22 Ukrainian companies focused on innovative defense and security developments have graduated from the accelerator program organized by the California-based SRI International Research Institute, with official support from Ukraine’s Ministry of Defense and the Ukrainian Consulate General in San Francisco.
Over two weeks, they worked with specialists from leading American universities, the U.S. Department of Defense’s Defense Innovation Unit (DIU), and top consulting firms.
"The selection of these teams is a testament to our country’s innovation and its focus on developing technological solutions. We are confident this collaboration will provide a strong impetus for the development of defense and security technologies," said Kateryna Chernohorenko, Deputy Minister of Defense for Digitalization.
The programme participants gained insights and advice from experts, explored opportunities for strategic partnerships in the defense sector, and presented their products to investors in Silicon Valley. Over the next six months, leading American experts will conduct mentoring sessions and assist with market entry and investment attraction.
"We had the honor of hosting this talented group of Ukrainian entrepreneurs. Their ingenuity and drive align with the innovative spirit thriving in Silicon Valley, and we look forward to helping them develop their projects and contribute to global security," said Peter Marcotullio, Senior Vice President of Commercialization at SRI International, a strategic partner of the SRI Deep Tech Security Accelerator.
Note: The Deep Tech Security Accelerator is a project aimed at strengthening Ukraine’s defense capabilities. It was initiated and co-founded with SRI International, supported by U.S. donors, and backed by Ukraine's Ministry of Defense and the Ukrainian Consulate General in San Francisco. It was established by Kateryna Akimenko, a visiting researcher at the University of California, Berkeley, and co-founder of the Ukrainian consulting firm Yes&Design, and Gauthier Vasseur, Executive Director of the Fisher Business Analytics Center at the Haas School of Business (University of California, Berkeley). SRI International is a nonprofit research institute headquartered in Menlo Park, California, USA, focused on technological developments for government agencies and businesses, with over 4,000 patents and patent applications worldwide.
