Today, DIGITALEUROPE unveiled the shortlisted companies competing for the 2025 Future Unicorn Award, which showcases Europe’s most promising tech firms every year.

For the first time ever, the 15 shortlisted businesses are split into two categories: future unicorn, recognising their growth potential to become Europe’s next tech unicorn, and dual-use technology, distinguishing the use of cutting-edge technologies for both civilian and military applications. 

The 2025 contenders come from 11 different European countries and are already at the forefront of technologies like AI, quantum computing, green tech, health tech, or cybersecurity. They are also leading the way in digital innovations for dual use: from drones and robotics to machine learning and bionics. 

Cecilia Bonefeld-Dahl, Director-General of DIGITALEUROPE, said: 

“Today, only 14% of the world’s unicorns are from Europe. This is far from enough, especially at a time when Europe seeks to boost its economic and security resilience in an increasingly tense geopolitical context.    

Europe’s competitiveness lies in its capacity to champion and empower its innovators. Our 2025 Future Unicorn Award nominees are a testament to Europe’s potential to reclaim its leadership on a global scale and win the tech race. From digital health and cybersecurity solutions to green tech and defense tech, our 2025 future unicorn cohort stands out with solutions needed to solve the most burning challenges Europe is facing. From healthcare shortages to climate change, cyber threats, and modern warfare.   

This year, I am particularly excited to be adding a new category to our award: dual-use technologies. These are crucial for Europe’s competitiveness and security, and it’s about time we recognised the immense untapped potential and the great work being done by European companies on this front. It’s no surprise that we have 4 shortlisted companies from Ukraine; we have so much to learn from them to protect Europe through digital technologies.   

Europe’s greatest asset is its own innovators. But to keep them here, they need the right business conditions to scale up. Our 3-step gameplan: cut, simplify, incentivise offers concrete ideas on how to get there.”   

The 15 contenders for the 2025 Future Unicorn Award  

Future Unicorn Award category

• CAPRAROBOTICS from Denmark: creates customizable mobile robots for inspection, logistics, and maintenance, with indoor and outdoor capabilities. 

• HEVI AI from Turkey: uses AI to make medical imaging faster, cheaper, and more accurate. 

• Klearcom from Ireland: provides global Voice and IVR (Interactive Voice Response) testing for seamless customer communication and call path optimization (detects and fixes call issues before they impact customers). 

• Matteco from Spain: develops next-gen catalysts and electrodes for green hydrogen production, revolutionizing electrolysis technology (makes green hydrogen production cheaper and cleaner). 

• PACTUM AI from Estonia: AI-powered negotiation platform automating commercial agreements for global companies at scale (it negotiates on your behalf, faster and better). 

• Picus Security from Turkey: pioneers in Breach and Attack Simulation (BAS), helping organizations improve cybersecurity through validation and mitigation tools (its tools test and fix their cybersecurity before threats hit). 

• Scaleout Systems from Sweden: develops AI models that enable secure, collaborative intelligence from cloud to edge, catering to regulated industries.
• Turbine Simulated Cell Technologies from Hungary: develops software to simulate patient biology. Their platform allows pharmaceutical companies to conduct virtual experiments and predict how patients will respond to therapies before actual clinical testing. 

  Dual-use technologies category 

• SWARMER from Ukraine: focuses on making UAVs (drones) work together smarter and more safely with less human risk, using collaborative autonomy. They aim to set new standards for autonomous drone teaming, improving capabilities while maintaining ethical standards. 

• UADAMAGE from Ukraine: uses AI and satellite images to assess building damage after wars or natural disasters, generating detailed maps of destruction and building heights. 

• QUANTUM SYSTEMS from Germany: creates advanced drones with long endurance and multi-sensor capabilities, serving both defense and commercial sectors. 

• ROBONEERS from Ukraine: designs unmanned ground vehicles, remote weapon stations, and tactical awareness systems to enhance battlefield safety and capabilities.  

• ORQA from Croatia: builds cutting-edge drone technologies to improve first-person-view (FPV) systems, enhancing the precision and usability of remote operations for defense. 

• Esper Bionics from Ukraine: develops robotic prosthetics and control systems for human augmentation, potentially advancing exoskeletons and human-machine integration for defense applications. 

• Aerospacelab from Belgium: designs cost-efficient satellites for tailored missions, offering rapid deployment and reliable space-based intelligence, vital for defense and security needs. 

About the Future Unicorn Award  

The Future Unicorn Award is a collaboration between the 41 national trade associations affiliated with DIGITALEUROPE. Participants must be nominated by these associations and be European tech companies in the scale-up phase, having grown by over 20% per year for at least three years 

The winner will be announced by Ekaterina Zaharieva, European Commissioner for Startups, Research and Innovation, at DIGITALEUROPE’s flagship annual conference Masters of Digital in Brussels, on 19-20 February. 

• Find out more about the award and how the winner is chosen here  

• Find out more about Masters of Digital, the conference themes, and how to register at mastersofdigital.org