The funding round was led by AlbionVC, with follow-on participation from all major existing investors, including Outward VC and Form Ventures. This comes one year after their €2.8 million (£2.5 million) Seed round.

David Newman, CEO of Firenze, says: “The market demand for Firenze’s solution has exceeded our expectations and as a result our vision has got more and more ambitious. We, therefore, felt now was the right time to take on further capital to accelerate our plans.

“When seeking a partner to work with for this next phase of growth Jay and Albion stood out. I ultimately believe passion and trust are the two most important attributes when choosing a VC to work with and Jay & Albion have demonstrated that time and time again through the process of getting to know one another. We also feel honoured by the continued support of our existing investors who have shown ever growing enthusiasm for the momentum behind Firenze.”

Firenze’s €6.8 million round can be positioned against a 2026 peer set that includes London-based WealthAi (€837k, to automate workflows for private banks and family offices), Berlin-based Upvest (€108 million, to scale securities infrastructure for banks and FinTechs), London-based Bound (€20.7 million, to support EU regulatory approval and growth in FX risk management), London-based 9fin (€148 million, to develop AI capabilities, expand proprietary data and support US growth in debt markets), and Madrid-based BCAS (€30 million in debt, to expand flexible financing and increase student access).

Together, those comparator rounds add up to over €307 million, or roughly €314 million including Firenze, suggesting that 2026 funding in adjacent segments has remained concentrated in financial infrastructure, risk, wealth and lending-related platforms rather than purely consumer-facing apps.

The UK is notably prominent in this group – WealthAi, Bound and 9fin are all from the same country as Firenze – which helps frame Firenze’s raise as part of a broader British pipeline of specialist financial software and infrastructure funding.

Jay Wilson, Partner, Albion VC adds: “Firenze has built the foundational infrastructure layer to power the next generation of collateralized credit products – starting with Lombard Lending. We’re proud to support the team as they scale.  Lombard lending has been one of private banking’s most powerful tools, yet the vast majority of investors have had no access to it. Firenze is democratising this access, bringing Lombard lending to the mass affluent segment.

“David and the team have executed exceptionally, signing partners covering over £200 billion in assets and delivering a platform that solves the custody, capital, and compliance challenges simultaneously. That combination of market timing and product depth gave us the conviction to lead this round.”

Founded in 2024 by second-time founder David Newman, Firenze emerged from a collective passion for expanding the reach of financial services. The company’s vision stems from the recognition that investment-backed lending, traditionally the exclusive preserve of the high-net-worth and ultra-high-net-worth, can and should be extended to a wider audience.

The firm’s proprietary embedded finance platform empowers wealth managers to offer cost- efficient lending solutions without clients needing to move or sell assets, meaning fast access to liquidity for borrowers – often in as little as 24 hours.

Lombard lending supports a variety of client needs, from offering an alternative to traditional property bridging loans to “reinventing the bank of mum and dad”, allowing parents to support their children with university tuition, fund their first step onto the property ladder or gift them a perfect wedding.

For the uninitiated, Lombard lending is a type of short-term, secured loan where a borrower pledges liquid financial assets – such as stocks, bonds, or investment portfolios – as collateral to obtain liquidity without needing to sell those assets. It is a common financing strategy used by high-net-worth individuals and investors to access cash while keeping their investments in the market.

Whilst the company currently focuses on broadening access to mass affluent clients, its vision is to democratise Lombard lending and make it available as a potential credit option for all.

Andi Kazeroonian, Principal, Outward VC says: “When we led Firenze’s Seed round, we backed David’s vision to bring Lombard lending beyond the walls of large private banks. Twelve months on, the progress has exceeded our expectations – including a five-fold increase in its partner network, a rapidly growing loan book, and a SaaS proposition that’s attracting leading banks and financial institutions – as has the vision for its future.

“Firenze is now proving that the credit infrastructure it has built can reshape how the entire wealth industry thinks about liquidity. We’re proud to continue our support as the company enters this exciting next phase of growth.”

In the last 12 months, Firenze has executed its vision of introducing Lombard lending into the toolkit of IFAs, wealth management firms and investment platforms across the UK.

The company is now the trusted partner of UK firms representing almost €229 billion (£200 billion) in AuM, including wealth managers Brooks Macdonald and Canaccord Wealth; independent private offices Artorius, Lincoln and Cerno; and investment platforms Parmenion, P1 and Soderberg.

