Global Innovation Trends

3 years of war in Ukraine, and the Ukrainian IT sector is one of the few industries remaining afloat and standing tall. Despite ongoing challenges, the sector is strengthening its integration into global markets, advancing defence technologies, and continuing to attract international investment. Just a few facts: - Last June, Ukrainian company Creatio raised $200 mln with a valuation of $1.2 bln and became the 6th Ukrainian unicorn; - Kyiv has become home to the world’s second GovTech centre, which is part of the World Economic Forum network; - Ukrainian gov tech platform “Diia” was included in TIME’s list of the best inventions of the year.   According to UkraineInvest - Ukraine Investment Promotion Office, Ukraine’s IT sector grew from 4.5% of GDP in 2021 to 6% in 2024, a key economic stabiliser with strong potential for long-term growth.  Thousands of IT professionals are working through blackouts and airstrikes, maintaining Ukraine's reputation as one of Europe's top countries for IT services.  Today, the IT sector accounts for 38% of all services in Ukraine (as reported by Lviv IT Cluster). According to IT Ukraine Association, Ukrainian IT specialists remain popular among international clients due to the optimal price-quality ratio. According to Dealbook of Ukraine, investments in startups dropped from $832 mln in 2021 to $209 mln in 2023, but the first half of 2024 showed a recovery with $283 mln, driven by Defence tech growth. Innovation plays a crucial role in everyday life in modern Ukraine. It ranges from breakthrough inventions on the frontline to much more peaceful solutions, such as electronic documents on smartphones.   Defence tech stands out not only on Ukraine's IT ecosystem map but also in the world. With $5.2 B in VC funding, +30% growth in two years, and NATO backing over $1 billion in deep tech investments, the defence tech boom is here, and it's real.   Ukraine is already ahead because innovation is a matter of survival for us. The battlefield, the ultimate testing ground for innovation, is changing rapidly, and our engineers and founders are developing solutions that not only protect Ukraine but also strengthen global security.   By the way, right now, we’re accepting applications for the second batch of the Defence Builder — acceleration programme that Sigma Software co-founded with partners to scale defence startups and connect them with investors and militaries with up to $40,000 in funding & networking opportunities.

Ukraine begins development of national LLM, signs memorandum with Kyivstar Ukraine has set an ambitious goal: to rank among the world’s top three countries in AI adoption and integration by 2030. Developing a national large language model (LLM) is a strategic move to position the country at the forefront of the AI-driven transformation already reshaping the global landscape. This LLM will be the foundation for building digital public and business products powered by artificial intelligence. It will be trained on Ukrainian data and designed to fully understand the national context. AI sovereignty is a vital prerequisite for Ukraine’s technological advancement. Why creating a national LLM matters: ✅Quality. Ukraine’s LLM will have a distinct advantage— unique training data that ensures it is pro-Ukrainian in perspective and culturally relevant. ✅Affordability. Ukrainian users will be able to access AI-powered tools like chatbots and virtual assistants at lower costs compared to foreign alternatives. ✅Security. A national LLM enables data to be stored and processed domestically, which is crucial for using AI in defense, government operations, healthcare, and the financial sector. Ukraine is combining public and private sector efforts to make this project a reality. The national electronic communications operator, Київстар, has joined as a strategic partner in developing the country’s first LLM. Kyivstar also has access to global expertise through its parent company, VEON, which already has a proven track record in national AI initiatives. Kyivstar will act as the operational lead, forming the project office, assembling the development team, and providing computing infrastructure for pre-training the model. The Ministry of Digital Transformation will coordinate the development process and define the technological vision for the LLM. Once the model successfully passes testing, it will become state property. The beta version is expected to launch by the end of 2025. It will be piloted within government agencies to gather feedback. After that, the LLM will be made available to all Ukrainian citizens and businesses. AI will help accelerate government operations, improve efficiency, enable new public services, and deliver game-changing tools for Ukraine’s defense. For businesses, it will streamline operations and fuel the growth of Ukraine’s AI startup ecosystem. The Ukrainian LLM will drive the emergence of new AI startups, attract international investment, and boost GDP by developing AI solutions across various sectors of the economy.

