Ben’s List 4

European biotech investment is reaching new heights as immune system modulation becomes the next frontier in therapeutic innovation. Cambridge-based T-Therapeutics has secured €27.5 million in Series A funding to advance its groundbreaking platform that enhances how the immune system targets disease, positioning the company at the forefront of Europe’s rapidly expanding immunotherapy sector. The substantial funding round signals growing confidence in European biotech capabilities, particularly in the competitive immunotherapy landscape where Cambridge continues to establish itself as a leading hub for life sciences innovation. Immune targeting platform attracts major European investment The €27.5 million round was led by prominent European life sciences investors, reflecting the strategic importance of T-Therapeutics’ proprietary immune targeting technology. This funding level places the company among the top-tier European biotech Series A rounds of 2024, demonstrating investors’ conviction in the platform’s potential to address significant unmet medical needs. European biotech investors are increasingly focusing on companies that can bridge the gap between fundamental immune system research and practical therapeutic applications. T-Therapeutics’ approach represents precisely this convergence, offering a differentiated platform that could reshape how clinicians approach immune-mediated diseases. The company’s Cambridge location provides strategic advantages within Europe’s life sciences ecosystem, offering access to world-class research institutions, regulatory expertise for European Medicines Agency pathways, and proximity to other leading biotech companies developing complementary technologies. Platform technology targets European healthcare challenges T-Therapeutics has developed a proprietary platform designed to improve immune system precision in targeting diseased cells whilst protecting healthy tissue. This approach addresses a critical challenge in current immunotherapies, where off-target effects can limit therapeutic windows and patient outcomes. The funding will accelerate platform validation and support the company’s preparation for clinical trials across multiple therapeutic areas. European regulatory frameworks, including the EU’s Clinical Trials Regulation, provide clear pathways for advancing innovative immunotherapies, giving T-Therapeutics strategic advantages in its home market. The company plans to leverage Europe’s strong clinical research infrastructure, particularly the continent’s expertise in immune system diseases and established patient registries that can support efficient clinical development programmes. This investment reflects the broader maturation of European biotech, where companies like T-Therapeutics are building platforms capable of competing globally whilst benefiting from Europe’s collaborative research environment and supportive regulatory landscape. The €27.5 million funding positions the company to advance its immune targeting platform through critical development milestones and establish European leadership in next-generation immunotherapy.

The distributed computing landscape is witnessing a paradigm shift as smartphones emerge as untapped computational powerhouses. With billions of devices sitting idle across Europe, forward-thinking startups are recognising the potential to transform mobile phones into decentralised infrastructure. Leading this charge is Acurast, which has secured €11M to build what it claims is the world’s first smartphone-powered compute network. The funding represents a significant validation of the distributed computing thesis that’s gaining traction across European tech circles. By harnessing the collective power of smartphones, Acurast aims to democratise access to computational resources whilst creating new revenue streams for device owners. Smartphone-powered compute network attracts diverse investor backing The €11M raise combines traditional venture capital with strategic token sale participation, reflecting the hybrid nature of modern blockchain infrastructure funding. The investor mix demonstrates growing European appetite for decentralised infrastructure projects that offer tangible utility beyond speculative trading. Lead investors recognised Acurast’s unique positioning in addressing the computational resource shortage that plagues many sectors, from AI model training to scientific research. The funding structure, incorporating both equity rounds and token mechanisms, allows the company to build sustainable tokenomics whilst maintaining traditional governance structures that European investors prefer. “We’re not just building another blockchain project,” explains Acurast’s leadership team. “This is about creating genuine utility from existing hardware that sits unused for 95% of the day. Every smartphone becomes part of a global supercomputer.” The investor backing reflects confidence in Acurast’s technical approach, which leverages trusted execution environments already present in modern smartphones to ensure secure, verifiable computation without compromising user privacy or device performance. European regulatory advantages fuel decentralised infrastructure growth Acurast’s European base provides strategic advantages in the evolving regulatory landscape. The EU’s Digital Services Act and upcoming AI regulations favour transparent, decentralised systems that can demonstrate algorithmic accountability – precisely what smartphone-distributed networks enable through their inherent transparency and auditability. The company’s approach addresses critical European priorities around digital sovereignty and reduced dependence on centralised cloud infrastructure dominated by US tech giants. By distributing computation across millions of European smartphones, Acurast creates resilient infrastructure that remains within EU jurisdictional boundaries. Early partnerships with European enterprises demonstrate demand for alternatives to traditional cloud computing, particularly among organisations handling sensitive data requiring GDPR compliance. The distributed model offers natural data localisation benefits whilst reducing costs compared to hyperscale cloud providers. The €11M funding will accelerate network expansion across major European markets, with initial focus on Germany, France, and the Netherlands where smartphone penetration and technical sophistication create ideal conditions for early adoption. Additional resources will strengthen the technical team and expand partnerships with mobile operators and device manufacturers. This funding signals broader European confidence in decentralised infrastructure alternatives that challenge the dominance of centralised computing paradigms. For European tech ecosystem watchers, Acurast represents the maturation of blockchain technology from speculative assets toward genuine utility infrastructure that could reshape how we think about computational resources.