Today’s funding round will support Firenze in its growth plans, helping the company to accelerate the roll-out of its capabilities to more partners across a wider range of products, further enhance its SaaS offering for banks, including the role out of an agentic credit structurer, and launch into new jurisdictions.

In support of this expansion, Firenze plans to more than double the size of its team to support increasing borrower requests and the growing population of wealth managers taking Lombard lending to their clients.

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Dr Abela has served as Prime Minister since January 2020. Before entering politics, he built his career as a lawyer and legal consultant, and since taking office, he has placed strong emphasis on economic development, innovation, and Malta’s long-term competitiveness. More recently, he officially launched Malta Vision 2050, the country’s long-term national strategy for future growth and development.

His government has also continued to introduce measures aimed at strengthening Malta’s entrepreneurial ecosystem. In March 2026, Dr Abela announced Intrapriża16, a new legal framework designed to allow young people aged 16 and over to open a company through a regulated and responsible system, helping remove legal barriers for aspiring young entrepreneurs while supporting Malta’s next generation of innovators. The initiative was also presented as part of the wider vision behind Malta Vision 2050.

At the summit, Dr Abela will deliver a welcome note, sharing Malta’s vision for the future as the event brings together founders, investors, and startup ecosystem leaders from across Europe.

Do not miss the opportunity and secure your ticket today! Join us at the EU-Startups Summit 2026 for two days of learning, networking, and inspiration.

OUR EVENT SPONSORS

Malta Enterprise is Malta’s economic development agency, facilitating economic growth, investment, and innovation by offering a range of support services for local and foreign enterprises setting up a productive presence in Malta. As a key player in Malta’s economic landscape, it contributes to the nation’s prosperiety by attracting investments, supporting businesses, and driving innovation, thereby reinforcing Malta’s position as an attractive destination for entrepreneurs and investors alike. Malta Enterprise actively cultivates a vibrant startup ecosystem, playing a pivotal role in fostering a conducive environment for startups and offering tailored support and incentives to empower emerging businesses.

M. Demajo Group is a leading business player in Malta, with a successful history spanning 115 years. The Group’s growth and diversification have resulted in a wide coverage of business sectors through a commitment to long-term results. M. Demajo Group’s workforce is 500 strong and their various activities have been developed through organic growth, acquisitions, partnerships, and startups. Its strong financial situation and ethical standards, its business reputation, and its renowned track record as a business partner are all key factors in its continued expansion.

The IONOS Cloud Start-up Program provides young companies with up to €100,000 in cloud credits for up to five years after their founding. Start-ups benefit from a sovereign IT infrastructure “Made in Germany,” offering 100% GDPR compliance and full legal certainty. IONOS Cloud guarantees technological freedom without vendor lock-in. Long-term support is also ensured: exclusive discounts after the first year enable a seamless transition into the IONOS Cloud ISV Partner Program. In this way, digital sovereignty becomes a strategic competitive advantage from founding to scaling.

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According to the firm, the fund is 100% backed by private capital and continues their focus on providing first cheques to founders building in AI, Fintech, and Enterprise Risk across the UK and Europe. As of now, the fund has invested in 13 companies.

“None of this is possible without the backing of our LPs. As investors we always back people first and their ability to execute, and AI is now helping them build more efficiently. Many thanks to our LPs and founders,” shared Greg Bennett, CFA, Partner at Passion Capital, in a public statement.

This close of Passion Capital’s fourth Seed fund comes amid continued early-stage investment activity across Europe in AI, FinTech, and related infrastructure.

Recent startup funding examples include Ralio (London, €2.1 million pre-Seed to develop an AI-agent payments platform), Trent AI (London, €11 million Seed to build security infrastructure for agentic AI systems), with recent funding activity such as DFF Ventures (Amsterdam, €70 million fund to back early-stage AI and software startups).

In this context, Passion Capital’s latest fund appears consistent with a broader trend of expanding early-stage investment capacity supporting AI-driven and FinTech-focused ventures across Europe.

“We are grateful to our LPs for their continued trust, and to the founders who partner with us from day zero. Passion IV is being invested by Robert, Andrew, Will, Sarah and Greg. If you’re building something ambitious, we’d love to hear from you,” said the company in a press release.

