Defence start-up Helsing secures €600m in new investment round

German defence start-up Helsing has raised €600 million ($693 million) in its latest investment round, led by Spotify founder Daniel Ek, the firm said on Tuesday.

The latest investment round has raised Helsing's value to $12 billion, the Financial Times reported on Tuesday, citing people familiar with the matter.

This positions the start-up among the top five private tech companies in Europe, the FT added.

The investment round was lead by Prima Materia, an investment company founded by Ek and Spotify investor Shakil Khan, which doubled its investment in the firm.

Other investors included Lightspeed Ventures, Accel, Plural, General Catalyst and SAAB, Helsing said in a statement.

The Munich-based defence start-up, which specialises in AI software and is moving to produce its own drones, aircraft and submarines, hopes to benefit from governments ramping up defence spending amid rising geopolitical tensions.

(Reporting by Isabel Demetz, editing by Rachel More)