StrictlyVC Download: Why Eric Slesinger, a former CIA officer, is now funding European defense tech

Today, we're bringing you an episode of our sister podcast, StrictlyVC Download (https://techcrunch.com/podcast/why-eric-slesinger-a-former-cia-officer-is-now-funding-european-defense-tech/) .

StrictlyVC's Alex Gove caught up with Eric Slesinger from 201 Ventures (https://www.201.vc/) , a venture capital firm focused on seed-stage defense tech startups in Europe. They discuss Eric's journey from CIA to investor and how he recognized the untapped potential in European defense tech while others were dismissive, and how he's working to overcome the cultural taboo that once made defense investments "bad manners" in European VC circles.

Equity will be back on Friday with our weekly news roundup, so stay tuned!

Equity is TechCrunch’s flagship podcast, produced by Theresa Loconsolo, and posts every Wednesday and Friday. 

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Credits: Equity is produced by Theresa Loconsolo with editing by Kell. We’d also like to thank TechCrunch’s audience development team. Thank you so much for listening, and we'll talk to you next time.

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Post from TechCrunch on May 07, 2025

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