German start-ups driving Europe’s new military revolution

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Munich/Berlin/Frankfurt: A new generation of German defense starts is shaking things, which is bringing fresh ideas and modern technology to Europe’s military heart.

Once it is known to play safe, the country is now supporting bold innovations – from AI systems and smart drones to robotic insects – because it revises how to protect itself and support its allies.

With the fight against the doorstep and old security guarantees of Europe, in doubt, Germany is turning to its bright minds to go on this path.

Gundert Sharf is a co -founder of Germany’s heels, which is the most valuable start of Europe.

After launching his company, it was hard to attract investment – which produces a military strike drone and battlefield AI four years ago.

Now, this is the least of his concerns. The Munich -based company raised its price twice as $ 12 billion while raising the fund last month.

“For the first time in decades, Europe, this year, is spending more on the acquisition of defense technology than the United States,” Skorf said.

Former McCanis & Company’s partner says the European Manhattan Project can be in line with a change in defense innovation. This scientific push that saw the United States growing rapidly of nuclear weapons during World War II.

“Now Europe is coming into matters with defense.”

Reuters spoke to two dozen executives, investors and policy makers to check how Germany – Europe’s largest economy – aims to play a central role in re -making the continent.

Sources told Reuters that Chancellor Frederick’s government views AI and start -up technology as the key to its defense projects and is cutting the bureaucracy directly to the bureaucracy to connect the upper ranks of its army.

Due to the trauma of Nazi militancy and a strong peaceful morality after the war, Germany has long maintained a relatively small and careful defense sector, which has been sheltered by US security guarantees.

The German business model, which is marked by being at risk, also supports additional improvement compared to interruptions.

No more. With US military support, now more uncertain, Germany – which is one of Ukraine’s largest supporters – plans to increase its regular defense budget by about 162 billion euros ($ 175 billion) by 2029.

Sources said most of the money would be in restoration of the nature of the war.

Helsing is part of a wave of German defense startups, which developed a technology to cut AI robots and unmanned mini -submarines to war, from spy cockroaches, like a tank.

“We want to help Europe back its spinal cord,” said Serf.

One of the sources said that some of the smaller firms are now giving advice to the government with the players established.

On Wednesday, a new draft procurement law passed by Mirza’s cabinet, which aims to reduce the barriers to the startups trapped in cash to join the tenders while enabling these firms in advance.

The law will also allow authorities to restrict tenders within the European Union.

A recent meeting with German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius, CEO and founder of the Sovereign Robotes company Arx Robotics, said that the extent to which Berlin’s thinking had changed.

He said, “He said to me: ‘Money is no excuse anymore – now they are there’. It was an important turning point.”

Germany in the lead

Since Donald Trump’s return to the political phase and his new inquiry into US affiliation with NATO, Germany has promised to meet the new GDP’s 3.5 percent new target at defense spending by 2029 – which is faster than most European allies.

Officials in Berlin have emphasized the need to build a European defense industry rather than relying on US companies. But in Germany and generally Europe, it is difficult for the industry champion to scal.

Unlike the United States, the European market has been scattered. Each country has its own purchase standards to meet the contracts.

The United States, the world’s largest military spending, is already stable of defense giants such as Lockheed Martin and RTX, and is one of the key sectors, including satellite technology, fighter jets and health -related weapons.

Washington also began to support defense tech startups in 2015-including Shield AI, drone maker Andorel, and software company Palletteer.

The European Startups recently fought with little support from the government.

But a Aviation Week analysis in May showed that Europe’s 19 high defense spending – including Turkey and Ukraine – is likely to spend 180.1 billion on military purchases this year, compared to $ 175.6 billion for the United States. Washington’s total military costs will be high.

Hans Christopv Atzapoden, head of the German Security and Defense Sector Association BDSV, said an important challenge was that the military purchase system was designed for suppliers set up and was not in the pace in which new technologies emerge.

