Defense

A former German defence adviser runs Europe's $18B drone maker. Its AI strike drones are already flying for Ukraine.

Helsing co-CEO Gundbert Scherf is a former special adviser at Germany's defence ministry. Helsing's AI strike drones fly for Ukraine, Germany ordered 4,300 HX-2 and investors value it at $18B. Founders, funding, contracts, every product on video, and where the evidence splits. Confirmed vs Reported.

Photo: Helsing / helsing.ai. Composite: Behind Robotics ($18B MILITARY AI type, no cream card). Latest disclosed private round per company.

DefenseCompaniesHelsing · interactive teardown · DRAFT

Behind Robotics editorial

A former German defence adviser runs Europe's $18B drone maker. Its AI strike drones are already flying for Ukraine.

Helsing is not a slideware story. It builds AI-guided strike drones that Germany has ordered by the thousand and that Ukraine has flown in combat, and in July investors valued it at $18 billion.^1,2 Its co-CEO Gundbert Scherf was a special adviser at the German defence ministry from 2014 to 2016 (Reported, his own profile and press), and he now runs the company alongside Torsten Reil.^3,4 It is now a major drone supplier to Kyiv and the anchor supplier of Germany's new loitering-munition fleet. It also publishes no group revenue, and its newest drone's battlefield record is still argued over by its own customers. This is the full picture — interactive: founders, products, timeline, technology, insight library, locations — each figure marked Confirmed or Reported.

Scroll · click cards to expand

Company film · Behind RoboticsHelsing in 90 seconds

DRAFT company film · ~88 s. Credit: official Helsing footage (@HelsingAI) cut by Behind Robotics; Ryan VO +6%. Ghost-hosted 540p preview for review (media URL); full 1080p stays local in film/. Rights: Helsing media kit says footage must remain “unaltered”; overlays may stretch that — confirm with communications@helsing.ai before publishing. Sources: film/CREDITS.txt, film/sources-film.md.

Key takeaways

Real, AI-enabled, deployed. HF-1: 4,000 ordered, delivered in volume (delivery Confirmed by company; counts Reported).^5,6 HX-2: 750 delivered Dec 2025 per Helsing (Reported).⁷
Germany is the anchor customer. First call-off 4,300 HX-2 for about €270M (Confirmed); CFSN development €220M+ range (Reported).^8,9,10
The money. ~€1.37B through Series D, then $1.8B at $18B (Jul 2026). Prima Materia led A and D; General Catalyst B and C (amounts Confirmed; valuations mostly Reported).^{11,12,13,14,1}
The people. Reil sold NaturalMotion to Zynga for $527M (2014). Scherf: MoD special adviser then McKinsey partner. Köhler: physicist / Hellsicht.^15,3,16
Evidence splits. Helsing 39/41 trials; US Army 15/17; Politico 5/14 Ukrainian use. Helsing disputes Ukrainian reports.^17,18,19,20
Versus Anduril: $18B vs $61B; Anduril publishes $2.2B 2025 revenue; Helsing publishes none.^21,22

$18B

Valuation, Series E

Confirmed · 13 Jul 2026

4,300

HX-2, first German call-off

Confirmed · ~€270M

4,000

HF-1 ordered for Ukraine

Confirmed (company) · 2024

n/p

Group revenue

not published

How to read thisEvery figure is labelled. Confirmed = company release, regulator, exchange, parliament or procurement-office statement. Reported = press, register aggregator, civil-society wiki or third-party estimate. not published = we looked and the company has not said. behindrobotics received no payment from any company named here.

01 · The short version

Real weapons, real war, proof still arriving

Helsing was founded in Munich in 2021 by Torsten Reil, Gundbert Scherf and Niklas Köhler as an AI software company for armed forces.^23,24 Five years later it sells strike drones, builds undersea gliders, owns an aircraft maker and is priced as a prime contractor. The company calls itself predominantly European-owned despite a round that included US investors.¹

Our reading has three parts. First, the products exist and are in service. Ukraine has been receiving Helsing drones since at least early 2025, Germany has put thousands more on order, and the company's AI software has flown a Saab Gripen fighter.^7,8,25 Second, Helsing is a serious weapons supplier by volume, not just by valuation. Third, the quality evidence is mixed — reported hit rates run from 36% in one press tally to 95% in the company's own trial results. We keep those numbers side by side.

