Welcome to a new episode of the EUVC podcast, where Dan Bowyer and Mads Jensen of SuperSeed and Lomax from Outsized Ventures gather to unpack the macro forces and micro signals shaping European tech and venture.

This week, the trio tackles one of the most geopolitically charged, capital-heavy, and morally complex episodes yet:

The global reshuffling of power: Israel, Iran, Russia, and Ukraine
Why defense is back—and what it means for VCs
Europe's space ambitions and what the ESA's new satellite project signals
China's trade plays and Europe's vulnerability in rare earths
AI, IPOs, and why founders might want to stay private longer
Surgical robots, ambient AI, and who’s building the future of healthcare

Plus: Daniel Ek gets flak, SPACs sneak back, and why VCs are now speed-running $15B deals in one week.

Here’s what’s covered:

02:00 War & Markets: Iran, Israel, oil prices & Bank of England holds
06:00 Defense Budgets: Why Europe is (finally) spending
10:00 VC Taboo: Why investing in weapons gets complicated fast
15:00 EIF Restrictions: Sex, gambling, and no defense
20:00 The Rise of Helsing: Europe’s $12B defense unicorn
24:00 Strategic Autonomy: Europe’s new military satellite constellation
30:00 ESA vs. Starlink: Earth observation gets serious
34:00 China, Trade Wars & Rare Earths: Why Europe’s exposed
40:00 EU-US Tariffs & Trump’s Pharma Threat
42:00 IPO Boom: Chime, Circle, and the SPAC comeback
47:00 CMR Surgical: UK’s $4B robot exit—is that enough?
53:00 Lessons from Intuitive Surgical & deeptech M&A
56:00 Deal of the Week: Nabla’s AI for clinicians, Helsing, and Scale AI’s lightning-fast cash
01:02:00 Founders in Government: Alex DePledge & Matt Clifford’s impact
01:05:00 Meta’s AI Transfers: Zuck goes full football transfer window

VC | E501 | This Week in European Tech with Dan, Mads & Lomax

EUVC