The NATO Innovation Fund (NIF) has announced a round of investments in deep tech startups and capital fund managers, marking a significant milestone for the €1 billion fund with the ambitious goal of promoting technological sovereignty across the alliance.
The first equity investments made by the world’s only multi-sovereign venture capital fund since its launch in 2022 are targeted at companies focused on new materials, manufacturing, AI and robotics.
This first funding round also aims to strengthen deep tech hubs in regions where there is high demand for early-stage startup capital. By facilitating the adoption of cutting-edge technologies, the fund will provide portfolio companies with access to defense, government and commercial markets across allied nations.
“Enabling capital and support for strategic technologies is key to ensuring a secure and prosperous future for the Alliance’s one billion citizens,” said David Van Weel, NATO Under-Secretary-General for Innovation, Hybridity and Cyber. “Today, we are proud to have invested in innovative solutions that will help address some of our greatest challenges, drive growth and strengthen the defence, security and resilience of our nations for future generations.”
NATO Innovation Fund Deep Tech Startup Portfolio
The fund’s investments include ARX Robotics, a German company that makes scalable robotic systems designed for defense, commercial and humanitarian applications. Another startup to receive funding is Fractile, a London-based chip manufacturer that aims to accelerate the speed and functionality of large-scale language models.
Also receiving funding is UK manufacturer iCOMAT, which produces advanced composite materials that promise to make aerospace and automotive applications lighter, stronger and more sustainable, and Wales-based Space Forge, which uses the space environment to produce advanced semiconductor materials in orbit for applications in communications, aerospace and quantum sectors.
Dr. Klaus Homers, Chair of the NATO Innovation Fund, expressed enthusiasm for this first round of companies and their potential. “This initial investment portfolio embodies the NIF’s mission to advance defense, security and resilience and to foster the development of a dual-use ecosystem across the NATO Alliance,” said Dr. Homers.
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Strengthening the startup ecosystem in Europe and beyond
As part of its efforts to nurture innovators at all stages of development, the NATO Innovation Fund also invests in early-stage, deep tech-focused venture capital fund managers, with a particular focus on Southern and Eastern Europe and Nordic countries that have historically faced barriers to funding.
Venture capital fund managers backed by NIF include Alpine Space Ventures, an early stage fund focused on the space sector; OTB Ventures, a Central European deep tech fund focused on space technology, enterprise automation and AI, cybersecurity and fintech infrastructure; Join Capital, a Berlin-based fund focused on industrial and enterprise technology investments; and Vsquared Ventures, which invests in early stage deep tech companies addressing pressing societal challenges with a focus on AI, energy transition, new computing and sensing, new space, robotics and techbio.
About the NATO Innovation Fund
The NATO Innovation Fund was launched in January 2022 with the support of 24 NATO member states. It is a €1 billion multi-sovereign venture fund aimed at investing in deep tech start-ups and venture capital fund managers to foster a strong ecosystem that strengthens the Alliance’s defence, security and resilience.
The 15-year NATO Innovation Fund aims to “enable emerging technologies that have the power to transform our security in the coming decades, strengthen the Alliance’s innovation ecosystem, and enhance the safety of one billion people” in the areas of artificial intelligence, big data processing, quantum-enabled technologies, autonomy, biotechnology and human enhancement, new materials, energy, propulsion and space.
