Funding call · DG DEFIS · EU
Call for participants: 2nd BraveTechEU DefTech Forges (Germany & Romania, Nov 2026)
DG DEFIS — Defence Industry & Space (EC) · published 10 Aug 2026 · · Source ↗
Deadline06 Sep 2026 20 days left
Budget / value€120k
€120,000 prize per winning team; total pot not stated
Statusopen
Why it matters
Rare chance to test prototypes against real national armed forces with live jamming and flight windows, plus €120k prizes and an EDA-coordinated follow-on track. Directly relevant to UAS/swarm autonomy, RF seeker and ground-sensor developers at TRL where hardware can fly in November.
Do this: Register for the 25 August info session and submit an application via the DG DEFIS BraveTechEU page before 6 September 2026, reviewing the Germany and Romania Rules of Contest to pick the right site.
Route: grant application · For: BD / bid leads at defence-tech scale-upsEstablished SME suppliers & subsystem makersInvestors & analysts
Summary
DG DEFIS has opened the second cycle of the BraveTechEU DefTech Forges, a challenge-based operational experimentation event held 9–13 November 2026 in Germany and Romania. Focus areas are unattended ground sensors (acoustic/seismic), autonomous strike UAS and swarms, EW-resilient UAS operations under controlled jamming, rapid battlefield adaptation/modular payloads, and RF seekers and terminal guidance. Winning teams receive €120,000 each and a path to Phase II of Operational Experimentation with the European Defence Agency. Applications close 6 September 2026; info session 25 August.
Eligibility
Not detailed in text; see Rules of Contest for Germany and Romania editions
Source text (raw, may be non-English)
Join the next Cycle of BraveTechEU DefTech Forges and claim your place in the history of the European defence ecosystem. Join the next Cycle of BraveTechEU DefTech Forges and claim your place in the history of the European defence ecosystem. The next challenge will take place in mid-November 2026 in Germany and Romania and will focus on: Unattended ground sensors: acoustic and seismic networks tested against cadets, vehicles and drones Autonomous strike UAS and swarms: supervised flight testing, swarm autonomy, sensor-to-shooter integration, decentralised mission execution and resilient multi-drone coordination EW-resilient UAS operations: controlled jamming to test navigation, communications and mission continuity Rapid battlefield adaptation: flight-line reconfiguration, on-site payload reconfiguration, modular payloads, software updates, rapid hardware prototyping and test–fix–retest cycles RF seekers and terminal guidance: passive, semi-active and active RF detection, tracking and precision guidance This will be an opportunity to evaluate your prototypes with national armed forces — flight windows, controlled jamming, and test conditions designed to mirror the pressures of a contested battlefield rather than a controlled lab environment. Why apply? Realistic testing and experimentation conditions for your solutions Direct feedback from military end-users and technical experts Hands-on mentoring to improve operational relevance, integration and readiness A chance to win €120,000 in prize money per winning team A continued path to Phase II of Operational Experimentation, in coordination with the European Defence Agency Registration: Apply here Register for the info session Key dates: Launch of the Call: Monday 10 August Application deadline: Sunday 6 September Info session: Tuesday 25 August Delivery timeframe: 9 - 13 November Useful documents: General publications 10 August 2026 Rules of Contest_DefTech Forges_Edition#2 Germany General publications 10 August 2026 Rules of Contest_DefTech Forges_Edition#2 Romania Publication date 10 August 2026 Author Directorate-General for Defence Industry and Space
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Source: https://defence-industry-space.ec.europa.eu/call-participants-2nd-edition-bravetecheu-deftech-forges-2026-08-10_en — summarised by Rearm Radar; verify details at source before bidding. Enrichment: anthropic/claude-opus-5 (confidence 90%).