Funding flows to European defence start-ups, but falls far short of meeting demand

17 Dec 2024 | News
Start-ups
R&D Funding
Defence

European Investment Bank approves a €1B fund for defence R&D, as NATO’s DIANA picks start-ups to support in 2025 

By Goda Naujokaitytė

Photo credits: European Defence Agency

Last week saw a significant boost in support for defence-related start-ups, with the European Investment Bank announcing its first dedicated €1 billion fund for security and defence supply chains, while NATO’s DIANA start-up accelerator picked its next batch of grantees.

But underlining that far more support is needed, DIANA received more than 2,600 submissions to its call, and was only able to fund 73 start-ups. 

This gap between supply and demand is a potent illustration that DIANA is hitting a sweet spot and offering something industry needs to pivot towards defence applications. It brings innovative companies together with universities, industry and governments, providing funding and accelerator services, including the opportunity to test new technologies against defence requirements. 

Industry has been 

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