Nearly 80 European deep-tech universities reach $1 billion valuations or $100 million revenues in 2025

Universities and research laboratories have long been Europe’s deep technology treasure trove. Now, academic startups have been consolidated into a robust $398 billion startup pipeline — and venture capital money is following suit.

According to Dealroom’s European Spinout Report 2025, 76 of these deep tech and life sciences companies either reached $1 billion in valuation, $100 million in revenue, or both. These include unicorns like Iceye, IQM, Isar Aerospace, Synthesia, and Tekever, which are now inspiring more funds to back university-based startups.

And just this month, two new funds have emerged that will bring more funding to emerging talent from European technology universities, while adding breadth to projects currently led by Cambridge, Oxford and ETH Zurich.

PSV Hafnium, from Denmark, recently closed its inaugural fund with €60 million (about $71 million), focusing on deep technology in the Nordics. With offices in Berlin and London, but also in Aachen, U2V (University2Ventures) is targeting the same amount for its first fund, of which it recently completed its first close.

These two newcomers join the growing ranks of European venture firms that see their campuses as a key part of their investment thesis. The category, pioneered by the likes of Cambridge Innovation Capital and the Oxford Science Foundation, has also diversified and has now reached full maturity.

While it still consists mostly of funds backed by one or more universities and institutes, it now includes independent companies that simply see startups as a potential return on money – and rightly so. Oxford Ionics, which was acquired by US-based IonQ, was one of the six startups from Switzerland, the UK and Germany to deliver exits worth more than $1 billion to its investors in 2025.

These exits come alongside increased financing amounts. According to Dealroom, European deep-tech and life sciences university startups are on track to raise nearly $9.1 billion all-time in 2025. This contrasts with total venture capital funding in Europe, which is down nearly 50% from its 2021 peak.

The large rounds ending in 2025 also reflect a desire to expand into sectors as diverse as nuclear power – Proxima Fusion – and dual-use drones – Quantum Systems, now valued at more than $3 billion. In many cases, these startups benefit from research conducted by specialized laboratories, which also explains why there is a long tail of European locations capable of producing startups.

Building relationships with centers outside Oxbridge and leading countries can also be a way for new entrants to differentiate themselves and find deals. “Research institutions in the Nordic countries have exceptional and untapped potential,” PSV Hafnium Partners stated in a press release.

PSV Hafnium itself is a spin-out of the Technical University of Denmark (DTU), but is also making early investments in other Nordic countries. One of the nine inspections so far went to SisuSemi, a Finnish startup that has leveraged a decade of research at the University of Turku to bring new surface cleaning technology to the semiconductor industry.

It’s good news for teams like SisuSemi that there is more funding available to them. This also comes in addition to grants, marketing support, and improving deal terms that contribute to creating an encouraging environment for startups in Europe. However, there is still one pain point: capital growth.

As the report’s authors note, this gap “does not represent a unique trend towards startups, but is something that affects the entire startup ecosystem in Europe.” However, it is striking that almost 50% of late-stage funding for European companies in deep technology and life sciences comes from outside Europe, especially from the United States.

While this share has declined over the years, Europe will not fully reap the benefits of its investments in talent and research unless this changes further – but this is a broader issue to be resolved.