Autonomous drones startup Quantum Systems has raised €160m in Series C funding led by British VC Balderton Capital, making it one of only a few unicorns in the European defence tech field.
Other investors including Hensoldt, Airbus Defense and Space, Bullhound Capital, HV Capital, Project A, controversial German-American investor Peter Thiel, DTCP, Omnes Capital, Porsche SE and Notion also invested.
The 10-year-old Munich-based startup builds dual-use unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) which can spy enemy whereabouts and deliver information, but don’t actually strike targets. Unlike straight defence companies, dual use startups have both military and commercial applications. In Quantum Systems’s case, those commercial use cases include agriculture, mining and infrastructure.
The startup has secured a number of government contracts with the likes of the US, Colombia, Ukraine, Australia, Germany and Spain. Quantum Systems cofounder and co-CEO Florian Seibel told Sifted in January that the startup did €115m in revenue in 2024; Quantum Systems says it’s exceeded 100% year-over-year revenue growth for several years.
“The need for sovereign, aerial intelligence has never been more pressing,” Seibel said in a statement. Quantum Systems’s Co-CEO Sven Kruck added that the new fundraise will enable the startup to increase its global production capacity to meet growing demand and expand its market presence around the world.
Even prior to the funding announcement, the startup has been on a shopping spree: In March Quantum Systems announced the acquisition of German UAV company AirRobot; it also recently expanded into the UK market via an acquisition of British drone products and services provider Nordic Unmanned UK.
A crowded space
It’s no wonder the startup is beefing up its coffers now: Quantum Systems is competing in a space filled with a number of other well-funded and up-and-coming autonomous drone companies, including Helsing, the German AI software and autonomous drones startup which raised funding at a roughly €5bn valuation last summer and began producing autonomous strike drones alongside software last winter.
On Tuesday, Portugal-based autonomous dual-use drones startup Tekever also announced a new funding round that it says puts its valuation at more than £1bn, though the startup didn’t provide details of the amount of fresh capital raised.
Last week Tekever promised to invest £400m in the UK after securing a big contract with the country’s Royal Air Force (RAF).
Others like Stark, Seibel’s other venture which investor Thiel is also involved in, focuses on autonomous strike drones, not dual use. (Seibel is not currently involved directly with the company’s operations but is a founding investor.)
Increasing investor appetite
The big fundraises come as VCs have been increasingly interested in defence tech, with insiders noting there’s been an even more forcible shift towards defence since the start of the year as the US has grown far more protectionist and Europe has scrambled to up its defence spending.
Data from Dealroom and the NATO Innovation Fund suggest that there’s been record amounts of funding flowing into what they call the defence, security and resilience sector in the last year, hitting $5.2 billion in 2024.
Read the orginal article: https://sifted.eu/articles/quantum-systems-160m-unicorn/
