French defence tech start-up raises seed round

Affordable and integrated defence systems designed for modern battlefields and critical infrastructure protection

A French defence technology start-up has just raised an €8 million seed round.

EGIDE builds scalable defence systems to counter low-cost suicide drones and strike munitions.

It says the new money will accelerate cost-efficient interceptors and Mystique, a hardware-agnostic platform for air, ground and maritime missions.

It also plans to build a top-tier European engineering team.

The round was co-led by Expeditions, Eurazeo and Heartcore Capital, supported by Galion.exe and Kima Ventures.

The thinking is that Europe and its NATO allies must transition from limited, high-cost interceptors to a new generation of adaptable and scalable systems that can counter constantly evolving threats.

EGIDE aims to lead this shift by building affordable and integrated defence systems designed for modern battlefields and critical infrastructure protection.

At the core of the company’s approach is developing a new kind of electrically-propelled interceptor and Mystique, a hardware-agnostic software platform that leverages distributed sensors, AI-driven detection and layered interception systems.

This next generation munition architecture enables reactive iteration to evolving targets and faster integration across different weapon platforms and missions while reducing the cost and complexity associated with traditional defence systems.

Founded in 2025 by former MBDA aerospace and defence engineers Simon Calonne and Florian Audigier, EGIDE was created to address the rapidly growing threat posed by cheap mass-produced drones and strike munitions, which are increasingly challenging traditional defence systems.

Calonne and Audigier bring expertise in advanced defence technologies from their time at MBDA, Europe’s leading missile systems manufacturer. Calonne is an aerospace engineer specialising in Guidance, Navigation and Control (GNC), while Audigier is a pyrotechnical engineer with extensive experience in warhead design.

Calonne said: “Low-cost drones are fundamentally transforming modern warfare. Systems designed to intercept a small number of high-value threats are now being confronted with large volumes of inexpensive and highly adaptable aerial systems.

“At EGIDE we are building a new generation of scalable and affordable defence capabilities designed to meet this challenge. Our ambition is to build a European leader in mass-affordable interceptors capable of protecting forces and critical infrastructure against evolving aerial, sea and ground threats. This funding allows us to accelerate the development of our interceptors and Mystique, and build the team that will help reshape Europe’s defence architecture.”