Founded in 2011, Passion Capital has reportedly delivered a net IRR of 23% and 2.5x DPI, backing over 100 companies from Seed and producing 5 FinTech unicorns.

Their team says they are committed to leveraging their knowledge and experience to help founders and early-stage teams build ambitious, high-impact, disruptive technology companies.

The firm has backed over 100 companies, including GoCardless, Tide, Marshmallow, Butternut Box, PolyAI, Lendable, and Monzo.

2025 was a notable year for the firm and their portfolio companies, with exits and liquidity events from Ravelin, Tillo and Xelix. GoCardless was also acquired by Mollie, and significant growth rounds across Attio, PolyAI, Lassie and Marshmallow.

In total, Passion Capital reportedly distributed €72 million ($85 million) to our LPs – more than the size of any of their previous funds.

The post London’s Passion Capital closes €46 million fourth Seed fund targeting AI and FinTech startups appeared first on EU-Startups.

The round was led by Axeleo Capital, with participation from Bavaria-based public venture capital investor Bayern Kapital and Singapore-based Kibo Invest. Existing investors Scottish Enterprise, Zero Carbon Capital and Old College Capital, the University of Edinburgh’s in-house venture investment fund, also participated in the round.

Guillaume Sarlat, Venture Partner, Axeleo Capital, said, “Decarbonising heavy industry – accounting for over 20% of global energy consumption and still largely fossil-based – is arguably one of today’s most compelling climate hardware venture capital opportunities in Europe. Exergy3 uniquely leverages curtailed and negative-priced renewable electricity, storing it at ultra-high temperatures to deliver low-cost, zero-carbon heat to industrial customers.”

Founded in 2023, Exergy3 is a CleanTech spinout from the University of Edinburgh. The company is on a mission to revolutionise the clean heat market by providing scalable, affordable and sustainable sources of clean industrial heat that enable the global transition to a low-carbon future.

According to the company, the strain on the European energy system is intensifying. “In the UK alone, £2.7 billion was spent balancing the grid in 2024/25 – driven by a growing mismatch between supply and demand, as renewable generation increasingly exceeds what the system can absorb in real time. The result is a costly paradox: large volumes of low-carbon electricity are curtailed, even as system costs rise. At the same time, industry faces mounting pressure to secure reliable, affordable energy while reducing emissions,” mentioned the company in the press release. 

It states that industrial heat accounts for a significant share of global energy demand and emissions, yet remains structurally difficult to decarbonise because it requires high, continuous temperatures across a wide range of processes. At the same time, more renewable electricity is being curtailed as the system finds it challenging to integrate generation in real time.

Exergy3 claims to address this mismatch. Its technology converts surplus renewable electricity, such as curtailed wind power, into high-temperature heat for industrial use. This turns excess generation into a usable energy source rather than a waste of energy.

Markus Rondé, CEO of Exergy3, said, “These are two sides of the same problem. Industry needs reliable, high-temperature heat, while large amounts of renewable electricity are going to waste. Exergy3 brings them together – turning surplus renewable power into reliable, low-cost heat for industry. That means lower emissions, lower energy costs, and a more resilient energy system. This funding allows us to move rapidly from pilot to commercial deployment.”

Exergy3 mentions that its system is designed for rapid integration across industrial environments. The modular thermal energy storage units convert renewable electricity into high-temperature heat, delivering process temperatures from 50°C to 1,200°C while remaining compact and easy to install with minimal infrastructure requirements. 

This flexibility enables the technology to suit various industrial processes, from direct heat applications to steam generation, thereby making it suitable for a wide range of energy-heavy industries.

With the fresh capital, the company intends to scale manufacturing capacity, expand the team, and enable broad deployment across industrial sites. Exergy3 plans to double its headcount by the end of the year. It will also open a Munich office later this quarter as part of its expansion into Germany. 

Monika Steger, Managing Director of Bayern Kapital, said, “The decarbonisation of industrial process heat is a key lever for the transformation of energy-intensive industries and at the same time a highly relevant growth market for climate tech in Europe. Exergy3 is developing a technologically promising solution at the intersection of energy, industry, and decarbonisation.

“As a VC investor, we see significant commercial potential here. The fact that Exergy3 intends to further develop its technological potential from Munich in the future also underlines Bavaria’s attractiveness as a location for industrial innovation.”

