Transatlantic Defence Innovation Partnership
28 July 2025
The Icebreaker and the European Defense Tech Hub (EDTH) are pleased to announce a transatlantic partnership for dual-use and defence tech startups!
The European Defense Tech Hub (EDTH) and The Icebreaker have joined forces to accelerate defence innovation, uniting Europe's leading defence innovation network with Canada's foremost defence tech community.
Together, we are creating direct pipelines for startups to access operational trials, investor capital, and procurement across the Atlantic.
Founded in June 2024, EDTH is building an ecosystem of defence innovators across Europe. The organization has:
Run hackathons in half a dozen major European cities with over 420 participants forming more than 80 teams and tackling more than 100 real-world challenges sourced from the frontlines of Ukraine and our partners in the EU and NATO
Consistently seen 10-12 defence tech startups being newly founded or propelled forward through the hackathons
Launched a fundraiser together with DroneAid Collective to host drone-building workshops at all of its upcoming hackathons across Europe
Emerging from stealth mode in June 2025, The Icebreaker is Canada’s defence innovation network, on a mission to make Canada a net exporter of defence technology. The organization has:
Launched Canada’s first defence tech hackathon slated for Fall 2025, alonside Canada’s first defence tech newsletter
Launched a national survey with the Council of Canadian Innovators to create a market map of Canadian dual-use companies that can help serve Canada’s defence needs
Launched Canada’s inaugural Defence Power 50 List, and hosted curated networking events across the country
Get in touch with us at readtheicebreaker@substack.com for details on how to participate in the partnership.