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This is the daily record across four areas, with the voices' opinions marked as opinion. Every item is graded Verified or Reported and states what it does not test, and the weekly email and the monthly issue are drawn from it.

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EXA Infrastructure deploys new London-Frankfurt-Amsterdam-Brussels fibre route EXA Infrastructure deployed a 1,200 km fibre route linking London, Frankfurt, Amsterdam and Brussels, adding a new Margate to Ostend subsea cable. It called it the first new cable on that North Sea corridor in 25 years. Compute and infrastructure VerifiedAI-drafted Former Sequoia partner Matt Miller raises USD 355 million for European AI fund Former Sequoia Capital partner Matt Miller raised USD 355 million, via a US regulatory filing, for Evantic Capital, his new London based fund targeting USD 400 million to back European AI and software companies at Series B. Industry, investment and R&D ReportedEditor-read EU Commission opens EUR 1.95 million call for mobile responsive launch system studies The Commission opened a EUR 1.95 million pilot call, funding up to three industry studies of EUR 650,000 each, into mobile responsive launch systems meant to give the EU flexible, autonomous satellite deployment. Defence and space VerifiedEditor-read Denmark orders 129 Patria 6x6 vehicles under CAVS programme for about EUR 250 million Denmark finalised an order for 129 Patria 6x6 armoured vehicles under the multinational CAVS programme, worth about DKK 1.9 billion (about EUR 250 million), financed from its defence acceleration fund. Defence and space VerifiedEditor-read Siemens and SAP chiefs urge EU to rewrite AI Act and Data Act rules Siemens CEO Roland Busch and SAP CEO Christian Klein told FAZ the EU should rewrite the AI Act. They called the Data Act toxic for digital business models and said rules, not compute capacity, hold back AI adoption. Policy and law ReportedOpinionEditor-read UK NAO finds F-35 programme GBP71 billion, far above MoD's reported cost The UK National Audit Office found the F-35 programme's whole-life cost has reached GBP 71 billion, far above the GBP 18.76 billion the MoD had reported, with full operating capability now expected two years late, at the end of 2025. Defence and space VerifiedAI-drafted Schwarz Group's STACKIT asks Berlin to back Lübbenau AI Gigafactory bid Schwarz Group's cloud unit STACKIT formally asked the German federal government to back its Lübbenau site, a 200 megawatt, 100,000 chip campus, as an EU AI Gigafactory under the bloc's InvestAI drive. Compute and infrastructureIndustry, investment and R&D ReportedEditor-read US clears USD 2.6 billion Sikorsky HH-60W helicopter sale to Norway The US State Department cleared a possible USD 2.6 billion (EUR 2.23 billion) Foreign Military Sale of nine Sikorsky HH-60W combat rescue helicopters to Norway, making it the type's first export customer. Defence and space ReportedEditor-read France, Germany, Netherlands and Italy apply to form Digital Commons EDIC France, Germany, the Netherlands and Italy signed a founding document for a Digital Commons EDIC. The planned EU consortium aims to build shared open source digital infrastructure and office tools independent of US providers such as Microsoft. Policy and lawCompute and infrastructure ReportedEditor-read UK and France sign Northwood Declaration on coordinated nuclear deterrence The UK and France signed the Northwood Declaration, committing to coordinate their independent nuclear deterrents through a new Joint Nuclear Steering Group. Starmer and Macron said no extreme threat to Europe would draw a response from only one of them. Defence and spacePolicy and law ReportedEditor-read UK and France sign Lancaster House 2.0 defence cooperation declaration UK and France signed the Lancaster House 2.0 declaration, agreeing a Combined Joint Force, upgraded Storm Shadow/SCALP missile production lines and an OCCAR Complex Weapons Portfolio Office. It also covers space ISR and directed energy cooperation. Defence and space VerifiedAI-drafted UK government commits GBP 140 million to Eutelsat's EUR 1.5 billion raise The UK government, through the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, committed EUR 163.3 million (about GBP 140 million) to Eutelsat's EUR 1.5 billion capital increase, preserving its stake in the OneWeb operator. Compute and infrastructureDefence and space ReportedEditor-read QuiX Quantum raises EUR 15 million to build a universal photonic computer Dutch photonic quantum computing firm QuiX Quantum raised EUR 15 million in a Series A co-led by state investor Invest-NL and the EIC Fund, to build a first universal photonic quantum computer by 2026. Industry, investment and R&DCompute and infrastructure VerifiedAI-drafted EuroHPC signs EUR 68.5 million contract for Arrhenius supercomputer in Sweden EuroHPC JU and Sweden's NAISS signed a procurement contract with HPE worth about EUR 68.5 million to build the Arrhenius supercomputer at Linkoping University, an over-60-petaflop system co-funded up to 35 percent by the EU. Compute and infrastructure VerifiedAI-drafted Commission publishes voluntary Code of Practice for general-purpose AI The European Commission published the General-Purpose AI Code of Practice, a voluntary rulebook on transparency, copyright and safety for GPAI providers. It is meant to ease compliance before AI Act obligations apply on 2 August 2025. Policy and law VerifiedAI-drafted ESA and France extend Guiana Space Centre access and governance to 2035 ESA and France signed new agreements extending ESA's use of the Guiana Space Centre through 2035, securing continued Ariane 6 and Vega exploitation and easing access for new European launch providers under the Launcher Challenge. Defence and space VerifiedAI-drafted Belgium to decommission NH90 TTH helicopters from September over cost Belgian defence minister Theo Francken said Belgium will decommission its four NH90 TTH helicopters from September, calling them a "bad purchase" too costly to maintain. Replacements, also European-built, arrive from 2026. Defence and space ReportedEditor-read AWS builds EU-resident-only trust authority for sovereign cloud AWS said it is building a dedicated EU trust service provider as the root of trust for its European Sovereign Cloud, with certificate issuance operated, controlled and reconfigured only by EU residents, launching by end of 2025. Policy