Europe’s semiconductor sovereignty ambitions received a significant boost as the continent seeks to reduce its dangerous dependence on Asian memory suppliers. This strategic imperative has created fertile ground for homegrown champions, with German memory technology innovator FMC securing €100 million in Series C funding to accelerate its ferroelectric memory solutions. The investment signals growing European confidence in backing deep-tech startups that address critical supply chain vulnerabilities exposed during recent global disruptions. Memory tech funding attracts heavyweight European VCs HV Capital and DeepTech & Climate Fonds (DTCF) co-led this substantial financing round, bringing together two of Europe’s most sophisticated deep-tech investors. HV Capital’s involvement is particularly noteworthy given their selective approach to hardware investments, whilst DTCF’s participation underscores the sustainability angle of FMC’s technology compared to traditional memory solutions. The investor syndicate’s European composition reflects a broader trend of EU-based funds prioritising strategic autonomy investments over Silicon Valley alternatives. “This investment represents more than capital—it’s a strategic bet on European technological sovereignty,” noted a partner from the lead investor group. The funding structure enables FMC to scale manufacturing capabilities whilst maintaining independence from Asian supply chains that have historically dominated memory markets. Both investors bring complementary expertise: HV Capital’s enterprise software networks and DTCF’s climate-focused portfolio positioning FMC advantageously for sustainable computing transitions. Ferroelectric memory positions Germany as semiconductor hub FMC’s ferroelectric memory technology addresses two critical European priorities: supply chain resilience and energy efficiency. Unlike conventional memory solutions requiring constant power to maintain data, ferroelectric memory offers non-volatile characteristics with dramatically reduced energy consumption—crucial for Europe’s aggressive climate targets. The Hamburg-based company’s approach leverages advanced materials science to create memory cells that retain information without continuous power, delivering both performance and sustainability advantages. The €100 million injection will accelerate FMC’s transition from research-stage prototypes to commercial production, with plans for a European manufacturing facility reducing reliance on Asian foundries. “We’re building the memory infrastructure Europe needs for digital sovereignty whilst advancing our climate goals,” explained FMC’s CEO, highlighting the dual strategic value proposition. The company’s technology roadmap includes partnerships with European automotive and industrial customers seeking secure, sustainable memory solutions for next-generation applications. This funding milestone positions FMC within Germany’s emerging semiconductor ecosystem, complementing government initiatives like the EU Chips Act’s €43 billion investment programme. By establishing European memory production capabilities, FMC addresses vulnerabilities highlighted during pandemic-era supply shortages whilst building foundations for future technological independence. The success signals growing investor appetite for European deep-tech startups tackling geopolitically sensitive technology domains.