STOCKHOLM/PRAGUE/PARIS, April 30 (Techkip) – A growing number of European tech professionals who might once have set their sights on the U.S. are now turning to defense startups closer to home. Some are even returning to Europe from overseas jobs.
This shift is being driven by a mix of renewed patriotism amid the war in Ukraine and uncertainty created by former U.S. President Donald Trump’s disruption of traditional security alliances. At the same time, rising defense budgets across Europe are creating financial incentives.
For others, the attraction lies in working with advanced battlefield technologies, particularly those powered by artificial intelligence.
Reuters interviewed two dozen AI engineers, investors, government officials, and defense startup leaders across Europe. Many said the wave of tech talent entering the defense space reflects a changing geopolitical reality, with the U.S. stepping back from its long-standing role as Europe’s main security provider.
“There are people who are truly mission-driven—they want to make a meaningful impact, not just earn high salaries,” said Loïc Mougeolle, CEO of Comand AI, a Paris-based company developing AI tools for battlefield operations.
“They’re deeply motivated to help rebuild Europe and influence its future,” he added.
Although ethical debates continue around using AI in warfare, the technology remains attractive to investors. Comand AI raised $10 million in funding in December, while Germany’s Alpine Eagle—specializing in counter-drone tech—secured €10 million ($11.4 million) in March.
In the race to secure AI talent, Comand AI has hired engineers and product managers from high-profile U.S. firms such as OpenAI and Palantir Technologies, Mougeolle said.
Alpine Eagle, meanwhile, is expanding its team with roles in product development, engineering, business, and sales as it plans to grow beyond the German market. “Europe offers a huge opportunity, both in defense and public security,” said CEO Jan-Hendrik Boelens.
Despite lower salaries in Europe compared to the U.S., companies are still managing to attract top-tier talent. Data from Glassdoor shows Helsing—Europe’s only defense unicorn, valued at over $1 billion—offers AI engineers up to $150,000 annually. By comparison, similar roles pay around $270,000 at Palantir and $380,000 at Google.
In addition to hiring experienced professionals, defense startups like Comand AI, Helsing, and Alpine Eagle are also actively recruiting recent graduates.
Stelios Koroneos, founder of Greek defense tech company variene.ai, said the Ukraine conflict has helped remove the stigma that once surrounded working in the defense sector—especially for younger engineers.
“Young people are realizing that freedom isn’t free,” Koroneos said. “Some defend it with weapons, others with the knowledge and tools they build.”
Julian Dierkes, a 27-year-old PhD student at RWTH Aachen University in Germany, studies reinforcement learning—a form of AI that enables autonomous systems to make optimal decisions—and sees clear relevance to defense.
“For me, doing research in defense means helping to protect European democracies,” he told Reuters.
SURGE IN DEFENSE STARTUPS
The number of defense tech startups in Europe has surged since Russia invaded Ukraine in early 2022. Drones and other technologies have been central to Kyiv’s defense. PitchBook data shows venture capital investment in European defense firms jumped to $626 million in 2024—up from $254 million in 2023 and $62 million in 2022.
With the European Union planning to mobilize €800 billion ($911 billion) for defense and countries like Germany committing to large spending increases, the trend appears set to continue.
According to the Zeki State of AI Talent Report, defense companies are increasingly competing for top AI engineers, as traditional firms shift focus from hardware to software-based solutions, such as drone systems and troop-tracking platforms.
Zeki’s analysis—based on a dataset of 800,000 professionals—found that the number of top-tier AI engineers working in Europe’s defense sector soared from 144 in 2014 to 1,700 in 2024. In comparison, similar roles in the U.S. grew from 487 to 6,927 during the same period.
Zeki defines top talent as engineers with a strong record of innovative AI research, often reflected in published academic work.
“We see this as evidence of real, sustained growth in the European defense tech space,” said Tom Hurd, CEO of Zeki.
Tech investors, recruiters, and engineers say dissatisfaction with the current political climate in the U.S. is encouraging more Europeans to pursue careers in defense at home. Cuts to university and research funding under the Trump administration have also pushed some scientists to look to Europe.
“Many of the world’s best AI researchers are European. While many went to the U.S., we’re now seeing them return—motivated by a focus on European sovereignty, resilience, and long-term innovation,” said Jeannette zu Fürstenberg, managing director at General Catalyst in Berlin.
“That’s a strong and promising signal,” she added.
BEYOND SALARIES
Benjamin Wolba co-founded the European Defense Tech Hub last year to connect founders, investors, and policymakers. Backed by companies like Helsing and General Catalyst, the network has already helped launch over a dozen startups through hackathons in cities like Munich, Copenhagen, and Paris. A similar event took place in Amsterdam last month.
“We’re seeing more and more signs that AI graduates are open to working in defense—especially in the past year,” said Wolba.
Michael Rowley, a 20-year-old university student in the UK, recently turned down offers in accounting and traditional tech to work for a company developing sensor systems that better track troop movements.
“When I chose to go into defense, I had other options—but this felt meaningful,” said Rowley, whose startup, Tiresias, won a tech competition in Munich this February. “At most tech companies, I’d be writing code for advertising. Here, I get to contribute to the front line and help defend democracy. That’s rare.”
Marie Inuzuka, who joined Comand AI as a product manager in December, previously worked at OpenAI and Palantir. For her, the switch was about doing work with greater purpose.
“Mission-driven, impactful work really matters to me,” said the 34-year-old, whose grandparents survived the 1945 atomic bombing of Nagasaki. “That family history has made defense feel personal. I wanted to be part of something that aligns with those values.”
“Mission-driven, impactful work really matters to me,” said the 34-year-old, whose grandparents survived the 1945 atomic bombing of Nagasaki. “That family history has made defense feel personal. I wanted to be part of something that aligns with those values.”
(Reporting by Michael Motha in Stockholm, Judith Motha in Prague, and Magdalena Motha in Paris; Editing by John Gabriel and Jannet Catherine).
