Dream, an artificial intelligence and cyber defense company focused on sovereign AI, has raised $260 million in a funding round at a $3 billion valuation as it accelerates its intercontinental expansion plans.
The latest funding, which brings Dream’s total funding to $412 million, was co-led by U.S. venture capital firm Bicycle Capital and Group 11, with participation from Antler, Bain Capital Ventures, True Arrow Partners and other investors, Dream said in a statement Thursday. The round was the company’s fifth, according to Crunchbase data.
Tel Aviv-based Dream said the new capital would help it deploy sovereign AI and national cyber defense platforms across Europe, the Middle East, Asia and the Americas, but did not say which countries it was considering expanding into.
“Every country has data. Few can protect it. Few can use it. Sovereign AI is the key,” said Shalev Hulio, co-founder and CEO of Dream. “A nation’s future should never depend on technology it does not control.”
Sovereign AI is reshaping the way governments, corporations, and even militaries think about the future of power. The term is increasingly appearing in policy documents, multibillion-dollar infrastructure deals, and national strategies from Washington to Beijing and across the Gulf.
The concept of sovereign AI is at the heart of several technology strategies centered on ensuring that sensitive digital operations such as healthcare, financial systems, defense applications, and government data are governed by domestic law rather than foreign cloud providers.
Sebastian Kurz, president and co-founder of Dream and former Austrian chancellor, said sovereign AI is becoming a fundamental layer of national resilience, competitiveness and security.
“The critical question for governments is no longer whether to use AI, but whether to own it. States that want to control their futures need the ability to operate advanced AI in their interests, under their authority, and on the infrastructure they govern.”
“Countries that build and control their own AI capabilities will be in a better position to protect critical infrastructure, strengthen public services, improve decision-making, and protect national interests.”
