Valkyrie Dynamics raises €1M to develop all-weather radar for drones
A Ukrainian-Lithuanian defence startup has developed radar seekers that let low-cost drones operate in rain, fog and smoke. Valkyrie Dynamics just raised €1 million in pre-seed funding, led by Paris-based venture studio Hexa, to bring its technology to market. Its Kyiv R&D lab tests prototypes alongside frontline operators, cutting development time dramatically.
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30 SEC SUMMARY
- Valkyrie Dynamics has secured €1 million in pre-seed funding to develop radar seekers that keep drones effective in rain, fog and smoke.
- Its Kyiv R&D lab collaborates directly with Ukrainian frontline operators, cutting hardware development time from months to days.
- The startup’s 100-gram Heimdall radar fits into low-cost drones and aims for a price below €300 per unit at scale.
- Hexa’s defence accelerator is backing Valkyrie as it prepares to open European integration hubs for NATO procurement in late 2026.
- Russia’s shift to faster, jet-powered drones is forcing NATO to seek affordable, all-weather interception technology.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
€1M pre-seed to equip drones for all-weather warfare
Valkyrie Dynamics, a Ukrainian-Lithuanian defence startup, has secured €1 million in pre-seed funding. The round was led by Paris-based venture studio Hexa, with support from defence tech angel investors.
Why radar is critical for drone interceptors
Valkyrie’s miniature radars allow low-cost drones to intercept targets in rain, fog or smoke—conditions that blind optical and thermal cameras. Bad weather can cut drone visibility by up to 80% beyond a few dozen metres, creating a critical gap in current systems.
Russia has begun deploying faster, jet-powered drones, which most interceptors struggle to catch. Multimillion-dollar missiles are too expensive to scale, pushing defence forces toward cheaper, mass-produced alternatives.
Kyiv lab speeds up hardware development
Valkyrie’s headquarters are in Lithuania, but its R&D lab operates in Kyiv. There, engineers work alongside Ukrainian frontline operators, slashing hardware development cycles from months to days.
Founder and CEO Marcin Kovalevskij, an engineering physicist, started developing Valkyrie’s radar seeker, Heimdall, during weekends while based in Lithuania. He moved to Kyiv in 2025 after securing initial funding and spent his first five months sleeping on a factory floor—one that had already been hit by missiles.
Heimdall: A €300 radar that cuts through storms
Heimdall, Valkyrie’s flagship radar seeker, weighs just 100 grams and fits into a drone’s nose cone. It uses radio-frequency waves to track targets through conditions that disable cameras. The company aims to price it below €300 per unit at scale—far below the €3 million or more NATO spends on a single missile.
Valkyrie is integrating Heimdall with autonomy systems from partners like Korven Systems, a Ukrainian-Estonian developer. Its roadmap includes next-generation seekers with longer range and a wider field of view, as well as applications for ground vehicles and other unmanned platforms.
Hexa accelerator backs NATO-aligned expansion
Valkyrie Dynamics has joined Hexa Sprint Defense, an accelerator for early-stage European defence and dual-use startups. The programme helps companies transition from customer engagement to manufacturing.
Guillaume Lerouge, a partner at Hexa VC, said Valkyrie’s solution addresses ‘a challenge every European army will face—drones that exploit poor weather to slip past current defences.’
The startup plans to open European technical integration hubs by late 2026 to support NATO procurement programmes.
Key takeaways
- Valkyrie’s Kyiv lab accelerates hardware development by testing prototypes alongside frontline operators, outpacing peacetime R&D cycles.
- Heimdall’s sub-€300 target price could replace NATO’s multimillion-dollar missiles with mass-produced, radar-equipped drones.
- Hexa’s defence accelerator and Valkyrie’s planned NATO-aligned hubs reflect Europe’s push to consolidate defence hardware expertise.
- Russia’s jet-powered drones are creating urgency for all-weather countermeasures, opening a repeat-customer market for startups like Valkyrie.
Related on Lazyfounder
Sources
- Tech.eu · 2026-11-10
From sleeping on a Kyiv factory floor to €1M funding: Valkyrie Dynamics takes on drone warfare
This story is an original summary drafted with AI by Lazyfounder from the reporting listed above and checked by automated validation. Facts are attributed to their original publishers; sections marked as analysis are Lazyfounder's. Where a source is in another language, facts were machine-translated and quotations are reported, not reproduced. Read the original coverage via the links, and see our AI policy and corrections policy.
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Editor, Lazyfounder
Tarun Mottlia edits LazyFounders, covering Indian startups, funding rounds, AI and product launches. Every story on the site is AI-assisted and checked against its cited sources before publication.
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