Individual grants worth a maximum of EUR150,000 will be available to develop and test air defence tech in the first phase.  

Ukraine and the EU have launched a new EUR3.3 million grant in conjunction with Ukraine’s defence accelerator, Brave1, according to a 1 December announcement from Ukraine’s Better Regulation Delivery Office (BRDO).  

The programme will be carried out under the EU for Ukraine (EU4UA) Defence Tech initiative, with the first set of grants focused on air defence capabilities that counter aerial threats. 

Established in September 2025, the EU4UA Defence Tech project aims to strengthen innovation capacity in Ukraine’s defence industrial base and enhance EU-Ukraine security cooperation. 

The first phase of this programme seeks high-speed interceptors capable of travelling at over 450km/h and modern radar and sensor systems, according to Brave1.  

Individual grants under this stage will be worth up to a maximum of EUR150,000, twice the amount of standard grants under Brave1. This funding can be used for technology validations, prototype creation or improvement, and testing. 

Applications will be open to companies with solutions at a technology readiness level of between five and six, the BRDO said, with applications open from 1 December 2025 until 14 January 2026.  

Applicants will then undergo a compliance review, defence assessment, and pitch, with a committee representing Brave1 and the BRDO – as well as representatives from the EU and Ukraine government – selecting the winners. Two further rounds of the grant programme will then be launched in 2026. 

“Protecting the sky from Russian drones is a priority not only for Ukraine, but for the whole of Europe. Thanks to the EU4UA Defence Tech programme, we will be able to bring products to market that can significantly strengthen Ukraine’s defence capabilities and technological autonomy”, Ukraine’s Minister of Digital Transformation Mykhailo Fedorov said.