🇪🇺 Weekly Dose of European Optimism #1

Hi friends,

Happy Monday and welcome to our first ever Weekly Dose of European Optimism! From orbital deployments to revolutionizing food production, the Old Continent is proving it's still got plenty of innovation tricks up its sleeve.

In this week’s edition…

• ATMOS and ARX forge Space Defence Alliance for orbital deployments

• Bosch launches €250M Fund VI for deep-tech startups

• Portugal's TEKEVER reaches unicorn status with NATO backing

• Finland's Foodiq raises €10M for modular food manufacturing

• Coinbase acquires Dutch crypto exchange Deribit for €2.57B

Let’s dive into it.

ATMOS and ARX Robotics forge 'Space Defence Alliance' to build Orbit-to-Ground Deployment Platform

Move over Bond villains, European startups are now building orbital platforms to deploy autonomous robots anywhere on Earth within minutes. What could possibly go wrong?

German space logistics startup ATMOS is teaming up with ARX Robotics to create the world's first Orbit-to-Ground Deployment Platform. ATMOS already launched their PHOENIX 1 re-entry capsule in April and plans PHOENIX 2 for 2026. The capsule will act as an "active space depot" that can drop ARX's autonomous ground systems wherever needed for disaster response or security operations.

It's like Uber Eats but for military-grade robots falling from space. The applications range from humanitarian missions to making bad guys very nervous. Sebastian Klaus, ATMOS CEO, calls it "unprecedented rapid-response infrastructure" while we call it "cool sci-fi stuff becoming reality way faster than expected." European space innovation isn't playing catch-up anymore, we’re taking the express elevator to the future.

Bosch Launches Fund VI at €250M to support deep-tech startups

Industrial giant Bosch is dropping a cool €250M on deep-tech startups with their new Fund VI. They’re hunting for companies built on genuine scientific breakthroughs in energy, mobility, and automation.

Since 2007, Bosch has made over 100 investments, including some notable wins like quantum computing pioneer IonQ. But what makes this truly German is the methodical approach.

Each year, they screen about 2,000 startups with only 6-10 making the cut. Talk about exclusive. Those chosen few get capital, expertise, and access to Bosch's operating units through their "Open Bosch" program.

While many corporations pull back during economic uncertainty, Bosch leans in.  

Lisbon's TEKEVER becomes latest European defence tech unicorn with NATO backing

Portugal isn't just for vacations and pastéis de nata anymore. Lisbon-based TEKEVER just joined the unicorn club with backing from Ventura Capital, Baillie Gifford, and the NATO Innovation Fund. Their AI-enabled drone systems have already proven themselves in Ukraine, making them the rare unicorn with actual battlefield experience.

The company is now launching a £400M development program called OVERMATCH in the UK. The plan will create 1,000+ jobs and establish sovereign defense capabilities. It's structured around four pillars with acronym-friendly names because nothing says "serious defense project" like a good acronym.

TEKEVER CEO Ricardo Mendes says Europe needs to "transform our industrial base."

Translation: Europe is tired of calling America every time things get dicey. With rapidly deployable drone systems providing real-time intelligence, TEKEVER is helping Europe step up its defense game.

Finland's foodtech Foodiq secures €10M to expand globally

Leave it to the practical Finns to solve food manufacturing. Foodiq just raised €10M for their Multi-Layer Cooker technology that could revolutionize how we produce what we eat, without all the fanfare of a typical Silicon Valley food startup promising to disrupt the concept of chewing.

Their MLC combines mixing, pasteurization, and emulsification in one system, allowing producers to make everything from dairy and plant-based foods to beverages using different raw materials. It's basically the Swiss Army knife of food manufacturing, minus the tiny scissors no one uses.

The real innovation is enabling decentralized food production. Instead of massive factories shipping products across continents, MLC technology creates local production hubs, reducing transportation costs and emissions. It's the kind of sensible Nordic innovation that makes you wonder why no one thought of it sooner. Perhaps they were all too busy building saunas.

Coinbase set to acquire Dutch-born crypto derivatives exchange Deribit for €2.57B

Founded by John and Marius Jansen, Deribit grew from a Bitcoin trading platform to become the dominant player in crypto options trading. Now US-based Coinbase is scooping them up in a massive cash and stock deal that makes the Jansen family's tulip-trading ancestors look like amateurs.

The acquisition gives Coinbase leadership in crypto derivatives trading, an area that generated over $1 trillion in volume last year through Deribit alone. Options trading tends to be more stable than spot trading, much like the Dutch themselves compared to their more volatile European neighbors.

Deribit CEO Luuk Strijers calls it "a new era in global crypto derivatives" while we call it "another example of European crypto expertise cashing in big while regulators were distracted." The deal should close by year-end, assuming everyone remembers to sign the paperwork between bitcoin rallies.

Eyeo from Eindhoven just raised €15M for its nanophotonic color-splitting technology, with plans to scale manufacturing and expand its already impressive technical team.

7Learnings from Berlin just secured €40M in a Series B round to expand its AI-powered retail optimization platform across Europe and push into the North American market.

FINOM from Amsterdam just bagged €92.7M to scale its digital banking solution targeting European SMEs and entrepreneurs who need simpler financial tools than traditional banks offer.

Parloa from Berlin just raised €106M at a €1B valuation for its Agentic AI customer experience platform that's helping enterprises automate complex customer interactions with uncanny human-like responsiveness.

StackOne from London just secured €17.6M in Series A funding to accelerate development of its API integration platform that simplifies connections between enterprise software systems.

Techno optimism is alive and thriving in Berlin. I shared my thoughts about the culture and event on X.

Great video by Andreas Klinger about an awesome dutch construction robotics company. I dig the format of filming inside the products sites of these companies (where the magic happens!)

To all European founders, investors, and ecosystem builders reading this:

Thanks for reading our first edition! We’re open to feedback on the format of this weekly newsletter, so just reply with what you liked or what you’d like to see from us.

Keep building, keep investing, and keep proving that you don't need to be in California to create world-changing technology. The European tech renaissance is just getting started, and you're writing its story.

See you next week,

Ole

P.S. I read all replies if you have anything to share, go for it!

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