Dorozvidka #40: Bohdan Sas, David Axe, OSINT, Sting, and a discussion on controlled exports

During the holiday week, media activity in the defence tech industry slowed down, but the Defender Media editorial team has selected several videos and articles to inspire readers over the break.

In the traditional weekly overview of external publications:

• Analyst David Axe on the lessons of Ukraine’s war;
• An entry guide to defence tech from Buntar Aerospace co-founder Bohdan Sas;
• Daria Verbytska, Executive Director and Co-founder of the Molfar Intelligence Institute, on open data and the security of Ukrainian defence manufacturing;
• Andrii Lavrenovych, Artur Seletskyi, and Anatolii Khrapchynskyi on the year’s results in Ukrainian defence tech.

OSINT intelligence: how to protect Ukrainian defence manufacturing

A new episode of the video project ZBROYA, produced by the Ukrainian Association of Arms Manufacturers together with Militarnyi, is dedicated to OSINT. Daria Verbytska, Executive Director and Co-founder of the Molfar Intelligence Institute, explains how Russians reconnoitre Ukrainian military facilities using open-source data, and how Ukrainian defence manufacturers can mitigate these vulnerabilities.

Entering defence tech: an honest insider guide from Bohdan Sas of Buntar

“If you’re thinking about entering the sector, know this: the doors are open wider than ever,” writes Bohdan Sas, co-founder of Buntar Aerospace, in a column published on the company’s blog. He explains which industries people most often come from, which hard and soft skills matter most, and where to look for jobs.

Among his recommendations is Defender Media’s weekly defence tech jobs digest.

Industry experts on controlled arms exports

On 23 December, DOU hosted a live broadcast where experts discussed what 2025 was like for Ukraine’s defence sector. The speakers included Andrii Lavrenovych, HR Director at General Cherry, Artur Seletskyi, Director of Strategic Development at KVERTUS, and aviation expert and reserve Air Force officer Anatolii Khrapchynskyi.

Topics discussed:

• key changes in the defence sector in 2025;
• whether opening exports strengthened defence capabilities;
• who led the FPV space and how the profile of the soldier has changed;
• the hiring market in defence tech;
• expectations for 2026.

David Axe on the lessons of Ukraine’s war for Taiwan

The Strategist published a column by military analyst David Axe on one of the key lessons of the Russia–Ukraine war: the importance of intelligence and monitoring. In his view, Ukraine’s deep-strike operations indicate a new level of warfare. As an example, he cites a series of December strikes by the SBU’s “A” Special Operations Centre on the Belbek airbase in Crimea (240 km from the front line).

Read the article.

Sting interceptor drones now available via e-points

Sting interceptor drones developed by the company Wild Hornets are now available for order through the decentralised DOT-Chain and Brave1 Market platforms using electronic points, the developers announced on social media.

According to military feedback, Sting is one of the most effective tools for intercepting enemy strike drones such as the Shahed. In November, Defender Media showed how Wild Hornets interceptor drones shoot down Shaheds (and what Yaroslav Azhniuk’s Odd Systems has to do with it).