surveillance, and maritime services. The company has secured over €103 million to build vertiports and accelerate its drone business. Project 3 Mobility (P3) is a Croatian company focused on developing autonomous electric robotaxis and the necessary specialized infrastructure and mobility services to support them. The company is co-founded and chaired by Mate Rimac, the founder and CEO of Rimac Automobili and Bugatti Rimac. In 2024, P3 successfully raised a total of €100 million through its Series A investment round, attracting a diverse group of investors including Kia, TASARU Mobility Investments, and the European Commission, which, in 2023, approved a €179.5 million grant for the company.

Recyda has secured €6.3M in funding from Cusp Capital as lead investor, a prominent venture capital firm focused on early-stage investments in European technology companies. Pressured by new legislative mandates, the packaging industry faces significant challenges as they are bound to comply with ambitious targets concerning all packaging entering the EU market. Recyda offers a Software as a Service (SaaS) platform for sustainable packaging management which helps internationally positioned packaging manufacturers, brand owners, and retailers manage packaging data effectively and adhere to the complex international landscape of sustainability requirements. The team is already working with leading brands in the FMCG sector such as Beiersdorf, Kao, Trolli and more and plans to drive their expansion forward with the new capital. The Series A round was led by Cusp Capital, a leading early-stage technology investor from Essen, Germany. Existing investors also participated, building on their previous investment in 2023, which included contributions from a consortium featuring Speedinvest, Futury Capital, the Auxxo Female Catalyst Fund, and notable business angels such as Dr. Stephan Rohr (TWAICE), Benedikt Franke (Planetly / Helpling), and Martin Weber (one • five). Recyda's solution has not only gained the confidence of investors but also attracted an impressive lineup of well-known enterprise customers. Kao, one of Japan’s leading consumer goods manufacturers well known for brands such as Goldwell, Guhl and John Frieda, has been working with Recyda from early on. Kao stresses the importance of working with digital solutions to transition to a circular economy. Recyda's software supports the company in assessing the recyclability of packaging and optimising it internationally for all packaging types and brands. Daniel Nebe, Senior Manager Package Development, Consumer Care Business, AEMEA, explains: "Recyda's solution offers key insights early in the packaging development process, helping us identify the most recyclable options. Recyda’s solution is a great contribution to the industry’s joint efforts to reduce our environmental footprint." Recyda, founded by Christian Knobloch (CEO), Vivian Loftin (CMO), and Anna Zießow (CPO), plans to use the new funds to expand into international markets, acquire new customers, and accelerate product development. "This funding round empowers us to further build on our current growth," says Christian Knobloch, Co-Founder and CEO of Recyda. "Cusp Capital’s investment strategy of funding a new generation of tools at the intersection of digitization and sustainability perfectly aligns with our mission. With the team’s impressive track record, they are a strong partner on our side and we are excited to be working together to accelerate our expansion internationally, both in terms of customers as well as the regional coverage in our software." „We strongly believe that packaging will move from a ‘use and dispose’ regime to circularity. Recyda has built the data foundation to manage sustainable packaging portfolios across functions (like Sustainability & Finance) and the entire packaging value chain. Given Recyda’s deep solution that is already trusted by leading brands, Recyda has the potential to become the leading operating system for sustainable packaging globally.” says Dr. Maximilian Rowoldt, Investor & General Partner at Cusp Capital. Recyda’s SaaS solution is designed to digitally manage packaging data along the packaging value chain and conduct thorough evaluations. At the heart of the platform is the digital assessment of packaging recyclability, Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) Fees and other sustainability aspects, adhering to stringent international standards. Recyda's solution is designed for the entire value chain to be the operating system for the packaging industry. The solution supports companies in packaging R&D, master data management, and financial reporting and forecasting. With the Series A investment, the company is set to rapidly expand its market presence and further develop its product. By extending its reach into new markets and refining its product offerings, Recyda aims to set new standards in packaging sustainability management and to support global companies in their journey towards a circular economy.

