Verda secures $189M from Emergence Capital, hits unicorn status

Verda, the Helsinki‑based AI infrastructure startup that was previously called DataCrunch, announced on 22 September 2026 that it has closed a $189M funding round. The round was led by Emergence Capital. Verda’s offering spans data centres, hardware and cloud infrastructure, positioning it as a full‑stack provider for AI workloads across Europe. The fresh capital pushes the company over the €1 billion valuation threshold, making it Europe’s newest unicorn, and will be used to broaden its AI cloud services as the firm looks to expand its AI cloud business. The announcement highlights the growing appetite for AI‑infrastructure investments in a market where demand for compute resources is rising. By consolidating its services under the Verda brand, the company aims to differentiate itself from pure‑play cloud providers and capitalize on the region’s push for sovereign AI capabilities. The funding round underscores Verda’s rapid ascent from its DataCrunch origins to a leading position in Europe’s AI infrastructure ecosystem.