European startups that raised money this week (5 to 9 October 2026)
A virtual cell in Paris, second-life batteries in France, compliant AI for advisors in Copenhagen, harvest early warnings in Bavaria, software testing in Zurich and label-free cell analysis in Ghent: six young European companies that announced funding this week.
Between 5 and 9 October 2026, young European startups raised money for everything from predicting how cells respond to drugs to giving old battery cells a second life. This roundup covers six of them: Rivercell (Paris), VoltR (France), TODAY (Copenhagen), Finches (Bavaria), Klarent (Zurich) and SpectaCell (Ghent), with what they do and what they raised, based on public announcements.
Rivercell: a virtual cell for drug discovery
Rivercell, from Paris, combines its own lab data on how human cells respond to drugs and genetic changes with an AI model of the cell, so researchers can predict results before running costly wet-lab experiments. Founded in 2026 and led by co-founder and CEO Yann Fleureau, it came out of stealth on 7 October 2026 with a 22 million euro seed round led by HV, with HCVC, Alven and Bpifrance Digital Venture. Website: rivercell.ai. Source: EU-Startups.
VoltR: new batteries from used cells
VoltR, from France, recovers lithium battery cells at the end of their first life and builds them into new, eco-designed batteries, with a plant in Verrières-en-Anjou. Founded in 2022 by Maxime Bleskine (CEO), Alban Regnier, François Mallet and Thibaud Maufront, it announced 22 million euro on 7 October 2026: 16 million euro in equity from the SPI 2 fund managed by Bpifrance and from Decathlon PULSE, plus 6 million euro in grants. Website: voltr.tech. Source: EU-Startups.
TODAY: compliant AI for financial and insurance advisors
TODAY, from Copenhagen, makes an AI sales system for financial and insurance advisors: it transcribes client meetings, writes the compliance documentation and offers an AI training simulator. Founded in 2024 by Michael Gackstatter (CEO) and Artem Demchenkov, it announced a 2.8 million euro seed round co-led by High-Tech Gründerfonds and InsurTech Gateway on 8 October 2026. Website: usetoday.io. Source: EU-Startups.
Finches: early warnings for crop sourcing
Finches, from Bavaria, combines field, sourcing, weather and market data to warn food, drink, pharmaceutical and cosmetics companies early about risks in the crops they buy. Founded in 2025 by Catharina van Delden (CEO) and Dr. Stefanie Glenn (CTO), with Alexandra Vázquez Bea joining as co-founder in 2026, it announced a 2 million euro pre-seed round led by High-Tech Gründerfonds, with Vanagon Ventures as co-lead, on 8 October 2026. Website: finches.ai. Source: EU-Startups.
Klarent: software testing you can trust
Klarent, from Zurich and formerly called fore ai, builds AI agents that write software tests, which then run the same way every time, with a human check on top. Founded in 2023 by former Google engineers Asheem Panakkat (CEO) and Momchil Ivanov (CTO), it announced a 7.13 million euro seed round led by Mosaic Ventures, with Moonfire Ventures, on 9 October 2026. Website: klarent.ai. Source: EU-Startups.
SpectaCell: watching single cells without labels
SpectaCell, from Ghent, is building a chip-based imaging platform that tracks how treatments affect individual cells without fluorescent labels, for immunotherapy research and manufacturing quality checks. Founded in 2026 by Tony Montoye (CEO), Mathieu Rabaey, Veronique De Vroey and Jan Van de Velde, it launched on 9 October 2026 with a 6 million euro seed round led by imec.xpand. Website: spectacell.com. Source: EU-Startups.
Quick facts
- Rivercell: Paris, AI virtual cell for drug discovery, 22 million euro seed
- VoltR: France, batteries from second-life cells, 22 million euro (equity and grants)
- TODAY: Copenhagen, compliant AI for financial advisors, 2.8 million euro seed
- Finches: Bavaria, early warnings for crop sourcing, 2 million euro pre-seed
- Klarent: Zurich, AI software testing, 7.13 million euro seed
- SpectaCell: Ghent, label-free cell analysis, 6 million euro seed
More new companies: European startups that raised money the week before, New startups in Paris (2026), New startups in Munich (2026) and New startups in Copenhagen (2026).
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