With China leading global drone manufacturing, Hungary’s ABZ Innovation raises €7 million to expand heavy-duty drones

Hungarian drone manufacturer ABZ Innovation has secured €7 million in funding to challenge China's dominance in the global drone market. This investment highlights the growing European focus on developing homegrown technology alternatives, particularly in sectors with strategic importance. ABZ Innovation aims to scale production, enhance product development, and expand into key global markets, offering heavy-duty drones for agricultural and industrial applications. The funding round was led by Vsquared Ventures, with participation from Day One Capital and Assembly Ventures. ABZ Innovation, founded in 2021, focuses on providing robust hardware with high payload capacity and long-term partner support. It operates in over 25 countries. This investment follows other significant funding rounds in the European drone market, including €19.8 million for Voliro in Switzerland and €1.7 million for Fuvex in Spain. This development underscores the EU's push for digital sovereignty and reduced reliance on external suppliers. ABZ Innovation, with its European-made drones, offers supply chain security and data sovereignty advantages. This aligns with broader EU strategies, like the "Choose Europe to Start and Scale" initiative, aimed at closing the gap with global tech leaders. The emphasis is on building competitive, sovereign drone capabilities at scale. ABZ Innovation’s approach to drones is as an end-to-end automation platform for real industrial and agricultural applications. This focus on practical applications and European autonomy positions the company well to compete globally. It is an example of the broader trend of European startups framing their fundraising efforts in terms of reduced reliance on non-European suppliers.