Portuguese autonomous retail scaleup Sensei has secured €15 million in a Series A funding round to dramatically scale its vision: 1,000 fully autonomous points of sale by 2026.  Sensei’s technology promises to eliminate checkout lines, streamline operations and address retailer key pain points such as reducing checkout costs, preventing stock-outs, and offering retailers real-time visibility into store operations. Using advanced computer vision, AI-powered sensors, and real-time algorithms, Sensei creates an environment where customers can shop seamlessly — without waiting in queues or manually scanning items.  As they shop, their cart is automatically updated. At checkout, the system displays a ready-to-pay list of items –- allowing customers to pay however they prefer while their identity and privacy are fully protected.  According to Vasco Portugal, CEO and co-founder of Sensei: “We are driven by a relentless obsession to deliver the ultimate store experience. Our technology operates invisibly within the store environment, yet it has a massive impact – enhancing the shopping journey for consumers and driving operational efficiency for retailers." BlueCrow Capital led the funding round, which included existing investors like Metro AG and Techstars Ventures, as well as Lince Capital, Explorer Investments, and Kamay Ventures (the investment arm of Coca-Cola and Arcor Group).  According to António de Mello Campello, Partner at BlueCrow Capital: "Artificial intelligence, as we have seen in recent months with the success of ChatGPT, in general terms, and in the various sectors, is transforming several industries, and at BlueCrow we believe that retail is one of the biggest opportunities and is about to be disrupted.  Sensei has proven to be one of the best in the sector, has had a long history and great development in the various sectors associated with this transformation, with real potential to lead autonomous retail around the world." Gabriela Ruggeri, Managing Partner at Kamay Ventures, shared:  “We believe in the team led by Vasco Portugal to consolidate Sensei's growth and presence in the autonomous retail sector, as well as to expand the technological solution developed by the company in Latin America, strengthening its influence in the sector." This funding will enable the company to expand across Europe, particularly in central and northern regions, while also opening Europe’s largest autonomous store next year. This funding will also support a 30 per cent  increase in Sensei's workforce over the next six months.

Cambridge, UK has unveiled a plan to supercharge the impact of the Greater Cambridge area by doubling the rate at which it builds unicorns, doubling the venture capital investment the city’s startups receive, and creating twice as many science and innovation companies - all within a 10-year timetable. The transformative plan is designed to cement Cambridge as a national asset, capable of accelerating the growth of the entire UK economy and is led by Innovate Cambridge, the body overseeing the UK city’s innovation impact.  Cambridge’s 10-year vision is designed to accelerate the region’s world-class science and innovation while maximising social returns.  Cambridge boasts over 5,000 innovation-driven companies, 36 research parks, five hospital trusts, two universities, and a thriving startup and investor community.  The city's tech and life sciences companies have raised over $892 million in venture capital funding this year alone, up 38% compared to 2023, according to Dealroom. Quantum company Riverlane’s $75 million round in August significantly contributed to this growth. This means Cambridge could be on track for its best year for VC since 2021, overtaking 2023’s $1.1 billion. Leading companies to be founded in Cambridge in the last 25 years include Arm Holdings, Bicycle Therapeutics, CMR Surgical, Darktrace, Healx and Raspberry Pi, delivering the same amount of economic growth in the next 10 years as achieved in the last 25. There have been 62 venture capital rounds in 2024 so far, and nearly half (29) of all rounds were raised by founders who studied at the University of Cambridge, ahead of ETH Zurich and the University of Oxford. This week’s Innovate Cambridge Summit also announced the Cambridge Pledge which encourages founders to pledge a meaningful percentage of future wealth, and companies and anchor institutions to make charitable donations to tackle inequality in the region. Kathryn Chapman, Executive Director at Innovate Cambridge, said:  “Innovate Cambridge was founded to empower the city’s companies, institutions and organisations that make it such a hub of innovation, whilst at the same time ensuring this growth and success is for the benefit of the wider community and the UK. Today’s summit is the next stage in realising this mission and I’m looking forward to the discussions and conversations we will share.” Diarmuid O’Brien, Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Innovation at the University of Cambridge and Chief Executive of Cambridge Enterprise said:   “If we are to create the same level of innovation output that we’ve produced over the last 25 years in the next 10, we have to shift our innovation into a different gear.  We are joined up and pooling all our resources across business, academia and local government to realise a shared vision of growth for the city and the region to continue to deliver innovation at scale for the benefit of the UK and the globe.” Michael Anstey, Partner at Cambridge Innovation Capital, said:  “Innovation is a fundamental driver of economic growth. Today, the UK is a leader in translating cutting-edge science and technology into transformative businesses, with more than £60 billion in investment across AI, life sciences and infrastructure.  Within the UK, the Cambridge ecosystem is home to some of the nation’s fastest-growing companies that are tackling global challenges like climate change, food security, and healthcare. By implementing the strategy that Innovate Cambridge has set out, Cambridge has the potential to be a central pillar in the UK’s growth agenda.” Lead image: Markus Leo.

