Solar Foods bags €77.8M package, €500M defence and dual-use growth fund EDM launched, and warning for Europe's silicon photonics

This week, we tracked more than 60 tech funding deals worth over €585 million and 3 exits, M&A transactions, rumours, and related news stories across Europe.
Solar Foods bags €77.8M package, €500M defence and dual-use growth fund EDM launched, and warning for Europe's silicon photonics
This week, we tracked more than 60 tech funding deals worth over €585 million and 3 exits, M&A transactions, rumours, and related news stories across Europe.

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💸 Notable and big funding rounds

🇫🇮 Solar Foods wins €77.8M funding package for Factory 02 expansion

🇬🇧  As AI agents become employees, NewCore emerges with $66M to give them identities

🇬🇧  Former Palantir employees raise $60M for AI enterprise startup Conduct


🫱🏽‍🫲🏻 Noteworthy acquisitions and mergers

🇩🇪  DeepL acquires US audio stadium streaming business Mixhalo

🇬🇧 The Citation Group has announced the acquisition of PayCaptain

🇳🇱  Wise acquires expat information business Expatica


🚀 Interesting moves from investors

💰 Anterra Capital reaches $100M first close for Fund III to back next-gen food and agritech innovation

💸 Wave Ventures marks decade with €10M fund and founder grants

💰 EXANTE launches €1M fund to support critical open-source infrastructure

💵 BAE Systems launches €50M push to help European defence startups scale

💵 Earlybird and AVP launch E2D, a €500M defence and dual-use growth fund


🗞️ In other (important) news

🪖  Ukraine and France launch €20M BRAVE FRANCE fund to accelerate battlefield innovation

🇩🇰 Danish startup Good Tape launches ‘Names’ campaign honouring journos killed in the line of duty

🇺🇦 Ukraine launches TrophyLab, turning captured Russian weapons into a battlefield R&D platform

⚛️  Silicon photonics firms warn Europe lacks infrastructure to turn research into commercial success


📡 Recommended reads and listens

💪  May 2026's top 10 European tech deals you need to know about

🩺  Meet the Norwegian startup developing a new generation of emergency tourniquets


🔭 European tech startups to watch 

🇮🇹 Sirius Game closes €1.3M round to expand game-based learning

🇨🇭 OneSoil secures €1M to expand AI-powered farming assistant

🇩🇪 WhyBrilliant raises €1M to scale AI job matching, backed by Merantix

🇩🇪 Tryll launches AI gaming engine alpha and secures $600,000 pre-seed funding

🇨🇭 Venture Kick backs Minysa with €163,000 for GaN chip development

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