QuantumDiamonds, a Munich-based semiconductor equipment company developing quantum-based chip inspection technology, announced it has raised €91 million to expand production of its next-generation semiconductor inspection systems. The financing includes a €15 million equity round led by World Fund and €76 million in non-dilutive funding approved under the European Chips Act.
The non-dilutive funding is being provided jointly by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy and the Free State of Bavaria. Along with World Fund, the equity round included participation from Bayern Kapital and existing investors IQ Capital, Earlybird, First Momentum, UnternehmerTUM, Creator Fund, Onsight Ventures, and several angel investors.
Founded in 2022 as a spin-out from the Technical University of Munich by CEO Kevin Berghoff and CTO Dr. Fleming Bruckmaier, QuantumDiamonds is developing inspection systems designed to address one of the semiconductor industry’s biggest manufacturing challenges: detecting hidden defects in increasingly complex 3D chip architectures. The company currently employs about 70 people and plans to more than double its engineering workforce over the next year.
The company uses quantum sensing technology based on atomic-scale defects in synthetic diamonds to detect magnetic fields with extreme precision. This enables its flagship QDm.1 system to perform non-destructive 3D current imaging at the nanoscale, allowing chipmakers to identify the exact location and depth of defects without damaging wafers. By improving defect detection, the technology aims to increase manufacturing yields, where even a one-percentage-point improvement can generate millions of dollars in additional weekly revenue for high-volume semiconductor production.
QuantumDiamonds said the new funding will support delivery of laboratory systems to leading semiconductor manufacturers while accelerating development of wafer-level inspection capabilities for high-throughput fabrication facilities.
The company has also expanded internationally over the past several months. In March 2026, QuantumDiamonds established its Asian headquarters in Taiwan and appointed semiconductor industry veteran Peter Lemmens as Managing Director Asia. The following month, the company installed its first U.S. system at Eurofins EAG Laboratories in Sunnyvale, California, and completed its first deployment in Asia at Integrated Service Technology (iST) in Hsinchu, Taiwan.
QuantumDiamonds is also preparing to open the first operational section of its €152 million manufacturing facility in Munich later this year. The site will produce both its current inspection systems and future generations of products, expanding Europe’s semiconductor equipment manufacturing capabilities.
The company noted that it is expected to become the only startup receiving manufacturing funding under the European Chips Act, joining established industry participants such as GlobalFoundries and Carl Zeiss.
KEY QUOTES:
“This is a major step in bringing quantum sensing into fabs worldwide. The response from leading chipmakers has been clear: they see our technology as essential for solving yield challenges that today’s systems can’t address. With deployments now live in the U.S. and Taiwan and serial production ramping up in Munich, Europe isn’t just participating in the next chip era, it’s helping define it.”
Kevin Berghoff, CEO and Co-Founder of QuantumDiamonds
“Compute has become strategic infrastructure. Europe uses around 20% of the world’s semiconductors while producing only 10%, and that gap is exactly where our strategic power leaks away. QD can become Europe’s next ASML: a first-of-a-kind technology, built and scaled here, in a $104 billion equipment market that the entire AI economy depends on. Backing companies like QD is how Europe stops buying its technological future from others and starts building the leverage to shape its own.”
Daria Saharova, Managing Partner at World Fund
“Since our initial seed investment in late 2023, the pace of technical progress at QD has been exceptional. They’ve executed rapidly, assembled a world-class technical team, and built strong partnerships across the chip ecosystem. The technology is strongly resonating, and we’re proud to continue backing their journey.”
Mason Sinclair, Partner at IQ Capital
