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London-based startup Lighthouse just raised a hefty $370mn from American investment giant KKR at a valuation of over $1bn, making it Europe’s latest unicorn tech company. The funding will supercharge the company’s ambitions to shake up the $15bn travel tech market. What’s on the to-do list? Refining its AI tools, expanding globally, and snapping up competitors through mergers and acquisitions (it has already made...

Candela is flying high — and across the Atlantic.  The Swedish startup has secured $14mn, marking the close of its Series C round at a cosy $40mn. This puts its total funding at just shy of $90mn.  Candela has also sold its first P-12 ferry in the US, amid burgeoning demand for what is the world’s fastest and longest-range electric passenger vessel.  FlyTahoe, the...

Amsterdam-based startup Skytree is set to deploy its carbon-sucking machines on a newly announced carbon capture and storage project in Texas, US.  Dubbed “Project Concho,” the $100mn Direct Air Capture (DAC) plant aims to initially vacuum up 30,000 tonnes of carbon from the atmosphere annually, eventually scaling to 500,000 tonnes. This carbon will be permanently stored underground, on site.  The facility is set to...

British scaleup Tokamak Energy has secured $125mn as it looks to harness fusion — the same clean, virtually limitless energy source that powers the Sun and stars.  Tokamak spun out from the UK’s Atomic Energy Authority in 2009. As its name suggests, the company is building a tokamak reactor, the most common kind of fusion design, first pioneered in the 1960s. Tokamaks use giant...

For the past few months, Meta has been sending recipes to a Dutch scaleup called VSParticle (VSP). These are not food recipes — they’re AI-generated instructions for how to make new nanoporous materials that could potentially supercharge the green transition.  VSP has so far taken 525 of these recipes and synthesised them into nanomaterials called electrocatalysts. Meta’s algorithms predicted these electrocatalysts would be ideal for...

Dawn Aerospace has flown its rocket-powered aircraft past the speed of sound, the latest milestone on its path to its first commercial flights. During the test, which took place on New Zealand’s South Island, the startup’s Mk-II Aurora aircraft reached Mach 1.1 and an altitude of 25 kilometres. Dawn said this marks the first time a civil aircraft has flown supersonic since Concorde.  The...

Two years ago, the minds behind Testing for All — a Covid-era at-home testing service — launched a new startup. But instead of those dreaded antigen tests that make you feel like you’re trying to tickle your brain with a cotton swab, the company delivers something much more comforting: a trained nurse or doctor.  The London-based venture is called Heim Health. It works with the...

London-based startup Gendo has secured €5.1mn amid booming demand for its generative AI software built for architects.  British architectural designer George Proud and software engineer Will Jones founded Gendo in 2022. The platform transforms simple inputs like sketches, 2D drawings, or text descriptions into hypereal building designs.  It works a bit like Midjourney or DALL-E, except it’s built by architects for architects. The tool...

Zurich-based venture capital firm Founderful has raised $140mn in its second fund — $20mn more than its target and a strong sign of investor confidence in Switzerland’s flourishing tech ecosystem.   First announced back in February, the fund has already invested in 15 early-stage startups. These include Chiral Nano, which develops nanomaterials for silicon chips, and 8inks, which is rejigging the lithium-ion battery. Founderful —...

American wearables firm Realwear has acquired Swiss augmented reality (AR) startup Almer Technologies.  Almer’s AR headset — the Arc-2 — overlays digital information onto the wearer’s field of view, allowing them to access real-time data, instructions, or assistance from an engineer seated anywhere in the world. The glasses are targeted specifically at industrial companies looking to help their staff maintain and repair equipment and...

German tech darling DeepL has (finally) launched a voice-to-text service. It’s called DeepL Voice, and it turns audio from live or video conversations into translated text.  DeepL users can now listen to people speaking a language they don’t understand and automatically translate it to one they do — in real-time. The new feature currently supports English, German, Japanese, Korean, Swedish, Dutch, French, Turkish, Polish, Portuguese,...

In 1991, Sony brought the first rechargeable lithium-ion battery to market. The unique chemistry proved a game-changer in energy storage. Today everything from EVs to smartphones depends on it, with demand skyrocketing.  But lithium is rare, most of it comes from unstable markets outside Europe, and its extraction can cause extensive pollution. We need more lithium to enable the green transition and yet, currently, its...