What Helsing has beyond product is access: a Berlin customer, a board with Airbus's former chief executive, and a co-CEO who was a special adviser on armaments inside the German defence ministry. That is a real asset. It is not the same asset as audited revenue.^26,3

02 · Founders

Three founders — click a card for the vitae

Founded Munich early 2021; €8.5M seed that spring.^23,27 Reil's Aug 2026 podcast account: he raised money, Scherf covered military/politics, Köhler covered AI/engineering (Reported).²⁸ Headshots: official Helsing People media kit portraits (Photo: Helsing / helsing.ai).^24,29

When	What	Label
1998–99	BA biological sciences, Oxford; MSc evolutionary/adaptive systems, Sussex²⁷	Reported
c. 2001	Oxford research student; idea behind NaturalMotion^30,31	Reported
2001	Co-founds NaturalMotion^31,30	Reported
30 Jan 2014	Zynga buys NaturalMotion ~$527M^15,32,31	Confirmed (filing)
2014–2017	NaturalMotion CEO within Zynga to Jun 2017²⁷	Reported
2021	Co-founds Helsing, co-CEO^27,24	Confirmed
Aug 2026	Podcast: autonomous mass; ~1,300 staff claim²⁸	Reported

When	What	Label
Early career	Cambridge (Marie Curie), FU Berlin, Sciences Po; doctorate Berlin (Forbes)^34,33	Reported
2008–2014	McKinsey Berlin, Associate Partner³	Reported
2014–2016	Special adviser, German MoD, armaments^3,4,34	Reported
2017–2021	McKinsey partner, aerospace & defence³	Reported
7 Nov 2019	Witness, Bundestag Berateraffäre inquiry³⁵	Confirmed
Mar 2021	Co-founds Helsing; co-CEO^3,24	Confirmed
From Aug 2025	Listed lobbyist for Helsing SE³⁶	Reported

When	What	Label
Early career	Physics MSc LMU; Helmholtz Munich; Nature papers; $1M ML prize (company bio)^38,16	Reported
Dec 2016	Co-founds Hellsicht GmbH Munich³⁹	Reported
2021	Co-founds Helsing; president / CPO^24,38	Confirmed
2023	WIRED: drones in sensors ≈ cancer in CT scans⁴⁰	Reported

Board, advisers and early backers

Who	Role	Label
Daniel Ek (Prima Materia)	Led Series A and D; co-chair with Enders^23,14,1	Confirmed
Tom Enders	Board since 29 Mar 2022; former Airbus CEO²⁶	Confirmed
Jeannette zu Fürstenberg / Denis Mercier	Board members¹	Confirmed
General Catalyst	Led Series B and C^12,13,41	Confirmed
Saab	€75M ~5% Sep 2023; Centaur/Arexis/Cirra partner^42,43	Confirmed

03 · Products

Click a thumbnail for specs, brief and video

Common layer: Altra — sensor fusion and swarm control.^44,7 Specs only from Confirmed/Reported research. No official video: Altra, HF-1, CA-1EA. Altra card uses Helsing warehouse production stills from helsing.ai (Altra-class / production rows); HF-1 still placeholder.

04 · Timeline

History, funding and contracts — filter by year

Interactive spine for company history, funding rounds and key contracts. Amounts the company stated are Confirmed; most mid-round valuations are Reported.

