European tech weekly recap: Over €1B flowed into the tech ecosystem in the last week of January - Related to per, flowed, recap:, pleo, 25
European tech weekly recap: Over €1B flowed into the tech ecosystem in the last week of January
Last week, we tracked more than 75 tech funding deals worth over €1 billion, and over 10 exits, M&A transactions, rumors, and related news stories across Europe.
The top three industries that raised the most were artificial intelligence (€[website] million), travel (€[website] million) and energy (€[website] million). Regionally, companies from the 🇬🇧 UK secured €[website] million, followed by 🇪🇸 Spain (€[website] million) and 🇫🇷 France (€[website] million).
German spinout Akribion Therapeutics, an RNA-focused biotech, has raised €8M to accelerate its therapeutic development.
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Investor slashes value of Pleo stake by 25 per cent
An investor in expenses management platform unicorn Pleo has cut the value of its stake by over 25 per cent year-on year, .
Kinnevik, which holds a 14 per cent stake in Denmark-founded Pleo, valued the stake at SEK 2445m ($227m) in Q4, 2024, a 26 per cent cut compared to the SEK 3293m ($298m) value the year previous.
This cut gives Pleo an implied valuation of around $[website] in Q4, 2024, compared to a $[website] valuation the year previous.
The Swedish firm also cut the value of its stake in Pleo by 10 per cent between Q3, 2024 and Q4, 2024.
Pleo, founded in 2015, achieved star status in 2021 when it became the fastest Danish startup to reach unicorn status, in just six years.
The Danish startup, which has raised more than $430 million in funding, provides European businesses with various spend management tools including organization cards, employee expense reports, as well as credit products.
In 2021, it raised $150m at a $[website] valuation, and six months later raised another $200 million at a valuation of $[website] billion, making it one of the more valuable fintech startups in Europe.
In the findings, Kinnevik stated Pleo grew between two and three times faster than its SaaS benchmarks last year with above average gross margins.
“Profitability improvement measures over the past years have shown good results, and in 2025 Pleo plans to accelerate investment in product and market expansion. “This leads to stalling margin improvements in 2025, but is expected to create a larger and stronger business in 2026 and beyond.”.
Last month, Pleo moved into the treasury space, rolling out a suite of tools.
Meanwhile, Kinnevik has upped the value of its 15 per cent stake in TravelPerk by 66 per cent year on year, giving it an implied valuation of $2,26bn.
Pleo did not respond to a request for comment.
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Harrison Ford shares candid response to Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny failure
Harrison Ford is not concerned with the commercial failure of Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny. In true Harrison Ford fashion, the 82-year-old used a two-word response when asked about the film’s poor box office result.
“S*** happens,” Ford told The Wall Street Journal Magazine.
Released in June 2023, Dial of Destiny grossed $384 million worldwide, falling well short of Lucasfilm’s expectations. For comparison, the fourth Indiana Jones movie, Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, grossed over $786 million in 2008. Dial of Destiny carried a budget of $387 million, making it one of the most expensive films of all time. Disney later reported a $130 million loss on the fifth Indiana Jones movie.
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Despite the underperformance, Ford is proud that he donned Indiana Jones’ hat and whip one last time.
“I was really the one who felt there was another story to tell,” Jones explained in the same interview. “When [Indiana] had suffered the consequences of the life that he had to live, I wanted one more chance to pick him up and shake the dust off his ass and stick him out there, bereft of some of his vigor, to see what happened. I’m still happy I made that movie.”.
Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny | Official Trailer.
Dial of Destiny’s director, James Mangold, gave a different reason for the disappointing box office haul, citing a disconnect between an aging hero and the younger audience.
“You have a wonderful, brilliant actor who’s in his eighties,” Mangold told Deadline about Dial of Destiny’s financial debacle. “So I’m making a movie about this guy in his eighties, but his audience on one other level doesn’t want to confront their hero at that age. And I am like, I’m good with it. We made the movie. But the question is, how would anything have made the audience happy with that, other than having to start over again with a new guy?”.
Stream Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny on Disney+.
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Market Impact Analysis
Market Growth Trend
| 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12.0% | 14.4% | 15.2% | 16.8% | 17.8% | 18.3% | 18.5% |
Quarterly Growth Rate
| Q1 2024 | Q2 2024 | Q3 2024 | Q4 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 16.8% | 17.5% | 18.2% | 18.5% |
Market Segments and Growth Drivers
| Segment | Market Share | Growth Rate |
|---|---|---|
| Digital Transformation | 31% | 22.5% |
| IoT Solutions | 24% | 19.8% |
| Blockchain | 13% | 24.9% |
| AR/VR Applications | 18% | 29.5% |
| Other Innovations | 14% | 15.7% |
Technology Maturity Curve
Different technologies within the ecosystem are at varying stages of maturity:
Competitive Landscape Analysis
| Company | Market Share |
|---|---|
| Amazon Web Services | 16.3% |
| Microsoft Azure | 14.7% |
| Google Cloud | 9.8% |
| IBM Digital | 8.5% |
| Salesforce | 7.9% |
Future Outlook and Predictions
The Tech European Weekly landscape is evolving rapidly, driven by technological advancements, changing threat vectors, and shifting business requirements. Based on current trends and expert analyses, we can anticipate several significant developments across different time horizons:
Year-by-Year Technology Evolution
Based on current trajectory and expert analyses, we can project the following development timeline:
Technology Maturity Curve
Different technologies within the ecosystem are at varying stages of maturity, influencing adoption timelines and investment priorities:
Innovation Trigger
- Generative AI for specialized domains
- Blockchain for supply chain verification
Peak of Inflated Expectations
- Digital twins for business processes
- Quantum-resistant cryptography
Trough of Disillusionment
- Consumer AR/VR applications
- General-purpose blockchain
Slope of Enlightenment
- AI-driven analytics
- Edge computing
Plateau of Productivity
- Cloud infrastructure
- Mobile applications
Technology Evolution Timeline
- Technology adoption accelerating across industries
- digital transformation initiatives becoming mainstream
- Significant transformation of business processes through advanced technologies
- new digital business models emerging
- Fundamental shifts in how technology integrates with business and society
- emergence of new technology paradigms
Expert Perspectives
Leading experts in the digital innovation sector provide diverse perspectives on how the landscape will evolve over the coming years:
"Technology transformation will continue to accelerate, creating both challenges and opportunities."
