German AI defense company Helsing secures €450 million funding
Helsing, a German AI defense company, has secured €450 million in a Series C funding round.
The funds will be used for product development and research, with a focus on protecting NATO's eastern flank. General Catalyst led the round, with participation from investors including Elad Gil, Accel, Saab, Lightspeed, Plural, and Greenoaks.
In a joint statement, company founders Niklas Köhler, Torsten Reil, and Gundbert Scherf said, "European security is at a crossroads and Helsing will play a significant role in giving democratic societies the ability to deter and defend. But speed is of the essence. This new funding round allows us to further up the tempo and invest in large-scale R&D and capabilities across all domains."
Since 2022, Helsing has been active in Ukraine and recently launched the Defense Manufacturers Alliance together with the Ukrainian government. The company has already won several defense contracts since its foundation in 2021.
According to the press release, these contracts include the electronic warfare upgrade for the German Eurofighter, the AI infrastructure for the Future Combat Air System (FCAS), and a number of classified contracts in the maritime and land sectors.
As Helsing is considered a key technology company in Germany, the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action must approve the financing round. If the funding is secured, Helsing would become the best-funded AI startup in Germany.
There are four main military application areas for AI: logistics, reconnaissance, cyberspace, and warfare. AI helps optimize logistics chains, find weak points, and consolidate huge amounts of data into usable information.
Drone reconnaissance and communication between drone operators, artillery, and infantry played a central role in Ukraine's defense against the Russian attack. According to a Ukranian drone soldier, Ukraine is training neural networks so that drones can automatically recognize Russian soldiers and vehicles and speed up the decision-making process.
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