In May 2023, Exergy3 spun out from the University of Edinburgh and secured €4.1 million (£3.6 million) in grant funding from the Department of Energy Security and Net Zero to build a full-scale demonstrator at Annandale Distillery.

In 2024, the company announced the closure of its €1.1 million (£1 million) pre-Seed funding round led by Zero Carbon Capital with participation from existing investors Old College Capital and Scottish Enterprise.

The post Edinburgh’s Exergy3 raises €11.4 million to turn surplus renewable power into clean industrial heat appeared first on EU-Startups.

For many photonics startups, the challenge is not only building the technology itself, but also learning how to explain its value clearly and convincingly. That is where PhotonHub Europe comes in. Created as a one-stop shop for photonics innovation, the project brings together technical expertise, business support, training, and access to infrastructure to help companies across Europe develop and scale light-based technologies.

PhotonHub Europe supports companies at different stages of growth, from researchers launching spinouts and startups building their first prototype, to scaling ventures seeking further growth and established SMEs exploring new opportunities. Through its pan-European network, the project combines innovation support with business coaching, helping companies move faster from idea to market and making photonics innovation more accessible across sectors such as health, manufacturing, agriculture, digital infrastructure, and climate, energy, and mobility.

As part of that work, PhotonHub Europe also focused on investment readiness! Through targeted coaching and mentoring, selected startups received support to sharpen their pitch, strengthen their business case, and prepare for conversations that could lead to funding and growth. This support was reflected across several industry events where startups had the opportunity to present their work, including INPHO Venture Summit, TechTour Photonics, Startup Breeze, and, finally, Photonica, which took place on 25 June 2025 in Munich during automatica 2025 and Laser World of Photonics 2025.

Helping startups get ready for the next step

PhotonHub Europe was designed to support companies working with photonics across different stages of innovation. Alongside technical services and access to facilities, the project also recognised a common challenge for early-stage companies: having strong technology does not automatically mean being ready for investors.

That is why the project included Digital Investment Coaching and Investment-Readiness Coaching activities. These were built to help selected startups improve the way they present themselves, explain their market opportunity more clearly, and become better prepared for investor and client conversations. The goal was practical from the start: help founders move beyond the technical side and build a stronger commercial story around what they do.

For deeptech companies, that kind of support can be critical. Investors want to understand not only the innovation, but also the problem being solved, the target market, and the company’s plan for growth. PhotonHub Europe’s coaching programme aimed to help startups build that bridge

How does it work?

Each selected beneficiary could access four online mentoring sessions. These sessions focused on improving the startups’ ability to pitch on stage and speak more confidently with investors and clients.

The mentoring was not just about presentation style. It also helped companies refine the way they explained their business, their position in the market, and the value of their technology in practical terms. For many founders, that meant learning how to make a complex story clearer, more direct, and easier for others to understand.

Tomasz Mazuryk, Co-CEO and Co-founder of FundingBox Accelerator, startups mentor, and a Managing Partner at FundingBox Deep Tech Fund, said: “The most profound transformation we see during PhotonHub’s coaching is the shift from a technical mindset to a strategic business mindset.”

Rather than treating pitching as a one-off moment, PhotonHub Europe approached it as a process. The online sessions gave companies time to improve before stepping into larger industry spaces where the audience included investors, corporate partners, and potential customers.

From mentoring to a global stage

The programme came full circle on 25 June 2025, when PhotonHub Europe held Photonica in Munich during automatica 2025 and Laser World of Photonics 2025. For the startups that had taken part in the coaching, it was a chance to put that work into practice and pitch live in front of investors, experts, and potential partners.

For the mentors, the process was never just about helping founders look more polished on stage. It was about helping them explain their business more clearly, show where the market opportunity is, and feel more prepared for real investor conversations.

Tomasz Mazuryk commented: “Before coaching, these founders would pitch the ‘how’ of their technology – the nanometers and the laser physics. After coaching, they can articulate the ‘how much’ – how much value they create for a client and how much return an investor can expect. By the time they hit the stage at events like automatica, they aren’t just presenting a product; they are presenting a scalable, de-risked investment opportunity. We help them move from being ‘experts in light’ to ‘experts in business potential,’ ensuring they speak the language that actually unlocks capital.”

