Helsing Raises $1.8 Billion as German Defense AI Startup Hits $18 Billion Valuation

German startup Helsing, which builds artificial intelligence for drones and weapons systems, has closed a Series E funding round worth $1.8 billion. The round valued the company at $18 billion and marks the largest private funding round in the history of Europe's defense technology sector.

Helsing was founded in 2021 by Torsten Reil, previously the founder of computer animation company NaturalMotion, Gundbert Scherf, a former official at Germany's defense ministry, and machine learning engineer Niklas Köhler. In five years the company has gone from startup to Europe's most valuable private defense company, overtaking rivals such as Germany's Quantum Systems (valued at 3 billion euros) and Britain's Tekever.

What Helsing builds

The company builds software and hardware that fuse data from drones, radar, satellites and cameras into a single real-time situational picture, while final combat decisions remain in human hands. Its flagship products are the HF-1 and HX-2 strike drones, which navigate without GPS, resist electronic jamming, and can hit targets up to 100 kilometers away. Helsing is also developing the SG-1 Fathom, an autonomous underwater drone for maritime surveillance capable of ninety days submerged, and the CA-1 Europa, a four-ton uncrewed combat aircraft whose first flight is planned for 2027.

The company's contracts include a 580-million-euro agreement with the German government to develop the Combat Fighter System Nucleus, as well as participation in the EU's Future Combat Air System program. Helsing has also tested Centaur, an AI system that pilots a fighter jet, which passed successful trials in June 2025.

Where the capital is coming from

According to investors involved, the round was significantly oversubscribed, with investor demand exceeding the available allocation. The capital is meant to speed up development and integration of new AI platforms within the armed forces of Helsing's partner countries. The company notes that despite the inflow of capital from American funds, it remains majority European-owned.

The round remains dominated by European capital, underscoring the company's deep roots in Europe - Helsing statement

The war in Ukraine as backdrop

The surge in investment in European defense startups is being driven by Russia's war against Ukraine, which has become a testing ground for new combat technologies. Deliveries of HF-1 and HX-2 drones to the Ukrainian military show how quickly European governments are shifting toward AI-supported weapons instead of relying solely on traditional US suppliers.

What it means for Europe

Helsing's valuation confirms that Europe is catching up with the United States in the race for capital in AI-driven defense companies, though it still trails America's Anduril, which carries a higher valuation. For Poland's defense and technology sector, it's a signal that investors see autonomous combat systems as one of the fastest-growing segments of the AI market, alongside data centers and language models. Polish defense firms and startups such as Pustułka, a drone-detection system tested in Kielce, are riding the same wave of rising AI-backed defense spending.

Helsing's board is co-chaired by Daniel Ek, Spotify's founder and an early investor in the company, and Tom Enders, former head of Airbus. This shows the company is building political and industrial backing that goes beyond its financial investors, which matters when it comes to winning further government contracts in Europe.

Sources: Tech.eu (tech.eu), TechCrunch (techcrunch.com), Wikipedia - Helsing (en.wikipedia.org), Onet (wiadomosci.onet.pl)