Ukraine just entered the big league of green energy🚀♻️ In 2025, Ukraine exported more than 11.2 million cubic meters of biomethane to the EU. Not pilot projects. Not PowerPoint. Real molecules flowing into Europe. This is a structural shift. Who delivered: • MHP ~ 8.7 million m³ (about 77% of total exports) • VITAGRO ~ 2.5 million m³ • Hals Agro ~ 75,000 m³ Bio-LNG also went global: • MHP > 5,000 tonnes • UM Liquid Gas ~ 900 tonnes Why this matters 👇 Europe🇪🇺 needs low-carbon gas. Ukraine has massive agricultural residues, manure, logistics and EU grid access. Biomethane turns waste into exportable, dispatchable, bankable energy. This is not “green PR”. This is hard energy infrastructure meeting EU climate policy. What’s next: • More plants • Larger volumes • Better carbon scores • Higher prices • Real project finance instead of subsidies Ukraine is quietly becoming one of the most interesting biomethane hubs in Europe. Sometimes the energy transition does not look like solar panels. Sometimes it smells like corn silage and manure. And it prints euros😏 #biomethane #BioLNG #Ukraine #EnergyTransition #Decarbonization #AgroEnergy #GreenGas #EU #Investments Georgii Geletukha Anne B. Torsten Wöllert

Had a great conversation with Roman Kyslyi, PhD 🇺🇦 at AI HOUSE Podcast about the state of AI business and investments. Here are the key takeaways: 🔍 AI Investment Landscape • While overall venture funding has decreased to pre-COVID levels, AI attracts up to 1/3 of all current investments • Most AI foundation model development is driven by trillion-dollar companies due to massive capital requirements • We're seeing unprecedented technology adoption rates - GenAI reached 50% penetration faster than cloud or mobile 💡 Enterprise AI Adoption • B2B applications show the most promising business cases, with clear ROI in cost reduction and productivity gains • Vertical AI solutions are emerging as stronger opportunities vs horizontal platforms • Traditional SaaS pricing models are being disrupted - usage-based and success-based pricing is becoming more common 🤖 AI Agents Evolution • Market bifurcation emerging between simple task automation and complex workflow orchestration • Current technical limitations in agent reliability create friction for mission-critical enterprise adoption • Significant opportunity in building reliable agent-to-agent communication protocols and workflow frameworks 🏗️ Building AI Companies • The barrier to entry for building AI companies has significantly lowered thanks to new development tools • Technical excellence alone isn't enough - understanding customer problems and sales processes is crucial • Bootstrap if possible - companies that bootstrap tend to survive longer and retain more equity 🌍 Ukrainian AI Ecosystem • Ukraine has strong technical talent and growing access to both local and European investment • My personal sample of intriguing startups by Ukrainian founders: Fireworks AI (GenAI inference platform valued at $500M), Osavul (AI-powered threat intelligence platform), Dynamiq (enterprise LLMOps platform) 💭 What's Next (2025-2026) • Expect significant M&A activity as larger players consolidate AI capabilities • Many AI startups will quietly shut down without funding a sustainable business model • Vertical AI champions will emerge faster than traditional SaaS companies did Curious to hear your thoughts on these trends! 🔗 link in the comments🔗

I wrote in FT: Ukraine has survived because parts of its military operate like startups — small autonomous teams, horizontal coordination, fast decisions, constant testing. This culture must scale across the state for Ukraine to survive and grow. First: startup culture and small autonomous teams. Units like the 3rd Assault Brigade and Khartiia operate as compact teams with real authority. They cut bureaucracy, test ideas in combat, and change tactics immediately. This is how Ukraine became a leader in drones and battlefield adaptation. After the war, ministries and state-owned firms must institutionalize this model: small teams, clear mandates, permission to bypass dead rules, and responsibility for delivery. Second: relentless focus on measurable results. In top units, commanders are scored on concrete metrics: enemy equipment destroyed per mission, strike efficiency by system used. These scores drive procurement, resource allocation, and promotions. Government should work the same way. Set deliverables: energy resilience, defense output, investment inflows, school recovery, anti-corruption enforcement and publish progress, open budgets and procurement to audit, and promote officials based on outcomes. Third: invest in people, education and innovation. Ukraine won time by being smarter: airborne and maritime drones, applied labs, AI and data on the battlefield. This must continue after the war through STEM education, research labs, and infrastructure. At the Kyiv School of Economics, spending is about $10,000 per student; most public universities spend under $3,000. The gap shows up in labs, research, and engineer training — the inputs of the postwar economy. History shows this path works. West Germany after 1945, South Korea after 1953, Poland after 1989 rebuilt institutions and emerged stronger. Ukraine has the same chance if it carries military entrepreneurship, accountability, and rapid innovation into civilian governance. In 2022 the Ukrainian people discovered within themselves the capacity for greatness and astonished the world. We can do it again.