London-based Resurge Growth Partners has launched its new “venture equity” vehicle designed to bridge the critical gap between venture capital and private equity for high-potential European and Israeli scaleups. Resurge will invest over €120m via the vehicle over the next three years, with nearly half of the capital already committed from the founding GPs and a leading family office. As one of Europe’s first venture equity offerings, the model will see it acquire significant stakes in promising companies that have outgrown VC and are looking for a new way to grow. Resurge was founded by Oren Peleg, former Managing Director of Oaktree Capital Management and former CEO of international gym chain Fitness First. He is joined by co-founder Eyal Malinger, former Partner at Beringea and former Vice President at Oaktree Capital. Resurge’s mission is to partner with "Venture Graduates" - high-potential companies that have outgrown the venture capital model but are not yet mature enough for traditional private equity. Through their venture equity model, Resurge will provide the capital, operational expertise and time needed to transition a company away from the VC funding model and move them to a path of profitable, sustainable growth. The new vehicle will aim to invest at least €120 million into high-potential companies over the next three years. Nearly half of this capital has already been secured via GP commitments and the backing of a leading family office. The remaining funds are sourced from a select group of family offices and high-net worth individuals who are committing capital on a deal-specific basis. With this foundation, Resurge is well-positioned to onboard its first portfolio companies by the end of the year. Oren Peleg, co-founder of Resurge, commented: “There’s a huge gulf between the types of companies a VC will back and those who are ready for private equity. Too many promising businesses are falling into this gap - founders and CEOs running businesses with great potential, generating healthy revenues, but their scale-rate, TAM, or situation don’t fit the blueprint and criteria VCs or PE firms are looking for. The market isn’t currently serving these ‘venture graduates’ and they are hitting a wall. That’s where the concept of venture equity comes in. “We take leading positions in these companies and then dedicate a huge amount of time and energy into unlocking their potential, with the goal of becoming profitable and self-sustaining. Our approach gets them off the VC fundraising merry-go-round and onto solid ground.” Resurge acquires leading stakes in UK, European, or Israeli companies generating €8M in revenue through buyouts, recapitalizations, or strategic partnerships with existing investors and lenders. Resurge will inject capital and resources to assist its portfolio companies and get them on a clear path to sustained profitability. The strategy is sector-agnostic, but will focus on tech and tech-enabled businesses with an established product-market fit. The approach provides founders with an opportunity to unlock value from their businesses at an early stage, clean up their cap table, free them from an endless cycle of fundraising, and transition to a longer-term, profit-focused growth strategy that works for the company and its team. Eyal Malinger, co-founder at Resurge, added: “When the market turns bearish, many high-potential companies find themselves stranded, unable to secure the funding they need. Conversely, in times of abundant capital, founders often end up with a convoluted cap table that hinders long-term success. At Resurge, we partner with 'good companies who have the wrong cap table'; businesses with strong fundamentals but misaligned investor base or ones with an operational model that no longer appeals to existing investors. There’s huge potential here, both for the companies and the investors willing to back them in the right way.” On the firm’s AI-led approach, Oren Peleg said: “Having helped build two private equity franchises in the past, I’ve seen first-hand how technology transforms businesses. The availability of advanced AI tools is allowing Resurge to operate at a level of productivity and insight that simply wasn’t possible before. These tools help us pinpoint opportunities faster, make smarter decisions, and unlock value in ways that were previously unimaginable. This enables us to dedicate much more time and far more resources to helping our portfolio companies.”

