Orbex’s collapse into administration yesterday—£49 million in debt despite £26 million in UK government loans—confirms that Europe’s small-launcher dream is wobbling. The Highlands-based start-up, once a flagship for “Global Britain”, failed to seal a rescue merger with Germany’s Exploration Company after Treasury support was withheld.(ft.com)

The timing is cruel. While Orbex folds, ESA engineers in Kourou are rolling Ariane 64 to the pad for Thursday’s maiden flight, trumpeting “independent access to space” at half the cost of Ariane 5.(euronews.com) Two datapoints, one trend: European launch economics remain brutally bipolar—mega-consortia secure public guarantees, but second-tier innovators starve. Since 2020, ESA has channelled more than €2 billion into Ariane 6; UK start-ups collectively scraped <€200 million in the same period, according to industry filings. With SpaceX dropping cost per-kg below $2,000, Europe’s fragmented subsidies look scatter-shot, not strategic.

If Brussels wants sovereignty beyond the stratosphere, it must treat launchers like critical infrastructure, not lottery tickets—tying capital to clear procurement pipelines across the bloc. Otherwise, today’s Orbex will not be the last casualty. As economist Mariana Mazzucato warns, “We socialise risk and privatise reward—then wonder why mission-based sectors stall.”

The Gist AI Editor

AI’s Creative Destruction

The dual nature of technological progress is on full display as markets react to artificial intelligence. In the UK, shares of wealth managers like St James’s Place and Quilter saw significant declines after a US startup, Altruist, launched an AI-powered tool for financial advisers. This sell-off reflects market anxiety that AI will compress margins and disrupt traditional advisory roles. Conversely, e-commerce platform Shopify is projecting robust revenue growth into the first quarter of 2026, crediting investments in AI-driven commerce solutions for its positive outlook (WSJ). This contrast exemplifies a core free-market principle: innovation creates new value while simultaneously rendering older models obsolete.

State-Backed Space Venture Fails

The UK’s ambitions for sovereign satellite launches have suffered a setback with the collapse of Orbex, a government-supported rocket startup. The company is now facing administration after failing to secure a rescue deal, threatening 150 jobs (The Guardian). Our take: This outcome, while unfortunate for those involved, is a necessary market correction. It serves as a cautionary tale against the state acting as a venture capitalist, where political goals can obscure financial viability and delay the inevitable reallocation of capital to more promising ventures.

Activist Investors Force Strategic Pivots

In the media-tech sphere, market forces are actively shaping corporate strategy. Activist investor Ancora has acquired a roughly $200 million stake in Warner Bros. Discovery to oppose a deal with Netflix. Ancora is instead advocating for a rival offer from Paramount Skydance, arguing it delivers superior shareholder value (Reuters). This maneuver highlights the role of shareholder activism in holding management accountable and ensuring that corporate strategy remains aligned with market realities, a dynamic far more efficient than any regulatory intervention.

Stay tuned for the next Gist—your edge in a shifting world.

UK space start-up Orbex collapses as takeover talks break down
— Financial Times

Europe’s best bet for financial sovereignty is a true safe asset
— Financial Times

Activist Investor Pushes Warner to Walk Away From Netflix Deal
— Wall Street Journal

Shares in UK wealth managers hit as AI contagion spreads
— Financial Times

Shopify Guides for Strong Revenue Growth
— Wall Street Journal

Energy & Utilities Roundup: Market Talk
— Wall Street Journal

AI’s Double Edge

New artificial intelligence tools are simultaneously a source of investor anxiety and a focus of national industrial strategy. In Milan, fears that AI could disrupt the wealth management sector sent related stocks tumbling; the exchange closed down 0.62% at 46,510 points (Ansa). This was part of a wider European trend of sell-offs in the sector. Specifically, shares in asset managers Fineco and Mediolanum plunged by 9% and 9.5%, respectively (Ansa). This demonstrates a market grappling with the real-world implications of AI, pricing in the risk of technological displacement. For an industry built on human advice, the advent of sophisticated, automated financial planning tools presents a clear existential threat, moving AI from abstract hype to a tangible market force.

Germany’s Innovation Gambit

Meanwhile, Berlin received the annual report from its Commission of Experts for Research and Innovation (EFI), outlining a strategy heavily leaning on technology for economic and national security. The report urges Germany to leverage security and defence spending as a “catalyst for innovation” to bolster technological progress and competitiveness. A key recommendation is to foster breakthrough defence innovations outside of traditional procurement channels, potentially by expanding the Federal Agency for Breakthrough Innovations (SPRIND) (EFI). The commission also highlighted Germany’s lag in the application of Artificial Intelligence and called for more dynamism. This signals a clear policy direction: using state power to direct capital towards strategic technologies, aiming to secure German and European sovereignty in an increasingly contested global landscape.

Catch the next Gist for the continent’s moving pieces.

Epstein-Files: Befragung von Keir Starmer
— ZDF

5 things holding up the EU’s trade deal with Australia
— Politico Europe

Gutachten Innovation und Forschung
— ZDF

Ukraine will Russlands Verluste massiv erhöhen
— ZDF

Weekend in musica tra De Gregori e Lindo Ferretti
— Ansa

Il prezzo del gas chiude in rialzo a 32,17 euro
— Ansa