Proxima Fusion and Quantum Systems sign Japanese partnerships during Chancellor Merz's visit to Tokyo
The Munich fusion company wants Japanese know-how for plasma heating and superconducting tape. The drone maker opened a Tokyo office and signed MoUs with Mitsubishi Chemical and Panasonic.
Two of Germany's best-funded deep tech companies used Chancellor Friedrich Merz's visit to Japan on Wednesday 28 October to sign agreements with Japanese industry. Proxima Fusion said it signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Kyoto Fusioneering, and Tech.eu reports it also signed one with cable and superconductor maker Fujikura.
Drone and defence company Quantum Systems said it has established a Japanese subsidiary, Quantum Systems Japan G.K., with an office in Tokyo, and signed MoUs with Mitsubishi Chemical and Panasonic. None of the companies disclosed financial terms, and MoUs set out intentions rather than binding orders.
Proxima Fusion: building a supply chain
Proxima Fusion is a Munich-based spin-out from the Max Planck Institute for Plasma Physics that is developing stellarator fusion power plants. Under its MoU with Kyoto Fusioneering, the two companies will continue and expand joint work on next-generation gyrotrons, which generate the high-power microwaves that heat plasma, and on fuel cycle technologies. Kyoto Fusioneering will also contribute to fusion projects in Germany, including the Fusion Hubs initiative of the Federal Ministry of Research, Technology and Space (BMFTR), Proxima said.
The agreement with Fujikura is about materials. According to Tech.eu, Proxima will assess the technical, commercial and economic feasibility of a supply chain for high-temperature superconducting (HTS) tape in Lower Saxony, including potential local manufacturing. Proxima expects to need about 20,000 kilometres of HTS tape for its Alpha demonstrator and about 40,000 kilometres for each planned Stellaris power plant.
"The global race to fusion will be won in factories and supply chains," Proxima co-founder and chief executive Francesco Sciortino said in the company's statement. Alpha is planned for the early 2030s, with Stellaris, Proxima's first commercial plant, to follow. The company employs about 200 people and says its Alpha Alliance includes more than 50 industrial partners.
Quantum Systems: a foothold in Japan
Quantum Systems, based near Munich, builds unmanned systems for defence, security and civil customers. The company said its new Japanese subsidiary will bring it closer to Japanese customers and that the MoUs with Mitsubishi Chemical and Panasonic are intended to deepen industrial cooperation, combining Japanese manufacturing with its own experience in building unmanned systems. It describes itself as a European defence "neo-prime" with more than 2,000 employees across eight countries.
"Japan has understood where defence is heading: unmanned systems, rapid innovation and the industrial capacity to deliver at scale," co-CEO Sven Kruck said in the statement. Chief revenue officer Martin Karkour said the challenge for Japan is no longer buying individual platforms but making different systems work together across domains, which is what the company's MOSAIC UXS software is built for.
Part of a wider push
The deals were part of a broader set of agreements around Merz's trip. EU-Startups cites the Jiji news agency as reporting that around 33 MoUs were expected to be signed during the visit, and asks whether other European startups should follow the German companies to Japan. We could not independently confirm that number.
What it means for founders and investors
For deep tech founders, the message is that scaling is now as much about supply chains as about science. Fusion needs components, such as HTS tape and gyrotrons, that are not yet produced at industrial volume anywhere. By tying itself to Japanese suppliers early, Proxima is trying to lower the risk that a shortage of parts delays its machines.
For defence tech, Japan is a growing market with rising budgets and a strong manufacturing base. A local entity and partnerships with large Japanese groups are often needed to win public contracts there, so Quantum Systems' move follows a familiar pattern for companies that want to sell to governments abroad.
Investors should keep in mind that MoUs are early steps. The real test will be binding contracts, factory investments and orders. Still, the visit shows how government trips can open doors for startups. More on European defence and deep tech is on our Startups page, including Helsing's new interceptors and Beyond Vision's funding for drone production.
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