When Daniel Ek is not busy running Spotify or building a new AI-driven health technology enterprise, he appears to be making a big bet on the future of European wars.
The billionaire, who lives primarily in Stockholm, has just led an investment of 600 million euros in the four-year-old Helsing, now valued at 12 billion euros, as first reported by the Financial Times and individually confirmed by TechCrunch. The agreement makes it one of Europe's most valuable private companies. It also highlights European scramblings to build European military muscle as the world becomes more troubling and the US becomes inwards.
Numbers help you talk. Helsing raised $450 million just a year ago, shy. Now we're back in this even bigger round led by EK investment company Prima Materia. This is part of a wider defense technology boom that is flooded with money from companies such as the Founders Fund, European drone maker Quantum Systems and US giant Andrill, who just raised $2.5 billion, led by Tekever. (In recent weeks, they have announced 160 million euros and 70 million euros, respectively, in a round that places them on the territory of the so-called unicorns, respectively.)
Helsing refused to share details on how the new funds were used.
To be precise, Helsing said last year that he said it was going to turn modern wars into something that looks like a video game, except for very realistic outcomes.
The company's main products capture vast amounts of data from military sensors, radar and weapons systems, and use AI to create intuitive, real-time visualizations of what's going on on the battlefield. Instead of soldiers making life and death decisions based on phones and hand-drawn maps, everyone is looking at the same information from command centers a few miles away, whether it's on the frontline trench.
But what began as an AI software company has become far more ambitious. Helsing said he is currently building its own strike drones and aircraft, working on a fleet of unmanned mini-submarines to block naval surveillance.
The timing is no coincidence. As American investor Eric Slesinger told TechCrunch this spring, “The European government was waiting too long to rethink what its security arrangements meant.” The wake-up call revealed that with Russia's invasion of Ukraine, Europe cannot rely solely on American protection. US Election Last year, President Donald Trump's election, who is much more interested in moving forward with American interests, has since placed more detail on things.
Now, European leaders are talking about spending heavily on defense while achieving strategic autonomy. Greek Prime Minister Mitotakis recently summarised the move in another interview with TechCrunch. “As Europe, we intend to spend a lot of money on defense. The defence landscape is changing.
A few years ago, its realisation was the driving force behind the NATO Innovation Fund, the world's first multi-sauverine venture capital fund, supported by 24 NATO allies. However, the capital pool is just one of several signs that Europe is seriously working to build its own defense technology ecosystem, rather than relying on the US for protection.
EK, who first invested in Helsing in 2021 before the outbreak of the Ukrainian War, has probably seen things headed for a while. As he said in his Monday fundraising press release, “As Europe rapidly strengthens its defense capabilities in response to evolving geopolitical agendas, there is an urgent need for investment in advanced technologies that ensure strategic autonomy.”
Other investors in Helsing's new round include former backers LightSpeed Ventures, Accel, Multiple, General Catalyst, Saab, and new investors BDT & MSD Partners. The company is currently fully raising 1.37 billion euros.