21strategies: AI Decision Support and European Defense Autonomy
In an era when strategic decisions must be made faster and under greater uncertainty than ever, one European deep-tech startup is carving out a unique niche. Munich-based 21strategies has quietly emerged as a pioneer in “third wave” artificial intelligence, building an Enterprise AI platform that can tackle high-stakes decision-making from financial markets to the battlefield. Founded in 2020 in Germany, the company bridges civilian and defense realms with its proprietary decision-support algorithms. Its technology has already attracted serious attention: a leading German defense electronics firm took an early stake, and the German military is investing in a virtual battlefield twin powered by 21strategies’ AI. For European defense planners seeking technological sovereignty, 21strategies offers a glimpse into an autonomous future – one where critical decisions and simulations can be run on European-built AI, free from extra-European black boxes. The following analysis explores how 21strategies aligns with Europe’s strategic autonomy ambitions and NATO’s innovation drive, and why its fusion of academic rigor and real-world AI might be a game-changer for Europe’s defense tech base.