NATO DIANA UK accelerator: Welcome to the UK accelerator

The UK accelerator has been chosen as one of the 13 affiliated accelerator sites participating in NATO DIANA’s 2025 accelerator programme.

NATO
’s
Defence Innovation Accelerator for the North Atlantic
(
DIANA
) aims to support the best and brightest innovators to develop dual-use technologies for a safe and secure world.
In the face of continually evolving threats across the globe and rapid technological development,
DIANA
will bring together universities, industry and governments to work with start-ups and other innovators to solve strategic dual-use security and defence challenges. Growing a new generation of
NATO
innovators, which will keep pace with this changing environment.
To maintain its technological edge,
DIANA
has established a transatlantic network, which currently consists of 23 accelerator sites and 182 test centres across the 32 Allied nations.
The
DIANA
accelerator programme
UK accelerator
The UK accelerator is led by the UK Defence Innovation (UKDI) and supported by an external delivery partner, which has been funded by the Ministry of Defence (
MOD
). The 2025 acceleration programme will be delivered from a new, high specification office at the Imperial College London, Innovation Hub (
I-HUB
) in the White City Innovation District, which is collocated with the
NATO
DIANA
Regional Office.
The combination of UKDI and a high-quality delivery partner will make the UK accelerator a great choice for innovators who have applied to the 2024 challenges. UKDI brings its unique understanding of defence and security and the concept of ‘innovation-as-a-service’ by providing a wide range of useful services to help defence and security customers access innovative ideas, products and services more quickly, and brokering relationships between end-users and industry/academia. UKDI has particularly focused on reaching out widely across the UK, beyond the traditional defence and security sectors, and building new and connecting to existing networks such as Local Enterprise Partnerships.
Anita Friend, Head of the Defence and Security Accelerator said:
I am extremely proud of the work UKDI does to find and fund innovation within the industrial base and academia and enabling it to contribute to building a safer more prosperous future. Specifically, I’m proud of how we support innovators in industry and academia to work with government to convert great ideas into benefits. By partnering with a high-quality accelerator provider to help us establish and deliver the UK accelerator for
NATO
DIANA
, we are building a vibrant and mission-focused ecosystem which will support a peaceful future, and strengthen UKDI’s capacity and capabilities, ensuring that we remain at the forefront of supporting UK prosperity.
John Ridge, Director, Defence Innovation said:
The UK is proud to be selected as one of the 13 affiliated accelerators for the
NATO
DIANA
2024 challenges. Our collocation with the
NATO
DIANA
Regional Office in White City puts the UK in a unique place to strengthen our ongoing partnership and work closely with other
NATO
Allies. We look forward to welcoming the best and brightest innovators in 2025 to develop cutting-edge technologies for future capabilities for our end-users and provide an edge over our adversaries.
London office
A new state-of-the-art office has been built specifically for the UK accelerator. Collocated with
NATO
DIANA
at the
I-HUB
at Imperial College in London, the UK accelerator’s location allows innovators to connect with the local ecosystem at White City.
This brand new office space will create a positive and inspiring workspace for innovators, providing them with a fresh environment to establish themselves as resilient, successful participants in the commercial and defence markets.
Innovators selected by
NATO
DIANA
to join the 2024 challenges, will be the first to use this new dedicated office space, which includes a 36-desk open plan layout, communal areas to foster collaboration, productivity and teamwork, and seven meeting spaces, designed for private conversations. Innovators will also have access to a large conference room, shared with
NATO
DIANA
, which provides opportunities for larger groups to have face-to-face meetings.
How
DIANA
works
Derived from defence and security needs across the Alliance,
DIANA
will issue ‘challenge’ calls in specific problem areas and ask innovators to bring forward solutions.
Innovators who apply and are selected will receive non-dilutive grants and join their preferred accelerator site to begin the
DIANA
accelerator programme. All of the innovators selected for the
DIANA
programme will help to maintain
NATO
’s technological edge by enhancing the Allied innovation ecosystem.
DIANA
’s accelerator programme
The
DIANA
accelerator programme is designed to equip businesses with the skills and knowledge to navigate the world of deep tech and dual-use innovation. It currently consists of a yearlong, immersive curriculum delivered in two six-month blocks.
The first six month ‘Bootcamp’ is a hands-on cohort experience consisting of ten modules custom-designed for early-stage start-ups to build innovators into viable dual-use ventures. Through a combination of seminars, workshops, and mentorship, the innovators will gain a comprehensive understanding of the dual-use landscape and learn how to successfully navigate both commercial and defence markets. Simultaneously, they will have the opportunity to refine their technologies and products through access to
DIANA
’s network of Test Centres, comprising over 200 world-leading technical testing facilities.
The most promising innovators from ‘Bootcamp’ will then graduate to an additional six-month ‘Grow’ programme, which provides tailored support and additional grant funding, for a smaller number of innovators.
Find out more about the programme
Who can apply?
DIANA
has set out some basic eligibility criteria.
An innovator must be headquartered in a
NATO
member nation.
Technology solutions are sought a