Launch of the 'Drone Summit' Online Platform Announced
The Drone Summit 2025, an invitation-only event, took place on May 28th in Riga, Latvia, marking a significant milestone in the advancement of drone technology and military applications. Hosted by the Ministry of Defence of Latvia and Riga Technical University, the summit brought together political leaders, military experts, scientists, and industry pioneers from 18 Drone Coalition member states.
The summit's agenda was packed with insightful discussions, focusing on AI-driven solutions, high-performance autonomous drone systems, and scalable drone production methods. The event also delved into the challenges and opportunities of applying these innovations to military defense, as well as the legal and ethical considerations surrounding drone use and international law. Strengthening cooperation among European drone technology and defense partners was another key topic.
Prominent speakers included Viesturs Celmiņš, Managing Director of VEFRESH, who served as the moderator, along with Agris Ķipurs from Origin Robotics, Hendrik Sippl from Airbus Defence and Space, Oleksandra Molloy from the University of New South Wales at the Australian Defence Force Academy, Kadi Silde from Helsing, and Andis Ozoliņš from Law Firm WALLESS.
The Drone Summit 2025 was not just a forum for knowledge exchange but also a platform for trade missions and business matchmaking. Over 40 Dutch drone companies participated, seeking collaboration opportunities with Latvian and Baltic partners. UniLab Defence, a leading Latvian university startup accelerator, hosted pitching sessions and launched Latvia’s first defense pre-accelerator program, further emphasising the event's role in fostering innovation and commercial development in the drone sector.
The summit targeted a high-level audience, including political leaders and defense ministry representatives, military experts specializing in drone and counter-drone operations, scientists and technologists in autonomous systems and AI, industry pioneers in drone manufacturing and innovation, and members and stakeholders of the Drone Coalition.
Latvia, along with the United Kingdom, leads the international Drone Coalition for Ukraine, having sent approximately 5,000 combat drones to Ukraine since the coalition's founding in 2024. The total support of all coalition member states for Ukraine's drone capabilities in 2024 reached 1.8 billion euros.
Interested parties can express interest in attending the Drone Summit by writing to [email protected]. The Drone Coalition remains open to additional members, with applications evaluated separately by the organisers. The Drone Summit was a one-day event held at the ATTA conference center in Riga, Latvia.
European nations gathered at The Drone Summit 2025 to discuss advancements in technology, specifically focusing on AI-driven solutions and autonomous drone systems. During the event, representatives from Latvia and the Riga Technical University addressed the future of drone technology, including its potential military applications.
