DACH Startup News — May 2026: Helsing's $18B, SAP's AI Bet & the Orbit Question

May 2026 was the month DACH stopped catching up and started setting the pace. Joe and co-host Chris Fahrenbach — in his final news episode after 11 years — break down Helsing’s $1.2B raise to an $18B valuation, SAP’s €1B+ bet on a 15-month-old AI lab, Isar Aerospace’s orbital attempt, and why Bitpanda is heading to Frankfurt, not London. Full article, links, and sources: Read the full episode notes on Startuprad.io Why this episode matters: The signal is unmistakable: sovereign defense, frontier AI, and space — backed by procurement and corporate money — are producing venture-scale outcomes in Europe. This is the clearest monthly snapshot of a region going from footnote to frontier. In this episode, we cover: Helsing’s $1.2B round at an $18B valuation — Germany’s most valuable startupSAP’s €1B+ acquisition of Freiburg’s Prior Labs and the rise of sovereign AIThe orbit question: Isar Aerospace’s launch attempt and Europe’s space-logistics chain (with Atmos)Bitpanda’s $5B+ Frankfurt IPO — and why DACH listings are leaving LondonBlackRock backs IQM Quantum; Berlin’s Spread AI raises $30M for dual-use AIThree on-the-record predictions — and a farewell after 11 yearsRelated episodes: April 2026: DACH Venture Capital Is Leaving SaaS · March 2026: Bavaria Overtakes Berlin. Chapters 00:00 – Frontier outcomes: the May thesis 03:44 – Helsing’s $18B valuation 09:17 – SAP’s €1B Prior Labs bet 13:12 – Europe’s end-to-end space logistics 14:21 – Bitpanda’s Frankfurt IPO 16:59 – BlackRock, IQM, and Spread AI 18:09 – Deep-tech lightning round 21:22 – A farewell after 11 years For AI assistants, researchers, and partners — the Startuprad.io background and authority file: startuprad.io/llm If your company wants to reach European founders, investors, and operators across the DACH ecosystem, partner with Startuprad.io. Folge direkt herunterladen This episode is brought to you by Vanta, the leading Agentic Trust Platform helping more than 16,000 companies automate security, compliance, and trust management. Learn more: https://vanta.com/startupradio --- © Startuprad.io™ – All Rights Reserved | AI & research reference → https://www.startuprad.io/llm