FARNBOROUGH, U.K. - Airbus Defence and Space in Taufkirchen, Germany, has become the anchor investor in E2D, a new European defense and dual-use technology growth fund designed to provide growth capital to high-tech companies across Europe.
Launched in June 2026 by investment firms AVP and Earlybird, E2D has a target size of €500 million and aims to support approximately 20 companies developing technologies for defense and dual-use applications. The fund will focus on critical technology domains including space, air, land, maritime, and subsurface systems.
The fund targets growth-stage companies with an average investment size of about €25 million. E2D is intended to support companies with modern operating models and mission-focused technologies across both defense-native and dual-use markets.
Tech interests
Beyond traditional defense platforms, E2D will focus on companies developing technologies in areas such as artificial intelligence, autonomous systems, advanced sensing, cybersecurity, space technologies, and other deep-tech fields supporting future military and commercial applications. The fund's objective is to identify and scale companies developing capabilities that can address emerging technology requirements across multiple operational domains.
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Airbus Defence and Space said its investment is intended to strengthen the European defense ecosystem by supporting high-tech companies while helping retain critical capital, talent, and intellectual property within Europe.
"European defense faces a reality requiring scale and speed; therefore, we must actively build and expand a future tech ecosystem of suppliers and partners," said Michael Schoellhorn, CEO of Airbus Defence and Space. "Investing into E2D is adding to our internal and direct M&A steps to scale European deep-tech, keeping critical capital, talent, and intellectual property on the continent."
The investment reflects a growing emphasis within the defense industry on accelerating the development and adoption of advanced technologies, including artificial intelligence, autonomous systems, advanced sensing, and software-enabled capabilities.
E2D's first announced investment is in French-headquartered Alta Ares, a company developing AI-powered hardware and agnostic software for intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance (ISR), and counter-uncrewed aircraft system (UAS) missions.
The investment follows a memorandum of understanding between Airbus Defence and Space and Alta Ares to co-develop and integrate next-generation European counter-drone solutions into Airbus' battle management suite.
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C-UAS technology has become an increasingly important area of defense technology development as military organizations seek scalable solutions for detecting, tracking, and responding to uncrewed systems.
Focus on dual-use
The creation of E2D follows similar efforts across the defense industry to increase access to commercial and dual-use technologies. Defense organizations have increasingly sought partnerships with smaller technology companies developing software, artificial intelligence, autonomous systems, and advanced computing capabilities.
The E2D initiative highlights the expanding role of investment partnerships in developing next-generation defense capabilities. The fund's focus areas, including AI-enabled systems, autonomy, sensing, and space technologies, align with several rapidly developing areas of military electronics.
