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British AI is on a tear in 2026. 

Just last week 25-year-old whizz-kid James Dacombe raised $220m at more than $1bn valuation for his second venture, Olix, which is building AI chips aiming to be faster and cheaper than industry bigwig Nvidia’s. 

That followed two blockbuster deals in January: a $200m Series E for AI avatar platform Synthesia and a $500m Series D for buzzy voice startup ElevenLabs. 

Now, those deals are set to be trumped by an AI lab set up by former DeepMind scientist David Silver to build “superhuman intelligence”. Silver is reportedly raising $1bn for his new startup Ineffable Intelligence at a $4bn valuation, led by Sequoia.

If Silver hits his lofty target, it would take the total equity funding raised by AI-native startups in the UK to $2.5bn after just 49 days of the year, according to Sifted data. That’s 57% of the $4.4bn they raised across the whole of last year. Sheesh. 

Elsewhere today:

• ‘We have some work to do’: Nasdaq Stockholm’s president on losing Klarna to New York
• ‘Are we the baddies?’ How tech bros became screen villains

P.S. Sifted Summit 2026 tickets go live at 11am today! Join Europe’s leading founders, operators and VCs at our annual shindig to shape the future of European tech. Be in the room this September. Secure your ticket at the lowest possible price.

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👀 Ex-DeepMind scientist David Silver seeks $1bn for ‘superhuman intelligence’ startup, in a deal that could mark Europe’s biggest ever seed round.

🇫🇷 Vizzia, a French startup providing video surveillance technology for local authorities, has raised a €30m Series B.

🤝 ‘We have some work to do’: Nasdaq Stockholm’s president on losing Klarna to New York.

😈 ‘Are we the baddies?’ It’s a long-held assumption that’s gradually evolved to become a worn-out trope unto itself and taken over popular culture: people working in tech are terrible. More and more, writes Sifted’s Éanna Kelly, on-screen villains appear polished with a Silicon Valley sheen — so, he asks, just how do tech folk feel about that?

• This article first appeared in Sifted’s Startup Life newsletter, which looks under the hood of startup culture (and brings you a dose of practical advice on how, or how not, to run a company) every Wednesday. Not signed up yet? You can do that here.

🎓 University dropouts will be the key to European tech success. Europe’s real problem isn’t talent. It’s permission to start early, writes Jack & Jill cofounder Saaras Mehan.

🏛️ Europe is not a museum. It’s a launchpad. (Paid for and produced by London Business School.)

Sifted Predicts: European tech in 2026

Sifted Predicts brings together reporting, funding data and industry insight to forecast the trends, startups and sectors set to define the European tech landscape next year. From breakthroughs in AI and robotics to shifts in biotech, defence and digital infrastructure, we identify the opportunities and challenges that will matter most. 

If you’d like to submit a deal, get in touch. 

Zurich-based Optiml, which develops decision intelligence software for real estate to optimise investment strategies, raised €8m in seed funding. Kompas VC and Planet A Ventures led the round and were joined by investors including BitStone Capital, The Bau Ventures and Innovation Endeavors.

Vitoria-Gasteiz, Spain-based Optimitive, which provides AI-driven real-time optimisation for energy-intensive industrial processes to enhance efficiency, raised €5m in Series A funding from investors including Suma Capital, Cemex Ventures and Titan Cement Group.