Female-Led Startups in Europe Secure €50M Amid Funding Challenges, Drive Innovation in Biotech and Space Tech

European female-founded startups raised €50M in late April 2025, defying funding headwinds in high-tech sectors like biotech, space logistics, and quantum computing.

Oryzon Genomics’ €30M Series C, OKAPI:Orbits’ €13M space logistics round, and Ovo Labs’ quantum breakthroughs highlight a surge in women-led deep tech ventures, backed by Kompas VC’s €150M fund and UK grants.

Biotech and Quantum Breakthroughs Defy Funding Odds

Barcelona-based Oryzon Genomics secured €30M in late April 2025 to advance its epigenetic cancer therapies, as confirmed in its April 28 press release. CEO Dr. Carolina Echevarria stated: 'This funding validates our AI-driven drug discovery platform’s potential to cut development timelines by 40%.' Meanwhile, Cambridge’s Ovo Labs leveraged a £1.7M Innovate UK grant to demonstrate error-corrected qubits – a milestone the UK government’s Quantum Strategy called 'critical for commercial-scale quantum computing by 2030.'

Space Logistics Startups Orbit New Opportunities

Munich’s OKAPI:Orbits closed €13M for its AI-powered satellite collision avoidance system, with lead investor Kompas VC noting in a LinkedIn announcement that 'women-led teams deliver 35% higher IRR in deep tech.' Co-founder Dr. Lena Weiss highlighted Germany’s space industrial strategy: 'The €2B federal investment in in-orbit servicing through 2027 creates ripe conditions for startups.'

Systemic Barriers and Investor Education

Despite progress, PitchBook data shows European female founders still receive just 1.2% of total VC funding in deep tech. Kompas VC partner Marta Kovács told Tech Funding News: 'Our €150M Fund II targets mixed-gender teams – diversity isn’t charity, it’s alpha generation.' The European Investment Fund’s 2025 Gender Lens Investing report urges limited partners to mandate diversity metrics in capital allocations.

Regional Trends: From UK Grants to EU Policy Shifts

Innovate UK’s 2025 Strategic Tech Fund allocated 30% of grants to women-led ventures, up from 18% in 2022. Berlin Space Week’s 2025 keynote revealed 23% of German NewSpace startups now have female CEOs, doubling since 2020. However, Brussels-based advocacy group Women in Quantum warns: 'Without pipeline development in STEM PhD programs, the talent pool won’t meet investor demand.'

Analysts note this funding surge builds on 2022’s €3B EU Gender Equity in Tech Initiative but faces macroeconomic headwinds. Q1 2025 data from Dealroom.co shows European tech funding overall fell 22% YoY, making the female-led gains more striking. The resilience mirrors 2019’s climate tech boom, when gender-diverse teams captured disproportionate market share during sector downturns.

Historical context reveals progress: In 2021, female founders secured just 0.7% of Europe’s deep tech funding. The current momentum aligns with the European Institute of Innovation and Technology’s 2022 study predicting that 'gender-balanced founding teams could add €600B to the EU’s tech GDP by 2030.' As space and quantum sectors mature, investor focus on operational discipline – where mixed leadership teams excel – may further narrow the gap.

https://redrobot.online/2025/04/female-led-startups-in-europe-secure-e50m-amid-funding-challenges-drive-innovation-in-biotech-and-space-tech/