According to Forbes, Europe’s 2025 Midas List highlights a tech scene reaching new heights, led by investors who backed breakout companies early. The deep-tech sector, including AI, quantum, and biotech, is a standout, with a 125% increase since 2017 in European companies submitted for the list. High-growth firms are now emerging from non-core markets like Bucharest and Istanbul. Index Ventures’ Danny Rimer reclaims the top spot, having led Figma’s $1.8 million seed round in 2013; its 2025 IPO likely made Index’s stake worth over $7 billion. Other top investors include Cyberstarts’ Gili Raanan, who backed Wiz before its $32 billion Google acquisition, and Sequoia’s Luciana Lixandru, an early backer of UiPath and Miro. A recent McKinsey report suggests this deep-tech engine could drive up to $1 trillion in economic growth over the next decade.
The Rise Of The Continental Connector
Here’s the thing that really stands out in this list: the top investors aren’t just writing checks. They’re acting as crucial bridges between fragmented ecosystems. Look at Danny Rimer. He’s Geneva-raised, U.S.-educated, and operates from London with a San Francisco office. His portfolio isn’t just “European”—it’s a network connecting Istanbul’s Dream Games to San Francisco’s Figma and Discord’s European user base. Same story with Gili Raanan linking Israeli cybersecurity genius with European commercial scale, or Luciana Lixandru using her Romanian roots to spot UiPath and then building Sequoia’s Arc program to systematize that cross-border scaling. They’re not just funding companies; they’re building the connective tissue that Europe‘s historically siloed markets desperately needed.
Deep Tech Isn’t A Trend, It’s The Baseline
The report makes it clear: deep tech is no longer a niche. It’s the dominant thesis. We’re past the era of copycat e-commerce and food delivery apps. Now, the massive wins—and the investor reputations—are being built on hard tech. Mistral AI, Helsing, Wiz, Celonis, UiPath. These are companies built on proprietary algorithms, advanced materials, and complex infrastructure. The capital required is bigger, the timelines are longer, and the technical risk is higher. But the payoff? It’s creating defensible, global leaders, not just local market winners. This shift explains why a fund like Hummingbird, which hunts in “less obvious markets,” can find a Kraken or an Etched. The next foundational company might be in Belgium or Lithuania, not just in Shoreditch or Station F.
The Capital And Talent Flywheel
So what does this mean for the future? We’re seeing a powerful flywheel kick into gear. Massive exits like Figma and Wiz create a new generation of wealthy founders and early employees. That talent and capital gets recycled back into the ecosystem as angel investors and new founders. Funds like Accel can close a $650 million European fund because their track record with Celonis and Personio proves the model works. And initiatives like General Catalyst’s EU AI Champions Initiative aim to directly funnel that momentum into established industries. The big question is whether Europe can keep this talent from being siphoned off to the U.S. The investors on this list are betting they can, by proving you can build a $75 billion Revolut or a $13 billion Celonis from a London or Munich HQ. Basically, they’re building the proof case in real-time.
Beyond The Obvious Hubs
Perhaps the most encouraging signal is the geographic spread. The article specifically names Bucharest, Istanbul, and Lithuania. This isn’t accidental. The infrastructure of startup building—cloud computing, remote work tools, global online marketing—has democratized creation. You don’t need to be in Silicon Valley, or even Berlin, to start a global AI company. A visionary founder with a deep-tech breakthrough in Romania can connect with a Luciana Lixandru at Sequoia. An engineer in Turkey can build a top-tier gaming studio and get funded by Index. This decentralization is Europe’s secret weapon. It unlocks talent pools and unique perspectives that the saturated, expensive core hubs might miss. The next decade won’t just be about more funding in London. It’ll be about finding the next UiPath in a city most VCs still can’t find on a map.
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