Sigma Software Labs, together with the accelerator for defence startups Defence Builder, participated in the UK-Ukraine Defence Tech Forum, which took place on 8 November at the Royal United Services Institute in London. Alongside supporting the event as a partner, we also spoke and shared our experience in defence technology development.
UK-Ukraine Defence Tech Forum brought together more than 250 industry leaders, including representatives from companies such as Palantir Technologies, the NATO Innovation Fund, Fujitsu, and IQ Capital, as well as government agencies and venture capital funds. It served as a platform to strengthen links between public and private defence initiatives.
The forum has become a platform for discussing new solutions and raising capital for defence startups. The UK plays a key role in supporting innovation in this area. In particular, this year it announced £3.5 billion of export finance to enable Ukraine to buy advanced defence equipment from UK manufacturers, according to the UK government.
Key aspects of the industry development were discussed during the panel discussion “Financing Scalability – Role of Venture Capital in developing the Ukrainian MilTech ecosystem” with speakers including Clayton Williams, Managing Director at IQT International, Vojta Rocek, from Presto Tech Horizons, Enrique Oti, CSO at Green Flag Ventures, Anton Verkhovodov, Partner at D3 VC Fund and Daria Yaniieva, our Investment Director:
- The balance between the state and the private sector is the basis for the sustainable development of the defence industry. The state provides tools and sets policies, while the private sector provides flexibility and implements these policies within an agreed framework.
- The integration of ESG criteria into the defence sector remains a challenge. While some investors see defence as a necessary part of sustainable investment, others remain conservative. Nevertheless, the number of European ESG funds with more than 5% in aerospace and defence companies has tripled in recent years, indicating a growing acceptance of the sector, according to Financial Times.
- Innovation in defence goes beyond the military. It includes cybersecurity, de-mining, fuel reduction, energy security, and the protection of strategic assets such as nuclear power plants. Clear investment criteria allow funds to meet their ESG objectives while investing in defence technology.
“Successful defence innovation among all requires a clear understanding of the real battlefield missions and the rapid deployment of solutions that meet those challenges in time. The partnership between the public and private sectors is key because only through ongoing dialogue we can create a framework towards sustainable sector development,’
said Daria Yanieva, Investment Director at Sigma Software Labs.
