Top highlights from European Technology News
Einride founders launch venture firm, targeting €450M European deep tech investments
Two co-founders of Sweden's Einride have launched a venture firm named Navisalma, aimed at raising €450 million to invest in deep tech startups across Europe. Initially, they plan to raise €40 million to cover operational costs and early investments. The firm emphasizes leveraging Europe's engineering capabilities rather than mimicking Silicon Valley. CEO Robert Falck stated, "Europe is exceptional at creating technology, but we have not been equally good at turning that technology into value." The fund has already invested in AI-focused Swedish startup Abundry. Read more here
Certain Energy raises £10M Series A for long-duration battery storage
British startup Certain Energy has secured £10 million in Series A funding aimed at commercializing its manganese flow battery technology. This technology targets the energy storage market by providing long-duration energy storage solutions to reduce grid strain. The round, led by the British Business Bank, sees participation from Centrica among others. Founded in 2017, the company focuses on optimizing renewable energy use, addressing issues of oversupply and low output periods. The new funds will support the development of a connected MWh-class system in India and enhance the UK research facility. Read more here
Stability AI raises $76M, with Warner and Sony investing
London-based Stability AI has raised $76 million in a Series B funding round, significantly changing its focus from the UK to the US market. The round features investments from major music firms, including Sony and Warner. With the funding, the AI startup plans to enhance its creative production capabilities in the music, gaming, and entertainment areas. The total funding for the firm now stands at $232 million, which CEO Prem Akkaraju cites as crucial for long-term success. Read more here
Revolut launches AI unit as proclaims virtues of proprietary AI
Revolut has launched an AI research unit aimed at revolutionizing financial services. Dubbed Revolut Research, the unit will focus on developing proprietary AI models for various functions, including fraud detection and customer service. The digital bank has introduced a new model, PRAGMA, which learns across customer interactions to offer a unified AI foundation for various bank services. CEO Pavel Nesterov emphasizes the importance of in-house development over third-party tools for better performance and customer safety. Read more here
Kazimi raises €2.2M pre-seed to tackle bot activity in mobile marketing
Berlin-based Kazimi has raised €2.2 million in pre-seed funding to secure and verify first-party data used by mobile app developers in marketing analytics. The funding, led by Market One Capital, seeks to combat growing bot activity that impacts app developers’ capabilities. Kazimi’s technology employs privacy-preserving cryptographic proofs to ensure data integrity while helping developers distinguish between genuine user activity and bots. Founders aim to expand their presence within the mobile advertising market. Read more here