In the ambitious pursuit to tackle the harms from false content on social media and news websites, data scientists are getting creative. While still in their training wheels, the large language models (LLMs) used to create chatbots like ChatGPT are being recruited to spot fake news. With better detection, AI fake news checking systems may be able to warn of, and ultimately counteract, serious...

Ruby’s creator, Yukihiro Matsumoto (Matz), released the first public version of the programming language in December 1995, making Ruby just shy of its 30th birthday. It spread across Japanese-language Usenet newsgroups, a popular way of exchanging conversation and media before the World Wide Web, and then reached broader communities throughout the late 1990s. This was thanks to Ruby’s friendly community and, in no small...

The US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) is often held as a model for driving technology advances. For decades, it has contributed to military and economic dominance by bridging the gap between military and civilian applications. European policymakers frequently reference DARPA in discussions, as outlined in the 2024 Draghi Report, but an EU equivalent has yet to materialise. To create such an agency,...

About one in every 10 European startups that have raised VC investment are also backed by an EU grant of equity financing, according to a research project conducted by Dealroom and Dealflow.eu. While the full report is expected to be published later this year, the authors presented a few preliminary numbers in Warsaw last week. In financial terms, the 10% share translates into EU-backed...

If you’ve ever seen yourself through a thermal imaging camera, you’ll know that your body produces lots of heat. This is in fact a waste product of our metabolism. Every square foot of the human body gives off heat equivalent to about 19 matches per hour. Unfortunately, much of this heat simply escapes into the atmosphere. Wouldn’t it be great if we could harness...

The European Space Agency has given the go-ahead for initial work on a mission to visit an asteroid called (99942) Apophis. If approved at a key meeting next year, the robotic spacecraft, known as the Rapid Apophis Mission for Space Safety (Ramses), will rendezvous with the asteroid in February 2029. Apophis is 340 metres wide, about the same as the height of the Empire...

While many people in the creative industries are worrying that AI is about to steal their jobs, Oscar-winning film director James Cameron is embracing the technology. Cameron is famous for making the Avatar and Terminator movies, as well as Titanic. Now he has joined the board of Stability.AI, a leading player in the world of Generative AI. In Cameron’s Terminator films, Skynet is an...

 Welcome to the new episode of the TNW Podcast — the show where we discuss the latest developments in the European technology ecosystem and feature interviews with some of the most interesting people in the industry. In today’s special episode, we’re happy to present an interview with Diana van Stijn, co-founder and chief medical officer at Lapsi Health, a Dutch startup that builds...

Whether you’re looking to change the direction of your career or expand your skillset as a programmer, the languages you chose to learn will significantly impact your time commitment and prospects. Some languages use familiar syntax, welcome minimum code commands for heavy-duty work, and are open-source with a helpful developer community that guides users in making the most of it. Others are complicated due...

Just as calculators took over the tedious number-crunching in maths a few decades ago, artificial intelligence (AI) is transforming coding. Take Kyo, an eight-year-old boy in Singapore who developed a simple platform game in just two hours, attracting over 500,000 players. Using nothing but simple instructions in English, Kyo brought his vision to life leveraging the coding app Cursor and also Claude, a general...

The walking, talking, dancing Optimus robots at the recent Tesla demonstration generated huge excitement. But this turned to disappointment as it became apparent that much of what was happening was actually being controlled remotely by humans. As much as this might still be a fascinating glimpse of the future, it’s not the first time that robots have turned out to be a little too...

As is their tradition at this time of year, Apple announced a new line of iPhones last week. The promised centrepiece that would make us want to buy these new devices was AI – or Apple Intelligence, as they branded it. Yet the reaction from the collective world of consumer technology has been muted. The lack of enthusiasm from consumers was so evident it...

In a simulation of Mars, a space rover is testing a control system with an unusual inspiration: insect brains. The software was created by Opteran, a startup based in the UK. But the idea originated from research on bugs. Scientists at the University of Sheffield had been studying the brains of insects. They discovered remarkable neurological efficiency. A honeybee’s brain, for instance, only contains about 1...

