Something interesting is happening across the pond. The UK and Germany are suddenly churning out AI defense startups hitting billion-dollar valuations—and it's not just one or two unicorns anymore.

We're seeing a completely different investment climate compared to 18 months ago. Back then? Crickets. Now? Capital is flooding into European AI defense tech like there's no tomorrow. Think autonomous systems, predictive threat analysis, surveillance infrastructure built on machine learning.

What changed? Geopolitical tensions, obviously. But also—and this matters—Europe finally woke up to the fact that relying on external tech for national security is, well, idiotic. Sovereignty became the buzzword. Suddenly governments are writing checks, and VCs are following the money trail.

The Germany side is particularly wild. Startups there are getting valuations that would've been laughable three years ago. We're talking companies with 50 employees suddenly worth over a billion. The UK scene is similar but with more focus on offensive cyber capabilities wrapped in defensive language (classic British understatement).

Here's what nobody's talking about though: the talent. Where are these companies finding AI engineers willing to work on defense contracts? Turns out, quite a few crypto-native developers are making the switch. The pay is better, the tech challenges are genuinely complex, and let's be honest—after the 2022 meltdown, defense tech started looking stable.

From an investment perspective, this wave mirrors early DeFi summer energy but with government backing instead of retail mania. Will it last? Probably longer than most crypto hype cycles, given the regulatory tailwinds and actual government procurement budgets involved.

Anyone else tracking this crossover between AI defense and crypto talent migration? Feels like an under-discussed trend.