NATO Nations Line Up to Buy Ukrainian Weapon Systems

Ukraine’s Defense Startups Are NATO’s New Arms Dealers

TerMIT ground robots from Tencore LLC. Courtesy AFU

As a writer, one of the most amazing things to watch over the past ten years of war in Ukraine has been the gob-smacking innovation (I’m trying to get my profanity under control), and all-around MacGyver attitude to making things work in Ukraine.

When you watch Ukrainian engineers Gorilla Glue a Sidewinder missile to a naval drone and actually shoot down a modern Russian fighter jet, you start to understand why Western investors are lining up to throw money at Ukrainian startups.

These Ukrainian companies are innovating while under artillery fire. That is the difference between theory in a lab and proof on the battlefield.

And right now, NATO wants a piece of that action.

Meme created by the author at imgflip.com

Not long ago, Ukraine’s “R&D department” looked like a Telegram channel where soldiers sought quadcopters and supporters wired them cash. Jump to mid-2025, and defense-tech startups are raising $20 million in a single month.

For Silicon Valley, that’s a long lunch with VCs.