CHART: A Look at the European Startup Funding Landscape in Q2 2024

• European startup funding surged to nearly $16 billion in Q2, up 31% quarter-over-quarter.
• AI dominated in Europe, securing $3.3 billion in investments.
• The UK led European markets with $6.7 billion in funding, followed by France at $2.9 billion.

After a slowdown in recent years in Europe, Q2 2024 saw a significant funding increase, reaching close to $16 billion – a 31% jump compared to the previous quarter and a 17% rise year-over-year, according to Crunchbase data.

This performance marked a significant shift, with Europe outpacing Asia for the first time in a decade, as tensions between the U.S. and China weighed on Asian funding.

AI Dominates Sector Investments

Several trends are shaping this European tech boom. Artificial intelligence (AI) led the charge, attracting $3.3 billion in investments. Companies like Wayve (autonomous driving), Mistral AI (foundation models), and DeepL (language translation) are driving this trend. Fintech comes in a close second, with $3 billion invested in digital banking platforms and lending services. Sustainability also grabbed investor attention, with renewable energy companies capturing $2.5 billion in mega-rounds.

Late-Stage Funding Drives Growth

This growth spanned both early and late-stage funding, with the latter seeing a particularly notable jump. Notably, Late-stage funding reached $7.5 billion across more than 100 rounds. While this wasn't the highest quarter in the past year, it marked a clear recovery from the fluctuating totals seen over the last five quarters.

Meanwhile, Early-stage funding also saw an uptick, totalling $6.5 billion across over 300 rounds. Series B funding, in particular, showed the largest year-over-year increase at this stage. However, seed-stage funding didn't share the same momentum, slipping to $1.8 billion from $2.3 billion in Q2 2023.