Europe’s late‑stage funding engine has sputtered back to life. More than ten startups across the continent crossed the $1 billion valuation mark this year, according to Dealroom and PitchBook tallies, signaling a measured rebound in risk appetite and a shift toward deeper tech, dual‑use capabilities, and AI‑first platforms.
While mega‑rounds remain rarer than during the 2021 boom, this class of unicorns reflects a market that prizes defensible technology, clear enterprise demand, and credible paths to profitability. The result: a cohort spanning AI software, quantum hardware, defense tech, biotech, climate and energy, and even space launch—an unusually diversified slate for a single year.
AI and dual‑use tech lead the surge
Enterprise AI is the clearest throughline. Germany’s Parloa hit unicorn status with a $120 million Series C for its conversational AI platform, less than two years after an earlier round—a reflection of how customer service automation moved from pilot to line‑item spend. Dublin’s Tines entered the club at $1.125 billion on the back of AI‑powered workflow automation, reporting more than a billion automated actions executed weekly for customers.
On the dual‑use front, Europe’s security wake‑up call is now reshaping cap tables. Quantum Systems, backed by Balderton and strategic investors including Airbus Defense and Space, became a unicorn after a €160 million Series C to scale autonomous drones and onboard AI. Portugal’s Tekever confirmed a valuation north of £1 billion as it expands maritime and border‑monitoring UAVs, with support from the NATO Innovation Fund among others. These aren’t speculative bets; they are revenue‑driven businesses benefiting from multi‑year procurement cycles.
Even fast‑moving AI startups are breaking speed records. Sweden’s Lovable, an “AI vibe‑coding” upstart, vaulted to a valuation near $2 billion with a $200 million Series A less than a year after launch—an illustration of how generative AI tools that shorten the distance from idea to shipped software are attracting outsized rounds.
Health and biotech add heft
Biotech and preventative health are back in fashion, buoyed by clinical data and commercial momentum. Isomorphic Labs, the AI‑driven drug discovery company spun out of DeepMind, secured $600 million in its first external raise, putting it squarely in unicorn territory as it advances partnerships and pipelines.
Verdiva Bio joined the club with a $410 million Series A to develop oral GLP‑1 therapies—an area where demand signals from obesity and metabolic care are unmistakable. On the preventative side, Neko Health, co‑founded by Daniel Ek, reached a $1.8 billion valuation after a $260 million Series B to scale full‑body scanning clinics and invest in R&D. The unifying thesis: healthcare platforms that either compress time to therapy or detect disease earlier are commanding premium valuations.
Frontier compute, energy and space broaden the mix
Europe’s deep tech bench is also minting unicorns. Finland’s IQM crossed the threshold after raising more than $300 million to advance quantum computers and a cloud platform tapping its hardware. France’s Zama hit a billion‑plus valuation while advancing homomorphic encryption—crucial for privacy‑preserving AI that can compute on encrypted data.
In climate and energy, UK‑based Fuse Energy reportedly cleared a $1 billion valuation as it builds a next‑gen renewable platform. Meanwhile, Germany’s Isar Aerospace became a unicorn with a €150 million convertible from Eldridge, underscoring growing investor comfort with capital‑intensive launch providers that demonstrate technical milestones and commercial cadence.
The cohort even includes consumer‑adjacent and design‑centric wins. Framer reached a $2 billion valuation with a $100 million Series D to double down on enterprise and AI‑assisted no‑code tooling, and Mubi entered the club with a $100 million round, evolving from curated streaming into production and distribution.
The funding picture behind the headlines
According to Atomico’s State of European Tech and data from Dealroom and PitchBook, late‑stage activity fell sharply last year but has stabilized, with a higher share of rounds led or joined by deep‑pocketed global funds alongside Europe’s top tier. Notably, several unicorn‑making raises in this cohort were sub‑$200 million—suggesting valuations are being set more by traction and quality of revenue than by sheer check size.
There’s also a geographic and institutional pattern. Germany, the UK, France, Finland, Ireland, and Sweden feature prominently, while strategic investors—Airbus, Hensoldt and others—appear alongside traditional VCs. The NATO Innovation Fund’s early activity is already visible in dual‑use outcomes. And university spinouts continue to punch above their weight, with Technical University of Munich adding another unicorn via Isar Aerospace.
Why this cohort matters
This year’s unicorns look different from the 2021 class: fewer blitz‑scaled consumer plays, more mission‑critical software, regulated‑market expertise, and hard tech. That mix should prove more resilient if conditions tighten again. It also signals that Europe’s strengths—world‑class research, tight industry‑academia links, and a growing pool of repeat founders—are translating into billion‑dollar companies across multiple verticals.
If the pace holds, Europe will exit the year with a healthy new crop of unicorns and, more importantly, a pipeline of durable public‑market candidates. For founders, the takeaway is clear: with the right metrics and a defensible edge, the billion‑dollar threshold is open for business again.