The NATO Innovation Fund invests in deep tech and dual-use innovations for allied nations.
Portfolio
8
companies
Aquark Technologies
Aquark Technologies builds miniature quantum sensor systems to protect critical infrastructure from navigation interference.
Fractile
Fractile builds high performance artificial intelligence hardware and software for faster and cheaper inference workloads.
Kraken Technology Group
Kraken Technology Group manufactures advanced uncrewed marine vessels for defence and security.
Portal Biotech
Portal Biotech delivers single-molecule protein sequencing technology to transform proteomics and drug discovery.
SatVu
SatVu provides high-resolution thermal imagery from space for defence and security intelligence.
Space Forge
Space Forge pioneers in-orbit manufacturing to produce advanced materials in microgravity.
Ana Bernardo-Gancedo
Senior Associate
Ana brings investment and consulting experience from roles at the NATO Innovation Fund, Amadeus Capital Partners, and OC&C Strategy Consultants. She holds a Ph.D in Biophysical Chemistry from the University of Cambridge.
Kelly Chen
Partner
Chris O'Connor
Partner
Chris brings defence and deep tech investment experience from roles at the NATO Innovation Fund and Harpoon, alongside earlier programme management work at BMNT and AT&T.
Chris O’Connor
Partner
Sander Verbrugge
Partner
Sander is a partner at the NATO Innovation Fund. He previously spent five years at Innovation Industries following several strategy and operations roles at NXP Semiconductors.
LinkedInThe funding round was led by DTCP and values the British maritime defence company at over $1bn.
"Kraken is excited to be partnering with DTCP, leading such a prestigious group of European and international investors. This significant funding round will accelerate Kraken’s global roll-out, enabling the deployment of hardened, reliable, mission-ready capabilities for NATO and its worldwide partners at an unprecedented scale in the maritime domain,"
The proposed funding round is reportedly led in part by Accel with backing from the NATO Innovation Fund and Oxford Science Enterprises.
The British Business Bank contributed £5m to the £30m financing alongside several new and existing backers.
"SatVu has created a unique technology at a time of great demand for defence innovation. They have proved the strategic value of their technology so we are pleased to provide the funding that will help them to scale and win further contracts."
The seed round was led by Extantia with backing from the NATO Innovation Fund, Promus Ventures, and Fund F.
"This investment is a clear signal that Europe intends to lead in sustainable advanced-materials manufacturing. Our technology turns what is currently burned, buried or exported into a reliable, high-quality feedstock stream, strengthening supply chains for primes, OEMs, and government customers. With Extantia and the NATO Innovation Fund behind us, we’re now positioned to scale with urgency."
The financing will be used to expand technical teams and accelerate the commercialisation of its proteomics platform.
"Portal Biotech’s technology offers unprecedented capabilities in protein identification and characterisation, providing unmatched detail on protein structure and modifications at the single-molecule level on accessible desktop instruments that bring this state-of-the-art characterisation to any lab. These powerful advances are essential for accelerating drug discovery and enhancing diagnostic precision, positioning Portal Biotech as the frontrunner in the race to unlock the full potential of protein sequencing."
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