Demo-ready and future-focused: NATO DIANA startups wrap up in Estonia  

Last week marked the final Estonian onsite for batch #2 of the NATO DIANA Accelerator programme, and what a journey it has been.

Seven pioneering companies – Telearmy, Wayren, Scaleout, Factiverse, IS-Wireless, Resquant, and Microamp – came together for one last hurray organised by Tehnopol Startup Incubator in collaboration with Sparkup Tartu Science Park. The latter kicked off the week at Tehnopol with a variety of masterclasses. These gave the innovators an opportunity to reflect on their international ambitions while gaining tools to build strategic partnerships across borders. Thank you to Marily Hendrikson, Kaari Kink, Rait Arro, Andrus Albi and Joel Noutere for your time and insights.  

Demonstrating readiness at the product demo day

On Wednesday, attention shifted to demonstrating products in real life. The NATO DIANA Estonian Accelerator organised a Demo Day together with the Estonian Defence and Aerospace Industry Association, Defence Estonia, and with the support of Invest in Estonia. In addition to our 7 teams from batch #2, the day allowed 11 Estonian companies to showcase their solutions. The weather was shining as much as the companies with each presenting their solution to a rotating audience – from investors and government officials to the NATO DIANA board of directors and members of media – in an efficient 5-minute pitch format, repeated across three groups.  

The Demo Day featured remarks from high-level representatives including Sandra Särav-Tammus (Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communications), Kadri Tammai (NATO DIANA), Anne-Liisa Elbrecht (Tehnopol), Rene Ehasalu (Defence Estonia Cluster), and Roman Vinartshuk from BLRT Shipyards which graciously hosted us.  

The day finished up at the Defence Meetup organised by the Estonian Founders Society which invited Factiverse, Microamp and Resquant to pitch on stage in front of nearly 500 stakeholders.  

Spotlight at Latitude59  

The week continued with a high-profile presence at Latitude59, Estonia’s flagship tech and startup event. The seven teams had dedicated booths in the startup area and took the stage during a special pitching session on Thursday. The companies had just three minutes to impress a panel of international investors, followed by a rapid-fire Q&A. The panellists: Kateryna Chaikivska (Brave 1), Tichomir Jenkut (Presto Ventures) and Jannic Meyer (Project A Ventures), were met with well-prepared and concise pitches that reflected the hard work and iteration the teams had put in throughout the accelerator.  

The visibility at Latitude59 offered unmatched exposure, networking, and follow-up conversations that continued well into Friday’s second day at the venue. The week concluded with a well-deserved farewell dinner, bringing together participants, organisers, and partners to celebrate the achievements and look ahead to what’s next.  

Thank you for an impactful chapter  

On behalf of the entire Estonian accelerator team at Tehnopol Startup Incubator, we extend a heartfelt thank you to each participating company. Your dedication, openness to feedback, and readiness to engage at every level have made this final Estonian onsite a success. We’re proud to have been part of your journey. There will be one more onsite together with other NATO DIANA sites outside of Estonia but other than that, we hope to welcome many of the teams back to the second phase of the accelerator.  

This accelerator programme in Estonia has been made possible through the strategic support and funding of the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communications, with additional backing from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Defence, and the City of Tallinn.  

The new application round for batch #3 of the NATO DIANA Accelerator opens in June, you can apply and find more info here.