More than 1,300 participants, including more than 100 investors from all over the world, 650 Ukrainian and international developers representing more than 250 teams – the first international summit Defense Tech Valley took place in Kyiv on 3-4 October, opening new horizons for investment in Ukrainian defence innovations.

The summit provided a unique opportunity for representatives of government agencies, the Security and Defence Forces, and business to join forces to develop high-tech solutions that can strengthen Ukraine’s defence capabilities.

The first day of the summit began with a pitching session where 28 teams presented innovative solutions in the field of defence technology: from UAVs and AI targeting to robotic systems and artillery detection systems. During the workshops, participants discussed the challenges of launching and scaling a defence tech business, including legal and financial aspects, as well as development strategies for Ukrainian innovators.

The second day was dedicated to the conference, which highlighted the main issues of the Ukrainian defence tech industry development in the context of war and the potential for attracting investments for defence innovations. Foreign investors shared their own experience of working with the Ukrainian defence tech market, as well as advice for Ukrainian producers and government officials on how to stimulate the investment attractiveness of defence innovations. In particular, the investment panels touched upon such topics as investors’ views on Ukrainian defence technology and global trends in defence technology investment.

Over the course of two days, all registered Ukrainian development teams had the opportunity to present their developments to both potential investors and other participants of the event.

“More than 200 technological developments are registered on the Brave1 platform every month, and each of them needs funding. Over the year and a half of its operation, Brave1 has issued grants for more than USD 8 million and has been actively engaged in matchmaking between manufacturers and investors. Obviously, this is not enough – for scaling and high-quality R&D, we need to attract international funds. That is why we have gathered 650+ developers and more than 100 investors in Kyiv. We have to do everything possible not to miss the next game changer of the war, I am sure it will be a Ukrainian development,” said Mykhailo Fedorov, Deputy Prime Minister for Innovation, Education, Science and Technology Development and Minister of Digital Transformation of Ukraine.

The summit focused on UAVs, ground robotic systems and electronic warfare. Representatives of the Ministry of Digital Transformation and the Ministry of Strategic Industries emphasised the importance of government support for defence innovation.

Andrii Lebedenko, Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, also addressed the summit. He spoke about the technological trends that define the modern battlefield. For their part, Ukrainian manufacturers spoke about the transformation from engineering teams to full-fledged businesses, which is enabled by investment and business mentoring. The first comprehensive study of the drone industry in Ukraine, conducted by the Kyiv School of Economics in cooperation with Brave1, was also presented.

As part of the event, the Brave1 cluster signed a memorandum of cooperation with CenSec (the Danish Center for Defence, Space and Security), which opens up new opportunities for cooperation in the field of defence technology.

The key figures of the summit:

• over 1,300 participants;
• more than 100 domestic and international investors;
• 650 developers representing 250 teams;
• presentations by 28 teams with defence solutions;
• projected investments of up to USD 50 million by the end of the year.

“Investments are one of the key factors for strengthening the capabilities of Ukrainian manufacturers and, therefore, for providing our military with modern and effective technologies. Thanks to the summit, we were able to accumulate international support and once again demonstrate the investment attractiveness of the Ukrainian defence tech industry. I am confident that we will soon learn about investment agreements between manufacturers and investors who met at Defense Tech Valley. We are not stopping and are already planning the next summit, which will consolidate the success of the first one and open up new investment horizons for Ukrainian developers,” said Nataliia Kushnerska, Head of Brave1 Cluster.

The Defense Tech Valley summit laid a solid foundation for the further growth of Ukraine’s defence technology industry. Developers and investors are already actively discussing investment deals worth millions of dollars that will facilitate strategic partnerships and the development of the sector.