Quantum Systems More Than Doubles to $8B on $1.2bn Round

Quantum Systems, the Munich-based drone maker, raised $1.2 billion in fresh funding at a valuation of around $8 billion on 2 July, more than doubling its worth since November and turning the company into one of Europe’s most valuable defence businesses. Blackstone, Airbus, Noteus and Advent co-led the Series D round, joined by Bond, Fidelity Management & Research, Wellington Management, A.P. Moller Holding and Elephant Lake Ventures, alongside existing shareholders Balderton and HV Capital. The deal lands as global defence-tech funding has already hit $17.4 billion so far this year, according to Dealroom, more than the $11.2 billion the sector raised across all of 2025.

How the $8 Billion Mark Got Here

Quantum Systems’ new valuation reflects a finance path that has moved with unusual speed for a European hardware business. Its previous round, in November 2025, raised $195.3 million (€180 million) and tripled the company’s worth to about €3 billion ($3.26 billion), according to analyst tracker Sacra. In May 2025, a Series C led by Balderton Capital, with Airbus Defence and Space, Hensoldt and existing investors participating, raised $173.6 million (€160 million) at a $1.09 billion (€1 billion) valuation. That round was the company’s unicorn moment. A separate $490 million raise for counter-UAS work followed in June 2026, Sacra records.

The Series D itself, co-led by four heavyweight investors, takes a company founded in 2015 in Munich past $8 billion on a post-money basis. It also turns a business that Peter Thiel and Porsche SE once wrote relatively small cheques for into a European drone company that Blackstone and Airbus are now willing to lead at scale. Quantum Systems works with the governments of Germany, Ukraine, Australia, New Zealand, the United States, Romania and Spain, according to Sifted.

The Syndicate That Co-Led the Round

Blackstone, the world’s largest alternative asset manager with more than $1.3 trillion in assets under management, has publicly framed this round as a response to a structural European shift. “A structural shift in the European defence market has created significant demand for capital to support the sector’s development and the adoption of advanced technologies,” David Kaden, a senior managing director at Blackstone, said in the company’s Series D announcement and full co-investor list. Kaden added that Blackstone looks forward to supporting Quantum Systems as it scales in Germany and allied markets. Blackstone said it is committed to building “the infrastructure for durable, long-term growth and security”.

The co-lead roster underlines how varied the conviction is. Airbus, the European aerospace prime, deepened its strategic collaboration with Quantum Systems as part of the deal, pairing Airbus’ platform strength with Quantum Systems’ MOSAIC UXS software. “Modern combat is won through decision speed, the ability to capture, process and fuse massive data from air, ground and space faster than the adversary,” Airbus Defence and Space chief executive Michael Schoellhorn said in the same release. Schoellhorn called autonomous systems “critical, rapidly evolving force multipliers”. He added that Airbus’ evolving role is to act as architect of the wider European defence chain.

Noteus, a Berlin-headquartered European growth firm founded in 2024 with offices in London, Madrid and Paris, and Advent, a US private-equity investor founded in 1984, round out the four co-leads. Noteus general partner Zoé Fabian-Frey said her firm sees Quantum Systems as turning unmanned systems into “scalable, sovereign multi-domain capabilities”. Advent managing director Mike Marshall said Quantum Systems has the product depth, customer traction and industrial ambition to scale internationally.

The institutional book is broader still, with BOND, Fidelity, Wellington Management, A.P. Moller Holding and Elephant Lake Ventures joining existing shareholders Balderton and HV Capital. Morgan Stanley served as exclusive financial adviser and placement agent for the transaction.

What Stark Does to the Bet

The most awkward sentence in Quantum Systems’ public record comes from Florian Seibel, the co-CEO speaking to the Financial Times. “I was never really happy that I was forced to build Stark outside of Quantum,” Seibel said. “Stark … did great. It’s a success story. But if it was part of Quantum, there also would be benefits coming out of that.” Seibel added there was no “roadmap” for any merger.

Stark, founded by Seibel in 2024 as a separate entity to build kamikaze drones, was shielded from Quantum Systems’ investor base by weapons restrictions baked into some of those earlier cheques. Stark then raised €500 million ($572 million) of its own in June, led by Sequoia Capital and Peter Thiel’s Founders Fund. Seibel told Sifted the two companies are now “valued north of $10bn” between them. A Stark spokesperson told Sifted there are “no plans” to merge with Quantum Systems. The two businesses therefore continue as separate companies on the same European autonomy thesis.

As of this round, the picture is two separately funded businesses with one shared founder. Stark’s June round added Sequoia Capital and Peter Thiel’s Founders Fund to one cap table. Quantum Systems’ Series D added Blackstone, Airbus, Noteus and Advent to the other.