and lawCompute and infrastructure VerifiedAI-drafted UK government signs AI partnership with Google to modernise legacy tech The UK government and Google Cloud agreed a strategic partnership to replace legacy systems running over a quarter of public sector infrastructure, train up to 100,000 civil servants by 2030, and explore quantum computing in government. Compute and infrastructurePolicy and law VerifiedAI-drafted Poland's digital minister asks EU to probe X's Grok chatbot under DSA Poland's deputy PM Krzysztof Gawkowski asked EU Tech Commissioner Henna Virkkunen, in a letter dated 9 July, to open a Digital Services Act probe into X's Grok chatbot over antisemitic and abusive posts. Policy and law ReportedEditor-read Leonardo acquires Sweden's Axiomatics, Europe's only Zero Trust platform Italy's Leonardo acquired 100 percent of Sweden's Axiomatics, the only European vendor of a Zero Trust attribute based access control platform, completing its cybersecurity portfolio pending Swedish foreign investment clearance. Industry, investment and R&DDefence and space VerifiedAI-drafted EuroHPC signs EUR 42 million hosting deal for Hungary's LEVENTE supercomputer EuroHPC JU signed a hosting agreement with Hungary's DKF for a EUR 42 million supercomputer, LEVENTE, in Budapest, with the EU funding up to EUR 14.8 million of a mid-range system rated at least 23 petaflops. Compute and infrastructure VerifiedEditor-read EU Chips JU backs SUPREME consortium to scale quantum chip production The EU Chips Joint Undertaking backed the 23-partner SUPREME consortium, led by Finland's VTT, with EUR 25 million EU funding toward EUR 50 million total, to build repeatable, high-yield fabrication of European superconducting quantum chips. Compute and infrastructureIndustry, investment and R&D VerifiedEditor-read SiPearl tapes out Rhea1 chip, closes EUR 130 million funding round SiPearl sent its Rhea1 HPC processor design to foundry TSMC for manufacturing, reaching tape-out, and closed a EUR 130 million Series A. Samples of Europe's first homegrown Arm-based supercomputer chip are expected in early 2026. Compute and infrastructureIndustry, investment and R&D ReportedEditor-read GKN Aerospace signs new Ariane 6 engine parts frame contract GKN Aerospace signed a new long term frame contract with ArianeGroup to supply turbines and nozzle parts for the Vulcain 2.1 and Vinci engines on Ariane 6, built at its Trollhattan, Sweden site. It is the first such deal since Ariane 6 entered operational ramp up. Defence and space ReportedEditor-read French Senate report finds Microsoft cannot guarantee data sovereignty A French Senate inquiry commission adopted a report finding Microsoft France cannot guarantee citizens' data is shielded from the US CLOUD Act and FISA. It issued 67 recommendations, including mandating SecNumCloud and moving the Health Data Hub off Azure. Policy and lawCompute and infrastructure VerifiedEditor-read Estonia's SmartCap backs Darkstar's EUR 25 million pan-European defence fund Estonian venture firm Darkstar closed EUR 15 million of a planned EUR 25 million pan-European defence fund, backed chiefly by Estonia's state SmartCap, to back battlefield hardware including Ukrainian drone and ammunition startups. Industry, investment and R&DDefence and space ReportedEditor-read Paris startup Arago raises EUR 22.1 million for energy-efficient photonic AI chip Paris based Arago raised EUR 22.1 million in an oversubscribed seed round, led by Earlybird, Protagonist and Visionaries Tomorrow, to commercialise JEF, a photonic AI chip it says cuts energy use against GPUs. Compute and infrastructureIndustry, investment and R&D ReportedEditor-read Spain's Interior Ministry contracts Huawei to store judicial wiretaps Spain's Interior Ministry awarded Huawei contracts worth EUR 12.3 million to manage storage of judicially ordered telephone wiretap data on Huawei OceanStor servers. US and EU officials criticised the arrangement as a security risk. Policy and law ReportedEditor-read Poland and Netherlands sign new defence cooperation MOU Poland and the Netherlands signed a defence memorandum of understanding in Warsaw on 7 July 2025, replacing a 1993 accord. It covers joint armaments policy, defence industrial R&D, cyber defence and critical infrastructure protection. Defence and space ReportedEditor-read UK opens GCAP fighter jet programme headquarters in Reading The UK opened the Global Combat Air Programme's headquarters in Reading, housing the GIGO treaty body and the Edgewing joint venture of BAE Systems, Leonardo and Japan's JAIEC. GCAP already supports over 3,500 UK jobs and 1,000 new apprenticeships. Defence and space VerifiedAI-drafted France funds Dassault's Rafale F5 risk mitigation study France's defence ministry detailed EUR 4 billion in new 2025 orders, including EUR 318 million to Dassault Aviation to launch the risk mitigation study for the Rafale F5 standard. First half 2025 orders reached EUR 12 billion. Defence and space ReportedEditor-read ESA preselects five companies for European Launcher Challenge funding ESA preselected five companies, Isar Aerospace, Rocket Factory Augsburg, MaiaSpace, PLD Space and Orbex, for its European Launcher Challenge, earmarking up to EUR 169 million each to fund launch services and larger vehicles through 2030. Defence and spaceIndustry, investment and R&D VerifiedEditor-read Apple formally appeals EUR 500 million EU Digital Markets Act fine Apple formally appealed the European Commission's EUR 500 million Digital Markets Act fine over App Store anti-steering rules, calling the penalty "unprecedented" and the Commission's conduct overreach. Policy and law ReportedAbroadEditor-read Groq launches its first European data centre in Helsinki with Equinix US chipmaker Groq opened its first European data centre in Helsinki with partner Equinix, giving Equinix Fabric customers private connections to GroqCloud and citing Finland's hydropower and free cooling. Compute and infrastructure VerifiedAI-drafted Sweden orders 22 Saab combat boats for about EUR 80 million Sweden's FMV ordered 22 further CB90 Next Generation combat boats from Saab's Docksta shipyard, worth about SEK 900 million (about EUR 80 million), with deliveries continuing over coming years. Defence and space VerifiedAI-drafted Royal Navy accepts TKMS Atlas UK's SWEEP minesweeping system into service The Royal Navy accepted three SWEEP autonomous minesweeping systems into service, built by Dorset-based TKMS Atlas UK under a GBP 