Finnish AI firm Verda secures €100m for global cloud push

A wave of Nordic AI startups is accelerating expansion with fresh capital. Helsinki-based Verda, previously known as DataCrunch, has closed a €100 million funding round to scale its artificial intelligence cloud infrastructure and push into new markets. The round combines equity led by Lifeline Ventures with backing from byFounders, Tesi, Varma, and additional investors, plus debt financing from a group of Nordic banks. The company will use the funds to expand its AI cloud services and hire over 100 people by the end of the year. Verda’s infrastructure supports companies running large language models and other AI workloads, positioning it as a key player in Europe’s growing AI ecosystem. The funding round reflects a broader trend among Nordic tech firms raising capital to compete with U.S. and Asian rivals. Nordic AI startups have secured record investments in recent quarters, driven by demand for sovereign cloud solutions and data sovereignty requirements. Verda was founded in 2018 and rebranded last year. It operates data centers in Finland and Sweden, providing high-performance computing for AI training and inference. The company’s clients include research institutions and enterprises in Europe and North America. Source: eu-startups.com