Mar 2021 · Seed amount Confirmed

Founded in Munich

Reil, Scherf, Köhler. Seed €8.5M.^23,27

Nov 2021 · Reported

Series A €102.5M

Prima Materia leads ~€100M.^11,23

29 Mar 2022 · Confirmed

Tom Enders joins board

Former Airbus CEO.²⁶

2023 · Confirmed

Eurofighter AI + Series B

15 Eurofighters; Series B €209M; Saab €75M ~5%.^55,12,42

11 Jul 2024 · Amount Confirmed

Series C €450M + Estonia

GC lead; Estonia €70M/3yrs. Val ~€4.95B Reported.^13,59,60

2024 · Confirmed / Reported

HF-1 for Ukraine; HX-2 unveil

4,000 HF-1 ordered; HX-2 Dec unveil.^5,7

13 Feb 2025 · Announcement Confirmed

6,000 more strike drones announced

First Resilience Factory. Option funding later questioned.^5,61

May 2025 · Confirmed

SG-1 Fathom + Lura

Undersea glider and acoustic AI.⁴⁸

Jun 2025 · Confirmed; val Reported

Grob, Centaur, Series D

Grob acquisition; Centaur on Gripen E; Series D €600M.^54,25,14

Sep 2025 · Reported

CA-1 Europa unveiled

Uncrewed combat aircraft.⁴⁵

Nov 2025 · Confirmed

Plymouth factory; Arexis order

UK factory; Saab Arexis includes Helsing AI.^49,43

Dec 2025 · Reported

750 HX-2 to Ukraine

Company claim via press.⁷

Jan 2026 · Reported / Disputed

Ukraine HX-2 dispute

Bloomberg cites critical presentation; Helsing disputes.^62,63

25–26 Feb 2026 · Confirmed

German HX-2 frameworks

First call-off 4,300 HX-2 ≈€270M.^8,9

14 Apr 2026 · Reported

Culver Aerospace deal

Joint drones; production in Germany for Ukraine.⁶⁴

8 Jul 2026 · Reported

CFSN mission system

Helsing to lead; >€220M first step (Reported).^10,65

13 Jul 2026 · Amount+val Confirmed

Series E $1.8B at $18B

Lead investors Reported (Dragoneer / Lightspeed).^1,66

Jul 2026 · Confirmed

Martinsburg, WV factory

US Resilience Factory; Ukraine MD named.^67,44

Oct 2026 · Confirmed (announcements)

Trials, Destinus, Contra

39/41 claim; Destinus; Contra / AD-1 / AD-2.^17,68,56

Funding rounds — detail

Round	Date	Amount	Lead	Valuation	Label
Seed	Spring 2021	€8.5M	not stated	n/p	Amount Confirmed
Series A	9 Nov 2021	€102.5M	Prima Materia	north of €400M (TC)	Reported
Series B	14 Sep 2023	€209M	General Catalyst	≈€1.5–1.7B press	Amount Confirmed
Series C	11 Jul 2024	€450M	General Catalyst	≈€4.95B Bloomberg	Amount Confirmed
Series D	17 Jun 2025	€600M	Prima Materia	≈€12B press	Amount Confirmed
Series E	13 Jul 2026	$1.8B	Dragoneer (Reported)	$18B	Amount+val Confirmed; lead Reported

Sum through D incl. seed: €1,369.5M (our arithmetic). Group revenue not published. Helsing GmbH 2024 €26.9M is one entity (Reported).⁶⁹

Contracts — who bought what

Counterparty	Product	Quantity / value	Label
Germany BAAINBw	HX-2 frameworks	First call-off 4,300 ≈€270M^8,9	Confirmed
Germany CFSN	Mission system + test UCAVs	Planned €580M; >€220M first step^65,10	Reported
Germany via Saab	Cirra / AI on 15 Eurofighters	Saab orders €291M + €258M; Helsing share n/p^55,43	Confirmed
Ukraine (DE funding)	HF-1, HX-2	4,000 HF-1; 6,000 HX-2 announced^5,7	Mixed
UK MoD / RN	SG-1, Lura	£350M pledge; demo Dec 2025; no order^49,50,70	Confirmed (pledge)
Estonia MoD	Helsing Estonia OÜ	€70M over 3 years^59,71	Confirmed (pledge)
United States	Martinsburg plant	$50M plant; Flytrap 15/17^67,18	Confirmed (plant)