The Capital Wave Behind the Round

Global defence-tech funding hit $17.4 billion so far in 2026, according to Dealroom, already exceeding the $11.2 billion the sector pulled in across 2025. Quantum Systems’ Series D arrives inside a roster of capital raises that has reset the cost-of-entry for the category. This is not the only deal of its size this year. Helsing, the London-headquartered defence AI company, was reported by the Financial Times in May to be lining up $1.2 billion at an $18 billion valuation. Anduril picked up $5 billion in May, while Saronic Technologies and Shield AI raised $1.8 billion and $2 billion respectively in March, per Q2 2026’s record $17.4bn defence-tech funding wave.

Quantum Systems’ rise sits inside a broader stream of European defence builders, including the weekend hackathon pipeline feeding the European defence startup scene. Helsing is reported to be lining up $1.2bn at an $18bn valuation. Stark closed €500m in June in a separate round led by Sequoia Capital and Peter Thiel’s Founders Fund.

The comparables matter because they reframe what a European drone maker is worth in 2026. Quantum Systems joins Saronic, Shield AI, Anduril and Helsing as 2026 defence-tech deals at or above $1.2bn. Helsing’s reported $18bn target and Anduril’s $5bn raise sit above Quantum Systems’ $8bn post-money valuation. Stark’s €500m in June rounds out the founder-led cap table on the kamikaze-drone side.

From Munich to Seven Production Countries

Quantum Systems started making drones in Munich in 2015, and its production footprint has now spread to seven countries. The press release for the Series D lists Germany, Ukraine, the United States, Australia, Romania, the United Kingdom and the Baltics as production locations. Sacra records production facilities in Munich, Los Angeles, Brisbane and Kyiv, with more than 4,000 drones delivered to date. Its flagship Vector AI is a fixed-wing drone capable of vertical takeoff and landing and up to three hours of flight, per Sacra. Ukraine is where Quantum Systems has logged the bulk of its documented combat flying time.

1. October 2023: Series B of $69 million (€63.6 million), backed by Peter Thiel, Porsche SE, Notion Capital, HV Capital, Project A, DTCP, Omnes Capital and Airbus Ventures.
2. May 2025: Series C of $173.6 million (€160 million) at a $1.09 billion (€1 billion) valuation, led by Balderton Capital with Airbus Defence and Space, Hensoldt and existing investors participating.
3. November 2025: $195.3 million (€180 million) raise that tripled the valuation to $3.26 billion (€3 billion), Quantum Systems’ prior €3 billion valuation round, supported by existing investors.
4. June 2026: $490 million raise for counter-UAS work that lifted cumulative funding to roughly $1.02 billion before the Series D.
5. July 2026: $1.2 billion Series D closes at ~$8 billion post-money, co-led by Blackstone, Airbus, Noteus and Advent.

The press release says Quantum Systems’ systems executed over 19,000 missions in Ukraine in 2025. Quantum Systems’ fleet has been operating there since the full-scale invasion began in 2022. The wider customer roster still spans the governments of Germany, Ukraine, Australia, New Zealand, the United States, Romania and Spain, according to Sifted. Quantum Systems’ production facilities span Munich, Los Angeles, Brisbane and Kyiv, according to Sacra.

The Profitability Story Quantum Keeps Telling

The most repeated word across Quantum Systems’ announcements is “profitable”. Seibel said Quantum Systems is “profitable, deployed around the world and with the latest financing round we now have more than $1.2 billion of dry powder to execute”. CFO Jonas Jarosch framed the financial case in sharper terms in the same release.

Quantum Systems has built a financial profile that sets a new benchmark for the defence market: triple-digit growth, double-digit profitability and disciplined execution at scale.

That is Jonas Jarosch, Chief Financial Officer of Quantum Systems, in the Series D press release of 2 July 2026. Seibel told Sifted revenue was around €300 million last year and that Quantum Systems is on track to double that in 2026. Sacra’s analyst estimate puts 2024 revenue at $124.4 million (€115 million), with Quantum Systems’ management having already projected revenue exceeding €200 million for 2025. Sacra also notes Quantum Systems has delivered more than 4,000 drones to date across Munich, Los Angeles, Brisbane and Kyiv.

Quantum Systems now sits on more than $1.2 billion of dry powder by its own description. Airbus deepened its strategic collaboration with Quantum Systems as part of the same round. The Series D adds Blackstone, Airbus, Noteus and Advent to a cap table that previously included Balderton and HV Capital.

What $1.2 Billion Buys Next

Quantum Systems said proceeds will be used to expand production capacity, strengthen supply chain resilience, scale delivery across allied markets and continue investing in software and AI capabilities. The technology axis is MOSAIC UXS, the company’s software backbone that connects its drones, counter-UAS modules and drone ports into one interoperable network. Seibel told Sifted the round is “optionality” for acquisitions in robotics, humanoids and more software-related topics. Quantum Systems has already been on an M&A spree, with recent buys including the autonomous-trucking startup Fernride in December. Stark, by contrast, remains an option Seibel will not yet put on a roadmap.

The Series D leaves Quantum Systems with significant capital and no stated need to raise again. Stark has not confirmed a merger discussion and its June round added Sequoia Capital and Peter Thiel’s Founders Fund under separate shareholder terms. Seibel told the FT he refuses to commit to a Stark merger roadmap.