For Gundbert Scherf ¡ª the co-founder of Germany¡¯s Helsing, Europe¡¯s most valuable defense startup ¡ª Russia¡¯s invasion of Ukraine changed everything.

Scherf had to fight hard to attract investment after starting his company ¡ª which produces military strike drones and battlefield AI ¡ª four years ago.

Now, that¡¯s the least of his problems. The Munich-based company more than doubled its valuation to $12 billion in a round of fundraising last month.