Defence Tech: Project Q receives 7.5 million euros in seed funding

The financing round was led by Berlin-based early-stage investor Project A. The VC is increasingly focusing on defense tech and also holds stakes in ARX Robotics and Quantum Systems.

Munich-based startup Project Q has raised €7.5 million in a seed funding round. The round was led by Berlin-based VC Project A , which is increasingly focusing on strategically relevant technologies such as military and defense tech. Also participating are the deep-tech-focused Expeditions Fund and Superangel, an early-stage investor from Estonia and co-founder of the defense fund Archangel.

Project Q is developing an open, AI-based sensor system that will connect existing military and civilian infrastructures to provide precise situational awareness in real time. It is based on the proprietary "Internet of Defense" (IoD) approach—a concept that aims to harness civilian technologies for security-critical missions.

The core is the Q-OSP platform, which connects sensors, data streams and existing systems across domains.

The goal is to create an intelligent, scalable system that is faster, more interoperable, and more cost-effective than previous approaches. "What Leonard and his team are developing at Q is a true game changer," says Uwe Horstmann, General Partner at Project A. "This is precisely the kind of deep tech that transforms complexity into actionability."

This is the first official funding round for Project Q. The capital will primarily be used to further develop the Q-OSP (Open Sensor Platform), expand the team, and conduct initial pilot projects with European security and defense authorities .

Leonard Wessendorff and Frank Christian Sprengel founded Project Q in 2024. Wessendorf completed his first state law examination in Münster and then worked at the management consultancy Kekst. After his consulting career, he moved to the defense and security electronics manufacturer Hensoldt as Public Affairs Manager.

For the past four years, he worked at the geopolitical strategy consultancy Agora Strategy. Sprengel, who studied political science and sociology, worked for seven years at the management consultancy Repuco before moving into public sector consulting. He has spent the past two years at msg as Head of Digitalization for the Armed Forces, Defence Consulting .

Project Q is headquartered in Munich and has another office in Berlin, which is headed by Wessendorff.

With the war in Ukraine , attitudes toward defense technology have also changed in Europe. Not only in the US, but also here in Germany, venture capitalists are venturing into a previously difficult-to-access market.

Project A partner Horstmann is no stranger to this: with the defense tech studio 11x and investments in companies such as ARX Robotics and Quantum Systems, he was an early adopter of this development.

At the same time, Superangel is a prominent player in this new defense VC ecosystem: The co-founder of the new fund Archangel, which focuses specifically on defense tech in Europe, sees Project Q as a key technology for a more modern security architecture.

In the past, many startups have shied away from defense-related topics for image reasons. But that seems to be changing. Dual-use is now attracting investors.