05 · Technology

Software-defined defence — what Helsing says it builds

Helsing presents itself as an AI software company that wraps hardware around a common autonomy stack.^24,44 Public stack we can document:

Altra

Recce-strike: sensor fusion, target recognition, swarm control for HX-2/HF-1.^44,7

Centaur

Air-combat AI pilot. Flown on Saab Gripen E with safety pilot (Confirmed).^25,64

Cirra

EW AI in Saab Arexis for German Eurofighter upgrades.^43,55

Lura

Underwater acoustic AI paired with SG-1 Fathom.⁴⁸

Company / executive framing (not independently audited): autonomy that keeps working when GNSS or datalinks are jammed; updatable software across air/EW/undersea; “autonomous mass” (Reported).^28,1 Reil has argued for a human in the loop on life-and-death decisions while Europe scales autonomy (Reported).^28,40

What we do not claim: model architectures, parameter counts, training-data sources, or proprietary fusion algorithms. Helsing has not published those. Battlefield software praise and hardware criticism stay in Evidence.⁷

06 · Insight view

Media library — production, arsenal, workshop, film stills

Stills from official @HelsingAI clips in this package and the Behind Robotics company-film cut. Unaltered frames (Helsing media-kit clause). Altra card uses helsing.ai warehouse production stills; HF-1 still placeholder; no invented Ukraine combat footage.

07 · Where are they located?

Confirmed sites on an OSM basemap

Pins only for locations we can document. Approximate coordinates for Web-Mercator overlay on the basemap — not surveyed GIS.

Dark OpenStreetMap basemap of Europe, North Atlantic and eastern North America

Munich Confirmed

HQ / founded 2021^23,24

Tussenhausen-Mattsies Confirmed

Grob Aircraft SE HQ · Lettenbachstrasse 9 · Helsing subsidiary (Jun 2025)^54,72

Tallinn area Confirmed

Helsing Estonia OÜ · €70M / 3 yrs pledge^59,71

Plymouth Confirmed

UK factory opened 19 Nov 2025⁴⁹

Martinsburg, WV Confirmed

US Resilience Factory · $50M announced^67,73

Ukraine Company ops

Ukraine MD / deliveries & partners (no street HQ in sources)^44,7

Grob street HQ is Confirmed on the company contact page (Tussenhausen-Mattsies).^72,54 Berlin appears in Scherf's career, not as a documented Helsing HQ.

08 · What the battlefield evidence says

Both stories are partly true

Source	Finding	Label
Helsing trials 2026	39 of 41 successful strikes (≈95%)¹⁷	Company claim
US Army Flytrap 5.0	15 of 17 launches hit (88%)^18,74	Reported
Politico 29 Jan 2026	5 of 14 hits in Ukrainian use (36%)¹⁹	Reported
WELT on HF-1	Early problems; later ~40% hits/near-hits; Altra solid⁷	Reported / Disputed
Bloomberg 19 Jan 2026	25% launch success in one trial; Kyiv held off^62,63	Reported / Disputed

Not a failed drone (Ukraine kept flying; Berlin ordered 4,300) and not uncontested. Early HF-1 had hardware problems; HX-2 combat record still being written.^8,75,7

09 · Versus Anduril

Same playbook, different distance travelled

	Helsing	Anduril
Founded	2021, Munich	2017²¹
Latest round	$1.8B Series E¹	$5B Series H^21,22
Valuation	$18B Confirmed	$61B Confirmed
Revenue	Group n/p; GmbH 2024 €26.9M Reported⁶⁹	$2.2B for 2025²¹

Peers: Quantum Systems ~$8B; Stark €3.2–3.5B. Berlin split first loitering award with Stark.^76,77,9

10 · Risks and open questions

What would change our mind

Qualification of HX-2 — no public result yet.^8,17
Ukraine 6,000 option funding and independent rates.^6,62
Group revenue — the missing $18B denominator.⁶⁹
Customer concentration on Germany.⁸
Platform sprawl across drones, gliders, UCAV, EW, air defence.^52,58
Politics / revolving door — context, not a finding of wrongdoing.^37,78

Bottom lineHelsing is no hoax and no prime. It is a young, venture-funded European weapons company that already sells drones into a war, has the German state as its largest customer, and is priced at $18 billion on a promise of autonomy and scale it has not yet audited in public.

