German Startup News – May 2026: Helsing's $18B, SAP's AI Bet & Isar Aerospace's Orbit Shot

Startup & Tech News from Germany, Austria, and Switzerland by Startuprad.io™ · May 29, 2026 · 23m · transcript

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.

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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…