25 million contract. The uncrewed system restores mine-clearance capability lost since 2005. Defence and space ReportedEditor-read Finland's government backs Nokia led bid for a national AI gigafactory Finland's government formally welcomed a Nokia led consortium's expression of interest to build an AI gigafactory beside the LUMI supercomputer in Kajaani, under the EU's InvestAI call. No state funding was pledged. Compute and infrastructure ReportedEditor-read UK Space Agency opens GBP 75.6 million space debris removal tender The UK Space Agency opened a GBP 75.6 million tender for a five year mission to capture and deorbit two defunct UK licensed satellites, targeting launch by 2028. No supplier has yet been picked, after earlier feasibility work with Astroscale and ClearSpace. Defence and space VerifiedEditor-read OpenNebula releases version 7.0 Phoenix, framed for sovereign European clouds Spain's OpenNebula Systems released version 7.0 "Phoenix" of its open-source cloud platform. It adds VMware-migration tooling, Nvidia GPU and ARM support, framed as infrastructure for sovereign, AI-ready European clouds. Compute and infrastructure VerifiedAI-drafted Swiss startup Impossible Cloud Network raises EUR 28.8 million Zug-based Impossible Cloud Network raised EUR 28.8 million, led by NGP Capital, to build a decentralised cloud network it bills as an alternative to US hyperscalers. The Swiss startup also launched its ICNT token alongside the round. Industry, investment and R&DCompute and infrastructure ReportedEditor-read Sovereign European cloud evroc launches with Stockholm, Paris, Frankfurt sites Swedish start-up evroc launched its cloud and AI services, built, owned and operated under European jurisdiction with no foreign control planes, running from partner data centres in Stockholm, Paris and Frankfurt after a EUR 50.6 million Series A. Compute and infrastructure VerifiedEditor-read EDA runs first EU-wide drone and robot resupply exercise in Italy EDA ran its first EU-level Defence Innovation OPEX campaign in Montelibretti, Italy, with 26 member states observing six European firms, including Germany's Arx Robotics, demonstrate drone and robot resupply and casualty evacuation. Defence and space VerifiedAI-drafted Arquus and Daimler Truck agree French German defence vehicle partnership French vehicle maker Arquus and Germany's Daimler Truck agreed a strategic defence partnership covering joint development, production and support of military wheeled vehicles. The deal targets modernising the French Army's logistics truck fleet. Defence and space VerifiedAI-drafted Commissioner Kubilius says EU budget underfunding space risks dependence on the US EU Commissioner for Defence and Space Andrius Kubilius said the next long-term EU budget must raise space funding above its roughly EUR 17 billion baseline, warning that underfunding risks strategic dependence on the US by 2035. Defence and space ReportedOpinionEditor-read Poland signs PLN 2.4 billion deal to expand PGZ's ammunition production Poland's state assets ministry signed agreements channelling PLN 2.4 billion (EUR 565.9 million) from its Capital Investment Fund to PGZ units Dezamet, Mesko, Nitro-Chem and Gamrat to build three new ammunition factories. Industry, investment and R&DDefence and space ReportedEditor-read Omnes Capital raises EUR 112 million for first close of deeptech fund Omnes Capital, a French private equity firm, raised EUR 112 million at the first close of Omnes Real Tech 2, its second deeptech fund. Backed by Bpifrance, France 2030 and the EU's InvestEU defence mandate, it makes its first investment in Germany's ARX Robotics. Industry, investment and R&DDefence and space VerifiedEditor-read Groove Quantum wins EU EIC Accelerator backing for germanium quantum chips Dutch startup Groove Quantum was selected under the EU's EIC Accelerator for EUR 10 million, including a EUR 2.5 million grant, to develop germanium based spin qubit chips. The formal grant agreement followed later. Compute and infrastructureIndustry, investment and R&D ReportedEditor-read European Commission adopts Quantum Europe Strategy for 2030 leadership The European Commission adopted its Quantum Europe Strategy, setting six quantum-chip pilot lines, a Quantum Skills Academy from 2026 and a planned Quantum Act for 2026, aiming to turn Europe's research lead into industrial capability by 2030. Compute and infrastructurePolicy and law VerifiedAI-drafted ArianeGroup fires reusable Prometheus engine four times in a day ArianeGroup fired its reusable Prometheus engine four times in one day on the Themis T1G demonstrator at Vernon, France. The multi ignition feat is described as unique in Europe, a step toward a reusable launcher. Defence and space ReportedEditor-read UK launches Defence Innovation body with GBP400 million ringfenced budget The UK Ministry of Defence formally launched UK Defence Innovation, a new body with a ringfenced annual budget of at least GBP 400 million, to speed procurement of prototypes from British and allied defence technology firms. Defence and spaceIndustry, investment and R&D VerifiedAI-drafted Sweden orders Saab RBS 70 NG air defence system for about EUR 130 million Sweden's FMV ordered RBS 70 NG ground based air defence systems and MSHORAD integration equipment from Saab worth about SEK 1.5 billion (about EUR 130 million), for delivery in 2027 and 2028. Defence and space VerifiedAI-drafted Poland launches its first dedicated SIGINT ship, ORP Jerzy Rozycki Poland launched ORP Jerzy Rozycki, the first of two Delfin-class signals intelligence ships built at Remontowa's Gdansk yard, with Swedish supplied mission systems; entry into service is expected in 2027. Defence and space VerifiedAI-drafted Germany-led MARTE consortium launches EU-funded next-generation tank project Rheinmetall and KNDS Germany launched the EU-funded MARTE project to design Europe's next main battle tank, backed by EUR 20 million from the European Defence Fund. The 51-entity consortium spans 11 EU states plus Norway, led by Germany. Defence and spaceIndustry, investment and R&D VerifiedAI-drafted Kongsberg opens Oslofjord test bed to protect critical maritime infrastructure Kongsberg opened a maritime test bed in Horten's Oslofjord on 1 July 2025, pairing underwater sensors, satellite surveillance and traffic monitoring from its own units to protect subsea cables, pipelines and ports from sabotage. Compute and infrastructureDefence and space VerifiedAI-drafted EuroHPC