Quick Facts
- Helsing is raising $1.2 billion at an $18 billion valuation, led by Dragoneer Investment Group and Lightspeed Venture Partners
- The round represents a 30% increase from the company’s €12 billion valuation in June 2025, making it one of Europe’s most valuable private companies
- Helsing’s HX-2 drones are combat-tested in Ukraine and the company secured a €1.46 billion German military contract
European defense tech startup Helsing is closing a $1.2 billion funding round that would value the company at $18 billion, according to sources familiar with the deal. The round is led by Dragoneer Investment Group with co-lead participation from existing investor Lightspeed Venture Partners.
The valuation represents a nearly 30 percent jump from the €12 billion ($14 billion) figure Helsing reached in June 2025. The latest round was oversubscribed multiple times, sources told the Financial Times. Despite US firms leading the round, Helsing remains roughly 80 percent European-owned.
Founded five years ago, Helsing builds AI-powered military systems including the HX-2 kamikaze drone and the Altra Recce-Strike software platform. The company focuses on software that runs on existing military equipment rather than hardware manufacturing, developing AI co-pilots for fighter jets and autonomous drone swarms.
The 12-kilogram HX-2 drone operates within a 100-kilometer range and uses onboard AI for targeting in GPS-denied environments. Helsing says the weapon has been approved for frontline use by Ukraine’s military and is hitting Russian targets. The company has delivered 4,000 HF-1 strike drones to Ukraine and agreed to supply 6,000 additional HX-2 drones.
Helsing secured a contract worth up to €1.46 billion to supply drones to the German armed forces. The company has also integrated its AI systems into the Eurofighter Typhoon and upgraded the Saab JAS 39 Gripen radar system.
The company employs 694 people as of March 2026, doubling its headcount in the past year. Spotify founder Daniel Ek led Helsing’s initial €100 million funding round in November 2021 through his investment vehicle Prima Materia.
“European security is at a crossroads and Helsing will play a significant role in giving democratic societies the ability to deter and defend,” the company’s three founders said in a joint statement. “This new funding round allows us to further up the tempo and invest in large-scale R&D and capabilities across all domains.”
The $18 billion valuation would make Helsing roughly three times more valuable than Swedish battery maker Northvolt and approach the scale of Revolut’s latest private valuation. It dwarfs American defense tech company Anduril’s $14 billion valuation, though Anduril is reportedly seeking a round valuing it above $60 billion.
European defense spending surged to $279 billion in 2024, a 10 percent increase from the previous year. Germany committed to a $100 billion special defense fund in 2022 as NATO members push toward the 2 percent GDP defense spending target.
Read more: Daniel Ek-backed defense tech Helsing to raise $1.2B at $18B valuation