What comes next

Although PhotonHub Europe has now concluded, the wider work is continuing through PHACTORY, the next phase of the initiative. Building on the experience and results of PhotonHub Europe, it is set to continue supporting companies working with photonics through access to expertise, facilities, and business support.

That means the broader mission stays the same: helping European companies make better use of photonics and bringing promising innovations closer to the market. If Photonica marked the end of one chapter, it also pointed towards what comes next for startups and scale-ups in this space.

For PhotonHub Europe, the final event in Munich was not only a way to close the project. It was also a practical example of what this kind of support can achieve. At the same time, it built on a wider series of pitching opportunities offered throughout the initiative. With the right coaching, the right setting, and access to the right people, promising startups can move forward with a stronger message and a better chance of turning innovation into growth.

As Paweł Wajss, Co-founder of Heliostat, stated: “The PhotonHub mentoring was a valuable experience because it moved us beyond our local bubble and into an international environment. Usually, these initiatives are confined within national borders, but here we dealt with experts from outside our cultural circle. It wasn’t about finding a ready-made solution, but rather about gaining a vital link in the chain of actions necessary to move the project forward. This international perspective opened our eyes to new possibilities, ultimately leading us to qualify for global hubs like the Solar Impulse Foundation.”

This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 101016665

The post From online coaching to a global stage: How PhotonHub helped photonics startups get investment-ready! (Sponsored) appeared first on EU-Startups.

The fund was originally launched back in September 2025 (as covered by EU-Startups) with €50 million already committed and a brand new name – they formerly operated as the Dutch Founders Fund.

“That’s what makes this fund special. Our LPs understand what we invest in: software that touches the real world. Logistics, trade, operations – industries where defensibility comes from years of insights, network and data. Not something you can copy overnight,” shared Patrick Kerssemakers, Founding Partner, in a public statement.

The closure of DFF Ventures’ Fund III reflects a broader surge in European pre-Seed and early-stage venture capital activity throughout 2026.

This momentum is best highlighted by a series of significant fund announcements across the continent, each targeting sectors such as AI, DeepTech, and sustainability. In Germany, Vanagon Ventures secured €20 million for its Fund I, focusing on pre-Seed B2B startups addressing system-level challenges through AI and DeepTech. Similarly, Ananda Impact Ventures completed a €73 million first close to back European impact startups, further cementing Munich’s role as a hub for early-stage investment.

Beyond Germany, The Footprint Firm in Copenhagen raised €76 million for its Footprint Fund I, targeting early-stage climate and DeepTech companies in Northern Europe, while Swiss Constructor Capital closed a €92.8 million debut fund to support DeepTech, software, and EdTech startups globally. Lithuania’s FIRSTPICK launched a €25 million fund to empower Baltic founders at the inception stage, and Paris-based Elaia announced a €134 million DeepTech Seed fund, doubling the size of its previous funds to back B2B startups across Europe.

“Since opening our fund roughly six months ago, the world has only grown more uncertain. And when there is uncertainty, it’s easy to flock to consensus. But consensus kills returns. That’s why we have always stuck to our core thesis since fund I: we believe the hard part is the real world, not the code,” said the VC in a public statement.

Collectively, these funds represent approximately €420 million in disclosed capital for 2026, signalling a strong commitment to fostering innovation in underdigitised industries and foundational technologies.

DFF Ventures is a pre-Seed VC firm founded by entrepreneurs behind companies such as WeTransfer, fonQ, Just Eat and Treatwell. With ticket sizes ranging from €250k to €2.5 million, DFF invests from the ideation stage onwards in startups building digital solutions for underdigitised industries.

The fund focuses on Vertical AI, recommerce platforms and marketplaces, and invests globally while keeping Europe as its foundation.

That means software and AI companies touching physical operations: Fleequid moving buses, Vintage Cash Cow trading antiques, NorthLadder refurbished electronics, METYCLE sorting scrap metal, and Liablix handling damage claims.

The VC says that Fund III will allow them to continue to invest from inception stage onwards in companies building software for the backbone. This time not only in EU, but from everywhere in the world.

With fund III, they’ve welcomed 7 new companies and expect to welcome more.

The post DFF Ventures’ €70 million Fund III signals strong European pre-Seed Investment trends in 2026 appeared first on EU-Startups.

