Innovative companies have the power to reshape our world—for better or worse. For decades, California’s Silicon Valley has left a permanent mark on the lives of billions. Its influence has long captured the world’s envy, inspiring countless attempts to mirror its success. But now, one European city is quietly positioning itself to leave an even greater imprint on the future.

In “Isar Valley: How Munich Became Europe’s Start-up Capital,” Deutsche Welle wrote on June 4:

It’s like navigating a labyrinth—a journey hundreds of young entrepreneurs across Europe embark on each year in search of opportunity, innovation, funding and success. They’re also looking for the country and city that offers the ideal conditions to launch a business.

For an increasing number, that journey leads to Isar Valley, named after the river that runs through Munich, and which provided the informal nickname for the Bavarian capital’s technology and artificial intelligence (AI) scene, inspired by the Silicon Valley technology hub in California.

As Deutsche Welle noted, for a start-up to succeed, it needs more than just “a strong algorithm.” It also requires a solid business plan, a well-connected network and access to capital—and that’s where Munich’s start-up ecosystem stands out, with the Unternehmertum entrepreneurship center at the Technical University of Munich.

“The tum university in Munich doesn’t just look like a Silicon Valley tech hub, it’s also aspiring to become as successful,” Deutsche Welle wrote. In March 2024, the Financial Times also took note of tum: “The Munich-based lab has ambitions to turn Germany into one of the main centers for early-stage companies” (“UnternehmerTUM Tops Ranking of Europe’s Leading Start-up Hubs”).

Munich’s strength lies in combining the old with the new. The Financial Times commented:

One of the lab’s key strengths, note founders and VCs [venture capitalists], is its sprawling network comprising industrial groups, such as Airbus and bmw, small and medium-sized enterprises, regional and international universities, VCs, and the Bavarian State Ministry of Digital Affairs.

Some of the start-ups that Munich harbors may become world renown in the near future.

On June 11, it was reported that Munich start-up Proxima Fusion concluded the “largest private fusion investment round in Europe” of €130 million (us$149 million). Four of the approximately 45 fusion companies worldwide are based in Germany, three of them in “Germany’s fusion capital” Munich (Handelsbaltt, March 21). “Despite the economic crisis,” Handelsblatt explained, “Proxima, Marvel, Gauss and Focused Energy cannot complain about a lack of investor interest—unlike many others.”

Producing energy through fusion is essentially what the sun does. In just two seconds, the sun releases enough energy to meet humanity’s current global needs for a million years. The prospect of replicating even a fraction of that power on Earth carries world-changing potential.

Overtaking Berlin

Munich may not be on everyone’s radar as a rising start-up hub. Most have been betting on Berlin to take that role.

Former German Economics Minster Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg lamented in 2018 that the German start-up movement “suffers from the fact that the international focus is almost exclusively on Berlin. In fact, the scene is much more diverse; there are also interesting companies in Hamburg, Munich and Cologne. There is a fashionable desire to talk about hubs that can come close to the ideal of Silicon Valley. But in Europe, one could also build on the strength of a networked continent.”

Guttenberg currently resides in Munich and has promoted the start-up sector through personal investments and his consultant company Spitzberg Partners.

While Berlin remains an attractive location for start-ups, in 2024, Bavaria, with its capital Munich, overtook Berlin in start-up fundraising for the first time, according to an analysis by the auditing and consulting firm EY. According to EY partner Thomas Prüver, the pivot is “due to the tech and AI boom—Bavaria is ahead in this area.”

Helsing and Military AI

The German start-up that received the most funding in 2024 was Munich-based software company Helsing, which specializes in artificial intelligence for the defense industry. It was followed by Cologne-based translation service DeepL and Black Semiconductor from Aachen.

In 2023, Helsing became Europe’s first privately owned start-up business in the military, armaments and defense sector to surpass a valuation of $1 billion. The company has produced AI-powered drones for Ukraine and secured some of the German military’s most important innovation projects.

At the end of last year, Helsing unveiled a new strike drone, HX-2, whose core technology has been tested and deployed in Ukraine. The company wrote:

Unveiled in late 2024, HX-2 is an electrically propelled X-wing precision munition with up to 100-kilometer range. Advanced onboard AI enables full resistance to electronic warfare. When operating as part of Helsing’s Altra recce-strike software, multiple HX-2 can assemble into swarms, controlled by single human operators. HX-2 has been designed to be mass-producible and at significantly lower unit cost than conventional systems, thus filling a growing capability gap in modern land warfare.

Drone swarms are potentially more destructive than nuclear bombs and even harder to defend against. Helsing may contribute to a frightening advance in modern warfare.