Editorial analysis, not investment advice. Interactive redesign 2026-10-28 — local draft only. Behind Robotics received no payment from any company named here.

Sources

Helsing, 'Helsing raises US$1.8bn in Series E' (13 Jul 2026) · company release; helsing.ai blocks plain fetches (HTTP 429), read in full in a headless browser. Lists participants without naming a lead
Defense News, 'Helsing raises $1.8 billion in Europe's biggest defense-startup round' (13 Jul 2026)
Gundbert Scherf, LinkedIn profile · self-reported profile; read via search snippet
Capital, 'Gundbert Scherf, der Umrüster' · page fetch returned empty; read via search snippet
Helsing, 'Helsing to produce 6,000 additional strike drones for Ukraine' (13 Feb 2025) · company release; read in a headless browser
Defense Express, 'Uncertainty surrounds whether Germany ever funded HX-2 drones for Ukraine' (Nov 2025) · read via search snippet
WELT am Sonntag, 'Die ukrainische Enttäuschung mit der deutschen Wunderdrohne' (28 Jan 2026) · fetched in full
ESUT, 'Loitering Munition: Beschaffung von mehr als 6.000 Kampfdrohnen gebilligt' (26 Feb 2026) · fetched; budget committee approval 25 Feb 2026, two frameworks, sets of 50 aircraft with a ground station
ESUT / Mittler Report, 'Vertraege zur Beschaffung von Loitering Munition Systemen geschlossen' (5 Mar 2026), citing BAAINBw · fetched in full
hartpunkt, 'Bundeswehr: Helsing soll Missionssystem fuer Drohnen und Drohnenschwaerme entwickeln' (Jul 2026) · fetched; budget committee 8 Jul 2026, just over EUR220M released per well-informed circles
TechCrunch, 'Daniel Ek puts EUR100M into defence startup Helsing.ai' (9 Nov 2021)
Helsing, 'Helsing raises EUR209m Series B' (Sep 2023) · company release; read in full in a headless browser
Helsing, 'Helsing further strengthens European defence capabilities with funding round' (Jul 2024) · company release; read in full in a headless browser
Helsing, 'Helsing raises EUR600m to invest in European technological sovereignty' (17 Jun 2025) · company release; read in full in a headless browser
Zynga, Form 8-K and Ex. 99.1 on the NaturalMotion acquisition (30 Jan 2014) · SEC filing; read via search snippet
Niklas Köhler, LinkedIn profile · self-reported profile; read via search snippet
ESUT, 'Helsing meldet 95 Prozent Erfolgsquote bei HX-2-Erprobungen' (12 Oct 2026) · fetched in full; the figures are Helsing's, and ESUT notes it has no independent confirmation
Axios, 'U.S. troops test German-made Helsing attack drones in Europe' (9 Jun 2026) · read via search snippet
Politico Europe, 'Ukrainian battlefield data undercuts Germany's big drone bet' (29 Jan 2026) · fetched in full
Helsing, 'Statement from Helsing' (19 Jan 2026) · company statement; read via search snippet and via Defense Post/CISES quotes
TechCrunch, 'Anduril raises $5B, doubles valuation to $61B' (13 May 2026) · fetched in full; also reports Shield AI $12.7B (Mar 2026) and >$11B Anduril total raised
Anduril, 'Anduril Announces $5B Series H Raise' (13 May 2026) · company release; direct fetch timed out, read via search snippet; 2025 revenue $2.2B per CEO post (as quoted by TechCrunch)
Raue, 'Raue advises Prima Materia on its investment in Helsing' (27 Jan 2022) · law-firm announcement; fetched in full. Gives founding date (beginning of 2021), the EUR8.5M seed and the EUR100M Prima Materia investment
Helsing, company page (founders, leadership) · company page; read in a headless browser
Saab, 'Saab achieves AI milestone with Gripen E' (11 Jun 2025) · read via search snippet
Helsing, 'Tom Enders joins Helsing board of directors' (29 Mar 2022) · company release; read in a headless browser