The round was led by YFM Equity Partners, alongside support from existing investors.

Matthew de la Hey, co-founder and CEO of inploi, said, “Employers are under huge pressure to hire at scale while delivering a better experience for candidates. inploi has proven there’s a better way to do this, and we’re seeing strong demand from organisations that want smarter, more efficient recruitment. YFM’s backing allows us to accelerate our growth, invest further in our product and scale the business internationally.”

Founded in 2016 by Matthew de la Hey and Alex Hanson-Smith, inploi is a candidate experience solution that helps enterprise employers automate and streamline their talent acquisition. 

The startup pivoted in 2021 from a labour marketplace to enterprise SaaS to address growing inefficiencies and poor engagement in high-volume recruitment. Its platform integrates with existing applicant tracking systems to streamline candidate journeys, reduce drop-off and enable faster, more effective hiring decisions. 

inploi owns the experience layer in hiring. It bridges the candidate market and the enterprise applicant tracking systems. The company claims that its technology empowers organisations to deliver good hiring experiences at scale, with AI agents that streamline candidate sourcing, screening, communications, and scheduling.

According to the startup, the technology aims to free talent teams to focus on higher-value interactions and improve hiring outcomes by reducing the manual workload and enabling more personalised engagement at scale. 

inploi stated that, so far, its white-labelled platform has facilitated millions of job applications for over 70,000 vacancies. Its client base covers sectors like hospitality, leisure, healthcare, construction, government, and retail. Key clients include Compass Group, Wagamama, Gail’s, PureGym, and several NHS trusts. 

Since launching its platform, the company has acquired over 30 enterprise clients and recently entered the US market. 

Roshan Puri, Partner at YFM Equity Partners, said, “inploi is addressing a real and growing challenge for enterprise employers. The team has built a compelling product with clear customer ROI and strong momentum in the UK and the US. We’re delighted to support inploi on its scale-up journey.”

With the new funding, the company intends to advance its next stage of commercial and product growth. This includes enhancing sales and marketing efforts and expanding its team. Additionally, it aims to speed up the development of Talent Agents, a new collection of AI-driven hiring assistants that automate sourcing, screening, scheduling, and candidate communications.

The post London’s inploi raises €3.4 million to help enterprises automate high-volume hiring with AI appeared first on EU-Startups.

The additional funds come in the form of an investment from the European Innovation Council’s (EIC) Fund. With this funding, EIC Fund investor Zeina Chebli is joining the OrangeQS board.

Svetoslava Georgieva, chair of the EIC Fund Board, said, “This investment reflects the EIC Fund’s commitment to backing Europe’s most ambitious deep tech innovators. By advancing quantum chip performance validation, OrangeQS is addressing a key bottleneck in scaling quantum technologies.”

Founded in 2020,  OrangeQS provides advanced infrastructure for testing quantum chips. The company delivers high‑performance systems that enable reliable, scalable, and efficient characterisation of qubits and other relevant elements on a quantum chip.

According to the company, quantum computing is a rapidly developing field. As the chips that underpin many of these advances become more complex, a significant challenge has emerged: the need for scalable, precise, and cost-effective quantum chip testing.

OrangeQS claims to meet these challenges with a product suite designed to streamline quantum chip testing across the entire value chain.

The company’s solutions include OrangeQS MAX, OrangeQS FLEX, OrangeQS Juice, and Quantum Care.  OrangeQS MAX is the Dutch startup’s flagship test product that delivers turn‑key, reliable and fast quantum chip testing. It is built specifically for high‑throughput testing, the MAX minimises total test time per qubit through automation and validated protocols. Its dedicated architecture keeps both capital and operational costs far below those of quantum computers, resulting in a significantly lower cost per tested qubit, according to OrangeQS. 

The OrangeQS FLEX offers customisable chip-testing solutions for academic and industrial R&D teams. The FLEX system provides a unified framework that grows and adapts with the research. 

OrangeQS Juice is an open-source operating system that provides a unified control centre for quantum R&D and production workflows. With Quantum Care, the company shares its system integration expertise through consultancy services. 

OrangeQS has also introduced the OrangeQS MAX Partnership Programme in order to enhance the OrangeQS MAX product line and accelerate quantum chip testing across the industry.

It states that the new programme aligns the company’s development roadmap with key quantum chip manufacturers. The first companies to join the programme are Rigetti Computing, QuantWare, and Peak Quantum.