It’s now almost two years since Elon Musk concluded his takeover of Twitter (now called X) on 27 October 2022. Since then, the platform has become an increasingly polarised and divisive space. Musk promised to deal with some of the issues which had already frustrated users, particularly bots, abuse and misinformation. In 2023, he said there was less misinformation on the platform because of...

German startup Marvel Fusion and Colorado State University have broken ground on a $150M laser facility in a bid to commercialise fusion energy. Dubbed ATLAS, the facility will use three ultra-high intensity lasers to fire 7 petawatts of power — over 5,000 times the electrical generation capacity of the US — at a target roughly the width of a human hair.   The blast...

Dutch startup Skytree has opened a new HQ in Toronto, Canada and a new office in Nashville, Tennessee, as it looks to cash-in on attractive government incentives for direct carbon capture (DAC) technologies.  Engineer-turned-entrepreneur Max Beaumont founded Skytree in 2014, following his work on DAC for the European Space Agency. Skytree’s technology is based on the carbon scrubbers used aboard the International Space Station,...

A warming world will — and is already having — a profound impact on the things we all depend on: shelter, food, water, energy, medicine. Most nations have committed to drastic cuts in greenhouse gas emissions to dial back the planet’s thermostat.  But true sustainability is not just about emissions. We will need to transform the way all industries operate — from agriculture to...

In November 2023, violent Atlantic storm “Domingos” struck the northern coast of Portugal, generating record-high waves and leaving a path of destruction across much of Western Europe.  People on land were grappling with flooded homes, closed roads, and landslides. But just offshore, a potentially game-changing wave energy device was happily bobbing up and down, side to side — seemingly, in its element.  Built by...

Stockholm-based node.vc has closed a €71mn fund to back early-stage startups in the Nordics. “The Nordic tech ecosystem is thriving, especially in areas like AI, gaming, fintech, and climate tech,” John Elvesjö, managing partner at node.vc, told TNW. “We’re seeing experienced talent, particularly from companies like Klarna, Spotify, Voi, Kry, and Pleo, stepping up to become founders,” Elvesjö said. The devaluation of employee stock...

 Welcome to the new episode of the TNW Podcast — the show where we discuss the latest developments in the European technology ecosystem and feature interviews with some of the most interesting people in the industry. In today’s special episode, we’re happy to present an interview with Anita Schjøll Abildgaard, co-founder and CEO at Iris.ai. The startup has been around for almost a...

From the outside, it looks like a clean, modern social housing block. You can tell it’s new — there are 84 shiny solar panels on the roof and the fresh paint has barely dried on the walls. But it’s how this 56-dwelling building in Barcelona, complete with ground floor nursery, was designed and built that really matters.  “Our software is our superpower,” says Lucas...

Munich-based startup OroraTech has secured €25mn in funding to scale up its AI-powered wildfire detection system.  Korys, the investment arm of the Colruyt’s — a Belgian noble family — led the funding round. The EU’s Circular Bioeconomy Fund (ECBF) also chipped in, alongside existing investor Bayern Kapital.  OroraTech will use the fresh funding to fuel the next phase of its growth. The company looks...

The European Space Agency (ESA) has signed a €119mn contract with Italian scaleup D-Orbit for its first in-orbit servicing mission, RISE.  Scheduled for launch in 2028, RISE will attempt to rendezvous with, maneuver, and detach from an ESA satellite in geostationary orbit. Then it will embark on an 8-year mission, visiting several other satellites and giving them a new lease on life.   RISE, which...

In what could be a big win for the EU’s chip industry, Taiwan’s National Science and Technology Council Minister, Wu Cheng-wen, says TSMC is planning to further expand operations in the bloc. TSMC broke ground in August on a €10bn chip plant in Dresden, Germany — its first in Europe. The German government will provide half of the funding with €5bn in state aid,...

Poppy Gustafsson, the co-founder and former CEO of UK cybersecurity darling Darktrace, has been named Britain’s new minister of investment as the new Labour government looks to win favour with big business. Gustafsson will head up the revamped Office for Investment as part of a wider “Whitehall shake-up” designed to bring more money to British shores, the government said. The appointment no doubt comes...

Amsterdam-based scaleup Lumicks has secured €20mn from the European Investment Bank (EIB) to accelerate the discovery of immunotherapy drugs for cancer.  The venture debt funding will help Lumicks further develop and market its cell avidity analyser, a machine with the potential to transform the way researchers study and develop treatments for Europe’s second most deadly disease.  Lumicks’ tech allows scientists to gather real-time data...

