Hyped: Global - 2 July 2025

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Spain: Spanish Tech is currently experiencing a funding heatwave 

As Global investment into Startups continues to trend down from a 2021/2022 post pandemic high, one unlikely European country appears to be bucking the trend: Spain. 

VCs pumped just over €1bn into 95 Spanish startups in the first quarter of 2025, a 184% increase on the sum raised in the same period last year (€362m).

There have also been 95 equity rounds and €910m raised in Q2, a 90% rise on the amount raised in Q2 2024. The country is fourth for tech funding overall this year in Europe, with a deal count not far behind Germany and France. 

“The mentality has completely changed, literally in the last six months: rounds are bigger and faster,” says Borja Solé Fauria, founder of Barcelona-based Murphy AI, which uses AI to modernise debt collecting services. “I’m seeing way more ambition around me.” 

Source: Sifted 

Why should you care: Could La Roja be the next European Tech Giant? We’d certainly not be mad about spending our WFH days sipping Sangria with our toes in the Mediterranean

Italy : The future of the €1billion NATO Innovation Fund to be decided in Venice this week

The Europe-based fund, which was started as a new kind of public-private initiative by the NATO alliance and backed by 24 NATO allies, launched two years ago to find and fund innovative technologies. It invests into deeptech-focused VC funds and startups in areas ranging from defence, robotics and new materials to spacetech.

Some of its direct investments to date include: 

• ARX Robotics, a manufacturer of scalable robotic systems for mass deployment in defence, commercial and humanitarian applications to future-proof armed forces, and increase the safety and efficiency of workforces.

• Fractile, an AI company that is developing transformative computing technology to enhance collective AI capabilities by enabling the largest and most capable neural networks of today and tomorrow to run faster, more efficiently and sustainably.

• iCOMAT, an advanced composite manufacturing company that delivers lighter, stronger and more sustainable structures for aerospace and automotive vehicles faster and more cost-effectively.

Despite already deploying capital on projects that support the region’s 1 billion+ citizens, the fund has seen plenty of turmoil in its short life. With three of its five founding partners already bowing out and its Chair high-profile German tech investor Klaus Hommels under fire for a potential conflict of interest, prompting this week’s emergency talks.

Why should you care: The NATO Alliance is a global superpower and has the clout to supercharge DeepTech Innovation in the region. The future of the NIF plays a big role in where this goes now and how successful it is.

Australia: Robbie Williams lets non-alc beer brand Heaps Normal entertain him

In one of many current ‘not on our bingo cards for 2025” moments, the British pop star known for both his love for Australia and recovery from a previously debauchery filled lifestyle, took to Instagram this week to declare his love for Australian Non-alcohol Beer brand “Heaps Normal”.

The brewer founded by Andy Miller, Jordy Smith and Ben Holstock officially launched in July 2020 and is now stocked in more than 10,000 retailers across Australia and New Zealand. Earlier this year they ventured into the US and already have contracts with WholeFoods and 200 other retailers.

Following Robbie’s love letter to Heaps Normal, they reported seeing huge uplifts in their socials and website traffic. Clearly he’s the “better man” in this one!

Why should you care: The Non-Alcoholic Beer market amounts to US$20.44bn in 2025 and is expected to grow by an estimated 12.6% in the next 12 months. It’s going to continue to disrupt the traditional beer industry for many years to come.

New Zealand: Agri-tech Startup Halter becomes the country’s newest Unicorn 

The Auckland based Startup hit a US$1billion valuation this week, after raising NZ$165million in a Series D funding round to expand its smart cow collar technology into the US.

Halter is on a mission to unlock more productive and sustainable agriculture, by bridging deep tech into real-world farming by enabling farmers to remotely shift, virtually fence and proactively monitor their cows’ health and behaviour.

They’re well backed by some of the region’s most prominent by Investors, including DCVC, Blackbird, Promus Ventures, Rocket Lab’s Peter Beck and Icehouse ventures.

Why should you care: This is a huge moment for Kiwi Innovation, with the country continuing to punch above its weight (just over 5 million people) with Halter following in the footsteps of Xero, Rocket Lab and A2 Milk to hit unicorn status.

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Kenya: Musk’s Starlink satellite internet resumes after a 7 month pause

Starlink has reopened new user sign-ups in Nairobi and across Kenya after halting activations for over seven months due to network congestion.

The freeze, which began in late 2024 followed a surge in demand that overwhelmed local capacity, leading to slower speeds and service interruptions.

A new ground station in Nairobi, launched in January 2025, has helped ease congestion, although demand continues to pressure the network in urban zones. Nevertheless multiple customers confirmed successful activations in June, with Starlink’s coverage map now showing full availability.

Source: Daba

Why should you care: Starlink’s return will extend broadband to remote areas though it will come at a cost. Kenya's regulators propose steep changes including a 10x hike in licence fees and a 2% turnover levy for satellite ISP.

