Welcome to a new episode of the EUVC podcast, where
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, gather to unpack the macro forces and micro signals shaping European tech and venture.
This week, the trio tackles one of the most geopolitically charged, capital-heavy, and morally complex episodes yet:
🎯 This Week’s Themes:
- The global reshuffling of power: Israel, Iran, Russia, Ukraine
- Why defense is back—and what it means for VCs
- Europe’s space ambitions and what the ESA’s new satellite project signals
- China’s trade plays and Europe’s rare earths vulnerability
- AI, IPOs, and why founders might want to stay private longer
- Surgical robots, ambient AI, and who’s building the future of healthcare
- Plus: Daniel Ek gets flak, SPACs sneak back, and why VCs are speed-running $15B deals in one week
Here’s what’s covered:
- 02:00 | War & Markets: Iran, Israel, oil prices & the Bank of England holds steady
- 06:00 | Defense Budgets: Why Europe is (finally) spending
- 10:00 | VC Taboo: Why investing in weapons gets complicated fast
- 15:00 | EIF Restrictions: Sex, gambling, and no defense
- 20:00 | The Rise of Helsing: Europe’s $12B defense unicorn
- 24:00 | Strategic Autonomy: Europe’s new military satellite constellation
- 30:00 | ESA vs Starlink: Earth observation gets serious
- 34:00 | China, Trade Wars & Rare Earths: Why Europe’s exposed
- 40:00 | EU-US Tariffs & Trump’s Pharma Threat
- 42:00 | IPO Boom: Chime, Circle, and the SPAC comeback
- 47:00 | CMR Surgical: UK’s $4B robot exit—is that enough?
- 53:00 | Lessons from Intuitive Surgical & deeptech M&A
- 56:00 | Deal of the Week: Nabla’s AI for clinicians, Helsing’s big swing, and Scale AI’s lightning-fast cash
- 1:02:00 | Founders in Government: Alex DePledge & Matt Clifford’s impact
- 1:05:00 | Meta’s AI Transfers: Zuck goes full football transfer window
