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NEWS Ukraine offers front line for testing defence tech Ukraine started a “test in Ukraine” initiative open to foreign defence companies to bring their tech and see if it works. Under the Test in Ukraine scheme, companies will send their products to Ukraine, give some online training on how to use them, then wait for Ukrainian forces to test them and send back reports. I wrote an essay recently about what the future of drone warfare might look like. It examined the environmental factors driving Ukrainian innovation. The Ukrainians seem to have recognised the uniqueness of this environment, and are offering it out for free. This benefits Ukraine in two ways. First, they get to test new Western technologies and, presumably, adopt the ones that work. Second, it’s a signal of geopolitical willingness. It shows Ukraine is not just a passive recipient of aid, but an active participant in shaping the next generation of Western defence technology. European defence companies open in the UK The last week saw a number of European companies announce plans to open offices in the UK. They include Alpine Eagle, a German developer of counter-UAS systems; Stark, a German developer of loitering munitions; and Delian, a Greek builder of AI and autonomy for defence. They follow the likes of Helsing, Tekever, ARX Robotics and Applied Intuition, which all opened UK offices in the last year or so. That might come as a surprise to readers in the UK. The MOD is not famous for its efficient procurement processes and Germany now outpaces the UK in defence spending (c£67bn vs c£61bn, for 2024). However, the recent SDR commits the MOD to ringfencing £400m and 10% of procurement spending annually for startups. It also proposes to overhaul procurement, cutting down timelines to acquisition. The direction of travel is clear - the UK aims to be ‘startup friendly’ in its defence spending. That is in addition to the changing dynamic of sovereign capability. Where before there was Article 5, the American security guarantee and pan-European defence projects, now home-grown capability matters. Ukraine has direct experience of the risks associated with overreliance on foreign defence and intelligence capability. Europeans are keen to avoid the same fate. That means spending money domestically. US Marines field 'smart' scope to shoot down drones The US Marine Corps will field an advanced smart scope that is designed to hit moving targets in order to help them shoot down small drones. Once shooters identify a target, they can press a button and the scope will perform the necessary ballistic calculations. The system will not allow a round to be released until the computer determines the most opportune moment to hit the target. This is like vibe coding for soldiers. No further need to learn The Marksmanship Principles - AI can do it for you. It also tells us that there is still no good way of defeating FPV drones. I wouldn’t want to be the guy in section with the ‘anti-drone scope’ on his rifle. FUNDRAISING Swift Navigation, an American developer of highly accurate positioning for vehicle autonomy, robotics, and precision logistics, raised $50m in Series E funding led by Crosslink Capital. Asylon Robotics, an American maker of robot guard dogs, raised a $26m Series B led by Insight Partners. Delian Alliance Industries, a Greek builder of AI and autonomy for defence, raised a €12m Series A co-led by Air Street Capital and Marathon Venture Capital. Cascade Space, an American developer of a platform for end-to-end communication system design, raised $5.9m in seed funding. Teletactica, a Ukrainian company developing jamming-resistant communication systems for contested environments, raised $1.5m in funding led by MITS Capital and Green Flag Ventures. Qubitcore, a Japanese quantum computing company developing commercial trapped-ion based hardware systems, raised an undisclosed amount in pre-seed funding.
THOUGHT I promise I’ll stop posting Henry’s essays, but this is a good one. Tech booms are not built on overpricing, they are built on the assumption that there are more great companies than there actually are. Another interesting piece by TWIDU reader Henry Gladwyn. Thank you for reading this newsletter.
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