Brave1 launches a grant programme for Ukrainian weapons component manufacturers

On December 3, at the Brave1 Components event, First Vice Prime Minister Mykhailo Fedorov, Defence Minister Denys Shmyhal, and Brave1 head Andrii Hrytseniuk announced the launch of a new grant programme aimed at supporting manufacturers of components for the defence sector. The strategic goal of the programme is to achieve independence in producing key components.

Fedorov noted that the components market has enormous export potential, and Ukraine has every chance to become a component base for Europe and the United States. He added that soon components on the Brave1 Market will be available for purchase using eBaly.

About the grant programme

Within the grant programme, Ukrainian developers can receive up to 8 million UAH to accelerate R&D and increase the technological readiness of their products. Brave1, together with the Ministry of Defence, the Ministry of Digital Transformation, manufacturers and frontline units, has identified 20 priority areas, including:

• engines and actuators — electric motors, internal combustion engines, etc.;
• propulsion elements — for UGVs, as well as propellers for fixed-wing and multirotor drones;
• computing systems and sensors — onboard computers, control controllers, navigation and obstacle sensors;
• communications — frequency-shifting systems, antennas, communication channel aggregators;
• cameras and gimbals — thermal imagers, high-resolution cameras, gimbals;
• other electronics.

Key requirements for manufacturers include technological uniqueness, in-house R&D, the ability to scale production quickly, and the capacity to ensure low unit costs at scale. The full list of conditions and priority areas is available on the Brave1 grants page.

What else

The grant programme for component manufacturers will be overseen by a dedicated components department created within Brave1. In addition to grants, the cluster will focus on legislative developments and facilitating cooperation between component manufacturers and producers of final products.

According to Brave1, more than 200 component manufacturers for unmanned systems are already operating in Ukraine: controllers, cameras, batteries, engines, antennas, masts, navigation systems, propellers, release mechanisms, communication systems, UAV frames. The Components section on Brave1 Market includes over 800 products.