Brave1 Advantage recap: Nearly UAH 1bn for explosives, Brave Prime launch, and new grant programmes

Six Ukrainian companies have been selected as winners of the Brave1 grant competition to expand explosives production. The total value of the selected projects amounts to UAH 944 million, of which UAH 620 million will be provided through state co-financing. The announcement was made by the Minister of Defence of Ukraine, Mykhailo Fedorov.

Under the signed agreements, the manufacturers will scale up production of TNT, RDX, PETN, and plasticised C4-type explosives.

The Brave1 Advantage event also featured Ukraine’s first large-scale Firepower Expo. More than 70 manufacturers of ammunition, explosives, and other weapon systems showcased their products. A dedicated Firepower of Ukraine section displayed the latest achievements of the Ukrainian missile industry, including ballistic, cruise, and surface-to-air missiles, jet-powered drones, and Ukrainian guided aerial bombs.

Brave1 also unveiled an updated grant programme featuring 53 technology priorities, including:

• materials and components for missiles,
• swarm systems,
• autonomous drones and navigation systems,
• underwater drones and torpedoes,
• laser weapons,
• precision-guided munitions,
• electronic warfare systems against guided aerial bombs and missiles, and others.

Grant funding ranges from UAH 500,000 to UAH 8 million, depending on the technology’s readiness level.

The cluster also announced the launch of a special grant programme integrated with the European BraveTech EU initiative. It offers grants of up to UAH 8 million regardless of the technology’s stage of development and covers more than 40 priority areas, including high-speed strike systems, evacuation UAVs, hand-launched interceptors, exoskeletons, active protection systems, lightweight torpedoes, munitions, electromagnetic pulse generation systems, and hydrogen fuel cells.

Separately, Brave1 announced the launch of Brave Prime, a new cooperation initiative under which agreements have been signed with SAAB and Airbus. In addition, new grant competitions for breakthrough defence technologies have been announced for 2026, with more than UAH 100 million available in funding for individual projects.

Defender Media previously reported on the allocation of €100 million for the Brave International programme, a unified framework for cooperation with international partners in developing defence innovation.