The European Research and Innovation Days is an event that this year brought together researchers and representatives of startups, all those who are interested in innovation and implementing it in today’s economy, to discuss the importance of technology.
Entrepreneurs and innovators had the opportunity to present engaging, innovative ideas in short presentations.
The first panel discussion
The first-panel discussion topic is “Why is innovation necessary to win?”. The moderator of the debate, Yevhen Shevchenko, offered to consider the following aspects: the state’s interest in the development of production, the contribution of innovations to victory, and feedback from the manufacturer to the receiver of military equipment.
Innovation helps us win faster. Drones, the eyes of the military, are among the innovations that have improved since the beginning of the war. The speakers said there were significantly fewer drone manufacturers earlier, and due to the large number of requests, it was decided to take a course to increase its production in Ukraine.
«If compared to 2022, then there were about seven drone manufacturers, now there are more than sixty,“- says the communication manager of the “Army of Drones” project, Antonina Romaniuk. The situation has changed; there are more manufacturers, and the state promotes the development of this direction, allocates funds, and supports new innovative ideas.
«This year and for next year, the budget includes 40 billion dollars for the purchase of unmanned aerial vehicles– adds A. Romaniuk. Antonina also says that the development of WB is planned, which will require a lot of work, ideas, and people who will make even more products to win.
The speakers emphasized feedback, which is essential for improving the quality of drones. Innovators must understand the needs of the military to enhance Ukrainian drones faster, correct errors, and make them more convenient and durable.
Danylo Kholyavko, co-founder of the “Dzmil” drone project, says that the drone production process needs to be constantly improved, as it is done for the military. They can always address issues that arise to enhance the product.
The qualification and ability of the military to use various types of drones is an essential factor in the interaction of the supplier with military units:
«Until recently, I think it was somewhere before August, we had a condition: we always have to communicate with the end user, regardless of who they are and what positions they occupy, because we have to know what they have flown before“- adds D. Kholyavko.
Turning to the topic of the production process and its improvement engineer,
scientist and co-developer of charging stations, Artur Shkriblyak, emphasized the problems of supplying product components, creating its composition, and improving appearance. He shared his experience developing charging stations and their adaptation for the front. Artur says that from the beginning, they purchased batteries in Ukraine. Now, they have partners who supply batteries similar to those in electric cars, as they are lighter and more reliable. The developer paid attention to access to the components of the product for prompt response to the problem and improvement.
Questions from the audience helped to reveal the topic of the discussion more; one of them was: «How can investors help turn volunteer initiatives into successful commercial companies?»
Danylo Kholyavko answered this question, stressing that financing salary funds is essential since a team of people on a purely volunteer basis only works for a short time. Also, funds are needed for experiments and research:«Testing drones on the range means that we will fly and, if there is signal suppression, it will fall somewhere in the field – this is a minus of $500, which is critical for a volunteer initiative,» – explains D. Kholyavko.
The speaker also shares the experience of uniting investors to be provided with the appropriate number of components for production:
«Since September, the supply policy has changed. Accordingly, there was a problem with components, but in September-October, this problem became huge, so we started to unite investors who could invest already and now supply enough components. Factories that produce components are overloaded, and to contract not for the monthly production need, but also to grow – a resource is needed»
Antonina Romanyuk spoke about funds that help productions find their investors:
«There is a Ukrainian startup fund in Ukraine (Ukrainian Startup Fund), which has now become an innovation fund, and they are always looking for investors. Many startups need investment on different terms: either they need to scale or help in the logistics field – everyone has a specific need. Therefore, it is necessary to go to this community and understand where and in which directions you can invest your funds. In the field of UAV production, manufacturers also need investments since the state spends money directly on the purchase of ready-made samples, and not on scaling».
At the end of the discussion, the participants could discuss issues with the speakers and exchange contacts for further interaction or cooperation.
The material was prepared by Ilona Saliy, a 1st-year student majoring in Journalism at Vasyl Stefanyk Prykarpattia National University.
The content of the material is solely the responsibility of the author and does not necessarily reflect the point of view of the European Union.