JU opens EUR 42 million call for national HPC competence centres EuroHPC JU opened two calls on 1 July 2025: EUR 42 million to establish and network National HPC Competence Centres, and EUR 1 million to back the International HPC Summer School through 2029. Compute and infrastructure VerifiedEditor-read Deutsche Telekom unifies cloud arms under sovereign T Cloud brand From 1 July 2025 Deutsche Telekom merged Telekom Deutschland's and T Systems's cloud units under one T Cloud brand led by Lars Neumann. T Systems chief Ferri Abolhassan said it reinforces Europe's strategic autonomy in cloud computing. Compute and infrastructure VerifiedAI-drafted EU's Sentinel-4 instrument launches aboard EUMETSAT's MTG-S1 satellite The EU's Sentinel-4 instrument launched on 1 July 2025 aboard EUMETSAT's MTG-S1 satellite from Cape Canaveral on a SpaceX Falcon 9. It is Copernicus's first geostationary sensor, giving hourly European air quality readings. Defence and space VerifiedEditor-read Codasip puts itself up for sale, risking EU-backed RISC-V chip IP firm Codasip's board launched an expedited sale process for the Munich-based RISC-V processor IP firm, which holds up to EUR 329 million in EU chip-sovereignty funding including the DARE programme, after an unsolicited takeover approach. Compute and infrastructureIndustry, investment and R&D ReportedEditor-read Microsoft opens new Austrian cloud datacentre region near Vienna Microsoft opened a new Austrian datacentre region of three sites around Vienna, going live in August, letting local businesses and government store data domestically on Azure, Microsoft 365 and Power Platform. Compute and infrastructure VerifiedEditor-read Germany signs NOK 6.5 billion deal for Kongsberg's Joint Strike Missile Germany signed a government to government contract worth NOK 6.5 billion for Kongsberg's Joint Strike Missile to arm its F-35A fleet, becoming the missile's fifth export customer. Defence and space VerifiedAI-drafted Commission sets procedure for new states to join EU space surveillance pact The Commission adopted Implementing Decision 2025/1205, setting the procedure for new states to join the EU's Space Surveillance and Tracking Partnership. The 15 member network tracks about 600 satellites. Defence and space VerifiedAI-drafted EU receives 76 bids for AI Gigafactory sites, Commissioner says European Commissioner Henna Virkkunen said the EU received 76 bids to host AI Gigafactories across 16 member states and 60 sites, with bidders proposing to buy at least 3 million advanced GPUs. Industry, investment and R&DCompute and infrastructure ReportedEditor-read OVHcloud signs global reseller partnership with Norway's Crayon OVHcloud signed a global reseller deal with Norway's Crayon, giving Crayon clients access to OVHcloud's cloud and bare metal services across 45 non-US regions. Both companies billed it as expanding sovereign cloud choice. Compute and infrastructure VerifiedAI-drafted Ireland to use EU's SAFE loan instrument for faster arms buys Ireland's Department of Defence said it will use the EU's SAFE loan instrument, in force since 29 May 2025, for faster joint procurement across nine prioritised capability areas including air defence and cyber. Defence and spacePolicy and law VerifiedEditor-read Edinburgh developer Apatura bids for GBP 3.9 billion Ravenscraig AI data centre Apatura proposed a GBP 3.9 billion, 550 megawatt AI data centre across 160 acres of the former Ravenscraig steelworks in Scotland. The firm is bidding for UK AI Growth Zone status; no site has yet been selected. Compute and infrastructure VerifiedEditor-read VTT joins EUR 400 million PIXEurope photonics chip pilot line VTT joined PIXEurope, Europe's EUR 400 million EU Chips Act backed photonics pilot line coordinated by ICFO, leading a work package and investing in new cleanroom tools for 6G and AI chips. Compute and infrastructureIndustry, investment and R&D VerifiedAI-drafted Milan spin off PhotonPath raises EUR 5.1 million to scale photonic chips Milan spin off PhotonPath raised EUR 5.1 million led by Join Capital, Deep Ocean Capital and Levante Capital, to scale production of its photonic chipsets and optical networking modules. Industry, investment and R&D ReportedEditor-read French startup Latitude commits EUR 8 million to French Guiana launch site French launcher startup Latitude committed EUR 8 million to its section of CNES's EUR 50 million ELM-Diamant shared launch complex in French Guiana, backed by France 2030, ahead of its Zephyr rocket's planned 2026 debut there. Defence and space ReportedEditor-read Italian Navy orders two more Fincantieri patrol vessels worth EUR 700 million The Italian Navy ordered two more PPA offshore patrol vessels from Fincantieri, worth about EUR 700 million, repurposing hulls originally built for Indonesia for delivery in 2029 and 2030. Defence and space VerifiedAI-drafted UK's SatVu becomes first British firm in EU's Copernicus programme UK thermal-imaging firm SatVu became the first British company awarded a Category 1 Copernicus Contributing Mission role, a EUR 3 million ESA agreement folding its HotSat satellite data into the EU's Earth observation programme. Defence and space VerifiedAI-drafted Sweden orders EUR 260 million more Gripen E production equipment Sweden's FMV ordered additional Gripen E production equipment from Saab worth about SEK 2.9 billion (EUR 260 million), needed because Sweden is keeping its Gripen C/D fleet in service rather than retiring it for parts. Defence and space VerifiedAI-drafted Isar Aerospace raises EUR 150 million convertible bond from Eldridge German launcher firm Isar Aerospace agreed a EUR 150 million convertible bond with US investor Eldridge Industries, to expand its launch capability and series production near Munich. Industry, investment and R&DDefence and space VerifiedEditor-read EuroHPC launches EUR 32.9 million SEANERGYS supercomputing project EuroHPC JU launched SEANERGYS, a EUR 32.9 million, 48 month project led by Forschungszentrum Julich with 16 partners to build energy efficiency software for Europe's exascale supercomputers. Compute and infrastructure VerifiedAI-drafted European Commission proposes EU Space Act to replace national rules The European Commission proposed the EU Space Act, a single EU wide regime on safety, resilience and sustainability meant to replace 12 fragmented national frameworks, now heading to Parliament and Council. Defence and spacePolicy and law VerifiedAI-drafted Commission