The programme is designed so that each partner company works independently with OrangeQS to impact specific areas of the OrangeQS MAX technology and product roadmaps, based on their needs and level of commitment. This allows them to keep their IP protected while ensuring the next generation of test solutions supports their quantum chip architectures and production processes.

The programme will also ensure that the OrangeQS MAX quantum chip testing system remains future-proof and fit-for-purpose. Future upgrades will allow for faster cryogenic quantum chip testing, aligned with the roadmaps of major quantum chip manufacturers. The OrangeQS MAX Partnership Programme will initially focus on parallel and non-destructive testing technology developments.

Garrelt Alberts, executive director of OrangeQS, said, “OrangeQS MAX already sets new industry benchmarks for high‑volume, automated quantum chip testing. With our new Partnership Program and support of EIC Fund, we are set to consolidate our leading position in one of the most challenging parts of the quantum computing sector as it scales towards commercial production.”

With the new funding, OrangeQS aims to accelerate the development of key technologies to further enhance the OrangeQS MAX product line. 

The company has also published a new white paper ahead of the ISIG Quantum Computing Infra Summit 2026 on 23 April. In this document, the company proposes a framework on utility‑grade quantum chip testing as a key enabler in future ‘dark quantum foundries’, indicating the company’s future direction. 

The post Delft’s OrangeQS extends Seed round to €15 million to scale quantum chip testing appeared first on EU-Startups.

The funding was secured from Poland-based fund 24Ventures and a group of angel investors. 

“We see Zynt as a response to a real problem. AI enables powerful sales tools, but those same technologies are flooding the market with noise and eroding signal quality. B2B sales doesn’t need another volume machine. It needs precision. Today, timing is a scarcer resource than leads, and that’s exactly where Zynt builds its edge,” said Stanisław Rogozinski from 24Ventures.

Founded by Cezary Raszel and Wojciech Ozimek, Zynt offers AI-driven B2B sales intelligence, helping uncover the buying triggers in every industry. This helps in bringing down CAC and engaging buyers at the perfect moment.

According to the company, for years, sales teams around the world chased the same goal: reach more people, faster. “Tools like Apollo.io gave them access to massive contact databases and the ability to automate outreach at unprecedented scale. Then AI changed the game – and not for the better. “Personalised” emails became easy to mass-produce, inboxes turned into noise, and the effectiveness of B2B outbound has been quietly declining ever since,” mentioned the company in the press release. 

Zynt claims to fix this. The platform aggregates and analyses signals from sources like online content, social media activity, and official business registries to identify when a potential customer is most likely to buy.

“Our platform rethinks how sales teams approach outreach. Instead of asking only ‘who to contact,’ we focus on ‘when and why now.’ This lets companies move away from random, high-volume blasting and concentrate on leads that are genuinely close to a buying decision,” said Cezary Reszel, CEO of Zynt.

In order to pressure-test the idea, Ozimek relocated to New York City along with Raszel, and the duo conducted nearly 1,200 conversations with sales professionals. The duo found out that the best-performing sales teams weren’t the ones working with the largest lead lists. They worked with smaller, carefully curated pools, dedicating significantly more attention to each prospect and analysing their business context, current situation, and where they stood in the buying cycle.

Zynt says the issue wasn’t recognising who to contact, as effective tools already existed. The actual gap was understanding why now is the right time. This insight became Zynt’s foundation.

The company monitors a range of data sources, including news outlets, social media, job postings, press releases, product launches, and other online signals, tailored to a customer’s target market and competitive landscape. It states that the data runs through a multi-stage ELT pipeline powered by machine learning, natural language processing, and elements of game theory. 

Over time, the system learns which signals actually matter within a given sales pipeline. Users receive more than just lists of prospects; they also gain context and a clear understanding of whether the timing is actually right.

Using this capital, the company aims to advance technology development, focusing on full enterprise readiness, enhanced CRM data integration, and more advanced buying signal detection. The team is also working on a new event intelligence feature that will enable customers to track industry events and identify where their potential clients are likely to appear.

“Our focus is on continuously sharpening the system’s precision, both in identifying meaningful buying signals and in understanding the decision-making context behind them. We want Zynt to not only tell you when to reach out, but to explain what’s driving that moment and how to actually use it,” said Wojciech Ozimek, CPTO and co-founder of Zynt.

