Presenting the State of European Tech Report 2017

For the third year in succession, Atomico is proud to present our the single, most comprehensive data-driven story of European technology today, which we’re launching onstage at State of European Tech report — Slush in Helsinki.

This year is the biggest and deepest look at the European ecosystem we’ve yet undertaken — which is why we have decided to create an accompanying website at www.stateofeuropeantech.com, where you can download a PDF copy of the report or explore the data at your leisure and download specific charts and graphs for your own use.

As in previous years, we’ve been ambitious about the data partners we’ve partnered with: teaming up again with LinkedIn, Stack Overflow, Meetup, Dealroom.co, the London Stock Exchange, Quid, European Startup Initiative, Signal and Invest Europe, and adding new partners including the European Investment Fund, Craft.co, and TokenData. In particular, we’re proud to be supported by both Silicon Valley Bank and Orrick in delivering the research to you.

We’ve also surveyed 3,500 people from across Europe, and interviewed some of the biggest names in European tech, such as Herman Narula, Ilkka Paananen, Robin Klein, Jimmy Wales, Reshma Sohoni and Jeannette zu Fürstenberg.

So what have we found? You’ll have to read the report to find out… That said, some of the main themes which we explore are as follows:

• Evolving Europe: European entrepreneurs are more confident than ever about the ecosystem and its prospects, and geographic diversity is driving significant cross-border investment — but a cautionary note is provided by economic and political uncertainty across the continent
• Talent: Europe’s tech landscape is supported by a strong pipeline of world-class talent, with a growing developer population which is increasingly being tapped by global tech giants; countries are competing to attract the best talent to fuel their local ecosystems, and the battle for talent has never been more heated
• Community: Europe’s tech communities are burgeoning across the continent — it’s now fair to say that every European city is a tech city in 2017, with tech communities becoming more diffuse in more mature markets such as Germany
• Capital Flows: It’s been another record year of investment in European technology, with total capital invested in 2017 set to comfortably exceed 2016’s record levels, with 4x as many unique investors as in 2012 from all around the world
• Deep Tech: European Deep Tech continues to attract high levels of investment, with particular confidence in the continent’s ability to produce significant companies in AI and crypto; Germany and the UK are seen as most likely to lead the way, but there’s strong confidence in the Deep Tech ecosystem across the whole of Europe
• Corporate: There’s broad consensus that a closer relationship between tech and traditional industries will benefit the ecosystem overall, with trillions of dollars of enterprise capital potentially in play; the cash reserves of European non-tech companies suggests possibilities for significant future acquisitions

Overall, we’re seeing a picture of an ecosystem in rude health. This year’s findings reveal the state of European tech in 2017 is the strongest it has ever been. Europe is building a tech ecosystem in its own image, defined by deep tech expertise, incredible geographic diversification, and a uniquely collaborative approach with traditional industry. The solid foundations that have been laid — a huge and deep talent pool, founders with global ambition levels, and a large, growing and increasingly sophisticated investor base — means that Europe marches to its own beat. The question of whether Europe can produce world-class innovation has been put to bed. The question of whether it can produce a $100Bn company has been put to bed. And the probability that the next industry-defining company could come from Europe — and become one of the world’s most valuable companies — has never been higher.

We hope you enjoy exploring the State of European Tech Report 2017 — we can’t wait to see what use you all make of the data to inform your businesses and investments, and we would love to hear your interpretations of our findings.

Now, onto thinking about 2018’s report…