Tech 14 July 2026

Helsing: Europe's AI defence startup is now valued at $18 billion

Germany's Helsing, which builds artificial intelligence and autonomous drones for defence, has closed a $1.8 billion round and is now Europe's most valuable startup in the sector.

Europe wants to stop relying on the United States and China for its military technology — and it has just put a lot of money on the table to prove it. Helsing, a German artificial-intelligence defence startup, has closed a $1.8 billion funding round that values it at around $18 billion, making it the most valuable company of its kind on the continent.

What does Helsing do?

Based in Munich, Helsing builds AI software for the battlefield: systems that process sensor data in real time and autonomous drones that can operate in environments where communication is hard. The idea is not to replace soldiers with machines, but to give European armed forces a faster, clearer picture of what is happening around them. The round, a Series E, was one of the largest ever raised by a European tech company.

Why is Europe investing in military AI?

The short answer: the war in Ukraine changed everything. The conflict showed that cheap drones and smart software can matter as much as heavy, expensive hardware, and European governments have sharply raised their defence budgets. Portugal, as a NATO and EU member, is part of that conversation about technological sovereignty — and it is not starting from scratch: Portugal’s Tekever has become a European reference in drones, as we reported when it bought Britain’s CloudSweep. The appetite for computing power to train these systems is huge, to the point where giants like Meta are doubling their capacity.

Not everyone is applauding. Pouring billions into AI for warfare raises obvious ethical questions about how far automation should go in the use of force — a debate Helsing itself says it wants to have, and one you can follow on its official page. What is clear is that Europe has decided it does not want to sit this race out.

By Oliver Grant

Illustrative · Photo: SHOX ART / Pexels

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