Torsten Reil, LinkedIn profile · self-reported profile; read via search snippet
David Senra, 'Founders' podcast episode with Torsten Reil (26 Aug 2026) · episode page and summary; the audio was not listened to by us
European Security & Defence, 'Helsing officially unveils HX-2 Karma' (Dec 2024) · fetched; captions credit Photo: Helsing; founders L→R Scherf, Reil, Köhler
PocketGamer.biz, 'Hall of Fame: NaturalMotion's Torsten Reil' (interview) · interview; read via search snippet
University of Oxford, 'Oxford digital spin-out completes $500m sale' (12 Feb 2014) · university release; read via search snippet
TechCrunch, 'Zynga buys NaturalMotion for $527M' (30 Jan 2014) · read via search snippet
Forbes profiles: Reil, Scherf, Köhler (27 Oct 2026) · Forbes real-time net-worth estimates; fetched; the Köhler page contains a visible data error, so we use only the shared net-worth figure
Unternehmertag, speaker profile Dr. Gundbert Scherf · event biography (self-supplied); read via search snippet
Deutscher Bundestag, Untersuchungsausschuss (Berateraffäre) hearing, 7 Nov 2019 · parliament page; read via search snippet
Lobbyregister des Deutschen Bundestages, entry 'Helsing SE' R007552 · official register; read via search snippet (lists Scherf as lobbyist, registered from Aug 2025)
LobbyPedia (LobbyControl), Helsing and Gundbert Scherf entries · civil-society wiki that cites ZEIT, Spiegel and government answers; used as a pointer, each item labelled Reported; fetched
Equilar ExecAtlas, Niklas Köhler executive bio · company-written biography as reproduced by Equilar; read via search snippet
North Data, Hellsicht GmbH register entry (Munich, HRB 229885) · register aggregator; fetched. Shows managing directors Philipp Eulenberg and Niklas Köhler, registered Dec 2016; the entity now appears as Helsing Germany GmbH
WIRED, 'A Battlefield AI Company Says It's One of the Good Guys' (2023) · read via search snippet
General Catalyst, 'Our investment in Helsing' · investor post; fetched in full
Saab, 'Saab signs strategic cooperation agreement and makes investment in Helsing' (14 Sep 2023) · fetched in full
Saab, 'Saab receives orders for Arexis system for German Eurofighter' (14 Nov 2025) · fetched in full
AIN.ua, interview with Helsing's Ukraine managing director Andrii Shevchenko (5 Aug 2026) · company executive interview; fetched in full
Lima Groupe, 'Helsing, the defence start-up valued at 18 billion dollars' (12 Sep 2026) · secondary aggregator; used for figures that cite Reuters/Bloomberg/company; cross-checked where possible
GAU (Ukraine), 'German loitering munition for the Ukrainian defence' (11 Apr 2025) · read via search snippet
Militarnyi, summary of Bloomberg's April 2025 report on criticism of Helsing drones (overpriced, announced contracts prematurely) · secondary summary; Bloomberg itself paywalled (HTTP 403)
Helsing, 'Helsing unveils Lura and SG-1 Fathom' (May 2025) · company release; read via search snippet
BBC News, 'Factory could help defend UK - cabinet minister' (20 Nov 2025) · fetched in full
UK Defence Journal, 'Royal Navy will trial SG-1 drone subs under Atlantic Bastion' (2 Dec 2025) · fetched in full
Defence Eye, 'Atlantic Net goes to Ocean Infinity' (24 Sep 2026) · read via search snippet
Helsing, 'Helsing Introduces the CA-1 Electronic Attack' (Jun 2026) · company release; read via search snippet
Aviation Week, 'Helsing Targets Electronic Attack Europa CCA For 2031' · read via search snippet
Grob Aircraft, 'Helsing acquires Grob' (4 Jun 2025) · read via search snippet; price not disclosed
