The gap in counter-drone is the decision, not the sensor.
Pre-revenue, founder-funded, an early prototype at TRL 3–4, and one application in: NATO DIANA 2027. Below: the market with sources, what sets VAERN apart, the roadmap, and what the funding is for.
Cheap drones. Rising sovereignty.
An everyday threat
Cheap drones are an everyday threat to critical infrastructure and forces.
Ukraine has shown the arithmetic
Cheap drones defeat expensive targets. The lesson for everyone else: detection and decision have to be as cheap and as fast as the threat.
Europe is investing
European defence spending and sovereignty are rising.
Market opportunity — as ranges, with sources.
| Segment | Range | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Global anti-UAV / counter-drone | ~USD 14.4B (2026) → ~USD 55.3B (2034) | Fortune Business Insights |
| European counter-UAS | ~USD 1.24B (2025) → ~USD 4.16B (2030) | MarketsandMarkets |
| Ukraine drone procurement (2025) | ~4.5 million units (~USD 2.7B) | Ukrainian Ministry of Defence |
Estimates vary by source.
European funding instruments
| Instrument | Framework |
|---|---|
| EDIP | ~EUR 1.5B to 2027. |
| EDIRPA | ~EUR 300M; requires ≥65% EU components. |
| SAFE | Loans. |
| NATO DIANA 2027 | EUR 100k + up to EUR 300k on the mission track (TRL 4–7). This is the programme's framework — not funding VAERN has received. |
Built for what procurement and ethics require.
- Dual-use & explainable — procurement and ethics fit.
- Operator supported by AI for every consequential decision.
- Software-defined, modular & vendor-independent — integrates existing and third-party sensors.
- European supply chain — sovereignty.
- Partner-effector model — VAERN stays the decision layer.
- Built to the Danish ownership rules — and to the European funding criteria.
Where we are — and what's next.
Maturity: early prototype, TRL 3–4. The target is TRL 5: the layer validated in a relevant environment — real sensors on a real site. The MVP runs the C2 decision layer — one fused air picture, explainable classification, operator authorisation — with simulated, effector-agnostic interceptor commands. The console can be seen in a guided demo.
One application submitted: NATO DIANA 2027 (submitted 3 July 2026; decision December 2026). No other funding, pilots or contracts claimed.
- May 2024Company registeredCVR 44839806, sole proprietorship, Odense.
- 2026First MVPThe MVP demonstrates the C2 decision layer with simulated, effector-agnostic interceptor commands.
- Jul 2026NATO DIANA 2027 submittedApplication submitted 3 July 2026.
- Dec 2026DIANA decision
- PlannedConversion to ApSCapital and board composition to be set under the Danish rules on ownership of defence-materiel companies.
- 2027 →Front validation (BRAVE1) and first Danish pilotIntent. No application submitted, no agreement in place.
VAERN sells the decision layer. Effectors are someone else's product.
Software-defined C2 and the sensor mesh are what we deliver and charge for — per site, including integration of the sensors already there. Effectors come through an authorised partner and are not part of our delivery. Pricing is not fixed; we are pre-revenue.
Denmark → the front → NATO.
Validate in Denmark, then at the front, then alliance-wide through NATO channels.
Where VAERN fits.
Primes
Elbit, Leonardo, Hensoldt, Lockheed Martin/L3Harris, Northrop Grumman, Raytheon, Rafael.
Sensor specialists
DroneShield, Dedrone, MyDefence.
Software / autonomy
Anduril.
Danish names & startups
Weibel and Terma; startups like TYTAN.
What sets VAERN apart is narrow and deliberate. We do not claim better sensors or better effectors — we do not make them. We claim the layer that turns everyone else's into one picture and one accountable decision.
A Danish founding team, being assembled.
Rasmus Møller Jørgensen, 23, Odense. Three years in the Danish armed forces — Army and Air Force — trained as a mechanic, and a glider pilot for close to a decade. He is now assembling a Danish founding team with engineering skills, put together so the company still meets the Danish ownership rules after the conversion to an ApS. The full background is on the company page.
Soft funding, grants and partners — to reach TRL 5. Not a priced round.
What the funding buys: the decision layer validated with real sensors in a relevant environment (TRL 5), the conversion to an ApS, and a first Danish pilot site. The partners we are looking for: sensor suppliers with open interfaces, an authorised effector partner, and a pilot site in Denmark.
Forward-looking information; not an offer of securities.