Ukraine Is Compressing Years of Weapons Development Into Weeks.   Ukraine’s weapons ecosystem has evolved dramatically within a single year, with increasingly sophisticated ground, aerial, and maritime drones becoming more dependent on artificial intelligence and rapid battlefield feedback.   Journalists returning after an earlier visit in March 2025 found that Ukraine had made striking progress in robotics and autonomous systems. Capabilities that previously appeared experimental are moving closer to routine operational use.   Military units described development cycles measured in weeks. Engineers can design, modify, deploy, and battle-test new systems far faster than conventional peacetime acquisition processes, which may require months or years.   This speed is driven by urgent operational needs and direct communication between soldiers and developers. Battlefield experience quickly exposes weaknesses, allowing teams to adjust hardware, software, communications, navigation, and artificial intelligence capabilities for the next deployment.   Robotic systems can support human soldiers by performing dangerous missions, extending surveillance, moving supplies, and operating in areas exposed to enemy fire. Their purpose is not only increasing combat power but reducing the number of personnel placed at immediate risk.   The key takeaways are that rapid iteration has become a battlefield advantage, artificial intelligence is accelerating drone development, and Ukraine is demonstrating a wartime innovation model that challenges traditional defense procurement.   The implications reach every modern military. Armed forces may need smaller acquisition cycles, closer relationships with commercial technology companies, and software-centered organizations capable of continuous adaptation. However, faster autonomy also creates challenges involving cybersecurity, electronic warfare, accountability, escalation, and human control. Future military advantage may belong less to the force with the best weapon at deployment and more to the force that can improve it fastest under combat conditions. Source https://lnkd.in/gJYFefqE   Former White House Lead Communications Engineer | Strategic Advisor My content creates 20+ million views annually and growing across defense, AI, quantum, energy, infrastructure, and policy communities. Open to select advisory board and strategic advisory opportunities featuring monthly retainers and meaningful equity participation. Keith King ASX:14D Financial News TV Interview - 2 minutes https://lnkd.in/gFGmez5U

#Ukraines_Drone_Industry in a Peace time World: As Ukraine looks toward a future beyond its conflict, one industry poised to thrive and potentially lead the world is its drone sector. Its unique position could catapult Ukraine to the forefront of the global drone industry in the years to come. Testing Ground for Innovation The #conflict in Ukraine has served as an unintended but #intense_testing_ground for drone technology. Ukrainian engineers and technicians have developed a range of drones, from reconnaissance to combat, adapting quickly to it’s needs. The urgency and high stakes of conflict have fostered a #culture_of_rapid_innovation, where fast feedback can lead to quick iterations and improvements. This experience gives #Ukrainian_companies a unique advantage in designing drones that are both practical and effective in real-world scenarios. Expertise Gained Under Fire The conflict has also equipped Ukraine with a vast reservoir of #expertise_in_drone_operations. Ukrainian military and civilian operators have gained invaluable experience in using #drones_in_complex_environments. This hands-on knowledge extends beyond mere piloting; it includes tactics, coordination, electronic warfare resistance, and integration with other military systems. As the global drone market expands, the #Ukrainian_professionals will be some of the most sought-after in the world. Thriving Ecosystem Ukraine’s drone industry has not only #grown_in_scale but also in diversity. Startups and established companies alike have been involved in developing everything from basic quadcopters to sophisticated unmanned aerial vehicles (#UAVs) equipped with advanced AI and data processing capabilities. The #industry_is_supported by a strong network of #research_institutions, #government_initiatives, and #international_partnerships. This #ecosystem could easily pivot from #national_security_applications to other peacetime uses, including #agriculture, #logistics, #infrastructure_monitoring, and #disaster_response, all sectors where drones are increasingly vital. Leading the World In a post-war world, Ukraine has the potential to emerge not just as a participant but as a leader in the global drone industry. Its products, forged in the crucible of conflict, and its #unparalleled_operational_experience provide a #competitive_edge that few other countries can match. With the right support, Ukraine could turn its hard-earned expertise into economic prosperity, #leading the world in #drone_innovation and applications. The transformation of Ukraine’s drone sector from conflict necessity to a peacetime powerhouse could be one of the most remarkable stories of post-combat recovery, marking a new chapter for the country on the global stage. We at #ePropelled stand ready to work with the #innovative_partners in drone industry around the world. https://lnkd.in/g5YGjY_J