Helsing, 'Helsing AI selected for Eurofighter upgrade' (2023) · company release; read in a headless browser
Helsing, 'Helsing unveils Contra ... AD-1 Inferno and AD-2 Ambush' (26 Oct 2026) · company release; read via search snippet
Defense News, 'Helsing unveils interceptor missiles designed to chase Russia's fast-flying Geran drones' (26 Oct 2026) · read via search snippet
DroneXL, 'Helsing Prices Jet-Drone Interceptors Under EUR100,000, None Before 2027' (26 Oct 2026) · read via search snippet; price is press-reported
Helsing, 'Helsing and Prime Minister Kaja Kallas announce Helsing Estonia at NATO summit' (11 Jul 2024) · company release; read in a headless browser
Bloomberg, 'Defense Startup Helsing Nets EUR5 Billion Valuation' (11 Jul 2024) · paywalled; read via search snippet (EUR4.95bn)
TechCrunch, 'Germany's Helsing doubles down on drones for Ukraine, scales up manufacturing' (13 Feb 2025) · read via search snippet
Bloomberg, 'Ukraine holds off on new Helsing drone orders after setbacks' (19 Jan 2026) · paywalled; content taken from Defense Post, CISES and Lima summaries
The Defense Post, 'Helsing Disputes Reports Ukraine Paused HX-2 Drone Orders' (23 Jan 2026) · fetched in full
ESUT, 'Helsing und Culver Aerospace: Gemeinsame Drohnenproduktion' (16 Apr 2026) · fetched; agreement of 14 Apr 2026, production in Germany for Ukraine
POLITICO, 'Germany bets on EUR580M software after fighter jet split with France' (25 Jun 2026) · fetched; planned cost-reimbursement contract
The Next Web, 'Helsing raises $1.8bn at an $18bn valuation, and its cap table tells a story' (Jul 2026) · source for the report that Dragoneer led and Lightspeed co-led; read via search snippet
WV MetroNews, 'Helsing plans call for rapid, significant drone production at announced Martinsburg facility' (20 Jul 2026) · fetched in full
Destinus, 'Helsing and Destinus establish a commercial partnership' (20 Oct 2026) · read via search snippet; no stake or amount disclosed
FirmenData, Helsing GmbH (HRB 264368) financials from the Handelsregister / filed annual accounts · register aggregator; 2024 accounts published 12 Nov 2025; single legal entity, not group; fetched
UK Parliament written answer, Unmanned Marine Systems: Procurement (28 Jan 2026) · fetched; no contract for the Herne vessel at that date
Estonian Ministry of Defence, 'Estonian Ministry of Defence and Helsing OU sign joint statement on AI-driven defence cooperation' (Aug 2024) · read via search snippet; sources give 13 or 14 Aug 2024
Grob Aircraft SE, Contact page (Lettenbachstrasse 9, 86874 Tussenhausen-Mattsies) · fetched; street HQ Confirmed for map pin
West Virginia Governor's Office, '$50 Million Helsing Investment in Berkeley County' · read via search snippet
U.S. Army, 'FlyTrap 5.0: Media roundtable with the 2nd Cavalry Regiment' · read via search snippet
Janes, 'Growing Ukrainian demand for Helsing's HX-2 LT amid Starlink concerns' (Oct 2026) · paywalled; read via search snippet
Quantum Systems, 'Series D' release (2 Jul 2026) · read via search snippet; Reuters and Bloomberg report ~$8B
The Next Web, 'Stark Defence raises EUR500M led by Sequoia and Founders Fund' (Jun 2026) · read via search snippet; Bloomberg cites EUR3.2bn on company statement, other outlets 'above EUR3.5bn'
The Guardian, Massive Attack and other artists remove music from Spotify over Daniel Ek's Helsing investment (2025) · read via search snippet

Company film · Behind RoboticsHelsing in 90 seconds

Real weapons, real war, proof still arriving

Three founders — click a card for the vitae

Torsten Reil

Gundbert Scherf

Niklas Köhler

Board, advisers and early backers

Click a thumbnail for specs, brief and video