and EDA sign new pact nearly doubling EDA's EUR 300 million EDF role The Commission and the European Defence Agency signed a new Financial Framework Partnership Agreement. EDA's managed portfolio of EU funded defence projects rises from 24 to more than 40, worth around EUR 300 million. Defence and space VerifiedAI-drafted ESA picks Rocket Lab to launch navigation satellites, no EU option ESA picked US firm Rocket Lab to launch two Thales Alenia Space and GMV built Celeste navigation demonstrator satellites from New Zealand, no earlier than December 2025, for want of a European small launcher. Defence and space VerifiedEditor-read BAE Systems and Nammo sign MoU to explore joint munitions production BAE Systems and Nammo signed a memorandum of understanding to explore joint production of munitions and energetics, including a possible new rocket motor line in Norway tied to a frigate deal. Industry, investment and R&DDefence and space ReportedEditor-read Albania joins EuroHPC Joint Undertaking, gaining access to EU supercomputers Albania joined the EuroHPC Joint Undertaking as its 36th participating state, gaining full access to its supercomputers. It also becomes eligible for EuroHPC and Horizon Europe funding calls, upgrading from associate status. Compute and infrastructure VerifiedAI-drafted Danish pension fund AkademikerPension lifts ban on European arms makers Denmark's AkademikerPension lifted its exclusion of Airbus, Dassault Aviation, Leonardo, Safran, Thales and Babcock over nuclear weapons links, opening its portfolio to six European defence firms worth a combined DKK 2.6 trillion. Industry, investment and R&DDefence and space VerifiedAI-drafted DigitalEurope sets industry priorities for EU Cybersecurity Act revision DigitalEurope published industry priorities for the EU Cybersecurity Act revision. It urged that certification stay voluntary except for high-risk uses, full harmonisation of baselines, and an expanded ENISA mandate for certification and vulnerability management. Policy and law VerifiedOpinionAI-drafted CCIA Europe warns against nationality tests in ENISA certification role CCIA Europe said ENISA's role in the Cybersecurity Act revision should stay grounded in technical independence rather than non-technical criteria such as vendor nationality. This came as member states debated sovereignty requirements like EUCS and SecNumCloud. Policy and law ReportedOpinionEditor-read Stoneweg trust commits EUR 50 million to European hyperscale data centre fund Singapore listed Stoneweg European Business Trust committed EUR 50 million for a stake in a fund holding early stage hyperscale data centre sites in Ireland, Spain, Italy and Denmark. Industry, investment and R&DCompute and infrastructure ReportedEditor-read Berlin's Lyceum raises EUR 10.3 million to build sovereign EU cloud Berlin and Zurich based Lyceum raised a EUR 10.3 million pre seed round led by redalpine, with 10x Founders joining, to build EU data resident GPU cloud zones in Denmark, France and beyond. The company says it avoids extra territorial cloud providers. Compute and infrastructure VerifiedEditor-read ICEYE signs three European defence satellite contracts in June Finland's ICEYE signed three SAR satellite deals in June: Portugal's Air Force for one satellite, the Royal Netherlands Air Force for four satellites and an ISR hub, and NATO Allied Command for imagery data. Defence and space VerifiedEditor-read Châteauroux council approves selling 195 hectares of land to Google for data centre Châteauroux Métropole's council approved selling 195 hectares of land to Google subsidiary Tricolore Computing for EUR 58.5 million, to host Google's first owned French data centre campus. The compromise must be signed within a year. Compute and infrastructure ReportedEditor-read The Exploration Company's capsule survives reentry, lost before splashdown The Exploration Company's Mission Possible capsule, a precursor to its Nyx cargo vehicle, de-orbited from 550 kilometres and survived reentry heating but lost contact near 26 kilometres before splashdown, in only the third guided reentry flown by a European vehicle. Defence and space VerifiedAI-drafted EU Parliament committee votes to challenge Council at CJEU over SAFE The European Parliament's legal affairs committee voted to recommend Parliament challenge the Council at the EU Court of Justice over the EUR 150 billion SAFE defence loan instrument, adopted under Article 122 TFEU without Parliament's co-decision. Policy and lawDefence and space ReportedEditor-read UK pledges over GBP 500 million for quantum computing in Industrial Strategy The UK government pledged over GBP 500 million for quantum computing over four years, part of a GBP 670 million decade-long commitment under its Industrial Strategy, citing concerns over foreign takeovers of British quantum firms. Industry, investment and R&D ReportedEditor-read Romania bids to host EUR 5 billion Black Sea AI Gigafactory Romania's economy minister Bogdan Ivan said Romania is bidding for a two site Black Sea AI Gigafactory at Cernavoda and Doicesti, worth about USD 5 billion, with over 100,000 AI accelerators. Industry, investment and R&DCompute and infrastructure ReportedEditor-read EuroHPC inaugurates PIAST-Q, its first quantum computer, in Poland EuroHPC inaugurated PIAST-Q, a 20 qubit trapped ion quantum computer hosted at Poznan's PCSS centre in Poland. The EUR 12.28 million machine was funded half by EuroHPC and half by Polish ministries. Compute and infrastructure VerifiedEditor-read Dutch coalition submits bid for a European AI gigafactory Dutch investment firm DGFO and energy group Eneco submitted a joint proposal to the European Commission to host a European AI gigafactory, backed by a coalition including former ASML chief Peter Wennink. Industry, investment and R&DCompute and infrastructure ReportedEditor-read Commission publishes non-binding EU roadmap for post-quantum cryptography The European Commission published a coordinated roadmap for member states to migrate to post-quantum cryptography, with critical infrastructure meant to upgrade by 2030 and the transition largely complete by 2035. The recommendation is not binding. Policy and law VerifiedEditor-read EU Council agrees EUR 1.5 billion defence industry programme mandate EU ambassadors agreed the Council's negotiating mandate on the European Defence Industry Programme, which would provide EUR 1.5 billion in grants by 2027 for joint procurement and supply