Swedish defence know-how startup, Nordic Air Defence secures a €1.2 million funding aimed toward advancing its mission to bolster European resilience and autonomy via provide chain-independent drone defence options. The funding spherical, led by Norway’s SNÖ Ventures, marks the agency’s first foray into the defence tech sector and represents the second shut of a bigger strategic funding spherical. The funds can be directed towards analysis and improvement (R&D) and airborne testing, with the corporate planning a full seed spherical sooner or later.
The funding spherical attracted a number of notable non-public traders who may also be part of Nordic Air Defence’s board. These embody Jörgen Bladh, co-founder of Northzone, and Jan Gurander, former Deputy CEO and CFO of Volvo Group, identified for his expertise in defence companies. The spherical additionally noticed participation from Noam Perski, who will function a strategic advisor, and current board members, reminiscent of Chairman Johan Ahlberg and co-founder Gustav Wiberg, reaffirmed their dedication to the corporate with extra investments.
Nordic Air Defence, which just lately emerged from stealth mode in September 2024, launched its flagship product, the Kreuger 100—a dual-use drone interceptor designed for civil and navy functions. The Kreuger 100 platform replaces typical {hardware} with software-driven know-how, making it cheaper and permitting for large-scale manufacturing. Powered by batteries and engineered for portability, the Kreuger 100 gives a streamlined, scalable resolution for patrons aiming to bolster their drone defence capabilities.
Karl Rosander, CEO and founding father of Nordic Air Defence said: “Within the weeks since we emerged from stealth mode, the passion for our product has allowed us to shut a strategic spherical and safe the assist of a gaggle of world-class innovators and sector consultants: a big achievement for an organization at our early stage. This funding will speed up Nordic Air Defence’s improvement as a enterprise when it comes to improvement and staffing, and assist convey the Kreuger 100 to the market sooner. Nice information for Nordic Air Defence, but in addition for many who recognize {that a} new sort of European defence tech ecosystem must be kickstarted.”
Nordic Air Defence goals to scale back European reliance on worldwide provide chains, significantly from the USA, by creating know-how inside Europe. As trendy drone warfare evolves, the corporate is dedicated to innovating past conventional jamming and kinetic options, which it describes as more and more outdated towards new threats. Future enlargement plans embody diversifying into defence applied sciences for land, sea, and subsea domains, in addition to increasing into international markets.
Rosander expressed urgency round rethinking European defence tech, drawing parallels with the fast innovation seen in the course of the COVID-19 vaccine improvement course of: “The worldwide defence tech sector has grow to be oligarchical and slow-moving, and is ripe for disruption. The urgency round the necessity to create COVID vaccines, which necessitated fast public sector and personal collaboration and innovation, breaking established guidelines, should be utilized to European defence tech. Nordic Air Defence is right here to alter the paradigm.”
