Welcome to a new episode of the EUVC podcast, where

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, 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:

🎯 This Week’s Themes:

• The global reshuffling of power: Israel, Iran, Russia, 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 rare earths vulnerability
• 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 speed-running $15B deals in one week

Here’s what’s covered:

• 02:00 | War & Markets: Iran, Israel, oil prices & the Bank of England holds steady
• 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’s big swing, and Scale AI’s lightning-fast cash
• 1:02:00 | Founders in Government: Alex DePledge & Matt Clifford’s impact
• 1:05:00 | Meta’s AI Transfers: Zuck goes full football transfer window