Opteran, the natural intelligence company has announced its work with  Airbus Defence and Space with support from European Space Agency (ESA) and the UK Space Agency will test the Opteran Mind, its general purpose neuromorphic software, in Airbus space rovers.  Opteran believes nature offers a more efficient, robust solution for autonomy in space robotics which will enable new mission capabilities for future Mars missions and other space exploration projects.  Based on over a decade of research into animal and insect vision, navigation and decision-making, Opteran is conducting tests with Airbus at its Mars Yard to enable rovers to understand depth perception in the toughest off-world environments. Check out our earlier interview with David Rajan, Opteran CEO. Today’s off-world robots are cumbersome - taking minutes to compute a map of their surroundings from multiple cameras before every movement.  Opteran’s visual and perception systems offer Mars rovers’ the ability to understand their surroundings in milliseconds, in challenging conditions, without adding to the robots critical power consumption.  Opteran has reverse engineered natural brain algorithms into a software mind that enables autonomous machines to efficiently move through the most challenging environments without the need for extensive data or training. Successful application of this technology to real-world space exploration will significantly extend navigation capabilities in extreme off-world terrain.  Image: Opteran team working on Airbus Mars rover. Ultimately, providing rovers with continuous navigation while being able to drive further and faster. “We are delighted to be working with ESA and Airbus to demonstrate how Opteran’s neuromorphic software addresses key blockers in space autonomy,” said David Rajan, CEO and co-founder, Opteran.  “Our long-term vision is to provide natural autonomy with the Opteran Mind to every machine, on Earth and beyond, and this project will show how we can enable high speed, continuous safe driving, optimised for the rigours of planetary rover navigation.  Today, no such flight-ready systems exist, so there is a major opportunity for Opteran to step up and resolve a challenge facing all the major players in space robotics.” This project is funded by ESA’s General Support Technology Programme (GSTP) through the UK Space Agency, which takes leading-edge technologies that are not ready to be sent into space and then develops them to be used in future missions. The near-term focus for the BNEE project is on depth estimation for obstacle detection, and the mid-term focus on infrastructure-free visual navigation. Once the results of the initial testing have been presented to ESA the goal would be to move to the next stage of grant funding which would start to focus on deployment and commercialisation.

University spinout numbers are on the increase, prompted by universities lowering their stakes in startups, according to the co-founder of a deeptech startup spun out of a UK university. Many in the startup ecoysysem argue that universities should cut the stake they take in university spinouts, which, they argue, would encourage more startups to be founded as well as increase their chances of bagging VC and other external investment. Research published earlier this year by Beauhurst and the Royal Academy of Engineering found the average stake taken by UK universities in spinout companies increased over the last year from 19.1% to 22%. Doctor Peter Garraghan, co-founder and CEO, Mindgard, a deeptech cybersecurity startup, which was spun out of the UK’s Lancaster University in 2022, told the Tech.eu podcast: “Many of the universities are dropping it down to anywhere between 10% up to 20%, sometimes lower, depends on the state of the company. "And that has allowed a lot of these companies to start forming in the last few years as opposed to 10 years ago, when universities really liked licencing the technology but they realised that that was only getting them so far.” Garraghan said that Lancaster University had around just a three per cent stake in Mindgard. A recent report from Parkwalk, the UK's most active investor in university spinouts, asserts that spinouts will increasingly define much of the UK’s economic standing in the world, our levels of productivity, advancements in public services and the innovation that can help curb climate change. Garraghan was speaking on the podcast along with Kevin Berghoff, the co-founder of Quantum Diamonds, which develops quantum sensors and which was spun out from the Technical University of Munich in 2022. The pair discussed the virtues and challenges of university spinouts and their own experiences.