The platform supports multiple languages, making it easier to expand into new geographies. Currently, Zynt supports an expanding customer base that mainly consists of Polish companies operating globally. The company is already gearing up for its next funding round to fund ongoing product development, strengthen its position in the sales process, and speed up its entry into the U.S. market.

The post Warsaw’s Zynt raises €424.4k pre-Seed to sharpen AI-powered B2B sales intelligence appeared first on EU-Startups.

This partnership is aimed at supporting geospatial applications and will enable Dronamics to open a subsidiary in Japan; Dronamics Japan Holdings Co., Ltd. Through this, Asia Air Survey becomes the first Japanese investor in Dronamics and key strategic partner to explore the deployment of geospatial solutions with Dronamics drones in Japan and abroad.

“The strategic investment by Asia Air Survey, a leading company in aerial surveying, is a testament to the technology we have designed, built and tested repeatedly. Unmanned systems will power the new industrial age and our large, long-endurance drones are unrivalled not only in Europe but in Asia-Pacific as well.

“The Japanese market alone presents a multibillion-dollar opportunity for cargo, disaster prevention and relief and civil protection missions of Black Swan drones, and we’re excited to establish our presence here with partners like Asia Air Survey who have built incredible expertise and experience over the past 70 years of flying and delivering valuable data and actionable insights for government and private users for the advancement of society. Dronamics deeply admires Japanese commitment to technological innovation and manufacturing rigor and we look forward to evolving our partnership further, in Japan and beyond,” says Svilen Rangelov, co-founder and CEO of Dronamics.

Dronamic’s news highlights the accelerating global interest in European drone innovation, particularly for defence, logistics, and geospatial applications. This development is part of a broader trend in 2026, as evidenced by several notable funding rounds within the sector.

AirHub, a Dutch startup based in Groningen, secured €4.4 million in Series A funding to expand its mission-critical drone software, which is designed to support Europe’s security and defence operations by enabling secure and scalable drone mission execution. Meanwhile, Danish Shotling raised €700k in pre-Seed funding to advance its kinetic short-range counter-UAS systems, specifically targeting the threat posed by kamikaze drones.

Collectively, these investments reflect a concerted push toward autonomy, technological sovereignty, and industrial self-sufficiency within Europe’s drone and DefenceTech ecosystem. This aligns with the objectives of the EU-Japan Defence Industry Dialogue and underscores the region’s growing role in shaping the future of advanced, sovereign drone technologies.

“We would like to express our sincere appreciation to the management team and all stakeholders of Dronamics for providing us with the opportunity to invest in the company. Asia Air Survey, headquartered in Japan, delivers geospatial information services focused on resilience and urban design, and has an established track record of project execution in more than 30 countries worldwide,” adds Shingo Urakawa, Board member of Asia Air Survey.

Founded in 2014, Dronamics is an aerospace company that designs, builds and operates unmanned aerial systems (UAS) for logistics, civil protection and defence. While Dronamics is based in Bulgaria, Dronamics Group is based in Ireland.

Its multi-role drone, the Black Swan, is engineered for low-cost, long-range autonomous missions to deliver, detect and defend. Payload-agnostic, the full-sized Black Swan has a cargo capacity of 350 kg and range of 2,500km, allegedly making it Europe’s most versatile drone of its size.

The Black Swan was built to enable logistics, special missions and serves national safety and security purposes.

“We recognise Dronamics as one of the world’s most advanced startups, planning the first certified unmanned cargo aircraft service globally. By combining the technologies and expertise of our two companies, we believe there is significant potential for the development of new services. We look forward to future business collaboration and joint growth between our organizations,” adds Shingo.

By incorporating Dronamics’ UAS, Asia Air Survey is exploring reducing cost, risk, and efficiency challenges within their own geospatial offerings – including disaster prevention and management, environmental consulting, forestry, fixed assets valuation, city planning and environmental impact assessment. 

As per the EU-Japan Defence Industry Dialogue, a shared priority for the EU and Japan is strengthening the defence industrial base, with the Japanese government already signalling budget readiness to support drone procurement.

Dronamics believes they are well positioned to advance both objectives with its Black Swan being the only MALE (mid-altitude long-endurance) drones made in Europe.

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