New figures released by Balderton Capital and Dealroom reveal that despite a flat year for overall VC investment, European AI companies have doubled in value in just four years.
Europe’s generative AI sector is capturing a quarter of all venture capital investment in the region, up from just 15 percent four years ago. Some $13.7bn was invested in AI companies in 2024, compared to the $10.9bn invested in healthtech companies and the $9.2bn invested in fintech.
Six new AI unicorns emerged in 2024, with more experted in the first month of 2025. The enterprise value of VC-backed AI companies in Europe now accounts for nearly 15 percent of the entire tech sector at $508B, up from 12 percent three years ago.
Partner James Wise commented: “It has been an incredible year for AI - not just in terms of companies being formed and funded, but also in the innovative use of AI across the tech ecosystem in Europe.
"Over the next year, we expect the adoption of AI to drive at least 20 percent savings in operating costs across our portfolio alone. With such a great pool of AI talent and customers interested in using this technology, we look forward to an even bigger year for European AI in 2025.”
The largest AI rounds were raised by companies including Wayve, Mistral AI and Nebius. AI unicorns created during the year included Wayve, Poolside AI, Pigment, Bending Spoons and Datasnipper.
According to Dealroom more than 349,000 people were employed by AI companies in Europe in 2024, up 168 percent from 130,000 in 2020.
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