Defence, Security and Resilience in Europe – 2026

The state of defence, security and resilience startups and venture capital in 2026, in collaboration with NATO Innovation Fund.

Key findings

• European deep tech defence, security and resilience startups raised a record $8.7B in VC funding in 2025, up 55% on 2024 and nearly four times the 2020 total.
• Late-stage funding more than tripled to $4.7B in 2025, while early-stage funding fell 10% to $1.1B and breakout-stage funding fell 13% to $2.8B.
• The UK attracted the most sector funding in Europe in 2025 with $2.9B, ahead of Germany at $2.1B, France at $869M and Finland at $636M in fourth place.
• European defence, security and resilience startups recorded 20 VC-backed M&A exits in 2025, four times the 2021 count, with no public listings during the year.
• AI underpinned 44% of European defence, security and resilience funding in 2025, the highest share in six years, against 40% at the previous 2020 peak.