Miriam Prieto - Expansión
Spain's Multiverse Computing has made it into CB Insights' global ranking of the 100 emerging companies with the most potential, which identifies the projects set to lay the foundations for the next wave of innovation. Europe does not want to be a mere spectator in the race to lead in artificial intelligence, led by the United States and China.
Beyond France's Mistral, several European start-ups are beginning to make their way onto the global map. The AI 100 report by CB Insights, which selects the most promising artificial intelligence companies of 2025, highlights twenty-three European projects for their innovation and potential in areas such as defense, infrastructure or security. Among them is the Spanish company Multiverse Computing, specialized in the development of quantum-inspired algorithms. In the previous edition of the ranking, the Valencian company Argilla, which has a platform for improving the quality of artificial intelligence data, was selected. This report does not focus on already consolidated start-ups, but seeks to identify “the companies that are building the foundations of the next wave of innovation in artificial intelligence”, explains Adya Pandey, an analyst at CB Insights, who points out that they have analyzed more than 17,000 companies around the world for the release of the report.
THE RISE OF MULTIVERSE
Multiverse Computing is the only Spanish company to be included in a ranking that, in its European x-ray, is dominated by the United Kingdom, with a dozen companies included in this year's list. Stephanie Dalwin, an analyst at CBInsights, highlights the momentum that France is gaining as an innovation hub: “It is an emerging region on the global scene,” she says, pointing out the dominance of the United States in the global list, with 66 companies selected. France has placed five start-ups, followed by Germany, with four.
Multiverse Computing, based in San Sebastian, develops advanced quantum algorithms. This startup, founded in 2019 by Enrique Lizaso, SamMugel and Román Orús, has created software based on quantum computing principles that makes it possible to optimize large artificial intelligence models by creating smaller and more efficient versions. Their technology makes it possible to reduce artificial intelligence models to 10% of their original size, thus maintaining the same level of performance but using fewer resources. This reduces energy consumption and computational requirements. It also facilitates their local use in devices such as cell phones and even virtual reality glasses or household appliances, capable of operating in offline mode.
Last February, the Spanish government announced an investment of 67 million through Sepi digital in the company, which it sees as a candidate to become a unicorn, as unlisted companies with a valuation of more than 1 billion dollars are known. According to data collected by CB Insights, the valuation of the Spanish start-up amounts to $108 million.
FRENCH POLE
The big European star of the previous edition of the ranking was Mistral, the French generative artificial intelligence laboratory. Founded in 2023, this start-up has succeeded in record time in becoming a world leader in language modeling. The company, already valued at nearly 6 billion euros, has raised 1 billion to date.This year, France has another unicorn on the CB Insights list: Poolside.This company, founded two years ago, has captured the market's attention with its artificial intelligence-assisted programming tools. With a valuation of $3 billion after raising $500 million last fall, Poolside has established itself as one of the most ambitious bets on the European continent. Another project of the Gallic hub is Zama, which develops solutions focused on privacy and data protection through artificial intelligence, with a valuation of 400 million euros.
The expansion of the French artificial intelligence ecosystem is part of a national strategy promoted by Emmanuel Macron. In February, the French president announced a 109 billion euro plan to turn the country into a global benchmark in artificial intelligence, with investments mainly in data centers led by private capital.
DEFENSE
Europe is also strengthening its strategic commitment in sensitive sectors such as defense. In fact, the most valuable company in this year's global ranking is the German defense technology startup Helsing, valued at $5.37 billion. Founded in 2021, it has risen rapidly thanks to the application of artificial intelligence for defense and security applications. Based in Munich, the company raised €450 million last summer in a round led by General Catalyst.In the United Kingdom, Wayve, which specializes in autonomous driving based on machine learning, stands out. This company led a historic round in Europe in 2024, raising more than one billion, at an undisclosed valuation, in an operation led by SoftBank, in which investors such as Nvidia and Microsoft participated.
Other emerging projects show the diversity of artificial intelligence applications on the European continent. Norway's 1X develops humanoids for industrial environments; the UK's Aquan applies this technology to create agents for the financial sector; France's Bioptimus works in the life sciences, while Sweden's Embedl develops energy efficiency solutions.
TRENDS
This year's report reflects some of the major global trends in artificial intelligence. For example, the advance of autonomous agents that complete tasks on behalf of the user. “Although many of them currently have human intervention, we expect a move towards solutions with greater autonomy,” explains Dalwin. This analyst also points to the rise of physical artificial intelligence integrated into robots and vehicles, the growth of companies with vertical solutions applied to sectors such as health, finance or defense, as well as opportunities for projects related to the security and governance of artificial intelligence, derived from its growing adoption.
IN FIGURES
The CB Insights ranking looks for projects with potential and not yet consolidated. Last year's winners attracted $80 billion in funding after their selection.
In this year's edition, 23 European companies have been selected, with the United Kingdom dominating the list with ten companies, followed by France with five start-ups and Germany with four. There is one Spanish company, Multiverse Computing.
Europe has two unicorns in the ranking: Helsing ($5.37 billion) and Poolside ($4.5 billion). The other seven that appear in the report are American.
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