TEKEVER secures funding backing UK expansion
Image courtesy TEKEVER
This milestone cements TEKEVER as a European DefTech leader and fuels its continued expansion across Europe, as the company pursues global leadership in AI-driven autonomous defence and security.
The funding round coincides with the launch of TEKEVER’s ambitious five-year £400 million development programme for the UK, known as OVERMATCH, aimed at UK defence industry transformation, ensuring the UK and its allies remain at the forefront of vital autonomous, AI-driven technology.
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.
Building on three years of frontline innovation in partnership with the UK Ministry of Defence and Ukrainian forces, TEKEVER’s systems have accumulated over 10,000 combat flight hours and contributed to the destruction of over £3 billion worth of Russian military assets — including two of Russia’s advanced S-400 air defence systems. OVERMATCH is the next step: scaling this battlefield- proven success into a sustainable, strategic capability for the UK.
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 the pursuit of 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 reflects TEKEVER’s commitment to fostering an inclusive ecosystem, promoting collaboration between large and small players, and encouraging greater cross-border cooperation among like- minded nations.
At the heart of TEKEVER’s strategy is the creation of a defence innovation ecosystem that will bring together European businesses, particularly small to medium-sized enterprises, to integrate, test and scale new defence technologies to support the armed forces in the delivery of complex missions. A key lesson from the war in Ukraine is that success requires being constantly one step ahead. A new type of government-industry relationship, that puts operational output front and center, embraces new technologies faster than ever before, and iterates those capabilities faster than our adversaries is essential. With OVERMATCH, TEKEVER is stepping up and committing its full support in driving forward this critical agenda.
Ricardo Mendes (above), CEO of TEKEVER, commented: “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. This latest funding round will help us deliver that mission. The continued backing from our investors, including Baillie Gifford and the NATO Innovation Fund, reflects their confidence in our vision, technology and long- term success.”
John Ridge, Chief Adoption Officer at the NATO Innovation Fund, commented: “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 into 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. It is therefore extremely exciting to be supporting them in my current role as the Chief Adoption Officer at the NATO Innovation Fund. Not only are they integrating increasingly sophisticated AI and software into their platforms, they are now also forging innovative new 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.”
Mo El Husseiny, Managing Partner at Ventura Capital said: “As a long-term investor in TEKEVER, we are proud of the company’s significant growth and to have led this investment round. TEKEVER is a flagship investment in Ventura’s portfolio of disruptive technology companies with market-leading technology, thousands of hours of operational experience and a uniquely profitable, sustainable business model.”
Chris Evdaimon, Investment Manager, Private Companies at Baillie Gifford commented: “The global defence and security landscape is rapidly changing and TEKEVER is well-placed to capture the opportunities emerging in this sector. With its vertically-integrated model and extensive operational experience in Ukraine, TEKEVER is driving the transformation of Europe’s defence capabilities and leading a new generation of agile, software-centric defence primes.”
