BAE-backed Expeditions closes €197M fund for European defence startups
What's the deal? Expeditions, a Warsaw-headquartered venture firm backed by BAE SystemsDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → and the NATO Innovation FundDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, has closed a €197 million ($225 million) second fund to develop sovereign military technologies in Europe. It plans to back as many as 40 early-stage startups.
What's the endgame? The firm targets founders building technologies with "immediate operational relevance" to Europe's critical defence capability gaps, said general partner Mikolaj FirlejDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →. Founded in 2021, Expeditions invests across defence, intelligence, autonomy, AI, quantum, privacy, communications, and space.
Who's backing it? Limited partners in Fund II include the NATO Innovation Fund, the Polish Development FundDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, and executives from Skype, Wise, Bolt, and Snowflake. BAE Systems committed €25 million as part of a broader €50 million push, splitting the rest between a new Lakestar defence vehicle.
Why now? European defence-tech investing is professionalising fast, with major primes stepping in as cornerstone LPs rather than only backing startups directly. BAE's Launchpad programme aims to help founders move advanced defence technologies beyond the prototype stage as the continent strengthens its security capabilities.
The fund has already made seven investments, including LenduraiDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, OrasioDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, and Q. Expeditions' portfolio spans nearly a third of Europe's 30 most well-funded defence startups, among them Alpine Eagle, Comand AI, and Nu Quantum.
What could go wrong? Europe's defence startups still face fragmented national procurement systems and historically risk-averse institutional investors, and the sector remains dominated by large primes such as Airbus, ThalesDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, and Leonardo.
The signal: Expeditions launched its first fund before the current boom, and Fund I now ranks in the top 0.01% of funds worldwide by Cambridge Associates benchmarks. The €197 million raise is notable less for its size than for who is backing it — signalling that defence is becoming a mainstream European VC vertical.
Read more: Bloomberg · EU-Startups · Tech.eu
Image credit: Xubaet
