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TechCrunch reports on the emergence of five new European tech startups that achieved unicorn status (valuations over $1 billion) in January 2026. The article highlights the growing appetite for investment in European tech, despite caveats regarding valuation and future commercial success.
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TechCrunch 報導指出，截至2026年1月，已有五家歐洲科技新創公司晉升為獨角獸（估值超過10億美元）。文章強調了儘管存在估值和未來商業成功的變數，但對歐洲科技的投資胃口持續增長。
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January was such a long year that it has already brought us five fresh European unicorns: from Belgium to Ukraine, several tech startups raised funding at valuations above the symbolic $1 billion threshold.
But before we take a closer look at who joined the club, two caveats.
First: This count includes startups that may be incorporated elsewhere but have their roots or a large part of their team in Europe. Until EU Inc exists as a pan-European corporate structure, this split will remain common — and we’ve decided to overlook it. Take Lovable, which is incorporated in Delaware but cannot be dissociated from Stockholm’s startup scene.
Second: valuation doesn’t equal commercial success, and it is too early to tell whether all of these companies will follow in Lovable’s footsteps, with the company recently crossing $300 million in annual recurring revenue. But in the current climate, the fact that VCs were willing to invest in them at unicorn valuations is a strong signal of where the appetite is.
With these caveats out of the way, let’s dive in.
Belgium-based cybersecurity startup Aikido Security reached unicorn status with its $60 million Series B. Valuing the company at $1 billion, the round was led by DST Global, with participation from PSG Equity, Singular, Notion Capital, and others.
According to a press release, the funding will help Aikido enhance its platform, which was built to unify security across the entire software lifecycle and is already used by more than 100,000 teams globally. Per the same source, the Series B “follows a year of rapid growth for the company, including five-times revenue growth and nearly three-times customer growth.”
In a blog post, the startup celebrated this milestone and its significance. According to its team, “in an industry dominated by Palo Alto and Tel Aviv heavyweights, Aikido shows that Europe can build a world-class software security company and win globally.”
Cloud optimization company Cast AI is headquartered in Florida, but has Lithuanian roots and an important office in Vilnius — which explains why many also consider it has now become Lithuania’s fifth unicorn.
That Cast AI’s valuation now exceeds $1 billion is the result of a strategic investment from Pacific Alliance Ventures (PAV), the U.S.-based corporate venture arm of Korean conglomerate Shinsegae Group. In April 2025, Cast AI had raised a $108 million Series C that had reportedly already put the company in “near unicorn” territory.
Alongside its latest funding round, the company also introduced OMNI Compute for AI, which aims to help users deploy more AI workloads on fewer GPUs and remove regional capacity constraints.
French defense tech company Harmattan AI was only founded in 2024, but is already worth $1.4 billion, according to its latest funding round. The $200 million Series B was led by Dassault Aviation, maker of the Rafale fighter jets, and also ties into a broader partnership.
Before securing this key partner, Harmattan AI had already signed agreements with the French and British ministries of defense and with Ukrainian drone maker Skyeton, amid growing appetite for autonomous defense aircraft.
German ESG software firm Osapiens raised a $100 million Series C led by Decarbonization Partners, a joint venture between BlackRock and Temasek, which valued the company at over $1.1 billion.
Founded in Mannheim in 2018, Osapiens now has more than 2,400 customers worldwide, including large multinational companies that rely on its platforms and tools for sustainability reporting and data compliance, but also to mitigate supply chain risks.
Fourteen-year-old language learning marketplace Preply is now a unicorn valued at $1.2 billion — a milestone that also embodies Ukrainian resilience. The edtech company was founded in the United States, but its founders are Ukrainian and supporters of their home country, where Preply has a team of 150 employees.
According to its CEO, Kirill Bigai, who believes in AI-amplified learning, proceeds from the $150 million Series D round will help the startup hire more AI talent across its four offices — now located in Barcelona, London, New York, and Kyiv.
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Freelance Reporter
Anna Heim is a writer and editorial consultant.
You can contact or verify outreach from Anna by emailing annatechcrunch [at] gmail.com.
As a freelance reporter at TechCrunch since 2021, she has covered a large range of startup-related topics including AI, fintech & insurtech, SaaS & pricing, and global venture capital trends.
As of May 2025, her reporting for TechCrunch focuses on Europe’s most interesting startup stories.
Anna has moderated panels and conducted onstage interviews at industry events of all sizes, including major tech conferences such as TechCrunch Disrupt, 4YFN, South Summit, TNW Conference, VivaTech, and many more.
A former LATAM & Media Editor at The Next Web, startup founder and Sciences Po Paris alum, she’s fluent in multiple languages, including French, English, Spanish and Brazilian Portuguese.
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