QuantumDiamonds raises €91M in EU Chips Act first for its diamond chip scanner
What's the deal? QuantumDiamonds, a Munich spin-out of the Technical University of Munich, has raised €91 million to scale its quantum-based semiconductor inspection technology. The round combines a €15 million equity Series A led by World FundDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → with €76 million in non-dilutive state aid approved under the European Chips Act.
Who's backing it? The equity round drew participation from Bayern KapitalDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → and existing investors IQ CapitalDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, Earlybird, First Momentum, UnternehmerTUM, Creator Fund, and Onsight Ventures. The €76 million grant comes from the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy and the Free State of Bavaria, cleared by Brussels on June 23.
Why now? QuantumDiamonds is set to become the first startup ever to win manufacturing funding under the Chips Act, which until now has gone to giants such as GlobalFoundriesDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → and Carl Zeiss. The award lands amid a European push to make more chips at home: the continent uses about 20% of the world's semiconductors but produces only 10%.
What's the endgame? Founded in 2022 by chief executive Kevin Berghoff and chief technology officer Fleming Bruckmaier, the firm exploits atomic flaws in lab-grown diamonds to sense magnetic fields — effectively a microscope that watches electricity flow through a chip. Its first product, the QDm.1, images currents in 3D at the nanoscale without damaging the chip, pinpointing buried defects that optical and X-ray tools miss.
One US chip designer had spent six weeks hunting a fault. "You found the defect in under a minute," the designer said.
Where's the money going? QuantumDiamonds will deliver lab systems to chipmakers and advance wafer-level inspection. It plans to open the first section of a €152 million Munich production plant this year and more than double its engineering team over the next 12 months, from a current headcount of 70.
Expanding fast: In March 2026 the firm set up an Asian hub in Taiwan, appointing industry veteran Peter Lemmens as managing director for Asia. It then installed its first US system in Sunnyvale, California, and its first Asian system in Hsinchu, Taiwan.
A consolidating field: QuantumDiamonds is not alone in diamond sensing. Its closest technical rival, Swiss startup Qnami, was bought by Quantum Design in June, folding its technology into a broader instruments group. The incumbents are far larger: KLA holds roughly 17.5% of an inspection market set to reach $10.9 billion in 2026.
The signal: Lifting yield by a single percentage point can be worth millions of dollars a week on a high-volume product, and money is chasing tools that spot defects faster. "QD can become Europe's next ASML," said World Fund managing partner Daria Saharova — a bold claim for a one-product company, but one that captures the sovereignty mood in Brussels.
Read more: qd-st.com, thenextweb.com
Image credit: IBM Research
