Good afternoon from the team at Resilience Media
Yesterday I moderated London Tech Week’s first-ever panel on dual-use technology. I was joined by John Ridge, Chief Adoption Officer, NIF; David Roberts, CEO, ARX Robotics UK, and Josh Western, Founder and CEO, Space Forge. It was a fascinating conversation and we only scratched the surface, making it an important reminder that most of the wider startup ecosystem is not familiar with the concept of dual-use, let alone about defence tech more broadly. My takeaway is that our industry sector has an important opportunity and responsibility to set the narrative around defence tech, which is a key reason we launched Resilience Media.
We’re excited to announce our most recent additions to the Resilience Conference 2025 lineup. These are extraordinary founders developing serious innovations in how our nations support defence and security.
- Oluseun Taiwo, CEO & Founder, Solideon
- Mimi Keshani, Co-founder & CSO, Hadean
- Philip Lockwood, SVP of Strategy and Managing Director, STARK
- Kusti Salm, CEO, Frankenburg Technologies
A limited number of Early Bird tickets are on sale before we move into our general admission pricing, so grab one now.
As we near the deadline to apply for Launch at Resilience Conference, we are pleased to share an update from Launch alum Alex Kehoe, founder of Vizgard, who took to our stage last September. Read all about Alex and the technologies being developed by Vizgard in our Launch Alumni Update section below.
In a recent meeting, we were discussing the unique role played by NGOs in Ukraine’s defence tech sector. This is something often overlooked by investors and founders, but is essential knowledge if you want to sell defence products into Ukraine. We are grateful to the Kyiv-based think tank, Sahaidachnyi Security Center, for writing a piece about their research into the the leading defence NGOs in Ukraine. This is essential reading for anyone wanting to understand defence tech in Ukraine. Read more below in our Guest Post section.
Are you going to the NATO Summit in The Hague? Resilience Media will be on the ground, reach out and we can grab a coffee.
-Leslie, co-founder, Resilience Media
Vizgard founder Alex Kehoe appeared on the Launch at Resilience Conference stage in 2024. As we near the application deadline for the 2025 cohort, we wanted to share an update on Vizgard and Kehoe. Apply for the Launch showcase here; we’ve extended the deadline and applications close on June 14, 2025.
Alex Kehoe started his career deep under the ocean as a Weapons Engineer on Trafalgar-class submarines. Later, in industry roles at Kelvin Hughes (now part of Hensoldt), he worked on sensor integration for securing national infrastructure. It was there—while helping deploy the UK’s first counter-drone solution during the Gatwick airport shutdown—that he saw how limited even the best systems were without real autonomy. Most sensors could only detect; they couldn’t decide or act. And operators were overwhelmed. Read more here.
Launch at Resilience Conference 2025 applications close on June 14. We’re looking for the next generation of defence and dual-use innovators. Know one? Send them our way: resilienceconference.io/launch
We’re curating a lineup of early-stage companies solving real defence and national security challenges. They will have a chance to present on our stage to leading investors, customers, and media, at our 2025 conference. Apply today.
The role of Ukrainian civil society in the security and defence sector is often underestimated. However, as in other areas of public policy, civil society has consistently acted as a driver of change—frequently stepping in to perform functions traditionally associated with the state. Since the onset of Russia’s war against Ukraine in 2014, and especially following the full-scale invasion in 2022, numerous charities, NGOs, and think tanks have emerged to support the country’s defence efforts.
The briefing document highlights several cases that illustrate how Ukrainian non-governmental organisations are actively contributing to both frontline support and broader national defence and argues that international financing and cooperation should be significantly increased. Read the full piece here.
Cambridge Risk Research Symposium
We are keen to promote the Cambridge Centre for Risk Studies 2025 Symposium, held on June 26 in Cambridge. This year they are exploring key trends in the climate transition, discussing how geopolitics is starting to dominate attention, and how radical trends in new technologies are changing businesses. Understanding risk is essential for people looking at defence, national security, and resilience.
The Symposium brings together multidisciplinary attendees including risk managers, underwriters, actuaries, academics, policymakers, civil servants and other business managers. It is free to attend. Sign up at: https://lnkd.in/eeAuPKYh
Europe
Drone Attacks are the New Front in War. Can NATO Keep Up?
Investing
NATO Innovation Fund announces first investment in a DIANA cohort company to boost quantum sensing
National Security
Russian Spies Are Growing Suspicious of China, Even as Putin and Xi Grow Closer
Startups
Defense startup Anduril clinches funding at $30.5 billion valuation
Notes from Kyiv: Inside the World’s Fastest Defense Tech Lab