capacity. Defence and spacePolicy and law ReportedEditor-read EU and Canada sign Security and Defence Partnership in Brussels The EU and Canada signed a Security and Defence Partnership at the Brussels summit, covering defence industrial cooperation, military mobility and space security, which Canada says opens access to the EU's SAFE loans. Defence and space VerifiedEditor-read Italy's space agency contracts OHB to build lunar oxygen extraction payload Italy's space agency signed a contract with OHB Italia's consortium to design, build and test ORACLE, a payload that extracts oxygen from lunar regolith, over a roughly 40 month programme. Defence and space VerifiedAI-drafted London's PhysicsX raises GBP 98.1 million Series B led by Atomico London-based PhysicsX raised a USD 135 million (GBP 98.1 million) Series B led by Atomico, with Temasek, Siemens and Applied Materials, to grow its AI-native engineering software and physics foundation models. Industry, investment and R&D VerifiedAI-drafted Catalonia wins Spanish government backing for EU AI Gigafactory bid Catalonia's government backed a Telefonica led consortium's bid for an EU AI Gigafactory at Mora la Nova and San Fernando de Henares, reportedly worth about EUR 5 billion. Industry, investment and R&DCompute and infrastructure ReportedEditor-read Hochtief and IONOS bid for EU AI Gigafactory in Germany Hochtief and IONOS submitted a joint expression of interest to the European Commission for an EU AI Gigafactory in Germany, targeting 2027 operation with over 50,000 GPUs scalable beyond 100,000. Compute and infrastructure VerifiedAI-drafted German tech giants' joint AI Gigafactory bid collapses before EU deadline A five company German consortium of Deutsche Telekom, IONOS, SAP, Siemens and Schwarz Group failed to agree a joint EU AI Gigafactory bid before the deadline, splitting into separate filings. Industry, investment and R&DCompute and infrastructure VerifiedEditor-read BAE, Leonardo and Japan's JAIEC launch Edgewing joint venture BAE Systems, Leonardo and Japan's JAIEC launched Edgewing, a UK headquartered joint venture each holding a third, as design authority for the GCAP next generation fighter aircraft. Defence and space VerifiedAI-drafted France commits EUR 30 million to Dassault's VORTEX spaceplane France's Ministry of Armed Forces, the DGA and CNES committed about EUR 30 million toward Dassault's VORTEX D reusable spaceplane demonstrator; ESA separately signed a letter of intent on future cooperation. Defence and space ReportedEditor-read ESPI report finds European space investment hit record EUR 1.5 billion in 2024 ESPI's Space Venture 2024 report found European space ventures raised a record EUR 1.5 billion in 2024, up 54% on 2023, with defence and security ventures taking a record 40% share. Defence and spaceIndustry, investment and R&D ReportedEditor-read Czechia's government files bid to host EU AI gigafactory near Prague Czechia's Ministry of Industry and Trade filed an application to the European Commission for an AI gigafactory at Zbraslav near Prague, led by telecom operator Ceske Radiokomunikace with IT4Innovations as co-participant. Industry, investment and R&DCompute and infrastructure VerifiedAI-drafted Baltic states and Poland submit EUR 3 billion AI gigafactory bid to EU Poland, Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia jointly submitted an Expression of Interest to the European Commission for a EUR 3 billion Baltic AI Gigafactory, to be sited in Poland and funded mostly by private capital. Industry, investment and R&DCompute and infrastructure VerifiedAI-drafted France declares A400M transport fleet fully operationally capable France's Air and Space Force declared its Airbus A400M transport fleet fully operationally capable, a decade after first delivery, covering paratroop drops, terrain following and self protection. Defence and space VerifiedAI-drafted Eutelsat agrees EUR 1.35 billion capital increase anchored by French state Eutelsat announced a EUR 1.35 billion capital increase anchored by the French State, Bharti Space, CMA CGM and FSP, raising the French State's stake toward 29.99 percent to fund its LEO and OneWeb strategy. Industry, investment and R&DDefence and space ReportedEditor-read Danish ministry pilots Collabora Office to cut Microsoft dependence Denmark's Ministry of Digital Affairs launched a pilot replacing Microsoft Office with Collabora Office, built on LibreOffice, integrated into its F2 case system for one department. Minister Caroline Stage Olsen said this cuts dependence on a few large tech companies. Policy and law VerifiedAI-drafted ArianeGroup and Nikon SLM Solutions partner on giant metal 3D printing ArianeGroup and Nikon SLM Solutions formed a strategic partnership giving ArianeGroup exclusive initial delivery of ultra large metal 3D printers, to make propulsion parts over one cubic metre. Industry, investment and R&DDefence and space VerifiedAI-drafted Arianespace and Avio call for binding European launcher preference rule Arianespace and Avio called on the EU to enshrine a binding European preference rule for institutional launches. They argued this would secure long-term investment for Ariane and Vega and protect Europe's independent access to space. Policy and lawDefence and space ReportedOpinionEditor-read Delft's Orange Quantum Systems raises EUR 12 million seed round Dutch quantum chip test-equipment maker Orange Quantum Systems raised an oversubscribed EUR 12 million seed round led by Icecat Capital, to build faster testers for quantum chip manufacturers. Industry, investment and R&D VerifiedAI-drafted Berlin's Mercanis raises EUR 17.3 million Series A for agentic AI procurement Berlin's Mercanis raised EUR 17.3 million in a Series A round led by Partech and AVP to grow its agentic AI procurement platform, including a planned US market push. Industry, investment and R&D VerifiedEditor-read France and Saab sign intent to replace AWACS fleet with GlobalEye France's DGA and Sweden's Saab signed a joint declaration of intent for France to buy two GlobalEye AEW&C aircraft, with an option for two more, to replace its ageing Boeing E-3F AWACS fleet; no contract yet, value undisclosed. Defence and space VerifiedEditor-read France's DGA signs EUR 1 billion framework deal with Eutelsat for OneWeb capacity France's defence procurement agency DGA signed a 10-year, up to EUR 1 billion framework deal with Eutelsat for priority-access capacity on its OneWeb constellation, under the NEXUS