
Tough Tech by Tough Ten
Download Report vol.1 2025
Tough Tech by Tough Ten
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The drop is scheduled for the first week of November 2025
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Purpose of the Report
“Tough Tech By The Tough Ten” is a first-of-its-kind overview of mission‑critical innovation ecosystems across defense, dual‑use, cyber, and space industry verticals in the countries situated in proximity to Russia, or 9+1 countries, and 9+1 technology innovation areas.
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The report aims to map investment activity, funding availability, ecosystem stakeholders, startups to watch, and key policy developments in a standardised, non‑sensitive format, emphasising cross-country cooperation, collaboration, and the sense of urgency.
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Countries and Industries covered
The countries covered in this report include the so-called Bucharest Nine (B9) - Poland, Romania, Bulgaria, Estonia, Lithuania, Latvia, Slovakia, the Czech Republic, and Hungary, - with the addition of the 10th tough sovereign player - Finland, which joined NATO in April 2023.
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The startups covered in this report operate in NATO’s 9 innovation priority technology areas, with the addition of cybersecurity of critical infrastructure:
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Artificial intelligence (AI)
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Autonomous systems
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Quantum technologies
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Biotechnology and human enhancement technologies
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Space
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Hypersonic systems
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Novel materials and manufacturing
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Energy and propulsion
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Next-generation communications networks
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Cybersecurity of critical infrastructure (excluded from summary charts)
