Ukraine's defense technology platform Brave1, some of whose products have already been deployed to the front lines within 10 months of its establishment, says it is “gradually opening up” to ideas and innovations from Kyiv's international partners. ” he said.
Established in April 2023 by the Ministry of Digital Transformation of Ukraine, Brave1 aims to accelerate innovation and technology development tailored to Ukraine's defense and military needs, providing organizational and informational support to local defense technology projects. , provides financial support.
According to Sergiy Koshman, head of international partnerships at Brave1, the platform's main priorities are drones (ground and air), electronic warfare (EW) systems, counter-drone countermeasures, and artificial intelligence (AI), among others. .
“It includes the obvious things like medical technology and everything that can save lives,” Koshman told the Kyiv Post at the Kyiv International Cyber Resilience Forum (KICRF).
He said several projects had been “approved and operationalized” without providing further details, adding that Brave1's goal is to reduce traditional research and development (R&D) to three years, rather than years. The company said it plans to expand and deploy the solution within months.
“So we were trying to encourage our international partners as well to not only develop this defense and security architecture, but also to shorten the timeframe for doing so. [the] euro atlantic [region]” Koschman said.
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Companies that apply for assistance through Brave1 undergo a series of assessments conducted by industry experts, including the military, and if successful, may receive a government commission.
“They do a preliminary screening and assessment, and if there is potential for a solution, a more structured and more comprehensive assessment is carried out by Defense Force experts.
“Actually, this is [our] main goals and main [key performance indicator]”It's about getting everything from ideas, solutions, and prototypes to mature capabilities on the battlefield as quickly as possible,” Koschman said.
Koschman said that apart from new proposals from companies, a separate track is being developed to solicit solutions for specific needs on the battlefield, and the platform will list requirements for companies to collaborate on. .
He said financial aid is available through a separate application process, including grants, and that Ukraine is “gradually opening up” to international partners for innovation cooperation in support of the war effort, but that foreign projects are currently It said it received no direct funding from the government.
“we [are] We are currently developing this line of international cooperation, but of course there will be no subsidies or financial support from the Ukrainian government,” Koshman said.
Koshman added that supply chains remain an issue for Ukraine's domestic defense development, but efforts are underway to improve cooperation between stakeholders and address supply chain bottlenecks.
“Specific component [were] Produced in a country with potential for supply chain disruption [and] “Some of the components are so sophisticated that we don't have government approval to transfer the technology to other countries,” Koschman said.
“Innovation ecosystems with hundreds of stakeholders require a lot of communication and coordination of approaches. For a variety of reasons, there are certain bottlenecks that must be addressed.”
