Berlin’s Stark is raising €300M at a €2.5B valuation. The kamikaze drone maker was founded 18 months ago.

Stark, a Berlin-based strike drone startup founded in 2024, is in discussions to raise at least €300 million at a valuation of approximately €2.5 billion, the Financial Times reported. If completed, the deal would more than double the company’s valuation from earlier this year, when it crossed the €1 billion mark. The company is 18 months old.

Stark was co-founded by Florian Seibel, who previously founded rival German drone maker Quantum Systems, and Johannes Schaback. The company builds autonomous strike systems, particularly loitering munitions, the military term for drones designed to hover over a target area, identify threats, and destroy them by self-destructing on impact.

Its flagship product, Virtus, autonomously identifies and strikes targets before detonating. The category is often called kamikaze drones. The systems reflect a broader shift in warfare toward low-cost autonomous weapons that can be produced and deployed at scale.

The pace of valuation growth is extraordinary even by defence-tech standards. Stark reportedly crossed the unicorn threshold earlier in 2026. A €2.5 billion valuation just months later would make it one of the fastest-growing defence startups in European history.

The company has not been without setbacks. It faced technical problems during military trials in Germany and the UK last year. It has continued securing major contracts and expanding its product portfolio regardless.

The European defence-tech sector is attracting capital at record rates. Munich-based Helsing is raising $1.2 billion at an $18 billion valuation. Quantum Systems, Seibel’s first company, raised €340 million in 2025 and is valued above €3 billion. Peter Thiel is an investor in both Quantum Systems and, according to the FT, in Stark’s upcoming round.

Globally, US-based Anduril raised $5 billion at a $61 billion valuation, doubling in less than a year. Netherlands-based Destinus is raising €200 million ahead of an Amsterdam IPO at a €5 billion valuation, with a Rheinmetall joint venture already producing 2,000 cruise missiles annually. Defence tech venture capital hit $49.1 billion globally in 2025, nearly double the prior year.

The competitive landscape in European defence drones is sharpening. Stark, Helsing, and Quantum Systems all operate from Germany. They compete for the same military contracts, the same engineering talent, and the same investor capital. The fact that Stark’s founder previously built Quantum Systems adds a personal dimension to the rivalry.

European governments are driving the demand. The EU’s ReArm Europe plan aims to mobilise up to €800 billion in defence spending over four years. Germany’s special defence fund, established after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, has accelerated procurement of autonomous systems. The European Defence Industry Programme, adopted in March 2026 with a €1.47 billion budget, dedicates specific funding for counter-drone and autonomous strike capabilities.

The shift from venture-backed prototyping to industrial-scale production is the defining challenge. Stark is early in that transition. It has contracts and a product but has not yet demonstrated manufacturing at the volumes that military procurement requires. Helsing has deeper AI capabilities. Quantum Systems has more operational maturity. Destinus already produces at scale.

For investors, the bet is that autonomous strike drones will become a commodity deployed in the tens of thousands. For Stark, the €300 million raise is the capital required to build production capacity before that market is claimed by competitors. Eighteen months from founding to a €2.5 billion valuation is remarkable speed. Whether the execution matches the fundraising will determine whether Stark becomes a European defence champion or a cautionary tale about how fast venture capital can inflate a company that has not yet shipped at scale.