The German Ministry of Defense said in a statement that it is taking steps to improve purchases and better integrate Bundes Veer to improve startups to quickly available new technologies.

The head of the Armed Forces Powerful Shopping Agency, Entest Lehnigak-Amden, highlighted the drone and AI as an important emerging areas for development.

He told Reuters, “The changes they are making in the battlefield are just as revolutionary as the introduction of machine guns, tanks, or aircraft.”

Spy cockroach

The head of the Cyber Innovation Hub, Swin Wisinger – Bundes Veer’s Innovation Axcerter – said that the war in Ukraine has also changed public attitudes, which has removed the defamation around working in the defense sector.

“Germany has created a whole new openness to the security issue since the attack,” he said.

Wisinger said he now receives LinkedIn applications one day in 2020, compared to 2-3 per week in 2020, with ideas to develop defense technologies.

Some of these ideas are related to science fiction.

Electricity signs should allow humans to control the movement of insects from afar. Its purpose is to collect the intelligence of surveillance in a humorous environment – such as details in enemy positions.

“Our bio-robots-based pest-based stimulus, sensors and communication modules are equipped with safe modules,” said CEO Stephen Wilhelm. “They can be operated individually or worked in the crowd independently.”

In the first half of the 20th century, German scientists launched many military technologies that became world -class – from ballistic missiles to jets and guided weapons. But after his defeat in World War II, Germany was abolished and his scientific abilities were dispersed.

Varnhar Van Brown, who created the first ballistic missile for the Nazis, was one of the hundreds of German scientists and engineers who took the United States after the war, where he later worked in NASA and produced a rocket that made the Apollo spacecraft to the moon.

In recent decades, defense innovation has been a powerful economic engine. Before changing the urban life, military research launched technologies such as the Internet, GPS, semiconductors and jet engines.

Germany’s 75 4.75 trillion economy has contracted in the last two years due to rising energy prices, declining export demand and increasing competition from China. Rising military R&D can promote economic promotion.

“We just need to go into this mindset: a strong defense industrial base means a strong economy and innovation on steroids,” said Marcus Federal, Managing Partner, Defense Capital Capital, Marcus Federal.

Escape from ‘Valley of Death’

Earlier, startups have been held after European investors escaped the threat, who were struggling to avoid ‘Valley Death’-the first step when the cost is high and the sale is low.

But after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the increase in defense spending across Europe has given rise to investors’ interest.

Europe is now proud of three startups with more than $ 1 billion prices: heelsing, German drone maker quantum system, and Portugal’s technician.

“There is a lot of pressure on Germany to be the central nation of European defense,” said Quantam’s chief strategy officer.

Germany has become Ukraine’s second largest military supporter since the United States. Many sources said that the approval that takes years now takes months, and European startups have had the opportunity to test their products on the ground.

Venture Capital Funding for European Defense Tech reached $ 1 billion in 2024, which was only $ 373 million in 2022, and is expected to increase further this year.

“The society has recognized that we have to defend our democracies,” said Christian Seller, general partner of HV Capital, in both ARX and quantum systems.

According to data analyzed by the Dellroom for Reuters, Venture Capital has increased rapidly in Germany. In the last five years, Germany’s defense has earned $ 1.4 billion-more than any other European country-then the UK.

Venture Capital Firm AK partner Jack Wang said many German startups-who are taking advantage of the country’s engineering skills-specialists in integrating existing ingredients into expansion systems.

“The quality of talent in Europe is incredibly high, but overall, there is no country with a better engineering skills than Germany,” he said.

The weakness in Germany’s automotive sector means that there is a scope for saving manufacturing, especially in the Mathel stand-small and medium-sized businesses that are the backbone of the German economy.

Stephen Thomon, CEO of Bourin Startup Donostal, who makes weapons to letters, said he receives 3 to 5 applications daily from workers who leave automotive firms.

“Startups just need the brain to make engineering and prototycing,” he said. “And the German Matheel Stand will have their muscles.”