Nauta vs Project A

Nauta closes €60M first close for sixth fund

Nauta, a London-based pan-European VC, announced the first close of its sixth fund at €60 million. The British Business Bank anchored the fund with a €30 million commitment, marking its fourth consecutive participation in a Nauta fund. Other LPs include SETT, Merifin Capital, and Institut Català de Finances. The fund targets a total size between €150 million and €200 million, with a final close expected in H2 2027. Nauta invests in B2B software and DeepTech startups from pre-Seed to Series A, with a focus on high-performance computing, AI infrastructure, cybersecurity, industrial automation, digital health, and energy frontier technology. The firm has backed over 200 founders across 100 companies and generated nearly €3 billion in exit value.

• Nauta announced the first close of its sixth fund at €60 million.
• British Business Bank committed €30 million as anchor investor.
• Other LPs include SETT, Merifin Capital, and Institut Català de Finances.

Universal Quantum raises over $100M Series A to scale quantum computing globally

Universal Quantum, a Nauta Labs portfolio company, has raised over $100M in a Series A funding round to scale quantum computing globally.

Project A's Heinemann: European VCs are suppliers to top US investors

In the 'Royal GS' podcast, Project A founding partner Florian Heinemann discussed European early-stage VC strategy. Project A, a Berlin-based early-stage investor, focuses on pre-seed and seed rounds, sometimes Series A, with a €325 million fund. Heinemann emphasized that European early-stage VCs act as 'suppliers' for top US investors, preparing startups for later US-led funding rounds. He advised founders to limit dilution to 20% per round and to maintain market-standard valuations. He cited Trade Republic as a success, noting Project A's ~9% stake cashed out during a secondary round at a €12 billion valuation. He criticized overvalued rounds by late-stage startups like ElevenLabs and Lovable, questioning the defensibility of such high valuations and noting that such rounds often facilitate secondaries for early investors.

• Project A manages a €325 million fund for early-stage investments.
• Florian Heinemann advises founders to limit dilution to max 20% per round.
• Project A cashed out part of its ~9% stake in Trade Republic during a secondary round at a €12 billion valuation.

ARX Robotics expands to Poland and Austria

The Munich-based defense-tech company ARX Robotics announced its expansion into Poland during the MSPO defense fair in Kielce. The company has established a Polish entity and plans to build a permanent headquarters with training, maintenance, and technical support facilities. Investments in the double-digit millions are planned, along with the creation of highly qualified jobs. This marks Poland as ARX Robotics' fourth market, making it active in three of Europe's top five defense markets. Additionally, the company founded ARX Robotics Austria in Innsbruck to handle local business and administrative processes. The company operates in Ukraine, where its GEREON unmanned ground vehicles are deployed. ARX Robotics employs around 300 people in Munich, Berlin, London, and Kyiv.

• ARX Robotics announced expansion into Poland at the MSPO defense fair.
• A Polish subsidiary has been founded with plans for a permanent headquarters.
• Investments in the double-digit millions are planned in Poland.