Debates about AI are everywhere these days. Families are chatting about its impacts on their lives. Politicians are deliberating over the laws that oversee it. Workers are talking about the risks of job automation. Entrepreneurs are chewing over the business opportunities. And the tech world is discussing what everyone else will be discussing next. Unfortunately, these conversations have also attracted countless scoundrels. They join...

Deep tech startup Mybridge has emerged from the shadows with an €8mn investment to fuel its objective — to revolutionise the way we take photos. Founded by Håkon Espeland and Anders Tomren in 2020, Muybridge has spent the last four years developing real-time computer vision technology that uses software to replace most of the moving parts found in traditional cameras. “Muybridge is one of...

British VC fund Founders Factory has launched the Mining Tech Accelerator in partnership with Rio Tinto, as the metals giant seeks to find better ways to cash-in on surging demand for lithium, copper, and other materials critical to the clean transition. In April, Rio Tinto committed 14.4mn Australian dollars (€8.8mn) to the accelerator, which will support pre-seed and seed-stage startups over the next three...

Rising temperatures and unpredictable weather patterns have become a pressing concern within the UAE. In April, Dubai experienced its heaviest rainfall in 75 years over a 24-hour period, triggering floods and chaos. A team of researchers from the World Weather Attribution initiative reported that this event was driven partly by the climate crisis which was bringing on a 10%-40% intensity in rainfall levels. On...

Google DeepMind scientists Demis Hassabis and John Jumper today won this year’s Nobel Prize in Chemistry. The duo will share the prestigious prize — seen as the pinnacle of scientific achievement — with University of Washington professor David Bakker for his work on computational protein design. “This prize represents the promise of computational biology,” Jumper said during a press conference on Wednesday. Hassabis co-founded...

Danish startup Landfolk has launched a visual search engine for holiday homes. Named Daisy, the feature invites users to search for their dream destinations. They can enter endless prompts, from “a luxurious room overlooking the ocean” to “a cosy cabin in the mountains.” After ingesting a query, the feature spits back images linked to properties on the platform. Users can then click-through for further...

Dutch-Nordic carbon capture startup Paebbl has raised $25mn as it looks to turn the sector that uses the bulk of the world’s mined materials — the built environment — into a permanent sink for the world’s most potent greenhouse gas — CO2.  Berlin-based VC Capnamic led the round, with participation from the likes of Amazon and German cement industry giants Holcim and Goldbeck. Paebbl...

Private capital investment in Belgian startups has exceeded €470mn in the first half of 2024, compared to a total of €424mn in 2023. At the current rate of spending, the country’s tech ecosystem is heading for a record funding year. That’s according to the State of Belgian Tech Report, published today. It combines data from Dealroom, a survey of over 130 startup founders, and...

 Welcome to the new episode of the TNW Podcast — the show where we discuss the latest developments in the European technology ecosystem and feature interviews with some of the most interesting people in the industry. In today’s special episode, we’re featuring a conversation between the TNW Podcast co-host Andrii Degeler and our old friend, former colleague, and current freelance contributor, Callum Booth,...

OpenAI is opening new offices in Paris and Brussels as the ChatGPT maker accelerates its global expansion plans. The new sites increase the company’s European presence to four offices. They join London, which began OpenAI’s international expansion in 2023, and Dublin, which became the firm’s first EU base a few months later. Alongside the European hubs, OpenAI is also launching new offices in New York...

The European Investment Bank (EIB) is considering new measures to help close the funding gap for European startups and prevent them from relocating across the Atlantic. During a meeting with EU finance ministers yesterday in Luxembourg, the EIB proposed its “Action Plan” that aims to boost Europe’s capital markets, investments, and competitiveness. A key pillar of the plan is to increase support for the...

Stop for a moment and pay attention to the things around you. The clothes you’re wearing, the device you’re using, what you’re sitting on, the building you’re in. What are they made of?  The simple answer is “stuff from nature” — woods, metals, rocks, oils, and plants refined into things like furniture, batteries, bricks, plastics, and clothes.  In 2017, humanity’s total material footprint —...