programme to secure military-grade low-orbit communications. Defence and spaceIndustry, investment and R&D ReportedEditor-read Diehl Defence and Polaris agree to arm drone with IRIS-T missile German missile maker Diehl Defence signed an exclusive deal with spaceplane startup Polaris to integrate its IRIS-T air-to-air missile onto Polaris's reusable drone, forming the AirLAS strike system; first flight tests planned later in 2025. Defence and space ReportedEditor-read Geneva's government approves shift of Microsoft 365 functions to US cloud Geneva's Conseil d'Etat approved a progressive rollout of Microsoft 365 cloud functions hosted on US servers, reversing its earlier policy of keeping Microsoft tools on local infrastructure. The canton spends CHF 4.7 million a year on Microsoft licences. Compute and infrastructurePolicy and law ReportedEditor-read European Commission adopts Defence Readiness Omnibus to ease procurement The European Commission adopted its Defence Readiness Omnibus, doubling Defence Procurement Directive thresholds and easing joint procurement and intra-EU transfers. An EDF interim evaluation issued alongside it found EUR 5.4 billion already committed to defence R&D. Policy and lawDefence and space VerifiedEditor-read EU and Australia agree to start security and defence partnership talks At the G7 summit in Kananaskis, the European Commission, European Council and Australia agreed to start negotiating a Security and Defence Partnership covering defence industry, cyber, space and economic security, with no deployment obligations. Defence and space VerifiedEditor-read CNES picks ArianeGroup to lead ASTRE reusable rocket engine project France's CNES selected ArianeGroup to lead the ASTRE project, developing a 200 to 300 tonne-thrust reusable methalox engine, Europe's first full-flow staged-combustion design, with two demonstrators due from 2026. Industry, investment and R&DDefence and space VerifiedEditor-read RAF's Protector drone enters service as Britain's first such aircraft The Royal Air Force's Protector RG Mk1, Britain's first remotely piloted aircraft cleared for UK airspace, formally entered service with four aircraft flying from RAF Waddington. Defence and space ReportedEditor-read French insurers and Tikehau launch EUR 150 million defence and security fund Tikehau Capital, Societe Generale Assurances, CNP Assurances and CARAC Group launched Tikehau Defense et Securite, an evergreen EUR 150 million private equity fund for European defence, aeronautics and cybersecurity, sold via life insurance products. Industry, investment and R&D VerifiedEditor-read Microsoft launches Data Guardian and EU key controls for sovereign cloud Microsoft commercial chief Judson Althoff announced Data Guardian, which limits remote access to EU data to Europe based staff, plus external key management via customer held hardware keys. It also named Bleu and Delos as national partner clouds in France and Germany. Compute and infrastructure VerifiedEditor-read MBDA wins Italian Army contract for FULGUR anti-drone missile MBDA announced it won a contract from the Italian Army to supply its FULGUR man portable supersonic air defence missile, with first deliveries targeted for early 2028; the contract value was not disclosed. Industry, investment and R&DDefence and space VerifiedAI-drafted Four French ministers back MaiaSpace's new Vernon rocket factory Four French ministers visited MaiaSpace's Vernon site as the company announced a new Maia Factory there, targeted for 2027, to replace its Proto Factory for commercial rocket production. Industry, investment and R&DDefence and space VerifiedAI-drafted HyPrSpace signs DGA deal to launch Baguette One from French mainland site HyPrSpace signed an agreement with France's DGA for use of its Biscarrosse missile test site, enabling the first private civil rocket launch from mainland France. The deal supports its Baguette One suborbital demonstrator for the OB-1 launcher. Defence and space VerifiedEditor-read Helsing raises EUR 600 million, doubling valuation to EUR 12 billion German defence AI company Helsing raised EUR 600 million led by Daniel Ek's Prima Materia, valuing it at EUR 12 billion, and framed the round as reinforcing European technological sovereignty. Defence and spaceIndustry, investment and R&D ReportedEditor-read Ireland signs Thales contract for Naval Service's first sonar array Ireland's Department of Defence signed a contract with Thales DMS France for the Naval Service's first towed sonar array, to monitor the EEZ and protect subsea cables and pipelines, operational by 2027. Defence and space VerifiedEditor-read Germany's Zendis and RKI sign contract to bring openDesk to public health service Germany's Zendis sovereignty agency and the Robert Koch Institute signed a contract to integrate openDesk into Agora, the public health service's communication platform. The rollout covers about 7,000 users across some 400 local and state health departments. Compute and infrastructurePolicy and law ReportedEditor-read Germany's Polaris Spaceplanes raises EUR 5.4 million seed top-up for AURORA German start-up POLARIS Spaceplanes raised an oversubscribed EUR 5.4 million seed top-up, led by Capnamic Ventures Bremen and Spacewalk VC. The round lifts its total funding to EUR 12.4 million for its AURORA hypersonic spaceplane. Defence and spaceIndustry, investment and R&D ReportedEditor-read Finland adopts law transposing EU Critical Entities Resilience Directive Finland's government proposed that the president approve an Act transposing the EU's Critical Entities Resilience Directive, covering eleven sectors including digital infrastructure. It takes effect on 1 July 2025. Policy and law ReportedEditor-read Airbus flies Combat Cloud networking trial in Norway for Europe's FCAS fighter Airbus flew a DT25 target drone carrying its Combat Cloud Digital Infrastructure over Andoya, Norway on 10 to 13 June 2025, streaming sensor data across a tactical data mesh. The trial validates networking tech meant for the Franco-German-Spanish FCAS fighter programme. Defence and space ReportedEditor-read Multiverse Computing raises EUR 189 million to shrink AI model costs Spanish startup Multiverse Computing raised a EUR 189 million (USD 215 million) Series B led by Bullhound Capital, with HPE Tech Ventures and CDP Venture Capital joining. The round funds CompactifAI, which compresses large language models by up to 95 percent to cut inference costs. Compute and