— Industry Expert
"Organizations must balance innovation with practical implementation to achieve meaningful results."
— Technology Analyst
"The most successful adopters will focus on business outcomes rather than technology for its own sake."
— Research Director
Areas of Expert Consensus
- Acceleration of Innovation: The pace of technological evolution will continue to increase
- Practical Integration: Focus will shift from proof-of-concept to operational deployment
- Human-Technology Partnership: Most effective implementations will optimize human-machine collaboration
- Regulatory Influence: Regulatory frameworks will increasingly shape technology development
Short-Term Outlook (1-2 Years)
In the immediate future, organizations will focus on implementing and optimizing currently available technologies to address pressing digital innovation challenges:
- Technology adoption accelerating across industries
- digital transformation initiatives becoming mainstream
These developments will be characterized by incremental improvements to existing frameworks rather than revolutionary changes, with emphasis on practical deployment and measurable outcomes.
Mid-Term Outlook (3-5 Years)
As technologies mature and organizations adapt, more substantial transformations will emerge in how security is approached and implemented:
- Significant transformation of business processes through advanced technologies
- new digital business models emerging
This period will see significant changes in security architecture and operational models, with increasing automation and integration between previously siloed security functions. Organizations will shift from reactive to proactive security postures.
Long-Term Outlook (5+ Years)
Looking further ahead, more fundamental shifts will reshape how cybersecurity is conceptualized and implemented across digital ecosystems:
- Fundamental shifts in how technology integrates with business and society
- emergence of new technology paradigms
These long-term developments will likely require significant technical breakthroughs, new regulatory frameworks, and evolution in how organizations approach security as a fundamental business function rather than a technical discipline.
Key Risk Factors and Uncertainties
Several critical factors could significantly impact the trajectory of digital innovation evolution:
Organizations should monitor these factors closely and develop contingency strategies to mitigate potential negative impacts on technology implementation timelines.
Alternative Future Scenarios
The evolution of technology can follow different paths depending on various factors including regulatory developments, investment trends, technological breakthroughs, and market adoption. We analyze three potential scenarios:
Optimistic Scenario
Rapid adoption of advanced technologies with significant business impact
Key Drivers: Supportive regulatory environment, significant research breakthroughs, strong market incentives, and rapid user adoption.
Probability: 25-30%
Base Case Scenario
Measured implementation with incremental improvements
Key Drivers: Balanced regulatory approach, steady technological progress, and selective implementation based on clear ROI.
Probability: 50-60%
Conservative Scenario
Technical and organizational barriers limiting effective adoption
Key Drivers: Restrictive regulations, technical limitations, implementation challenges, and risk-averse organizational cultures.
Probability: 15-20%
Scenario Comparison Matrix
| Factor | Optimistic | Base Case | Conservative |
|---|---|---|---|
| Implementation Timeline | Accelerated | Steady | Delayed |
| Market Adoption | Widespread | Selective | Limited |
| Technology Evolution | Rapid | Progressive | Incremental |
| Regulatory Environment | Supportive | Balanced | Restrictive |
| Business Impact | Transformative | Significant | Modest |
Transformational Impact
Technology becoming increasingly embedded in all aspects of business operations. This evolution will necessitate significant changes in organizational structures, talent development, and strategic planning processes.
The convergence of multiple technological trends—including artificial intelligence, quantum computing, and ubiquitous connectivity—will create both unprecedented security challenges and innovative defensive capabilities.
Implementation Challenges
Technical complexity and organizational readiness remain key challenges. Organizations will need to develop comprehensive change management strategies to successfully navigate these transitions.
Regulatory uncertainty, particularly around emerging technologies like AI in security applications, will require flexible security architectures that can adapt to evolving compliance requirements.
Key Innovations to Watch
Artificial intelligence, distributed systems, and automation technologies leading innovation. Organizations should monitor these developments closely to maintain competitive advantages and effective security postures.
Strategic investments in research partnerships, technology pilots, and talent development will position forward-thinking organizations to leverage these innovations early in their development cycle.
Technical Glossary
Key technical terms and definitions to help understand the technologies discussed in this article.
Understanding the following technical concepts is essential for grasping the full implications of the security threats and defensive measures discussed in this article. These definitions provide context for both technical and non-technical readers.
IoT intermediate
platform intermediate
SaaS intermediate
fintech intermediate
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