Why Sweden has the necessary tools to lead new Nordic defense drive
In November 2021, three months before Russia’s all-out invasion of Ukraine, Swedish Prima Materia invested 100 million euros in German defence technology startup Helsing. This wasn’t a coincidence.
Prima Materia is Spotify founder Daniel Ek’s investment arm. Spotify in turn has had Peter Thiel’s Founders Fund as an early investor. Palantir, in which Thiel and Founders Fund are invested, is a strategic partner with Helsing. These early U.S. technology connections have helped spur a close transatlantic venture capital relationship, which is now seeping into defence.
But Sweden doesn’t only boast a Tier 1 international VC network. More importantly in this age of tension, it also houses the largest private equity fund in Europe. Founded by the Wallenberg family, EQT draws defence advantages from SAAB, the Swedish fightermaker that also invested in Helsing.
Sweden, being a country that hasn’t fought a war since the Napoleonic Wars when it lost Finland to Russia, is in this regard probably the most powerful silent defence technology player in the world.