The new year has begun with strong momentum as we welcomed the NATO DIANA 2026 cohort to London. Janus is the UK accelerator – one of 16 activated accelerator sites across the NATO Alliance.
We kicked off the first week of their six-month accelerator programme and introduced them to the depth and breadth of the UK defence innovation landscape. At the same time, our alumni continue to move forward - securing fresh funding, validating breakthrough technologies and expanding their impact across the sector.
Featured in this newsletter:
Ecosystem:
Welcoming the NATO DIANA 2026 programme to London
AI Verse secures €5M to democratise access to high performance AI training data
RVmagnetics sensors proven in defence and space conditions during testing at National Physical Laboratory (NPL) UK
Other news:
UK has launched a new £20m fund to fast‑track defence contracts
MOD launches new team to back British small businesses
Red tape to be slashed for British robotics and defence innovators
Ecosystem News:
NATO DIANA 2026 cohort launch in London
Last week marked a major milestone for Janus and the Alliance as we officially welcomed and launched NATO DIANA 2026. Eight innovators from seven allied nations joined us on the UK accelerator, developing technologies for contested electromagnetic environments. These companies represent some of the most competitive dual‑use talent across the Alliance: Advanced Magnet Applications (AMA) - LSMedical, Slipstream Engineering Design, FOSSA Systems, TERN, Testnor, Oledcomm, SDQ Solutions Canada and CX2.
During their first week in London, the cohort moved at pace. They completed 11 core sessions aligned with the NATO DIANA curriculum—including defence market research, cybersecurity, dual-use business models, pitching and more. They also met their challenge managers and defence mentors, and were matched with commercial mentors who will provide tailored guidance throughout the programme
The week continued with a dedicated introduction to the UK’s defence innovation landscape. The cohort heard from NATO DIANA, NATO DIANA accredited UK test centres (AMRC, Digital Catapult, Satellite Applications Catapult, NPL), primes and integrators (TEKEVER, Saab UK & BlueBear, Leonardo UK, MBDA), as well as end‑users from the RAF, the Defence College for Military Capability & Integration and UK Defence Innovation (UKDI). These sessions gave founders a clear view of the pathways, partnerships and validation routes that will shape the cohorts next six months on the accelerator.
We closed the week with the official launch event at the Churchill War Rooms, bringing together leaders from across the Alliance. Speakers including Dr Tanya Suárez (IoT Tribe/Janus Allies), Lieutenant General Sir Ralph Wooddisse (Commander, NATO Allied Rapid Reaction Corps (ARRC)), Avril Jolliffe (Director General International Collaboration and Exports - Ministry of Defence) and John Cunningham (Director of Innovation, UK Defence Innovation) set out the strategic importance of dual‑use innovation and the need for rapid capability development. The cohort then took the stage to introduce their technologies, missions and the operational problems they aim to solve.
We’ll be sharing deeper highlights and event moments on LinkedIn - follow us to stay updated.
Alumni news - AI Verse secures €5M to democratise access to high performance AI training data
AI Verse, who completed the NATO DIANA 2025 accelerator programme, has secured €5 million in new funding to scale its synthetic data platform for high‑performance computer vision. The round was led by Supernova Invest, with participation from CAIT, Amundi AAI4, Creazur and returning investors Innovacom and Bpifrance Digital Venture.
AI Verse tackles one of the most persistent challenges in AI development: accessing high‑quality, diverse and fully controllable training data. Its proprietary platform generates richly annotated synthetic datasets for scenarios that are difficult, sensitive or impossible to capture in real‑world environments - from defence and robotics to inspection systems and autonomous platforms.
The investment will support hiring across engineering, product and commercial teams and strengthen the company’s international footprint as demand for synthetic data continues to accelerate.
Ilya Ostrovsky, VP of Sales at AI Verse, reflected on the milestone:
“Exciting times for AI Verse as we raise €5 million to scale our mission of making high-quality AI training data accessible for computer vision scientists.
This milestone is a strong signal of confidence in our technology and our team. It also builds on the momentum we’ve gained through programmes like NATO DIANA, which have helped accelerate our growth and refine our approach to defence partners.
Grateful to all our investors and collaborators for believing in what we’re building.”
The raise underscores both investor confidence in AI Verse’s technology and the strategic importance of synthetic data in supporting more reliable, adaptable and secure AI systems across defence and dual‑use markets.
Alumni news - RVmagnetics sensors proven in defence and space conditions during testing at NPL UK
RVmagnetics, a NATO DIANA programme alumnus, has successfully validated its MicroWire sensor technology under extreme defence and spacerelevant conditions, following a comprehensive Test, Evaluation, Verification and Validation (TEVV) campaign at the UK’s NPL.
The company’s ultraminiaturised MicroWire sensors were tested inside composite samples and subjected to liquid helium (4 K), liquid nitrogen, and exposure to neutron and gamma radiation. The sensors maintained stable, predictable performance across all conditions - demonstrating robustness, resilience and suitability for harsh environments including cryogenic fuel systems, orbital platforms and nuclear infrastructure.
The results confirm that RVmagnetics’ technology provides:
Reliable operation at cryogenic temperatures
Stable magnetic response under ionising radiation
Multiphysical sensing capability embedded directly into composite materials
These findings significantly advance the company’s technology readiness level, supporting future applications in aerospace, defence, hydrogen systems, and structural health monitoring. This milestone marks an important step forward for RVmagnetics as it accelerates industrial deployment alongside customers and integration partners.
In other news
The UK has launched a new £20m fund to fast‑track defence contracts for early‑stage British tech companies, with a focus on AI, robotics and precision weapons. The initiative is part of a wider effort to open up defence procurement to SMEs and shift towards more agile “spiral development” approaches. A new Defence Office for Small Business Growth will also support innovators as the government works to modernise how military capability is sourced and delivered.
The UK has launched the Defence Office for Small Business Growth, a new MoD team designed to cut red tape and help SMEs compete for defence contracts more easily. The team will streamline procurement processes, provide direct support to innovators and form part of the government’s plan to increase SME defence spending by £2.5bn. It marks a significant step toward making the UK one of the easiest places for small businesses to develop and deliver defence capability.
The UK government is cutting outdated regulations that have been slowing down progress in robotics and defence innovation, naming both as new priority areas for the Regulatory Innovation Office. The move includes a £52m investment in new Robotics Adoption Hubs and a direct portal for businesses to report regulatory barriers, with the goal of speeding up how next‑generation autonomous systems and defence technologies reach the field. The reforms aim to make Britain one of the easiest places for innovators to test, scale and deploy new capability.
Join Janus’ community
Stay in the loop by subscribing to our monthly newsletter and following with Janus on LinkedIn.
