On 22 September, Sparkup Tartu Science Park and Foundation CR14 signed a strategic partnership agreement that gives the science park’s startups access to CR14’s cyber range to test their technologies.
CR14 is a foundation of the Estonian Ministry of Defense that develops and operates cyber ranges and provides cyber training and exercise capabilities to NATO as well as Estonia’s public and private sectors. A cyber range is a virtual environment for practicing responses to cyber incidents, testing technologies, and developing and validating dual-use solutions.
The partnership brings this capability to startups early in their development. Sparkup Tartu Science Park companies can test their technologies in controlled conditions that closely resemble real-world use, identify security risks, and gain greater confidence in the reliability and security of their solutions before entering the market.
“For a deep tech startup, proving reliability is often as hard as building the product itself. Our partnership with CR14 gives the science park’s space and defense companies the chance to test and validate their solutions and to learn from people whose expertise has been proven in real exercises. That is exactly the kind of knowledge and technology transfer our science park exists for,” says Andrus Kurvits, Member of the Board at Sparkup Tartu Science Park.
“We are officially bringing our expertise to ESA BIC Estonia, led by Sparkup Tartu Science Park,” said Carl-Robert Reidolf, interim CEO of CR14. “We are providing deep tech startups with cybersecurity mentoring and a dedicated testbed to validate their dual-use technology before it ever reaches a launchpad.”
The partnership is built on a shared goal: to strengthen Estonia’s deep tech and space tech ecosystem, help startups prove the reliability and security of their solutions, and reinforce Estonia’s position as a hub for cyber innovation.
We look forward to the opportunities this partnership will create for our startup community and the wider ecosystem.