Unsatisfied with conquering the sky, one of the company’s latest innovations deploys AI-driven drone swarms into the depths beneath the water. The company writes:

SG-1 Fathom redefines subsurface surveillance. Mass manufacturable, hundreds of SG-1s can be deployed at scale to monitor vast underwater areas.

Capable of discreetly patrolling in a swarm or holding position on the seabed, the glider operates at depth and throughout the water column. It is resilient and energy efficient, enabling persistent operation for up to three months.

“Deploying AI to the edge of underwater constellations will illuminate the oceans and deter our adversaries for a strong Europe,” said Helsing cofounder and co-ceo Gundbert Scherf.

Helsing is not the only military start-up from Munich that is accredited with potentially bringing revolutionary change to the battlefield. In February, Fortune highlighted Munich start-up arx Robotics. “Its technology helps convert traditional military equipment like trucks and tanks into unmanned, autonomous vehicles,” Fortune noted. “This allows for safer reconnaissance, logistics and combat in high-risk areas like Ukraine’s front line.”

arx Robotics works closely with another start-up near Munich: Quantum Systems, which manufactures reconnaissance drones. Quantum Systems gained experience in Ukraine developing vertical take-off drones to spy on Russian troop locations.

Another Munich-based start-up is GovRadar, which seeks to solve Germany’s procurement problems, especially for the Bundeswehr, and found a prominent investor in former defense minister and multimillionaire Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg. “In a way, GovRadar is a Check24 or an Amazon for public authorities,” Gründerszene commented. During his time in the military, founder Sascha Soyk helped set up the Bundeswehr Cyber Innovation Hub, which will now test the procurement processes on his start-up.

Guttenberg’s involvement in the start-up sector may be of great relevance in light of Bible prophecy.

Bavaria’s Rise Prophesied?

In the March 2024 Trumpet, editor in chief Gerald Flurry wrote:

Guttenberg is following in the footsteps of Bavarian leaders Edmund Stoiber and Franz Josef Strauss, who harnessed high-tech industry. Strauss and Stoiber helped make Bavaria the high-tech economic powerhouse that it is today. What if Guttenberg enhances this industrial power with artificial intelligence?

“Artificial intelligence is still something Europe could shape,” he noted in a television interview with Puls 4-Talk on July 28, 2019. “We have a well-established industry, which still has to become far more connected to the new technologies. But once this happens, it will develop a totally different field of power than a purely technological or digitalization firm.”

What Strauss and Stoiber started, Guttenberg continues. He has played a key role in helping European start-ups expand internationally (“Ex-Defense Minister Guttenberg Helps Start-ups Cross the Atlantic” Intelligence Online, March 8, 2018).

For many years, Guttenberg has invested much time, energy and money in helping raise Germany’s and Europe’s business profile. He knows the geopolitical implications of rising technology start-ups almost like no other. Given his background as defense minister, he also understands the military ramifications. While the process of AI and other new technologies appear dark, to him they are tools of immense power.

If Guttenberg ever again attains political power, his understanding of key technologies could bring revolutionary change to all of Europe.

Bible prophecy indicates that Europe will get a leader capable of harnessing these emerging powers. “And in the latter time of their kingdom, when the transgressors are come to the full, a king of fierce countenance, and understanding dark sentences, shall stand up” (Daniel 8:23). Mr. Flurry writes:

Most Bible commentaries agree that the prophecy in Daniel 8 refers to Antiochus iv Epiphanes of the Seleucid Empire in the second century b.c. Yet the book of Daniel is only for the “time of the end” (Daniel 12:4, 9). The ancient Antiochus did terrible damage, but he was only a prophetic forerunner of men who would fulfill this prophecy in the end time. …

The main end-time fulfillment of Daniel’s prophecy will occur in Europe. According to prophecy, a leader there will hijack the European unification project and lead a multi-nation alliance into world war! You can read about this in our free book The Holy Roman Empire in Prophecy.

I have believed for many years now that Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg may fulfill this role of the strongman of Europe.

The life of the ancient Antiochus shows that he had an abnormal interest in technology. Polybius’s Histories relates that Antiochus often wandered in the city streets, “holding forth at length and discussing technical matters with the molders and other craftsmen.” The men fulfilling the roles of the modern Antiochus have similar interests in much more modern technologies. …

The expression “dark sentences” comes from the word haidah, which means riddle, difficult, question, parable (Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament). I believe this expression could also mean difficult technology. Gesenius’ Hebrew-Chaldee Lexicon defines “dark sentences” as “twisted, involved, subtlety, … fraud, … enigma.” To many today, AI is such an enigma.

This article provides profound insight into this little understood prophecy and shows how it leads to the very end of mankind’s flawed rule and the return of Jesus Christ. Read “The Unknown Future of Artificial Intelligence” to learn more.