Nigeria: Lagos launches QR code digital house numbering system

The Lagos State Government has launched the Lagos Identity Project, a digital house-numbering system designed to enhance property identification, service delivery, and urban planning across the state.

The new system features digital address plates embedded with QR codes and local government-specific colour codes. Scanning the QR code grants access to critical property data.

According to Dr. Olajide Babajide, Special Adviser to Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu on Enterprise Geographic Information System (e-GIS) who introduced the initiative  the project will address long-standing issues such as tax evasion, untraceable addresses, and slow emergency response times.

“This project is about providing Lagosians with the world-class services they truly deserve. We’ve had issues ranging from tax evasion to untraceable addresses. This new digital system is the solution,” Babajide said.

Source: Nairametrics

Why should you care: This is part of Lagos’ broader smart city agenda - initiatives that earned Lagos global recognition from institutions like the World Bank.

Want to hear more about African Tech? We highly recommend our good friend Caleb Maru’s Tech Safari newsletter, you can subscribe here 

India: Captain Shubhanshu Shukla becomes only the second Indian to travel to space

His trip comes 41 years after cosmonaut Rakesh Sharma became the first Indian to fly aboard a Russian Soyuz in 1984.

The mission, which took flight last week, is a collaboration between Nasa, India's space agency Isro, European Space Agency (Esa) and SpaceX. With a Hungarian and a Polish Astronaut who are also taking their countries back to space after more than four decades.

Astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla has also created history by becoming the first Indian ever to set foot on the International Space Station (ISS).

Isro, which has paid 5bn rupees ($59m; £43m) to secure a seat for Group Captain Shukla on the flight  wants to launch the country's first-ever human space flight in 2027 and has announced ambitious plans to set up a space station by 2035 and send an astronaut to the Moon by 2040.

Source: BBC News

Why should you care: India's space tech sector is experiencing rapid growth, driven by both government initiatives and private sector innovation. The country is aiming to increase its share of the global commercial space market, with a goal of reaching a $44 billion space economy by 2030.

China: Hong Kong plans new AI supercomputing centre to boost tech hub status

The Hong Kong government is set to enhance its computing power support for start-ups as part of its ambition to become a leading technology hub, according to the city’s innovation chief, as local start-ups seek global clients at one of Europe’s largest technology shows.

Hong Kong planned to establish a new supercomputing centre at Sandy Ridge in the Northern Metropolis – part of a government blueprint that aims to transform a large swathe of land in the New Territories into an economic hub, according to Secretary of Innovation, Technology and Industry Sun Dong.

The Special Administrative Region is home to a record 4,694 in 2024, marking a 10% increase from 2023. Hong Kong is ranked as #27 in Startup Genomes’ Global Ecosystem Index 2025.

Source: South China Morning Post

Why should you care: Hong Kong has been grappling for some time with its fall from grace as the global centre of the Asian Startup ecosystem and these are positive signs that it might be on its way back up.

Latin America: VC Funding in LATAM currently outgrowing Europe and SEA

Venture capital funding for startups in Latin America grew 26% in 2024 compared to the previous year, surpassing Europe’s 7% increase and contrasting sharply with Southeast Asia’s 34% decline, according to a report by Endeavor Mexico and Glisco Partners.

The report emphasized that the region is poised for further growth in 2025, driven by a young population, accelerating digital adoption, and increasingly sophisticated capital flows. However, structural challenges persist, notably the limited participation of local investment funds in later-stage rounds and ongoing global market volatility.

Investment patterns in Latin America are also   shifting, with later-stage funding now dominating early-stage investments. Later-stage deals accounted for 65% of the region’s total venture funding in 2024, up from 46% in 2023. While the number of funding rounds declined, the average capital raised per round increased significantly.

Mexico and Argentina emerged as the leading recipients of venture capital in the region in 2024.

Why should you care: With a projected 60% increase in secondary markets touted for 2025 more early-stage investors will be expected to sell on their equity and keep the region’s funding vehicles growing.

USA: Meta ploughs $15B into Scale AI to catch up with OpenAI, Anthropic, and DeepSeek in the AI race

In one of its largest strategic investments since acquiring WhatsApp for $19 billion in 2014, Meta is investing nearly $15 billion to secure a 49% stake in Scale AI, the data labelling and AI training powerhouse.

The investment addresses Meta’s pressing challenges in the global AI arms race while reshaping the competitive landscape for years. Major tech companies are projected to spend over $320 billion on AI in 2025, with comparable deals including Microsoft’s $13 billion investment in OpenAI, Amazon’s $8 billion commitment to Anthropic, and Google’s $3 billion investment in Anthropic.

Meta’s $14.8–$15 billion investment gives it just under half ownership of Scale AI. The startup will maintain independent operations while giving Meta access to its world-class data labelling, curation, and model evaluation services.

Source: Tech Funding News

Why should you care: The investment represents a strategic bet on securing the data, talent, and expertise needed to compete in the AI superintelligence race.

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