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October 30, 2025

Defence startups 'getting their foot' in the door with Italian primes — but the ecosystem still lags

Local deeptech VCs at Join Capital are cautiously optimistic the Italian defence ecosystem will grow


Anne Sraders

6 min read

The Milan team at Join Capital. Courtesy of Join Capital

Italian primes are increasingly looking to work with defence startups as the country eyes tech focused on European security and sovereignty. 

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Anne Sraders

Anne Sraders is a senior reporter at Sifted, based in Berlin. She covers the VC industry and deeptech startups. She also writes Sifted's weekly VC newsletter Up Round. Follow her on X and LinkedIn

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