infrastructureIndustry, investment and R&D VerifiedEditor-read Canada's Hypertec, 5C and Together AI plan USD 5 billion AI data centres in Europe Canada's Hypertec, its 5C unit and US firm Together AI announced plans for up to USD 5 billion in private investment to build 2 gigawatts of AI data centre capacity across Europe, targeting France, the UK, Italy and Portugal from late 2025. Compute and infrastructure VerifiedAI-drafted France's Council of Ministers unveils digital sovereignty strategy and procurement push France's Council of Ministers presented a digital sovereignty strategy, including a new Observatory for Digital Sovereignty launching in July. It said only about 20 percent of French digital purchases go to European suppliers. Policy and law ReportedEditor-read EU's EIC Fund backs four scale-ups with up to EUR 90 million, including Multiverse The European Commission's EIC Fund selected four firms, Multiverse Computing, Hyimpulse Technologies, Dronamics and Classiq, for up to EUR 90 million in STEP Scale Up investment, EUR 10 to 30 million each, to unlock larger private rounds. Industry, investment and R&DDefence and space VerifiedAI-drafted EU top court orders review of Airbus Galileo satellite contract award The EU Court of Justice set aside a 2023 ruling and ordered the General Court to re-examine OHB's complaint that Airbus gained an unfair advantage by hiring OHB's former bid chief. The Galileo satellite contract awarded to Airbus and Thales Alenia Space was worth about EUR 1.5 billion. Policy and lawDefence and space ReportedEditor-read Italy's Sparkle joins consortium to build AAE-2 subsea cable to Europe Italy's Sparkle, part of TIM Group, joined PCCW Global, Telecom Egypt and Zain Omantel International to build the AAE-2 subsea cable linking Hong Kong and Singapore to Italy via Egypt and the Gulf. Compute and infrastructure VerifiedAI-drafted Orange Business joins Nvidia's Cloud Partner Network for sovereign AI Orange Business became an Nvidia Cloud Partner, agreeing to deploy Nvidia-accelerated AI on its Cloud Avenue platform from its own European data centres. The firms framed the hybrid offer as delivering trusted, sovereign AI compliant with EU rules. Compute and infrastructure VerifiedAI-drafted NXP reportedly plans to close its largest fab, in Nijmegen, within a decade NXP is reportedly planning to close four 200 millimetre wafer fabs over the next decade, including its largest plant, in Nijmegen, Netherlands, which employs 1,700 people. New 300 millimetre capacity is planned in Singapore and Dresden. Compute and infrastructure ReportedEditor-read Nvidia partners with European AI labs and clouds on sovereign models Nvidia said it will optimise sovereign language models with named European builders including LightOn and H Company, and cloud providers Nebius, Nscale and Fluidstack, with Perplexity integrating the models into its answer engine. Industry, investment and R&DCompute and infrastructure VerifiedAbroadEditor-read Nvidia and Deutsche Telekom build Germany's first industrial AI cloud Nvidia and Deutsche Telekom said they will build an industrial AI cloud in Germany with 10,000 Blackwell GPUs, operated by Deutsche Telekom for manufacturers including Siemens, Ansys and Cadence software users. The EU and Germany back the plan as an AI gigafactory. Compute and infrastructure VerifiedAI-drafted Mistral AI and Nvidia launch Mistral Compute, hailed by Macron at VivaTech Mistral AI and Nvidia unveiled Mistral Compute at VivaTech, with Nvidia supplying about 18,000 Blackwell GPUs for a 40 megawatt data centre in Essonne, France. President Macron called the sovereign AI infrastructure deal "historic". Compute and infrastructure ReportedEditor-read EuroHPC and Japan's RIKEN sign letter of intent on exascale access EuroHPC JU and Japan's RIKEN R-CCS signed a letter of intent at ISC25, extending the Hanami project so European researchers gain access to Japan's Fugaku exascale machine for climate, materials and biomedical work. Compute and infrastructure VerifiedAI-drafted EU Commission opens EUR 5 million prize for space-access innovation European Commission opened a EUR 5 million prize, "Game-changing Innovations for European Launch Solutions", funding five winners EUR 950,000 each for early-stage space-access technology, run by DG DEFIS. Defence and spaceIndustry, investment and R&D VerifiedAI-drafted EIB triples defence-supplier lending to EUR 3 billion, signs first bank deal The EIB tripled intermediated financing for Europe's defence-supply-chain SMEs to EUR 3 billion and signed its first commercial-bank deal, a EUR 500 million loan to Deutsche Bank unlocking EUR 1 billion for SME and infrastructure lending. Industry, investment and R&D VerifiedAI-drafted Crusoe leases Norwegian data centre for its first mainland Europe site US AI cloud firm Crusoe signed a lease with Norway's Polar for a 12 megawatt hydropower fed data centre, its first in mainland Europe, with a non-binding option to expand to 52 megawatts. Compute and infrastructure VerifiedEditor-read Paris's Arlequin AI raises EUR 4.4 million seed for sovereign disinformation AI Paris's Arlequin AI raised EUR 4.4 million in seed funding led by Vsquared Ventures, with 10x Founders, Kima Ventures and French angels. It builds unsupervised, non-LLM AI serving ministries and media in three European countries. Industry, investment and R&D ReportedEditor-read Germany's JUPITER becomes Europe's fastest supercomputer, ranks 4th worldwide JUPITER at Julich hit 793 petaflops on the Top500 list published 10 June, ranking fourth worldwide and first in Europe, and topped the Green500 for efficiency. EuroHPC co-funds the system as a step toward Europe's first exascale machine. Compute and infrastructure VerifiedEditor-read Investigation finds EU defence fund money reaching Israeli-owned Intracom Defense Investigate Europe found Intracom Defense, 94.5% owned by Israel's state-owned IAI, has drawn at least EUR 15 million in European Defence Fund money since 2023. It leads the EUR 59 million Actus drone programme with EUR 42 million of that EU co-funding. Industry, investment and R&DDefence and space ReportedEditor-read BAE Systems and Hanwha Systems sign MoU for joint reconnaissance satellite BAE Systems and South Korea's Hanwha Systems signed a non-binding memorandum to jointly develop a multi-sensor low-earth-orbit reconnaissance satellite, pairing BAE's radio-frequency sensors with Hanwha's SAR technology. Defence and space VerifiedAI-drafted