A UK savings and investment app and a UK payments startup, two of the UK's brightest startups, are the latest fintechs to embark on secondary share sales. Moneybox and GoCardless are joining Monzo and Revolut in carrying out secondary share sales, which are proving very popular at the moment. Secondary sales are common in startups, as they allow existing shareholders to cash out some of their investment and for new investors to come on board. Moneybox, founded in 2015 and which has more than one million customers, today said its value has nearly doubled to £550m, after a £70m investment from tech investor Apis Global Growth Fund III and Amundi, a European asset manager, which have joined its investor roster. The investors are ploughing in £70m, which will mainly be facilitated through a secondary share sale, with existing investors selling 10-15 per cent of the current share capital, Moneybox said. Moneybox’s existing investors are Fidelity International Strategic Ventures, Oxford Capital, Breega, Burda, and CNP. As part of the secondary share sale, Moneybox’s 35,000-strong shareholder community, including crowdfund investors, retail investors and employee shareholders, will all have the opportunity to sell 10 per cent of their holding, said Moneybox. Ben Stanway, co-founder and executive chair, Moneybox, said the share sale would be “able to facilitate this secondary share sale to recognise the hard work of our team and also our investors, many of whom have supported us since inception. We want to enable our shareholder community to realise some of the value of their investment at this important juncture". Moneybox made a pre-tax profit of £27m in the year ending May 2024, compared to a £4.1m loss the year before. Revenues were up from £29m to £77m in the period. Companies House data also shows the Moneybox chairwoman Laurel Powers-Freeling resigned as director last month. Powers-Freeling, a former boss of Marks & Spencer Financial Services, was an independent non-executive chairwoman appointed in October 2021. Moneybox said Powers-Freeling had stepped down following her three-year contract ending, as she moved to heading up the new Bank of England (BOE) and Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) cost-benefit analysis panel. She is being replaced by Ben Stanway, Moneybox co-founder and co-CEO. Separately, GoCardless, a payment platform that lets businesses collect one-off and recurrent payments, such as subscriptions and membership fees, via direct debit, rather than credit cards or bank transfers, is also undergoing a secondary share sale, according to a report. Sky News has reported that the share sale at GoCardless,which was valued at around $2billion in 2022, will result in a £100m-plus windfall for its employees. It said that GoCardless, founded in 2011, was in the advanced stages of co-ordinating a secondary share sale. Sources said the sale could see up to $200m of stock changing hands. Existing investors in GoCardless include Accel, Balderton and Notion Capital. GoCardless declined to comment.

The 2025 Tech.eu Summit London 2025 will take place in London on March 25 - 26 at the Queen Elizabeth II Centre. It provides a critical means of fostering meaningful connections with Europe's most influential tech leaders, investors, and rising startups.  Kick-start your 2025 tech journey with this essential event. You can expect a diverse array of topics that span critical areas such as AI, entrepreneurship, sustainability, fintech, quantum computing, and climatetech, with the opportunity to explore the latest trends, solutions, and challenges facing industries today, providing insights and actionable knowledge to participants. Further, we meticulously curate a limited-attendance environment, ensuring space for in-depth one-on-one conversations and prime access to the tech ecosystem.  The Tech.eu Summit journey started in Brussels, Belgium's capital, in 2022. Since then, we've moved the event to London, arguably Europe's fintech capital, where the most fundraising deals occur.  This year's Tech.eu Summit London 2024 event in May hosted over 1200 participants and 120 speakers and was a hive of activity and enthusiastic discussion, not to mention some fantastic startup pitching.  At Tech.eu Summit London 2025, you can expect to hear from more startups than ever before, amongst a speaker list of industry entrepreneurs, investors, and leaders. You can also enjoy interactive round-table sessions, numerous parties and side events, and much more.  We will soon share the ticket details, speakers, and program of our Tech.eu Summit London 2025 conference with you.  See you in London on March 25 - 26!