Welcome back to the eighth edition of The New Defense Post!
It’s been a couple of editions — thank you for sticking around! Please tell us if something can be improved. We’re always striving to do better 😉
In this edition, we’ll cover:
In the Hot Seat: We sat down with Ossian Vogel, a longtime pilot, drone builder, and now founder of NORDYN Group — a company creating container-based micro factories for producing drones and other unmanned systems close to the frontline.
Spotlights: Quantum Systems Aims at €5bn Valuation; Stark names Project A GP Uwe Horstmann as CEO after $62mn raise; Europe’s Defense-Tech Surge: Is It Overhyped?
Fundraising News of the Week: MatrixSpace raised $20mn Series B for counter-UAS radars; Tycho.AI raised $10mn Series A for resilient navigation & AI pilot; Albacore raised $6.5mn seed for unmanned underwater vehicles; Blue Arrow raised an undisclosed pre-seed for advanced autonomous navigation and fleet systems.
Bonus Section: We’ll examine the current European push into underwater security systems.
In the Hot Seat
Photo Credit: Ossian Vogel
A large factory like Rheinmetall’s new ammunition plant, Werk Niedersachsen, in Unterlüß, covers around 30,000 m². If a war breaks out in Europe, this and other large production plants become huge, easy-to-hit targets.
But what if there were an alternative to gargantuan factories? What if production could be hidden and placed close to the frontline?
When it comes to unmanned vehicle manufacturing, this is exactly what the NORDYN Group is building, and traction is there.
We sat down with Ossian Vogel, a longtime pilot, drone builder, and now founder of NORDYN Group—a company creating container-based microfactories for producing drones and other unmanned systems close to the frontline.
With decades of experience in aviation and a hands-on view of Ukraine’s front-line drone production, Ossian shared how the war motivated him to get involved, what he's building now, and why he believes decentralized manufacturing isn’t just the future of defense - it’s already a necessity.
Spotlights
1. Quantum Systems Aims at €5bn Valuation
Photo Credit: Quantum Systems
Quantum Systems is nearing a €150mn round that could triple its valuation to ~€3bn.
Demand is intensifying for its new “Jaeger” interceptor drone due to airport disruptions, while they aim to get near-term growth via acquisitions of startups and tech providers.
The company’s revenue is projected at €300mn in 2025 and >€500mn in 2026; a larger 2026 raise could lift valuation toward €5bn (Manager Magazin).
📰 Our Take: European defense tech has been doing very well lately. We’re usually far behind the U.S. when it comes to tech ventures, but this time, we’re catching up — and it shows in the ballooning valuations of European defense tech startups
There are several key drivers behind the success of EU defense tech startups.
Less competition from the U.S.: Companies think twice before outsourcing defense technology to a third country or region.
Stronger necessity and urgency: With an increasingly aggressive Russia at our borders, the demand is immediate and real.
Growing capital flow into Europe: The European early-stage VC space is maturing and decreasing the gap with the US.
2. STARK Names Project a GP Uwe Horstmann as CEO After $62MN Raise
Uwe Horstmann. Photo Credit: Project A
Berlin-based STARK — about a year old and building strike drones and other unmanned strike systems — has appointed investor Uwe Horstmann (General Partner at Project A) as CEO shortly after its $62mn fundraise.
Horstmann will drive expansion into new product categories (incl. longer-range systems) while remaining active in Project A investing activity.
📰 Our Take: This is something you don’t see often — an investor turning CEO in a portfolio company. A lot of respect from our side; it shows real conviction in the company’s vision.
Curious to know more about it, especially given STARK’s very unconventional management structure. They operated for more than a year without a CEO (or maybe Uwe was already there 👀).
3. Europe’s Defense-Tech Surge: Is It Overhyped?
Photo Credit: ARX
Since Feb 2022, 230+ European defense-tech startups have launched (52 this year), with VC investment hitting $1.5B in the most active year yet.
The market is crowded (esp. drones, with 500+ startups by some estimates), valuations are up, and many companies remain years from fielding battle-ready capabilities.
🗣 Dame Fiona Murray, Chair, NATO Innovation Fund: “For capital to consolidate into winners, you need big contracts—governments and nations have to step up, then investors can invest at scale” (Financial Times)
📰 Our Take: Expect a shakeout over the next 12–24 months, especially in drones, where many lookalike startups are chasing the same missions. Like in any other hype cycle, some startups will survive, many won’t, and new multibillion-euro companies will be formed.
It’s a bit early to call it overhyped, though. Europe is expected to spend close to €1 trillion on defense by 2030. Being a winner and capturing a sizable share of that pie could mean very high returns for investors.
Also, many of the most effective systems in Ukraine aren’t being built by the primes. European MoDs are taking note, and we can expect larger opportunities for startups fielding these systems.
Other News
This Week’s Statistics
Starting in September 2024, Russia significantly ramped up its use of Shahed drones, increasing from approximately 200 launches per week to more than 1,000 per week by March 2025 (CSIS)
Fundraising News
Amount | Name | Round | Category |
|---|---|---|---|
$20mn | Counter UAS Radars | ||
$10mn | Resilient Navigation and AI Pilot | ||
$6.5mn | Unmanned Underwater Vehicles | ||
Undisclosed | Advance Autonomous Navigation and Fleet Systems |
Bonus Section — Drone Swarms
NEMYX system by Auterion. Photo Credit: Auterion
AI-enabled drone swarms are moving closer to becoming a reality, with companies developing systems that enable multiple unmanned platforms to coordinate attacks and overwhelm defenses.
Auterion’s new “Nemyx” swarm engine transforms compatible drones into a single, orchestrated force, and the company is shipping 33,000 AI “strike kits” to Ukraine this year that can be upgraded for swarming capabilities. Europe’s Helsing, partnering with Systematic, is exploring similar capabilities that enable one operator to command multiple drones and adapt tactics in real-time.
The shift builds on Ukraine’s wartime experimentation. For example, Kyiv-based Swarmer claims its technology has been used in 82,000 combat operations, while Russia has already demonstrated how mass Shahed attacks, even if not equipped with advanced swarming capabilities, can saturate air defenses.
The next phase is about true autonomy, data, and integration speed. Ukrainian firms believe their vast classified combat video archive gives them an edge in training autonomy models, and open software architectures are cutting integration timelines from months to weeks.
Yet swarming faces hard limits: electronic warfare jams navigation and comms, and legal/ethical constraints that keep humans “in the loop.” But, to be honest, once necessity demands it, human checks will probably be dropped.
Advocates argue these systems will remain operator-directed and aligned with European doctrines; critics warn algorithms could creep toward greater control.
Beyond war, the same tech could transform civilian tasks—from inspections to disaster response. This aligns with the idea that military technology will increasingly spill over into the civilian sector in the future.
Love these insights? Forward this newsletter to a friend or two. They can subscribe on our website