Warsaw-based Expeditions, a number one early-stage investor in European safety, has introduced over €100 million dedicated of its Fund II, exceeding its preliminary goal, and is reportedly on observe for a full €150 million remaining shut.
Dr Mikolaj Firlej, Co-founder and Basic Companion of Expeditions, mentioned: “Europe not has the luxurious of time or ready on the sidelines. Our mission is to again the founders driving the financial and geopolitical renewal that may outline Europe’s position within the twenty first century.
“Expeditions backs probably the most high-potential founders at an early stage for the long-term, delivering affected person capital and our group’s main trade experience. As threats to world safety evolve, Europe is getting into a golden age of innovation, and this fund will assist the entrepreneurs driving it.”
Based in 2021 by defence and know-how specialists, Expeditions backs European Founders on the intersection of safety and DeepTech, together with dual-use firms throughout sectors akin to cybersecurity, defence and intelligence, autonomy, AI, quantum, privateness, communication options and area.
In line with EU-Startups protection, the fund is listed amongst backers of a number of European safety and DeepTech ventures, together with Challenge Q’s €7.5 million Seed spherical in Munich (2025), Labrys’ €17.5 million increase in London (2025), Proofs’ €2.4 million spherical in Warsaw (2024), and BotGuard’s €12 million Sequence A in Tallinn (2024).
These investments spotlight Expeditions’ lively deployment into cybersecurity, defence, and dual-use know-how startups throughout Europe.
In 2025, fund-level exercise throughout Europe displays a rising institutional confidence in deep tech, cybersecurity, and adjoining strategic domains. The launch and closes of particular automobiles – from Omnes’ DeepTech fund and TIN Capital’s CyberTech fund to Eager Enterprise’s devoted defence fund – mirror the thematic focus of Expeditions, situating it inside a broader wave of capital directed towards safety, dual-use, and know-how sovereignty.
Whereas many of those funds are substantial however nonetheless modest relative to generalist VC swimming pools, the specificity of their mandates (defence, DeepTech, quantum, cybersecurity) signifies a maturing specialisation amongst European fund managers. Expeditions’ €100+ million raised locations it among the many extra sizeable, thematic funds in Europe in 2025, particularly when evaluating with friends like Lunar Ventures’ €50 million or Omnes’ early shut at €112 million.
Whereas Europe undergoes a interval of reindustrialisation and makes an attempt to reestablish itself on the world stage, Expeditions says they’re investing within the early-stage Founders who will outline the longer term European financial and defensive safety. The companions at Expeditions have additionally reportedly been concerned in pushing the ecosystem of European safety ahead, encouraging policymakers, LPs, and trade to take a extra lively position in shaping its personal defence and supporting innovation.
Expeditions is already a well-established defence investor, having launched its Fund I in 2021, earlier than the present defence growth. The fund’s observe file locations it on a par with the highest 0.01% of funds globally (benchmarked to Cambridge Associates’ information).
Fund I invested in quite a few main startups, together with Alpine Eagle, Blackwall, Comand AI, Disruptive Industries, Labrys, and Nu Quantum. Fund II has already invested in seven firms, together with Lendurai, Orasio, and Q.
In complete, Expeditions has backed 30% of the highest 30 most well-funded defence startups in Europe. LPs in Fund II embody the NATO Innovation Fund, the Polish Improvement Fund, and early executives from Skype, Smart, Bolt, and Snowflake.
The ultimate shut of Fund II is scheduled for the top of 2025.
Expeditions is the main early-stage investor in the way forward for European safety. Based in 2021 by a group of early researchers and pioneers in the way forward for warfare, Expeditions invests in main startups on the intersection of safety and deep tech. It’s a champion for innovation in these essential sectors, breaking down institutional resistance and driving the coverage modifications that may allow distinctive European founders to succeed.
