🇫🇮 Nokia and NestAI Announce Strategic Partnership and NestAI Raises €100 Million to Accelerate Physical AI Innovation

Nokia and Finnish sovereign investment company Tesi are investing EUR 100 million (approximately USD 108 million and ISK 13.7 billion) in Helsinki-based physical AI lab NestAI as part of a new strategic partnership to develop AI-powered solutions for defense and critical infrastructure.

In a joint announcement from Espoo on 20 November 2025, Nokia and NestAI said the collaboration will focus on “physical AI” – applying advanced AI models to unmanned vehicles, autonomous operations and command-and-control platforms used in logistics, inspection, surveillance, security and defense.

NestAI is described as one of Europe’s fastest growing physical AI labs. The company is building modular platforms that combine sensing, compute and decision-making for mission-critical environments, with an emphasis on interoperability with existing defense and security systems and on deployments that can operate at the edge in demanding conditions.

Under the strategic partnership, Nokia and NestAI plan to jointly develop defense-focused, AI-native solutions that marry Nokia’s experience in secure connectivity, sensing and multimedia with NestAI’s hardware and AI platforms for unmanned systems and data-centric command-and-control. The partners say the goal is to accelerate the introduction of AI capabilities into unmanned systems and modern information and knowledge management used by defense forces and other security actors.

Nokia has recently created a dedicated defense incubation business unit to work with partners in Finland, other NATO countries and Five Eyes markets on AI-enabled, secure communications and sensing. The NestAI partnership is presented as a cornerstone of that effort, aiming to support faster, better informed decisions in complex operational environments.

For NestAI, the EUR 100 million capital injection will finance the expansion of its engineering and research teams, new testbeds and laboratories, and further pilot and production deployments with European defense customers and industrial users. The company positions the round as a step toward building Europe’s leading physical AI lab and strengthening the continent’s technological sovereignty in sensitive dual-use technologies.

Tesi frames its participation as part of a broader strategy to back Finnish companies with potential to become outliers in strategically important sectors, including defense, security and critical infrastructure. The institution highlights NestAI’s combination of technical depth and focus on mission-critical use cases as key reasons for the investment.

NestAI is a Finnish physical AI lab developing AI-native platforms for unmanned vehicles, autonomous operations and command-and-control systems in logistics, inspection, surveillance, security and defense. The company focuses on modular, interoperable solutions designed for mission-critical deployments in demanding environments.