Lisbon-based TEKEVER, a company specialised in AI-enabled Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS), has secured funding in a new round, bringing its valuation over £1B.
The funding round was backed by existing investors, including round leader Ventura Capital, Baillie Gifford, the NATO Innovation Fund (NIF), Iberis Capital, and Crescent Cove.
John Ridge, Chief Adoption Officer at the NATO Innovation Fund, says, “I have been a fan of Tekever since my time as the Director of Innovation in the UK Ministry of Defence. Their mission focus and adaptability made them one of the most successful drone providers in Ukraine through Task Force Kindred. Their offering of uncrewed surveillance solutions has been instrumental in helping Ukraine counter Russian aggression by continuously innovating at the pace of conflict.”
The funding will help the company to accelerate its continued expansion across Europe.
It is therefore extremely exciting to be supporting them in my current role as the Chief Adoption Officer at the NATO Innovation Fund. They are integrating increasingly sophisticated AI and software into their platforms and are now forging innovative partnerships between government and industry to help transform Europe’s industrial base. We are committed to fully supporting Tekever’s Project Overmatch, which will catalyse the development of AI and autonomy in the UK, create thousands of high-skilled jobs, and help NATO unlock the potential of new technology to deal with an increasingly complex security environment in Europe,” adds Ridge
OVERMATCH: What do you need to know?
Led by Ricardo Mendes, TEKEVER offers a surveillance-as-a-service solution, delivering actionable real-time intelligence to make oceans safer and save more lives.
Besides funding, the Portugal company also launched its ambitious five-year £400M development program for the UK, known as OVERMATCH, to transform the UK’s defence industry.
OVERMATCH is structured around four core pillars.
The first is BUILD, through which TEKEVER will establish Centres of Excellence for Autonomy in the UK — hubs designed to unite academia, industry, and government in pursuing defence innovation.
The second, NETWORK, involves the expansion of a pan-European testing and evaluation infrastructure, including new facilities built upon existing operations in the UK.
The third pillar, SCALE, will deliver next-generation production hubs capable of responding with speed and flexibility to evolving operational demands.
Finally, the PARTNER pillar shows TEKEVER’s commitment to building an inclusive ecosystem, encouraging collaboration between big and small companies, and promoting cooperation among like-minded nations.
According to the company’s claims, the investment in research, infrastructure, and defence technology will generate more than 1000 high-skilled jobs and lay the foundation for a sovereign capability in next-generation warfare.
The project will expand production of TEKEVER’s family of UAS (unmanned aerial systems, popularly known as drones), including the AR3 and AR5, in the UK, supporting the development of sovereign defence systems.
Ricardo Mendes, CEO of TEKEVER, comments, “The future of Europe relies on more than just increased defence spending; we need to transform our industrial base and be smarter about investments. TEKEVER’s experience deploying autonomous systems in Ukraine has shown us that the future of defence is about agility more than anything. That’s why we are launching our new strategy focused on establishing a defence innovation ecosystem that empowers companies of all sizes to innovate at pace and scale with the shared mission of securing the future of Europe.”
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