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Five-year-old European military drone startup Helsing<\/a> is reportedly close to raising a new $1.2 billion round at about an $18 billion valuation. The round is expected to be led by Dragoneer and co-led by existing Helsing investor Lightspeed, the Financial Times reported.<\/a><\/p>\n Helsing last raised just under a year ago, in June 2025<\/a>, in a deal that was led by billionaire Spotify founder Daniel Ek. That was a \u20ac600 million investment at an estimated\u00a0\u20ac12 billion valuation ($14 billion USD). So this new round is a step-up.<\/p>\n While Helsing isn\u2019t the only European unicorn defense tech, it is by far the one that investors deem the most valuable. For instance, German drone maker Quantum Systems raised \u20ac180 million in November<\/a>, which valued it at more than \u20ac3 billion. And a year ago, Lisbon-headquartered Tekever raised \u00a3400 million at a valuation above \u00a31 billion.<\/a> Amid Russia\u2019s ongoing war in Ukraine, the proving ground for new technologies, autonomous defense startups have become a hot area for VCs.<\/p>\n Helsing, Dragoneer, and Lightspeed could not be immediately reached for comment.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n