In August 2023, Hensoldt and Starburst had invited start-ups to apply for the Future Combat Air System (FCAS) Accelerator. The aim of the accelerator was to create an ecosystem for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and start-ups to develop dual-use and defense applications for FCAS. The application phase was followed by a development phase lasting around three months, which has now come to an end with the closing event. The results were also presented at the event.
Celia Pelaz, Hensoldt’s Chief Strategy Officer, was pleased with the results: “For the FCAS future project, we need new ideas and the courage to implement them – which is why we explicitly focused on players who are not yet firmly anchored in the security and defense industry. With the Accelerator, we set ourselves the goal of identifying and selecting first-class innovators. And we have succeeded in doing just that.”
Almost 70 companies responded to the call to apply for the Accelerator. Nine of them were selected by Hensoldt for a boot camp with twelve mentors, which focused on the discovery and development of solution concepts for FCAS and examined long-term integration into the FCAS program. This included an exchange with military leaders, but also a presentation of the NATO Innovation Fund, the European Defense Fund (EDF) and the EU Defence Innovation Scheme (EUDIS).
Moritz Pichler, Head of Hensoldt Ventures, added: “The three start-ups that we will be working with on FCAS are each concerned with the topics of artificial intelligence, disruptive sensors and electronic materials and components. Specifically, this involves a new type of chip-based parallel computing cloud platform, the development and production of cooled high-end infrared detectors and new metal bonding processes with higher conductivity and efficiency.” There will also be collaboration with two other start-ups.
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